Hi Editors of AllSingaporeStuff,

So I was seeking for deed poll services, and contacted Vexus Law, as it was recommended for providing affordable and customized services, only to be ridiculed by the Director of the firm, Mr Ben-Jie Lee for asking "stupid" questions and dismissed for being a "$50 person". I wanted this to raise awareness of this incident but he has since deleted my post at Vexus Law FB page.

Am I wrong to feel that l that regardless of the type of service, the amount that I am paying, I should be treated with respect, like any other potential client?
Hence, I am hoping that by reposting it, people around who are seeking for legal help, to be aware of the kind of "professionals" we are actually spending on ($50 or not).

Attached are screen shots of our conversation, and his updated replies (which he has deleted).
Thanks.

Kathryn Teo
A.S.S. Contributor

At about 1PM yesterday, a 47 year-old Singaporean man ignored warnings to stop his car and drove through Tuas checkpoint uninterrupted before he was finally arrested at Pioneer Road North. The man claims that he misunderstood instructions from officers.

The man allegedly continued driving for approximately 8KM before finally being apprehended by police officers, who were alerted to his breach.

This comes in the wake several poor responses from the Immigration and Checkpoints Authority to past incidences of checkpoint breaches. On 17th January last year,a Malaysian woman drove past immigration by tailgating a car in front of her and was not arrested until 4 days later when she was discovered trying to enter a sensitive government installation.

Amos Yee did not apologise, has never apologised, for the video that he made.

His father made an apology, but apparently that will not placate the lynch mob.

There is a certain pattern that one can observe once the lynch mob closes in. There will be the demand for one to apologise, admit that one has made a mistake. Expectations might be raised because some people think a sixteen-year-old might be easy to discipline. A sixteen-year-old is vulnerable because he is not yet financially independent, has his future ahead of him. He could surely plead youthful folly. And once 'youthful folly' comes into the picture, then one can just dismiss the boy's point of view--it was a foolish opinion, a wrong opinion, blurted out impulsively. No need to examine those opinions on their own terms, no need to rebut them thoroughly and convincingly.

But this is the thing. A 16-year-old like Amos Yee is actually less vulnerable--and more free--than an adult who is tied to some kind of institution. And I have always insisted that one's degree of independence in Singapore is always proportional to how much one is tied to institutions. The civil servant has his rice bowl. The academic has her tenure. The artist has his grants. The NSF has his actual freedom--his precious booking out time--to think about. A PR has her well, PR status. This is how the system has always functioned in Lee Kuan Yew's Singapore to keep people in line. I have had my own experience with this; objecting to some of the things I'd written about Lee Kuan Yew, someone actually wrote in to NAC to complain, as if NAC is my employer or funds what I write on Facebook.

Jason Neo quit his Young PAP post after calling the students from a Muslim kindergarten 'young terrorists'. Amy Cheong was sacked from NTUC after her rant about fifty-dollar Malay weddings. Filipino nurse Ello Ed Mundsel Bello lost his job at the hospital after saying that "we will kick out all the Singaporeans and SG will be the new filipino state". PRC student Sun Xu had his scholarship revoked for calling Singaporeans 'dogs'. Anton Casey was fired from his job after sneering at unwashed Singaporeans who take public transport.

What to do then with Amos Yee, who doesn't have a job, and who isn't even in school? Where is that authority that can discipline him, punish him, make him conform? So the lynch mob starts escalating the case, so desperate to seek out anyone who might have authority over Amos. The parents are publicly shamed for apparently not being able to 'control' the boy. So the police are brought in. The courts. The mental institution. A vigilante even smacks Amos, convinced that he is acting on behalf of the mob.

Nobody in Singapore should have the kind of freedom that Amos Yee so brazenly flaunted, just because he is not shackled to institutional wardens. It is an audacious taunt, an affront to all those who lead defeated lives of quiet compromise. It makes them sore, and it makes them vicious.

Scoot deeply regrets disruption to guests affected by the flight delays over the weekend. We sincerely apologize for the inconvenience caused to their travel plans.
The principal cause of the disruption was a technical fault experienced upon arrival of TZ220 at Hong Kong on Friday morning. Initial attempts to resolve the issue failed and, ultimately, a spare part and team of engineers had to be dispatched from Singapore.

