SINGAPORE - Commuters will soon be able to tap in and out of MRT stations and buses in style with the launch of new EZ-link smart wristbands.

The first series to be launched under EZ-Link Wearables is the Batman v Superman Fitness Tracker x EZ-Link, which will be priced at $42.80 and made available exclusively online from 11am on Jan 24.

A second series, the Garmin vívosmart HR with EZ-Link (below), will be launched at major retailers from end-March with a price tag of $259.

Besides using the wristbands to tap and pay for public transport, users can also pair the devices with the Watchdata Wearables mobile app via Bluetooth to monitor their fitness in terms of the number of steps they have taken, the amount of calories burnt and their sleep quality.

Last year, Garmin integrated a similar contactless chip into the Vívosmart HR band in Taiwan which lets users pay for train rides, bus trips and retail purchases via the I-Pass electronic wallet stored within the chip.

According to Garmin South Asia, the launch will make Singapore the first country in South-east Asia to have a contactless payment system that allows commuters to pay for public transport rides with a tap of their wrists.

huizhen@sph.com.sg

SINGAPORE - A 53-year-old woman was killed after a van ran into her at the junction of Jalan Sultan and Victoria Street on Wednesday (Jan 18) night.

Police and the Singapore Civil Defence Force (SCDF) were alerted to the accident at about 11.50pm.

The pedestrian, who was pinned under the van, was declared dead at scene.

She was extricated using hydraulic rescue equipment, SCDF said.

The grey sedan hit a traffic light, causing it to topple over.

It is understood that the van was turning right from Jalan Sultan into Victoria Street when it knocked the pedestrian down.

The 69-year-old van driver was arrested for causing death by a rash act.

SCDF sent two fire bikes, one fire engine, one Red Rhino, an ambulance and a support vehicle to the scene.

Police investigations are ongoing.

Eight people were injured in a road accident at the same junction on Dec 11.

A grey sedan travelling along Victoria Street had crashed into a black MPV travelling on Jalan Sultan, toppling a traffic light and injuring a pedestrian.

This article was first published on Jan 19, 2017.
Get a copy of The Straits Times or go to straitstimes.com for more stories.

Singapore will lift its Reciprocal Road Charge of S$6.40 (RM20), which will start from Feb 15, once Malaysia imposes its Road Charge (RC) at the Thai border.

The matter was conveyed to Malaysian High Commissioner to Singapore Datuk Ilango Karuppannan by the republic's Transport Minister Khaw Boon Wan.

Singapore has always viewed the implementation of RC in Johor as being targeted at vehicles from the island state, saying that Malaysia was being selective in imposing the charge as vehicles coming through its other border were exempted from it.

In an interview here, Ilango said he was informed by Khaw that the republic would lift its charge once Malaysia starts to implement the RC at the Thai border.

"They see the RC as a type of toll collection and they will match it whenever Malaysia increases the toll charges at the Causeway or Second Link," he said.

Ilango said Singapore had been informed that it was for all foreign-registered vehicles and not just Singaporean.

Asked whether the increase by Singapore came as a surprise, Ilango said its government had already stated that it would match the charges when the RC was implemented.

He said Singapore implemented its vehicle entry permit (VEP) in 1973 while Malaysia only just started it last year.

"Anyway, it makes sense for Malaysia to charge foreign vehicles the RC, especially for the maintenance, and wear and tear of our roads," Ilango said.

Asked about the impact of the RC on Malaysians, he said only those driving Malaysian-registered cars would be affected, as there were also many Malaysians who were driving Singapore-registered cars to avoid the existing VEP.

He said 105,000 to 110,000 Malaysians commuted between Johor and Singapore daily with a majority of them riding motorcycles.

Singapore's Land Transport Authority announced that from Feb 15, all foreign-registered cars will have to pay an RC of S$6.40 when they enter Singapore via the Tuas or Woodlands checkpoint.

The new charge mirrors Malaysia's RC of RM20 per entry for foreign-registered cars entering Johor, which was implemented last November.

The Land Transport Authority said the RC would be collected together with the VEP, toll charges and fixed Electronic Road Pricing fees upon departure at the Tuas or Woodlands checkpoint.

Meanwhile, Transport Minister Datuk Seri Liow Tiong Lai said he welcomed Singapore's decision to lift its Reciprocal Road Charge if Malaysia also implements it at its other entry points bordering Thailand.

Liow stressed that the move was not meant to discriminate Singaporeans.

He said Malaysia was looking at implementing it at the Thai border possibly by middle of this year.

Malaysia began to impose the RM20 RC at the Causeway and Second Link since Nov 1. In response, Singapore announced that it would also enforce a Reciprocal Road Charge of S$6.40, on top of the VEP of S$35 (RM109).

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Photo Gallery

Surviving the Causeway crush

Source: The New Paper

SINGAPORE - An "under-sized" drain in Upper Thomson that is currently being expanded to help with flood management was not enough to prevent yesterday's downpour from flooding the area again.

A joint statement from PUB and the Land Transport Authority (LTA) said it would take until the third quarter of this year for contractor Sato Kogyo to widen the existing canal located along Upper Thomson Road and Jalan Keli.

The statement said Sato Kogyo has been widening it to enhance the drainage system and improve overall flood resilience in the area.

"LTA has also instructed the contractor to expedite the completion of the canal widening along Jalan Keli," it said.

In the meantime, Sato Kogyo has changed the drain covers to facilitate the flow of water, and placed sandbags at several locations to prevent the water from flowing into the shophouses in the area.

