Water tank at Woodlands Block 686B removed

 

Water tanks

SINGAPORE: The water tank in Woodlands Block 686B where a dead body of an Indonesian maid was found last month, has been removed.

The 15.6 tonne water tank was taken down on Wednesday afternoon from the roof of the block. It took about 15 minutes.

Preparations started early on Wednesday morning.

Replacing the tank is expected to cost an estimated S$40,000, an amount the Sembawang—Nee Soon Town Council is bearing.

The new tank will be installed between June 9 and June 13, after which all four water tanks will be cleaned and sterilised. All this should be completed by June 23.

Some residents welcomed the removal of the tank.

A resident of the block said: " It’s good that they changed the water because residents around here, they think the water is a bit dirty, maybe the germs are stuck in the pipe or something. So it’s quite good they changed the tank and everything so the residents around this block will probably be less concerned about the water they drink."

But some residents felt the issue of how someone could have had access to the rooftop and the tank was still not addressed.

Responding to this via SMS to Channel NewsAsia, MP for Sembawang GRC Vikram Nair said this is still unclear. He said the Bangladeshi worker charged with the murder and his contractor did not have access to the key to the tank.

Mr Nair said: " At the moment we do not know how the worker opened the water tank. We do not know, for example, whether he broke the lock or used a key. If he used a key, we do not know where he got it from as neither he nor his contractor should have had access to the key to the tank.

" The full story will probably only come out in court when the worker is charged. If anyone else was responsible for helping the worker access the tank or get the key, we will have to take action too."

—CNA/ac

dilution of share capital

Jo-ann Huang

joannhuang@mediacorp.com.sg

SINGAPORE

News of the fund-raising plans somewhat confirmed investor concerns of a dilution in the firm’s share capital and caused Olam’s share price to tumble as much as 6 per cent to close at S$2.73 when trading resumed yesterday.

This continued from a 5-per-cent loss in share price from Wednesday to Friday last week, on word that a fundraising exercise was looming.

Its shares were suspended from trading on Monday.

Olam plans to sell a total of about 286 million new shares of which Temasek Holdings will subscribe 94.4 million shares for S$245.5 million through its subsidiary Breedens.— Agricultural commodities processor Olam International is raising proceeds of about S$740 million through private placements and a preferential allotment of shares to existing shareholders including investment company Temasek Holdings in three tranches.

Activists who were in it purely to serve the people were “very encouraging”, he added.

NEO CHAI CHIN

Opposition ‘can help de-polarise politics’

Neo Chai Chin

chaichin@mediacorp.com.sg

SINGAPORE

And the latter group can play a role in the “de-polarisation of politics” — by explaining the intention of Government policies to residents they meet, and if the People’s Action Party and government agencies engage “alternative parties” in policy-making — said two Opposition panellists who were invited in their personal capacity for the Institute of Policy Studies forum titled “What Youth Want”.

The first suggestion was made by Mr Yaw Shin Leong, the newly-elected Member of Parliament for Hougang. “At the end of the day, there’s only one Singapore (for) all of us,” he said. The “nation-building” role of Opposition figures is to “gently persuade, educate and to share” the reasons why some policies are implemented.

Engaging Opposition parties in policy-making would help create “a better Singapore”, said Mr Jimmy Lee, who stood in Bishan-Toa Payoh Group Representation Constituency. He said: “I’d propose to the incumbent party and the public service:

Engage us, the alternative parties in your policy-making directly. Bring us into your committee meetings.”— Exactly a month after Singaporeans took to the polls, the healing of any political rifts wrought at the General Election (GE) was among the themes at a forum yesterday that brought together representatives of the ruling and Opposition parties.

Crash with motorcyclist: Motorist fined s$8,000, disqualified for 6 years

Shaffiq Alkhatib

shaffiq@mediacorp.com.sg

SINGAPORE

Chia Choon Kiang, 31, had failed to keep a proper lookout when he was driving at a cross junction at Jurong West Avenue 5 on the morning of Aug 25, 2009.

His vehicle hit Mr Ganesan Revi Chandran, 19, and his pillion rider, Mr Brendon Kok Chun Kai, 18.

