Dear ASS Editors,

There was a huge commotion at a Singapore hawker centre after a Singaporean woman questioned a Filipina for her dressing. The Filipina was dressed in netball attire and had the words "SINGAPORE" emblazoned on the back of her shorts.

Upset with the Singaporean's unreasonable questioning of her attire, the woman flew into a rage and this attracted many onlookers. Witnesses say the lady involved was a domestic helper who just played a game of weekend netball.

Was the Filipina being disrespectful to Singapore or is the Singaporean being too sensitive and xenophobic?

Previously, the Singapore mens swimming team were asked to change their swimming trunks after the cresecent and stars of the Singapore flag were emblazoned on their trunks and drew the irk of Singaporeans.

Chin 

A.S.S. Contributor

Dear Editor,

As I was glancing through the various accounts of Singapore history, from a British Crown Colony to its present state after curiosity aroused from reading some of your rebuttal posts on official government positions, I realized that we not only had a rich history of Multi party vibrant contests but also of our Courtroom "dramas" filled with the victories of Jewish lawyer David Marshall and trials by a Jury.

I feel that Singaporeans at large should start researching our legal norms which was changed over time to suit the ruling party's needs rather than the people's and that we should bring back trials by qualified Juries rather than have our fate single handedly decided by a PAP dominated Judiciary! LKY's argument to abolish the Privy Council and especially the Jury should be re-looked at since its abolition was filled and motivated with inconsistencies rather than sound executive judgement. LKY said picking up any Tom, Dick or Harry from the streets (of Geylang Serai) to be a juror is unsafe and hence we should not rely on this Commonwealth practice.

I say that this line of argument does not carry weight, for we can still have a jury but filled with rotating persons from the legal fraternity with proper legal training to come to a concise decision in light of past controversial judgements based solely on political considerations of either the ruling party and its grassroots leaders or Government/NTUC owned businesses. Since the government has introduced unlimited liability on the part of aggrieved appalants, it should similarly ensure fairness by having 7 men and women of integrity access the cases than 1. After all, don't 7 heads function better than 1?

With public knowledge of the soon to be commenced legal proceedings by Hri Kumar against the Worker's Party Town Councillors and the party's own "Bricks in Blue" accounts to wipe out and taint Opposition politics in Singapore, the fact of Judicial Independence cannot be overemphasize! #seperationofpowers #powertothepeople

Chris Minjoot

Dear ASS,

LAMC proudly proclaims as the first local event organizer to bring in GNR. LAME being the 'innovative' trailblazer of firsts, embarked on using RFIDs for food and drink purchases. "You can pre-top up your wristband now to avoid all the hassle and queuing on show day!" (complete bullsh1t)

End Result: A great band, and potentially great concert experience completely F-UP for the first time by a greedy, lame events company which decided to PROFIT MAXIMIZE every cent. A complete FUBAR GONG SHOW. (2hrs+ to get-in, No ticket checks after 7pm, nonchalant staff, insufficient food/drinks/buses, 2hrs+ to get-out, etc).

Under the Income Tax Act, an events company must withhold tax on payments to non-resident entertainers, then notify and forward the withheld tax to the Comptroller of Income Tax. A lame events promoter entered into five contracts with the management company for the stars (Stereophonics, Pussycat Dolls, Lady Gaga, Keane and Dionne Warwick) who performed here in concerts in 2008 and 2009, but failed to declare and pay the tax withheld.

In Mar 2015, this lame company was fined a total of $280k by IRAS, making them the first local event promoter to be prosecuted and convicted for tax offences.https://www.iras.gov.sg/irashome/News-and-Events/Newsroom/Tax-Crime/2015... Withholding-Tax/

Its no wonder this rogue company tried to pull a fast one, by making concert goers 'pre-pay' for food that wasn't enough in the first place. Hoping that the herd/'cash cows' (customers) will just 'forget about it'! Once bitten, twice shy. "Never In This Lifetime" shall we patronize their events.

