SINGAPORE - A self-employed man who made his victims believe that he was the brother of then Deputy Prime Minister (DPM) Wong Kan Seng was sentenced to 4½ years' jail on Friday (May 13) for cheating them of $520,000.

Undischarged bankrupt Wong Kok Keong, alias Wong Kock Khiang, 63, is out on $30,000 bail pending his appeal.

He had admitted to three charges, with six others, mostly under the Bankruptcy Act, taken into consideration.

He cheated three directors of Manor Construction in 2007 by deceiving them into believing that he was DPM Wong's brother, and that a sum of $180,000 representing 20 per cent of an option to purchase a property at Yung Ho Road was payable.

He deceived the company of $240,000 over another business deal.

He has since returned $209,000 to Manor, leaving an outstanding balance of $211,000.

In 2011, he cheated Mr Chiam Teck Hwa, 48, by making him believe that he was DPM Wong's brother and saying that he would invest the victim's $50,000 into a company, along with his own money.

Wong has paid Mr Chiam back, as well as to another victim, Mr Tan Teik Chin, but this charge was considered.

In Mr Chiam's case, Wong claimed he had a project to set up a company to run dialysis centre units in Parkway Group Hospital and in Marine Parade.

After Mr Chiam had given a cheque of $50,000 to Wong, he found out through a search there was no record of the company, Grace Asset Management. He also found out that Wong was not related to DPM Wong and asked for the money back.

Deputy Public Prosecutor Hon Yi had said the amounts involved were substantial, and that Wong was motivated by personal profit.

Calling him a serial cheat, DPP Hon said Wong resurrected his old methods and perpetrated the same scam on the victims. In 2003, Wong was jailed for 53 months for cheating, dishonest misappropriation and obtaining of credit as a bankrupt.

Wong's lawyer Edmond Pereira said his client's ill health in recent years has resulted in increasing medical costs. His finances were crippled because his businesses had collapsed due to the adverse publicity. He said the father of three is remorseful and had co-operated with the authorities.

This article was first published on May 13, 2016.
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Poor hygiene practices were the likely cause of a mass food-poisoning incident in February, an investigation by the authorities has found.

Some 231 people fell ill after eating food supplied by Kuisine Catering over three days in February, the National Environment Agency (NEA), Ministry of Health and Agri-Food and Veterinary Authority said in a joint statement. Five of those affected needed in-patient medical treatment.

The caterer's food was eaten at events including a Chinese New Year gathering and a birthday party between Feb 12 and 14.

The outbreak was caused by a food-borne pathogen, Salmonella enteritidis, which is normally linked to raw poultry products, the agencies said.

The bacterium was "most likely introduced into ready-to-consume food items as a result of poor personal and food hygiene practices".

Victims suffered from after-effects such as vomiting, diarrhoea and fever, according to media reports. Some even had to be put on a drip. All patients have since recovered.

Upstream food suppliers were not found to be responsible. The agencies investigated firms which supplied food items to the caterer and found no safety lapses.

Before the end of the investigations, Kuisine Catering told the NEA that it would cease business and the NEA cancelled its licence.

After being notified of the incidents on Feb 15, the authorities immediately inspected the caterer's premises. The NEA instructed it to suspend its operations on Feb 18 and to discard all raw ingredients and condiments. It then instructed the firm to thoroughly clean and sanitise its premises and transport vehicles, and to get a pest control operator to inspect its premises.

Food handlers working at the suspended premises were required to re-attend and pass the Basic Food Hygiene Course.

The NEA also issued warnings for lapses, including expired products and a failure to maintain a temperature-monitoring record of freezers and chillers.

Click on thumbnail to view photos. Source: 

Lianhe Wanbao

When The Straits Times visited Kuisine Catering's premises at Jurong Food Hub yesterday, the door to the unit was shuttered and there was no signboard bearing the company's name to be seen.

Members of the public who encounter food establishments with poor hygiene practices should not patronise such outlets, the agencies added.

Anyone encountering them should call the 24-hour NEA call centre on 1800-225-5632 to provide details for investigation.

Ms Leow Manling, 32, said her relatives and husband suffered ailments like diarrhoea, fever and flu for three to seven days after eating the caterer's food at a Chinese New Year dinner.

Dishes included chicken, sweet- and-sour fish fillet and beancurd with mushrooms.

Although she was not affected, she said: "Some had to see the doctor a few times. An elderly relative was warded for a few days. My mum had to go to the hospital for a drip. It was quite traumatising for everybody."

Ms Leow, a healthcare worker at a hospital, added that she hoped the firm would pay attention to hygiene practices if it started a new business: "The workers have to be very conscious of hygiene practices when handling food."

This article was first published on May 14, 2016.
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Wildlife experts and animal welfare groups have applauded proposed changes that will give more creatures in the animal kingdom protection on Singapore's roads.

The proposed changes to the Road Traffic Act, made in Parliament on Monday, will widen a 53-year-old definition of "animals" - from mainly farm creatures to include cats and wildlife.

Currently, the Act requires only motorists who run over "horses, cattle, a**, mule, sheep, pig, goat or dogs" to stop to help them, or risk being jailed for up to a year or fined up to $3,000. With hundreds of animals, including rare species, ending up as roadkill here each year, animal welfare groups have lobbied for the law to be changed.

"Wild animals in Singapore will continue to explore new habitats," said Ms Anbarasi Boopal, deputy chief executive of the Animal Concerns Research and Education Society (Acres). "We should take this into consideration as we embark on new developments and make necessary policy amendments."

She added: "While the habitats of critically endangered species like the Sunda pangolin are protected here, their major threat is becoming roadkill."

The National Environment Agency had 2,258 pieces of feedback last year on dead animals sighted, whether killed on the roads or otherwise. This is up from 2,198 in 2014.

Animals run over by drivers in recent times include the plantain squirrel, long-tailed macaque, wild pig and deer. On May 8, an otter was almost knocked down in East Coast Park Service Road.

"If you hit an animal, it should be common sense to stop and see if it is alive," said Nee Soon GRC MP Louis Ng, who is also Acres' chief executive. He said animals left to die often face a slow and painful death, while those that are rescued have the potential to recover.

Mr Bernard Tay, chairman of the Singapore Road Safety Council, said the amended law can encourage drivers to be more alert, but added: "It is inevitable that some drivers will find it inconvenient to stop."

Motorists interviewed admitted that they were previously unaware of the Road Traffic Act's section on animals, or the proposed changes.

Housewife Alice Loo Lay See, 54, said: "The proposed modifications are good, but I think it should be applied to only some animals. I would probably not stop for a rat."

Engineer Ho Pwee Kim, 59, added: "On the highway it may be dangerous to stop."

Dr Shawn Lum, president of Nature Society (Singapore), said that while it was "a good idea to review aspects of the law", the changes should be practical.

Dr Lum suggested potential measures to complement the Road Traffic Act, including reducing speed limits for vehicles near nature reserves and identifying potential hot spots for collisions with wildlife.

Ms Mary-Ruth Low, a research assistant studying the spatial ecology of reptiles at the National University of Singapore, believes an amended definition of "animal" will have a significant impact on mindsets.

"Some people think of snakes as pests, not wildlife. They forget that these animals are part of the nature reserve."

This article was first published on May 14, 2016.
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A 17-year-old horse was in such a bad condition that three vets - including a former professor in equine medicine - believed it should have been put down.

Sharpy had dead or rotting tissue on its right lower hind leg and was unable to walk. It had also been given inadequate food, water and bedding, the vets told a district court.

However, Gallop Stable's operations director Thanabalan A. Rengasamy yesterday denied the mare had severe wounds - and insisted it had not been deprived of care, or suffered any pain.

Testifying as the first witness for Gallop on the third day of its trial on a charge of animal cruelty at the State Courts, Mr Thanabalan claimed the dead tissue was scarring caused by an inflammation of Sharpy's lymphatic system.

Mr Thanabalan said he was first told it had swelling in its hind legs by his company's Pasir Ris ranch manager in May 2013. Thinking it to be a relapse of lymphangitis, based on photos he saw, he advised that Sharpy be made to walk.

But by May 15, pus was oozing out of sores on its legs, and Mr Thanabalan asked the manager to call a vet.

That was also the day that an Agri-Food and Veterinary Authority (AVA) vet, on an unrelated visit to the ranch, saw Sharpy lying down with flies in its tearing eyes.

Its condition deteriorated further over the next few weeks, before improving.

The charge the company faces is for failing to provide adequate veterinary attention to the horse on or before May 15, 2013.

By the time a private vet saw Sharpy on May 16, it had slipped and fallen in its stable, causing further wounds. However, Mr Thanabalan claimed it had been adequately protected by rubber matting on the stable ground, with wood shavings sprinkled on top.

Gallop Stable on trial for alleged animal cruelty

Click on thumbnail to view photos. Source: 

AVA, The Straits Times

Mr Thanabalan denied the claims of the vets who testified for the prosecution that Sharpy was unable to stand on its own due to leg wounds, and said it could get up on its own and walk without any problems. He also denied that it was dehydrated or underfed.