With a small fleet and one aircraft out of action in Hong Kong a number of flights were rescheduled, including Saturday’s TZ8 from Singapore to Perth. During checks prior to this flight, a tyre issue was detected requiring a wheel to be changed, a process that took three hours. Regrettably, this new delay meant that the operating crew could not complete the flight in their legal duty time and were obliged to stand down but, because of earlier rescheduling of flights, no standby crew were available. Consequently, TZ8 was delayed overnight until a new, rested crew was available.

The safe operation of our airline is paramount and will not be compromised. Occasional technical issues nonetheless happen, to any airline, and the smaller the fleet, the larger the effect on schedules. As Scoot’s fleet grows from 6 to 11 aircraft this year our ability to absorb such events will significantly improve but, even so, Scoot is also reviewing the handling of these two flights to refine our processes and procedures.

As readers will be aware, Scoot has never shied away from the fact that low airfares come with a quid pro quo, which is that hotel accommodation is not assured in the rare event of disruption, and that travel insurance is highly recommended. These conditions are made known to and are acknowledged by every passenger at the time of booking. Notwithstanding, Scoot elected to provide hotel accommodation in Hong Kong to passengers on TZ221 and lounge access and F&B vouchers at Changi Airport to those on TZ8. Over the next 24 hours, Scoot will be reaching out to guests on the two affected flights with compensation vouchers over and above the Guest Promise stated on our website as an indication of our regret.

We again apologize to those affected, assure them that their safety was at the core of our actions at all times, and commit that we will learn from this experience.

Campbell Wilson,
Chief Executive Officer

When asked, 31 year-old Singaporean arts business administrator Eric says that a good life in Singapore would mean "opportunities to explore my interests, good relationships with the people around me and to practise my faith."

He added that these goals did not have anything to do with career advancement or material progress for Singapore, which is often trumpeted in the mainstream media.

In a media survey of 4,000 people, Eric is in the majority.

Asked to pick between a comfortable pace of life and career advancement, 59% chose the former. This rose to 62% among those married with children.

While the government has always assumed that young and single Singaporeans may prefer a faster pace, slowing down only when they start families, the survey showed that even those in the age groups of 15 to 19 and 20 to 34 mostly preferred having more to life than just material growth.

But this does not mean that younger Singaporeans just want to slack off and lack the grit of their parents' generation. Eric explains that Singaporeans do constantly strive to be the best, but they are simply tired of being threatened by rhetoric of the "hard trade-offs" given to them by the government - between competitiveness and comfort, between stress and mediocrity.

"In a sense, we are top in so many fields and have done so well, but we are supposed to live with a perpetual sense of insecurity," he says. "It wears people out in the long run. It's not that we don't want to pursue excellence, but that's not the only thing we want to pursue."

The Durian season is upon us!

Durian insiders say that this year's harvest is twice as abundant and prices have dropped to a new low! With quality fruits going for cheap are you ready to feast? But before you run to the nearest durian seller, why not first check out this definitive Durian guide to experience what the different magical types of durians have to offer.

This way, you know what you are paying for. Happy feasting but watch your calories... if you can resist :P

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The next time you take a bite out of food in a Chinese restaurant, you might want to take a closer look (or sniff).

China's customs have discovered dishonest merchants shipping decades old frozen rotting meat into the China. They hauled over 3 billion yuan (HK$3.8 billion) worth of illegal frozen chicken, beef and pork - some of which had packing dates going back to the 1970s.

According to Xinhua news, the most recent crackdown has netted over 800 tonnes of rotting meat at a Changsha wholesale market on 1st June.

Police also revealed the extent to which these merchants have gone to conceal their dishonest practices. Before its arrival in Changsha, the rotting meat had been shipped to Hong Kong before being packed and sent to its next port, Vietnam's northern seaport of Haiphong. In Vietnam, the meat would be broken up into smaller consignments at the border city of Mong Cai before being smuggled into China.

After arriving in Changsha, the meat had been destined for dissemination to other parts of China, such as Guangdong, Sichuan and Chongqing , where it would enter restaurants, supermarkets or be sold online.

"It was too smelly! [There was] a whole truck of it. I almost threw up when I opened the door," said an officer in the operation.

