It’s hard to imagine Singapore’s landscape today without Kopi.

From its distinct sweet taste, to its many variations of C, Gao, Kosong, to the iconic way it is prepared by being poured and filtered multiple times through a cloth sock filter, this is a drink that is now a timeless part of our landscape.

For many of us, it has become our go-to perk-me-up drink in the morning. Plus, who can forget how this drink has even become part of a byword for having a chat: “la kopi”.

And yet, as ubiquitous as the drink is now in Singapore, it’s worth noting that once upon a time, Singaporeans were not kopi guzzlers, nor was the drink itself a part of our landscape.

Kopi began as a foreign European import

In fact, Kopi is very much a foreign import given that neither the Chinese, Malays or Indians have a tradition of coffee consumption, according to Culturepaedia.

Most of the elements that we now take for granted in kopi such as sugar, condensed milk and even filtering the coffee through a cloth bag actually have European origins, with the sock filter technique referenced in European records as far back as the 18th century.

In addition, tea was the dominant drink with both the Chinese and Indians during the colonial period, who were traditionally accustomed to tea grown in their native regions.

In comparison, coffee consumption in Southeast Asia was fuelled largely by the Dutch colonisation of Indonesia, which resulted in the establishment of vast coffee estates.

By the 1880s, Java alone accounted for 82 per cent of all coffee leaving the Dutch East Indies and approximately 18 per cent of world exports.

Within Singapore, much of our coffee supply at that time was likely sourced from these plantations and entered Singapore via British trading houses, which also supplied sugar and condensed milk from the United Kingdom.

However, at this point, coffee was still largely limited to colonial homes and European ships, prepared mainly by cooks and stewards from the Hainanese community due to the limited job options available for them.

The catalyst for Kopi’s evolution was scarcity

In perhaps a strange twist of irony, the catalyst for Kopi as a drink for the working class in Singapore was the collapse in production of coffee plantations in the Dutch East Indies.

A coffee-leaf rust epidemic struck the plantations across Java, which grew arabica beans, from 1880 to 1883, at the height of coffee production.

This resulted in the Dutch East Indies’ share of global production dropping to just two per cent by 1917, never to recover.

In response, the Dutch shifted to planting robusta beans, which is more resilient agriculturally, has higher yields, and is cheaper to grow.

Robusta beans also can contain up to twice the amount of caffeine found in arabica beans.

The tradeoff? The higher caffeine level means that robusta is far more bitter and lacks the complex flavours of arabica beans.

This made drinking robusta coffee black and without sugar highly unpleasant for many people.

Even so, the low cost and availability of the drink meant that it soon became the default choice for the working class in Singapore.

It was the Hainanese who cemented the drink as a part of our cuisine

The Hainanese were central agents in localising British coffee-drinking customs for everyday folk.

It was within the kitchens of Europeans where they learned the art of what would become the foundations of making kopi – filtering coffee through muslin or cloth bags and serving it black, or sometimes with fresh milk and sugar.

And in response to the rise of robusta beans, Hainanese coffee roasters began frying such beans with margarine and sugar to give them a caramelised tinge, adding salt midway through the frying, followed by even more sugar to round out the bitterness and create the deep taste profile of Kopi that has become so well-known.

Another important element to counter the bitterness of robusta beans included the use of condensed milk.

During the colonial period, fresh milk was an expensive premium commodity due to its perishable nature.

It was also frequently mixed with water or other milks to stretch milk supply, which raised public health concerns.

This therefore meant that fresh milk was mostly for Europeans. In contrast, condensed milk was safer and about 50 per cent cheaper, which meant it became one of the primary dairy options for locals.

The use of the cloth sock filter also remained, even as Europe shifted to metal and paper filters, due to the high cost of using metal and paper filters in Southeast Asia.

All of these techniques would be carried over in the post-World War 2 period when the Hainanese began opening their own coffee shops, or kopitiams, once the British began withdrawing from Singapore, complete with the iconic kaya and butter toast and soft-boiled eggs that we have all come to know and love.

So the next time you drink a cup of Kopi, you are in a way, drinking something that has come to symbolise the trajectory of Singapore’s development with its many twists and turns.

This branded article by Singapore Chinese Cultural Centre made the author crave for Kopi C Gao even though he prefers tea.

