Singapore's Parliament on Wednesday (Jan 14) backed a motion which stated that Workers' Party chief Pritam Singh was unfit to continue in his role as Leader of the Opposition, in light of his court conviction and conduct. The motion was passed by a voice vote of ayes. All nine other WP MPs and NCMP Andre Low who were present stood up after Singh requested that the Speaker record the dissenting votes; WP had lifted the party whip. NCMP Eileen Chong was away on a business trip. The motion, tabled by Leader of the House Indranee Rajah, sought that Parliament «affirms that honesty and integrity are fundamental pillars of Singapore's parliamentary and political system».It also requested that the Parliament express regret at Singh's conduct, describing it as «dishonourable» and «unbecoming» of a MP.The motion noted that the High Court had upheld Singh's conviction for lying to Parliament's Committee of Privileges and also guided former WP MP Raeesah Khan to continue with her lie to the House.

A diced beetroot product is being recalled after the Singapore Food Agency (SFA) found the potential presence of rust within the can. The product — Community Co's Diced Beetroot — is being recalled by its importer Redmart, the agency said in a news release on Wednesday (Jan 14). The recalled product batch — 3700/01131-L24155 — originates from China and expires on June 3, 2027. SFA said that the potential presence of rust is due to a packaging fault, adding that the integrity of the can may be affected. Consumers who have purchased the affected product are advised not to consume it. Those who have consumed the affected product and have concerns about their health should seek medical attention. Consumers may direct their enquiries to their respective points of purchase. [[nid:727888]]editor@asiaone.com 

A motorcyclist and his pillion were taken to hospital after an accident along the Ayer Rajah Expressway (AYE) towards Tuas Checkpoint on Wednesday (Jan 14). Responding to queries from AsiaOne, the police said they were alerted to an accident involving a motorcycle and a van at around 5.30pm. The male motorcyclist, 41, and the female passenger, 39, were conveyed conscious to hospital. In dashcam footage uploaded to Facebook group Tuas Woodlands Checkpoint, two motorcyclists can be seen directing the flow of traffic along the rightmost lane, while a third can be seen sprawled on the ground just ahead of a fallen motorcycle. To the left, a van can be seen parked along a road divider. The Immigration and Checkpoints Authority notified motorists of the accident in a Facebook post, warning of expected delays for travellers departing Singapore via the checkpoint. 

Singapore's Minister for Sustainability and the Environment Grace Fu has ascended the «family ranks» to become a grandmother. Fu took to Facebook on Wednesday (Jan 14) morning to announce the arrival of her granddaughter. «Finally get to meet you. Welcome to our family. I am now a grandmother,» Fu said in her post.The minister, who will turn 62 in March this year, is married to technopreneur Ivan Lee. They have three children. Several social media users congratulated Fu on her «promotion» and left messages of well-wishes. As of 3.40pm, the post has received over 3,700 reactions and more than 800 comments.  [[nid:724711]]editor@asiaone.com 

Leader of the Opposition Pritam Singh has disagreed that his conduct was dishonourable and unbecoming of an MP, he stated in Parliament on Wednesday (Jan 14).He was responding to the motion by Leader of the House Indranee Rajah questioning the suitability of Singh as the Leader of the Opposition.This comes after Singh was found guilty and fined $7,000 each for two charges of lying to the Committee of Privileges (COP) in February last year.«I disagree that my conduct was dishonourable and unbecoming of an MP, as I disagree with the finding of guilt by the courts and the COP,» Singh said, explaining that he would refer to statements taken by the police from former MP Raeesah Khan's aide, Loh Peiying, which had been denied use in court.Singh further claimed that a convicted person is able to retain their belief that they are innocent, highlighting how President Tharman Shanmugaratnam had responded to media queries relating to his 1994 criminal conviction with: «They got the wrong man».

A domino effect of mistakes beginning with former Workers' Party MP Raeesah Khan's lies in the House in 2021 has put Leader of the Opposition Pritam Singh's parliamentary position in doubt. Leader of the House Indranee Rajah tabled a motion which was heard in Parliament on Wednesday (Jan 14) questioning Singh's suitability to continue in the role. Here's a timeline of how events unfolded, beginning with Khan's untruths. Aug 3, 2021: WP puts forth a motion in Parliament on empowering women. Khan delivers a speech claiming to have accompanied a purported sexual assault victim to a police station, and alleging that the case was mishandled by the police. Aug 7, 2021: Khan admits to Singh that her anecdote was untrue. Aug 8, 2021:  Khan tells WP leaders Singh, Sylvia Lim and Faisal Manap that she was a sexual assault victim and admits to lying in Parliament. Singh is alleged to have said: «this would probably be something that we would have to take to the grave». 

