The_King

A diabetic man is now missing part of his testicles due to gangrene — which could have been detected and treated earlier if a doctor actually did his job. Dr. Mohd Syamsul Alam Ismail, a Malaysian doctor practicing in Johor, has since been suspended for two-and-a-half years on top of a $40,000 fine. The Singapore Medical Council (SMC) disciplinary tribunal had initially imposed a suspension of three months, but the duration was increased by 10 times yesterday by Court of Three Judges following a successful appeal to lengthen it. Dr. Syamsul was found guilty of failing to provide adequate clinical evaluation of a patient when he worked as the company doctor at the medical center of a marine and shipping company here in 2013. The patient had been having a fever for five consecutive days and went to the doctor to check on a painful lump on his right buttock area as well. “The Complainant thought the lump was a normal abscess but the lump had grown drastically in size and was causing him immense pain,” noted SMC. “It made a crackling sound when pressed and he could not even sit due to the pain.” Even after the patient told Dr. Syamsul that he was diabetic and he had not been taking his meds, the doctor said that it was unnecessary to conduct a physical examination on the lump. Instead, he simply gave him three days of medical leave and prescribed him some antibiotics. It proved to be a huge mistake. The next day, the patient’s lump started to spread to his testicles and his groin area, causing those parts of his body to well up as well. He immediately went to the hospital and was diagnosed with Fournier’s gangrene, a particularly worrisome type of infection that attacks the genital area. He required hospitalization for more than a month. The infection required multiple surgical interventions, which included partial removal of his scrotum. In his complaint to SMC in November 2014, he blames Dr. Syamsul for his inability to have sex for the rest of his life due to the pain. SMC found that Dr. Syamsul failed to make the appropriate diagnosis that the patient had gangrene and that he had also failed to immediately refer the patient to the emergency department of a hospital. According to the expert opinion of a general surgeon enquired by the SMC, the doctor should have had a high index of suspicion when it came to dealing with a poorly controlled diabetic patient. On Dr. Syamsul’s part, he refused to take part in the disciplinary inquiry against him and ghosted SMC’s attempts to contact him. “So far as we can tell, he is no longer practicing in Singapore,” said Chief Justice Menon, who presided over the case. https://coconuts.co/singapore/news/diabetic-man-lost-part-testicles-doctor-failed-check-properly-gangrene/

Pablo Cheese Tart, a Japanese chain famous for its dessert offerings, has sadly joined the ranks of other well-known international brands that attempted to make a splash in Singapore, only to bow out quietly a couple months/years later. There was much hype when it opened in August 2017, with queues galore and many a social media post boasting of the coveted cheese tart haul after a long wait, but it clearly didn’t take long for the buzz to die down and fickle diners to hop over to the next Must Try Thing. Less than two years after Pablo’s launch, the brand has left Singapore without a peep, discreetly disabling its Facebook page for both its Wisma Atria and nex outlets. So if you didn’t manage to get one last taste before its exit, perhaps Bake Cheese Tart can satisfy your cravings instead. Also closing its doors, Dazzling Cafe at orchardgateway has left behind its Shibuya toasts on the shopping stretch and set up a new concept at 86 Robertson Quay (next to M Social Hotel). According to its Instagram page, today’s actually the opening date of Botany by Dazzling Cafe, so you can pop by over the weekend to check out its menu, which apparently blends “the best of the East and West cuisines” and serves “delectable original recipes in its most natural flavors.” Breakfast here includes rosti or French toast with eggs and sides, an organic muesli bowl, and chicken congee. For something heartier, you can get grilled boneless chicken with Balinese salsa, beef burger, or ribeye steak plus sides such as mentaiko fries and otah chips. https://sg.style.yahoo.com/pablo-cheese-tart-dazzling-cafe-041801909.html

JOHOR BARU, March 8 — The Johor Department of Environment (DoE) has identified the illegally dumped substance that emitted hazardous gas fumes in Sungai Kim Kim in Pasir Gudang to be from marine oil waste. Johor DoE director Datuk Mohammad Ezzani Mat Salleh said the substance was an oil-based mixture that emits methane and benzene fumes. “The oily substance is believed to be oil waste commonly used in marine engine compressors and is considered scheduled waste that needs to be disposed off properly under the law. “Based on our investigations, we estimate that around 20 to 40 tonnes of the oil waste were illegally dumped into parts of the Sungai Kim Kim river,” Mohammad Ezzani told Malay Mail when contacted. Yesterday, it was reported that the Johor DoE and the state’s Fire and Rescue Department’s Hazmat unit have taken water samples from Sungai Kim Kim after 31 people fell ill after inhaling the fumes. The victims, aged between seven and 40, were students from SMK Pasir Putih and SK Pasir Putih, while the adults were canteen workers. Among the victims was a male DoE investigator, in his 30s, who was warded after he was overcome by the fumes during an early probe into the incident. Both methane and benzene fumes are considered hazardous as they are flammable. Mohammad Ezzani said the department views the incident seriously and will go all out to identify, nab and prosecute the culprits responsible for the illegal dumping of the substance. “A formal report has been submitted and based on eyewitness accounts the dumping was done from a tanker lorry during pre-dawn hours on Thursday. He said the department is not ruling out the likelihood that the waste substance may have come from certain marine engineering or petrochemical factories in Johor. On the cleaning-up efforts, Mohammad Ezzani said the bulk of the oily substance on the river’s surface have been disposed off. However, he said it will take at least another two days for the team to clear all remaining residue within the affected 5km stretch of the river. “We hope there is rain to help in diluting the polluted areas,” said Mohammad Ezzani, explaining further that in extreme cases carbon may be employed to neutralize the harmful substance. Mohammad Ezzani added that the department is also coordinating efforts the state government’s health, environment and agriculture committee and also the Johor Fire and Rescue Department for the clean up work. He said Singapore’s National Environment Agency (NEA) has contacted the department seeking updates on the situation due to fears of cross-border water pollution. “At present we have managed to contain the situation,” he said. Those with information on suspected illegal dumping of scheduled waste can contact the DoE enforcement unit at: 011-2754 4926. Alternately, they can also reach out to the DoE national hotline at: 1-800-88-2727. https://sg.news.yahoo.com/johor-environmental-dept-chemical-fumes-030501675.html