The driver who caused a chain collision in Tampines on Apr. 24, 2024, which killed two people, was sentenced to 12 years and nine months' jail and disqualified from driving for life.

Muhammad Syafie Bin Ismail, 45, appeared in court on Oct. 5, 2026, for sentencing following his conviction.

He kept his head low and did not react as the sentence was read out.

Principal District Judge Toh Han Li said Syafie's conduct resulted in the loss of two innocent lives, with eight others suffering hurt and injuries.

His conduct also affected the families of the victims, including the mother of the 17-year-old student who died, who is now suffering from major depressive disorder. 

He also caused considerable damage to private and public property, Toh noted.

Syafie will begin serving his sentence today, Oct. 5.

The Deputy Public Prosecutor had sought a jail term of 12 years and nine months to 13-and-a-half years during a previous hearing on Sep. 7, 2026.

Meanwhile, the defence had sought a jail sentence of between seven-and-a-half years and eight years.

Both the prosecution and defence called for a lifetime driving ban for Syafie.

What happened

Syafie pleaded guilty on Aug. 6 to three charges for dangerous driving causing death, causing grievous hurt and causing hurt.

Other charges were also considered during sentencing.

He had run a red light while speeding, which resulted in the deaths of two people.

A 17-year-old student, who was being driven to school by her father, and a 57-year-old woman, who was in the back of a van, died.

Syafie's car overtook and sideswiped a car driven by another man, who had earlier overtaken him in Bedok.

Syafie had accelerated to 122 km/h.

He swerved in and out of lanes along Bedok Reservoir Road and narrowly missed a motorcyclist.

He then accelerated to the cross junction of Bedok Reservoir Road, Tampines Avenue 1 and Tampines Avenue 4 at a speed of 129 km/h to 134 km/h.

The light had been red for at least 26 seconds.

Vehicles were travelling across the road in both directions.

Syafie hit three vehicles, which in turn hit a van and a school bus.

Three victims were grievously injured, with some requiring multiple surgeries.

Another five victims, including two 11-year-old children, were injured and hospitalised.

Syafie has a record of a careless driving violation in April 2022, among other traffic violations.

A total of 91 deregistered vehicles were impounded in Singapore in September 2026.

This was after the Land Transport Authority (LTA) and Singapore Police Force (SPF) conducted a joint enforcement blitz islandwide to clamp down on the keeping and use of deregistered vehicles, an Oct. 5 statement said.

Last registered owner will be investigated

The authorities said LTA will investigate the last registered owner when vehicles are found to be misused.

Owners should ensure that they obtain the relevant disposal documents for submission to LTA when vehicles are handed over to dealers for export, the statement said.

The onus is on owners to ensure all necessary administrative processes are completed when deregistering a vehicle, the authorities said.

The statement added: "For example, where a vehicle is being traded in, the transfer of ownership should be completed before the vehicle is deregistered."

Owners are also reminded that they should ensure that the buyer confirms the transfer transaction on LTA’s OneMotoring website.

Vehicle owners are reminded to fulfil their responsibilities when deregistering their vehicles and to ensure that the vehicles are properly disposed of in accordance with LTA’s requirements, the authorities said.

Members of the public may also report any suspected keeping or use of deregistered vehicles via OneMotoring or the OneService App.

More measures to be introduced

Parliament will introduce additional measures to enforce timely and proper disposal of deregistered vehicles.

The first reading of the bill in parliament occurred on Sep. 8, 2026.

The additional measures include shortening the grace period for owners of deregistered vehicles to fulfil disposal requirements, ensuring offenders who fail to fulfil their respective disposal requirements remain liable for prosecution, and criminalising the sale and supply of deregistered vehicles.

Penalties

The use of deregistered vehicles poses a serious road safety risk as they are neither roadworthy nor have valid insurance, and are used without valid COE or road tax, the authorities said.

The maximum penalties for keeping or using unregistered or deregistered vehicles was raised in February 2026.

First-time offenders will be fined up to S$20,000 and/or jailed for up to two years, with penalties doubled for repeat offenders.

Former Wah!Banana actor Lev Panfilov, who was acquitted of rape and sexual assault after five years of legal battles, said he feels "indifferent" towards his accuser.

