Prime Minister Lawrence Wong will deliver the National Day Rally speech on Sunday (Aug 23) from 6.45pm.Keeping with tradition, he will speak first in Malay, followed by Mandarin. His English speech will begin at 8pm, said the Prime Minister's Office (PMO) in a statement on Aug 17.The rally, held at the Institute of Technical Education College Central in Ang Mo Kio, will be broadcast on local television channels and radio stations.PM Wong's speech will be broadcast in English on Channel 5, CNA and CNA938; in Mandarin on Channel 8, Channel U and Capital 958FM; in Malay on Suria and Warna 924FM; and in Tamil on Vasantham and Oli 968FM.It will also be live streamed on the YouTube channels of PM Wong and PMO.  The National Day Rally is an important annual platform for Singapore's prime minister to address the nation, report on the progress it has made and share important policies.

The police are appealing for information on the whereabouts of a 17-year-old teenage girl, Iffah Nur Syaurah Binte Abdullah, who was last seen in Hougang.Police said in a news release on Monday (Aug 17) that Iffah was last seen at about 6.30am on July 30 in the vicinity of 42 Surin Avenue, wearing a black jacket and greyish black pants.The address is the location of the Pertapis Centre for Women and Girls. Anyone with information is urged to contact the police hotline at 1800-255-0000 or submit information online at www.police.gov.sg/i-witness.All information will be kept strictly confidential.[[nid:735166]]editor@asiaone.com 

FairPrice Foundation (FPF), the philanthropic arm of supermarket chain FairPrice Group on Monday (Aug 17) announced the return of its Cheers Breakfast Club. The initiative, now in its third year, will see 12,000 Primary 6 students — about 30 per cent of the Primary 6 cohort — taking their Primary School Leaving Examination (PSLE) receive free breakfast bundles.FairPrice Group said in a news release that the bundles will be available for public redemption at 51 participating Cheers and FairPrice Xpress outlets islandwide from 1pm on Sept 3, and during operating hours from Sept 4 to 6.Redemptions will be on a first-come, first-served basis while stocks last, with each student limited to one bundle redemption.Primary 6 students can redeem a bundle by presenting their student card or PSLE examination slip. Parents may also redeem a bundle on their child's behalf, by presenting their child's student card or a physical or electronic copy of the examination slip.

A 59-year-old man was arrested for committing an obscene act in public on Saturday (Aug 15).He had allegedly masturbated while standing beside a woman, leading her to chase him down and call the police.The police said in response to AsiaOne's queries that they received a call for assistance at Upper Cross Street at about 4.40pm on Saturday and arrested the man.The victim said in a Facebook post that same day that she was smoking outside her office when the man approached her space.«I thought he was feeling hot and shaking his shirt to cool down,» she recalled, before realising that the man was exposed and allegedly touching himself.She shouted at the man, who she said was «still shaking». He subsequently left the scene.The woman said she later tried searching for the man as she could not let go of the incident and eventually spotted him heading towards Hong Lim Market and Food Centre.After informing a colleague, she ran to stop him and called the police, the Facebook post stated.«I grabbed him by his collar and scolded him. He apologised and said he was drunk, but I'm not taking that as an excuse,» the victim wrote.

The police are appealing for information on the whereabouts of a 13-year-old teenage girl, Kylie Tan Le Tian, who was last seen in Tanjong Rhu.Police said in a news release on Monday (Aug 17) that Kylie was last seen at about 7.30am on Monday in the vicinity of 10 Tanjong Rhu Road, wearing a dark blue top and dark blue skirt. Kylie was last seen wearing a dark blue top and dark blue skirt on Monday (Aug 17) morning. PHOTO: Blue Stag (left), Shanghai School Uniform (right) The address is the location of Dunman High School.Anyone with information is urged to contact the police hotline at 1800-255-0000 or submit information online at www.police.gov.sg/i-witness.All information will be kept strictly confidential.

An offering table set up for the Hungry Ghost Festival in front of a National Day banner featuring Jalan Besar GRC MPs has drawn criticism online, with some netizens calling the location «inappropriate».Photos shared in the Umbrage Singapore Facebook group on Saturday (Aug 15) showed the altar outside the Buddha Tooth Relic Temple in Chinatown at about 2pm.In the photos, several worshippers were seen gathered around the altar, which had been placed directly in front of a National Day billboard bearing the portraits of Jalan Besar MPs Wan Rizal, Josephine Teo, Denise Phua Lay Peng and Shawn Loh.During the Hungry Ghost Festival in the seventh month of the lunar calendar, many Chinese burn incense and make offerings such as food, candles, joss paper and paper effigies to honour their ancestors and appease wandering spirits.Other photos circulating online showed members of the public kneeling in prayer before the altar, which appeared to have been assembled using makeshift tables draped with red cloth.