Mr Thanabalan told the court that animal cruelty went against the nature of his company, which has some 85 retired race horses.

They would all have been put down, had his company not taken them in.

He also said his company would not euthanise a horse "unless there's no way the horse would recover and get well".

But when Deputy Public Prosecutor (DPP) Marshall Lim showed him a statement he had made to the AVA, he admitted suggesting to Gallop Stable's owners that three horses be put down because it was "not cost effective" to keep them.

One horse was found unsuitable for riding lessons due to having a hollow hoof and flat toe.

"At the end of the day, we still have to look at running a business," he said.

Mr Thanabalan, however, disagreed with DPP Lim's suggestion that the reason his company spent time, effort and money on Sharpy's recovery was that it was already under scrutiny from the AVA.

The court yesterday also heard that Gallop Stable lost its accreditation with the British Horse Society in 2013 because the latter found that the company's horses and ponies were being kept in unsatisfactory conditions.

DPP Lim submitted to the court a letter from the society to the AVA in support of this, although the contents of the letter were not read out in court.

Mr Thanabalan said he did not know of anyone from the society visiting the company's ranches.

If guilty of cruelty, Gallop Stable faces a maximum fine of $10,000.

Sharpy, now aged 20, is still with Gallop Stable.

The trial will resume at a later date.

This article was first published on May 14, 2016.
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Former Chinese presidential aide Ling Jihua has been formally charged with corruption, and analysts say the lengthy investigation underscores the sensitivity of his case.

Ling was accused of taking bribes, illegally obtaining state secrets and abuse of power, state news agency Xinhua reported yesterday .

According to a statement by China's state prosecutor, Ling, 59, used his many high-ranking positions in government to solicit bribes, seek favours for friends and illegally obtain state secrets.

It added that the circumstances were "extremely serious" and that his actions had resulted in major loss to public property and hurt national and public welfare. Ling, who served ex-president Hu Jintao, will face trial at a court in Tianjin.

One of the "tigers" or political heavyweights ensnared by China's sweeping anti-corruption campaign waged by Mr Hu's successor Xi Jinping, Ling was the head of the Communist Party's General Office of the Central Committee.

Like fellow "tiger" and top politician Zhou Yongkang, Ling will be tried in Tianjin because it is a neutral location where he has no past links, said East Asian Institute senior research fellow Chen Gang.

Ling had been tipped for a position in the party's elite Politburo but he was demoted in 2012 for allegedly trying to cover up a car crash in Beijing that killed his son.The younger Ling was found dead in a Ferrari with two semi-nude women.

The authorities announced in December 2014 that Ling was being investigated and the relatively longer time taken for him to be formally charged compared to other "tigers" was because of Ling's position in the general office, which has been described as the "nerve centre" of the party, Dr Chen said.

"Ling Jihua's corruption case is one of the most complicated to try because of the access he had to sensitive personnel and security material," Dr Chen said. "Still, the authorities are keen to wrap this up so it doesn't drag on too long."

Ling's corruption case took on additional political and diplomatic sensitivity after reports emerged alleging that he had handed state secrets over to his younger brother Ling Wancheng, who later left for the United States, where he is still residing.

In January, the Chinese authorities confirmed they were "handling the matter of Ling Wancheng" and were "in talks with the US", without offering further details. A month later, however, Mr Ling Wancheng issued a statement through a lawyer in the US denying allegations that he had defected and turned informant.

Hong Kong-based political analyst Willy Lam said yesterday's announcement could mean that a settlement had been worked out behind the scenes between the two countries about Mr Ling Wancheng's case.

But he added the announcement could also be timed as a way for President Xi to reassert his authority over the party, after rumours had emerged in recent months of internal dissent about his leadership.

"It would be good timing for Xi because this case can be used to re-establish his prestige as someone who has done better than his predecessors in enforcing discipline," Professor Lam said.

"At the same time he can intimidate his enemies, to remind them that he's still in control with his anti-corruption campaign."

This article was first published on May 14, 2016.
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When driverless cars become the norm, they will cause a redrawing of the transport map so major it will make the changes due to Uber and GrabCar look like a few pencil marks.

A Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) study has predicted that combining self-driving cars with car-sharing means Singapore's mobility needs can be met with just 30 per cent of the current one million vehicles.

Imagine the scale of the disruption to the billion-dollar car industry, thousands of driving jobs and miles of space now reserved for roads and carparks.

The Transport Minister himself thinks this remapping of land transport is inevitable.

Last month, when Parliament debated his ministry's budget, Mr Khaw Boon Wan predicted that "private cars will likely start to go the way of horse carriages, if not in 15 years, definitely in 20 or 25 years' time".

Between now and then, experts predict a steady shift towards autonomous vehicles, starting in controlled environments such as container ports, airports and education campuses. That will happen within the next five years, they reckon, because existing driverless technology - which employs sensors, cameras, laser-light scanners and mapping systems - is ready for use in such spaces.

Professor Wang Danwei, director at the Nanyang Technological University's Centre for System Intelligence and Efficiency, says: "Drivers and other (human) users in these areas can be educated on how to behave towards these new systems."

In fact, from the middle of this year, self-driving vehicles will be plying Gardens by the Bay. In just over two years' time, on-demand driverless shuttles are expected to ferry visitors about on Sentosa.

Prof Wang believes that self-driving public buses can be deployed if the road infrastructure is equipped with transponders to guide the vehicles, and bus lanes are reserved primarily for their use.

For commuters, though, the big change will come when they can summon driverless pods via an app to help them travel the first and last miles to a transport node such as an MRT station, and when self-driving taxis take to the roads to ferry people from point to point.

But those disruptions could still be at least 10 to 15 years away, or even longer. That's because more research and development are needed to enable self-driving cars to safely go onto crowded public roads with other human drivers, experts say.

THE LEAP TO PROACTIVE DRIVING

In February, a Google self-driving SUV (sport utility vehicle) collided with a bus in Mountain View, California, after the SUV's computer wrongly assumed that the bus driver in an adjacent lane would slow down.

To be fair to autonomous cars, it must be said that that was the first accident involving a Google self-driving car after the company's fleet had clocked more than 2.25 million km on the roads, a feat many experts consider impressive.

But for driverless cars to make the leap to being truly robust, safe, and reliable, the software algorithm used to drive them needs to shift from thinking "reactively" to thinking "proactively", says Dr Marcelo Ang, acting director at the National University of Singapore's Advanced Robotics Centre.

What's the difference?

At a road intersection without traffic lights, for example, a "reactive" self-driving car will use a set of parameters to "decide" when to go, Dr Ang says. These are based on how far away oncoming traffic is and whether such traffic is in the car's "safety zone" - a computer-defined radius around the car that tells it to stop.

"But a proactive algorithm will predict, (for example) whether the oncoming car has an aggressive driver, and will know in the next one to five seconds how the environment will change and plan the action accordingly."

More importantly, however, such an algorithm is constantly learning from experience - akin to humans.

"After the action is made, the algorithm rates itself - how well did it perform? If it crashed, it won't make the same prediction and action again," says Dr Ang, who is also a co-investigator at the Singapore-MIT Alliance for Research and Technology's (Smart) Future Urban Mobility unit.

If the process of "deep learning" - mimicking a human brain's ability to recognise patterns through huge data sets and make predictions - can be programmed in self-driving cars, it would propel them to the next level.

But that could take around a decade more, Dr Ang reckons.

SEEING THROUGH THE RAIN

Driverless cars also have to overcome some very real physical shortcomings that currently limit their usefulness.

This may come as a surprise but researchers have yet to work out how to get such cars to work reliably in bad weather. Heavy rain, for example, is not something such cars can deal with. That needs to be fixed if driverless cars are to become a true point-to-point, on-demand mobility solution which can be relied on at any time of the day, says Prof Wang.

Explaining why these smart cars struggle with a weather phenomenon that humans take in their stride, Prof Wang says: "When it rains, human (drivers) can (visually) 'lock in' the yellow road markings, and consider the rain drops as disturbances.

However, the laser scanners and cameras on the driverless cars are affected by the poor visibility."

To tackle this, Prof Wang together with researchers at the ST Engineering-NTU Corporate Laboratory are experimenting with signal-processing techniques so the car's computer can "remove" the rain, in the same way that a human does.

An alternative solution is to change the frequency at which the car's cameras capture the road images to account for the intervals between raindrops. "When the frequency is right, we can see through the rain," Prof Wang says.

READY, GET SET, GO!

While the road to a driverless future is still fraught with challenges, governments, carmakers and tech companies around the world are already paving the way for its eventual acceptance.

In anticipation of these vehicles hitting the streets, lawmakers in American states such as Nevada and California have enacted regulations to allow autonomous cars on the road.

In Singapore, the Government formed the Committee on Autonomous Road Transport in Singapore (Carts) two years ago.

Last October, Carts identified four main tracks along which the Government will encourage the use of self-driving vehicles: mass transport on fixed and scheduled services for travel within and between towns; shared services for point-to-point and first- and last-mile travel; freight; and utility operations, such as road sweepers.

Other countries are more ambitious: China has plans for a draft road map to put autonomous cars on streets and highways within three to five years.