Some of the meat had already started to thaw and rot when it arrived in Changsha after 12 hours on the road. It was placed in cold storage for refreezing before being sent out again.

According to Hong Kong's Centre of Food Safety, edible products imported for consumption are subject to surveillance, but it does not usually conduct tests on food being exported or re-exported.

Dear A.S.S.

My friend was at Changi Airport Terminal 1 Gate C19 when he saw this PRC lady tourist eating her biscuits while seated on the lounge chair. To his surprise, after eating her biscuits, this lady cleaned up the biscuit crumbs that had fallen onto the chair and disposed the mess nicely in a litter bin nearby.

He was truly impressed by this Chinese lady's act of civic mindedness. He shared this because usually news about PRC Chinese is negative and thought this is a breath of fresh air and worthy of praise.

Once again kudos to this PRC lady for showing Singaporeans the other better side of Mainland Chinese.

Charlie Teo

A.S.S. Contributor

These condoms change color when they come into contact with sexually transmitted infections borne by their users, according to a UK medical academy.

The 'S.T.EYE' has a built-in indicator to detect infections such as chlamydia and syphilis, turning a different colour depending on the strain of bacteria present.

What's even more surprising is that these nifty condoms were invented by students under the age of 16, which is ironically below the legal age of consent for sexual intercourse.

But this did not stop 14 year-old Daanyaal Ali, 13 year old Muaz Nawaz and 14 year-old Chirag Shah. The Isaac Newton Academy students invented the condoms because they wanted to "make detecting harmful STIs safer than ever before" without the need for invasive tests.

The students were awarded the TeenTech prize for best health innovation.

"We wanted to make something that make detecting harmful STIs safer than ever before, so that people can take immediate action in the privacy of their own homes without the invasive procedures at the doctors," says Daanyaal. "We've made sure we're able to give peace of mind to users and make sure people can be even more responsible than ever before."

37 year-old corporate travel manager Melinda Teo is suing Aljunied-Hougang-Punggol East Town Council (AHPETC) to get a refund for the service and conservancy charges (S&CC) she paid to them between November last year and May this year.

According to Teo, who lives in Parkland Residences, a Design, Build and Sell Scheme estate, she said she should not have paid the fees to the Workers' Party (WP) as it took over the management and maintenance of the property only since 1st June.

Before that, the project's developer, Kwan Hwee Investment, had to step in to clean the common areas.

Earlier this month, more than 300 residents of Parkland Residences petitioned AHPETC to waive or refund their S&CC. But their appeal was not answered by either the town council or the Workers' Party MPs, said Ms Teo.

AHPETC has said that it has to compensate Kwan Hwee Investment for the maintenance work done before 1st June, and as such, it would not be returning the S&CC rates to residents.

According to a court document issued by the Small Claims Tribunal to AHPETC, a representative of AHPETC must attend a meeting on 2nd July. Otherwise an order would be given against AHPETC in its absence, which could include mandatory compensation to the claimant for claims below $10,000.

Ms Teo said she decided to go down the legal route as "our e-mails and petition have only received the silent treatment from the MPs and town council". She added that several neighbours have expressed interest in filing similar claims with the tribunal.

Former NTUC president and Member of Parliament Phey Yew Kok was charged today for offences that he committed more than 3 decades ago.

He had been charged with 4 counts of criminal breach of trust amounting to $83,000 in December 1979, but had jumped bail and fled Singapore in 1980 to escape his charges. At the time, he also faced 2 charges under the Trade Unions Act for investing $18,000 of trade union money in a private supermarket without the approval of the minister.

Phey turned himself in to the Singapore Embassy in Thailand, and was escorted back to Singapore on Tuesday. When he returned to court, all 6 charges were re-read to the now 81-year-old Phey.

Prosecution has applied for Phey to be remanded at Changi Prison for investigations as they will push more charges against him. Phey's pre-trial conference is scheduled for 23rd July.

Speaking to the media, Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong said: “Phey Yew Kok was facing charges of Criminal Breach of Trust when he absconded while on bail in 1980. He has now turned himself in and returned to Singapore. He has been charged in court, and the law will have to take its course. This will bring closure to a long outstanding case involving a person who was holding public office as an MP and a senior union leader.”