In a one-hour and 49-minute video interview with YouTuber Max Chernov, Panfilov shared how the Tinder date unfolded and eventually turned into an accusation that changed his life as he was jailed in Singapore.

When asked about his current thoughts on the woman who accused him, the 30-year-old said he is past having feelings of "hatred or resentment".

Though he felt those emotions while in prison, Panfilov shared that he is now more relieved and has started having feelings of "Christian compassion".

How it unfolded

Panfilov also shared the full story of how he first met the woman after matching with her on Tinder in January 2021.

According to him, the woman first suggested meeting, and he agreed after deciding on a day.

During the date, their nature was "flirtatious", and when the topic shifted to where they were going next, her behaviour showed "an understanding" of why they were going to his place.

At his house, which he rented with two other roommates, the pair watched YouTube videos, and the woman commented on how "funny" he was, Panfilov said.

Things then culminated in consensual sex, after which he booked a taxi for the woman, he said.

He later messaged her to check if she was home, and she said yes.

While their conversations ended on good terms, Panfilov said he did not reply to her text the next day as he no longer "[felt] like talking to her".

A week later, the police contacted him after a report was lodged by the woman against him for rape and sexual assault.

State's responsibility

Giving his assessment of the woman, Panfilov said: “She is a poor person intellectually and perhaps emotionally.”

“What she did was, of course, wrong. But ultimately, it should be the state’s responsibility to protect men in general,” he said, referring to other men who may be wrongfully accused in similar cases.

Panfilov emphasised that the state should be responsible for protecting those who are wrongfully accused in any cases.

He said the woman was defended “extremely well” by the state, while he was “maligned” by both the state and the media.

He also said the gag order protected the woman but not him, despite the fact that he had not been convicted at the time.

Public opinion changed

While public opinion on him was negative when he was first charged, he noted that it has since changed following his acquittal.

Some commented that his life is "ruined" by the false accusation, but Panfilov disagreed.

"It's not ruined," he laughed.

"Just a little bit shaken by the severity of the circumstances," he elaborated, saying his faith in society was restored and he has also become more of a positive person.

He added that the biggest lesson he learned from the experience was never to give up.

The Rapid Transit System (RTS) Link service between Singapore and Johor Bahru (JB), Malaysia, will open for passenger service two months after its original estimated date of commencement.

This has pushed plans for an end-2026 start to February 2027.

This is despite all system tests and trial runs estimated to be completed by Dec. 31, 2026.

But this further two-month wait is perhaps not much in the grand scheme of things.

One last hurdle

After taking over 16 years to come to fruition, the 4km project now faces a last hurdle — the safety certification from an independent safety assessor.

RTS Operations (RTSO), a company formed through a joint venture between Malaysia and Singapore, needs to do so before proceeding, according to a joint statement by Singapore's Land Transport Authority (LTA) and Malaysia's Ministry of Transport (MOT).

In a Facebook post on Oct. 3, Minister for Transport and Second Minister for Finance, Jeffrey Siow, said the authorities are aiming to start services before Hari Raya in 2027: "The plan was for safety certification and licensing to have been completed before the end of this year, but it was not to be."

"On our part, my colleagues at LTA have worked hard to make sure our station is ready for the start of cross-border train services," he added.

RTSO & its grantors both stressed safety

There were two press releases for the delay announcement, both assuring the public that safety was of utmost concern.

The first was from RTSO, of which Malaysian public transport firm Prasarana holds a 52 per cent share, and Singapore rail operator SMRT has the remaining 48 per cent stake.

The company was appointed to operate and sustain the RTS Link for 30 years.

"Our goal is to provide a safe and reliable service on the RTS link," the RTSO statement read.

The second was a joint release from the RTSO’s grantors, LTA and Malaysia's MOT, the authorities that grant RTSO the right to operate.

According to the joint release, the grantors' responsibility includes reviewing certifications and ensuring testing and commissioning activities are satisfactory to "facilitate the smooth and safe delivery of the project".

The authorities also maintained that infrastructure works were substantially complete and on track for passenger service, with the caveat of the RTSO obtaining independent safety certifications for the RTS link.

Years of development

Besides the convenience, reduced Causeway congestion, and economic benefits the RTS Link brings, public anticipation also stems from the project's drawn-out timeline.