Read also: PUB takes action against contractor responsible for Upper Thomson flood

PUB had earlier said it would be taking action against Sato Koygo as the temporary diversion drain constructed by the contractor within the worksite of the upcoming Thomson-East Coast Line was found to be under-sized, and the contractor did not inform PUB prior to the commencement of these works.

Yesterday, heavy rain occurred from 3.10pm to 4pm, recording a total rainfall of 59.2mm.

Even with the anti-flood measures, a flash flood occurred at the junction of Upper Thomson Road and Jalan Lembah Thomson for about 20 minutes.

No shops were affected.

Store manager of Tomoe Japanese Cuisine, Miss Susan Poon, said several cars parked outside her shop were affected by the knee-high water.

Read also: Choked drain at MRT work site caused flash floods

She told The New Paper: "We are lucky our restaurant is on high ground. We see a lot of floods here recently. If there is heavy rain, it is bound to flood. Business is also affected because customers cannot come if there is a flood."

The statement said the flood was from 3.44pm until 4.05pm.

The shops near Jalan Keli that were affected by the flood on Christmas Eve, which are located on lower ground, were not affected yesterday.

'NOTHING WE CAN DO'

An employee at ice cream parlour Salted Caramel told TNP their shop has not taken any precautionary measures despite being affected by the flood last month.

She said: "We are worried because if there is a flood, there is nothing we can do. Maybe we will try to use something to block the gaps under the doors."

Read also: Heavy rain causes commuters to be stranded in flooded bus

Mr Jamal Mohammed, 50, an employee at The Roti Prata House, said yesterday's flood was about ankle-deep, but it did not flow into their eatery.

"The rain last month was much heavier (compared to yesterday's), so we knew it wouldn't flood. If the rain is heavier, we would get worried and start moving goods up."

Mr Jason Tan, store manager of Tom Yum Mama, a Thai eatery located along the same stretch, said the restaurant had just opened on Dec 30.

"The flood last month affected the construction (of the shop), but LTA said they would take precautionary measures to prevent floods, so we are not too worried," he said.

Mr Erwin Budiawan, 27, store manager of cafe Badoque, said the sandbags placed by Sato Kogyo had lessened his worries.

Read also: Orchard's anti-flood works 50 per cent complete

He said: "Of course we are scared of flood, but compared to last time, there are more people taking care of it now. We know what to expect.

"But we are still worried that sales will be affected."

None of the shops that TNP spoke to had taken precautionary measures of their own.

bxliew@sph.com.sg

This article was first published on January 20, 2017.
Get The New Paper for more stories.

In a small town on the outskirts of central Nepal stand three greenhouse farms.

Vegetables and tomatoes, as well as high-value crops like shiitake mushrooms and herbs, are grown there.

The farms were built thanks to $31,000 raised by two Singaporean students.

Mr Xu Jiakun, 24, and Miss Lim Xin Tong, 22, are final year undergraduates at Duke University in the US.

They were spurred into action after travelling to Nagarkot town in 2014 to teach English to lower secondary students as part of a university programme.

But they found that some of the 180 students from Shree Janakalyan Lower Secondary School would skip school to work on family farms, while others were too hungry to focus during lessons.

"Most do not have lunch and the few that do, bring some dry grains," Mr Xu told The New Paper.

Many students live in houses of tin sheets or mud, and few have electricity.

Miss Lim said: "I see so much potential in each of these children, and I want to do whatever I can to help them get closer to realising their ambitions."

MEALS

Concerned, the pair decided to raise money to fund meals for the students.

They were turned down by the many businesses they approached, and so took to crowdfunding platform Indiegogo.

They also made postcards and donation boxes which they set up at shops near their campus for contributions.

After raising $20,000 and travelling to Nepal several times to set up a meal programme and liaising with school staff members, the greenhouse idea sparked.

Mr Xu said: "The farming idea came to us as it is a common source of income in rural schools around the world and farms can be used for many purposes such as teaching science classes."

The $31,000 raised from both campaigns covered the costs of farming equipment, irrigation, and seeds for the greenhouses.

Crops at the greenhouses will play a dual role. High-value crops, such as the mushrooms and European herbs, are sold to hotels in Nagarkot, while other vegetables and tomatoes are meant for the students.

They worked together with a non-governmental organisation to build the greenhouses next to the school, which span the area of a basketball court, and which became fully functional last month.

The Nepalese students have organised themselves to take turns tending to the crops.

Mr Xu and Miss Lim now hope parents will be encouraged to send their children to the school.

Having returned from their self-funded third visit there, Mr Xu and Miss Lim are trying to make the farm more self-sustainable, hoping it becomes a model for other schools.

"They suffer from poverty, minimal infrastructure and even climate change.

"This is within our capacity as individuals to help them," said Mr Xu.

Those who wish to contribute can do so at bit.ly/project-sapana

leeganjp@sph.com.sg

This article was first published on January 20, 2017.
Get The New Paper for more stories.

Parents in Singapore are fretting over their kids' online habits and getting bullied online.

But despite these jitters, many parents do not take active steps to ensure their children are protected from the dangers of the Web.

Only a third of parents took such steps last year, according to survey findings released yesterday.

Among the chief concerns of parents here were: children downloading malicious programs or computer viruses, and disclosing too much personal information to strangers online.

They were also concerned that children would be lured into meeting a stranger in the physical world, according to a survey by security technology firm Norton.

About two-thirds of people cited these issues.

The study also found that most parents - 71 per cent - said they allowed their children to access the Internet before age 11.

But just 39 per cent of respondents allowed their kids to access the Web only with parental supervision last year.

This is a slight increase from 2015's 35 per cent.

The report, which is in its second year, polled more than 400 parents here in September and October last year.

