Workers' Party MP Kenneth Tiong has clarified his Air India questions and comments, stating that his concerns were purely commercial and condemning racist comments surrounding the subject.

He explained his position in a social media post on Sep. 5, in response to Senior Minister and Home Affairs Minister K. Shanmugam questioning the intent behind his Aug. 26 social media post on the Indian airline.

The comments

SIA holds a minority 25.1 per cent stake in Air India, the latter of which recently reported a S$3.2 billion loss and was asking for nearly S$1.9 billion worth of fresh equity from its shareholders.

On Aug. 26, Tiong had posted on social media, stating that he would not support nor expect any future use of Singapore's state-owned investment company Temasek’s funds to prop up Air India via Singapore Airlines.

Tiong said, "No one, least of all Singaporeans, owes Air India a living,” And that “If Singapore Airlines wants to continue its bet on Air India, it should do so on its own two feet and not on Temasek’s.”

Speaking to the media on Sep. 5, Shanmugam addressed racist online comments about missing Singaporeans in the Nepal floods and about Singapore Airline's Air India investments, saying they were “shameful, nasty, and totally unacceptable.”

When asked if Tiong's post had crossed any racial or xenophobic lines, Shanmugam said, "I think you best ask him what he intended and what he meant.”

He said that Tiong ought to do his homework and “look at SIA's letter and the facts that I put out today, and ask if he is being responsible.”

SM Shanmugam also said that Tiong is entitled to his views and to ask questions about SIA and Temasek Holdings, the majority shareholder of SIA.

"But neither his views, nor that of any minister, or any other MP, should substitute for the commercial judgment of SIA's management and board of directors," he underscored.

"Once governments or politicians start directing individual investment decisions, commercial discipline will be compromised," Shanmugam explained.

"Decisions will become politicised – shaped by political considerations, rather than commercial judgment. In the end, Singaporeans will bear the cost."

Kenneth Tiong’s reply to Shanmugam

Tiong replied later that day, saying that he had read Shanmugam's comments.

Tiong said he wholeheartedly agreed with Shanmugam that racism had “no place in our society.”

Condemning comments about Singaporeans missing in Nepal as shameful, as well as any attacks on anyone's motives because of their ethnicity, Tiong said that he condemned them without reservation and that “our hearts go out to the victims of the Nepal disaster and to the families waiting for news.”

He said that he had always said that a person, upon taking the oath of citizenship, was part of the Singaporean family and nation, and that any attempt to draw a dividing line between the native-born and naturalised will fail.

“It will fail because that is not in the culture or history of this country. More importantly, it will fail because it is morally wrong.”

He said that it was unfortunate that questions about the Air India deal had become entangled with racist comments, and that his concerns “were and are purely commercial.”

He then elaborated on his concerns in two points.

Air India investment

Firstly, he said that Air India had lost more than S$3.5 billion in 2025, with SIA's share of the loss being over S$800 million.

Air India was now asking its shareholders for an additional US$1.5 billion (S$1.9 billion) to fund a turnaround that its own chairman said might take up to 10 years.

He then said that SIA had S$10.5 billion in cash against S$10.7 billion in debt and that Temasek owns half of SIA.

This meant that SIA could afford to make the call to reinvest in Air India, but it left the question of how many more times similar occurrences would happen and who would pay for such investments and losses when SIA could not.

Previous backstop

Secondly, Tiong said SIA had been in a similar position before, saying that Temasek had backstopped SIA’s 2020 S$8.8 billion recapitalisation when the airline needed money.

Parliament had also approved hundreds of millions in wage and aviation support.

He said that then Deputy Prime Minister Heng Swee Keat had called SIA a strategic asset and that the government would consider more direct support if necessary.

Tiong agreed that it was the right call at the time, “but it meant that the line between SIA's money and Singaporeans' money holds only until SIA runs out of it.”

Questions to be answered

He said it was prudent for Singaporeans to ask what happens if the deal went bad and whether Temasek would again act as SIA's backstop.

He questioned what it would mean for Singaporeans' taxes and their quality of life, and whether asking the reserves to underwrite a loss was essentially “directing an investment.”