Woodlands Checkpoint is one of the world's busiest land border crossings, with over 300,000 people travelling across it daily.

Key RTS developments were regularly announced at the annual Singapore-Malaysia leaders' retreats, with both countries' leaders using the platform to release updates in 2010, 2015, and 2016.

According to CNA, Singapore and Malaysia embarked on the RTS journey with plans being committed to and discussed since the May 2010 leaders' retreat.

The 2013 LTA master plan was drafted with the intention of integrating the Thomson Line, now the Thomson-East Coast Line, with the RTS Link.

The plan also noted that a joint engineering study's first phase was finished.

In 2015, at the retreat, then-prime minister Lee Hsien Loong declared that Woodlands North would be the Singapore side RTS Link terminus.

Malaysia announced its Johor Bahru Bukit Chagar terminus at the next year's retreat.

Delays

Bilateral agreements for the RTS Link were signed in January 2018, with both countries reaffirming their commitment to an end-2024 target for passenger service.

However, plans were disrupted after Malaysia's Pakatan Harapan (PH) alliance won the Malaysia general election on May 9, 2018.

This historic move ended the Barisan Nasional (BN) reign, which at the time was one of the world's longest ruling coalitions, according to Reuters.

BN and its predecessor, the Alliance Party, had ruled Malaysia since the Federation of Malaya's freedom from British rule in 1957.

At the time, the PH was pushing for a spending curb.

The coalition was alarmed by national debt and said it wanted to review the cost of building the RTS link, reported Malay Mail.

According to New Straits Times, Malaysia's debt stood at RM1.09 trillion (around S$363.3 billion at the time) at the end of 2018, and there were also concerns over debt and liabilities from the fallout of the 1Malaysia Development Bhd (1MDB) scandal.

A year later in 2019, Singapore's former Transport Minister Khaw Boon Wan said the RTS Link had missed milestones and was "behind schedule".

CNA reported that the project was suspended from April 2019 to July 2020.

After resuming, the targeted start date was pushed to the end of 2026.

Moving forward

The project was relatively smooth from 2021 to 2025, with construction milestones met.

In June 2025, the trains were unveiled to much fanfare.

Chinese company CRRC Zhuzhou built the trains, with the German conglomerate Siemens supplying signalling and platform screen doors.

By 2026, final preparations were in place, and the first RTS train arrived at Woodlands North in February.

Legislation was passed in May to allow for the co-location of both countries’ CIQ facilities at each station.

Scheduled departure

Now affected by the delay, the RTSO is expected to complete its final system tests and trial runs by Dec. 31, 2026, instead of starting by the originally planned date.

When up and running, the RTS Link's first and last trains would depart from both termini at 6am and 12am daily.

The shortest wait between trains will be 3.6 minutes, and the journey will take around five minutes.

Around 10,000 people will be ferried in each direction for each hour the train operates, reported The Straits Times.

A civil suit against a 39-year-old woman by a late businessman's daughter for taking more than S$1.7 million from him has been dismissed after a High Court judge found that the monies were gifted voluntarily.

Chew Yam Song Peter, who ran the seafood wholesale business Evergreen Seafood, passed away in September 2024 at the age of 73.

His daughter, Chew Boon Fong Angela, who is the executor of his estate, later sued the woman, Sun Beibei, for breach of fiduciary duty and sought to recover S$1,711,000.

According to court transcripts seen by Mothership, Justice Philip Jeyaretnam accepted the defence's argument that the man had wanted to provide for Sun following the deterioration of his cancer.

He noted that Sun came to be the man's primary caregiver as she had been in a romantic relationship with him for a considerable length of time, a fact the defence said was an "open secret" and known by his family.

The point of contestation in the case was S$1.625 million given in the form of signed cheques and a cashier's order, as well as S$86,000 in cash withdrawals made using his bank cards at the elder Chew's instructions.

While the plaintiff side has argued that there was little or no independent corroboration of Sun's testimony of such instructions, the judge noted that six other witnesses had corroborated Sun's case.

Sun was ultimately awarded S$182,500 in legal costs plus nine per cent GST after the case against her was dismissed.

She was also given disbursements agreed at S$10,931.91.

Background

Chew was diagnosed with stage-four colon cancer in December 2022 and was later told he had less than six months to live after the cancer spread to his pancreas and lungs.