According to a recent blog post, the Land Transport Authority (LTA) has just announced that taxi drivers can now install in-taxi camera so as to deter potential troublemakers of both drivers and passengers. I'm not sure where they got the news from nor whether it's a confirmed fact.

Nonetheless, if it's true, to me, as a taxi driver, it's the best news of the day. I always believe that deterrent is the best form of prevention.

I think you have not forgotten how a cab driver was killed by a Ferrari driven by a Chinese national, who beat a traffic light at high speed, ......how another cab driver was slashed in an unprovoked attack in the early morning hours somewhere in Jurong, ........And another cab driver beaten unconscious by Korean male passenger who complained about his "lousy" taxi. All these incidents happened three years back. Lately, there were at least 4 cases of drunkard passengers beating taxi drivers up after refusing to pay their fares. I'm sure there are many other nasty taxi related incidents that goes unreported.

These reported incidents might give the impression that cab driving is a hazardous job in Singapore. I don't think so. Why? Because at anytime, there are at least 15,000 taxi drivers on the road plying passengers. Most passengers are normal, decent and law abiding human begins. Only a few are douche bags. I endeavor to be "street-smart". The rest I leave it to fate to decide my destiny. Having said that, I think any "measures" from the "G" to protect cabbies from attacks by passengers is a welcome gift, like this lifting the ban on in-taxi camera. Previously, the LTA ban in-taxi camera recordings citing intrusion of privacy as a major concern.

In Singapore, how much privacy do we have anyway?. CCTV is omnipresent in many public places like shopping malls, bus stops, HDB lift landing areas, banks, schools, hospitals and popular roads/lanes. Even unregulated private domes with telescopic lens are flying freely in housing estates. So, like it or not, "Big Brother is perpetually looking over our shoulders EVERYWHERE".

Many households has CCTV at their front door too. Whether these household CCTV cameras are real or fake, most burglars would avoid households that has one displayed. It, therefore, acts as a deterrent. So, the same principle of deterrent effect can be applied inside a taxi with a real or fake camera. Even a bold red sticker reading "CCTV On Board" might deter prospective criminals or aggressors of taxi drivers.

If a real CCTV miniature camera is installed at a inconspicuous spot inside the taxi, the images or audio recording captured can be relayed through the GPS system to the taxi operator control center and not into a taxi driver's hand. The facial images stored would certainly helps the police in any criminal investigations or provides audio evidence in case of driver/passenger disputes. To allay commuters fear of invasion of privacy, only taxi company or the authorities can have access to the password-protected camera recordings. Like elsewhere in this world, nobody trust lowly taxi drivers.

Now, regarding the in-taxi camera, the big question is whether taxi operator is willing to bear the cost of needlessly spending million of dollars to protect taxi drivers. Frankly, they are more concern of their bottom line than anything else. As long as rental is collected, they do not care how the drivers survive or care about their safety.

Everyone knows that airbags had save thousands of lives since their introduction in early 1980s. To maximize profit, the most despicable thing some taxi companies had done was instructing their taxi manufacturers to dispense with and remove the airbags of all their taxis. Is LTA aware of this unscrupulous act or are they closing an eye while bedding GLC partners?. Toyota Wish taxis of Transcab has airbags but not COMFORT taxis. What about SMRT, Premier and Prime Taxi?. In case you are inside a COMFORT taxi, try to avoid being a front seat passenger and if you are a COMFORT taxi driver, GOD BLESS YOU!.

COMFORT has installed in-vehicle camera facing the road to protect their interest in case of a traffic accident insurance claim and certainly not to protect their drivers from potential aggressors. If cost overrides the safety of their drivers, perhaps COMFORT could be persuaded to spend just a few hundred dollars on cheap "CCTV On Board" stickers instead of a real camera as a deterrent effect on potential criminals and for the sake of their drivers.

I find the whole saga of “managing Amos” baffling. First, months ago, Amo's mother told the court that Amos was assessed on 2 separate occasions before the trial began, by IMH psychiatrist(s).

Weeks later in court, when he rejected probation, he was remanded in prison for 3 weeks to assess his suitability for RTC. What was the diagnosis given to Amos by the team of psychiatrists and psychologists who assessed him? Did they agree with Dr Winslow that Amos has ASD (Autistic Spectrum Disorder)? Was their report tendered in court yesterday (23 June 2015)?

