The Singapore Police Force conducted a multi-agency enforcement operation, led by Tanglin Police Division and supported by officers from the Criminal Investigation Department, Singapore Civil Defence Force, Central Narcotics Bureau, Immigration & Checkpoints Authority, and Singapore Customs, from 24 September to 1 October.

An enforcement operation was conducted, aimed at public entertainment outlets near the Orchard and Clarke Quay area.

A total of 3 people between the ages of 20 and 50 were arrested for their suspected involvement in gang activities during the raid.

Also, 7 men between the ages of 29 and 44 were found in possession of duty-unpaid cigarettes, as well as a 21-year-old woman.

4 of the 7 were issued with advisories, with the remainder of the group being investigated for offences under the Customs Act.

There were also fire safety violations being detected at 6 of the public entertainment outlets, with the SCDF set to follow up with enforcement actions.

35-year-old Kelvin Tan Li Ming allegedly tried to bribe a nurse at Choa Chu Kang Community Club with $50 to record him as vaccinated without jabbing him with the 2nd Covid-19 vaccination jab.

He is facing the possibility of 5 years imprisonment upon conviction, as well as a fine of up to $100,000 on top of that.

What happened?

A part time vaccination nurse, Eunice Lee En Hui, was employed by Homage Home Care to provide Pfizer jabs to patients at the Healthway Vaccination Centre at Choa Chu Kang Community Club.

She met Tan on 26 October 2021 at the vaccination hall, and saw that he had already received his first dose of the vaccine after checking his records in the system.

While verifying his details, Tan allegedly asked Lee if he could pay her $50 for her to record that he had been jabbed, when he wasn’t.

She rejected his offer and asked him why he didn’t want to be jabbed, and Tan allegedly said that he didn’t believe in the pandemic and claimed that Singapore brought in the vaccines for the economy.

Tan allegedly also asked her what would happen if he gave her more money, and that he was getting vaccinated because of his job requirements.

Lee then refused him again, citing her medical license and her integrity, which she said what “very important” after Tan told her that it wasn’t important.

Lee then kept the vial of vaccine because she was afraid Tan would use it as a weapon, and told her manager about the incident.

A police report was then filed against Tan.

Singapore Minister for Manpower Tan See Leng responded on 3 October to MP Yip Hon Weng’s question in parliament about how many companies have been placed under the TAFEP watchlist last year for breaches of the Fair Consideration Framework (FCF); and MP Louis Chua who asked about the number of incident where companies who placed job ads had breached the FCF.

Snippet of Tan See Leng’s response in Parliament

Lastly, on fair consideration. There is no place for discrimination in Singapore. MOM does not and will not tolerate unfair hiring practices, and employers who do not give locals a fair chance will face stiff penalties. The Fair Consideration Framework, or FCF, sets out requirements for all employers to consider local workers fairly for job opportunities. Work is underway to enshrine this in legislation.

Mr Yip Hon Weng asked about the number of companies placed on the FCF Watchlist. Firms are placed on the FCF Watchlist if they have an exceptionally high share of foreign PMETs compared to their industry peers, or a high concentration of a single foreign nationality source. But members of the House, let me reiterate this. Firms placed on the FCF Watchlist have not flouted any rules. Instead, what the Tripartite Alliance for Fair & Progressive Employment Practices, or TAFEP, does is to engage these companies to help them improve their workforce profiles. Since 2016, MOM has engaged a total of more than 1,700 employers under the FCF.

One other limb of FCF is the job advertising requirement. Employers must first advertise on MyCareersFuture, or MCF, and fairly consider all candidates, before submitting an EP or S Pass application. Mr Louis Chua asked whether companies need to notify MOM on the outcome of a job posting when it is subsequently delisted or when the role is filled. We do not require companies to do so, just like how they need not do so for other job portals. We are conscious of the fact that we should not add administrative burden and make it onerous for employers to use MCF.

While the number of cases of discriminatory practices is small, MOM will continue to  remain vigilant. Besides investigating complaints lodged with TAFEP, we also use data analytics to identify suspicious cases for further investigation. And where employers are found to be discriminatory, MOM will not hesitate to take action against such employers. In response to Mr Louis Chua’s and Mr Yip Hon Weng’s questions, from 2017 to 2021, MOM took enforcement actions against approximately 300 companies. The regulatory actions included issuance of warning, and being barred from hiring or renewing foreign workers.