About 1,000 people here above the age of 18 were surveyed.

Only about a third of parents here had preventive measures in place to protect their children online last year - allowing access only to certain websites and allowing Internet access only in household common areas like the living room.

These are similar to 2015's figures.

But more parents are taking some form of action rather than none at all. In 2015, 32 per cent of parents surveyed said they took no action at all over their children's online activities.

This improved last year, falling to 11 per cent.

Mr Lawrence Tan, 36, who has two children aged eight and 10, said he limits their Internet exposure to assignments on their school website.

He occasionally allows them to watch YouTube videos and cartoons on his mobile devices.

"I make sure they are fully supervised and I take the opportunity to bond with them," said Mr Tan, who works in a healthcare firm.

More parents here are also worried that their children will be cyberbullied. Almost half of the parents surveyed - 48 per cent - believe their children are more likely to be bullied online than on a playground, up from 37 per cent in 2015.

While 9 per cent of parents said their child was a victim of cyberbullying last year, down from 15 per cent from 2015, Norton said the issue might be under-reported.

This is because parents may not recognise the signs of cyberbullying, which include appearing nervous when receiving texts or e-mail or deleting their social media accounts.

"A concern for many parents is that cyberbullying doesn't stop when their child leaves school - as long as your child is connected to a device, a bully can connect to them," said Mr Gavin Lowth, vice-president for consumer business unit in Asia-Pacific and Japan at Symantec, which owns the Norton brand.

Children may also be on the receiving end of aggressive people online, instead of full-blown cyberbullying, which is also a problem, said Mr Poh Yeang Cherng, principal consultant at cyberwellness consultancy firm Kingmaker Consultancy.

This is due to the ease of accessing the Internet now.

"Kids who play online games, for instance, may experience aggression there. Many games involve both young children and adults so what an adult can handle or deems acceptable could be a shock to children," he said.

lesterh@sph.com.sg

This article was first published on Jan 20, 2017.
Get a copy of The Straits Times or go to straitstimes.com for more stories.

More than five years in the making, Singapore's first road-rail viaduct will open on Feb 18.

The Tuas Viaduct stretches 4.8km from Tuas Road to Tuas West Road, with a 2.4km stretch of the upcoming Tuas West MRT extension running 9m above it.

It has been built in anticipation of the heavier traffic that will come with developments in the west of the island - the highlight of which is the Tuas Port.

The viaduct runs 14m above Pioneer Road, which is already often congested with heavy vehicles.

It is currently configured as a dual two-lane road.

But an expanded road shoulder can be converted to a third lane in each direction to support "longer-term developments within the Tuas area", said the Land Transport Authority (LTA), which announced the viaduct's opening date yesterday.

Tuas Port is expected to complete the first phase of its construction in 2020 and handle all of Singapore's port activities from 2027.

Construction on the viaduct began in 2012, with a combined budget of $3.5 billion for both the road viaduct and the rail extension, which includes the Tuas Crescent and Tuas West Road stations.

To handle the additional weight of both the road and rail line, the viaduct sits on 94 columns, each of which can support 13,000 tonnes.

This is more than six times the load of a column for the freestanding part of the Tuas West extension rail viaduct, which can carry 2,100 tonnes.

Mr Andrew Yap, Tuas West extension project director at LTA, said that integrating the road and rail components not just optimises land use along Pioneer Road, but also reduces the building cost. The 7.5km MRT extension is scheduled to open in the second quarter of this year.

To avoid confusing motorists when the viaduct opens next month, new directional signs will be put up.

Marshals will also help direct traffic for the first few days after it opens.

Mr Allan Lim, the chief executive of a biodiesel company in Tuas South, hopes that the viaduct will help alleviate congestion, describing the traffic on Pioneer Road as "bad", particularly during peak hours.

Added the 43-year-old: "The congestion is caused by heavy commercial vehicles, which don't always keep to the left lane, and slow down smaller vehicles."

This article was first published on January 20, 2017.
Get a copy of The Straits Times or go to straitstimes.com for more stories.@sph.com.sg>

There will be more certificates of entitlement (COEs) for the February to April quota period, with an average of 8,795 certificates available each month, up 8.9 per cent from the current period.

For car buyers, the increase is slightly sharper at 11.6 per cent, with the number of COEs (including for the Open category) available per month going up from 6,973 to 7,781.

The figures released by the Land Transport Authority (LTA) yesterday revealed that the bigger supply comes on the back of more vehicles having been taken off the road in the October to December period.

A total of 27,775 vehicles were deregistered in the last quarter of last year, up from 26,613 scrapped from July to September.

Some market observers expect the bigger supply of car COEs to send premiums south.

Mr Neo Nam Heng, chairman of diversified motor group Prime, said: "The private-hire market is saturated, the current economic outlook is poor, interest rates are rising. All these factors, combined with the bigger COE supply, should soften prices."

Mr Ron Lim, general manager of Nissan agent Tan Chong Motor, said that "whether COE prices will drop still depends on overall retail demand and also whether private-hire car companies will continue with their aggressive expansion".

Mr Lim is quite certain though that commercial vehicle premiums will rise.

Firstly, the supply of commercial vehicle COEs will shrink by 10.8 per cent in the next three months.

Secondly, more than 15,000 vans, trucks and buses will see their COEs expiring in the first quarter alone - versus fewer than 1,000 fresh COEs available.

Even if half of the owners decided to renew the COEs of their vehicles, demand would still far outstrip supply.

Industry watchers said that if commercial vehicle premiums spike, buyers will dip into the Open category for certificates.

If that happens, car buyers - who typically dominate the Open category - might not see prices falling much.