#DontCry #NeverAgain #Boycott #LAMEProductions #Knudson #Alabons

Lucifer Abalone
A.S.S Contributor

<Credits: Rosebelle Tucino Tacayon>

Please help to share!!!! We as domestic helpers we deserve to be well treated, not physically and emotionally abuse by our employers!!!!!!! One of our Kababayan from Balabag Sta. Barbara loilo was physically abuse by her employer here in Singapore and we cant tolerate this....

Please do share this video so that we can find justice for her...we need your help and prayers..thank you so much!!!! Law is law in Singapore,and abusing the helpers physical is punishable by the law,,,,,,, we dont have to be scared!!!

We all have the right to fight for our Rights because were here to work to find money for our​ family back home and not to be abuse physically..

Thank you gha Lynshedie Baltasar....for the video...this will help a lot!!!!! Looking forward for justice soon

<Credits: kannymayo>

I live in this rented unit and I have informed the condo management roughly 1 hour after it happened (it happened around 1120 am today) , but we couldn't find out who did this. We found a Li-on battery on top of the panel, which we suspect has shattered the glass.

I guess my ass is covered by the clause in tenancy agreement where it states i only pay up to 100 dollars for major repairs. But i am really pissed by whoever did this and i suspect it is the same dude who has been throwing cigarette butts to the very same glass panel non-stop since i moved in. So i really want to see him dealt with.

Anyone knows what i should do to help identify the offender or prevent it from happening again. NEA? Police? I felt the condo managment hasn't been very helpful coz they are just like "ok, i'll let my boss know and tell the residents not to throw". Thanks

Dear A.S.S. Editor

DPM Teo Chee Hean said that Singapore purposely sent younger ministers for the recent delegation to China as a forward-looking move to build relationships that our founding fathers had helped build with China.

I think this is just another excuse. The delegation was more Singapore's show of backing down after the recent issues with China, where some of our Ministers started slamming China's foreign policy, and China retaliated by their show of strength. These young ministers probably sent there to be taught who is the boss in this region, if by any chance they start to forget and think they can have their own way with other countries like how they have they own way with their own citizens.

Anyways, this is a working trip for the ministers. Now, when someone goes on working trips, they better bring back some good business. So, this is the same for the Ministers. Don't just go there for holiday, better bring back China investments to Singapore. Just like what Malaysia and Philippine leaders achieved when they visited China. Your pay are many times higher than theirs. Time to work hard.

Goh A L

A.S.S. Contributor

Dear A.S.S. Editor

The authorities here cannot see any old, rustic places, they must have a hand in how to develop the area, right? They will point to Singapore being land scarce, thus any free available space is a space to be developed.

The next on their list of targets is the Sembawang Hot Spring. The land that the hot spring is on is actually located within a military camp, but the Defence Ministry has returned the land back to the authorities. Thus, the plans to develop the area into a park, which will also incorporate the hot springs.

Why can't they just leave the hot springs alone? Need to build a park around the area so that families can do what? Walk in the park? Have a picnic near the hot springs? Always want to intervene, and do something, even if not required to. If the area is really developed into another park, there is a high chance that the rustic feel of the place will be gone. When will the authorities realise that rustic feel is more than just retaining its physical appearance. It is a whole package, where the tranquility of the place must not be compromised.

Lau H L

A.S.S. Contributor

Dear A.S.S. Editor

I knew it! Ever since news of Nokia relaunching their iconic 3310 phones, somehow don;'t see how they will want to bring in that phone. With the phone running on 2G Network, and Singapore ending its 2G network by April this year, bringing in Nokia 3310 for sale here just is not making sense.

Today, it has been confirmed. The iconic phone is not likely to be brought into Singapore to be sold in the open market, simply because they cannot run on any 2G networks here. So, spoilsport Singapore has done it again. While people all over the world rejoice in bringing back an iconic phone that ruled the market long before androids and smart phones were a word, Singapore can just look from afar and collectively say we once owned those phones, but will never own it ever again today.

Singapore is all about the future, the past has long been consigned to the rubbish bin.

Chio LS

A.S.S. Contributor

<Credits: NUS Whispers>

Tall, handsome and rich. Yes those qualities can be found in my boyfriend.