A fountain pen once owned by Singapore's founding prime minister Lee Kuan Yew has sold for a staggering $461,500 after attracting 111 bids from around the world.The silver Montblanc Meisterstuck No. 146 was sold by Singapore auction house Hotlotz on Sunday (Aug 16). According to Hotlotz's press statement that day, the final price was nearly 10 times the auction house's initial estimate of between $30,000 and $50,000.The pen was listed as Lot 51 in Hotlotz's Interiors & Collectibles — August, Fine Art Focus auction, which featured works and collectibles from Singaporean artists and notable figures.The sterling silver fountain pen has yellow-toned metal highlights, an 18K gold nib and is engraved with «SM Lee Kuan Yew» on its cap.It measures 14.5cm long and is marked «925» for sterling silver.

A person was taken to the hospital after an incident at Jurong West Swimming Complex on Saturday (Aug 15).Responding to AsiaOne's queries, the Singapore Civil Defence Force (SCDF) said that it received a call for assistance on Aug 15 at around 5:25pm at 20 Jurong West Street 93, where the swimming complex is located. The SCDF added that a person was taken to National University Hospital (NUH).A Sport Singapore spokesperson also told AsiaOne that an incident occurred at the ActiveSG Jurong West Swimming Complex on Aug 15.«Our lifeguards and staff promptly attended to the individual, in accordance with our emergency response protocols,» said the spokesperson.The spokesperson added that the individual was conscious when taken to NUH and is currently under observation.[[nid:742562]]laili.abdeen@asiaone.com 

Singapore's non-oil domestic exports (NODX) rose by 24.2 per cent in July compared to a year earlier, extending the 20.8 per cent growth recorded in June, Enterprise Singapore (EnterpriseSG) announced on Monday (Aug 18).The growth was led by electronic NODX, which grew by 112 per cent, up from the 105.1 per cent increase in June.According to Enterprise SG, the increase was supported by «robust artificial intelligence related demand» such as disk media products — which rose by 339.1 per cent or $1.6 billion, and integrated circuits — which grew by 84.5 per cent or $1.4 billion.Meanwhile, non-electronic NODX fell by 2.3 per cent, easing slightly from the 2.8 per cent in June.Overall, NODX grew by 19.4 per cent in the first seven months of this year.Of the top 10 markets for NODX exports, the US was Singapore's top market, following by China and Taiwan.Non-oil re-exports (NORX) grew by 51.3 per cent in July, down slightly from the 60.3 per cent growth recorded in June. The expansion was also primarily driven by the electronics sector, EnterpriseSG said.

The long arms of the law caught up with a 37-year-old Australian man on Aug 4, some nine months after he stole from a retail outlet in the transit area of Changi Airport Terminal 2.A day later, a 50-year-old American man was arrested for the same offence, this time at the transit area of Changi Airport Terminal 1.Police said in a news release on Sunday (Aug 16) afternoon that the two cases happened on November 19, 2025, and Aug 5 respectively.In the first case, a retail assistant had reviewed the shop's closed-circuit television (CCTV) after noticing two boxes of perfumes missing from the display shelf.The Australian man was seen taking two boxes of perfumes, worth about $430, before leaving without making payment.According to the police, about two hours had lapsed between the time of alleged offence and the report being made. By then, the man had departed from Singapore.He was arrested on Aug 4 while in Changi Airport again on transit.The second case took place at a retail outlet in the transit area of Changi Airport Terminal 1 at about 12.40am on Aug 5.

A group of more than 10 cyclists were seen on video being chased by Traffic Police (TP) officers in the wee hours of Saturday (Aug 15) morning.Footage of the incident posted on social media shows the group riding without helmets along West Coast Avenue near West Coast Park.Some of the bicycles appear to be fixies, or fixed-gear bicycles, which do not come with hand-operated brakes.At least four TP officers are seen giving chase, with their sirens sounding, as the group spreads out across three lanes. At one point, a TP officer overtakes the group, while another officer boxes them in from behind.However, the group speeds up in an attempt to evade the officers. It is unclear how many riders were eventually stopped by TP officers, although the video's ending shows at least two TP outriders stopping along the road — behind the main group of cyclists.On TikTok, where the video was posted, several users commented on the issue of road safety, but some comments thought different.