Chew's daughter alleged that while Chew was seriously ill between June and September 2024, Sun withdrew and transferred more than S$1.7 million from his bank accounts without his authorisation.

The family argued that Chew was too weak to have made the withdrawals himself and pointed to a will in which he left his savings to his wife and daughter.

The family also alleged that Sun deleted her text message history with Chew after his funeral and admitted to making the withdrawals but did not clearly explain where the money went.

The plaintiff, Chew Boon Fong, Angela, was represented by lawyer Nicholas Narayanan at the closing submissions on Sep. 30.

Narayanan argued that Sun's case ultimately rests on "a series of alleged oral instructions" said to have been given by Chew, with little or no independent corroboration.

Defence's closing submissions

Sun denied the allegations, maintaining that the money was voluntarily given to her by Chew so she would be financially secure after his death.

She also said Chew instructed her to fill in the cheques and, on one occasion, asked her to guide his hand as he signed one.

Two months after Chew's death, Sun used some of the money to purchase an apartment, which she has since rented out.

Sun was represented by Lim Kim Hong, Nadiah Li Feng Binte Mahmood and Maximilian Tay from law firm KIM & CO.

In her closing submissions, Lim argued that there was no evidence to show that Sun had "unduly influenced" the late Chew.

Pointing to testimonies from six other witnesses that demonstrated Chew's desire to provide financial security for Sun, Lim said that this is not a case that the defendant withdrew monies from Chew's account without his knowledge and concealed them.

"This is a woman; she's actually a very simple woman who lived with Peter Chew as his long-term romantic partner, who sacrificed 10 years of the prime of her life without any expectation of reward, in cash or in kind. She cared for him throughout the 10 years and also throughout his terminal illness until his passing," Lim said.

The elder Chew had feared that upon his death Sun would lose her job and would be terminated, and that fear materialised, Lim said.

The company Evergreen Seafood was left to the plaintiff, younger Chew, who terminated Sun from her role as director in the company following the elder Chew's death.

Lim further explained that the property Sun bought was not a "windfall" but rather a home that the elder Chew intended her to have.

She is now renting out the property to sustain herself, Lim said, adding that it is now "all that stands between her and financial ruin".

Narayanan responded to Lim's submission, saying Sun is not a "damsel in distress character" Lim sought to portray.

He pointed to various assets disclosed by Sun, including a property in China, several bank accounts, as well as cash in her hand.

To this, Lim said that Sun had about S$336,741 combined, excluding the property, which is now "all gone".

She had earlier explained that the balance monies that Chew had given Sun had gone into paying for legal costs.

Judgment

In his judgment, Jeyaretnam said the key issue was whether Chew had gifted Sun the money transferred by cheques and a cashier’s order, and withdrawn from ATMs on his alleged instructions.

He said that there is "no doubt" about Chew's mental capacity, noting that he made a will on Aug. 15, 2024 in which he gave his shares in his company, Evergreen Seafood, to his daughter, Angela Chew.

Jeyaretnam said Chew also confirmed his earlier gift of a residential property to his wife in the same will.

The judge also found no evidence that Sun exercised any undue influence over Chew.

"Mr Chew was not isolated from his family or friends. Even when physically frail, he appears to have remained emotionally resilient and self-willed," Jeyaretnam said.

He also accepted that evidence shows that Sun was a devoted caregiver who "shouldered the burden of caregiving, at times virtually single-handedly".

"These facts already provide a reason for why Mr Chew could reasonably have wanted to provide for her after his death," he said.

Sun's own evidence of what Chew said to her and his friends was corroborated by the testimony of six other witnesses, the judge added.

One witness surnamed Lew, a friend of Chew, testified that in or around June 2024, Chew told him that Sun was alone in Singapore and did not have a place to call her own.

Chew had expressed the fear that if her employment were terminated by Evergreen Seafood, she would no longer have any income and would not have anywhere to live, the judge noted.

Lew also testified in court that Chew had said he was thinking of buying a property in Singapore, as well as gifting Sun some monies to support her financially.

This was also corroborated by Yeo Inn Siang, the property agent who testified that Chew told her he would support the purchase of a property and that his budget was S$1.4 million.

She also testified that she told him any loan amount that Sun could obtain would be quite little, and also showed WhatsApp messages between her and Chew that were consistent with her evidence.