A 2,852 sq ft unit at Grange Residences, on Grange Road in prime District 10, will be put up for auction for the first time on March 27. The property is offered for mortgagee sale with a guide price of $6.85 million ($2,402 psf), says Edmund Tie & Co (ET&Co), which is handling the auction. The 17th-floor unit will be sold with vacant possession. The previous owner purchased it for $6.8 million ($2,384 psf) in October last year, according to a caveat lodged then. “The unit offers gorgeous unblocked views of the Rochalie Drive and Chatsworth Good Class Bungalow area,” says Joy Tan, head of auction and sales at ET&Co. The living room and en suite bedrooms have views of the Embassy area, namely the China Embassy, the British High Commission and the US Embassy. View photos The unit offers unblocked views of the surrounding Rochalie Drive and Chatsworth Good Class Bungalow area (Credit: ET&Co) Located at the corner of Grange Road and Tanglin Road, Grange Residences is a redevelopment of the former Marco Polo Hotel by Wheelock Properties. The freehold, 164-unit Grange Residences was completed in 2004. All the units in the three 18-storey blocks are four-bedroom apartments with sizes ranging from 2,583 sq ft to 2,852 sq ft. The last transaction at Grange Residences was in November 2018, when a seventh-floor, 2,583 sq ft unit was sold for $6.25 million ($2,419 psf), based on caveats lodged. Prices are nowhere near the last peak, when a 2,852 sq ft unit on the 13th floor changed hands for $8.57 million or an all-time-high of $3,004 psf, based on a caveat lodged in September 2013. The price of $2,402 psf is “reasonable” in the current market, says ET&Co’s Tan. Nearby, new developements on Orchard Boulevard such as 3 Orchard-By-The-Park and the upcoming Boulevard 88 are priced above $3,000 psf. View photos The spacious living room of the 2,852 sq ft unit (Credit: ET&Co) Grange Residences will also benefit from the upcoming Orchard Boulevard MRT Station on the Thomson-East Coast Line, which will be just a two-minute walk away. “The proximity to the Orchard Boulevard MRT Station will increase the value of the property in the near future,” adds Tan. With monthly rental rates in the range of $11,500 to $14,800, investors can also anticipate gross rental yields of 2–2.6%, she estimates. Tan therefore expects to see “healthy interest” for the unit given its prime location, freehold tenure and unit size.

SINGAPORE: I have been following with great interest the events surrounding Hyflux over the last few months. For many years, the company and its founder, Olivia Lum, were held up as examples of a successful home-grown company and an outstanding entrepreneur respectively. That the company was in the water sector, a critical resource for Singapore and increasingly the rest of the world, was an added plus, when it implied the company was serving the nation and “doing good” while doing well. NOT PRETTY But somewhere in between its astronomical rise and the situation today, the wheels came off the wagon. There is a good possibility that many bondholders will lose most of their investments in Hyflux and the company will exist in a reduced form – that is if it manages to survive and secure the necessary support from financial backers and key stakeholders for the proposed restructuring. The situation is not pretty. Hyflux defaulting on its bondholders has been discussed extensively in the media. A recent report suggests that the PUB has also served a notice of default on Hyflux, for its potential inability to supply water. Too bad, Hyflux. Water being a critical resource for Singapore is now a double-edged sword. I will focus on the non-financial aspects of the Hyflux situation precisely because financial default is the most likely outcome of underlying strategic decisions. My intent is not to find fault with Hyflux’s decisions since hindsight is perfect, but to dissect the problems it faced to glean lessons for the benefit of Hyflux and other Singapore companies. SHIFT TOWARDS OPERATIONS AND MAINTENANCE A central premise is that Hyflux took on a greater amount of strategic complexity over time. Some risks of this greater strategic complexity may not have been factored in when decisions were taken while other risks only became apparent over time, because of an evolving environment. Hyflux started with a simple strategy of focusing on being a water treatment specialist, which served it well over its first two decades. All seemed to pan out well in its favour, including listing on the Singapore Exchange, a remarkable feat considering its modest beginnings, and after-tax profits of S$59 million in 2008. In fact, 2008 was also remarkable because the company was able to grow its sales by 188 per cent - from S$192 million in 2007 to S$554 million, helped by a five-fold increase in revenue from the municipal (or government) sector. In its 2008 annual report, the company noted that Hyflux membranes and systems had been installed in more than 1,000 plants in over 300 locations worldwide, again an impressive achievement. But someone in that giant corporation should have spotted obvious early warning signs. Revenue was geographically concentrated, however, with China and Middle East and North Africa (MENA) accounting for 54 per cent and 40 per cent of the total revenue in respectively. By 2008, Hyflux started placing greater emphasis on its Operations and Maintenance (O&M) business instead of its traditional Engineering, Procurement and Construction (EPC) focus. One advantage of the former was its stable revenue generation with contract duration of 20 to 30 years. On the other hand, revenue chunkiness was a key disadvantage of EPC, because it means lumpy and unpredictable annual shareholder returns. So Hyflux began to see advantages in the former and maintained a portfolio of both O&M and EPC contracts. The downside of chasing after O&M contracts was revealed in the recent news of PUB serving a notice of default on Hyflux. Unlike EPC contracts, where a project is handed off to the client who operates the plant (and hence bears all subsequent risks), O&M contracts would require Hyflux to continue to operate the plant. If, for any reason, Hyflux’s ability to continue to operate the plant became impaired, given the critical resource that water is, the consequences for Hyflux would be severe. TUASPRING THE STRAW THAT BROKE THE CAMEL’S BACK? A major increase in strategic complexity occurred when Hyflux took on the Tuaspring project. While the capital intensity of the Tuaspring project has been discussed extensively, the strategic implication was that taking on the business pushed Hyflux into a new market: Power generation. Though there may be some synergies across the water-desalination and power projects, like many diversification decisions where perceived synergies may be emphasised more than the downsides in evaluating project risk, the risks in the power project may have been underestimated - or possibly even overlooked. Two factors may have further complicated the risk assessment. First, the location of Tuaspring in its Singapore home market may have led to an underestimation of the risks because Hyflux was familiar with the context, unlike many of its projects which were in emerging economies that imply significant uncertainty. Funding infrastructure projects in the latter category would also require political risk insurance, encouraging Hyflux to exercise project discipline. READ: What Singapore can do to prepare for the next flood, a commentary As later events showed, however, the Singapore Government can be a demanding customer. Failure to deliver on its commitments would probably imply a swifter penalty to be imposed. Second, the deregulation of the power sector culminating in the Open Electricity Market may be another factor that exposed Hyflux’s power sector to the wild fluctuations of commodity prices. As luck would have it, the gyrations in oil prices have been more pronounced over the last few years. EROSION OF FINANCIAL HEALTH While strategic complexity rose, a number of other factors were slowly but surely eroding Hyflux’s financial health. Its revenue was erratic — between 2012 and 2016, revenue fluctuated between S$321 million (2014) and S$986 million in 2016. Clearly, despite greater emphasis on O&M, revenue had not stabilised. For an asset-based company like Hyflux, erratic revenue tends to have a disproportionately large impact on profits because costs are less flexible than revenue. In fact, the earning per share showed a steady downward trend after 2012, before turning negative in 2016. Even in 2016 when Hyflux reported record revenues, profits were rather modest — in fact, they exhibited a decline over the years prior to 2016. Through these years, Hyflux’s capital intensity rose with its asset base ballooning from S$2.1 billion in 2012 to S$3.8 billion in 2016. The increased asset base was financed by issuing debt which carried a high interest rate and drained valuable cash. Though Hyflux’s dividend per share peaked in 2010 at 4.77 cents, the company had to cut it drastically in 2016. Dividend payments would represent another drain on cash. MIND THE RISKS So, what are the lessons from the Hyflux story? The most important lesson is: Mind the risks. Diversification is an important growth strategy for many firms but is not a panacea when risk evaluations tend to overemphasise synergies and downplay risks. Some of the risks also can become magnified over time — as borne out in the case of the power sector. A second important lesson is about minding small changes in the environment that might cumulatively have a huge impact on your strategy and its viability. A number of changes have taken place on top of the deregulation of the power sector that had huge impact on Hyflux, including fluctuating fortunes for economies in the Middle East, a key source of revenue for Hyflux before 2012 and reduced orders from Chinese customers, which used to be Hyflux’s biggest market. Though each of these changes was not large enough to undermine Hyflux, their collective impact on Hyflux was substantial. A third and final lesson is about preparing for the worst-case scenario, especially when large, capital-intensive strategic projects are financed with debt. Looking ahead, even if Hyflux is able to win a reprieve from bondholders, it faces the possibility of PUB taking over the plant because non-performance of a strategic plant may be viewed as a national security issue. One hopes this is not the end of the story for this rare Singapore unicorn. Nitin Pangarkar is an Associate Professor in the Department of Strategy and Policy at the National University of Singapore (NUS) Business School. The opinions expressed are those of the writer and do not represent the views and opinions of NUS. Editor’s Note: An earlier version of this commentary mentioned Tuas Power. It should have been Tuaspring. We apologise for the error. Source: CNA/nr