The February to April supply is also bigger because there were fewer commercial vehicles registered under the Early Turnover Scheme, as well as taxis added to fleets.

Buyers in these two categories of vehicles do not bid directly for COEs, but the LTA accounts for them in the form of deductions in new COE quotas.

The latest adjustment was 1,960, 34 per cent lower than the 2,959 made in the previous quota.

christan@sph.com.sg

This article was first published on January 20, 2017.
Get a copy of The Straits Times or go to straitstimes.com for more stories.

SINGAPORE - The number of new cars put on the road last year surged by more than half from 2015, with the top four brands now being Japanese.

Thanks to an expanded certificate of entitlement (COE) quota, there were a total of 87,504 registrations last year, up 52 per cent from 57,589 in 2015, said the Land Transport Authority.

But the lineup of top three brands differed from that in 2015.

Honda took over as Singapore's favourite car brand from the second half of last year, followed by Toyota, which had ruled the roost in 2015 and 2014.

At No. 3 was Mazda, which displaced Nissan.

Mercedes-Benz, once Singapore's fourth most popular make, is now No. 5, thus giving Japanese car-makers a sweep of the top four spots.

But unlike in previous years, where Toyota led the runner-up by a big margin, Honda managed only a slim lead last year.

Its total of 19,349 passenger cars (see table) was only 858 units more than second-placed Toyota.

The registration numbers included parallel-import models, which are not sold by authorised distributors.

Mazda, which was No. 5 in 2015, also had only a small gap between it and Nissan.

Elsewhere down the Top 10 were the same brands as in the year before, except that Volkswagen overtook Hyundai in Q4 2016 to move up one place to No. 9.

The Hyundai tally, of course, does not include taxis, which authorised Hyundai distributor Komoco sold 2,742 units of last year.

Outside the Top 10, Audi also advanced one place to No. 11, switching places with Kia, which closed last year in 12th place.

Among authorised distributors, the Toyota Corolla Altis remained Singapore's top model for the third consecutive year, with a total of 4,923 units registered (see table).

As in 2015, the Mazda3 and Nissan Qashqai were in second and third places respectively.

Also similar to 2015 was that the only luxury models in the Top 10 were two Mercedes-Benz saloons - the compact C-Class and the mid-sized E-Class.

Between the two, the E-Class is usually sold in higher numbers, but a full model change in 2016 affected its availability.

A new entrant to the Top 10 was the Mitsubishi Attrage, with 1,726 units.

The strong demand for this budget mini-sedan last year came from private-hire companies.

Also noteworthy was the return of the Toyota Camry (1,096) to the Top 10.

The mid-sized sedan edged out the Nissan Sylphy compact sedan into 11th place in Q4 2016.

samuelee@sph.com.sg

This article was first published on Jan 20, 2017.
Get The Business Times for more stories.

SINGAPORE - Another Mercedes-Benz has been caught travelling against the flow of traffic.

Video footage from an in-vehicle camera shows the black sedan turning out from a carpark onto a one-way road.

Just then, a taxi can be seen turning onto the same road and towards the Mercedes-Benz in the opposite direction. Fortunately, both cars managed to stop in time. Five seconds later, the Mercedes-Benz driver appeared to make an attempt to U-turn.

The 22-second clip was posted on community monitoring Facebook page Beh Chia Lor on Wednesday (Jan 18).

The location of the incident is unidentified, but netizens speculate that it took place at Bedok North Street 3.

The incident comes a month after a fatal accident on the Ayer Rajah Expressway (AYE) in which a driver allegedly drove his Mercedes-Benz against the flow of traffic, killing a motorist and injuring three others.

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Photo Gallery

1 dead, 3 injured in AYE accident

Source:

Lim Wee Teck

Rozaidy

Facebook screengrabs

On Jan 5, another car was seen travelling in the wrong direction on the AYE, nearly colliding with an oncoming vehicle.

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Photo Gallery

Vehicle caught going against traffic along AYE towards Tuas

Source:

Facebook video screengrabs

A day later, The Straits Times reported that more such offences are coming to light thanks to the rise in use of in-vehicle cameras.

huizhen@sph.com.sg

The number of dengue cases is relatively low for now, but there could be an uptick in the coming months.

The National Environment Agency (NEA) warned yesterday that the increase could peak in the middle of the year.

NEA's projection is based on data from its Gravitrap surveillance system, which detected about 60 per cent more Aedes aegypti mosquitoes last month than in last October.

"If left unchecked, the high Aedes aegypti population may lead to a surge in dengue cases in 2017," the NEA said in a press statement.

Another factor which may lead to more cases is the high diversity of circulating dengue serotypes. DENV-2 was the dominant dengue serotype for much of last year, so anyone who contracted that type is immune, but the predominant serotype this year remains unclear.

"Historically, a change in predominant dengue virus serotype has been followed by a spike in dengue cases," said the NEA.

The agency also urged those spring cleaning for Chinese New Year to properly dispose of any refuse, including large items, so that they do not become unintentional mosquito breeding habitats.

It asked residents to prevent mosquito breeding by changing water in vases and turning over all water storage containers that are not in use.

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Photo Gallery

Myths about the Aedes mosquito and dengue

Source: The Straits Times, AFP, Reuters, Shutterstock.com

Those intending to travel during the upcoming holiday period should also mosquito-proof their homes by adding insecticide in roof gutters and making sure there is no stagnant water accessible for breeding.

Madam Grace Lee, who will be travelling during the holiday weekend, said she usually covers the toilet bowls at home when her family is away.

"Our area was a dengue hot spot previously, so it is better to take precautions," said the 60-year-old cashier, who lives in Bishan.