He said that asking these questions was what Parliament existed to do, and that he would ask these questions of the government on Sep. 8

Concluding, he said that “Singaporeans are best served when we can hold two things at once: Zero tolerance for racism and hard questions about money.”

“We should not let the two get mixed up. If we do, both causes suffer.”

A private-hire driver in Singapore could be heard raising his voice at a female passenger after she apparently told to focus on driving when he was allegedly texting during the ride.

The incident was shared on the @sgfollowsall Instagram account, where the woman alleged that the driver of the ride-hailing car had his phone mounted on the dashboard stand but WhatsApp was actively open.

He was allegedly texting, with the GPS navigation window minimised to a small corner.

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A post shared by SgfollowsAll (@sgfollowsall)

Raised voice

At the time, the car had entered an underground expressway tunnel directly behind a large heavy truck and was travelling at around 60 to 70km/h, the woman said.

In addition, the car was supposedly trailing directly behind a large heavy truck entering the tunnel.

"Please focus on driving," the woman apparently told him upon seeing him actively texting behind a heavy vehicle.

Replying daughter

Since the map was minimised, the woman alleged that the route ended up being less efficient and took a longer time.

However, her primary concern was her safety.

She claimed the driver took offence once she asked him to focus on driving, raising his voice, and becoming hostile.

He argued that he was "just replying to his daughter", the woman said, claiming that the driver said she was making an issue out of nothing.

The driver could also be heard saying that he did not even dare to move or touch his phone after what the woman said.

"You were texting while driving," the woman responded.

The woman claimed that the driver also allegedly shouted insults, asking if she was "too precious to sit in his car".

He supposedly then told her to alight from the car if she was unhappy.

Another part of the video also showed the driver allegedly telling the woman to report him if she wanted to.

Possible threat, safety issue

The woman then raised three issues from the incident and wanted to know how other commuters felt.

Firstly, she asked if having a phone mounted gives a driver the right to read and type WhatsApp messages while travelling at expressway speeds.

She asked: "Even if the phone is not handheld, isn't active messaging behind a heavy vehicle considered driving without due care?"

Secondly, she questioned if threatening to drop a passenger off inside an active underground expressway tunnel with no walkways or shoulders is an actual road safety and regulatory violation.

Thirdly, she asked what would be the right response to a driver's alleged distracted driving behind a heavy truck.

She asked: "Has asking a driver to focus on the road become something commuters are expected to stay silent on just to avoid aggressive escalation?"

Netizens were split on the incident, with some agreeing that the driver was in the wrong, but others felt merely texting was acceptable.

One netizen also pointed out that the woman could report him if she wanted to, but said she should not have recorded him.

The founders of an eatery selling Malay cuisine currently have no plans to rebuild, one founder told Mothership after the restaurant burned down in a fire on the morning of Sep. 3.

This occurred merely four months after they opened the eatery, which serves up Malay cuisine.

Adi Rusydi Abdul Rahman, 36, and Arrell Tan, 27, friends who started Mee+ together, shared about the incident in a few Instagram posts, as well as on TikTok.

Fire broke out

The fire started from the store's electrical distribution box (DB).

Both were safe as they were not in the eatery during the fire, Rusydi, who was behind the camera in a video, said.

The Instagram video went on to show the aftermath of the fire, with glass shards scattered around the restaurant, as well as blackened floors and ceiling.

A man in the United States was duct-taped to the seat of a plane after he acted in a disruptive manner mid-flight, CNN reported.

A ziptie was also applied on his wrists.

Photos and videos of the unusual restraints on him were posted online.

What happened

American Airlines Flight 618 was travelling from Dallas Fort Worth International Airport to Newark when the crew reported the passenger disturbance, the Federal Aviation Administration said in a statement, as per CNN.

The man was seated in the first-class section, it was reported.

The plane was diverted to make an emergency landing in Baltimore on Thursday night, Sep. 3, 2026.

The incident occurred more than halfway into the flight as the man reportedly started acting belligerent.

Tried to control situation at first

A fellow passenger said a flight attendant tried to control the situation, but the man became more agitated.

He even started to hit the passenger next to him and then hit a woman who tried to intervene, the eyewitness said.

The man also used “racial and homophobic slurs”.

When the man tried to get more physical to fight off the passengers trying to subdue him, even trying to bite them, he was duct-taped.