The two unemployed teenagers were sent to the National University Hospital by ambulance.

Mr Ganesan, who suffered injuries to his head and spine, was later pronounced dead.

Mr Kok, who survived the crash, fractured his spine and had to be warded for a week. He was later given about 150 days of medical leave.

Defence counsel Lim Kim Hong told District Judge Sarjit Singh that her client was on his way home from work when the accident took place.

Ms Lim added that Chia, who was tired, was also on medication that morning.

She asked the judge to give her client a “reasonable fine and a reasonable period of disqualification”.

Assistant Public Prosecutor Gayathri Krishnan, however, told the court that Chia had committed other traffic offences before this case.

In 2005, he was fined S$1,000 for speeding.

He was also disqualified from driving for 18 months and fined S$2,400 for drink driving in the same year.

For the negligent act, Chia could have been jailed up to two years, fined, or both.

To  be FAIR to  VICTIM's  DEATH  ? ? ?— A project manager was fined S$8,000 yesterday and disqualified from driving for six years for a negligent act that killed a teenaged motorcyclist.

unlicensed software seized

SINGAPORE

The Business Software Alliance (BSA) said the value of the seized software is the largest ever to come from a tip-off.

The police seized 10 copies of software suspected to be unlicensed belonging to BSA member companies found on computers on the premises.

The raid was conducted last Friday by officers from the Intellectual Property Rights Branch of the Criminal Investigation Department.— Following a tip-off, the police have raided a manufacturing company and seized S$1.4 million worth of software suspected to be unlicensed.

I hope that the Monetary Authority of Singapore will look into this and stop the banks from inserting ever more unfair clauses into standard loan contracts.

Clear rules needed for cyclists

Letter from Lynn Tan

I refer to the letter “Victim of bike rage” (June 2).

I myself have had a few near-misses as a pedestrian my husband pulled me out of a cyclists’ way in the nick of time.

I have witnessed a number of bike rage incidents recently.

In one, a cyclist brandished his bicycle mid-air, threatening to hurl it at a driver and his car. Another time, I saw a cyclist brazenly sticking his arm through the open window of a car at a traffic light junction, gesticulating violently and antagonistically.

Regardless of the circumstances leading to these displays of outrage, such actions are a cause for concern.

On the roads, cyclists argue that they are the more vulnerable group. As such, motorists should give way and exercise caution.

Similarly, on the pavements, pedestrians are the more [MOST] vulnerable groupdo likewise?, so shouldn’t cyclists

The reason the situation is getting out of hand is because the authorities have persistently shied away from establishing, and more importantly enforcing, some clear ground rules.

With cycling catching on as a sport, both at a competitive and recreational level, it is time the authorities stepped in.

There also needs to be a way of identifying cyclists in the event of such hit-and-run cases, as it is not always possible to physically pursue and nab them, whether you are on foot or on four wheels.

Perhaps the Government should also start thinking of similar projects for Bukit Timah and Orchard roads with green lungs and corridor and rethink development plans for existing green spaces like the current forested Bukit Brown Cemetery along Adam Road, as well as the lush stretch along the railway tracks from Tanjong Pagar to Woodlands.

Green lungs to quell floods

Letter from Liew Kai Khiun

Building boom is part of the problem more sustainable development model is needed

Are fewer MPs holding company directorships now?

CHEO W XIN YI

cheowxinyi@mediacorp.com.sg

SINGAPORE

Email queries to 52 backbenchers, including the six elected Opposition MPs, found that 16 hold such positions.

In 2005, 26 were directors in public listed companies alone, a survey by

Latest records on the Singapore Exchange’s web portal and the

MediaCorp’s survey comes after Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong issued his rules of prudence letter two weeks ago to new and existing People’s Action Party MPs. In it, he had advised them to conduct such business activities creditably.

And while 19 MPs did not reply or declined comment for this story, those who did shared the kind of consideration that has gone into their decisions on directorships.

For half of them, these are roles they assume simply by virtue of where they work. Joo Chiat MP Charles Chong, for instance, is a director in two joint ventures under his employer SIA Engineering, while Jurong Group Representation Constituency MP David Ong is the business owner and managing director of RedDot Publishing.