Jeyaretnam also noted that Chew made "separate and sufficient provision" for his wife and daughter.

"This also supports the reasonableness, and therefore the likelihood, that Mr Chew would make gifts to Ms Sun, given her care for him," he said.

A photo of a man and child looking into a rubbish bin at night in Singapore has sparked debate online.

The photo was posted to the Complaint Singapore Facebook page on Oct. 3.

The caption of the photo claimed that the pair are a father and son duo, and they were rummaging through the rubbish bin in search of BCRS containers.

BCRS refers to the beverage container return scheme launched on Apr. 1, 2026, where consumers are refunded 10 cents when they return their used eligible cans or bottles at reverse vending machines in Singapore.

What commenters say

The photo drew intense debate among those who responded.

There were a few hundred comments on the post within 16 hours.

The comments section was subsequently closed off.

Among those who commented, a number of them said the image was a heartbreaking sight.

"It seems a common scene nowadays," one commenter remarked.

It was previously reported that some individuals have made at least S$1,000 collecting used bottles and cans that are BCRS-eligible over a few months.

Others advised that the child should at least have used gloves while going through the trash.

Don't be a busybody

However, the majority of commenters who were equally quick to give different takes did not buy the idea that the duo were collecting used cans and bottles out of necessity.

Some said the person taking the photo should mind their own business and not spread rumours about the man and child.

Others said the circumstances of the man and child were not known or provided, and they might be doing it for educational purposes rather than purely for financial gain.

Some other commenters said it could be recreational.

Past reports have shown that children in Singapore have made money by collecting used cans and bottles.

One commenter remarked that there was perhaps a lesson in this exercise for young people, as it showed how difficult it can be to make money.

Another commenter also noted that incentivising recycling appears to work, as people become more mindful of not simply throwing recyclable products away, but instead make the effort to place them in the appropriate collection points.

Persons with intellectual disabilities or autism can expect more tailored healthcare services come 2027, under plans set out by the Taskforce on Assurance for Families with Persons with Disabilities.

Three polyclinics to provide enhanced support for persons with intellectual disabilities, autism

At least three polyclinics in Singapore, with at least one in each healthcare cluster, will be designated by 2028 to provide enhanced support for patients with intellectual disabilities and autism who have more complex needs.

The taskforce noted this group of patients needs more time and support during consultations because of more complex communication, behavioural or healthcare needs.

The accommodations at these polyclinics will include pre-visit preparation with patients and caregivers, longer consultation times where needed, closer caregiver engagement, and help navigating appointments and follow-up care.

Teams will also be able to link patients and caregivers to relevant disability services.

All polyclinics to get basic training

This enhancement is part of a broader move to equip staff in all polyclinics with basic capabilities to support persons with disabilities or autism.

By 2028, all frontline staff will receive training in effective communication with patients with intellectual disabilities and autism and their caregivers.

They will also be trained to provide practical accommodations such as priority queuing, to cut waiting times for patients with behavioural or anxiety-related needs.

Stakeholders had told the taskforce that persons with intellectual disabilities and autism can face communication barriers when dealing with healthcare staff, and that primary care providers do not always understand what they need.

Not as straightforward as it sounds

Speaking at a press conference on Oct. 2, Minister of State for Digital Development and Information and Health Rahayu Mahzam said the changes amount to bigger steps than they might appear.

She said:

"It may sound so straightforward, but actually, if you think about it, what are some of the things that need to be done? If you're talking about someone who perhaps have sensory issues, have difficulties being in crowd, you need to make sure there's proper spaces, there's enough in the polyclinic, to accommodate that."

Longer consultation times raise other issues too, she said: "If we're talking about a polyclinic where people are queuing up and there'll be other patients, how do you meaningfully do that and allow for the services to continue to run, but yet make some certain accommodations?"

Staff training is another consideration.

She said: "You need to have people who are trained to handle some of the difficult situations because they can get quite violent. They can be very challenging. So we also need to provide the proper training and make that capabilities available before we stand this up."

Rahayu said the considerations in picking the polyclinics include accessibility, operational and infrastructural readiness, and anticipated demand.

MOH is studying the SPARk Clinic at Ang Mo Kio as a possible model, she said.