Singapore’s landmass is twenty-two per cent reclaimed, a fact that doesn’t escape the supposed main character of A Land Imagined, hard-boiled insomniac detective Lok (Peter Yu). Less than an hour after watching the movie, I find myself sitting down with Singapore’s latest international-film-festival-awardee, director of A Land Imagined, Yeo Siew Hua. I wanted answers; after watching the film, trying to put it into words was like pouring sand to fill an ocean—fittingly the entry-point for the film’s narrative. In the film’s opening scene, Lok remarks to his partner that the land he’s standing on used to be nothing but sea; they are at a land reclamation site to investigate the disappearance of a foreign worker, Wang Bi-Cheng (Liu Xiaoyi), a character played with endearing earnestness. This mystery is the single thread that leads viewers through the ensuing labyrinth, a neo-noir game of ‘Where’s Wang?’ Of all the things to make a movie about, I ask Siew Hua, why reclamation? “After studying film, I studied philosophy for about five years. I was really interested in the idea of a nation-state: what makes it up, if not for natural boundaries?” Siew Hua explains that in the past, countries were divided by geographical features: rivers, mountain ranges, coastlines. But this isn’t the case anymore. “Now, it requires … an imagining of nationhood.” This ‘imagining’ is especially relevant in Singapore, a nation of immigrants (recent or former), where demographics can be determined, quite literally, by the visa system. In a way, he says, the very notion of ‘Singapore’ is fashioned out of public policy, hence the film’s title. Nothing represents this interplay of geography, policy, and nationhood quite like the mountains of sand we’re dumping into the ocean. “The … materiality of soil, and of reclamation, is what interested me. A lot of people haven’t seen it. The process is invisible, so we don’t get to reflect on this issue.” To counter this, many of the film’s shots follow the industrial processes of land reclamation in all it’s stifling, deafening, dehumanising glory. It’s this line of thought that led him to consider the human hands behind reclamation. “When I looked into [reclamation], the real human drama involves the people working on it: migrant workers. Some of them have lived here for over twenty years, building this city.” “What would happen if one of them went missing?” Unusual for a noir film, A Land Imagined also tells the story from the perspective of the John Doe, Wang Bi-Cheng. Before his disappearance, he’s injured in an accident and gets put on driving duty, striking up a friendship with an amicable Bangladeshi worker named Ajit (Ishtiaque Zico). His nights, however, are sleepless, so he frequents the nearby cyber-cafe run by the ethereal Mindy (Luna Kwok). Wang’s relationships with Ajit and Mindy make up a significant portion of the film, as Siew Hua blurs the lines between reality and dream. These plot points did not spring from Siew Hua’s mind fully-formed. In researching the subject of his camera, he spent two years hanging out with foreign workers on weekends, immersing himself in their community. “Everything in the film comes from a tidbit of a real story … A lot of people don’t imagine them as being tech-savvy, but they too live their lives in a very virtual world, just like us.” As he learnt more about foreign workers, Siew Hua felt that something was amiss in the media coverage surrounding them. “We are starting to hear more about integration from mainstream media … but it’s all ‘Us versus them’. This ‘othering’ of migrant workers is really the heart of the problem.” That’s why the film tries to views migrant workers not as foreign, or pitiful, but merely as human. In this vein, the characters participate in numerous communal dances; each set to a song of the different languages spoken in the film (Bangladeshi, Mandarin, English). While immersed in the migrant workers’ community, Siew Hua noted the importance of dancing: “Dancing is trance-like. [You] stop thinking about ‘you’re a worker, I’m a local’; we are just moving bodies to the beat.” Siew Hua feels that one of the main messages of the film is the common humanity shared by migrant workers and locals. “Instead of a discourse of sympathy, we should have a discourse of empathy.” The selection of genre was necessary for this very reason. I point out that we don’t associate a Singapore film with the detective noir genre; why, then, did he decide to venture off the beaten path? “Noir is not about solving the mystery. It’s about the psychology of the detective. [Lok] is a stand-in for me, for the audience. He is a relatable, middle class, majority-race person. He is someone who is [initially] uncaring, indifferent, but as he discovers the parallels between himself and Wang (such as their insomnia), he … discovers the ability to have compassion.” It’s one part documentary, one part noir, one part surrealist psychodrama; perhaps that’s why the film resembles, as The Hollywood Reporter put it, ‘a few genres tossed together into a cement mixer’. Throughout, fantastical sequences are interspersed with naturalistic scenes or conversations, causing reality to bend over backwards. Meanwhile, the story is never fully explained. The main plot seems but window dressing on the sidelines of Wang and Lok’s psychic adventure. After a while, I gave up following the narrative path and just sat back to enjoy the ride. In one memorable, trance-like scene, Wang is playing an early version of Counter-Strike (CS), when the first-person camera begins to glitch through the terrain, swooping through the virtual air and ground. Under a resonant soundtrack, accompanied by Wang’s narration, the film produces a hypnotic, thoroughly bizarre effect from this very technical glitch. Movies have, for years, been trying to depict the intricacies of the virtual world, with mild to moderate success. The film’s depiction of cyberspace struck me, a self-described film enthusiast, as a moment of incipient brilliance in the art of film—not just in Singapore, but worldwide. Siew Hua came upon the idea while mucking around on his computer: “When I go into first-person, it’s very disembodied … and for these games, when you die, you can roam around the map while waiting for the game to end, like a soul, a ghost, ignored by everyone else … just like how Wang feels.” Then, the game glitched. “I realised, at this moment, something very fascinating. This virtual world looks real—until it stops working. All of a sudden we realise [that] it is wholly constructed: like Singapore, [the game] is nothing more than … a land that is imagined.” Hours after watching the film, its iconic magenta-violet hues are still dancing on my retinas, superimposed over dull-as-ditchwater panoramas of industrial machines grinding endless dirt. In a way, this colour cacophony is a fitting metaphor for A Land Imagined: soothing, yet invigorating; verisimilar, yet dream-like; dissonant, yet harmonious (yes, I too own a thesaurus). An inherent tension tears at the film, thematically, narratively, even visually, but I can’t decide whether it’s utter madness or utter genius. Maybe both. If you can’t already tell, this is not your typical film. Admittedly, enjoying it requires an open mind. I ask Siew Hua why he chose to make a film that can be described as ‘art house’, which typically has but a niche audience amongst local movie-goers. “That label is useless to me,” he laughs, “it is useful only to distributors.” He does, however, admit that he’s deviated quite a bit from standard film conventions that moviegoers here are accustomed to. “I’m not making this film for festivals,” he explains. “I made it for a local audience. To me … It’s important to introduce something to them; something abstract, something new.” This is, ultimately, what makes the film worth watching—it’s something novel, something strange, something wonderful, and I left the theatre uncertain but enriched. Uncertain, only in that I was unable to identify what exactly it was that had enriched me. Yes, it is a Mandarin-language film, but as a member of the non-Chinese community, I can vouch for the simple and effective subtitling. Besides, the visuals speak more than dialogue ever will. Artistic, to be sure, and airy-fairy, for some, but Siew Hua puts his directorial vision in terms that even the most pragmatic of us can understand: “With cinema, I want to experiment; if I’m not pushing the form in some way, I’m wasting resources.” “I cannot do things any other way—I don’t know how to.”