The British government has said it will allow driverless car trials on highways by the end of next year, and has committed £150 million (S$296 million) to harness new technologies, including a "Wi-Fi road" that could see cars and infrastructure wirelessly connected.

The key to making driverless cars a reality in Singapore will be private sector-led trials.

Singapore has given the green light for three groups to carry out such trials along a 6km test route in research-cum-business park one-north - a real-world environment with heavy and light traffic situations, and motorists and pedestrians on the roads.

The three organisations with approval to test-bed their vehicles there are the Institute for Infocomm Research under the Agency for Science, Technology and Research; the Singapore-MIT Alliance's Smart; and start-up nuTonomy, an MIT spin-off.

Associate Professor Park Byung Joon of SIM University says that, given Singapore's dense road network and heavy vehicular traffic, care must be taken to mix self-driving cars with human-operated ones as the technology is, in his view, not mature yet in this respect.

"In the future, when every car is autonomous and driven by a computer, it's not a problem. But now, there will be some issues - how computers and human drivers mingle. Driverless cars drive by the book and law, but humans don't," he says.

But when the technology matures, Prof Park says, Singapore can be an ideal test-bed for research firms precisely because of its traffic density, and the Government should open more road spaces to attract such companies here.

"Even the quietest heartland area in Singapore is going to be a far more complex environment than what Google is testing in, in the US," Prof Park says.

CONSTRAINTS AS FUEL

Singapore's constraints, including its land and manpower shortage, may well fuel its drive to automate driving sooner rather than later.

The city state has close to a million motor vehicles on the roads, and the 12 per cent of land space set aside for roads is close to being fully utilised.

"Building more train lines," says Dr James Fu, nuTonomy's director of Singapore operations, "will eventually lead to a marginal increase in transport efficiency."

That's because "people will say they don't live near a station, and they want more stations. But more stops will just lead to longer end-to-end travelling time for everyone," he adds.

Dr Fu is hopeful that as the authorities open up more road estate - such as that in one-north - the technology powering today's driverless cars will evolve in sophistication.

"Driving in an urban environment with other human drivers - that's the biggest challenge. But people are confident of solving this," he says.

"People's driving behaviours are different in Orchard Road, the CBD and Jurong East, for example. So the more access you have to different kinds of public roads, you can see the limitations of the current algorithms, what situations they can and can't handle. Right now, we don't know what we don't know, " he adds.

Besides roads, driverless cars have the potential to alter city infrastructure by reducing the need for carparks. In a sharing economy, autonomous vehicles will not need to be parked as they can drop off their passengers and proceed to the next destination.

Road space can also be yielded to pedestrians and cyclists as autonomous cars will have the ability to travel closer to one another, and at road speeds which are constant, and less erratic than their human counterparts.

Perhaps the greatest gain and the one most espoused by its proponents is safety. Studies have shown that around 90 per cent of road accidents are due to human error, and driverless cars - whose computers are never tired or distracted - are touted to be safer.

"The driverless car," says Dr Ang, "is not affected by emotions. When you overtake it, it doesn't get angry. It's not affected by tiredness, is more objective and has the potential of exceeding a (human) driver's capabilities."

This article was first published on May 14, 2016.
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In an essay for an anthology compiled for the inaugural Anti-Corruption Summit held in London this week, Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong identifies four factors key to the Republic's share of success on this score.

Corruption is a scourge that can never be tolerated. Countries have tried all ways to combat it. They create anti-corruption agencies.

They pass strong laws. They promulgate codes of conduct for public officials. Companies pledge to conduct business cleanly. Yet often corruption remains endemic, a cancer in the society. How then has Singapore achieved some measure of success in eradicating corruption? I put it down to four factors.

First, we inherited a clean and working system from the British colonial government. We had many compelling reasons to want to end colonial rule and to be masters of our own destiny. But to their credit, the British left Singapore with a working system and sound institutions - English laws, a working civil service, and an efficient and honest judiciary. Importantly, the Colonial Service officers upheld high standards. People like Sir William Goode, our last governor and first head of state, had a sense of duty and stewardship. After Singapore, Goode served as Governor of North Borneo, now the state of Sabah in Malaysia. He left an impression in North Borneo, as in Singapore. Even a generation later, the people of Sabah still remembered him fondly.

Second, when the British left, our pioneer leaders were determined to keep the system clean. The People's Action Party (PAP) first came to power in 1959, when Singapore attained self-government. However, it was by no means a no-brainer for the PAP to fight to win the 1959 General Election.

The country faced a myriad of problems: poverty, poor public health, an acute housing shortage, a stagnant economy and an exploding population. Did the PAP want to inherit these overwhelming problems? Why not become a strong opposition party and let another party govern and fail?

In the end, what decided the issue for Mr Lee Kuan Yew, our founding Prime Minister, and his team was the overriding need to prevent the public service from going corrupt. One term of an incompetent, corrupt government and Humpty Dumpty could never be put together again. So the PAP fought to win and formed the Government. When they took their oath of office, Mr Lee and his PAP colleagues wore white shirts and white trousers. It symbolised their determination to keep the Government clean and incorruptible. That has set the tone for Singapore ever since.

Third, with strong political will, we institutionalised a robust, comprehensive anti-corruption framework that spans laws, enforcement, the public service and public outreach. We enacted the Prevention of Corruption Act (PCA), which puts the burden of proof on the accused to show that he acquired his wealth legally. Any unexplained wealth disproportionate to known sources of income is presumed to be from graft and can be confiscated.

The PCA provides for extra-territorial jurisdiction, so that the actions of Singaporean citizens overseas are treated the same as actions committed in Singapore, regardless of whether such corrupt acts have consequences for Singapore.

Our anti-corruption agency, the Corrupt Practices Investigation Bureau (CPIB), is well resourced and independent. It is empowered to investigate any person, even police officers and ministers, and conducts public outreach to raise public awareness and shape social norms. We pay public servants fair and realistic wages benchmarked to private sector earnings and, in return, demand the highest standards of integrity and performance.

Fourth, we have over time developed a society and culture that eschews corruption. Singaporeans expect and demand a clean system. They do not condone giving or accepting "social lubricants" to get things done. They readily report corrupt practices when they encounter them. Singaporeans trust that the law applies to all and that the Government will enforce the laws without fear or favour, even when it may be awkward or embarrassing. Businesses have confidence that, in Singapore, rules are transparent and fairly applied. The story is told of a businessman who visited Singapore from an Asian country used to different operating norms. He left puzzled and disturbed that he could not discover the going rate for bribes to officers at different levels of government. He concluded wrongly that the prices must be very high.

Singapore has achieved some success eradicating corruption, but we are under no illusions that we have permanently and completely solved the problem. Corruption is driven by human nature and greed. However strict the rules and tight the system, some individuals will sometimes still be tempted to transgress. When they do, we make sure they are caught and severely dealt with. Two years ago, we charged an assistant director from the CPIB itself with misappropriating $1.7 million.

We keep our system clean not just for ourselves, but also to uphold our international reputation. Thus we deal strictly also with those who use financial institutions in Singapore to launder money or transact ill-gotten gains from corruption. We are zealous in protecting the integrity of our financial centre and business hub.

There is a Chinese proverb: "If the top beam is askew, the bottom beams will be crooked." Keeping a system clean must start at the very top. A Singapore Armed Forces officer, on a course overseas, was once asked by his classmate how Singapore kept its system clean. He explained our arrangements and the central role of the CPIB. His classmate asked a follow-up question: But to whom does the CPIB report? The Singaporean ingenuously replied that the CPIB reported directly to the prime minister. This elicited further puzzlement. Much later, the Singaporean understood why. The real question he was being asked was, who guards the guardian?

There is no formula to solve this ancient riddle, but we are determined to uphold the highest standards of integrity from the top level of the Government down. In 1996, rumours spread that Mr Lee and I had received improper discounts on property purchases. The then Prime Minister, Mr Goh Chok Tong, ordered a full investigation, which found that there had been nothing improper. He brought the issue to Parliament, which held a full debate lasting three days.

Both Mr Lee and I spoke. In his statement, Mr Lee said, "I take pride and satisfaction that the question of my two purchases and those of the Deputy Prime Minister, my son, has been subjected to, and not exempted from, scrutiny... It is most important that Singapore remains a place where no one is above scrutiny, that any question of integrity of a minister, however senior, that he has gained benefits either through influence or corrupt practices, be investigated."

Trust is slow to build, but fast to lose. We have spent more than 50 years building up confidence in Singapore. The integrity of the Government, the system and the men and women in charge has been key to Singapore's success. We are determined that that integrity and reputation must never be undermined and will long remain a competitive edge and a source of pride for Singapore.

This article was first published on May 14, 2016.
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Last July, two men - one with a saw and the other with a chopper - attacked each other in an open-air carpark in Boon Lay over a money dispute, with both inflicting cuts on each other's arms.

Yesterday, one of the two, Joseph Tan Chee Meng, 49, pleaded guilty to hurting the other man with a dangerous weapon. He was sentenced to eight months in jail.

