Eggslut closes Scotts Square outlet in S'pore after over 3 years in operation United States (U.S.) egg sandwich brand Eggslut has closed its remaining Singapore outlet at Scotts Square after less than four years in operation. The closure, while not officially announced by the company, was noticed by netizens and shared online sometime around Mar. 9. Eggslut had also withdrawn from South Korea in 2024 and Hong Kong in 2025 due to rising costs and changing spending habits in the two countries, according to South Korea news outlet Chosunbiz and South China Morning Post (SCMP). Singapore outlets removed from website Eggslut, which launched in Singapore in September 2021, offered egg sandwiches starting from S$11 each. A photo provided by a reader of what used to be the Scotts Square outlet showed a vacant store, with no closure notice in sight. The closure of its Suntec City outlet, which opened in December 2022, was also first noticed by netizens in June 2024. A check on the Eggslut website showed that the Singapore outlets have been removed from its international locations. At the time of writing, only stores in Tokyo, Japan and London, United Kingdom are listed as the company's overseas outlets. A quick check on archival site, Wayback Machine, showed both Suntec and Scott's Road outlets being listed as recently as 2023. Eggslut's Singapore website also appears to be down. Exited South Korea and Hong Kong The egg sandwich brand had started to withdraw from its overseas market, starting with South Korea in 2024. Industry reports in 2023 indicated that the food service industry in South Korea were met with increasing material and labour costs after the Covid-19 pandemic, reported Chosunbiz. American brands with a "brunch" concept also have a "higher dependency" on imported ingredients, and were affected with such costs and fluctuations in exchange rates. The brand also closed its outlets in Hong Kong in February 2025 after less than two years in operation amid changing spending habits by locals and Chinese tourists, reported SCMP.

Burger & Lobster at Jewel Changi Airport closing down on Mar. 10, 2025 Burger & Lobster at Jewel Changi Airport will be closing on Mar. 10, 2025. The announcement of the impending closure was put up on Facebook by the restaurant: As part of the announcement, the restaurant is offering a buy one get one free lobster roll deal. The promotion is available now for dine-in customers at the Jewel outlet. Diners will have to say "Roll on" to the wait staff before ordering a lobster roll to get the next one free. The promotion is on a first come first serve basis and limited to 200 sets per day. Sides, which include fries and salad, are not included in the promotion.

Hawker, 76, closes Serangoon vegetarian stall after rental allegedly rises from S$930 to S$3,000​ A 76-year-old man and his wife decided to close their vegetarian food stall at a Serangoon coffeeshop after the new operator allegedly raised their rental from S$930 to over S$3,000 per month. However, while he was moving out of the coffeeshop on Feb. 28, the exiting operator allegedly "kept rushing him and even cursed at him", reported Shin Min Daily News. When the man, surnamed Liang (transliteration from Chinese), asked the exiting operator for a refund of two days' rental as he closed his stall on Feb. 26, the latter apparently rejected his request. Eventually, Liang alerted the police, and the matter was resolved with the help of police mediation. Upon learning about the incident, the new operator of the coffeeshop also arrived at the scene and refunded Liang two days' rental, which amounted to S$62, from his own pocket. Stall in operation for over 10 years According to Shin Min, Liang was the owner of Shang De Vegetarian, a food stall that had been in operations for over 10 years. Liang told the Chinese daily that he initially operated his stall along Circuit Road before moving to its latest location at 566 Serangoon Road coffeeshop. Before running the stall, Liang joined his older brother in Denmark and worked in the food and beverage industry for over ten years before returning to Singapore. "At the time, I was around 50-years-old. I initially helped out at a friend's steel factory, but ultimately, I wanted to start my own business. Over the years, I sold items, such as chicken rice, wanton mee, and prawn noodles. Later on, I got exposed to vegetarianism through religion. I was so inspired that I wanted to promote healthy dining," recounted Liang. Liang's account of what happened on Feb. 28 Liang shared with Shin Min that he decided to close his stall after learning that the new operator will be renovating the coffeeshop and that his new monthly rental might triple. "I am just running a small business, and I only earn enough to get by. I can't afford such rent. I may bid for a stall at a government-owned hawker centre to continue running my business," he added. As the coffeeshop would be handed over to the new operator on Feb. 28, Liang said the exiting operator asked him to empty his stall by then. However, as he and his wife are both in their 70s, they "fell slightly behind schedule" in cleaning up their stall on Friday. He was taken aback when the exiting operator allegedly "rushed him" while he was moving his belongings in the morning. "I already informed him that I would be moving everything away by 6pm. [At that time,] there was only one refrigerator left waiting to be taken away. I don't understand why he was so aggressive," said Liang. Response from exiting operator In response to Liang's allegations, the exiting operator told Shin Min that the coffeeshop had informed all stallholders that they would need to empty their stalls before Mar. 1 so that the venue can be handed over to the new operator for renovation. When he noticed that Liang had yet to empty the vegetarian stall on Feb. 28, he became worried that he might not be able to hand over on time and decided to "approached Liang to find out more". "However, he told me, 'It's none of your business' and said he would liaise directly with the coffee shop owner. These comments made me feel disrespected. Although I am only the operator of the coffeeshop, the stall owners pay their rentals to me, and they also signed their lease with me," added the exiting operator. He also admitted that he had spoken "inappropriately" on Friday, adding that he was caught up in the heat of the moment. As for why he did not refund Liang two days' rental, the exiting operator said that all stalls were closed on Feb. 26, but the coffeeshop owner did not return the rental to him. "How can I give back the rental to the stallholders?" he asked. Diners patronised Liang's stall on its last day According to Shin Min, many old customers patronised Liang's stall for one last time on Feb. 26. One of these diners was Workers' Party chief and Leader of Opposition Pritam Singh, who also posted a photo of himself with Liang and Liang's wife on Instagram. Liang said he was touched by the support from his customers. He added that even though he and his wife are in their silver years, they enjoy good health and are "young at heart". Hence, they do not plan on retiring and will reopen their stall for business after a bit of rest.

