TR EMERITUS

The Straits Times, the government propaganda mouthpiece, as expected, has been giving glowing news coverage to the Youth Olympic Games(YOG). But true to its colour, it chose to withhold incidents of inferior food supply to the thousands of volunteers and consequent food poisoning among some of them from its reporting. The netizen world is full of caustic criticisms of these incidents and has accused the MCYS Minister of "callous" treatment of the volunteers. There were even pictures showing what the netizens called "dog food" consisting of a small piece of unpalatable looking bland meat with six small pieces of long bean with some rice. These criticisms could not have escaped the delayed attention of the MCYS Minister who, no doubt apart from rectifying the inferior food, showed a hypocritical performance by heaping praises on the hapless volunteers in an attempt to make amends for his "callous" treatment. The netizen world is full of reports of poor spectator attendances and of school children being coerced to attend the games to make up for the poor spectator crowd. 80,000 tickets have been allotted to schools, but apparently these were not gratis and students were made to fork out money for the tickets. Very cunningly, the Straits Times chose not to highlight these glaring imperfections in its reporting, no doubt done with an ulterior motive. Just imagine with the plethora of caustic criticisms by netizens, with none pulling their punches, on the YOG is added the vitriolic comment by a fiery netizen in the person of Abdul Malik Mohammed Ghazali who posted on a Facebook group on August l8 that it was time to "burn Vivian Balakrishnan and the PAP". It appeared to be more violent than other netizen postings on the subject but there is no reason to believe that it was not said by Abdul Malik in a metaphorical sense. There is no doubt that Minister Vivian Balakrishnan took umbrage to this personal attack on him and as a result the police swooped on Abdul Malik, arresting him for "incitement of violence". As soon as news of Abdul Malik's arrest got out, the netizen world responded with extensive vitriolic criticisms against the arrest and blamed Dr Balakrishnan for the police action. The MCYS Minister has not spoken and if it is true that he is responsible for the police action, then it would be wise for him to remedy the situation, unless he disregards netizen criticisms and considers netizens not part of the polity. After all the offence is, to all intents and purposes, technical and why picked on Abdul Malik to put him through the rigmarole of a court prosecution when other similar-minded inimical netizens abound. Or could it not be the MCYS Minister's unwholesome intention of making an example of Abdul Malik, hoping thereby to put a stop to the belligerent action of the netizens?   Yoong Siew Wah   Editor’s note: The writer was Director of ISD from 1971 - 1974.  Read More →

The founder of Ren Ci Hospital, Ming Yi, was released from Selerang Park Community Supervision Centre yesterday after serving about 3 months of his jail term under Home Detention Scheme whereby at least for the next one month, he will have to wear an electronic monitoring device around his ankle and must observe a curfew. Goh Kah Heng aka Ming Yi According to the Singapore Prison Service, Ming Yi, 48, whose real name is Goh Kah Heng, was placed on the Home Detention Scheme "as he met the criteria and was assessed to be suitable". This scheme allows eligible offenders of non-serious crimes to serve the tail-end of their sentences at home but would have had to meet certain criteria including a minimum imprisonment sentence of four weeks, good conduct in prison and strong family support, said a spokeswoman. A spokesman from Ren Ci Hospital and Medicare Centre told MediaCorp that there are no plans for him to rejoin Ren Ci or its board. Last October, the Buddhist monk and his former aide, Raymond Yeung, were found guilty on charges that included falsifying accounts and misappropriating funds, after an unauthorised loan of $50,000 was made from the charity's coffers in 2004. In May this year, Ming Yi's 10-month sentence was reduced to six months following an appeal.  Read More →

The hand, foot and mouth disease (HFMD) situation in Singapore is worsening, and another kindergarten was ordered to close on Friday as the number of cases continues to soar, according to MOE's website.. Last week, 982 children were diagnosed with the disease, compared with just 158 during the same period last year. So far, 19,000 children have been infected this year - almost twice the norm seen over the past five years. More than 240 children have been warded for treatment. The total number of childcare centres and kindergartens ordered to close since the end of last week has hit four. Three other childcare centres, which have active clusters of more than 10 cases over 16 days, have had their names posted on MOH's website. This is to alert parents who might want to keep their children away. Anything above 679 cases a week is classified as epidemic levels by the Ministry of Health (MOH). What is hand, foot, and mouth disease? Hand, foot, and mouth disease (HFMD) is a fairly common viral illness in children. (HFMD is not the same as foot-and-mouth disease, also called hoof-and-mouth disease, which affects animals.) HFMD most often occurs in preschoolers, although adults and children of any age can get it. Most adults have developed antibodies against it from previous exposure. HFMD most often shows up in the summer and fall. HFMD can be caused by any of a number of viruses, most commonly the coxsackie virus. Although in very rare cases HFMD can lead to viral meningitis or encephalitis (inflammation of the brain), children usually recover just fine, without treatment, in a week to ten days. What are the symptoms? If a child contracts HFMD, he'll first have a mild fever. You may notice that his appetite isn't what it usually is. He may also have a sore throat and feel lousy in general. A day or two after the fever starts, he will develop painful sores in his mouth — on his tongue, gums, or the inside of his cheeks. This will likely make him irritable. Your child may also develop a rash on the palms of his hands, the soles of his feet, and maybe his buttocks. The rash, which isn't itchy, starts out as small, flat, red dots that may turn into bumps or blisters. Is HFMD contagious? Yes, the virus can be transmitted through nose and throat secretions, the fluid in the blisters, or stool. While your child will be most contagious during the week he first shows symptoms, the virus can be transmitted for weeks afterward. If your child usually goes to daycare, check with the staff about the attendance policy. They may want you to keep your child home until his symptoms are gone or even longer. Should I call the doctor? Yes. Although your child's doctor won't be able to do much, she can make recommendations for fever and pain relief. And if you're not sure that HFMD is what you're dealing with, the doctor can confirm it by taking a look. If your child's fever rises higher than 103 degrees Fahrenheit or doesn't subside after four to five days, the doctor will probably want to see him. Dehydration is a concern because your child's mouth sores may make it difficult for him to drink anything. If your child shows any signs of dehydration — such as lethargy or a dry, parched mouth — call his doctor immediately.   Amanda Tan  Read More →