SINGAPORE: Commuters will be able to use their Mastercard contactless bank card or compatible mobile phone to pay for their public bus and train rides from April this year, with Visa expected to get on board “later this year”. This was revealed by Senior Minister of State for Transport Janil Puthucheary during his Committee of Supply (COS) speech on Thursday (Mar 7). Dr Puthucheary said the Land Transport Authority (LTA) had partnered Mastercard to test the use of contactless bank cards on public transport under the account-based ticketing pilot in March 2017. This has been “successful” and LTA is now ready to fully launch the service under a new brand called SimplyGo. “With SimplyGo, commuters will have the option of carrying one less card for transport, or maybe no cards if they are using their mobile phones, and not having to do card top-ups,” Dr Puthucheary said. LTA said in a separate press release on Thursday that commuters can register for a SimplyGo account and link different contactless bank cards on the TransitLink SimplyGo portal or app. Participants of the pilot can continue to use the same Mastercard, it said. Those with stored value cards, such as concessions cards, ez-link or NETS FlashPay cards, will be able to get the same convenience when they upgrade their existing cards towards the end of the year, it added. Mastercard said in a statement after the announcement that it is "delighted" to be the first international payments brand to partner LTA for the launch of SimplyGo. AUTONOMOUS VEHICLES TO CREATE NEW JOB OPPORTUNITIES Dr Puthucheary also pointed to autonomous vehicles (AVs) as another area of technology that can allow the Government to potentially reinvent how land transport is provided and deliver better services through, for example, dynamically routed services. It was previously reported that self-driving buses and shuttles will be introduced in Punggol, Tengah and the Jurong Innovation District in 2022. This vision came a step closer earlier this week when Nanyang Technological University and Volvo Buses launched a 12-metre autonomous electric bus. It can also help create new job opportunities in the sector, he added. ST Engineering, for one, is conducting a trial of autonomous buses and has partnered SBS Transit to deploy a few of its bus captains to be safety operators, Dr Janil said. “While the widespread deployment of AVs is still years away, such trials give us an early sense of the requirements for the new job roles that will be created,” he said. Source: CNA/kk(aj)

SINGAPORE — A psychiatrist from the National University Hospital (NUH) has been fined S$50,000 for failing to verify a caller’s identity before writing a memo to refer a patient to the Institute of Mental Health. The caller turned out to be the patient’s brother and not her husband as he had claimed. And although the memo was addressed to ambulance personnel or the police officer-in-charge, it was handed to the brother, who used it to support his application for a personal protection order against the patient. The personal protection order was granted by the Family Court. A three-member disciplinary tribunal found Dr Soo Shuenn Chiang guilty of failing to maintain patient confidentiality. The tribunal — chaired by cardiothoracic surgeon Joseph Sheares — had wanted to impose the maximum fine of S$100,000, but reduced it by half after considering mitigating factors. In the grounds of decision released on Tuesday (March 5), the tribunal said that a breach of patient confidentiality is a serious and important matter. Read also SingHealth cyber attack a result of human lapses, IT system weaknesses: COI report This case justifies a deterrent sentence “so as to create public awareness, more particularly among potential offenders, that punishment will be certain and unrelenting for this type of breaches and offenders”, it said. The patient's name was not disclosed in the grounds of decision to protect her identity. FACTS OF THE CASE On Jan 19, 2015, the patient was admitted to NUH for an overdose of a pain relief drug. She was reviewed by Dr Soo for adjustment disorder with depressed mood and alcohol misuse. She was noted to have a risk of self-harm as she had a history of depression. The woman was discharged the next day. Two months later, Dr Soo received a phone call from the woman’s brother. Dr Soo did not check the caller’s identity by asking for his name, identity card number or contact number, and comparing these against NUH’s records. The memo he wrote contained her confidential medical information, and he instructed his clinic staff member to pass it to the caller, believing he was the patient’s husband. While Dr Soo’s response to the phone call was appropriate in trying to rapidly get help for the patient, he failed to take proper care to ensure the memo did not fall into the wrong hands. Dr Soo’s lawyers said that it was an “honest oversight” during the course of seeing 17 patients that day. The psychiatrist accepted that he had caused potential harm to the patient. The tribunal agreed that the lapse occurred on a hectic day, but said that the preventive actions he should have taken by verifying the caller’s identity were simple and “not onerous”. “We could only conclude that the failure of Dr Soo to take such steps reflected both a lack of concern for or appreciation of the required standards and an indifference to the patient’s medical confidentiality,” the tribunal said. But it agreed that Dr Soo’s misconduct was not as egregious as a previous case, in which a doctor — who was with the KK Women's and Children's Hospital — was fined S$10,000 in 2011 for accessing the electronic medical records of two patients not under his care, but who were his ex-girlfriends. At the time, S$10,000 was the maximum fine. https://www.todayonline.com/singapore/s50000-fine-psychiatrist-who-failed-protect-patients-confidential-info