3 MRT disruption incidents in early Feb. 2025 were unrelated, no 'systemic issue' & no need for COI: Chee Hong Tat​ The three incidents of MRT disruption which occurred from Feb. 7 to 11 were unrelated as they involved different lines, components, operations and maintenance teams, Transport Minister Chee Hong Tat said in Parliament on Feb. 26. Chee was responding to questions posed by Members of Parliament (MPs) Leong Mun Wai and Dennis Tan about the disruptions to the North-South Line (NSL) on Feb. 7, the North-East Line (NEL) on Feb. 10 and the Circle Line (CCL) on Feb. 11. When Leong asked Chee if he would consider convening a Committee of Inquiry (COI) in light of how all three incidents occurred within a week, Chee replied that as all of them were unrelated, it did not show a systemic issue or concern which would necessitate a COI. What exactly happened in all three incidents? Chee shared the preliminary findings into the three incidents. Feb. 7 NSL disruption At around 5:15 am, an engineering vehicle broke down at a railway crossing in Bishan Depot after routine maintenance works. This engineering vehicle comprises three wagons, used for carrying equipment and materials for maintenance works, and two locomotives, used for moving the wagons along the MRT tracks. The minister pointed out that as trains departing Bishan Depot for the main line need to pass through this railway crossing, SMRT was unable to launch trains from Bishan Depot. Hence, to allow operations to resume, SMRT attempted to move the stalled engineering vehicle using a rescue train. However, when the rescue train started moving the stalled vehicle, SMRT discovered that some of the wheels of two of the wagons had come off the rails. "By the time the engineering vehicle stalled, only three out of 39 trains that were scheduled to serve the NSL that morning had been launched from Bishan Depot," he said. In response, SMRT redirected some trains from the East-West Line (EWL) to the NSL. "This allowed train services to continue operating throughout the day on both lines, but with a longer interval between trains during peak hours. SMRT also activated free regular and free bridging buses along the busiest stretch of the NSL, between Woodlands and Bishan, to provide commuters with an alternative travel option." The minister noted that commuters experienced longer waiting times at the stations, as there were fewer trains during the peak periods but their travel times were largely unaffected once they boarded. As for the stalled engineering vehicle, SMRT had to use hydraulic equipment to slowly and safely shift the stalled vehicle onto another track, as the tight space around the tracks meant SMRT could not use heavy lifting cranes. The vehicle was cleared off the railway crossing by around 5:30pm and SMRT was able to launch trains from Bishan Depot from 6:36pm, and progressively restored normal train service for commuters on the NSL and EWL, following a series of safety checks. Feb. 10 NEL disruption On Feb. 10, a signalling fault occurred near Buangkok station at about 6:08am. This prevented the NEL trains from being controlled automatically, Chee said. As a result, while trains could still travel along the NEL, they had to be controlled manually and travel at slower speeds to ensure safety. This in turn led to reduced frequency of service and additional travel time for commuters. In response, SBS Transit (SBST) activated free regular and bridging buses along the NEL between Punggol Coast and Dhoby Ghaut stations at 6:55 am, to provide commuters with an alternative travel option, he added. Preliminary investigations indicate that the signalling fault was caused by a malfunctioning electronic card in the signalling system. He said: "There were no prior signs during the maintenance checks which showed that this card would malfunction. SBS Transit replaced the malfunctioning electronic card, and was able to restore the signalling system’s operations at around 8 am, following which normal train service was progressively restored. The faulty electronic card has been sent to the system manufacturer for further examination, to identify the root cause of the malfunction." Feb. 11 CCL disruption As for the Feb. 11 CCL disruption, Chee noted that on Feb. 13, LTA had said that a power trip had occurred arising from a signalling fault. However, further investigations show that there was no power trip, and that the incident was due to a signalling fault, he said. Based on LTA's latest findings, at around 8:15am, a signalling fault caused a temporary loss of communications between CCL train and the track side signalling equipment. When this happens, the train in question will engage its brakes and stop moving in accordance with safety protocols, Chee explained. In addition, the other trains near the affected train will also come to a stop to ensure safety for commuters, so as to keep the trains at a safe distance from one another until communications can be fully restored. "Due to this signalling fault, 17 trains between Paya Lebar and Marymount stations were temporarily halted for safety," Chee pointed out. SMRT then withdrew the incident train from the mainline, and after doing the necessary safety checks, train movement resumed progressively from 8:20am, five minutes after the signalling fault first occurred. However, when train operations were being restored, SMRT noticed that the Central Automatic Train Supervision (CATS) system, which manages the movement of trains, became less responsive. As a result, it took longer than usual to resume normal train operations, even though trains had started moving on the CCL, Chee said. The delay in resumption of normal train operations led to longer wait times and travel durations for some CCL commuters. On the CATS system, Chee elaborated: "We had experienced a similar issue with the CATS system in September 2024. After that incident, LTA and SMRT worked with the system manufacturer Alstom to develop a software patch to address the issue. The patch went through extensive testing, and was ready for deployment on Feb. 15. Unfortunately, the incident happened a few days before the deployment date. SMRT and Alstom have since successfully deployed the software patch." All three incidents did not result in a prolonged stoppage of train services Chee subsequently highlighted that unlike some previous disruptions where trains were unable to continue travelling on the tracks, the three incidents did not result in a prolonged stoppage of train services. "However, as these incidents happened during the morning peak hours, they affected a larger number of commuters and lengthened the waiting and travel times," the minister said. Staff morale In his follow-up question, in addition for calling for a COI, Leong asked if the minister could look into potential problems with staffing, turnover, skill level and morale among the engineering and maintenance department of SMRT. Chee pointed out that a COI is not necessary as the incidents are unrelated and there's no systemic issue. LTA, the regulator, is empowered to conduct a thorough investigation and share its findings publicly. Chee said he is committed to sharing the findings of LTA's investigation into the previous year's East-West Line disruption publicly. However, Chee agreed with Leong that a review should go "beyond hardware", and thanked Leong for highlighting the importance of staff morale, as the teams are important for ensuring smooth performance. Communications to public When asked by Tan about how the public communication process to commuters can be improved, Chee replied that this is an area where the government will see how it can be fine-tuned and improved. In the case of these incidents, both SMRT and SBS Transit did their best to communicate alternative means of transport to commuters, he added. In addition, these disruptions are why the government will continue to expand the country's MRT network so as to provide more alternatives to commuters in the event of a disruption, the minister concluded.