The passengers made sure not to tape over his mouth in case it hindered his breathing, CNN reported.

Terrorism concerns

One of the passengers who acted to restrain the man said the 25th anniversary of the September 11 terrorist attacks in a week's time was already on the passengers' minds, which made the situation even more concerning.

The Maryland Transportation Authority Police met the plane after it safely landed at Baltimore/Washington International Thurgood Marshall Airport.

An FBI statement said one man was arrested.

The man was not named.

The flight continued on its way to Newark after the man was removed.

Duct tape and flexible handcuffs are found on many commercial planes for in the event restraining violent or disruptive passengers is required, CNN reported.

A 71-year-old man was found dead in his unit in Block 570 Choa Chu Kang Street 52 on Sep. 3.

Neighbours had called the police after noticing takeout containers hanging uncollected outside the unit for days, and smelling a foul odour, Shin Min Daily News reported.

Shin Min's reporters could still smell the odour along the corridor hours after the police arrived at the scene.

In response to Mothership's queries, the police said they were alerted to a case of unnatural death at the location at 1:10pm that day.

The man was found motionless in the unit and was pronounced dead at scene.

Based on preliminary investigations, the police do not suspect foul play.

Police investigations are still ongoing.

Lived alone and rarely went out

According to a neighbour's helper, the deceased lived alone and rarely left his house due to his large size.

He would often order food to be delivered for all three meals, and get essentials delivered from supermarkets as well.

"He always shut his front door. I had not seen him for a few months," the helper said. "Sometimes I would notice takeout hung at the door, but not long after, he would open the door to collect them."

On Sep. 1, she saw takeout hung there again, but this time, it was not collected even after days.

Over the next two days, neighbours started noticing a foul odour. They grew concerned that something had happened to the elderly man, and decided to call the police.

"[My employer] and I would often sit outside our unit to cool off," the helper told Shin Min. "These two days when a gust of wind came, we would smell the odour. We never imagined it was because Uncle had passed away."

A woman was left frustrated after a man allegedly double parked his car beside hers along a small road near East Coast Road, preventing her from driving out for about 50 minutes.

She shared the incident with Mothership, calling the car owner's behaviour "very ignorant" and "selfish".

It happened on the morning of Sep. 5, after she had parked her white car along the road at 8:30am to go to a nearby gym.

When she returned to her car at 9:30am to go home, a black car was parked right beside the car that was in front of hers, she said.

This obstructed the way out for her car, leaving her stranded.

The woman explained that the part of the road she parked along had no yellow line.

As the rest of the road was fully occupied except for an area with double yellow lines, she believes the man decided double park there to avoid that area.

No apology

The owner of the double parked car apparently left a business card on top of his car's dashboard.

According to the card, seen by Mothership, he is a project director of a construction company.

The woman called the number on the card for about 20 times without an answer before someone finally picked up at around 10:15am.

He hung up the call without a word, she said.

About five minutes later, someone claiming to be the car owner's colleague arrived to "help" move the car.

"[The car owner] didn't even have a decency to clean up his dirty job or feel apologetic about it," the woman said.

She advised the colleague to "properly educate" the car owner on proper driving etiquette, and to apologise for double parking.

The colleague then apologised before moving the car.

The woman was glad she did not have an emergency or an important appointment that morning, as the incident would have delayed her.

"[But] whether I have any appointment or emergency to attend to is not the point or excuse for this kind of behaviour.

If we accept this kind of behaviour, it's only a matter of time something serious will happen."

The racist online comments about the missing Singaporeans in the Nepal floods and Singapore Airlines' Air India investment are "shameful, nasty, and totally unacceptable", Senior Minister K Shanmugam said on Sep. 5.

Speaking at a media doorstop, he added that social media platforms have had to remove several comments about those missing in Nepal "because they were so nasty".

He has also asked the police to look into them, and will further ask them to investigate other racist comments.

Additionally, the Ministry of Digital Development and Information (MDDI) will ask the social media platforms to take such comments down as they are "in breach of guidelines".

What are the comments?

"It is noticeable that of late, there have been more racist comments, particularly when it comes to Indians in Singapore," SM Shanmugam pointed out.

After the news broke out that nine Singaporeans are missing in the Nepal floods, comments questioning the nationality of these people were posted on social media.

