A Malaysian woman schemed with her lover to defraud her family of RM2.36 million (S$738,000), telling them to invest in lucrative opportunities with her boyfriend's network of high-ranking officials.

According to China Press, her victims include her parents, her brother, and seven other relatives and friends.

The events took place in Tampin, Negeri Sembilan, a town 30km away from Malacca.

Her family has decided to share the incident with Malaysian media as she has recently become uncontactable.

Lavish lover

Her 71-year-old mother, Xu Yatao (transliteration), told China Press that the fraudulent activities began in 2020, after she began to date a man only known by his surname, Chen.

The woman, who is the youngest daughter of the family, was formerly was married to another man but divorced him after meeting Chen.

Chen often presented himself as generous and lavish, China Press noted.

The mum claimed that he often spoke about money in a grandstanding manner, boasting of his contacts with officials and his ability to gain access to lucrative investment opportunities.

The woman then began to persuade her mother to invest, telling her that such opportunities were hard to come by.

Though she initially refused, the daughter was persistent, and eventually convinced Xu to hand over RM500,000 (S$156,000).

She and Chen promised to repay the principal and additional interest once the investment began to yield a substantial return. After a few months, they in fact returned a portion of the sum to her, but the remaining amount was never repaid.

This was because they had difficulties with cash flow and their bank account was frozen, they claimed.

Took her mum's bank card

That was not the only instance of her fraudulent activities.

Xu said that her daughter had also taken her bank card without her knowledge and withdrew another RM200,000 (S$62,500).

She only discovered that her money was gone after receiving a notification from the bank a few months ago.

The sum of RM500,000 was reportedly her nest egg, while the RM200,000 was supposed to pay her monthly insurance premiums.

Other kin involved

The alleged scammer's brother, Peng Niangfu (transliteration), 50, was also one of the victims, claiming to have been cheated out of more than RM360,000 (S$112,000) over the years.

The latest instance involved Chen asking to borrow RM30,000 (S$9,383), but Peng, wary that he might not be able to recover the money, only lent him RM5,000 (S$1,563).

Chen disappeared afterwards.

Other victims include the woman's late father, another brother who has passed, and an aunt who intended to use her savings to treat an eye disease.

Mother and brother told China Press that Chen went missing in March, and his whereabouts are now unknown.

As for the younger sister, Xu claimed that she had become uncontactable in recent days, and they understood that she was planning to sell her house, raising fears that she might attempt to escape.

This prompted her family to approach the media to raise awareness about the case.

"Rebellious"

Xu said that the financial loss was less painful than the fact that her own daughter had conspired with another man to deceive her and her family.

She claimed that her daughter had been "rebellious" and "competitive" since young, and did not fully get along with the family.

However, Xu attempted to "tolerate" it to avoid family disputes.

Both Xu and Peng have reported the matter to the police and called for the couple to return to Tampin and explain themselves,  as well as settle the debts.

They stated that the family is willing to meet them to resolve the issue, but if they do not do so, they are ready to take further action.

A foodpanda rider accidentally indicated that he had delivered a meal 15 minutes before he actually arrived at the customer's address.

Before he could arrive with the food, the customer reported to the app that they did not receive their order.

The delivery platform made the rider pay S$31.35 as a result.

Despite appealing to foodpanda and getting the customer to clarify with the platform, he wasn't able to get his money back easily.

Unable to get a refund since August

The incident occurred on Aug. 11, the rider, 36-year-old Yang Yuling, told Shin Min Daily News.

According to him, he had just delivered an order to Waterway Point in Punggol at the time, and was preparing to process the second order when he pressed the "delivered" button for the second delivery on the app by accident.

It took him 15 minutes to arrive at the second customer's address. However, before he could pass the food to the customer, they had already reported not receiving the food.

The platform deducted S$31.35 from the rider in response to the customer's feedback.

Yang told Shin Min that the customer had explained to foodpanda's customer service team about the mix up and he had tried to contact the platform multiple times but he couldn't get a refund.

Yang has not received his refund when he spoke to Shin Min.

He also shared that the customer service team has not been effective at helping him with other issues, such as incorrect addresses or when customers can't be reached.

He hopes the platform can improve the support for both customers and delivery riders.

foodpanda to issue refund in coming week

Upon investigation, foodpanda confirmed that the delivery was completed and agreed to issue the refund.

A platform spokesperson told Shin Min that the initial appeal was not approved as a photo of the delivered food submitted by Yang did not meet the platform's verification requirements.