So what is bothering me now? One particular fact is that my boyfriend is not a combat fit ns guy( Meaning that he is just a 8-5 clerk) last time as compared to other combat fit males who are yet shorter and looks weaker. However, I have tried closing one eye regarding this.

What makes me really furious is the fact that he behaves like some ah gua. I remember that there was one incident where some girls hurled verbal insults at me. Instead of protecting me, he sat at a corner and cowered in fear. What a useless guy! The girls even proceeded to bully him after they had enough of me, leaving him in tears?!! What? Such a big guy yet so weak on the inside! It was so embarassing.

If my boyfriend cant even protect himself from nasty gals, how can I rely on him to protect me from guys? This is such a headache. Sometimes having those tall rich handsome qualities are pretty useless.

Dear A.S.S. Editor

Oh my goodness! What is this news about MINDEF Internet System breached? Just recently, our dear PM had come out and said quite strongly that we must protect ourselves from online data theft, for this is the new wave of cyber attacks that we should be security conscious about.

And of all the agencies to have their system breached, it is MINDEF? The breach, which happened earlier this month, has resulted in the personal data of 850 national servicemen and employees being stolen. No classified military data were stolen in the breach of the I-net system, MINDEF said. Classified military information is stored on a separate system that is not connected to the Internet and has more stringent security features, it added. Even so, to have data of your employees and national servicemen stolen is not a good way to shout out about your strong defenses.

If our very own military defense cannot keep its security data from being breached online, then what hope do we have? The big question now is, is security as tight as it's cracked up to be? MINDEF Internet System so easily breached, what hope does others have then?

Patrick Koh

A.S.S. Contributor

A female student from NUS Business School penned a heartbreaking account of the latent racism she faced as the only Indian lady within the faculty. She recounted how her majority Chinese schoolmates often spoke in Mandarin and were unaware of her inability to understand what they were talking about. The lady was allegedly warned by an Indian Professor privately that in order for her to succeed, she needed to work extra hard to beat the competition.

Despite her experience with such latent racism in NUS business school, she admitted that such perceived racist experience was not a unified experience which all minorities would undergo. She just wished to let people know these issues exists and to get it off her chest.

"Even before I actually started school, NUS Business School had some orientation event. I remember this particular Indian professor came up to me and in Tamil asked me my name and where I was previously from. After that he then whispered in Tamil, “We are the minority here. You have to work extra hard if you want to succeed here.” I smiled and said that I will. So far, I have never been taught by him and I never really saw him after that incident. I guess those words set the tone for the years that followed.

NUS Business school is predominantly made up of ethnic Chinese. You would see Singaporean Chinese, Malaysian Chinese, Indonesian Chinese, Chinese Chinese and what not. I am not complaining. That’s diversity, isn’t it?! It has been drilled into me since I was a kid that I will always be a minority wherever I am unless I work for some Indian organisation. The difference is that up till poly, I always had at least one minority friend in my class.

Suddenly, I was all alone. So they said that to make friends, you need to go for Orientation week and so I did. Don’t worry, this is not about some dirty game that I was forced to play. Coming to think of it, that might have been better(No, I am kidding. I don’t want to lick whipped cream off anyone). We had a lot of games and for some reason, it required everyone to say some “phrases” in Mandarin. I can’t speak Mandarin because I have never learnt it. I struggled to remember the phrases and say it properly. But I tried my best. Having noticed this, my group’s leader came up to me and asked me how come I didn’t know Chinese?

I was taken aback because no one has asked me that before. Like it was an expectation. Everyone in Singapore is supposed to know. I told him that I didn’t take Chinese in school. He got very confused. If the question that he had already asked wasn’t bad enough, he then asked me if I was a Singaporean and if I was born in Singapore. That was a slap on my face. My nationality was questioned because I didn’t speak Chinese. Wow. It was just plain ignorance. I can’t remember what I said after that or if I even said anything at all. I was just stunned.

Since primary school, I have been on the receiving end of Appunehneh jokes and jokes on my skin colour. It doesn’t help that you’re a girl and that too a fat one. I had foolishly hoped that when I go to university, it would all stop because people would be less ignorant. I realized that it had just taken another form.