Previously, Marsiling-Yew Tee GRC Member of Parliament (MP) Alex Yam called out such comments, describing them as "racist", "heartless", and "difficult to stomach".

SM Shanmugam also highlighted the reactions to the recent news that Air India is seeking US$1.5 billion (S$1.9 billion) in fresh equity from shareholders including Singapore Airlines (SIA), whose investment in Air India contributed to its nearly S$1 billion in losses in 2026.

It has given rise to "a whole series of anti-Indian racist ranting online", including references to snakes, curry, prata, and black magic, he said.

Temasek's CEO, Dilhan Pillay Sandrasegara, has also been attacked for his ethnicity, with comments claiming that he would favour Air India.

However, the facts are that India is Temasek's best-performing geography for the last 10 years.

SM Shanmugam added that he believes that the people who made such comments "should be unmasked and dealt with, rather than be allowed to hide behind online anonymity".

Protecting Singapore's social harmony

According to SM Shanmugam, some of these racist online comments originated and have been fanned from overseas.

He said he decided to call out the people who posted these comments because of what can be seen happening in other countries.

He described a hypothetical situation where such "nasty" comments gradually become normalised, then become mainstream, affecting social harmony and allowing violence against people of a different skin colour and religion to become acceptable.

Singapore, however, is a very small, multi-racial, and multi-ethnic country.

"If we are divided along racial or religious lines, we will lose the unity that has made Singapore strong. There will be feelings of ill will, suspicion, and we will all suffer.

We should not tolerate this. This is not who we are as Singaporeans."

SM Shanmugam said he believes that the majority of Singaporeans do not share the racist views posted about the missing Singaporeans in Nepal.

He shared that Red Cross Singapore, for example, has raised over S$3 million for relief efforts in Nepal.

"Singaporeans are generous across all races, and it is important that we don't allow a minority to poison the entire well."

Response to Kenneth Tiong's post

SM Shanmugam also responded to Workers' Party Member of Parliament (MP) Kenneth Tiong's Facebook post from Aug. 26, saying that SIA shouldn’t be making further investments into Air India.

"No one, least of all Singaporeans, owes Air India a living," Tiong said.

"If Singapore Airlines wants to continue its bet on Air India, it should do so on its own two feet, and not on Temasek's," he added.

SM Shanmugam said he believes that Tiong is entitled to his views and to ask questions about SIA and Temasek Holdings, the majority shareholder of SIA.

"But neither his views, nor that of any minister, or any other MP, should substitute for the commercial judgment of SIA's management and board of directors," he underscored.

The board has knowledgeable and independent members, and the management has professionals whose primary responsibility is to consider and make these decisions, he explained.

In response to a question from the media on whether Tiong's post had crossed any racial or xenophobic lines, SM Shanmugam responded:

"I think you best ask him what he intended and what he meant. I think he ought to do his homework and look at SIA’s letter and the facts that I put out today and ask if he is being responsible."

A 34-year-old Indonesian foreign domestic worker in Singapore was sentenced on Sep. 4 to 11 weeks' jail after she slapped and hit a 69-year-old woman with dementia who was under her care.

Maria Inggrid Seran, who had been looking after the elderly woman since March 2023, was aware of her medical conditions, CNA reported.

As such, she knew the elderly woman was vulnerable.

Medical conditions

The victim suffered from multiple medical conditions which included Alzheimer's, type 2 diabetes, hypertension, diverticulosis and hyperlipidaemia.

CNA reported that she was also non-communicative and could not be interviewed for investigations.

The elderly woman had previously lost the ability to feed and care for herself in November 2025.

Seran had to help her get on and off her bed, as well as onto her wheelchair.

Incident

Subsequently on Apr. 20, when Seran was trying to feed her breakfast, she got angry after the elderly woman became frustrated.

Seran slapped her twice on the face and once on her head, before hitting her hand, legs, feet and pinching her nose two times, CNA reported.

A CCTV in the house captured her actions.

The elderly woman's son called the police the same evening after his brother sent him a video of Seran beating their mother.

Seran was then arrested.

While medical checks did not reveal any injuries, Seran's assault still caused the elderly woman pain on her head, face, legs, hands and nose.