Two other charges - one of criminal intimidation and the other of causing hurt - were taken into consideration during sentencing.

The two offences were committed by Tan four months before the July incident and charges were initially withdrawn with a warning.

Court documents say Tan, who works in a car workshop, met 38-year-old Kua Cheow Wah on July 1 at the carpark beneath Tan's Boon Lay flat over a money-related disagreement.

Tan was armed with a saw, and Kua had a chopper.

On seeing each other, the two men ran at each other and began fighting.

Tan struck Kua's arms, leaving abrasions and bruises, while Kua slashed Tan's right wrist, leaving a deep cut.

Kua was sentenced to five months' jail in February for his role in the fight.

Deputy Public Prosecutor Goh Yi Ling said an aggravating factor was Tan's many brushes with the law since 1983, with past offences including possession of drugs, causing hurt and participation in an unlawful society.

In mitigation, Tan's lawyer Hilda Foo said Kua had provoked her client by driving to his house to confront him, that Tan had engaged Kua only to disarm him, and that the saw was for self-defence.

District Judge Liew Thiam Leng said that Tan had reoffended despite the warning given, and noted his tendency to commit offences of a violent nature.

For causing hurt with a dangerous weapon, Tan could have been jailed for up to seven years, fined, caned or sentenced to a combination of these punishments.

This article was first published on May 14, 2016.
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In another bizarre twist to the already strange story, the Daily Mail has an update on its earlier story of British baroness Michelle Mone, who carried up 46-year-old thinking he was a child.

The story, which was also picked up by various news sites like The Independent and The Daily Mirror, had reported that Baroness Mone had tweeted about a gaffe she committed after she gave a speech at an entrepreneurs conference in Vietnam.

In front of a crowd of 3,000 people, she accepted flowers presented to her by a "boy" and then picked him up to pose for a photo together.

She had not realised that the "child" was actually a 46-year-old man whose wife was in the front row of the conference, it reported.

But on May 10, the Daily Mail website updated the original story to say the man is actually a 22-year-old real estate agent who is single.

Mr Nguyen Tan Phat said on his Facebook page on May 9 that he was the man pictured together with Baroness Mone, and wrote in Vietnamese that "he has never had a wife or lover".

He also posted a photo of his identity card, adding that the "year I was born is indicated on Facebook".

Baroness Mone was surprised by this new revelation. She shared an article on her Twitter account and added: "Friend just sent me this... wow!"

The article,from the American morning show Today website, quoted the baroness' spokesman Rory Grant as saying that the woman who claimed to be married to Mr Nguyen had said it "during a time of such fever pitch".

"It transpires the man is not married, so the lady must have been joking in any case."

This article was first published on May 13, 2016.
Get a copy of The Straits Times or go to straitstimes.com for more stories.

A noticeable number of marriages in Singapore break down because of an unfaithful spouse: the wife.

Twenty veteran family lawyers and private investigators told The Sunday Times that out of every 10 cases they handle in which a spouse cheats, about half are because the wife strayed from the marriage.

A decade ago, only two to three out of the 10 unfaithful parties were the wives. And 20 or 30 years ago, an adulterous wife being cited in divorce proceedings was quite unheard of, they added.

Lawyer and former Member of Parliament Ellen Lee said that back then, divorce was not an easy option as women were financially dependent on their husbands.

Divorce was also less socially accepted. "If a woman committed adultery in the past, she would have been condemned and ostracised by society for breaking up her family and bringing shame to them. The condemnation is not as strong now," she said.

What happens when cheating spouses are exposed

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There also appeared to be acceptance of men having a mistress and that this was something wives had to tolerate, she added.

But that has been changing, with more women becoming financially independent, educated, assertive and vocal, said lawyers, private investigators and counsellors.

Counsellor Jonathan Siew said: "In the past, women were expected to sacrifice for their families. But now, there is a greater sense of individualism. Women are less afraid and more willing to pursue their own needs, compared with their mothers' generation."

There are also opportunities to fall for another man at work or through social media, lawyers said of the cases they handled.

And contrary to popular perception, unfaithful wives are not only found among professionals and corporate types, or white-collar or higher-income earners. They come from all walks of life, including housewives and low-wage earners, and many have children.

Lawyer Louis Lim tells of a client, a hawker's assistant in her 40s, who was physically abused by her husband. The mother of two teenage daughters fell for a man who delivered vegetables to her stall and filed for divorce.

While most of the women in divorce cases handled by the private investigators and lawyers were in their 30s and 40s, there were also grandmothers in their 50s who strayed. Private investigator Raymond Lim had such a case. A woman in her 50s, who runs a small shop, had an affair with a businessman. The pair would have meals and check into budget hotels almost weekly.

Tell-tale signs of a cheating spouse

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And there are key differences between men and women when it comes to affairs.

For one thing, an unfaithful woman is more likely than a man to end the marriage, said counsellors and lawyers.

In their opinion, this is because women do not necessarily seek an extramarital affair. They may have been unhappy in their marriage, till someone comes along and offers them the emotional intimacy they find lacking in their marriage.

Said Mr Siew: "When women cheat, they are, to some extent, already thinking of divorce. So they allow themselves to go into the affair, which they see as a long-term commitment."

This is unlike men, who often want to keep the other woman on the side for a variety of reasons.

Lawyer Koh Tien Hua said: "Some men see sex outside of marriage as no big deal and just as a matter of sexual release. Or they may have an emotional attachment - but one that is not strong enough for them to leave their wives."

So it is rare to see women who are "serial" adulterers, unlike some men who have one affair after another, lawyers said.

That is not to say there are no women who "go around shopping for better husbands", lawyer Ellen Lee said.

The wife of one of her clients cheated on him repeatedly. The man forgave her time and again for the sake for their two young daughters. But after her fourth affair, he decided enough was enough and filed for a divorce.

Between 2004 and 2014, based on data from the Department of Statistics (DOS), 1.3 per cent to 2.1 per cent of those who filed for divorce under the Women's Charter cited adultery as the main reason.

Of this group, between 27 per cent and 34 per cent were husbands who claimed their wives had been unfaithful, the DOS explained when asked about data obtained from the Statistics of Marriages and Divorces.

Lawyers said official data from the courts does not reflect the reality of what they observe - which is that between a third and half the divorces they handle involve one cheating spouse.

But few cite adultery as grounds for divorce as that requires evidence of an affair, and the third party must be named in divorce papers.

So most choose to cite unreasonable behaviour instead.

This is also because it can be costly to hire a private investigator to gather evidence. It costs between $5,000 and $8,000 for one week of surveillance.

Adultery is also seen as shameful. So the offending party tends to negotiate with the spouse not to cite adultery as the reason, said lawyer Malathi Das.

Programme helps couple to rebuild marriage

After trying to have a child for over five years and going through several rounds of fertility treatments, Carol was over the moon when she conceived naturally.

But her joy was short-lived.

When she was two months pregnant, a woman from China told Carol that she has a six-month-old son with her husband.

It was a bolt from out of the blue.

But Carol, 40, (not her real name) decided to give her marriage a second chance for the sake of their unborn child - who is now a year old. Her husband Eric (not his real name), 42, also decided to end his two-year-long affair with the woman from China.

The couple, both professionals, attended Torn Asunder, a programme that helps couples to rebuild their marriage after an affair.

Reach Counselling, a charity, started offering the programme in 2010 as it noted that a sizeable number of couples were seeking help as one spouse strayed. Touch Community Services also offers the programme.

Reach Counselling's head Chang-Goh Song Eng said that to get on the programme, the cheating spouse must pledge, among other things, to stop the affair and the couple must want to save the marriage.

The programme helps couples address the pain of betrayal and helps them forgive and rebuild the marriage. Teaching couples to communicate and resolve differences is a key element.

After almost seven months of weekly therapy sessions, Carol and Eric realised what went wrong with their marriage.

He felt she was too preoccupied with fertility treatments and it was a blow to his ego that they could not conceive naturally.

They also had problems communicating. Eric tended to avoid problems rather than talk things through to resolve them. He said: "I found it hard to communicate with Carol. It seemed like she would shoot down whatever I said. So I sought refuge with another woman. She (the other woman) offered me a listening ear and made me feel important."

Things came to a head when his lover gave birth. Eric was in two minds. He could not bring himself to divorce Carol as she had been his "pillar of support", and yet he could not leave his lover and son.

He only found his resolve to end the relationship when he discovered that his wife was pregnant and was willing to give him another chance.

Through Torn Asunder, Carol realised how she had also caused their ties to sour: "I didn't realise I put him down and didn't give him the opportunity to talk, so much so that he felt he didn't have a voice."

She learnt how to listen and in turn, Eric opened up to her more.

"Have I forgiven him completely? Of course not. Forgiveness is a process," she said.

And what of the other woman and son born out of wedlock?

"We are still dealing with that, but I set some boundaries. He has to give the other side up and I don't let him see his son unless he is very sick," she said. "I know it is very difficult for him but we are taking it one step at a time. I'm happy I gave him a second chance or else I would have deprived my son of a father."

When the third party is a same-sex partner

In this day and age, the third party that causes a marriage break-up may not be the usual "other woman" or "other man".

