Category: Uncategorized

I had lunch yesterday with Alina and Matthew at Chamoon Hot Pot. So kind of her and her husband to remember my birthday and arrange lunch.

I was wondering why she picked this place. I thought she liked this restaurant and wanted to eat here. Turned out that she thought this was my favorite restaurant and so she booked this place for me. So sweet of her but although I did go there previously, I haven’t been there in quite a while. I wouldn’t call it my current favorite restaurant…If asked, I would have given her a list to choose from which wouldn’t have included Chamoon… Pity

Anyway it was a healthy vegetarian hot pot with tomato papaya soup.

We talked about many things but the 2 of them seemed so tired. I was talking most of the time. Having children must be very exhausting. It is a huge sacrifice couples make. Your life changes and thereafter revolves around your children, traveling and holidays become difficult, finding the right balance between work and family is tough and it is increasingly expensive to raise children, especially in Singapore. I have always wondered if all the sacrifice that parents make is worth it. Or why they do it. I think I will never find the answer.

So grateful that they found the time to come out and spend time with me and have lunch!!

Earlier this week, a friend send me a video clip of PM’s Bloomberg interview. I had read about that interview in the mainstream papers and so I didn’t feel the need to open it to view the clip.

Yesterday evening, that same friend called me up to grumble about how the PM could say such things in that interview. So I asked him to summarize what the PM was supposed to have said.

He said PM had talked about the current China Japan spat and had said Singapore had forgotten and forgiven the Japanese for what they had done during WW2 and that China should learn to do the same and move on. According to him PM also said that ASEAN has accepted that Japan is a reliable security partner for this region.

I was surprised PM would have said such things and as I was outside, I said I would watch the video clip and revert to him.

Last night I watched that clip and I was shocked to discover that what PM said was completely different from what was told to me. Nothing he said in that interview was even remotely close. The position that he took was conciliatory and nuanced and carefully phrased.

But what surprised me is how some people believe a narrative told to them without verifying the information from the actual source and then spread it to others. But more significantly, who are these people with such ulterior motives to completely come up with a false narrative and spread it?

I understand that many of these narratives are from overseas actors based in HK. Singaporeans need to wake up and be alert and not be swayed by overseas actors appealing to clan and ethnic roots to support them in their own agendas.

Lunch today was at Koma, courtesy of U-Zyn. Very kind of him to remember that my birthday is coming up!

Koma is a Japanese fusion restaurant and they have reasonably priced set lunches. That could also explain their popularity as the place was packed. I was told that another reason why this place has become popular is because Taylor Swift visited this place twice during her last tour here.

Interesting experience. The food is decent but I didn’t think it warranted Taylor Swift wanting to come here to eat, and not just once. Perhaps she was invited by some influential person or was paid to eat there or maybe she just liked the ambience?

Conversation was great and varied. Most of it centred on the inequalities within the public schools system in Singapore.

And a nice birthday cake to end off lunch!

I received an award yesterday evening. Actually it was not a new award but was given to me to recognize my National Day Award. This is because I have done some work for Bukit Panjang.

I was not involved in BP until Mr Liang Eng Hwa took over as MP in 2020.

It was during Covid when I organized a job fair there. It was one of the first job fairs in Singapore and it received good coverage in the press. Thereafter I have done adhoc charity projects for them.

So grateful that I was invited yesterday. But what also surprised me was the sheer number of volunteers from all walks of life who help out to make other people’s lives better. Some of them helping out for 40 years. Well done to all of them! This surely must be a pure Singaporean phenomena.

I was introduced to this society some years back by my colleague Kalender, who is also an alumni of the College. This Singapore chapter comprises a group of ex students from this college, which is based in Thiruchy, Tamil Nadu. I didn’t know that they have about 500 of their alumni in Singapore. This college celebrates its 75th year this year.

The key events the Singapore chapter organises are talks during the Tamil Language Month, a break fast event during the Muslim fasting month and various other educational events.

They kindly invited me to their event, celebrating 15 years of the establishment of their Singapore chapter yesterday, giving me a front row seat. Hamid Razak MP was the guest of honor.

The event started at 6pm and I had hoped that it will be done by 730pm. Unfortunately there were many speeches and a song and skit item such that the main event, which was the speech, only started at 735pm. So I missed the speech. I had to leave by 745pm.

Anyway glad I could be a part of their event! Such gracious hosts.

I was an independent director of this listed company for 16 years. I stepped down last year when it became mandatory for all independent directors to step down after 9 years.

This company is majority controlled by David Loh and Han Seng Juan. I have known the 2 of them since about 1998 or thereabouts.

When they acquired SM Summit to do a reverse listing, I became an independent director together with Gn Hiang Meng, who used to be a UOB banker.

The first proposed reverse takeover was unsuccessful. That was a recycling company. We then pivoted to worker’s accomodations. This then expanded to students accomodations. And that turned out to hugely successful.

I had a wonderful 16 years with them. And also the opportunity to travel to Melbourne and Manchester to inspect the student accomodations there. We also went to HK to do a secondary listing.

So it was great catching up with all these people I have known and worked with at their dinner last night.

I have known Min Han since 2017. I first saw him in HK during the Razer IPO. He is the brother of Min Liang, the CEO of Razer.

He is a doctor by training but he has been perfecting a cancer marker test for some time. He started Lucence and it now has 2 very high quality tests. One for 50 cancers and its rate of prediction of cancer is so high that the company has obtained FDA approval for this test. This is the Lucence Insight test.

The other new one is for stroke, heart attack and leukemia. Collectively the 2 tests are called the Lucence Longevity tests.

A rather attractive name but it’s still a bit pricey. Although it is a good screening test to do, the price has to come down somewhat to make it more affordable and attractive.

Anyway this morning I tried out this test. Now awaiting results which take about 2 weeks.

She belongs to the first batch of local law students in Singapore who graduated in 1961, a year before I was even born. So that puts her in her mid eightees at least.

She was already a full professor when I entered the law faculty as a student. But she wasn’t teaching there the entire time I was there as a student. Although I remember we used her criminal law text book which had a yellow colour.

She only returned when I joined as a staff and our paths crossed for about three years but we hardly interacted then.

She is now my neighbor and I see her on and off. Although she is getting on in age, good to see her out and about and talking with me about people we both know.

Strange that today I bumped into Dr Tan Khai Tong twice within 15 minutes at Scotts Square. I hardly ever see him. He was buying things at the NTUC in Scotts Square and I had just parked my car there to make a lunch and dinner reservations.

I know Khai Tong from my school days. Although he is 4 years my senior in ACS, we were in the same ACS Military Band. He used to be in the percussion section and I think he was the drum major. He was in the band during the successful years from 1974 to 1976 during the time of the late Mr Lim Peng Ann.

We didn’t have much interaction then as he was very much my senior. But I connected with him in recent years because he is a good friend, colleague and classmate of my doctor and friend Dr Ang Peng Tiam.

On day when my mother was unwell, through Dr Ang’s recommendation, we saw Dr Tan who spent more than an hour with my mother and took very good care of her. As he correctly suspected, it was just gastric and one round of a Guardian purchased antacid did the trick!

So happy to have met him this afternoon.

I have known Greta for some 5 years now. I was introduced to her and her husband by my good friend Virginia.

Greta has been a wonderful friend. Originally from China, she’s educated in the US and now living in Singapore with her very talented 2 young children.

And like me, she loves Chinese tea. So this morning she invited me to have some tea and an early lunch.

As her birthday was just over, I presented her with a chocolate birthday cake and in return I was given a Pop Mart Labubu toy!