A total of 13,115 dengue cases were reported to the Ministry of Health (MOH) from Jan 3 to Dec 31 last year.

More than 1.2 million inspections were conducted by the NEA last year, including 7,400 at construction sites.

The inspections were meant to prevent not only the transmission of dengue, but also that of the Zika virus, which mosquitoes can also carry.

The NEA discovered more than 16,000 mosquito breeding habitats. About 3,900 households were fined. More than 60 court prosecutions were taken against contractors for repeat offences, while more than 60 stop-work orders were issued to construction sites.

In February last year, the MOH and NEA warned that the number of dengue cases for that year could hit a new record high, exceeding 30,000. The NEA observed a 50 per cent increase in the number of mosquitoes caught in its Gravitraps in January last year, compared with the figure in January 2015.

"Despite an early surge in the number of cases early in 2016, the situation was brought under control," said the agency.

This was due to various factors, such as intense vector control efforts and the unusually high temperatures, which can shorten a mosquito's lifespan.

This article was first published on Jan 20, 2017.
Get a copy of The Straits Times or go to straitstimes.com for more stories.

SINGAPORE - Diabetics are three times more likely to die from severe liver disease than those without the condition, a local study on over 60,000 Chinese Singaporeans has found.

And the surprise finding is that lean diabetics are at a higher risk than their overweight counterparts to die from fatty liver disease.

The findings were released at a media briefing on Friday (Jan 20).

Diabetes and obesity are known globally to increase the risk of fatty liver disease. This happens when fat accumulates in the organ, it becomes scarred and cannot function properly.

Also read: Cases of fatty liver disease rising in Singapore: Study

"At first I thought it could be double-whammy, overweight people who also have diabetes should have the higher risk," said Professor Koh Woon-Puay, who is from Duke-NUS Medical School, and principle investigator of the study.

"But paradoxically and contrary to my expectations, among lean people, the effects of diabetes increases their risk even more."

More research has to be done to find out why this is the case.

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Photo Gallery

Tips on living well with diabetes

Source:

Various sources

The researchers used data from the Singapore Chinese Health Study, which recruited middle-aged and elderly Chinese living in Singapore between 1993 and 1998, and correlated that with information from the Singapore registry of births and deaths through to the end of 2014. A total of 5,696 had diabetes, and 16 died from fatty liver disease, which is also known as cirrhosis.

In comparison, to a person without diabetes and who has a healthy body mass index (BMI) of under 23, an overweight diabetic is three times more likely to die from fatty liver disease.

But a diabetic with a healthy BMI has an even higher risk - he is 5.5 times likelier to die from it.

The paper on the findings will be published in the scientific journal Liver International in February.

Also read: You could have a fatty liver - and not know it

Prof Koh said the findings have important implications in Singapore and other Asian populations, where patients develop diabetes at lower BMI levels compared to Western populations.

Dr George Goh, a consultant at Singapore General Hospital's department of gastroenterology and hepatology, and first author of the study, said the findings suggest that diabetics should be more actively screened for liver disease, on top of other conditions more commonly associated with diabetes such as heart disease, eye conditions like cataracts and glaucoma, and kidney disease.

"The message is that if you have diabetes, regardless of your BMI, you are at risk of fatty liver disease," he added.

Dr Goh is also leading an ongoing study of diabetic patients to screen and assess the severity of fatty liver disease among the Chinese, Malay and Indian populations. The two-year project, which involves 400 patients and will end in December this year, will also try to understand the factors that can reduce the development of fatty liver disease.

Over 400,000 people here are diabetics, it is estimated. The incidence of non-alcoholic fatty liver disease is also rising in Singapore, according to a study by SingHealth doctors, and could well be affecting half of the adults in the Republic.

This article was first published on Jan 20, 2017.
Get a copy of The Straits Times or go to straitstimes.com for more stories.

SINGAPORE - A Sarawak man who had been on the run for more than six years following his alleged involvement in the 2010 Kallang slashings was charged with murder on Friday (Jan 20).

Abdul Rahman Abdullah, also known as Donny Meluda, 25, is accused of being part of a gang that killed Indian national Shanmuganathan Dillidurai, 41, at an open field along Kallang Road near the Riverine by the Park condominium between 12.12am and 7.34am on May 30, 2010.

He is now remanded at the Central Police Division with permission to be taken out for investigations.

Abdul Rahman, who was unrepresented, will be back in court on Jan 27.

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Photo Gallery

Kallang slashing: Rampage for cash claims 4 victims

Source: The Straits Times

His three alleged accomplices, all fellow Sarawakians, have already been dealt with.

Two of them, Micheal Garing, 27 and Tony Imba, 37, were convicted of murder in 2014 after a 12-day trial.

In 2015, Justice Choo Han Tek gave Micheal the death sentence while Tony was sentenced to life in prison with 24 strokes of the cane.

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Photo Gallery

Body found on banks of Kallang River

Source: The Straits Times

His third alleged accomplice, Hairee Landak, 23, was sentenced to 33 years' jail and 24 strokes of the cane in 2013 after pleading guilty to three charges of armed robbery with hurt.If convicted of murder, Abdul Rahman will face the death penalty.

This article was first published on Jan 20, 2017.
Get a copy of The Straits Times or go to straitstimes.com for more stories.

Pre-payments for goods and services are a growing concern, especially in an uncertain economy, says Singapore's consumer watchdog.

The Consumers Association of Singapore (Case) saw close to a two-fold jump in the number of consumers affected by company closures last year - with 877 cases - compared to 440 cases in 2015.

In 2014, there were 334 cases.

The bulk of last year's complaints were about California Fitness, which suddenly shut its outlets last July after nearly 20 years of operating in Singapore.