A refund will be fully refunded to Yang in the coming week, as the company verified that the delivery was completed, the spokesperson said.

foodpanda also promised to improve their ability to handle such situations more effectively.

Minister for Energy, Trade and Industry (Energy and Industry), Tan See Leng, said that Indonesia's gas export cut will have little effect on electricity prices in Singapore at a doorstop on Oct. 25.

According to the Energy Market Authority, Indonesia's total reduction amounts to 17 billion British thermal units per day (BBTUD) over 18 days.

Responding to questions fielded by the media, Tan said that Singapore uses about 1 trillion BBTUD for power generation and around 1.35 trillion BBTUD in total.

"So this 17 billion BBTU is actually less than 2 per cent of our needs. So I think in the short term, the prices would not really affect that much."

Tan added: "In fact, if anything at all, we should be looking at the world prices because a lot of our gas, the unit price is actually pegged to the movement of some of the key global indexes."

Will pursue commercial remedies if there's any contract breach

Tan elaborated on the reduction of natural gas supplies from Indonesia, stating that Singapore's "gas supplies are covered by commercial contracts between our gas importer, which is Gas Supply Private Limited or GSPL for short, and its Indonesian suppliers".

"Now we expect the contracts to be honoured. GSPL will engage its suppliers to determine if there is a breach of contract, and if so, to pursue the commercial remedies which are provided for in the contracts."

"I want to reassure and assure all Singaporeans that we have sufficient gas supply to meet our demand", Tan emphasised.

"We have sufficient replacement gas from other sources, and this includes liquefied natural gas or LNG."

Singapore's energy security has "multiple layers of defence in place", Tan said, including a standby LNG facility and the maintenance of sufficient diesel reserves.

"In the medium term, we are building a second LNG terminal and diversifying our energy mix."

When asked about contract renewals with Indonesia moving forward, Tan said Singapore is in the "open season", a phase of the energy market where bidding for contracts occurs.

"Any renewal of the PNG (piped natural gas)  from our neighbouring countries would, of course, depend on what are the commercial terms offered, how long those contracts are, and, of course, the reliability of those contracts entered into, the track record of whether they have been able to honour every single one of the commitments."

Diversifying our energy sources

Tan noted that the government has always looked at energy as a critical part of Singapore's economy, sustainability and survival and contingency and insurance measures have been put in place to ensure diversification of the energy supply.

Beyond gas, Tan said the government was looking into and exploring renewable energy sources, including domestic solarisation, biomethane and geothermal energy.

Emphasising that the government has yet to make a decision, Tan cited nuclear energy as an option, specifically small modular reactors.

Tan added that he would elaborate more on "the entire diaspora of all energy sources" Singapore could "tap into" and its five-year plan in his lecture on Oct. 26 at the start of the Singapore International Energy Week.

27-year-old Chin Shi Lee made up her mind to join the Singapore Armed Forces (SAF) in her final year in polytechnic, after she attended Army recruitment drive.

Fast forward to today, Chin is now a master sergeant and Singapore's first female sniper.

She's currently in Australia for Exercise Wallaby, training a new generation of sharpshooters as a senior sniper trainer.

Her SAF journey was published in an article by Pioneer on Oct. 24.

Did not aim to become a sniper at the start

Chin did not aim to become a sniper at the start, Pioneer noted.

But her interest grew over time as her shooting improved.

When Chin indicated her interest to join the Sniper Wing, she received support from both her commanders and peers.

The selection process, however, was gruelling: candidates undergo "intense physical and mental evaluations" that not only assesses their marksmanship, but also their stress resilience, cognitive sharpness, and field survival capabilities.

Chin told Pioneer and The Straits Times (ST) that stalking training is the most demanding part of becoming a sniper.

Stalking training, a fundamental part of becoming a sniper, focuses on "fieldcraft, concealment, and stealth".

This means that snipers have to navigate terrains undetected, observe high-value targets over extended distances, and execute their mission without giving away their positions, Pioneer explained.

Encourages women to give it a shot

It's a misconception that snipers just need to focus on shooting, Chin said.

She elaborated that a good sniper needs to have three Ps: patience, precision and perseverance.

Even when one is physically exhausted, a sniper has to remain focused and disciplined in order to push through and maintain the high standards they've set for themselves.

She told ST that the sniper training is the same for both men and women, and encouraged women to give it a shot.

While being the first female sniper is something she's proud of, Chin most values earning trust and respect from her teammates through her performance.

Exercise Wallaby

Exercise Wallaby is SAF's largest overseas unilateral exercise and it's held in Shoalwater Bay Training Area in Queensland, Australia.