My first semester was the hardest. When I had entered NUS Business, I had no friends because none of my friends from SP or Yishun Secondary School were in NUS. My brother was starting his first semester in NUS too. But I did not want to bother him as he was finding his way as well. During breaks, I would sometimes join my classmates but they would often speak in Mandarin and I would just not understand.

I gave them the benefit of the doubt that they did not know that I did not understand Mandarin. One day, during a class on cross cultural communication, I shared my experience in NUS Business School where sometimes people leave me out in conversations by speaking in Mandarin. Following that public confession, it just never happened to me again. Maybe it was my fault that I did not tell them the first time they did it. Wait, I think I did. They probably thought that I was just joking. But this is what makes it difficult. You would have to forever be explaining and earning your rights. It would just never come easy.

While the previous incident was bad, it is not bad as the one as the one that I’m about to tell. To commemorate NUS Business School’s 50th Anniversary, there was a Special notebook giveaway at the BBA office. There were limited number of books and being the Kiasu Singaporean who loves freebies, I went to the NUS BBA office to collect it. While the people before me were allowed to just take it and leave, when it came to my turn, the staff told me that they were only for NUS BBA students. I said that I am one.

He asked me to show my matriculation card but seeing that I was going to take it out, he said nevermind and giggled. I stared at him. In a vain attempt of lightening up the situation, he said that he’s a racist and giggled again. I just took the book and left immediately. I was disgusted by the entire event. That was just another reminder that I would have to forever be explaining and earning my rights. It would just never come easy."

Click on the link below to read full article.

Dear A.S.S. Editor

Regarding the news on the 23 year old driver who was killed when the car he was driving in had an accident and turned turtle at Neo Tiew Lane, Uber would like to clarify that the accident did not occur during an Uber trip.

The unfortunate accident and tragic aftermath did occur with the rental car under the Lion City Rentals, which is a partner of Uber. A spokesperson of Lion City Rentals (LCR) had released an official statement, which can be read below:

"We are incredibly saddened to learn that the LCR hirer has passed away, following a road accident. Our thoughts are with his family at this time. We are doing everything we can to support them and cooperate with authorities in their investigations.”

Candice Goh

<Credits: The Alternative View>

The rat problem has reared its ugly head in Bedok North again. This time, the "beneficiaries" of the Town Council's incompetence are residents of Blk 551 at Bedok North Ave 1 who have been battling fearless rodents for over six months.

Residents there reported that these rats are so fearless that they scamper around in broad daylight unafraid of humans. One resident even found the seat and wire of his motorcycle chewed up by a rat.

According to the owner of a shop in the area, rat exterminators had visited the area to flush out the rodents but the problem has not abated.

Dear Editor

I refer to the article “Singapore, China ink pacts on Suzhou Industrial Park, Tianjin Eco-city and other bilateral projects” (Straits Times, Feb 27).

It states that “Suzhou Industrial Park (SIP): A letter of intent was signed by its Administrative Committee, National University of Singapore and the Institute of Molecular and Cell Biology to deepen cooperation in the biomedical industry. The industrial park, the first of three joint government projects, was started in 1994.”

I remember that there were issues about transparency and accountability, as to how much losses were incurred on the SIP? So, I googled “Suzhou Industrial Park losses” and found the following:

“Singapore has accused the Suzhou authorities of directing investors to their own wholly owned, nearby industrial and economic zone where land and service charges are cheaper. The decision to pull forward the transfer date is the clearest evidence so far that Singapore wishes to reduce its involvement in the ailing venture. It would cover a total of 70 square kilometres and be developed over a 20 year period at a total investment cost of US$20 billion, according to the original plan. So far, eight square kilometres have been completed.

Just 48 companies moved to the park in its first three years, bringing in total investment of $3.24 billion. Another 30 are said to be building facilities there, but the Singaporeans fear interest may have already peaked. Lim Neo Chian, chief executive of China-Singapore Suzhou Industrial Park Development, has appeared on Singapore’s Insight television programme and complained that the commercial and residential aspects of the township had been a complete flop. “We’ve hardly made any progress at all,” Mr Lim said.