While the beauty and health industry is known for getting customers to sign packages at discounted prices, other businesses are also joining in this practice.

Read Also: Landlord repossesses California Fitness' Raffles Place premises

Case's new executive director, Mr Loy York Jiun, told The New Paper on Monday that it had recently seen cases of furniture companies and parallel importers who failed to deliver after collecting payments from customers.

Mr Loy, who started his new role at Case on Jan 1, added: "I would have liked some legislative protection for consumers, but right now we could do more in terms of consumer education.

"As consumers, the bargaining power is in your hands until you hand over the money. I don't think signing packages will go away, but consumers should be careful about signing expensive packages with attractive discounts as they are taking a risk."

In a separate interview, former Case head Seah Seng Choon, who is now the non-government organisation's adviser, also expressed concern over pre-payments and called it a "questionable" business practice that needs to be addressed.

He said: "As the number of companies collecting pre-payment increases, more consumers will be affected...

Read Also: California Fitness shuts all branches in Singapore

"More companies are jumping on the bandwagon because pre-payments from consumers are free cash or 'loans' to run their businesses."

In such situations, the consumers shoulder the risk and could lose their money if the companies go under.

Retail experts agreed that collecting upfront payments should not be used as a business model.

National University of Singapore Associate Professor of marketing Ang Swee Hoon thinks more should be done to increase awareness of accreditation schemes like CaseTrust, which recognises businesses that are committed to fair trading and transparency to consumers.

For instance, CaseTrust accredited companies in the spa and wellness industry allow customers a cooling-off period of at least five working days to seek a full refund.

Read Also: $20.8m owed to California Fitness members

Prof Ang added: "Consumers should be more cognisant as well and do their own screening. The future is unpredictable.

"After you pay the company, you have limited options if it closes down. It's a matter of penny wise, pound foolish."

Nanyang Business School Adjunct Associate Professor Lynda Wee said: "It should be done minimally as the core business of the company is not capital management.

"If they collect more than they can service, it is not ethical. There should be a limit to how much they can raise in this way."

But Prof Wee explained that pre-payments are also a form of customer retention.

"(The companies) cultivate loyalty through better deals. (It is also) a form of customer service as it offers convenience in payment."

linheng@sph.com.sg

This article was first published on January 21, 2017.
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SINGAPORE - Punggol Waterway Point has closed two play areas as a precaution after an outbreak of hand, foot and mouth disease (HFMD) at a pre-school in the mall.

HFMD had broken out at My First Skool @ Waterway Point in mid-December.

The school is listed as one of the centres with " with active clusters of prolonged transmission" on the Ministry of Health's website.

Centres are deemed active clusters if there are more than 10 cases or more than 13 per cent of pupils over a period of more than 16 days.

A total of 23 children were affected and 20 had returned to school by the end of December, a spokesman from My First Skool said.

The school, which has 318 children aged from two months to six years old enrolled, was notified of its last case on Jan 16.

It stopped all outdoor activities when the first case was reported, and the pupils have not been using the play areas in the mall since then, added the spokesman.

"Besides sanitising the centre daily, we have also been adding a stronger disinfecting solution since last Friday," she said.

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HFMD outbreak in Singapore

Source:

The Straits Times

KK Women's and Children's Hospital

Glynisia Yeo

Waterway Point said it has thoroughly cleaned and disinfected the mall's play areas - Wonderland and Happy Park.

The mall did not say when the parks were closed, and it is not known when they will re-open, but they will "actively monitor" the situation at My First Skool.

Its spokesman said: "We take the safety and hygiene at our mall seriously. Due to the initial outbreak of HFMD at My First Skool located within the mall, we have stepped up our efforts and carried out additional rounds of thorough cleaning and disinfection at the mall's play areas - Wonderland and Happy Park.

"While we actively monitor the situation at My First Skool, these play areas for children will remain closed as a precaution."

Waterway Point also said that precautions are taken to ensure the play areas are hygienic.

"As part of our standard operating procedure at Waterway Point, regular cleaning and disinfection is carried out daily, including the play areas for children," the spokesman said. "All our play areas display signs advising parents against allowing their children to enter the play areas if they feel unwell."

HFMD affects mostly children and is easily transmitted among toddlers, making pre-schools hot spots for the disease.

Besides a fever and sore throat, sores develop in the mouth, throat, palms and soles.

This article was first published on Jan 20, 2017.
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Infants and teenage boys received the most hongbao money last year compared to other groups of kids, said OCBC Bank.

That trend was observed based on data extracted from 125,000 OCBC children's accounts between infancy and 15 years old, the bank told The New Paper.

Infants of both genders received about $990, but the gap widened as they got older, said OCBC Bank.

Boys aged 10 to 12 years old received about $274 more than their female counterparts.

National University of Singapore sociologist Tan Ern Ser said gender bias is unlikely to be the case, and that there could be other factors at work.

These include social class, number and generosity of red-packet givers, and propensity of red-packet receivers to spend the money instead of saving it.

He said: "There may still be gender bias in Singapore, but I am not convinced that this is reflected in the lower amounts that girls are getting.

"My sense is that educated, middle- and upper-class folks are less likely to practise gender discrimination, and with Singapore becoming more of a middle-class society, we would expect the latter to decline."

POSB said it saw a 15 per cent increase in balances of POSBkids accounts last year. More POSBkids accounts were also set up during Chinese New Year for the past two years.

POSB said this can be attributed to the festive season and the convenience of opening an account online.

UOB predicts children will receive an average of $129 in this Year of the Rooster, $5 more than 2016, a monkey year.