The decision on whether Workers' Party (WP) chief Pritam Singh should continue as Leader of the Opposition rests with Prime Minister Lawrence Wong, said Leader of the House Indranee Rajah on Wednesday (Jan 14). She had filed a motion in Parliament stating that Singh's conduct was dishonourable and unbecoming of an MP, and that it renders him unsuitable to continue as Leader of the Opposition. This comes after he was convicted and fined $14,000 in February last year on two counts of lying to a parliamentary committee over the case of former MP Raeesah Khan. His conviction was upheld in December after an unsuccessful appeal. In her speech, Indranee said that the motion does not call for the removal of the Leader of the Opposition. Since the Leader of the Opposition is designated by the Prime Minister, PM Wong will decide if Singh is to be stripped of this appointment — not Parliament. 

Pritam Singh’s approach to the Raeesah Khan lying incident showed a «failure of leadership» on his part, Leader of the House Indranee Rajah said on Wednesday (Jan 14),Speaking on the motion of Singh’s suitability as Leader of the Opposition which she had tabled before the Parliament sitting, Indranee summed up on what she said are a number of “dishonesties” from the Workers’ Party (WP) chief.Singh had told Khan, a former WP MP, to maintain her lie to Parliament, even though she had confessed to him in August 2021.He then lied to the public and concealed material information from his own party, according to Indranee.«There are simply too many lies — they pile up, one on top of another, each to cover up a previous lie,» she said.«And that is a problem as Mr Singh is also the Leader of the Opposition.»Singh was convicted and fined $14,000 in February last year for lying to a parliamentary committee. His conviction was upheld in December after he appealed against it.

Adoption agencies in Singapore are expected to carry out due diligence to ensure that the children they bring in are of «correct background and origin», Minister of State for Social and Family Development Goh Pei Ming said on Wednesday (Jan 14).Goh was responding to a parliamentary question from Workers' Party chair Sylvia Lim on concerns over Singaporeans' confidence in adoption processes, despite the affected parents having followed all legal requirements amid the alleged Indonesian baby-trafficking case. «I have constituents affected by this situation and they have already been caring for these babies for more than a year, and this uncertainty is a torture to them,» said Lim, who also wanted to know how long investigations are expected to take. The exchange in parliament follows reports by Indonesian media last September that police in Indonesia were working with Singapore authorities to investigate an alleged baby trafficking syndicate operating out of West Java. 

A 31-year-old Malaysian man will be charged in court on Wednesday (Jan 14) for his alleged involvement in several cases of government officials impersonation scam (GOIS).The police said in a news release on Tuesday that they received a report involving the impersonation of a Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) official.Similar to a series of cases reported in November 2025, the victim was also told that her identity was misused and that she was being investigated for money laundering offences.Same repeated modus operandi: Identity misusedThe female victim who filed the report was allegedly told over the phone, by an unknown person claiming to be from UnionPay, that she had to pay for an insurance policy which she had purchased.When the woman denied having signed up for any insurance policy, the person told her that her identity may have been misused and that he would file a case with the police for her.Shortly after, the victim received another call from a person claiming to be an MAS official.

Singapore's Land Transport Authority (LTA) has impounded another 10 foreign-registered vehicles for illegally ferrying passengers across the Singapore-Malaysia border.The recent round of enforcement operation brings the total number of such vehicles impounded since July 2025 to 162.In a Facebook post on Tuesday (Jan 13), LTA said the drivers were nabbed at land checkpoints and areas such as Bedok Reservoir. It added that more than 3,000 vehicles have been checked since July 2025.  Weighing in on the recent enforcement, Senior Minister of State for Transport Sun Xueling reiterated that passenger safety and the livelihoods of Singaporean drivers are of «utmost importance» to the authorities.