The original plan envisaged more than 100,000 people living within the hi-tech industrial town. Instead, its population stands at just 500, providing little in the way of a workforce. For several years there have been rumours of discontent over Singapore’s flagship venture in the mainland, but no-one dared speak out. That silence was finally broken in December last year when Singapore Senior Minister Lee Kwan Yew visited the mainland and delivered a blunt message to the Suzhou municipal authorities about their attitude toward the high-profile joint venture.

He told them they needed to decide whether to back the Sino-Singapore park or its rival municipal project, where costs were lower. Mr Lee warned if Suzhou authorities decided on the latter, “then it should devote all its resources to it and the SIP will bow out”. President Jiang Zemin subsequently came out and pledged the mainland’s support for Singapore’s multi-billion dollar venture, offering a ray of hope. Lim Chee Onn, the park’s former chief, told Insight that Suzhou officials “did not quite understand the purpose” or had “lost sight of the original goal” of the project.

Singapore officials also said they felt an “investor-friendly mindset has not been internalised” by mainland workers in Suzhou. To aid in the park’s transfer, Singapore officials now intend to accelerate the transfer of know-how and software so that the park and companies within it can continue under mainland management control. A Singapore consortium owns 65 per cent of SIP, while mainland companies hold the rest.” (“S’pore govt loses patience with Suzhou park”, South China Morning Post, Jun 4, 1989)

So, were Singaporeans ever told how much we lost?

Leong Sze Hian

Dear A.S.S. Editor

I refer to your article "S'pore Chulia Mosque Imam Accused Of Cursing Christians & Jews During Friday Prayers" (27 Feb). I believe some explanation is necessary.

In comparison to AlQuran Chapter 6:108, "And insult not those whom the disbelievers worship besides Allâh, lest they insult Allâh wrongfully without knowledge." and Chapter 60:8, "Allâh does not forbid you to deal justly and kindly with those who fought not against you on account of religion nor drove you out of your homes. Verily, Allâh loves those who deal with equity.",

The supplication by the Friday imam is one of Islamic teachings (Chapter 2:286) against non-Muslims who wage war or commit atrocities against Muslims worldwide, namely Palestine, Iraq, Afghanistan, Bangladesh, and NOT meant for tolerant and law-abiding multi-religious Singaporean citizens, as explained by the renowned scholar Syeikh Utsaimin :

"For the land in which you are living is such that there is an agreement between you and them. If this were not the case they would have killed you or expelled you. So preserve this agreement, and do not prove treacherous to it, since treachery is a sign of the hypocrites, and it is not from the way of the Believers."

And know that it is authentically reported from the Prophet that he said, "Whoever kills one who is under and agreement of protection will not smell the fragrance of Paradise."

All Muslims are obliged to preserve such agreement as law-abiding citizens in their respective countries. Hopefully the above info would quash any aspersion triggered by Mr Nunis, the whistleblower who misunderstood the context of the speech, and is trying his best to put forward his deviant and wicked interpretation of the AlQuran, Aamiin.

Soalan Cepumas

A.S.S. Contributor

Dear A.S.S. Editor

Interesting news today about the new bus company, Tower Transit, placing it's signature scent on its buses. This is to make the start of the journey with the company's buses more pleasant for passengers.

So high tech, but research had indicated that pleasant scents can enhance moods. Good to see that the new bus company is going all out to provide a better and comfortable journey to its paying customers. Transport fares are rising, the least the bus companies can do is to make our journey as pleasant as possible. Hopefully, this move by Tower Transit will force the main players, SMRT and SBS Transit to up their game.

Only with such world-class facilities on our public transport system can we begin to class ourselves as having a world class transport system

Gary Oh

A.S.S. Contributor

Dear A.S.S. Editor

Nearly a year has passed since the tragic incident that claimed the lives of 2 SMRT Trainees. Today, SMRT had finally been fined by the courts $400,000 for safety lapses leading to the accident. The train operator pleaded guilty to one count of failing to ensure the safety and health of employees, under the Workplace Safety and Health Act.

While the amount might seem too little for a company that make millions in profit every year, the basic principle here is that they were found guilty. If the Courts already found you guilty, that means you are solely responsible for this accident. Further, the court also revealed that “systemic and prolonged” breaches had been ongoing. “This is not a one-off incident. Here, the breach was committed by workmen on the ground and station managers. This was done with approval from Operations Control Centre.