Family lawyers say they have been seeing more marriages unravel on account of an affair with someone of the same sex.

It is not common, but the 20 lawyers and private investigators that The Sunday Times interviewed say it is a noticeable development.

Many of the lawyers handle one or two such cases a year now. But there were hardly any such cases 10 to 15 years ago. At most, it was just one case every few years.

Lawyers and counsellors say many of the men and women involved may be gay, lesbian or bisexual, but repressed their feelings to conform to social norms or to please their parents by getting married and having children. But with society more open today, more of them are acting on their feelings.

Lawyer Tan Siew Kim said: "I think being attracted to someone of the same sex is not so taboo any more. So all these people... feel it is now more acceptable to pursue their happiness, if they meet someone of the same sex."

Private investigators say the proliferation of social media and dating websites has made it easier to seek and establish such relationships, especially for gay men.

Lawyer Gloria James-Civetta said one of her clients was suspicious when her husband, a hair stylist in his 30s, became more conscious of his appearance and was frequently out till late. The private investigator the client hired found that her husband often patronised gay clubs. When confronted, he confessed to being gay and told her he wanted to divorce her.

Ms James-Civetta said of the couple, who have two children: "He told her he felt pressure from his parents to marry. She felt deceived, like he did not really love her at all."

According to counsellors, when women get involved with a same-sex companion, it is usually the result of having developed a strong bond with someone who offers them the emotional intimacy they find lacking in their husbands.

Lawyers say some women even decide to end the marriage and leave the children to be with their new partners.

Lawyer Rina Kalpanath Singh, who has handled such cases, said: "They tend to shy away from fighting for custody. They may feel ashamed as same-sex relationships are not so accepted by society yet and they don't want to put their children through living with two parents of the same sex."

Understandably, the discovery that their husband or wife is gay or lesbian is traumatic. And many of these spouses demand a divorce, lawyers say. Ms Singh said: "The betrayal cuts even deeper when they find out the third party is someone of the same sex as their spouse."

Lawyers say adultery is not cited as grounds for divorce in cases of infidelity involving same-sex partners. This is because adultery is legally defined as a sexual relationship between a man and a woman who are not married to each other, but to other people. So these individuals file for divorce citing "unreasonable behaviour".

Lawyer Helen Chia said: "I'm certain this has been going on for some time. It is just that no one talks about it. The world we live in is more accepting, so people now dare to come out and talk about it."

More people asking for prenatal DNA testing

Pregnant women who are uncertain if the husband or a lover is the father of the unborn child are using prenatal paternity testing to help them decide on their next course of action.

A number of firms have been offering such prenatal DNA tests here for some years now.

Easy DNA Singapore, which was set up in 2012 and has offered such tests since 2013, said the number of people asking for tests has more than doubled every year. Director Sharifah Khairiyah Syed-Mohamad said: "I think the increase has to do with greater awareness of prenatal paternity testing. But it could also be because there may be more extra-marital affairs going on."

In the first four months of this year, it conducted 12 tests - the same number as the whole of last year. Each test costs $2,350 and involves drawing blood from the pregnant woman and extracting the baby's DNA from the blood. This is because fragments of fetal DNA can be separated from the woman's genetic material in her blood. This is then checked against DNA material from the man, obtained with a cotton swab applied to the inside of his cheeks.

Dr Kenneth Wong of Obgyn Centre, who also performs prenatal paternity tests, says most women who ask for the test are married professionals in their 30s and 40s who have had flings or affairs. They abort if the baby is not the husband's, he said. On average, he performs one to two prenatal tests a month. Each test costs $5,000 to $6,000.

Unlike Easy DNA's method, Dr Wong gets tissue samples for DNA testing from the foetus through procedures known as chorionic villus sampling, or through amniocentesis. This can be done from as early as the 10th week of pregnancy. But the woman has to bring her lover for his blood sample to be taken as well. If there is a match with the baby's tissue sample, then paternity has been established by exclusion, he said. This means that if the lover is not the father, then the child is the husband's - who is none the wiser about the wife's affair.

Dr Wong cited the case of a patient who had a fling with her tour guide when she went trekking. She later arranged for the guide to fly here for tests. It turned out he was not the father, so she continued with the pregnancy.

The Health Sciences Authority's (HSA) DNA Profiling Laboratory also processes prenatal paternity tests, but handles fewer than 10 such tests a year.

Demand for conventional paternity tests after the birth of a child is also growing, according to Easy DNA and another firm, Baby DNA.

Easy DNA carried out 93 paternity tests last year - a figure which has increased by about 30 per cent a year since it was set up in 2012.

Baby DNA declined to give figures, but said demand for paternity tests has been rising each year.

A basic paternity test costs around $500 at both firms.

The HSA, which started processing paternity tests in the mid-1990s, says that in the past decade, it had handled between 180 and 220 paternity tests a year .

Lawyers say that for husbands, establishing paternity means that those who file for divorce can argue against having to provide maintenance if the child is not theirs.

Lawyer Louis Lim had a client who not only found out that his wife was unfaithful, but also discovered, through paternity tests, that both his sons were not his. He was heartbroken, Mr Lim said, adding that the man filed for divorce.

This article was first published on May 15, 2016.
Get a copy of The Straits Times or go to straitstimes.com for more stories.

Romanne Tan is five going on six and will be starting primary school next year. In addition to learning to handle money and buy food, she has also started learning how to prick her fingers to draw blood samples.

She suffers from Type 1 diabetes, a condition where one's body is unable to produce insulin, a hormone needed to regulate the amount of sugar in the blood. Several times a day, she uses a pen-like device called a lancet to extract blood samples.

Although she does not know how to monitor her blood glucose levels using the samples or inject herself with the correct dosage of insulin based on the glucose reading, her mother wants her to start learning to care for herself.

Ms Rosalind Goh, 37, worries that shy Romanne will not be able to tell her primary school teachers when she feels hungry, a sign of low blood sugar that she addresses by giving her daughter a glucose tablet or honey. If untreated, low sugar levels can lead to fainting or seizures.

Romanne also changes the disposable needles used for the injections.

Ms Goh, a nurse, taught her daughter these two aspects of her diabetes care last month, as a first step to preparing her for Primary 1 next year. She is hoping the girl will be able to check her sugar levels and administer her own insulin by the time she is 12.

For now, either Ms Goh or the family's domestic helper uses a glucometer to monitor Romanne's blood glucose levels. The five insulin jabs that Romanne, the younger of two children, needs every day are mostly administered by either of the two women. Her father, swimming coach Jimmy Tan, 37, pitches in sometimes when he is not working.

Romanne was diagnosed when she was three. Her mother says: "I'm now used to the pinpricks and injections. Emotionally, I can take it. In the past, it was heartache."

While she still tears up when talking about Romanne's condition, she is also optimistic about medical advancements, which have helped minimise the pain commonly linked to jabs. Romanne has a small injection port attached to her body, which allows her mum to inject insulin without having to puncture her skin for each shot. The girl says the injection port is not as painful as the syringes she used.

A demanding daily regimen such as hers is part and parcel of living with diabetes as a child. It is a diagnosis that parents and children often struggle with. Kids such as her face a lifetime of taking multiple daily doses of insulin.

Endocrinologist Ben Ng, a vice- president of the Diabetic Society of Singapore, who has a clinic at Mount Elizabeth Novena Hospital, says having a diabetic child can cause "psychological stress and conflict" within families or between parents.

He adds: "It comes from love. Why is the child's sugar levels so high? Why are they not taking the medication? The needs of other family members have to be met too.

"In Singapore, we're very good at the medical aspect of diabetes, less so the social and psychological support."

Since Health Minister Gan Kim Yong declared a "war on diabetes" last month, the focus has largely been on Type 2 diabetes, by far the more common form of the disease for Singapore's more than 400,000 diabetics.

Type 1 diabetes, an auto-immune condition which has no cure, is often hereditary, whereas people who are overweight and inactive are more likely to develop Type 2 diabetes, in which the body cannot use insulin effectively.

Losing a substantial amount of weight has been known to reverse Type 2 diabetes in some cases.

Dr Daphne Gardner, consultant at the Department of Endocrinology at Singapore General Hospital, says Type 2 diabetes affects up to 90 per cent of those with diabetes, while Type 1 diabetes is more often seen in childhood.

Although Type 2 diabetes occurs more in older people, rising numbers of children and teenagers are affected.

KK Women's and Children's Hospital, for example, has seen an average of a 60 per cent increase in paediatric patients with Type 2 diabetes in less than 20 years.

From 2000 to 2005, the hospital saw an average of 15 newly diagnosed paediatric patients a year. Between 2011 and 2015, this yearly average was 24.

For Type 1 diabetes, the number of newly diagnosed paediatric patients remained fairly constant at an average of 30 a year between 2000 and last year.

Two years ago, when Romanne was drinking a lot of water, waking up at night to go to the toilet and losing weight - all common symptoms of the illness - Ms Goh suspected it was Type 1 diabetes because of her medical training.