A 16-year-old will be among 20 people to be charged in court from Monday (Aug 17) to Thursday for their alleged involved in various scams.The 17 men and three women, aged between 16 and 64, are said to be involved in various scams such as job and investment scam, government official impersonation scam, internet love scam, and sexual services scam. Police did not disclose the total amount of losses they are linked to, but said that their offences include: abetment to cheating, acquiring another person's benefits from criminal proceeds, assisting another to retain benefits from criminal conduct, abetting unauthorised access to computer material, unlawful disclosure of passwords or access codes, and knowingly providing fraudulently registered postpaid SIM cards for monetary gain.They are believed to have facilitated scam activities by relinquishing or selling their bank accounts, assisting in receiving or transferring funds or collecting cash from scam victims, and enabling criminal syndicates to commit money laundering.

A group of more than 10 cyclists were seen on video being chased down by Traffic Police (TP) officers in the wee hours of Saturday (Aug 15) morning.Footage of the incident posted on social media shows the group riding without helmets along West Coast Avenue near West Coast Park.Some of the bicycles appear to be fixies, or fixed-gear bicycles, which do not come with hand-operated brakes.At least four TP officers are seen giving chase, with their sirens sounding, as the group spreads out across three lanes. At one point, a TP officer overtakes the group, while another officer boxes them in from behind.However, the group speeds up in an attempt to evade the officers. It is unclear how many riders were eventually stopped by TP officers, although the video's ending shows at least two TP outriders stopping along the road — behind the main group of cyclists.On TikTok, where the video was posted, several users commented on the issue of road safety, but some comments thought different.

A woman mistakenly discarded her mobile phone in the trash, but successfully retrieved it later thanks to a town council worker.Choa Chu Kang resident Carnis, 35, told AsiaOne that her mother was clearing out some unwanted kitchen items and had unknowingly wrapped her phone with a table cloth.Several minutes after the items were thrown down the rubbish chute, the woman realised her phone was missing.«She was worried if we couldn't find it or if it's not in usable condition...she'd lose important contacts and photo memories,» the content creator shared.Carnis said she found the incident «amusing», and laughed with her mother «that such things could happen».They tried searching for an estate worker below their block but did not see anyone. Carnis then called the town council for help, which sent a worker to open the chute.Told that they would have to find the phone themselves, Carnis and her mother even donned gloves in preparation. In a video posted to TikTok on Aug 12, the conservancy worker is seen pulling out the refuse chute bin as Carnis' mother stood beside.

Getai performer Raybe Oh, who was left with severe burns after dashing into a burning car to save her fiance in a 2021 accident, told 8world that she had wondered at the time if stopping her partner would make her seem like a «party pooper» who was «ruining everyone's fun».The former flight attendant's fiance, 29-year-old Jonathan Long Junwei, was driving a white BMW in the early hours of Feb 13, 2021, when the car skidded, slammed into a shophouse along Tanjong Pagar Road, and burst into flames.Oh dashed into the blaze to save Long, sustaining burns to 80 per cent of her body. A coroner's inquiry later revealed that Long had consumed alcohol before the fatal crash, which claimed the lives of five men.In February, Oh announced that she would be returning to the getai stage after five years, calling for public understanding during her comeback.Five months and over 30 getai performances later, she took to the stage again for the Seventh Lunar Month getai season in August, with over 20 more bookings confirmed.

A pair of livestreamers in Singapore has come under fire after launching into a vulgarity-laden rant directed at customers who apparently cancelled their order at 3am.The two members of the livestreaming team @vedawinfam, Winnie Heng and Vadalene Eng, were slammed for their response to customers who apparently wanted to return highly sought-after items after the livestream ended.An 11-minute screen recording of the scene was uploaded on the SgTea subreddit on Aug 14, where Eng says in Mandarin: «Do you know how many people couldn't buy it and left? Then you left it until later and cancelled?»Heng then refers to the viewers as «f******» twice before repeating «f*** you» to the camera four times.«I shouted until I had no voice left,» she adds.«I curse you from the bottom of my heart. From the bottom of Winnie Heng's heart,» she repeats forcefully, calling out three of the customers by their TikTok handle.Stepping back, she takes a sip of a drink and raises her hands as she «transfers» her «suay-ness» - Hokkien for unluckiness - to the customer.