SINGAPORE - The much-anticipated Jewel Changi Airport, with more than 280 shops and food and beverage outlets, will open its doors to the world on April 17, 2019. Before the opening, a public preview will be held from April 11 to 16 for Singapore residents eager to be among the first to see the 10-storey development. Registration will open online at jewelpreview.com at 6am on March 12, and each person can register for up to four people. A total of about 500,000 free tickets will be available, Changi Airport Group (CAG) said in a statement on Thursday (March 7). It came after Jewel's opening date was announced by Senior Minister of State for Transport Lam Pin Min in Parliament during the debate on the ministry's budget. The public preview, CAG said, will run in four three-hour time blocks from 10am to 10pm daily. Visitors can shop and dine at more than 90 per cent of Jewel's shopping and dining outlets, which will be open. The only area that will be off-limits, for now, is a 14,000 sq m Canopy Park - the size of 11 Olympic-size swimming pools - located on the top floor of Jewel Changi Airport. It will be open to the public only in the middle of the year, the airport said, without giving a date. The park will feature a 50m-long suspended bridge with a glass flooring that will allow visitors to look down at the greenery below; a 250m-long bouncing net, which at its highest point, will be suspended 8m or three storeys above ground; and play attractions including mazes and slides. When Jewel opens, travellers will be able to access an early check-in lounge serving passengers of 26 airlines, including Singapore Airlines, SilkAir and Scoot. This is among the aviation facilities that include integrated ticketing and baggage services for fly-cruise and fly-coach transfers, all of which will improve the travel experience of travellers, said Dr Lam when he announced its opening date on Thursday. Jewel, with its distinctive dome-shaped facade made of glass and steel, is sited next to Terminal 1 (T1) and linked to T2 and T3 via air-conditioned linkways fitted with travelators. It is designed by architect Moshe Safdie, well-known for his iconic Marina Bay Sands integrated resort. In his latest effort, the highlights include a five-storey garden with 2,500 trees and 100,000 shrubs, with two walking trails. There is also a 40m-high Rain Vortex - the world's tallest indoor waterfall. Jewel Mr Sitoh Yih Pin (Potong Pasir), chairman of the Government Parliamentary Committee for Transport, said : "I must confess that before I visited the Jewel in early February this year, I had my doubts about the need for yet another shopping area at Changi Airport, given the shopping opportunities already available at the existing terminals. "Instead, what I found was a beautifully designed garden concept recreational centre which complements the existing airport and exemplifies our position as a garden city. It will also create many job opportunities for Singaporeans." Responding, Dr Lam said: "I am happy to hear from Mr Sitoh that he believes Jewel Changi Airport will be a delight for visitors and Singaporeans alike." He added that apart from Jewel, plans are on track for other infrastructure developments in Changi, for example, the construction of the future T5 in Changi East. Upgrading works on T2 will also start soon. It will be expanded and refreshed, with automated check-in kiosks, biometric-enabled bag drops and automated immigration gates, to offer passengers greater convenience from check-in to immigration to their flight, he said. https://www.straitstimes.com/singapore/transport/jewel-changi-airport-to-open-on-april-17

SINGAPORE — Suspecting his wife of having an affair, a plastic surgeon accessed the computer system of the Singapore General Hospital (SGH) to get contact details of the wife of her alleged lover, in the hope of saving his own marriage. Dr Leo Kah Woon also installed a keylogging software on the laptop he shared with his wife to spy on her personal communications. He later used the information he got in their divorce proceedings. For his actions, a disciplinary tribunal of the Singapore Medical Council (SMC) suspended him from practising for three months from Dec 18 last year. In its grounds of decision published on Tuesday (March 5), the tribunal noted that a suspension "would well deter like-minded medical and other professionals who have access to large databases of personal information from abusing the privilege”. In particular, last year’s SingHealth data leak served as a “timely reminder” for everyone to treat cyber security with “the utmost seriousness”, the tribunal added. Dr Leo, who has since divorced his wife, now practises at his own clinic at Mount Elizabeth Medical Centre. He was employed at SGH when he committed the offences. In 2017, he was fined S$13,000 in the court for his actions. The SMC then began disciplinary proceedings against him, as his offences implied a character defect making him unfit for the medical profession. THE SPYING BEGAN Dr Leo and his wife tied the knot in 2005. However, sometime in 2011, he started suspecting that she was cheating on him. Her alleged lover was identified in SMC’s grounds of decision merely as Mr C. Around September 2012, he installed a keylogging software in the MacBook Pro laptop he shared with his wife. The software captured her keystrokes and took periodic screenshots when she used the computer, which were sent to his email account. This meant that he could gather information about emails and instant messages that she sent. The spying continued when she left their home to live with her parents and took the laptop with her. The tribunal noted that in October 2012, she began “very acrimonious” divorce proceedings against Dr Leo after he asked her to leave their home. The pair, who have two children, finalised their divorce in May 2015. During their divorce proceedings in the Family Justice Courts, Dr Leo used the information he gathered to explain his concerns about issues relating to the custody, care and control of their children. He also wanted to find out all he could about Mr C’s wife at the time, identified as Ms A, and reach out to her. Dr Leo hoped that Ms A would be able to convince her husband to leave his family alone. On Nov 7, 2012, when Dr Leo could not find any reliable public information to contact Ms A, he used a computer at SGH to search for her contact details in the hospital computer system. He then gave the details to his sister and told her to call Ms A. Ms A came to know of her husband’s infidelity from that call. Mr C then filed a complaint with the SMC against Dr Leo and the police were called in to investigate when the illegally obtained emails and messages were used in the divorce proceedings. Dr Leo’s wife was fined S$3,500 by the courts, for abetting a private investigator to unlawfully access his Asus laptop on Dec 18, 2012. She had seen documents related to the divorce proceedings on it and wanted to make copies of them. A LACK OF INTEGRITY The SMC sought a suspension of at least six to eight months for Dr Leo, while his lawyers asked for a S$10,000 fine. While the SMC argued that Dr Leo had displayed dishonesty, which could see him being struck off the registry of medical practitioners, the disciplinary tribunal concluded that there was no clear evidence of that in his conduct. Instead, it said that he clearly displayed a lack of integrity “to a somewhat appalling extent”. Dr Leo had hired a private investigator to surveil his wife, including installing the keylogging software on the laptop to gather evidence against her in the event of divorce proceedings. To use this evidence “brings (his) integrity to the lowest of levels”, the tribunal added. As members of the public expect doctors to keep medical records confidential, a fine would not be enough to correct his breach of trust, it said. “A suspension would also convey to the public that the disciplinary tribunal does not condone such behaviour and acts, even if they are related to matters in the private family domain. It will convey the message clearly that doctors are expected to conduct themselves with integrity and ethically both in their professional and private lives,” the tribunal added. Dr Leo was also censured, as well as ordered to give a written undertaking to the SMC not to engage in similar conduct and to pay the costs of the disciplinary proceedings. https://www.todayonline.com/singapore/plastic-surgeon-suspended-3-months-illegally-using-sghs-computer-system-sort-out-personal