According to CNA, Seran also admitted that it was not the first time she had assaulted the victim and had done so in the past to stop her from nagging.

She claimed that this would make the woman quiet out of fear.

Sentencing

Seran, who was unrepresented during mitigation, spoke through the court interpreter and asked for a lighter sentence.

Pointing out that Seran's crimes would have been difficult to detect if not for the CCTV footage, the prosecution called for 11 to 13 weeks' jail.

CNA reported that the punishment for voluntarily causing hurt is a jail of up to three years, a fine of up to S$5,000, or both.

If the offender knew or should have known the victim was a vulnerable person, they may be sentenced to up to twice the maximum punishment.

The Woodlands North station in Singapore is completed and ready four months before the Johor Bahru-Singapore Rapid Transit System (RTS) Link is set to be open in January 2027.

The Land Transport Authority shared photos of the station on Facebook on Sep. 4.

LTA said the colours and design of Woodlands North station were inspired by trees and incorporated Woodlands' nature identity.

Engineering challenges

Building the station's foundation was challenging, as construction had to be carried out on a "high volume of hard rock" at the site, LTA noted in its post.

Engineers had to carry out over 600 instances of rock blasting in "smaller controlled quantities" whenever the trains left the station and used high-capacity drilling machines, LTA said.

This was done as Woodlands North station is connected to the Thomson-East Coast Line that is in operation.

Clear immigration once

Commuters will be able to transfer between the RTS Link and TEL Woodlands North station at basement one via a spacious concourse.

The Singapore immigration hall is at basement one.

The Malaysia customs, immigration and quarantine (CIQ) facilities are located at basement two.

Commuters only need to clear immigration once and undergo security checks before boarding the train for departure from the platforms.

The 4km shuttle from Woodlands North station to Bukit Chagar station in Johor Bahru will take 5 minutes.

The train has a maximum speed of 80kmh and can accommodate up to 10,000 passengers per hour in each direction.

An aesthetic feature along the viaduct mid-journey at the international border between Singapore and Malaysia depicts a clasping of hands symbolising the close partnership between the two countries.

Preview of station

Health Minister Ong Ye Kung visited the new premises and provided a glimpse of the completed facilities.

Ong, who is also Coordinating Minister for Social Polices, was given a tour of the new station located in Sembawang GRC, where he is an MP.

He said the RTS Link is a "very meaningful bilateral project" between Singapore and Malaysia.

@ongyekung

A sneak peek of the RTS at Woodlands North Station!

♬ original sound - Ye Kung Ong

Local actor and content creator Wilfred Lee has passed away at the age of 26, according to social media posts on Sep. 5, 2026.

Friends, fellow content creators, and netizens alike have taken to Instagram to offer their condolences.

Condolences, tributes

Many expressed their shock, with one comment by a family member saying that Lee apparently passed away in his sleep.

"He went to bed as usual, but sadly, he never woke up," the comment read.

"A kind and cheerful soul, a loving nephew and a beautiful light in our lives. You left us far too soon, but your love and memories will forever remain in our hearts. Rest peacefully."

"Fly high, my sayang. Heaven gained an angel today. Will miss you Wilfred," said content creator @boblet01 in a tribute on Instagram.

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A post shared by Boblet Lee Pichay (@boblet01)

Another of Lee's friends, @jercuzzi, said via Instagram Stories that Lee was one of his "greatest friends", and a version of himself that he would always "strive to be".

The comments section of Lee's latest Instagram and TikTok posts has also been flooded with messages and condolences.

One friend also commented that he was supposed to meet Lee for dinner on Wednesday and said he missed him.

Actor, content creator

Lee's wake will be held from Sep. 5 to Sep. 7, with the funeral ceremony and cremation to take place on the afternoon of Sep. 7.

Lee was best known for his videos visiting and highlighting various locations in Singapore like Raffles Hotel and Thian Hock Keng Temple, as well as his food reviews.

He was a graduate of Singapore Polytechnic's Diploma in Applied Drama and Psychology, and has performed in plays and musicals such as "Long Nose" and Howdrama’s "Fat Kids Are Harder to Kidnap".

He has also appeared in commercials for the Immigration & Checkpoints Authority, Land Transport Authority, and KFC.