SoftBank, Temasek among eFishery investors facing near wipeout Investigators hired by the board of eFishery have determined the Indonesian startup is in far worse shape than they previously thought, and that investors are likely to get back less than 10 cents for every dollar they invested, according to documents seen by Bloomberg News. The company, which deploys feeders to fish and shrimp farmers in Indonesia, incurred several hundred million dollars in losses between 2018 and 2024 and misrepresented its financial figures for years, according to the documents and a person familiar with the matter who asked not to be identified because the information isn’t public.  “eFishery is not commercially viable in its current form,” said a presentation prepared for the firm’s investors by FTI Consulting Singapore, the adviser hired to review the business and take over management of the company.  The fallen startup, whose financial backers include SoftBank Group and Singapore’s Temasek Holdings, had been a star of Indonesia’s startup scene. eFishery was valued at US$1.4 billion in 2023 after it raised US$200 million from Abu Dhabi’s 42XFund and some of its earlier investors.  In all, global investors ploughed around US$315 million into eFishery’s preferred shares over five funding rounds, according to the presentation. In late 2024, the company was rocked by allegations of misconduct and inflated sales and profits, which led to the dismissal of its co-founders Gibran Huzaifah and Chrisna Aditya. The FTI presentation estimated that eFishery had around US$50 million in cash as of around mid-February, and recommended that much of the business be wound down. “The cash balance continues to deplete without a restructuring plan in place,” it said.  That’s bad news for preference shareholders, all of whom would be paid back on an equal, or pari passu basis in the event of a liquidation. The investors could get back 9.5 cents on the dollar under an “optimistic scenario,” and just 8.3 cents on the dollar under a “conservative scenario, according to the presentation. That would mean Abu Dhabi’s G42, which invested US$100 million in the April 2023 round, may get just US$8.3 million back less than two years later.  A spokesperson for FTI Consulting declined to comment. SoftBank didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment outside regular business hours, while a Temasek spokesperson declined to comment. G42 didn’t immediately respond to an emailed request for comment.  Before its downfall, eFishery said its business revolved around installing AI-driven smart fish feeders, sensors and automated supply chains that connected farmers to buyers via smartphone apps. It also helped farmers obtain financing from peer-to-peer lenders and financial institutions to pay for their feed and operational costs.  The company had claimed to have more than 400,000 fish feeders deployed, and investigators initially estimated the number was closer to 24,000. The current estimate is just 6,300, of which only 600 are sending back data, according to the presentation.  The investigators also found that there was a high default rate on the financing arrangements, and that eFishery bears all losses when farmers fail to repay their loans. “In theory, the proceeds from the harvest or cash collected from farmers should be repaid back to the lenders,” the presentation said. “In practice, however, eFishery faced significant challenges when it comes to collection from borrowers.” Hampering the debt collection process were the huge distances and fragmented nature of Indonesia’s developing economy, where almost 10 per cent of the population lives below the poverty line. About 76 per cent of eFishery’s US$68 million in accounts receivable were deemed as bad debt more than 60 days overdue, with the company ultimately liable for the bulk of loans it facilitated with banks, according to the presentation.  “Substantial costs would need to be incurred to realise or recover these outstanding amounts from borrowers who are scattered all across the country,” it said. The company’s fish and shrimp businesses were operating on thin margins and “severely loss making,” the presentation said. Key apps were not connected to eFishery’s accounting systems, and many farmers were manually matched with buyers, the investigators found.  Much of the advanced technology that the firm touted did not work as claimed, according to the presentation. None of eFishery’s PondTag sensors that were supposed to help remotely judge water quality and automate fish and shrimp feeders had been deployed. The limited data collection meant fish feed predictions were wrong almost half the time, the document said.  In essence, eFishery was “operating like a traditional trading business without technology,” the presentation said, noting that this helped explain the company’s large workforce of almost 2,600 employees at its peak in early 2024. Following mass job cuts since the start of this year, the company has roughly 200 staffers. https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/international/softbank-temasek-among-efishery-investors-facing-near-wipeout