SPARk stands for Supporting PWDs with Accessible Resources and (k)are. These clinics provide chronic care management for adults with disabilities who have higher support needs, and their caregivers.

A passport for communication needs

Separately, the Ministry of Health (MOH) and SG Enable will roll out a Health Communication Passport from 2027, starting at selected polyclinics.

The passport is a personalised document capturing how a person with an intellectual disability or autism communicates, such as whether they prefer verbal or written communication or rely on visual aids, along with the practical accommodations they need.

Participating social service agencies will help clients complete the passport and share it with the polyclinic ahead of appointments, so staff can arrange accommodations in advance.

It will be integrated across key polyclinic touchpoints, including registration and consultation.

The aim is to spare patients and caregivers from having to repeatedly explain the same information at different points in the system.

MOH and SG Enable plan to expand the passport to other healthcare settings over time, with the possibility of covering other disability types.

"In the past when you speak about accessibility, we're thinking of physical accessibility"

Asked about the significance of the healthcare measures, Rahayu said they marked a shift in how accessibility itself is understood.

She said:

"If you think about it, in the past when you speak about accessibility, we're thinking of physical accessibility. Now we're actually understanding that there are many different types of needs and concerns and difficulties, and when we deal with those with intellectual disability and autism, it's less visible and less defined, and we've not had those kind of infrastructure in place in the past."

She said the measures are also about involving patients in their own care: "If we are able to pace our processes around their needs, we can then perhaps understand them a bit better and address their needs a bit better. So this will give them dignity and support in getting healthcare needs."

Caregivers were the other consideration. Rahayu described how difficult it can be to bring a family member to a crowded polyclinic, with some patients affected by noise or long queues, to the point that appointments get skipped altogether.

Part of three key shifts

The healthcare measures are part of three key shifts identified by the taskforce: future planning, meaningful and sustained employment, and meaningful engagement in the community.

"With these shifts, we want to ensure that there are pathways available, so that persons with disabilities and their families no longer experience a “post-18 cliff” after graduation and can lead a meaningful life and pursue their aspirations with greater confidence."

Fees for adult disability services are set to become more affordable soon, under recommendations released by the Taskforce on Assurance for Families with Persons with Disabilities.

For families caring for persons with disabilities, this will provide "greater assurance as they plan for long-term care and support", said the taskforce.

More affordable adult disability services

Firstly, the Ministry of Social and Family Development will implement a cap on fees for disability services, limiting what families pay out of pocket after government subsidies.

Next, there will be more subsidies for disability services.

Means-tested subsidies for adult disability services will rise by at least 10 percentage points for most families, across a wide range of services including day activity centres, Enabling Skills Centres, adult disability hostels, adult disability homes, children disability homes, the Enabling Transport Subsidy and the Taxi Subsidy Scheme.

The subsidy eligibility ceiling will also be raised to a per capita household income of around S$6,000, up from S$4,800 today.

This widens coverage to about eight in 10 households using disability services, from seven in 10 currently.

Lower-income families will pay no more than S$10 for community-based services such as day activity centres.

Lastly, more support will be provided for persons with intellectual disabilities and autism.

Eligibility for four financial support schemes will be expanded by the first quarter of 2027 to explicitly cover persons with intellectual disabilities or autism who have significant care needs.

The schemes are the Home Caregiving Grant, Caregivers Training Grant, Pioneer Generation Disability Assistance Scheme and Migrant Domestic Worker Levy Concession for Persons with Disabilities.

This will go towards defraying their caregiving costs.

Up to 80 per cent reduction in disability-care expenses

These enhancements will go towards reducing the a household's monthly disability-care expenses.

Families of persons with higher support needs can expect their monthly fees for selected services to fall by about 25 per cent to 80 per cent compared to today.

To illustrate, the taskforce cited the example of a four-person family living in an HDB flat with a household income of S$6,000, or S$1,500 per capita, caring for someone with higher support needs.

An adult disability home placement that costs them S$3,500 a month today would drop to S$700.

A day activity centre placement which costs S$210 today will drop to S$40.

For a similar household earning S$13,000, or S$3,250 per capita, an adult disability home fee which costs S$7,000 today will fall to S$1,600.

A S$710 day activity centre fee today will become S$400.