Yet she still found it hard to accept. "The first thing I thought was whether I had been giving her too much sugary stuff," says Ms Goh, even though she knew these were unfounded fears. There is no strong history of diabetes in her or her husband's families.

Making dietary adjustments was tough. She says: "It was difficult to explain to her that because she has diabetes, if her friends give her sweets or chocolates, she must tell them she cannot have them, she can have only sugar-free ones. I have to keep reminding her."

The amount of insulin measured out for each jab depends on the patient's blood glucose levels, which can be affected by the type of food consumed and the amount of physical activity.

Romanne was at first upset, but now mostly accepts her dietary limitations. She eats half a portion of cake at birthday parties and, instead of a scoop of ice cream, she can have just five teaspoonfuls.

Dr Gardner advises that the whole family be involved in making the lifestyle changes necessary to controlling diabetes.

She says: "Food choices would be better done in a family context rather than singling out the individual for an 'exclusion diet'."

As Ms Goh says: "I don't want Romanne to feel different from the family." Together with Romanne, she, her husband and their son, Romulus, eight, all eat white rice mixed with healthier oats or brown rice, and drink Coke Zero if they want soda.

Dr Yvonne Lim, associate consultant at National University Hospital's Division of Paediatric Endocrinology, says: "Parents of young children with Type 1 diabetes must overcome their own fears and administer injections to their kids. The other significant challenge is knowing when to allow the child to self-manage his or her diabetes with confidence."

Housewife Philomena Chew, 44, admits that her own fear of needles has influenced how she views her son's Type 1 diabetes.

She gave up work as an accounting executive to care for Raphael, 11, when he was diagnosed at five. "He's growing up, putting on more weight. The hospital staff kept telling me that he needed more jabs. I was not ready. I didn't want him to have more pain," she says.

It was only in November that she agreed it was time for her son to learn to inject himself. This was because Raphael, who has a six- year-old brother, was approaching adolescence. He is now in Primary 6. Until then, he had taken two insulin injections a day. From late last year, he started taking three jabs, and, last week, progressed to four.

Raphael, who enjoys taekwondo and basketball, says his mother's concerns sometimes "aggravate" any anxiety he might feel about needles.

However, he has a practical approach. When he injects himself in school in the early afternoon, he does not want people around, in case they brush against or distract him. "The needle is very fine. I'm scared it will break," he says. If low blood sugar levels make him hungry or uncomfortable, he addresses it by quietly eating sweets.

Not every young diabetic is level- headed like him. The teen years can be troubling for diabetics who might also be grappling with adolescent self-consciousness.

For example, convincing teens to exercise can be difficult, says Dr Ng from The Diabetic Society of Singapore, whose services include health screenings, diabetes management programmes and support groups.

For adolescents, "it's the support of their peers that helps", he says. "Those with Type 2 diabetes tend to be overweight. It's already a bit of a stigma. It's one more problem for them to be told to lose weight."

He has encountered girls as young as 13 who dangerously "manipulate" their disease by withholding insulin injections to lose weight.

When Type 1 diabetics skip or reduce their insulin intake, they run the risk of coma or even death, reports say. Blindness, amputations and kidney failure are some of the possible long-term complications.

Dr Gardner says parents can help their adolescents by "providing quiet and non-overbearing support".

"If someone would rather miss a dose of insulin to be out with friends, finding practical ways for them to administer insulin subtly would probably be more helpful than insisting they do it," she says.

Ms Nurul Jannah Buang, 21, had some difficulty after being diagnosed with Type 1 diabetes as she had to cut down on chocolates and fast food, normal fare for her teen peers then.

At 18, while out for a pizza, she drank four bottled sugary drinks and a blended ice drink, but these failed to quench her raging thirst, one of the symptoms that prompted her to go to the hospital. She was found to have a potentially fatal blood sugar reading of 40 millimoles a litre. The normal range is four to eight millimoles a litre.

Today, the preschool teacher has adjusted well. "I feel like I am just like other people. I need to stay healthy and exercise. What makes us special is the daily insulin."

Two types of diabetes

The symptoms of Type 1 and Type 2 diabetes are similar.

They are:

• Increased urination

• Sweet urine which attracts ants

• Blurred vision

• Fatigue or drowsiness

• Cuts or bruises which heal poorly

• Constant feeling of thirst

• Weight loss despite heavy eating (more applicable to Type 1)

• Nausea and vomiting

• Dry, itchy skin

• Loss of feeling in hands or feet

A blood test can confirm if a person has diabetes.

Both Type 1 and 2 diabetes, or diabetes mellitus, have a hereditary and a lifestyle component, but the contribution varies.

For Type 1 diabetes, the dominant predisposing factor is genetic. People with Type 1 diabetes need insulin injections to control their blood sugar level. It usually occurs in young people.

For Type 2 diabetes, though there is a strong hereditary component, a sedentary lifestyle with poor eating habits and excessive weight gain is a strong predisposing factor.

These diabetics can produce insulin, but their bodies do not use it effectively.

The condition can be controlled by diet, exercise and medicine. If these fail, insulin injections may be needed.

•Sources: The Diabetic Society of Singapore; Department of Paediatric Medicine, National University Hospital

This article was first published on May 15, 2016.
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Frantic that his work permit had suddenly been cancelled five months after he arrived here, construction worker Gu Sheng Zhou called his employer repeatedly one day to demand why.

He got no answers. Instead, the 43-year-old's employer picked him up in his car and dropped him off at a police station.

All had seemed rosy when Mr Gu first arrived from China in July 2014 for a job that promised up to $8 per hour. But when he arrived, his employer demanded $14,000 from him, threatening to deport him if he did not hand over the money.

He only worked for a total of 10 days at the company. The rest of the time, he was told to find his own work and lodging. The worst part, he said, was telling his family about his plight. "What would they think if I didn't even give a reason for not sending money home?"

He has a wife and three children, who are still in school, back home.

After the police referred Mr Gu to the Manpower Ministry, he managed to find a job with another construction firm. But he still shudders when he thinks back on his last employer. "I don't hate him. Hatred can't resolve the problem, but I want him to return the money," he said.

This article was first published on May 15, 2016.
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Ms Kathy Goh first took heroin in her 20s to challenge her then boyfriend to quit the drug, only to begin her own vicious circle of addiction and recovery.

She first went to prison when she was 29, barely four months after giving birth to her son, and has been in and out of jail thrice in around 15 years.

She struggled to stay free of drugs and alcohol, despite a stint at a halfway house, three detoxification programmes with the National Addictions Management Service (Nams) and the support of her family.

Her efforts paid off only after almost a year-long stay at transitional shelter iCare Hub, nestled in a quiet housing estate in Balestier.

It is among the first of its kind to offer a secular residential programme for former offenders who are women, supporting them as they rebuild their lives.

And there is demand for its services, said Ms Grace Wong, 54, who is the centre's co-founder and executive director.

More than 20 women completed stays at iCare last year, Ms Wong said, but it received more than 40 referrals in the same period, and over 100 inquiries. Such referrals may come from organisations such as family service centres or the Institute of Mental Health.

In line with a rise in drug abusers nabbed last year, the number of female drug abusers arrested rose from 452 in 2012 to 524 last year, based on data from the Central Narcotics Bureau (CNB).

The increase last year was largely due to more new, young abusers. The CNB said most new drug addicts, as well as new female drug abusers, are below 30 years old.

Ms Goh, 46, quit heroin about six years ago, after her last prison stay, and has stayed clean so far - the longest stretch ever.

She stayed at iCare two years ago on the recommendation of Ms Wong, who was her counsellor.

The centre, which opened in 2013 and officially introduced a residential programme last year, can take up to 12 residents. Residents may stay for a few months to a year as they try to secure permanent housing and a stable job. Within a month, the centre helps to find employment for former inmates as well.

Many of its residents are hardcore former drug offenders who have been through at least one long-term sentence, said Ms Wong.

This means at least five years' jail and three strokes of the cane. Close to 80 per cent are former addicts, many with multiple addictions.

Ms Wong said that while there are many drop-in centres and temporary shelters for former offenders, a residential facility with minimal supervision can be "extremely helpful" in the first six months after release from prison or a halfway house, when they may be tempted to return to their old ways.

Ms Goh resolved to start anew after her release, wanting to repay her family who raised her son while she was in jail. He is now a 17-year-old student at the Institute of Technical Education.

For almost a year, she worked from home as an events coordinator while caring for her elderly mother who has dementia.

But she soon found herself buckling under the pressure of being a caregiver while adapting to her new job and life.

She started drinking again, thinking: "I cannot take drugs, so... maybe I can drink."

From one to two cans of beer a day, she said, she was soon finishing a six-pack every day, spending around half her monthly salary of about $1,200 on alcohol.

This added strain to her relationship at home. While she took up stay-in programmes at Nams, the three-week stints were too short for her.

She later decided to move into iCare and, after her stint there, has kicked the addiction.

"I knew that I could not break the house rules and became more self-aware," she said.

"Some might find this restrictive, but it is to help us understand that in life, we also need to have some structure and discipline."

Now, she visits the centre occasionally and hopes to encourage others with her story. Learning about addiction over the years has helped her realise that it can be controlled, she said.