Manhattan Fish Market closes its last outlet in S'pore Seafood restaurant Manhattan Fish Market quietly closed its last outlet in Singapore. According to a Google Search, the Northpoint City outlet has been listed as permanently closed. A user on Reddit also shared a picture of where Manhattan Fish Market was situated in Northpoint City, which is now behind scaffolding. On the restaurant's website, an error message is displayed on the outlet locator page. The restaurant's social media accounts have also been inactive since November 2023. Previously, Manhattan Fish Market operated 10 outlets across Singapore before its numbers slowly dwindled.

North-East Line disrupted for 2 hours in morning due to signalling fault Train services on the North-East Line (NEL) were disrupted for about two hours during the morning rush hour period on Feb. 10 due to a signalling fault. Commuters were advised to expect up to 30 minutes of additional travel time at the height of the disruption. Delay started before 6:30am SBS Transit, which operates the NEL, said in a 6:23am post on X that NEL service had been delayed due to a signalling fault. It advised commuters to expect additional travel time of about 10 minutes. SBS Transit's subsequent Facebook post clarified the fault was encountered at Buangkok MRT station. Commuters at HarbourFront, Outram Park, Chinatown, Dhoby Ghaut, Little India or Serangoon MRT stations were advised to use alternative MRT lines, such as the Circle Line, North-South Line and Downtown Line. SBS Transit said that free regular bus rides were made available at Serangoon, Hougang and Sengkang bus interchanges. Commuters could also take free regular and bridging bus services at designated bus stops between Dhoby Ghaut MRT station and Punggol Coast MRT station. In a subsequent 7:11am post, SBS Transit said that 20 minutes of extra travelling time could be expected. A 7:43am post placed the extra travelling time at 30 minutes. The crowds In a post on Facebook, a large number of commuters were seen crowding at Punggol MRT station during the disruption. The user wrote that crowds gathered at the platform and station on Feb. 10 morning as the packed city-bound trains did not move off from the station for a long time. "I can't imagine the situation down the line," he added. Back to regular service by 8:28am At 8:28am, SBS Transit said in an update that the NEL was back to regular service. "Once again, we are sorry for the inconvenience caused," the operator wrote.

I am very much counting on TCB to displace Desmond Lee and gang from West Coast GRC 💪

Chef who helmed restaurant in Keong Saik dies aged 33, he had only married earlier this year Chef Stefan Liau opened his own restaurant in November 2023 Just over a year after opening his restaurant, and barely one year after getting married, the chef-owner of a restaurant along Keong Saik Road has passed away at the age of 33. The news of Mr Stefan Liau’s sudden passing was broken by his restaurant, Hevel, on Saturday (7 Dec) over Instagram. Restaurant staff ‘heartbroken’ at passing of chef Stefan Liau According to the post, Mr Liau was “a kind mentor, a devoted husband, and a close friend” who “touched countless lives with his warmth, creativity, and genuine love for those around him”. Thus, “no words can express how heartbroken” they are by his death, it said, adding: The Hevel family is focused on supporting each other, and most importantly Claresta and the Liau family as we grieve Stefan’s passing. The restaurant expressed gratefulness for the love and support of fans, and said it would continue to operate through January next year and “until further notice”, adding: His spirit will live on in every dish and every moment shared at our tables. He got married only in January His widow, Claresta, told Shin Min Daily News at his wake in Craig Road that the family received the bad news on Friday (6 Dec) morning and it was difficult to accept. They declined to disclose his cause of death, saying only that his funeral service would be on Monday (9 Dec) and he would then be cremated. Claresta described her husband as an excellent and dedicated chef who had been in F&B since he was 16, making his mark in the competitive industry through hard work. The couple got married in January this year, according to his most recent Instagram post on 31 Jan that shared photos of the wedding. Choking up, Claresta said that when she saw all her friends mourning her husband: I suddenly realised that the last time everyone gathered together was at our wedding. Chef Stefan Liau opened his restaurant in November 2023 Mr Liau opened Hevel on 16 Nov last year, according to Tatler Asia. The contemporary European restaurant had tasting menus designed by him for refined communal dining experiences. It was his first time owning a restaurant after stints at Michelin-starred restaurants in Hong Kong, Tokyo and Singapore. Claresta said they just celebrated Hevel’s one-year anniversary last month. Her husband had always wanted to bring affordable fine dining to more people and strove to discover and nurture talented young chefs. Hevel’s future now unclear Miguel, Hevel’s managing director, said Mr Liau said opening the restaurant was a “big gamble” for him as he gave up a stable job as head chef at an exclusive local club. The team was caught off-guard by his sudden passing, he added, and Hevel’s future was now unclear. The restaurant will be temporarily closed until 10 Dec and hopes to resume business on 11 Dec.