By 2030, the affordability changes are expected to benefit around 5,000 persons with disabilities accessing residential and community disability services.

Why the cost burden adds up

Speaking at the press conference on Oct. 2, Senior Minister of State for Home Affairs and Social and Family Development Goh Pei Ming said the issue of affordability came up repeatedly in the taskforce's engagements:

"Another concern we heard repeatedly from families was affordability... I hope that with the conversations on future care planning, as well as enhancing affordability, we are able to give our families a lot more assurance that their future needs are looked into, and that they are able to make informed decisions when they need to."

The taskforce said disability-related care needs last a lifetime, with recurring costs adding up significantly for families, particularly when caregivers are unable to work full-time.

The report noted that serving persons with the most severe needs under the Enabling Skills for Life Programme can cost more than twice that of persons with the lowest needs.

It said persons with severe disabilities pay higher fees because of the higher cost of providing more support.

One caregiver told the taskforce: "There's no option to plan so we [are] sort of stuck. So, we just live [on] a day-to-day basis."

Several caregivers also said their worries about affordability did not fade over time, but grew as care needs increased.

"They are not quite sure what they don't know"

Goh also said one concern surfaced repeatedly from families is the "post-18 cliff".

He said:

"They ask the question: when they leave SPED school at age 18, what is the next step? They often face uncertainty about finding employment or securing a place in an adult disability service. And in fact, if you think about it, throughout the first 18 years, that is perhaps the first and most major milestone of significant uncertainty."

But the worries did not stop there, he said, extending to what happens if someone wants to change jobs, retire, or if caregiving arrangements change.

He added: "Some of them have also said that they are so overwhelmed with just the day-to-day arrangements, they don't have the capacity to think long term."

Some families relied on chat groups and speaking with other similar families, he said:

"They are not quite sure what they don't know. They're worried that they may have missed a spot, and when they really need something, they may have missed the window to do so."

Part of three key shifts

The affordability measures are part of three key shifts identified by the taskforce: future planning, meaningful and sustained employment, and meaningful engagement in the community.

"With these shifts, we want to ensure that there are pathways available, so that persons with disabilities and their families no longer experience a “post-18 cliff” after graduation and can lead a meaningful life and pursue their aspirations with greater confidence."

Three boys, all aged 16, have been arrested over the alleged murder of a girl, 16, who was their secondary school schoolmate in Yong Peng, Johor, Malaysia.

Irene Sofiya Mohd Khairool Faisal, 16, was found unconscious and covered in blood in the school hall on Oct. 3, Bernama reported.

Johor police chief Ab Rahaman Arsad said she sustained several injuries to her head and body and was pronounced dead at the scene.

Grandmother went to school to look for her

Irene’s grandmother became concerned when she had not returned home by 5:30pm, according to New Straits Times .

Her aunt, Siti Nur Faeza Khyar, told NST that she and Irene’s grandmother went to search for the teenager after an extra class that ended at 5pm.

Her grandmother subsequently found her in the school hall.

Irene had been living with her grandmother following her mother’s death from cancer.

Her father works in Kuala Lumpur.

One suspect remanded until Oct. 9

Police arrested the three boys within hours of the discovery, The Star reported.

One suspect was brought before a magistrate on Oct. 4 and will be remanded for six days, until Oct. 9.

The local police said the boy had no previous criminal record.

The status of the other two suspects was unclear.

The case is being investigated for murder.

An autopsy was conducted at Sultanah Nora Ismail Hospital in Batu Pahat on Oct. 4.

Police said the motive and circumstances surrounding the incident have yet to be established.

Wanted to become a doctor

Faeza described Irene as hardworking, quiet and kind, saying she regularly ranked first or second in her form during examinations.

The teenager hoped to become a doctor, following in her late mother’s footsteps.

Faeza recalled Irene asking what type of doctor she could become, and suggested that she consider specialising in obstetrics and gynaecology.

Her aunt said both the family and school had high hopes for her.

PM Anwar calls for swift investigation

Malaysia prime minister Anwar Ibrahim said in an Oct. 4 Facebook post that he has instructed authorities to conduct an immediate, thorough and transparent investigation.

He said firm action must be taken according to the law if criminal elements were found, adding that the government would not compromise on children’s safety and well-being.

Anwar also offered his condolences to Irene’s family.