The judge also commented, in passing the sentence, that it was highly disconcerting that the failures were systemic and had occurred on many levels, despite having safety protocols in place. Apparently, employees were left to adopt whatever practice they deemed convenient. Official safety protocols on paper were either unknown to employees or completely disregarded.

All of us know that you can never take safety for granted. But the way SMRT acts, you get the feeling that safety protocols are not the most important thing for them then.

Adnan A

A.S.S. Contributor

<Complaint by Yumiko Jas>

I got to learn in a hard way that receiving a parcel that was wrongly sent by a company was termed as a thief.

A regalia set includes:
A gown
A mortar board
A hood

As I have the gown and the mortar board, I placed order for the hood with Murdoch University which they engaged the service from Regalia craft Pty ltd to provide for the Regalia.

I was notified to head down to Singapore Wikiedge to collect my hood. Upon receiving the gown I realised that they sent me a whole set instead of a hood. I have informed the Kaplan staff on the spot and they reassured me that the parcel is correct and it belongs to me therefore I left with the parcel.

On 25 Feb, Regalia Craft contacted me and informed that they made a mistake and sent me the whole set which she then demand me to head down to wikiedge to return the item. When I refused to head down, the staff screamed at me and rudely hang up the phone. She then sent me a text accusing me as thief. I have offered her to send a courier to collect the items from me since it was their mistake but it was not answered to.

Today I contacted Murdoch University and Kaplan to request for a letter of apology and also to send a courier to collect it from me in which they ignored my request and still insisted of me heading down to return the item just because they didn't want to spend on a courier despite it was their mistake.

I'm so disappointed in Kaplan, Murdoch and Regalia Craft for the unethical and unprofessional approach they have taken as service recovery for their mistake done.

Apparently I graduated from an University who accused me as thief.

FYI:

based on Singapore statutes S67

‘‘unsolicited goods or services’’ means goods or services that are supplied in relation to a consumer transaction to a consumer who did not request them, but does not include goods or services supplied to a consumer who knew or ought to have known that they were intended for delivery to another person unless it was reasonable to believe that the goods or services, if delivered to that other person, would have been unsolicited goods or services.

Unless and until the consumer expressly acknowledges to the supplier in writing his intention to accept and pay for the unsolicited goods or services, the consumer may use, deal with or dispose of the goods or services as if they were an unconditional gift to him from the supplier.

Dear ASS Editors,

Today (28 February 2017) at about 6:40 pm, I was at Newton Downtown Line MRT station when I saw a shatter glass panel/door at the platform. The shattered glass panel was cordoned off by SBS transit, the operator of the MRT line.

When I took out my phone to snap photos of the damaged glass panel, an SBS staff stopped me and told me I was not allowed to snap photos of the damage.

Why is SBS transit staff preventing the public from taking photos of such incidents if they have nothing to hide?

Cheong
A.S.S. Contributor

In Lee Hsien Loong's latest interview with BBC's Stephen Sackur for the programme HARDtalk, Lee was quizzed on Singapore's lack of freedom of expression and freedom of the press. Lee retorted immediately saying that the interviewer Mr Sackur was not restrained at all in asking him any questions, hence proving there is freedom of expression in Singapore.

Sackur though momentarily stunned, recovered quickly and repeated his question on whether PM Lee was prepared to offer wider freedoms for the Singapore press if Britain were to make these demands pre-requisites for any trade deals between Singapore and the UK.

Lee went on to deflect the pointed question by turning it on the UK and said that just as he would not presume to tell the UK press how they should operate, likewise, the UK should not be telling or deciding how the press or the country should be run in Singapore.

PM Lee went on to cite Singapore as having one of the world's fastest internet to justify the lack of censorship and highlight the easy access to dissenting views online.

Lee Hsien Loong ended off by saying that nobody had a monopoly on virtue, widsom or morals and reiterated that the world was a diverse place. If the UK or anyone else were unable to accept these differences in values and allow everybody to prosper together, it would become very difficult.