MRT reliability drops over the past year, with East-West Line showing biggest decline Train service reliability has dropped over the 12-month period ending in September this year, with the East-West Line (EWL) showing the biggest decline. These sobering figures were released by the Land Transport Authority (LTA) on 22 Nov, in its latest Performance of Rail Service Reliability report. MRT reliability gauged by mean kilometres between failures The statistics are based on a 12-month moving average of mean kilometres between failures (MKBF), which is an engineering measure of rail reliability. According to the report, MRT trains ran 1.798 million train-km without disruptions of more than five minutes between October 2023 and September 2024. This is lower than the 2.077 million train-km recorded between delays in 2023. It’s also lower than the 2.089 million train-km recorded in 2022 and the 1.994 million train-km recorded in 2021. Reliability of EWL plummets Among the individual lines, the Downtown Line (DTL) was the best performer by far, with 8.112 million train-km travelled between delays. The Circle Line (CCL) was the worst performer, going just 1.04 million train-km between delays, a slight dip from 2023. However, all the lines’ reliability remained more or less steady except for the EWL, which plummeted to 2.027 million train-km between delays, from a high of 3.363 million train-km last year. While the EWL was the second-best performing line in 2023, it has now been overtaken by the North-East Line. Notably, this came after a six-day disruption to the EWL at the end of September that affected about 2.6 million passengers. The Thomson-East Coast Line was not included in the report as the line will open fully only in 2026. LRT reliability also dropped Unfortunately, the reliability of the LRT network has also dropped steeply, with an overall MKBF of 358,000 car-km between delays, down from 546,000 car-km in 2023. The Sengkang-Punggol LRT performed better but took a sharp hit, plunging to an MKBF of 612,000 car-km from 1.217 million car-km in 2023. This was still higher than the Bukit Panjang LRT (BPLRT), though, which slid to 189,000 car-km between delays, from 248,000 car-km in 2023. In October, a BPLRT train became “immobilised” on the track, resulting in a five-hour service disruption and train service ending about 1.5 hours earlier than normal. More MRT service delays this year Finally, the number of service delays may also be on an upward trend on the MRT network. There have already been six service delays of more than 30 minutes across the entire MRT network in the first nine months of this year. This is compared with five for the whole of 2023, seven in 2022 and just three in 2021. Two of the service delays this year happened on the EWL, while three were on the CCL and the remaining one was on the DTL. The number of service delays on the LRT network has been more or less steady, with three in the first three quarters of the year compared with three in the whole of last year.

Overseas Emporium in Chinatown shuts down after more than 50 years The time-honoured Overseas Emporium, a beloved store located in the People's Park Complex in Chinatown, has closed its doors after more than 50 years of operations. The department store, which held a special place in the hearts of many Singaporeans, officially ceased operations on Nov. 17. Clearance sale Shin Min Daily News reporters visited the store on multiple occasions this month, observing its gradual closure. Spanning a wide range of goods, the store's offerings included household items, winter clothing, bird's nest products, and various Chinese medicinal health items. A long-time staff member revealed that he had spent nearly 50 years of his life working at the emporium, expressing deep ties to the store. On the final day of operations, Nov. 17, the store’s electronic sign displayed, “Hot discounts! Last day for clearance sale.” Shoppers reportedly flocked to take advantage of the discounts, creating a bustling atmosphere as customers selected discounted items from the dwindling stock. Customers saddened Many regular customers expressed sadness over the store’s closure. A regular customer in his 70s, surnamed Guo, told Shin Min that he had visited the store the day before to buy shoes and returned to purchase more items. He spent more than S$20 to buy 10 small jade pendants as keepsakes and gifts. “I feel a little sad to hear that it will close," he said. Another customer, surnamed Han, who is about to travel to Shanghai, said that he heard that winter clothes there were discounted by up to 75 per cent. "The original price was more than S$200, but now it's discounted to only more than S$60. It's really worth it. I have to buy it." When a Shin Min reporter visited the shop again on Nov. 18 and 20, the shop had already closed its doors. A clerk confirmed that the store had closed for good and that the space would soon be sold to a travel agency. Background Started in 1971, Overseas Emporium was one of the largest Chinese emporiums in Singapore in the 70s. The main emporium at People's Park Complex offered more than 20,000 square feet of shopping space.