With the arrival of online streaming services such as Netflix and Amazon Prime Video, consumers have the option to watch movies, television shows and even live events without having to pay for a cable television service. This is an exciting prospect for many prospect for many Singaporeans. But how much could you really save by "cutting the cord"? Streaming Services Give Consumers Alternatives to Cable Television Across the world streaming services have become an increasingly common form of entertainment, while cable TV has become less popular in some places. For example, from 2015 to 2017 alone, the number of paid television subscribers in Singapore decreased by 115,000, a 12% drop. This was likely influenced by the introduction of streaming services, such as Netflix, which launched in 190 countries including Singapore at the start of 2016. What Do Streaming Services Offer and How Much Cheaper Are They? The streaming services available in Singapore offer a wide range of movies and television shows. For example, Netflix has 2,984 movies and 1,431 shows available to viewers in Singapore, including Black Mirror, Stranger Things and House of Cards. Other platforms make it possible for you to follow your favorite sports clubs or keep up with local and international news. These offerings are clearly attractive to individuals who want to watch their entertainment at their own convenience, rather than watching based on the scheduling of live television. In fact, cable providers have also begun offering streaming options to their customers. Some of these services are free and others about S$5 to S$25 monthly in Singapore. With that said, many of these streaming platforms offer premium services for a few more dollars per month, which allow for multiple individuals to use the same account simultaneously. We found that the basic level plans tend to cost approximately S$5-$15 per month, as shown in the chart above. It is also worth mentioning that many of these services offer promotional deals for new customers, so you may be able to obtain even better monthly rates if you are new to these providers. Finally, if you are considering the idea of subscribing to one of these services, we recommend that you take advantage of the free trial periods that most of these services offer. Comparatively, cable television rates tend to be more expensive. While cable TV prices in Singapore are often lumped in with internet service and can vary greatly in price based on the number of channels offered, estimates suggest that cable packages alone typically cost anywhere from S$25 to S$80 per month. Therefore, it is possible that you could cut your annual cable bill by a significant margin if your cable bill is on the higher end of that range. With that said, this decision ultimately depends on your willingness to migrate from your current cable television offerings to online streaming services. Don't Forget Additional Costs of Switching to Streaming Many streaming services work seamlessly through smart TVs or laptops. However, those without a compatible television may prefer to purchase a streaming device such as the Google Chromecast or Apple TV. These devices cost S$65 and S$228, respectively. Therefore, it is essential to factor in these expenses when considering making the jump from cable. For example, if you have a very inexpensive cable bill you may end up paying more per month once you factor in the cost of streaming services and devices. Other Ways to Trim Your Monthly Subscription Bills Another simple way to reduce your monthly home entertainment bills is to optimise your credit card usage. For example, some credit cards offer benefits to consumers that use their cards for recurring monthly payments such as cable, mobile, or utility bills (or even insurance premiums). In particular, some cards offer as much as 5% in cashback on your recurring cable TV, mobile and internet bills each month, which can result in a decent amount of savings over the course of a few years. If you are spending S$100 per month for cable and internet, this comes out to S$60 in annual savings. The article How Much Can You Save by Ditching Cable and Switching to Streaming Services? originally appeared on ValueChampion.

A four-year-old from Wisconsin excitedly unwrapped his happy meal from McDonald’s and started playing with what he thought was the free toy the fast food company famously gives away. It did not take long for the child’s father to discover that the toy in question was actually a sharp razor blade. The incident took place Sunday when Scot Dymond and his son returned home after buying a happy meal from McDonald’s drive-thru in Columbus, Wisconsin. "He was super excited he had a new toy,” Dymond told Channel 3000. “He started waving it around and I realized it was actually a razor knife. I couldn't imagine him cutting his arm open or even losing a finger because it's so sharp.” Outraged at the discovery, Dymond immediately drove back to the restaurant and demanded answers from the on-duty manager. "I called the manager at McDonald's. They offered a free meal because there was a razor in my son's meal,” he said. Dymond said the manager’s reply enraged him further and he decided to call the police. “I don’t want a meal. I want my kid to be safe and everyone else’s kids to be safe,” he said. After investigation, police said they did not suspect any foul play was involved in the matter. “I don't think anyone had ill intent,” Lt. Dennis Weiner, acting chief of Columbus police, said. “I think it was a fluke." Police were able to trace the origin of the razor to McDonald’s outlet as the restaurant frequently used sharp objects as cleaning tools. Since there was no surveillance footage of the exact moment the razor blade got into the food pack, police said there was no way to tell for sure. However, they believe it was bumped into the meal box unknowingly. "Kinda scary, kinda scary. I understand the blade was also extended when it was found in the box as well. I'm sure they were surprised to not have a toy," Weiner added. "Injury, choking, a lot of different things could have panned out of this, but fortunately did not.” Although he did not elaborate, he said it was not uncommon for police to be called in to investigate odd objects found inside McDonald's meals. Weiner also warned parents and children to always keep a lookout while ordering from restaurants "because you never know." Police added that the fast food company was fully cooperating with their investigation regarding the incident. "The safety and security of our customers is a top priority. We are working with local law enforcement to investigate this claim,” the company said in a statement. Meanwhile, Dymond said the incident has caused him to exclude McDonald’s from his list of eateries for the time being. “McDonald’s is off our list, probably permanently,” he said. "I'm hoping corporate and the owner take corrective actions immediately. Retrain their staff and have some kind of safety check in place that every meal is checked, all tools are put in proper spots. There's no reason for a dangerous tool to be lying next to a food item." https://www.msn.com/en-sg/news/newsother/man-slams-mcdonalds-after-son-finds-razor-blade-in-happy-meal/ar-BBUqTai?li

In a Shanghai stadium on Saturday, thousands of screaming fans gathered with their arms outstretched, reaching towards their idol. But there was no megastar to touch. They were there to see Luo Tianyi, China's most famous virtual singer. Virtual stars were first created in the 1990s in Japan. Luo Tianyi was created in 2012, the first of her kind in China. Now she thrives thanks to concerts, lucrative advertising contracts... and fans who create her songs for her. The country's virtual idol industry, valued at a little less than $14 million last year, is expected to grow to about $220 million by 2023, according to consulting firm Newsijie. Check out our video, above, to find out more about this idol of a digital age. This story originally appeared on Inkstone,