Law enforcement officers at Woodlands Checkpoint recently uncovered almost 3kg of drugs hidden inside pet food and beverage packaging in an inbound Malaysia-registered car. In a Facebook post on Tuesday (Jan 13), the Immigration and Checkpoints Authority (ICA) said its officers who conducted checks on the car on Dec 29 detected the drugs and referred the case to the Central Narcotics Bureau (CNB). CNB officers then conducted further checks on the car. In total, officers found 20 bundles of drugs — comprising about 1.46kg of heroin and 1.44kg of methamphetamine, commonly known as Ice. A 20-year-old Malaysian man was arrested in relation to the incident. Earlier the same month, on Dec 22, ICA officers at Woodlands Checkpoint found two black bundles in a passenger's bag after performing a search of another Malaysia-registered car.Further checks by CNB officers uncovered 3.27kg of cannabis and 1.7kg of Ice.A 39-year-old Malaysian man was arrested in relation to that incident. 

A 63-year-old male Singapore permanent resident, who allegedly refuelled his Singapore-registered vehicle with Ron95 after partially concealing his licence plate, will be charged in court on Wednesday (Jan 14).Assistant Commissioner of Police Tan Seng Lee from the Kulai district police headquarters said in a statement on Tuesday that the man will be charged for altering or obscuring a vehicle registration plate intentionally. The man is alleged to have obscured the first and last letters of the Singapore-registered car he was driving with black tape to make it look like a Malaysian plate.Malaysian media outlet The Star reported that the Singapore PR will be charged at the Magistrate's Court in Kulai. In a now-viral video on social media, the 63-year-old, who was wearing a striped shirt is seen refuelling his white Volkswagen sedan as another driver, a Malaysian man, pulls up from behind and calls out to him. «Singaporean ah,» the male driver questions, to which the Volkswagen driver replies «bukan» («no» in Malay). 

The Singapore Civil Defence Force's (SCDF) traffic priority system for emergency ambulances — which transitions lights to «green» at certain junctions for expedited passage — has saved close to 2 minutes per urgent trip to the hospital.In a Facebook post on Tuesday (Jan 13), the SCDF said the system has been used more than 2,500 times since its implementation in July 2024, «achieving average time savings of up to 1 minute and 57 seconds per emergency conveyance». «Building on these positive operational outcomes, SCDF will continue to review and expand the deployment of the (system) to suitable locations, as part of our ongoing efforts to enhance emergency ambulance response for life-threatening medical emergencies,» it said.  

Sport Singapore (SportSG) will work closely with the Football Association of Singapore (FAS) ahead of the national team's Asian Cup campaign in Saudi Arabia next year.This update was given on Tuesday (Jan 13) by Acting Minister for Culture, Community and Youth David Neo in a written response to a parliamentary question by MP Elysa Chen (Bishan-Toa Payoh GRC).The Lions celebrated their biggest accomplishment in Singapore football history on Nov 18 when they secured a maiden Asian Cup qualification with a comeback 2-1 away win over Hong Kong at the Kai Tak Stadium.A day later, they returned home to a rousing welcome. 

Singapore's passport has once again been named as the world's most powerful going into 2026, according to the Henley Passport Index, published on Tuesday (Jan 13). The index, which ranks 199 passports, places Singapore in first place with visa-free travel to 192 out of 227 destinations. Japan and South Korea are ranked joint second with access to 188 destinations without a prior visa, while Denmark, Luxembourg, Spain, Sweden and Switzerland came in third with access to 186 destinations. Malaysia ranked ninth, with its passport giving access to 180 visa-free destinations, ahead of the United States in 10th place with access to 179 destinations. Henley Passport Index says it is the «original, authoritative ranking of all the world's passports» based on the number of destinations that holders can access without a prior visa. This number is determined by data from the International Air Transport Association. Last year, Malaysia placed 12th although its passport gave access to slightly more destinations at 182. 

Hundreds of passengers were left stranded onboard a Singapore Airlines flight for over seven hours when it was told to turn back shortly after take off. SIA flight SQ661 was originally scheduled to depart from New Chitose Airport in Hokkaido at 9.30am (8.30am Singapore time) and arrive in Singapore at 5.05pm on Jan 10. However, the flight was delayed until 10.33am and 50 minutes after it took off, it was told to return to the airport, reported Shin Min Daily News. A passenger, who gave her name as Taylor, said the plane departed at around 10.30am before passengers were told about 55 minutes later that it would turn back to the airport, reported Mothership.Taylor said that SIA cited technical issues for the turnaround and that the plane «might be able to fly by 1.15pm». «1:15pm came and went, and at 2:15pm we were finally told our plane would no longer be able to take off,» added Taylor. He recalled that some passengers only disembarked the plane after 5pm as they had to wait for buses to bring them to the main terminal.