Vice-principal & parent extramarital affair: Woman claiming to be wife says affair lasted more than a year More details regarding the resignation of a vice principal who was accused of having an extramarital affair with a student's parent have emerged. According to Shin Min Daily News, they received news of the affair through an email tip-off on Oct. 17 containing intimate photos of the vice principal and the alleged parent in question, as well as screenshots of their chat history.  Shin Min then contacted a woman who claimed to be the vice-principal's wife, who said she found out about the affair at around the same time. "I Am the Secret in Your Heart"  According to Shin Min, one of the screenshots was of an Instagram story, showing the two hugging each other, with the caption, "You who have always protected me silently. Thank you." Shin Min added that when its reporter tried to contact the Instagram account in question, it no longer appeared to be in use. Shin Min also said that screenshots provided by the reader showed "explicit" messages. One of them also showed the "agreement" between the vice-principal and the parent on how they should not "cut each other off". The undated WhatsApp message showed that they had apparently spent the day visiting one of their "dad's houses," having coffee at Hougang Mall, and watching the movie "I Am the Secret in Your Heart" together. "Wife" said she had suspicions months ago but found out only few days ago that the affair been going on for over a year  Shin Min contacted a woman, who claimed to be the wife of the vice-principal, through Facebook. The "wife" had posted on her Facebook the photos of the jewellery her husband had given the parent and also claimed her husband tried to destroy evidence of the affair by smashing his phone. When Shin Min asked the "wife" how she had found out about the affair in the first place, she said she have to keep it confidential. The "wife" claimed she had discovered the affair a few days ago and that she had made a police report. The "wife" also told Shin Min that the affair had been going on for about a year and a half. However, she said she only had suspicions a few months back as she noticed her husband's change in behaviour, such as often saying he had no money while still buying gifts for others. The "wife" also claimed that while she found out her husband was having an affair with a parent, she does not know the exact identity of the woman. According to Shin Min the wife's Facebook page showed she has been married to her husband for more than 30 years. However, as of Oct. 18, the posts about the affair have been taken down. When asked by Shin Min on Oct. 19 what she intends to do next, the "wife" replied she did not know yet. Shin Min said they also tried to retrieve the vice-principal's contact from the "wife", but she did not respond. Other parents express shock  Meanwhile, other parents have expressed their shock over the matter. According to Shin Min, word of the affair had spread among the school's parent group on Oct. 18, with one parent expressing her surprise at how sudden it was. This parent described the vice-principal as very friendly and noted that he would often take the initiative to say hello, even if he did not know the person. The parent also said that while they have not yet received a statement from the school about the matter, the vice-principal's name appears to have been removed from the school's website, which Shin Min said it has also verified. MOE's previous statement  In response to media queries, the Ministry of Education (MOE) said it has been made aware of the matter and the vice-principal has tendered his resignation. MOE added: "School leaders are expected to maintain high standards of personal conduct to uphold the integrity and reputation of the Public Service. The Ministry of Education is aware of the matter and is looking into it. The individual has tendered his resignation and is currently on leave. Meanwhile, the school will continue to actively monitor staff and students’ wellbeing and provide the necessary support."