Last year, Mrs Charmian Xie's daughter celebrated her first Chinese New Year.

Mrs Xie was not surprised when her daughter received significantly less money from red packets than when her son celebrated his first Chinese New Year in 2011.

She said her son got several hundreds more on his first Chinese New Year, and she expected this because her son was also the first grandchild for both sides of the family.

The family also visited fewer relatives last year.

She said she does not differentiate between boys and girls, but will give closer relatives more money than distant ones.

The 32-year-old quantity surveyor said: "Last year, we just took the total and divided it by two, since both kids will definitely get the same number of red packets."

DIVIDE THE MONEY

She added that she will continue to do this for her children in future.

Madam Seah Nee Lin, 50, said her children - two boys and a girl - receive different amounts only from their paternal grandfather.

Her eldest son receives the most, while her daughter, the youngest of the three, receives the least.

She said: "He thinks the eldest should receive more because they need to take care of the younger kids.

"The firstborn also tends to get more at first, because once you have more kids, people tend to spread the money among them."

Madam Jasmine Lim, 45, who has two daughters and a son, said giving different amounts to boys and girls is an outdated practice.

She added: "This was practised in the days of my grandparents, who tend to favour boys over girls, or perhaps see boys as holding greater responsibilities than girls."

hmang@sph.com.sg

This article was first published on January 21, 2017.
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It is common for businesses to impose surcharges during Chinese New Year, but some have called off their plans to do so after feedback from customers.

HOW Car Grooming Centre in Sengkang told The New Paper they had planned to implement a surcharge of $30 since last Monday, but decided against it after hearing customers' grouses.

The centre's marketing manager, who gave her name only as Eve, said they wanted to use the extra income from the surcharge to provide better welfare for their workers.

"But we won't be doing so now because we received feedback from customers about the prices being too expensive and they can better spend the money elsewhere," she said.

"We understand that the economy is bad now and customers' support and satisfaction is more important to us, so we decided to waive the surcharge."

Eyelash extensions service Vivlash Beauty Studio in Bedok will be doing the same.

Owner Vivian Tang said: "I wanted to impose a $10 to $20 surcharge, but my friends said everyone would impose a surcharge during the festive season, so why not be different and share the joy with others."

BOOKINGS

Mobile oyster bar, The Oyster Cart, had initially stated on its website that it would be charging an additional $50 fee for bookings after Jan 14.

But the founder of the four-year-old bar, Adam Loo, 29, told TNP they have not imposed the extra charge on five bookings so far.

"Our reason for the surcharge is to encourage customers to book early so that we can plan our schedule properly," said Mr Loo.

"But right now, if customers can take up the available time slots we have, we will do away with the surcharge."

For businesses that are going ahead with raising prices, a lack of manpower and crowd management are some reasons they cited for imposing it.

Beauty parlour Ohnails SG in Thomson said they started imposing a surcharge of $10 since Jan 9 and will increase the amount up till the eve of CNY.

Owner Cleo Chew, 24, said she informed her customers about the surcharge through social media last month.

Noting that it is common to have surcharges during the festive period as they need to employ more staff and work overtime, Ms Chew said: "There are always a lot of people booking their nail appointments as CNY draws closer, and everyone wants to book the same slots.

"I have and am planning to employ one or two more freelancers to help out but it is not easy as their requested pay is very high."

Co-founder of steamboat delivery company Mr Steamboat, Mr Benson Chan, agrees.

He told TNP that the company had implemented a CNY surcharge of $30 since yesterday.

"We have exceeded our capacity of 200 orders per day and needed about 20 to 25 more drivers to help with the deliveries."

Several salons and a pet grooming centre TNP spoke to said they will be rewarding their staff with the proceeds of the increased prices.

"It will also help to spread the customers out so that they don't cram (their appointments) into the last week of CNY," said Ms Bernice Chen, owner of pet grooming centre Petpawroni in Sentosa, who will be imposing a surcharge of $15 from today till Jan 26, with an additional $5 surcharge on Jan 27.

"Also, 20 per cent of the surcharge collected will go to our staff's red packets."

huienl@sph.com.sg

This article was first published on January 21, 2017.
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For the first time, Sheng Siong will have 16 outlets open on the first and second day of Chinese New Year.

These outlets will be open from 8am to 6pm on Jan 28 and 29.

The supermarket chain will also be extending opening hours on Jan 27, the eve of Chinese New Year, by one hour to 4pm. This is due to customer feedback over the past few years.

LAST-MINUTE PURCHASES

A Sheng Siong spokesman told The New Paper: "Customers said they have to make purchases beforehand and the purchases have to last until we reopen.

"By opening during Chinese New Year, customers can make some last-minute purchases."

They are not the only ones who will be open.

Next Thursday, 83 FairPrice stores will be open around the clock and 25 of its stores will remain open on the first and second day of Chinese New Year.

The Straits Times earlier reported that Giant Hypermarkets started extending operating hours from Jan 13 and all Giant stores will open as usual on the first two days of Chinese New Year.

Cold Storage will also be extending operating hours for some outlets in the week before Chinese New Year eve and seven outlets will operate for 24 hours from Jan 27 to Jan 29.

Retailers are also staying open to catch the crowd. All CapitaLand malls, like Raffles City and Ion Orchard, will be open throughout Chinese New Year from 10am to 10pm.

A number of eateries will remain closed over the festive weekend, though.

Only three Food Republic outlets - Nex, Vivo City and Ion Orchard - and only 12 out of 21 Din Tai Fung outlets will be open on the first day of Chinese New Year.

Sushi Tei outlets will also close early at 3pm on the eve of Chinese New Year. They will also be closed on the first and second day of Chinese New Year.

