Blog Posts by Deborah Choo

A man died and four others persons were injured in a car accident Saturday morning at the junction off Raffles Hospital in Bugis.

A spokesperson from the Singapore Civil Defence Force said they received a call at 4:17am notifying them of the accident, which involved a Ferrari, a motorbike and a taxi.

The Ferrari driver, a Chinese male in his 30s, was pronounced dead on arrival.

His passenger, a female in her 20s, suffered from head injuries and was sent to Tan Tock Seng Hospital (TTSH).

The taxi driver, a Chinese male in his 40s, was conscious when the ambulance arrived at 4:22a.m. He complained of drowsiness and was sent to TTSH.

His passenger, however, suffered from more serious injuries. A Chinese female in her 20s, she was unconscious when the ambulance arrived.

She was sent to Singapore General Hospital for treatment.

The motorbike rider, a male Malay in his 20s, suffered from spinal injuries and was sent to TTSH as well.

SCDF dispatched two fire engines and four ambulances.

PM Lee has said that he intends to call for by-election in Hougang. (Yahoo! file photo)

Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong will call for by-elections in Hougang.

This is PM Lee's full reply in Parliament to PAP MP Christopher de Souza's question on a by-election in Hougang:

The Hougang Single Member Constituency (SMC) seat is vacant after the Workers' Party expelled Mr Yaw Shin Leong, following several weeks of media reports on Mr Yaw's personal indiscretions. I intend to call a by-election in Hougang to fill this vacancy. However, I have not yet decided on the timing of the by-election. In deciding on the timing, I will take into account all relevant factors, including the well being of Hougang residents, issues on the national agenda, as well as the international backdrop which affects our prosperity and security.

As for the legal question of whether and when I must call a by-election, an application has been filed in court concerning this, so the matter is now sub judice, i.e. under the consideration of the court. While MPs enjoy parliamentary immunity in this House, our

Facebook note accusing an NTU student of sexual harassment went viral. (Yahoo! file photo)

UPDATED (10:30am, 1 March to add details)

A case of alleged sexual harassment at Nanyang Technological University has been reported to the police and the school is currently assisting their investigations, an NTU spokesperson said Wednesday.

The school further clarified that it "does not condone harassment in any form" and has "reminded all students about the importance of safe and responsible behaviour, both online and offline".

In a note on Facebook that went viral online, a female NTU student alleged that a male student has sexually harassed her peers.

In the note posted on Tuesday at 6 p.m. and later taken down, the female, who studies at NTU's Wee Kim Wee School of Communication and Information (WKWSCI), warned that a second-year male student has been sexually harassing students for a year and did not seem to be stopping. She requested readers to spread the word about him.

After three hours, the note had 43 shares and some viewers had circulated it via email.

In the note, the

An expert reveals that adults tend to be the ones who have forgotten how to 'let go and laugh'. (Yahoo! file photo)

It came as no surprise when Timothy Goh Ming Quan, a second-year diploma student at Republic Polytechnic noted that he and his peers felt stressed in the lead-up to their examinations last year.

According to a 2001 UNICEF survey, exam anxiety was a key cause of increasing stress levels. The survey also stated that thirty five per cent of these Singapore students aged between 9 to 17 years revealed that getting good grades made them happy.

It was then that he decided that something needed to be done to help de-stress students, and as one of his school's student coordinators, he took the initiative to engage laughing therapy conductor, Feliz Angela Hassan, Founder and President of "J" Beloved Club. The seminar was funded by the Health Promotion Board and was well received by students.

"Before the laughing therapy session I felt lethargic and stressed with the thoughts of upcoming examinations. However, after the session there was a sense of relief, as if the stress has dissipated. I

The policy to develop two casinos in Singapore, just like the one to allow a massive influx of immigrants, could possibly be held up as another "failed" policy by the ruling government.

When I say failed, I mean this from a citizen-centric point of view. Certainly, the casinos have not let down the 10th Parliament government which passed the law as the casinos have generated a staggering amount of revenue thus far - profits reaped by ensuing parliaments.

Holding its own against the global slumping economy, casino operators Marina Bay Sands and Resorts World Sentosa could certainly have qualified for a reality TV show called 'Asia's Next Top Money Machine', if there were one.

Last year, Marina Bay Sands posted a gross gaming revenue of S$3.72 billion — almost 50 per cent of the total gaming win for the entire Las Vegas Strip over the same twelve-month period which ended on November 30, according to a Wall Street Journal report.

Resorts World Sentosa's gaming revenue amounted to

Sales and marketing executive Mark Tan, 45, used to work in the electronics industry, commanding a monthly salary of S$7,000.

But when the Singapore economy tanked in 2009, his company was acquired and he was retrenched.

After sending out hundreds of resumes with no reply, he tried his hand at selling insurance and even baking and selling home-made pineapple tarts.

Currently a taxi driver who earns $2,000 a month, Tan -- along with his two young children --  was one of about 90 people who showed up on Saturday evening for a talk called "Support our Singaporeans First" at Speakers' Corner at Hong Lim Park.  Most in the crowd were in their mid 40s or above, with a few in their 20s. 

Organised by Gilbert Goh, who runs a support site called Transitioning.org for the unemployed and underemployed, the talk featured five speakers -- business development and account manager Mr Prabu R, 23,  Goh himself, accountant Nazryn Azhar Samat, 31, businessman Kumaran Pillai, 41 and financial statistician