Both applications to impeach her were shot down by the judge, tough luck :( No 'serious discrepancies' that support impeaching Raeesah: Prosecution on Day 3 of Pritam Singh trial Deputy Principal District Judge Luke Tan said he is inclined to agree with the prosecution's position that there are no "serious discrepancies" in the testimony of Raeesah Khan which meet the legal threshold for her impeachment as a witness. The third day of the trial of Workers' Party (WP) leader Pritam Singh was marked by discussions between the defence and prosecution as to whether there were inconsistencies in Raeesah's testimony which could result in her impeachment. The application for her impeachment had been made by Singh's lawyer, Andre Jumabhoy on Oct. 15, 2024. Defence: Oct. 4 WhatsApp message to Singh shows her testimony is "materially contradictory"  On the morning of Oct. 16, 2024, Jumabhoy drew attention to a WhatsApp message Raeesah had sent to Singh on Oct. 4, 2021, while being questioned by law and home affairs minister K Shanmugam in parliament over her anecdote. At that time, Raeesah had asked Singh, "What should I do Pritam?" Jumabhoy asked Raeesah why she had felt the need to message Singh on Oct. 4, 2021, at that moment, if she had understood his instructions during their meeting the day before. According to Raeesah, Singh had told her he "would not judge her" on Oct. 3, 2021. She understood it to mean that he would not judge her if she continued the lie. When Jumabhoy asked further if her Oct. 4 message meant she was unclear about his instructions, Raeesah replied: "When you’re confronted by Minister Shanmugam, I think anybody would question their decision or what they should say." This led to Jumabhoy suggesting that Raeesah saw Singh's instruction as "vague" — to which she replied that Singh had seemed to affirm the continuation of the lie. Defence makes another application to have Raeesah impeached  Raeesah was then asked to step out of the room when Jumabhoy made another application to have her impeached. According to Jumabhoy during his application, Raeesah saying that she didn't know what to do on Oct. 4, 2021, and asking Singh, was "materially contradictory" to her saying Singh seemed supportive of continuing the lie. In response, Deputy Attorney-General Ang Cheng Hock argued that Raeesah had repeatedly mentioned in her statements that her message to Pritam on Oct. 4, 2021 was to seek assurance. Ang also noted that Raeesah had said, "Either way, I would have followed his advice". He then submitted to the judge that there was no discrepancy in her statement, pointing out that the crux of one of the charges against Singh is what he had said to her on Oct. 3, 2021. The judge then referred to the agreed statement of facts and said he tends to agree with Ang as there was a lead-up to what happened on Oct. 4, 2021, in the form of Singh's meeting with Khan the day before. He added, "She was told something (on Oct. 3, 2021), she went into parliament with that frame of mind." She was then prompted to send a text message that did not receive a response, he noted. It could therefore be argued that Raeesah's response is consistent with she said was told to her by Singh on Oct. 3, 2021. Tan said, "I do not see a contradiction, let alone a material contradiction." He rejected the application by Jumabhoy. The matter of coming clean on September 2021  Jumabhoy then made a second application to impeach Raeesah in the afternoon. In the lead-up to the second attempt, Jumabhoy had questioned Raeesah about why she had not come clean on her false anecdote in September 2021. She replied that she had shingles and that she thought the matter had been dropped. Jumabhoy then pointed out that this "(flies) in the face" of how she thought Singh had told her to "take it (the false anecdote she shared in parliament) to the grave". He also cited notes submitted by WP Member of Parliament (MP) Faisal Manap to the Committee of Privileges, which said she had contemplated doing so. In response, Ang called on the court to look at a police statement by Raeesah on May 12, 2022, which said she had told the WP's disciplinary panel that she had contemplated disclosing the truth in September 2021. In addition, Raeesah had also told the police that maybe she might have said it to the panel, but she could not recall, and that in September 2021, she did contemplate disclosing it but was down with shingles. The statement also captured how she told the police she thought the matter had been dropped, when the officers asked her about whether she had considered disclosing it to Singh, Faisal and WP chair Sylvia Lim in September 2021. Ang then pointed out that these replies by Raeesah were consistent with what she has said in court. There is therefore no basis in the law to invoke Section 157 of the Penal code regarding the impeachment of a witness, he added. The second application was also rejected by Tan.

2nd outlet of Chee Soon Juan's Orange & Teal at Marina Square closes down from Oct. 11, 2024 Orange & Teal at Marina Square shut its doors on Oct. 11, 2024. The cafe posted on its Instagram page, saying the decision was "due to rising costs". 594EEAF811B06F60E010BBC8E231D5BC_video_dashinit.mp4 The cafe is run by politician-turned-F&B-owner Chee Soon Juan, and opened on Aug. 20, 2022.   Chee stated in 2022 that the Marina Square outlet would have an express food concept, for office workers to grab a quick lunch. The outlet at Marina Square received good reviews on Google, with customers praising its generous portions, valuable lunch sets, and cozy atmosphere. The cafe's original outlet at Rochester Mall will continue to operate as usual. Orange & Teal @ Rochester Mall  Address: 35 Rochester Dr, #02-12 Rochester Mall, Singapore 138639  Opening Hours:  • Sunday to Thursday, 11am - 9pm • Friday & Saturday, 11am - 10pm • Closed on Mondays

Yishun resident uses lift landing as 'private storage area' and even secures items with padlock A resident has turned the staircase landing on the 12th floor of Block 739 Yishun Avenue 5 into his personal storage place, lamented a neighbour. Photos submitted by Stomper Jo show bulky items such as a step ladder, a foldable trolley and a large chest occupying the space – some of which have even been chained and locked together. Jo told Stomp on Oct 6: "Facts: "The public space has become one's private storage area since June 2024. "The belongings are chained together and secured with a padlock. "It is unknown if any flammable construction liquid is stored in the metal coffin-sized chest. "In the past week, a stray cat has inhabited it as a living area. "Nee Soon Town Council was notified in September but there was no improvement, even when everyone on the same floor knows exactly whose belongings these are." Jo also emphasised the "potential danger of allowing clutter to accumulate" and expressed dismay at how the situation has persisted. In response to a Stomp query on Oct 7, Nee Soon Town Council said it is aware of the issue after receiving feedback on Sept 30. A spokeswoman added: "Our town council personnel conducted a site visit upon receiving the feedback to identify the owner of items. We also issued a notice of removal on the same day. "The town council will monitor this situation closely and take the necessary actions to address this issue." "We will continue our efforts to educate and guide residents to place as few items as possible in communal corridors in the interest of safety and to minimise disamenities." https://stomp.straitstimes.com/singapore-seen/yishun-resident-uses-lift-landing-as-private-storage-area-and-even-secures-items-with

Man, 18, found dead at foot of NUS residential block An 18-year-old man was found lying motionless at the foot of Helix House, a residential building at the National University of Singapore (NUS), on Oct. 3 morning. He was pronounced dead at the scene by a Singapore Civil Defence Force (SCDF) paramedic. The building, located at 37 Prince George's Park, belongs to Prince George's Park Residences. Police statement The police said they received a call for assistance at the building at around 7:25am on Oct. 3. Based on preliminary investigations, the police do not suspect foul play. Police investigations are ongoing.