If they had concluded that Amos is NOT suitable for RTC, couldn’t they also comment whether Amos is suitable for MTO (Mandatory Treatment Order) because after all, all psychiatrists, besides diagnosing a patient, are also supposed to provide a treatment plan (which will include medications, counselling, treatment (e.g. MTO as an outpatient or an in-patient in an institution such as RTC or IMH) and support for caregivers.

Now, is the remand at IMH for a further 2 weeks to assess his suitability for MTO necessary? Especially after spending a gruelling 3 weeks in remand, also for the purpose of assessment? Hence, in total, we are saying Amos needs 5 weeks for assessment, first for suitability for RTC and now, for MTO!

Instead of remand at IMH for 2 weeks, shouldn’t Amos be assessed as an outpatient regarding suitability for MTO? Moreover, shouldn’t the psychiatrist(s) who had seen previously him at IMH also provide a report to the court to state a) their diagnosis of Amos and b) whether he is suitable for MTO?

Dr. Ang Yong Guan

Editor's Note: Dr Ang is a pschiatrist and owner of Ang Yong Guan Psychiatry Pte Ltd. He is also one of the founding members of the Singaporean First Party. He served as a psychiatrist with the Singapore Armed Forces between 1986 and 2003 and retired from the SAF (with the rank of Colonel) as Head of Psychological Medicine (now Psychological Care Centre), Military Medicine Institute, HQMC. He is currently in private practice. He is also a Visiting Consultant to the Institute of Mental Health.

The three man arrested for attempted murder have been identified as Myanmar nationals Yae Wynnt Oaung, 32, Phyo Min Naing, 31, as well as Singapore permanent resident Zaw Min Hlaing, 37. They were charged in a district court with the plotting to murder another Singapore permanent resident, Aye Maung Maung Thet, 28.

The victim was Aye Maung Maung Thet, a 28 year old engineer who apparently had a sexual affair with an unnamed Burmese female. The lady had approached 37 year old Zaw to settle her relationship problem with Aye.

They were charged with conspiring to murder a fellow national with a gruesome collection of instruments including a chainsaw, a meat mincer, a cleaver and a chopping board.

The police revealed that a fourth suspect, 29 year old Myanmar national Win Kyaw Kyaw Aung had left Singapore on Monday morning

The four men attempted to abduct Aye Maung Maung Thet at a suburban carpark on Sunday evening, with two of them assaulting him with a taser, an electrical device designed to stun and disable a person, court documents said.

“Before the State Courts on Tuesday (Jun 23), District Judge Jasvender Kaur said that a report by Dr Munidasa Winslow said that Yee may suffer from autism-spectrum disorder. This emerged from the reformative training suitability report, which found the accused physically and mentally suitable for reformative training. (CNA)”

However we should by now realize that it’s the PAP which needs psychiatric help. Amos’ condition isn’t worse off than the PAP which suffers from delusional disorders.

A person with delusional disorder or paranoid disorder cannot tell what’s real or imagined. This is a serious type of mental health disorder called psychosis.

Everyone including Hitler and Stalin had suffered from similar forms of disorder during their reign. The same goes for PAP.

Delusional disorder refers to a condition associated with one or more non-bizarre delusions of thinking — such as expressing beliefs that occur in real life such as being poisoned, being stalked, being loved or deceived, or having an illness, provided no other symptoms of schizophrenia are exhibited.

Delusions may seem believable at face value, and patients may appear normal as long as an outsider does not touch upon their delusional themes. Mood episodes are relatively brief compared with the total duration of the delusional periods. Also, these delusions are not due to a medical condition or substance abuse.

Themes of delusions may fall into the following types: erotomanic type (patient believes that a person, usually of higher social standing, is in love with the individual); grandiose type (patient believes that he has some great but unrecognized talent or insight, a special identity, knowledge, power, self-worth, or special relationship with someone famous, or with God); jealous type (patient believes his partner has been unfaithful); persecutory type (patient believes he is being cheated, spied on, drugged, followed, slandered, or somehow mistreated); somatic type (patient believes he is experiencing physical sensations or bodily dysfunctions — such as foul odors or insects crawling on or under the skin — or is suffering from a general medical condition or defect); mixed type (characteristics of more than one of the above types, but no one theme dominates); or unspecified type (patient’s delusions do not fall in described categories).