A spokesman said: "The bulk of our workforce are foreigners and most of them want to go back for Chinese New Year.

"If we can get manpower we can consider opening next year, but for now we are too stretched so it's not possible."

In case you're hungry

CRYSTAL JADE GROUP

All Crystal Jade restaurants, including Crystal Jade Kitchen and Crystal Jade La Mian Xiao Long Bao, will operate as usual on the eve, but will close on the first and second day of Chinese New Year. Business will return to normal on Jan 30.

FOOD REPUBLIC

All outlets except Nex and BreadTalk headquarters will be open from 10am to 5pm on the eve of Chinese New Year.

Only three outlets - Nex, Vivo City, and Ion Orchard - will be open on the first day of Chinese New Year until about 10pm.

More outlets will open on the second day of Chinese New Year, and business will resume as usual on Jan 30.

RAMENPLAY

All restaurants will close at 3pm on the eve of Chinese New Year. Four outlets - Bedok Mall, JEM, Novena Square and Resorts World Sentosa (RWS) - will resume regular opening hours on the first and second day of Chinese New Year.

Regular opening hours for the rest of the outlets will resume on Jan 30.

DIN TAI FUNG

All restaurants will close at 3pm on the eve of Chinese New Year, except the Marina Bay Sands outlet, which will close at 9pm.

On Jan 28, 12 outlets including those at RWS and Paragon will be open from 11am to 9pm.

Regular business hours will resume on Jan 30.

SWENSEN'S

All Swensen's and Earle Swensen's outlets will be open as usual throughout Chinese New Year.

hmang@sph.com.sg

This article was first published on January 21, 2017.
Get The New Paper for more stories.

Singapore's younger ministers will not be publicly given report cards by their boss Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong on how they are doing in their jobs.

But they will decide which one of them will be the country's next prime minister, said Mr Lee at a dialogue on Friday (Jan 20).

He said that the search for Singapore's next prime minister is progressing, but reiterated that the next generation of ministers will choose their own leader.

Such "report cards" were a practice of founding prime minister Lee Kuan Yew, noted Mr Lee Hsien Loong when answering a question on political succession in Singapore.

"I have my views (on who the next leader should be), but the new team has to gel and have a leader it will support and work with," he said.

He was speaking at a dialogue at The Arts House, part of a series by the Economic Development Board Society and The Straits Times.

Political leaders who have been identified as potential candidates for the next prime minister include Minister in the Prime Minister's Office Chan Chun Sing, Finance Minister Heng Swee Keat, Education Minister (Schools) Ng Chee Meng, Education Minister (Higher Education and Skills) Ong Ye Kung, Minister for Social and Family Development Tan Chuan-Jin and National Development Minister Lawrence Wong.

Mr Lee Hsien Loong has also said that he plans to step down some time after the next general election, which must be held by April 2021.

At the dialogue session, he said that the team of next-generation leaders is in place and was reinforced over the 2011 and 2015 general elections.

The ministers have been given portfolios and responsibilities, where they can demonstrate mastery and gain confidence in what they do, he added.

The public can make their own assessments of the contenders for the top job, said Mr Lee Hsien Loong.

He noted that previous prime ministers were chosen by their peers.

Singapore's second prime minister, Mr Goh Chok Tong, was chosen by his peers at a meeting after the 1984 general election.

The process was the same for himself, decided over lunch, he said.

With a laugh, Mr Lee Hsien Loong added: "Next time, somebody will host lunch."

This article was first published on January 21, 2017.
Get a copy of The Straits Times or go to straitstimes.com for more stories.

Chinese New Year is almost here, and it seems there is no stopping Singapore travellers from going overseas instead.

This year, the top emerging destinations are Genting Highlands, Jakarta and London.

Genting Highlands in Malaysia's Pahang state, was the fastest-growing searched location between Jan 27 and Feb 1 this year, findings by hotel booking site Hotels.com showed.

Searches for the hill resort reflected a 256 per cent increase year-on-year.

In second spot was Indonesia's capital Jakarta, with 142 per cent growth year-on-year, followed by London at 113 per cent.

London's growing popularity as a destination was no surprise due to the favourable post-Brexit exchange rate, Ms Jessica Chuang, regional director for Greater China, South-east Asia and India at Hotels.com, told The Straits Times on Friday (Jan 20).

She added: "That being said, it is interesting to see that Singaporeans are choosing to travel to a long-haul destination over a short holiday period."

As for Genting Highlands' popularity, she said that proximity plays a significant role.

Ms Chuang noted: "This year, with more focus being placed on boosting the highland's offerings and attractions - including the launch of the world's first 20th Century Fox World theme park - it is not surprising to see it growing in popularity.

"As Genting Highlands continues revamping itself in the coming months, we are certain that more Singaporean travellers will be making the trip across the Causeway to check out all that Genting has to offer."

Overall though, in search numbers, the top three destination by Singapore travellers during that same period were now closer to home in Bangkok, Batam and Kuala Lumpur.

This, compared to last year's top three: Hong Kong, Bangkok and Taipei.

The Straits Times reported last month that not all is rosy in the travel sector too.

Some travel agencies have seen a dip in bookings of up to 15 per cent for the festive period, with weak consumer sentiment and an earlier-than-usual Chinese New Year close on the heels of the year-end holidays.

Chinese New Year falls on Jan 28.

Even so, regional travel seems to be giving overall travel trends a boost, with both Dynasty Travel and travel search engine Kayak seeing more demand for regional destinations.

This article was first published on January 21, 2017.
Get a copy of The Straits Times or go to straitstimes.com for more stories.