MRT TEL train fault between Woodlands North & Lentor, free regular bus service activated On Oct.1 , the Thomson-East Coast line experienced a train fault, reported by SMRT's social media at 5:11pm. The fault resulted in a shuttle train service being made available between Woodlands North and Woodlands South, as well as between Woodlands South and Lentor at 5:11pm on Oct. 1. At the time of writing, provisory service is available between Lentor and Bayshore. SMRT is also providing a free regular bus service between Woodlands North and Lentor. At 4:56pm on Oct. 1, SMRT reported that trains moving from Woodlands North towards Lentor were moving slower, cautioning riders to expect an additional 10 minutes of travel time.

67-year-old man found dead in Kallang home, friend alerted police after he missed breakfast On Friday (27 Sept), a 67-year-old was found dead in his home at Block 2C, Upper Boon Keng Road. The discovery was made by coffee shop worker, Ms Wu (name transliterated from Chinese), who noticed that one of her regular customers, the 67-year-old uncle, did not come for breakfast as he usually did that morning. Since he hadn’t shown up as usual, she felt compelled to reach out to him. She tried to call him multiple times but received no response. After several failed attempts to contact him, she asked a friend of his to check on him. It wasn’t until around 8.05am that the friend went to check on the uncle at his home. They found that they could hear the uncle’s phone ringing, but no one would answer. Worried about his safety, they immediately called the police. Man found lifeless on bed at his home Once police officers arrived, they found Mr Wong Kee Pin lying dead on his bed inside his home at Block 2C on Upper Boon Keng Road, Kallang, reported Shin Min Daily News. His body was reportedly removed from his place at around 4pm. Two tenants living in the unit, 38-year-old Ms Yang and 24-year-old Ms Xu (names transliterated from Chinese), revealed they had been renting the unit with their mother for over ten years and had a good relationship with Mr Wong. Both of them pointed out that he rarely talked about his family. They only knew that he had three sisters and a brother. However, the brother and one sister were already deceased, leaving two sisters behind. Ms Wu shared that the uncle worked as an administrator at the airport and visited her coffee shop daily, enjoying coffee in the morning and having alcohol in the evening before heading home. Mr Wong, the victim, was born on 25 June 1957. Preliminary investigations indicated no foul play involved, and investigations are ongoing.

Iswaran pleads guilty to 5 charges after corruption charges replaced Former Minister for Transport S Iswaran has pleaded guilty after his corruption charges were replaced with charges under Section 165 of the Penal Code. Previously, he faced 35 charges, two of which were corruption charges under the Prevention of Corruption Act. The two charges were amended to charges under Section 165 of the Penal Code, which makes it an offence for a public servant to accept anything of value without payment or with inadequate payment from any person with whom he is involved in an official capacity. The prosecution stated that they would proceed on five charges: four under Section 165 of the Penal Code and one charge of obstruction of justice. For the charge of obstruction of justice, Iswaran admitted to repaying S$5,700 to Singapore GP Pte Ltd, the cost of his business class ticket for a Dec. 11 flight from Doha to Singapore that he had taken at Ong Beng Seng's expense through Singapore GP. The remaining 30 charges will be considered for the purposes of sentencing. Iswaran's defence lawyer, Senior Counsel Davinder Singh, had earlier said Iswaran "will be taking a certain course of action" in light of the fact that the charges will not be proceeding under the Prevention of Corruption Act. Iswaran was then read his charges, and he rose to say he was pleading guilty. His lawyer also confirmed that his client was pleading guilty. Previous charges of corruption Initially, the first corruption charge against Iswaran alleged that he corruptly obtained gratification worth S$145,434 from property tycoon Ong Beng Seng. This was in exchange for advancing Ong's business interests in relation to a contract between Singapore GP and the Singapore Tourism Board (STB). Iswaran was also previously accused of corruptly obtaining 10 Green Room tickets (worth about S$48,150), eight tickets to F1 venue Twenty3 (worth about S$56,068), and 32 general admission tickets (S$41,216 respectively) to the 2022 Singapore Formula 1 Grand Prix for September 2022. The second corruption charge alleged that Iswaran corruptly obtained gratification from Ong, in exchange for advancing his business interests over a contract with a public body over the Singapore GP-STB facilitation agreement, as well as a proposal for a contract with STB to establish the ABBA Voyage virtual concert in Singapore. This allegedly took place in December 2022. According to the charge sheets, he allegedly took an outbound flight on Ong’s private plane from Singapore to Doha worth about S$10,410.40. He also received a one-night stay in Four Seasons Doha, worth about S$4,737.63, and a business class flight from Doha to Singapore, worth about S$5,700, from Ong through Singapore GP Pte Ltd.