"It is not easy, but it is a journey. Every day, every time, every minute, I have to overcome it."

This article was first published on May 15, 2016.
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Two Singapore companies are being probed by the authorities for allegedly scamming foreign workers out of thousands of dollars in payment for non-existent jobs overseas.

The police are investigating Global Catering and Management for allegedly cheating three Bangladeshis who paid the catering company about $5,000 for jobs in Canada.

They are also investigating Amacre Associates, an employment agency licensed by the Ministry of Manpower (MOM), for possible criminal offences related to offering non-existent jobs to foreign workers. The company has since changed its name to Amaicre in December last year.

The ministry is investigating Global for operating as an employment agency without a valid licence, and Amacre for possible breaches of its employment agency licence.

Both cases came to light after seven foreign workers made police reports. These workers had turned to Humanitarian Organisation for Migration Economics (Home) for help last year.

"The cases involved low-wage migrant workers who were deceived about job opportunities overseas," said Ms Tam Peck Hoon, who heads the team of volunteers that handled the complaints at Home, a group that helps migrant workers.

Both companies are not believed to be related but they follow a similar pattern of operation, she added.

They would hand out fliers at places where foreign workers gather, like Little India, promising jobs in Canada, Australia or New Zealand that pay more than $3,000 a month.

But the workers are required to pay more than $5,000 for visa applications, plane tickets and placement fees. The workers paid up, but the jobs did not materialise.

For example, in September last year, Amacre Associates allegedly gave three Bangladeshi workers employment contracts for housekeeping jobs purportedly offered by Buhler Industries, a company based in Winnipeg, Canada.

But when Home checked with the company directly, it replied that it had not offered the jobs. "This is a scam," said a senior executive of the company in an e-mail to Home seen by The Sunday Times.

In all the cases, the agents who attended to the workers disappeared.

All the victims are work permit holders in Singapore. Most declined to be named because they did not want their bosses to know they were looking for jobs while they were still employed here.

A Sunday Times check found that both companies have either shut down or are operating from shell addresses that are similar to a numbered box in a post office.

Company records show that Global Catering and Management is owned by Mr Bharat Singh, an Indian national based in Britain, and Mr Ravichandran Krishnasamy, a Singaporean in his 40s. The company is registered to a shell address on the second storey of Textile Centre in Jalan Sultan.

Mr Ravichandran does not live at the address he gave to the Accounting and Corporate Regulatory Authority. When The Sunday Times visited the sixth-storey flat in Kitchener Road last week, an Indian woman said before closing the door: "He does not live here. He comes here once in a while to collect letters. He is my husband's friend."

Mr Ravichandran runs another company - Global Migration Administration - from another shell address on the 19th storey of Fortune Centre in Waterloo Street.

Amacre Associates, which is owned by Malaysian Kalai Chelvan and Filipino Venus Emperado Apas, moved out of its second-floor office in Lucky Plaza last year. The office is now occupied by a travel agency representing Philippine Airlines. "They left behind a photocopier that is spoilt," said a staff member at the agency.

MOM's website showed the agency brought 27 foreign workers into Singapore in the past one year and was slapped with six demerit points. According to the website, the company received the demerit points for misrepresenting MOM fees to work pass applicants.

Foreign worker advocacy groups say cases involving luring foreign workers with better-paying jobs overseas are common. Healthserve has handled about 20 cases in the last six months involving workers from China who paid between $500 and $1,000 each to two companies that promised them jobs in Australia.

None of the jobs materialised. Some of the workers have made reports with the police and MOM, said Healthserve case manager Jeffrey Chua. "All they are hoping for is to get back the money they paid," he said.

'Canadian dream' turned nightmare 

Grasscutter Thangarasu Sankar was looking to improve his family's life when he decided to pay a company here $5,000 to help him get a job in Canada.

He was walking around Sim Lim Square with two friends in November two years ago when a woman approached him to ask if he was interested in working overseas.

She said she represented a catering firm looking for foreign workers, and that a job was guaranteed.

"I wanted to give my family a better life," said Mr Thangarasu, 35, adding that his basic pay has been about $750 since he started working here in 2007. "She promised me that I would get at least C$2,500 ($2,635) every month and I can bring my family over."

The woman told Mr Thangarasu and his friends to go to the office of Global Catering and Management in Jalan Sultan for an interview, which they did. Said Mr Thangarasu: "The company told us everything okay, guaranteed got job, but have to pay $5,000 to apply for three-year work permit. After working for two years, we can apply for Canadian citizenship and bring our family over."

Mr Thangarasu was anxious to get the process started because he was planning to start a family. His daughter turned one last year.

Shawn, the firm's employee who met them, also said they had to pay a deposit of $500. "I still have the receipt," said Mr Thangarasu. But it is now a reminder of a tragedy that plunged his family deeper into debt. "The company said I cannot stay in Singapore when they applied for my visa, so I went home to India in December," he said.

Back home, he took loans from the bank and his sisters to raise $4,500. He also sold his wife's jewellery, and remitted the money to Global Catering and Management. "I received SMS from Shawn that my permit will be okay in 45 days and maybe the Canadian embassy will call me for interview," he said. But the days came and went, without any word from either Shawn or the embassy.

Mr Thangarasu panicked. "I tried to SMS Shawn and call him, but he ignored me or sent me (vulgarities)," he said. He returned to Singapore last July, after paying an Indian agent $2,000 for a job here. He met Shawn in December, and the latter brought two men with him to the meeting at Woodlands Checkpoint.

"Shawn said he will cancel my work permit, and get gangsters to beat me up if I call him again. Now I'm scared, I think I will go back to India, be a farmer. But I owe so many people money," said Mr Thangarasu.

Lured here by promise of jobs that do not exist

When construction worker Rasel J. M. dropped a drill on his leg and fell off a ladder in January, he was not taken to hospital. Instead, the Bangladeshi was told to stay in his hostel and take painkillers. Two days later, his employer confiscated his work permit and told him to go home.

It dawned on him that he could be working illegally as his permit stated he was working for his employer but in reality, he had been working for another company. "In that moment, I understood there was nothing I could do," he told The Sunday Times through a translator. His father had sold his land to raise more than $9,000 to send him here to work. "I felt hopeless and afraid," he said. "I had sacrificed so much."

Mr Rasel, 32, is among a growing pool of foreign workers luredto Singapore by the promise of jobs which do not exist.

In the last five years, the Ministry of Manpower (MOM) has taken enforcement action against an average of 20 employers each year for such illegal importation of labour. It is currently investigating 23 employers for the offence.

Often, such employers would set up a shell company, in whose name they would apply online, with all the required papers, for foreign workers. But when they arrive, the workers are usually left on their own to find work or released to other companies who have reached their quota. Many are unaware they are breaking the law by working for an employer not stated on their permit.

In the latest case last month, company director Lim Kien Peng, 46, was jailed for two years and three months for bringing in 30 China nationals under MNF Investments and Holdings, a shell company he registered in 2008. Last July, MOM arrested 41 members of a syndicate that set up shell companies to bring in foreign workers for kickbacks. In 2014, it smashed three syndicates and arrested 19 people for setting up seven firms that brought in 500 workers for illegal employment.

Said an MOM spokesman: "We take a serious view of companies and individuals who commit such offences and will not hesitate to take strong action against them."

Offenders could be jailed for six months or more and fined up to $6,000 for each illegal worker. If convicted of six or more charges, they are liable for caning.

Foreign worker advocacy groups say the problem has worsened. Operations manager Luke Tan of the Humanitarian Organisation for Migration Economics (Home) said: "Such cases are on the rise, compared to five years ago." Home sees five to six cases every month.

Healthserve, a community clinic for foreign workers, dealt with 35 cases last year, and is now working on 10. Said its spokesman: "Most were caught with expired work permits which they say were cancelled without their knowledge."

Mr Tan said the employers, after collecting recruitment fees, would terminate the work passes after a few months, freeing them to bring in new workers. Foreigners who work without valid passes face a fine of up to $20,000 or up to two years in jail or both, unless MOM determines they were victims.

Metalworker Yang Wei Xin, 44, from China paid an agent $14,500 to find him work here. He found his pass had been cancelled during a raid on his dormitory last August. He stayed on for eight months in Singapore to help with investigations, during which time he could not work. He returned home last week with a $9,000 debt and in despair: "How do good men make a living here?"

Boss demanded $14k, threatened to deport him

Frantic that his work permit had suddenly been cancelled five months after he arrived here, construction worker Gu Sheng Zhou called his employer repeatedly one day to demand why.

He got no answers. Instead, the 43-year-old's employer picked him up in his car and dropped him off at a police station.

All had seemed rosy when Mr Gu first arrived from China in July 2014 for a job that promised up to $8 per hour. But when he arrived, his employer demanded $14,000 from him, threatening to deport him if he did not hand over the money.

He only worked for a total of 10 days at the company. The rest of the time, he was told to find his own work and lodging. The worst part, he said, was telling his family about his plight. "What would they think if I didn't even give a reason for not sending money home?"

He has a wife and three children, who are still in school, back home.