A resident living at Block 620 Bedok Reservoir Road, Ms Wu, moved away from her home after living there for 13 years due to the “unbearable” noise of her neighbour’s parrot, according to Shin Min Daily News.

The 45-year-old woman said that it all started about 1 year ago after her neighbour moved in next door and their parrot would squawk and keep her away.

The bird was apparently kept in a cage that was placed in the corridor, and the neighbours would whistle at the bird to tease it, causing it to squawk.

It then started to become a frequent occurrence, with the family whistling from 7 pm onwards to tease the parrot, who would then squawk in response, going on through the night until about 10 pm.

She found it difficult to sleep and didn’t say anything at first because she wanted to preserve the harmony.

But she finally raised the issue with the owners after the noise got worse and they then brought their parrot inside their home.

But the noise got even worse when the owners would tease the bird early in the morning, and it got unbearable for her and her child who had to go to school in the morning and she had to go to work.

She said that she frequently couldn’t;t go to sleep the whole night due to the noise and dreaded going home after work because she wouldn’t be able to rest.

She felt tortured until she decided to move out.

A counter-terrorism exercise codenamed “Exercise Tidal 2022” was held at Sentosa Cove Village on 30 September 2022. The exercise was organised by the Singapore Police Force (SPF) and supported by the Singapore Civil Defence Force (SCDF), Sentosa Development Corporation (SDC) and Sentosa Cove Resort Management (SCRM).

Exercise Tidal is one of the many exercises which the Police have conducted on Sentosa Island (Refer to Annex A for list of previous public security exercises conducted on Sentosa Island).

Through a simulated terror attack, the exercise serves to validate the interagency coordination and response, as well as enhance community preparedness in dealing with a terror attack. The Police have been working closely with partner agencies and community stakeholders of Sentosa to enhance their security measures and emergency preparedness against security threats. The stakeholders involved are encouraged to develop contingency plans to deal with terror attacks and to train their staff and tenants to be familiar with the plans.

In the lead up to the exercise, the Police collaborated with SDC and SCRM to conduct refresher SGSecure training on critical survival knowledge, including ‘Run, Hide, Tell’ and Improvised First Aid Skills (IFAS) using ‘Press, Tie & Tell’, to equip and refresh their staff on the relevant knowledge and capabilities to respond effectively in such times of emergency.

Assistant Commissioner of Police Serene Chiu, Commander of Clementi Police Division said, “An effective response to a terror attack will save lives, minimise the impact of the attack and aid recovery. Community vigilance and preparedness are key in keeping ourselves and those around us safe from the terrorism threat. Exercise Tidal 2022 serves to enhance community preparedness in dealing with a terror attack.”

Mr Koh Piak Huat, Divisional Director (Operations) of Sentosa Development Corporation added, “SDC values strong partnership with the SPF and other Home Team agencies as the security of Sentosa is integral to the overall national security framework. Regular joint exercises like Exercise Trident will be essential in strengthening our Sentosa Resilience Framework.”

Strong community networks will enhance vigilance and boost the ability of the community to respond effectively to a crisis together. It is important to have robust contingency response plans to better deter, detect, delay, deny and deal with a terror attack.

Community stakeholders and businesses are encouraged to enhance their emergency preparedness and may refer to the resources listed below for more information:

• www.sgsecure.gov.sg
  
• www.police.gov.sg/resources/prevent-terrorism

Annex A

List of Past Security Related Exercises on Sentosa Island

1. Exercise NorthStar VII 2009 @ Rasa Sentosa, led by both SAF and SPF
   
2. Exercise Heartbeat 2011 @ Resorts World Sentosa, led by SPF
   
3. Exercise Heartbeat 2015 @ Sentosa Golf Club and Sentosa Cove, led by SPF
   
4. Exercise Heartbeat 2018 @ Palawan Kids City, led by SPF
   
5. Exercise Heartbeat 2019 @ Rasa Sentosa, led by SPF

Photos of Exercise

PUBLIC AFFAIRS DEPARTMENT
SINGAPORE POLICE FORCE
01 October 2022 @ 6:23 PM