We can’t let an insane Government run Singapore.

Psychology student

What a bad day!!! When we just reached JB and waiting for the traffic light, suddenly two robbery with motorbike came nearby us and broke our car glass which they tried to take away my wife bag.

What make me felt disappointed was the police officer in Malaysia which don't allowed me to make police report due to the time for bukapuasa. Just a kind reminder for all friends that always be alert when you enter MALAYSIA.

My wife having cut by shattered glass, ask medical treatment from police officer MALAYSIA,they just simply give 1 roll of toilet paper and bandage ourself

Advise from a lot of my Malaysia friends saying that currency S$1 - RM2.8-3,better don't enter J.B.

This is so call MALAYSIA BOLEH...

UN Human Rights organizations speaking out in defence of a mischievous and irresponsible kid? How dumb. They should be closed. They are a disgrace to humanity. They are propagating Western values of unfettered freedom and irresponsible rights. Countries should be careful with these useless organizations. If you listen to them, your problem with get worse and they will blame you for that.

Examples:

UN Human Rights organizations advocate unrestricted freedom of movement of people between countries.

When the flesh trade flourishes in your country, the same organizations will accuse you of aiding human trafficking.

AIDS/HIV infected people are free to travel around the world without restrictions. When they cause an explosion of AIDS/HIV cases, the authority of the country they travel to will be accused of not doing a good job of controlling the disease.

These damn organizations will cry foul when you hang drug traffickers. But if you don’t and your country becomes a transit point for drugs, they will turn around and accuse you of aiding drugs trafficking.

SG should not waver in response to their statements. You know how mischievous and irresponsible kids in the West are nowadays? They have no respect for their elders, no respect for authority. They converse with profanities and vulgarities, they indulge in porns, alcohol, drugs, sex and all sorts of vices. We don’t want our kids to end up like theirs.

What humanity really needs are UN organizations which promote “Human Rights with Responsibilities”.

otorwa

This is exactly the spot where my daughter's tutor sits when he comes to tutor her.

He is a pious Christian. His free times are spent on missionary works. And when he is at my house, he has to sit under those frames.

Did he complain that I was trying to convert him? Or that those Arabic names for Allah and Muhammad would lead him astray from his faith? Or that they would "rosakkan aQidah saya?"

Did he ever request that his sitting be changed? Or that those frames be moved away or at least be covered by a batik sarong?

Did he ask me to "respect" his faith? Or not to "insult" him or his faith?

Well, he never did. Not even a word about those.

That raises a question. Why is it that many Muslims in Mesia nowadays demand to be "respected" just because they are fasting? Why the need to close school canteens during Ramadhan? Why must non-Malay pupils be asked to drink behind closed doors and even in the toilet? Just because our kids are learning how to fast? Well, aren't the non-Malay kids as well?

I don't care whether the minum-air-kencing statement was a joke. That misses the point.

The point is why must non-Malays adjust their life to facilitate us, Muslims Melayoos, to fast?

If that was necessary, why don't we ask our non-Malay brothers and sisters not to study too hard so that we the Melayoos could at least get respectable marks during exams compared to them? Ask them to "respect" our inability to get good exams results? (I am not saying ALL of us are unable lah...so please don't get emo with me here).

Or ask them not to work too hard so that they don't make too much more money than us.

I call it self-pity.

Which is, a pity, really.

A fire the size of a football field broke out yesterday at about 9.15PM on Pulau Ubin, an island northeast of Singapore.

A netizen, HarithHarith, tweeted that the location of the fire was along the Ketam Bike Trail on the island.

10 Singapore Civil Defence Force (SCDF) personnel and Police Coast Guard officers were on the scene.

The SCDF told media that they had received a call for help at about 9.18PM and deployed a fire engine, a red rhino and another vehicle to the site. They disocovered that a piece of vegetation had caught fire and was put out by canvas beaters and water.

Outward Bound Singapore (OBS), which has a training camp on the island, posted on Facebook yesterday to inform concerned members of the public that none of the participants in their camps were affected by the fire.