After the police referred Mr Gu to the Manpower Ministry, he managed to find a job with another construction firm. But he still shudders when he thinks back on his last employer. "I don't hate him. Hatred can't resolve the problem, but I want him to return the money," he said.

This article was first published on May 15, 2016.
Get a copy of The Straits Times or go to straitstimes.com for more stories.

It was a clear September day in 2001, and Mr Yap Kwong Weng was sound asleep in the back seat of a red Buick making its way from San Diego to Los Angeles.

In the United States to attend its elite Navy Seals training programme, the then 23-year-old Singapore Armed Forces commando was exhausted. And understandably so, because he had just survived Hell Week, the programme's most brutal component.

Lasting 51/2 days, it compresses sleep deprivation (recruits sleep no more than four hours during this period), near hypothermia, and other forms of unthinkably harsh mental and physical challenges to weed out all but the toughest warriors. Only 25 per cent of all candidates make it through Hell Week.

Mr Yap's deep slumber was interrupted most dramatically. The driver had fallen asleep at the wheel; the Buick, which was going at about 130kmh, hit a kerb, flew into the air and flipped over twice before turning turtle on Highway 101.

"There were four people in the car. I was thrown out the rear window. When they found me, I was two or three metres from the car and not breathing because one of my lungs was punctured," he says.

Rescue workers had to seal off both ends of the highway and airlift Mr Yap - who also had his collarbone and several ribs broken - to Martin Luther King Hospital in Los Angeles.

When he came to 24 hours later in the hospital's intensive care unit, he had two things on his mind: to see his parents and to go back to his Seals course.

He demanded to speak to his commanding officer at the Naval Special Warfare Training Centre in Coronado, California.

"I said, 'Sir, this is Lieutenant Yap from Singapore. I got myself in an accident and I am in the hospital, but you are not going to give up on me..."

Against his doctors' orders, he went back to the course two weeks later. "I had to sign an indemnity form. Fortunately, the rest of the training was mostly skills-based, but there were still runs and timed swims. I took things step by step, day by day, month by month," says Mr Yap, who graduated from Basic Underwater Demolition/Seal Class 237 on Feb 2, 2002.

The course and Hell Week, he says, were a big game changer in his life. Among other things, it taught him never to give up on himself and on others.

"When people fall, you have to give them the chance to pick themselves up again," he says.

The experience probably also gave him the mental strength to reimagine a whole new future for himself and figure out his place in the world. He went back to school and got not just a degree, but also a master's and a PhD. He also left the army to, first, blaze a corporate trail and, now, chart his own entrepreneurial journey in Myanmar.

Determined to find purpose, he has also immersed himself in various projects to fight for inclusion and improve lives, for organisations ranging from the United Nations Association to the Global Dignity Organisation.

"People ask me what I hope to achieve. I don't know the answer yet, but I do know that every river has its end. I just don't know where that is yet," says Mr Yap, now 38.

Even so, he has drifted quite a distance from the source of the river which, in his case, was a two-room flat in Toa Payoh.

The only son of a shipping supervisor and a housewife, he studied at San Shan Primary School and First Toa Payoh Secondary School.

He was a mediocre student but a superb sportsman, excelling in everything from athletics to volleyball.

By the time he was 11, he already had his black belt in taekwondo. The martial arts training came in handy when seven ruffians armed with chains ganged up against him after school one day.

"They accused me of staring at them. It was seven against one and I knew I was going to lose, so I sized up the situation and decided to go for their weakest link - the shortest and fattest boy," he says.

Mr Yap felled his target with a turning kick to the head and made his escape when the victim's flustered accomplices attended to him.

The decisiveness is a character trait; once he knows what he wants, he will go all out to get it.

And from a very young age, he had set his sights on being a commando. It was fuelled by his stint as head of his school's National Cadet Corps (NCC).

"I loved the rituals and the military drills. I was bent on joining the army, and the commandos were the best," says Mr Yap, who travelled to India and took a parachuting course while he was with the NCC.

After completing his A levels at Jurong Institute, he trained hard and passed the vocational test for potential commando recruits with flying colours.

That was how he came to join the 1st Commando Battalion in 1997, where he received gruelling training before receiving his red beret - the symbol for parachute and elite forces around the world.

Because he graduated top of his platoon at Officer Cadet School, the army offered to send him to Sandhurst, the British army's famous officer training academy in Berkshire, outside London.

He turned down the offer, he lets on sheepishly, because he did not want to be away from his childhood sweetheart for 18 months.

"I thought she was the person I would end up with," he says, adding that the relationship eventually did not work out. "To be honest, I regretted that decision."

Instead, the second-lieutenant went to Ranger School where, for 65 days, he underwent brutal training and learnt things - both good and bad - about himself.

"You discover your strengths, but you also find out if you will give in to greed, betrayal..."

Mr Yap was then deployed as a platoon commander with 30 experienced soldiers under his charge.

Over the next few years, he went on several overseas missions before being nominated for the renowned US Navy Seals programme, which includes rigorous training in direct action warfare, special reconnaissance and counter-terrorism.

His parents, he says, cried when he insisted on completing the programme after his accident.

"They said I was mad, especially since I had nearly died. But I could not fail my country. If I had to crawl back, I would."

The experience changed him. Although his military career was going smoothly, he decided he needed a formal tertiary education.

Some of his friends told him not to bother, but his mother sold off some of her jewellery so that he could take a leave of absence from the army and pursue a degree in communications at the State University of New York at Buffalo .

The formal education changed his perspectives on life.

He knew he had the brawn, but he realised it was also time to develop and expand his brain.

After graduation, he took on a leadership development role at the Commando Training Institute before moving on to Mindef, where he became a senior defence analyst.

Among other things, he looked at terrorism threats and worked on counter-terrorism situations. He also wrote and edited a monograph on the special forces, and authored several papers and articles on topics ranging from battle systems to military leadership and crisis management.

Not content with his basic degree, he went on to obtain a Master of Public Administration at the Lee Kuan Yew School of Public Policy and a PhD from the University of Glasgow.

In 2012, the National University of Singapore gave him a Distinguished Leadership Award.

"Not bad, from a school which rejected me three times," he says with a smug grin.

Mr Yap, who got married to a civil servant in 2008, says he was trying not just to make sense of life, but also to make full use of it.

"As a defence analyst, I was making sense of the world by day. At night, I would go to my classes trying to learn more about the world," he says.

As if that was not enough, he spent his weekends on community work. He started out volunteering at welfare group AWWA, helping to distribute food to old folks' homes and disadvantaged families in Ang Mo Kio and Choa Chu Kang.

"When you volunteer, everyone benefits," he says simply.

Mr Wan Tapern, 38, has known Mr Yap since their NCC days.

Says the Changi Airport senior manager: "He has not changed. He does not waver, and he does not waste time. Once he has set his mind on something, he will do it.

"But his commitment to help the community is a pleasant surprise. I guess it developed along the way as he became more exposed to the world. I am very happy to see this side of him growing."

Mr Yap went on to become the secretary-general of the United Nations Association and Singapore's first Rotary Peace Fellow, and was also named a Young Global Leader by the World Economic Forum (WEF).

In 2011, he went on a punishing 100km trek in China's Taklamakan Desert to raise awareness in Singapore of the UN's millennium goals.

The world became his oyster.

"As a WEF young global leader, I got to spend a week in Harvard learning about world issues from people like General John Allen," he says, referring to the four-star general and former commander of the US forces in Afghanistan.

Says Mr Dan Tan, a former commando-turned-healthcare counsellor who knew Mr Yap during their training: "It is part of Kwong Weng's DNA. He is really into upgrading skills, learning new things and taking on new challenges."

A leap into the corporate world seemed inevitable for Mr Yap, who was a senior captain when he made the decision in 2012.

It was not easy. Over three months, he sent out nearly 60 application letters but received no replies. But just when he was starting to get discouraged, the offers came.

True to his adventurous spirit, he accepted an offer from offshore firm Jebsen & Jessen to work in Myanmar. As its deputy general manager, his job was to develop business in the country and open new markets in Laos.

Next came a stint as chief operating officer of the Parami Energy Group, where he worked to ensure transparency in the group's policies and practices.

Last year, he struck out on his own and set up Leap, which specialises in trading , distribution and construction.

Myanmar, he says, is a country in the throes of change.

"The opportunities are there, but you have to sort out a lot of obstacles. There are those who choose the easy way out, but I believe in getting a competitive edge in the right ways," says Mr Yap, whose company has won several tenders to build living quarters for civil servants.

"It can be done. The Singapore brand is strong; we are known for our efficiency and credibility."

His latest baby is a book, also called Leap, about his life and his experiences, published by Marshall Cavendish .

"I want Singaporeans to know that no path is too difficult and that the world is waiting for us to explore," he says. "Singapore is a good place, but we need more innovation, entrepreneurial spirit and the derring-do to try new things. You will fail at times, but you will stand up and go again."

Just like he did.

kimhoh@sph.com.sg

This article was first published on May 15, 2016.
Get a copy of The Straits Times or go to straitstimes.com for more stories.