Chinese paper to go bilingual

The Chinese free newspaper my paper will become a bilingual daily from next month and with a ground-breaking ingredient. Bilingual papers usually have stories that have been translated from sister publications, but the new my paper will have two distinct teams of journalists, one filing in English, the other Chinese.

The expanded paper will present ‘a new package never seen before, offering the best of both worlds for Singaporeans’, said Dr Tony Tan, chairman of publisher Singapore Press Holdings on Wednesday.

Readers can expect a ‘uniquely blended’ newspaper produced by experienced English and Chinese journalists chasing exclusives while covering the news ‘from a fresh perspective’.

The revamped tabloid paper will have an editorial staff of 50 producing its 48 pages - double its current 24 - and will hit the streets from Monday to Friday. (story)

Kidnap scams making a comeback

Kidnap scam calls have made a comeback. On 3rd December alone, police said that eight such calls were reported.

The callers threatened members of the public that their next-of-kin would be harmed unless money was transferred to them.

In some instances, cries of help could be heard from the purported kidnap victim during the phone conversations.

However, all the allegations were found to be untrue and no one had been kidnapped. (story)

PrimaDeli sends 30 samples to AVA for testing

The temporary shutdown of PrimaDeli retail outlets took effect on Wednesday, and officials from the Agri-Food and Veterinary Authority (AVA) have taken at least 30 samples from the Prima Food factory in Keppel Road for testing.

No stone is left unturned as officials try to get to the bottom of the food poisoning outbreak which affected 109 people, who had eaten chocolate cakes from PrimaDeli.

In a statement, the company said its Prima Taste products are manufactured in a separate and independent facility and so Prima Taste products are safe for consumption. (story)

Minister proposes alumni should mentor students

Education Minister Tharman Shanmugaratnam hopes to see more activities that will allow Singapore students to interact with their counterparts in the region.

Speaking at a student camp for over 180 students from Singapore and Malaysia on Wednesday, he stressed that this will help break down barriers between the young people who share a common future.

Foo Hui Chian, a Malaysian student said: “Even though we’ve just met each other for a few days, we’re like good friends, we’re staying in the same dorm, we get along very well.” (story)

Singapore beats Thailand for the gold

Singapore added two more golds to their SEA Games medal tally in Thailand on Wednesday.

Singapore’s shooting team had earlier hit eight golds from their competition which ended on Monday.

Singapore’s latest medals came from the table tennis men’s and women’s teams.

In the men’s event, defending champions Singapore beat Thailand 3-0 for the gold. (story)