Meanwhile, more than half of those with no directorships are first-term PAP MPs.

Several new MPs, including lawyer Edwin Tong and unionist Zainal Sapari, said their current priority is their constituents, although they might make exceptions for directorships on non-profit organisations.

West Coast GRC MP Foo Mee Har, who heads Standard Chartered Bank’s priority and international banking, told MediaCorp she made a “personal decision” to step down from a board position before the polls to dedicate her time to understanding her constituency and grassroots organisations.

For her GRC colleague Arthur Fong, corporate considerations came into play: The Credit Suisse banker and three-term MP, who has held no directorship for the past 10 years, said he made the choice as companies may potentially have investment banking relationships with his employer.

Offering a different view, though, was Pasir-Ris Punggol GRC MP Gan Thiam Poh, whose employer DBS Bank had to approve his directorship at public-listed Ouhua Energy Holdings even before he entered politics.

While he said his foremost priority is his constituency, Mr Gan said he was open to directorships that would offer him the exposure and skills to help him “effectively serve the residents”.

[# lower cost of living for residents by securing SPECIAL  LOWEST PRICES  for  his CONSTITUENCY  ? ? ? ?  #]

But the days when some backbenchers held numerous listed directorships seem to be over.

At the moment, Potong Pasir MP Sitoh Yih Pin holds the highest number, six, followed by Ang Mo Kio GRC MP Yeo Guat Kwang with five and Marine Parade GRC MP Seah Kian Peng with two.

In the past, former PAP MPs such as Messrs Wang Kai Yuen and Ong Kian Min held as many as 11 directorships in listed companies during their political tenure.

To corporate governance observer Mak Yuen Teen, who has spoken publicly against excessive listed directorships by MPsthrough”., it seems that “PM’s words are filtering

The National University of Singapore Business School associate professor noted that MPs who held several listed directorships have retired in the last two elections:

“I hope it was (part of PM’s consideration for renewal).”

But Singapore Management University associate professor of finance Annie Koh offered another reason for the smaller scale of directorships now: The youth and non-exposure of newer MPs, many of whom were also from the public sector and labour movement.

“You can’t be invited to any board if you haven’t had a level of experience in order to advise companies accordingly ... If you’re young, the likelihood of you being asked to be a director is less high,” said Assoc Prof Koh, who is also SMU’s dean of executive and professional education.

Still, given some companies’ “misconceived notion” that having MPs on board “can open doors”, she expects offers to come in for the new MPs over time.

“But everyone is under watch these days with the power of media and social media ... People are even more conscious (especially) if there’s a chance that anything might lead to a misinterpretation,” she said.— It appears that fewer Members of Parliament are holding company directorships now compared to in the past.The Business Times had found.Bloomberg’s database show that only five elected MPs now are directors in listed companies.

MP Yeo Guat Kwang sees his roles as ‘affiliations’

SINGAPORE —

Many are also “episodic” in nature, he told MediaCorp — so much so that he had asked his personal assistant to update his CV.

As of yesterday, it lists 54 positions.

While netizens had been chattering over his multiple hats, Mr Yeo clarified that he does not receive remuneration for those roles except for company directorships.

He said the appointments are platforms for him to serve. As president of the Consumers Association of Singapore, for instance, he was invited to advisory positions in trade associations.

Chua Chu Kang GRC MP Zaqy Mohamed, who holds seven other unpaid positions, including those in government parliamentary committees and unions, told MediaCorp:

“Once you’re the Government of the day, you do have to take on other responsibilities as opposed to being a grassroots MP ...

That’s why you’re there to do policy and advise with your expertise.”

Still, he acknowledged that certain appointments did take up time and he has scaled down his involvement.

Mr Yeo noted that meetings for some advisory appointments are usually held once a year. “The good thing is that now we’re all wired and more productive. For many of these committees, we just need to give our views through email ... and from then, see other members’ perspectives.”

His curriculum vitae on the Parliament website might have listed 64 “other appointments” but Ang Mo Kio Group Representation Constituency Member of Parliament Yeo Guat Kwang sees most of those roles as “affiliations” helping him to improve his understanding of the ground.CHEOW XIN YI