TOP OF THE NEWS
Transport Minister Khaw Boon Wan has urged rail operators SMRT and SBS Transit to take a leaf out of the book of the Taipei Rapid Transit Corporation, noting the latter's fast response to network problems and timely maintenance. He also urged local rail operators to set high targets so that even if they fail, there would still be significant improvement.
TOP OF THE NEWS
None of the 16 town councils got a red mark for their running of Housing Board estates, according to the latest government report.
But the good showing could be partly due to the Workers' Party-run town council not being graded in two categories in which it had done poorly in previous years.
WORLD
The annual assembly of Parti Islam SeMalaysia (PAS) kicks off today, with leaders seeking to calm members after a stormy year that saw its moderate leaders quit to form a rival party. PAS president Abdul Hadi Awang (photo) is expected to outline PAS' strategy to push its demand for syariah law at the Kelantan meeting.
LIFE
S'pore artist's work selected for Art Basel platform
In a first for Singapore, home-grown artist Ho Tzu Nyen will be showing his work alongside art-world giants such as Ai Weiwei, Tracey Emin and Anish Kapoor at Art Basel's coveted Unlimited platform in Basel, Switzerland, next month. Ho's video installation, The Nameless, is one of 88 works that made the cut from a pool of more than 200 submissions.
WORLD
Emeritus Senior Minister Goh Chok Tong has said at the 22nd Nikkei Future of Asia Conference that a symbolic gesture between Japan and China to shed their historic baggage, similar to US President Barack Obama's visit to Hiroshima, would go a long way towards ensuring regional peace.
OPINION
The logic of the market is entering religion, creating religious marketplaces where "religious entrepreneurs" compete to offer unique religious products to adherents of a faith, says Farish A. Noor in the By Invitation column.
HOME
Build-to-Order flats in Ang Mo Kio and Bedok proved to be the most popular, as the latest Housing Board sales exercise wrapped up yesterday. For instance, there were nine applicants for each of the 234 four-room flats in Ang Mo Kio as of 5pm yesterday.
HOME
A more flexible education system is needed to help students adapt to a more fluid job market in future, Deputy Prime Minister Tharman Shanmugaratnam said yesterday at the Pre-University Seminar. The current system, which focuses on learning as much as one can, will be "hopelessly outdated" by 2035.
BUSINESS
Mr Yusuf Alizera, chief executive of beleaguered commodity trader Noble Group, stunned the market yesterday by resigning with immediate effect, citing family reasons.
SPORT
V. Sundramoorthy (photo) was known for his results-first, well-drilled, organised sides when the now-defunct LionsXII won the Malaysia Super League in 2013.
But the new Singapore national football head coach has shown, after three days of training, that his style has evolved, with emphasis on possession play and making full use of the entire playing area.
He also focused on groups of outfielders, like defenders and forwards, for extra training.
What it should have been
In last Saturday's story, "EDB's new job: Create billion-dollar businesses", we wrongly quoted businessman Koh Boon Hwee as saying: "If two candidates for a job are equally good, I choose the Singaporean. It's logical and it's what other countries do." It was actually banker Peter Seah who said this.
We are sorry for the error.