SINGAPORE: A total of 22 Singaporeans were among those named the "richest people in the world" by business magazine Forbes on Tuesday (Mar 5). The 2019 list of Singaporean billionaires included hotpot chain Haidilao's chairman Zhang Yong, who was described as "China's richest restaurateur" with a net worth of US$6.8 billion. He placed 224th in the list. Zhang, 48, was on China's Rich List last year. He is said to have obtained seed money from three friends, but was the one to run Haidilao, which went public last September. The chain has US$10.4 billion in sales from more than 300 restaurants located in China, the US, Japan, South Korea, as well as Singapore. Also on the list were property siblings Robert and Philip Ng, who made the 112th spot with a net worth of US$12 billion and paint tycoon Goh Cheng Liang at 203rd with US$7.2 billion. United Overseas Bank chairman emeritus Wee Cho Yaw placed 267th with US$6.1 billion, the Kwee brothers at 311th with US$5.6 billion and Valencia football club owner Peter Lim with US$2.5 billion. ASIA-PACIFIC HAS MOST BILLIONAIRES According to Forbes, Asia-Pacific is the region with the most billionaires, accounting for 767 of the total with a net worth of US$2.5 trillion. The richest man in Asia is India's Mukesh Ambani, ranked 13th with a net worth of US$50 billion. Tencent CEO Ma Huateng from China placed 20th. China saw the highest number of newcomers this year, but also the most drop-offs. The richest self-made woman is also from China: real estate mogul Wu Yajun, who is worth an estimated US$9.4 billion. A total of 2,153 billionaires made the list this year, down from 2,208 in 2018 - the first decrease since 2016, said Forbes. They have a collective net worth of US$8.7 trillion, down from US$9.1 trillion in 2018. For the second year running, Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos remained in the top spot with a net worth of US$131 billion, followed by Bill Gates with US$96.5 billion. Meanwhile, 21-year-old Kylie Jenner made the list for the first time, becoming the youngest billionaire in the world as well as the youngest self-made billionaire of all time. Notable newcomers include Oracle CEO Safra Catz, Spotify co-founder and CEO Daniel Ek, and CEO of Canada Goose Dani Reiss. Source: CNA/ad(hs)

SINGAPORE (Mar 5): Companies in Singapore are predicting conservative salary increases in the year ahead after a stagnant 2018, finds a recent research report by recruitment specialist Hays. Based on the findings of the Hays Asia Salary Guide 2019, 17% or almost one in five employees surveyed said they experienced no increase in their salaries over 2018 – higher than the city state’s historical norms – while employers reported conservative increments averaging at up to just 3%. In a press release last Friday, Hays highlights salaries as the primary consideration for employees in Singapore, with only 4% claiming to be ‘very satisfied’ with their current pay levels. Notably, three in five (60%) of professionals cited compensation packages as the key reason for seeking out new roles, with the same factor being the second-most common reason for staying with a current employer. Despite this, the report indicated a declining percentage of guaranteed bonuses to 63% for 2019 from 17% in 2018, with slightly more employers tying them to factors individual, company and team performance. 14% of companies in Singapore are expecting to pay out no bonuses at all. Elsewhere, organisations in Malaysia (48%), Hong Kong (45%) and Mainland China (44%) are expecting salaries to increase by 3-6%. Companies in Japan (58%) are found to be the most likely to award their employees bonuses of at least 50% of their salaries in 2019. “With positive sentiments surrounding the growth of the economy, business activity and hiring levels, employees [in Singapore] may begin to wonder why this improvement is not being passed on to them in terms of compensation packages, perhaps leading them to rival organisations that could meet their salary expectations,” says Grant Torrents, regional director at Hays Singapore. https://sg.finance.yahoo.com/news/singapores-workforce-faced-conservative-salary-071547116.html

SINGAPORE — From November this year, middle- to high-income Singaporeans who have chronic conditions such as diabetes will stand to benefit from the Community Health Assist Scheme (Chas). Green Chas cards, for chronic-disease sufferers with a per capita household income greater than S$1,800, will join the blue and orange Chas cards currently available for Singaporeans below that income threshold. “This is a major philosophical shift, as Singapore has never had universal subsidies for general practitioner care, but we believe this will help Singaporeans as they grow old, and also allow for a greater anchoring of chronic care in the community," said Senior Minister of State for Health Edwin Tong on Wednesday (Mar 6) during his ministry's Committee of Supply debate. The new green Chas card and other enhancements to Chas subsidies are part of efforts to ensure primary care remains affordable for Singaporeans, said the Ministry of Health (MOH). What subsidies will green Chas cardholders receive at participating clinics? Acute conditions: None One chronic condition: Up to S$28 per visit, capped at S$112 per year Complex chronic conditions (two or more chronic conditions, or a single condition with complications): Up to S$40 per visit, capped at S$160 per year Dental: None From Nov 1, orange Chas card holders will receive the following subsidy enhancements: Acute conditions: Up to S$10 per visit (from S$0) Complex chronic conditions: Up to S$80 per visit, capped at S$320 per year (from up to S$75 per visit, capped at S$300 per year) As for blue Chas card holders: Complex chronic conditions: Up to S$125 per visit, capped at S$500 per year (from S$120 per visit, capped at S$480 per year) Like the Pioneer Generation, all Merdeka Generation seniors will receive Chas subsidies from Nov 1, regardless of their household income or the annual value of their homes. These are the subsidies they can get with the new Merdeka Generation card: Common illnesses: Up to S$23.50 per visit One chronic condition: Up to S$85 per visit, capped at S$340 per year Complex chronic conditions: Up to S$130 per visit, capped at S$520 per year Dental: S$16 to S$261.50 per procedure, depending on the procedure From September this year, Singaporeans can apply for Chas online too. Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong announced at last year’s National Day Rally that Chas will cover all Singaporeans — regardless of income — for chronic conditions such as diabetes and osteoarthritis. Currently, about 1.2 million lower- to middle-income Singaporeans and about 1,000 private general practitioners and 700 dental clinics are part of Chas. In 2018, some 630,000 Singaporeans received about S$152 million in Chas subsidies. OTHER ANNOUNCEMENTS BY MOH 1. Timeline of Merdeka Generation package From July 2019: One-off top-up of S$100 to PAssion Silver cards; Medisave top-ups of S$200 every year for five years till 2023; additional premium subsidies for MediShield Life From Nov 2019: Additional outpatient care subsidies at Chas GP and dental clinics, polyclinics and subsidised specialist outpatient clinics From 2021: Additional participation incentive of S$1,500 for CareShield Life if they sign up between 2021 and 2023 2. More healthcare facilities Two new polyclinics to be completed in Serangoon and Tengah by 2025 Last year, MOH announced that two new polyclinics at Nee Soon Central and Tampines North would be completed by 2023, adding to the four in Bukit Panjang, Eunos, Kallang and Sembawang to be completed by 2020 3. More help for youths with social and mental health needs by end-2019 MOH is looking to develop an integrated youth service with partners such as the Agency for Integrated Care, Health Promotion Board, the Institute of Mental Health and National Council of Social Service MOH will also review and update the 2017 Enhanced Community Mental Health Masterplan 4. Better diabetes management Educational materials for diabetic patients and members of the public, in the four national languages, to be published on HealthHub by the middle of this year MOH will seek feedback from the public on what other in-depth materials will be helpful Training of professionals and volunteers to help diabetic patients manage their condition using the educational materials Risk-stratified framework, which will reduce diabetes-related lower limb and toe amputations, to be launched from the second quarter of this year 5. More accurate screening test for cervical cancer for women aged 30 years old or above Moving towards human papillomavirus (HPV) tests that can detect the presence of cancer-causing HPV, rather than Pap smears Decreasing frequency of tests from three to five years Under the Screen for Life programme, costs will remain unchanged — free-of-charge for Pioneer Generation seniors, S$2 for Chas blue or orange card holders, S$5 for other Singaporeans 6. More help for caregivers Those looking after seniors with dementia: A night respite service pilot programme will be rolled out in the second half of this year Those caring for end-of-life cancer patients receiving home palliative care: A pilot home-based custodial care respite service will start from the middle of this year Access respite services quicker: The Agency for Integrated Care will pilot a pre-enrolment system with a few senior care centres and nursing homes, from the first quarter of this year Flexible work arrangements to be strengthened 7. Assisted living in public housing MOH, the Ministry of National Development and the Housing and Development Board will conduct focus group discussions this year on proposed concepts. More details will be released later. Assisted living means care services are available alongside housing. The MOH said seniors can buy into a senior-friendly home and pick from a range of programmes and services such as housekeeping, 24/7 emergency support and personal care. 8. More career pathways for nurses ITE diploma in nursing can take two years to complete instead of two-and-a-half years New virtual platform, the National Nursing Academy, to coordinate and support lifelong learning offerings for nurses and nursing leaders Rolling out of Community Nursing Competency Framework https://www.todayonline.com/singapore/new-green-chas-card-november-all-singaporeans-2-new-polyclinics-by-2025

