Jade buyout being investigated

4 organisations are now involved in the widening official probe into the aborted takeover of Singapore-listed Jade Technologies.

The Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) and the Accounting and Corporate Regulatory Authority (Acra) have recently announced that they are also looking into the fiasco.

They have joined efforts by two other regulatory and enforcement bodies - the Commercial Affairs Department (CAD), the white-collar crime unit, and the Securities Industry Council (SIC), which polices takeovers.

Earlier this month, major Jade shareholder Anthony Soh pulled the plug on a proposed $117 million buyout of the company after admitting he had insufficient funds. (story)

Do you have an illegal licence plate?

Giving a car a Continental touch with a number plate that resembles those used in the European Union might be all the rage, but it is, in fact, illegal. At least two number plate manufacturers have been importing the moulds for these plates directly from Europe, fonts and all, at the cost of up to $80,000.

But the EU number plates use letter and number fonts that are smaller than the Land Transport Authority requires them to be, and their colours might be against the rules, too.

For instance, letters and numbers on licence plates on Singapore registered cars must be 70 mm high and 50 mm wide. (story)

Where’d you get that pork?

The Agri-Food and Veterinary Authority (AVA) is considering applications from slaughterhouses in both countries to sell frozen pork here, part of a government plan to diversify the country’s food supply.

Recent outbreaks such as bird flu, along with the wide-reaching fallout of climate change, have prompted AVA to look further afield for food supplies, said spokesman Goh Shih Yong.

‘We believe in taking no chances. Food safety is of paramount importance,’ he said.

In 2006, for example, the export of frozen raw chicken from Thailand and China was suspended because of a bird flu outbreak.

Similar scares have prompted AVA to look to meat producers in South America. (story)

Changi Airport handles a record 36.7 million passengers in 2007

Singapore’s Changi Airport handled record passenger traffic of 36.7 million in 2007, up almost 5 percent from the previous year, the government said Monday. Last year’s passenger traffic broke the previous record of 35.03 million set in 2006 and was driven by strong growth in China and India, the airport operator, the Civil Aviation Authority of Singapore, said.

Emerging markets like Vietnam, Russia and South Africa also contributed to last year’s record showing, it said. (story)

Shanghai metro apologizes to “kissing couple”

Shanghai’s metro rail authority apologised to a couple who had threatened to sue after a video of them kissing on a station platform was posted on the Internet, state media reported on Friday.The video clip shows the couple in a prolonged embrace as three voices speaking in the local Shanghai dialect can be heard in the background laughing and making lewd sexual comments.

‘We have wrapped up an internal investigation and found the videotape was uploaded by people who had worked for Shanghai Metro,’ officials with the Shanghai Metro Operation was quoted as saying by the Xinhua news agency.

‘We made formal apologies and are negotiating with the couple over compensation.’ (story)

Festival ends successfully

The Media Development Authority (MDA) - host of the 2007 Asia Media Festival - has clinched a landmark collaboration with an international agency and sealed several regional projects, ending the two-week event on a high note. At the opening ceremony of Festival last month, Minister for Information, Communications and the Arts, Dr Lee Boon Yang, had announced a collaboration between MDA and international talent agency, William Morris Agency (WMA).

The aim - to internationalise local capabilities and nurture the next generation of Singapore executives and talents to learn from industry veterans, and facilitate exchanges between Singapore and the Hollywood creative community. (story)

Godiva recalls chocolate over metal debris

Godiva Chocolatier (Asia) Ltd has notified the Agri-Food and Veterinary Authority (AVA) that it is recalling its 16-piece Christmas Carre Gift Box containing Christmas Milk Caramel Carre chocolate squares, following two reports in Japan of a small strand of metal found in the chocolate. No injuries have been reported.

A statement from AVA on Friday said the recall is a voluntary one.

AVA has directed the importers to recall the affected product from the market immediately.

These gift boxes, carrying the produce code 5000059, are only available in Godiva-owned retail stores in Singapore. About 40 boxes of the chocolates have been sold. (story)

Rapping MDA video causing a bit of controversy

A 4 minute video showing the head honchos of the Media Development Authority (MDA) rapping while selling its message to get Singapore creative and connected has got some media industry players tickled and others bewildered. While some laud its effort to reach out, others say the video is forced and makes the civil servants look even a little silly.

Called the Senior Management Rap, it was featured in the MDA’s interactive annual report 2006/7 released last month. The video is now available on the MDA website. (story) (video)

Taxi driver’s clean up their act

Errant taxi drivers are cleaning up their act as stiffer penalties for flouting the rules take hold this week. Not a single cabby was found overcharging, touting or refusing to pick up passengers on Monday, the first day when stiffer penalties for offenders kicked in, said the Land Transport Authority (LTA) on Wednesday.

This is in sharp contrast to just a week ago, when 36 cabbies were nabbed in enforcement operations carried out by the LTA from Nov 6 to 17 at several spots such as Boat Quay, Chijmes, Clarke Quay, Mustafa Centre, Orchard Towers, Harbour Front, Sentosa and Tanah Merah Ferry terminal.

A third of these were caught flouting rules after Nov 12 - when stiffer penalties under the Vocational Licensing Points System (VLPS) were announced.

Since the beginning of its crackdown on errant cabbies in October, the LTA has nabbed 116 taxi drivers for various offenses. (story)

LTA investigates 39 cabbies for violations

The Land Transport Authority (LTA) nabbed another 39 taxi drivers for soliciting, overcharging or refusing to send passengers. In a five-day operation which ended Nov 3, seven cabbies were found overcharging while another seven were caught touting.

The rest were had refused to convey passengers.

The raid took place at several spots such as Sentosa, Clarke Quay, Orchard Towers and Boat Quay.

Several of the errant taxi drivers are likely to have their vocational licences suspended or revoked, once LTA has completed its investigations.

The suspension could be for a period of two weeks, four weeks or even two months, depending on the demerit points accumulated by the cabbies for the offences.

(story)