SHANGHAI (Reuters) - Chinese online retailers have started discounting iPhones for the second time this year as Apple Inc wrestles with a prolonged sales slowdown in the world's largest smartphone market. Several electronics vendors announced discounts on iPhone devices this week, following mass discounts in January just before Apple reported sinking sales in China. Gadget retailer Suning.Com Co Ltd said it would slash the price of the iPhone XS by as much as 1,000 yuan ($148.95) from its official price. Suning had lowered the prices of other iPhone models in January along with other retailers, but those cuts excluded the iPhone XS. Pinduoduo Inc, an e-commerce site best known for selling inexpensive goods, has also said it would sell the 64GB edition of the iPhone XS for 6,999 yuan, a drop of over 1,000 yuan from the official price. Online retail giant JD.com Inc said it would offer discounts on a range of Apple products including the iPhone XS and XS Max, with models of the latter device selling at discounts of up to 1,700 yuan. Like Suning, JD.com initially did not discount the iPhone XS upon its first major round of discounts in January. Apple, JD.com and Pinduoduo did not respond to requests for comment, while Suning could not be reached. Apple's sales from China declined 20 percent year-on-year, according to its most recent earnings report. Slowing demand for smartphones and increased competition from local brands have chipped at its dominance in the country. The U.S. company has yet to change the official sticker prices of its devices that it lists on its Chinese website. Yet the company has partnered with Ant Financial, the finance arm of Alibaba Group Holding Ltd, and several state-owned banks to let consumers purchase iPhones via interest-free loans. https://sg.finance.yahoo.com/news/chinese-online-retailers-slash-iphone-071327150.html

Nasi lemak rice with roasted chicken, boiled Eggplant, omelette and pig leg soup

In their latest video, Shanghai-based sketch comedy troupe Mamahuhu take a look at the rapid-fire changes going on China and how it can play havoc with your dining options.

Facebook has sued four Chinese companies for selling fake Facebook and Instagram accounts. It represents a major effort by a large Western platform to strike back at alleged click farms in China. But as we found out, purchasing likes and followers on social media might be easier than you think. It took only a brief search on China’s most popular ecommerce platform Taobao. I typed “Facebook like” in Chinese and voilà – the doors to online popularity were open for me. (Abacus is a unit of the South China Morning Post, which is owned by Alibaba, the owner of Taobao.) Some of the companies selling fake followers, likes, and comments describe themselves as overseas websites marketing and promotion. Others say they are international fans marketing companies. I picked one that's named Grey Grey Technology because the name seemed so very apt. And besides, it had good reviews. “It's been ten days and it's relatively stable, the number of fans did not drop. Buyers' after sales service is excellent,“ wrote one satisfied customer (could those good reviews be fake too? I wonder). Our seller told us that the current prices on the market for Facebook and Instagram were between US$1.50 and US$3 for 100 followers. Around US$223 could buy you 10,000 followers on Facebook. And if you wanted to add another 10k for your Instagram, that would be less than US$300. Twitter, however, was a bit trickier and more expensive, my seller warned us. Still, the temptation was too high: My following on Twitter had always been kind of pathetic so I bought myself 100 followers for US$5.30 just to test if the service actually works. According to the seller, opting for ”fake“ followers -- meaning bots -- would have been cheaper but also riskier. The platform declared a war against bots last year, reportedly banning millions of them in a few months. We've reached out to several platforms. A Facebook representative provided this statement, which reads, in part: "We hope to reinforce that this kind of fraudulent activity is not tolerated – and that we’ll act forcefully to protect the integrity of our platform." We'll update this story when comments from Twitter and Alibaba become available. So where do all these invisible followers that Chinese vendors are selling actually spawn from? Videos of click farms in China have gone viral in the past showing how large these operations can get. They use powerful computers to string together hundreds of thousands of phone cards to create fake engagement. Click farms are also known to hack into other smartphones through malicious apps to hijack traffic. I never tire of looking at videos of Chinese click farms. It's just so surreal to see hundreds of phones playing the same video for the purposes of fake engagment. pic.twitter.com/bHAGLqRqVb — Matthew Brennan (@mbrennanchina) December 10, 2018 Fake web traffic isn't just for boosting follower numbers. You can also buy five-star reviews for your store on Google Maps. Video views are an even bigger part of the industry. In 2017, for instance, two Chinese TV shows got more than a billion views in just one day. The weird part is China only had about 750 million internet users at the time. This has led iQiyi, the Netflix of China, to give up on counting views to gauge popularity entirely. The problem persists despite amendments to Chinese law last year, making frauds punishable by up to 2 million yuan (around US$298,000) in fines. But China is just one of the countries known to host click farms for foreign platforms, with much of the action also happening in Indonesia, the Philippines, Bangladesh, and India – many aimed at Western buyers. In the meantime, my Taobao seller seems to have kept his promise: I got 56 new followers by the end of the day. Now, I only have to hope that Twitter doesn’t ban me.