This year marks the 36th edition of Exercise Wallaby, which started on Sep. 6 and will end on Nov. 2, 2026.

Approximately five times the size of Singapore, the training area allows the SAF to test its full range of capabilities and conduct integrated training that cannot be replicated in Singapore, the Ministry of Defence said.

About 6,000 personnel and 1,200 platforms from the Singapore Army, the Republic of Singapore Air Force and the Digital and Intelligence Service were involved in this year's exercise.

PM Lawrence Wong criticised the Worker's Party (WP) for what he deemed an "inconsistent" approach towards policy proposals and called for a rejection of populism in politics.

These comments were made at the biennial People's Action Party (PAP) Conference on Oct. 25, where PM Wong, who is also the Secretary-General of the PAP, addressed various subjects, including policymaking and planning for the future.

PM Wong said: "The opposition has taken different positions at different times, depending on the concerns of the day, or what they believe will be popular.

"But these positions do not always add up to a coherent approach that takes account of the trade-offs and longer-term consequences."

The PAP's approach must be different, he stressed to party cadres, and "take the wider and long-term view."

Worker's Party stances

He named two examples in particular.

Building HDB flats

PM Wong first said the WP had proposed that the government build fewer flats when HDB resale prices fell in 2019.

However, when the Covid-19 pandemic struck, construction was disrupted and caused a shortage of flats.

"By 2023, the WP was criticising the government for not building enough flats," he continued. "Yet there was no acknowledgement of what it had advocated just a few years earlier."

Now that the housing situation has stabilised, he added, the PAP government will continue to build more new flats while weighing trade-offs, such as the need to protect and grow green spaces, acting in Singapore's "wider and long-term interests."

Foreign workers

On labour issues, PM Wong said that the WP called for greater flexibility when the government tightened foreign worker policies.

However, years later amid concerns over the projected population of 6.9 million, the WP then proposed zero growth in the foreign workforce.

"More recently, when SMEs faced manpower shortages, the WP called for easing of foreign worker quotas," he remarked.

"You can see how the WP’s position seems to shift with the political winds."

"Difficult choices"

It is easier for opposition politicians to argue for a particular position when they do not have to “reconcile all the competing demands” or “take responsibility for the outcome”, PM Wong added.

In contrast, the PAP must “make difficult choices that will stand the test of time” instead of “quick fixes”.

He noted how unrest is sweeping parts of the world, from France to various countries in Asia over economic pressures and anxiety about the future.

The difficulty, however, is the "temptation" to offer quick fixes despite there being "no easy answers" to such problems, causing frustrations to persist and loss of trust in institutions.

Guard against populism

He called on PAP cadres to take Singaporeans' concerns seriously, while attempting to "guard against populism."

To do this, the PAP must consider the interests of Singapore and Singaporeans as a whole, especially for groups whose concerns are "less visible", he said.

But the challenge also lies in confronting difficult political issues.

This includes the updating of ministerial salaries, he added as an example, something that the PAP knew would elicit "strong reactions".

"The politically convenient option would have been to avoid the issue altogether. But we could not keep putting off a decision that matters for Singapore’s ability to build a strong political leadership team for the future.

"So I decided to address the issue openly in Parliament, explain our decision, and take responsibility for it."

Not doing so would amount to passing on such problems to future generations, he said, leaving them with "even harder choices" later.

"So we must have the courage to act – not just for Singaporeans today, but also for our children and grandchildren who will inherit the Singapore that we build."

Prime Minister Lawrence Wong responded to Indonesia's announcement of gas export cuts to Singapore, stating that "We expect all parties to honour their commitments, and Singapore’s gas importer will take the necessary steps to protect its rights and interests under these contracts".

In his capacity as the People's Action Party's (PAP) secretary-general, PM Wong made these comments in a speech at their awards ceremony and Central Executive Committee (CEC) conference on Oct. 25, 2026.

"The gas supplies are covered by commercial contracts", and Singapore has been preparing for such risks, he clarified.

He added that there is a need to plan ahead for Singapore's energy needs, and that is the Ministry of Energy, Trade and Industry's (METI) key priority.

"Tan See Leng is overseeing both energy and industry. He is fully energised for this task!"

95% of Singapore's power depends on natural gas

Singapore depends on imported natural gas for about 95 per cent of its power, according to the Ministry of Energy, Trade & Industry’s website.

Natural gas is the cleanest-burning major fossil fuel, and Singapore made the switch to it from fuel oil in the early 2000s.

Mothership previously reported that starting from Oct. 24, Indonesia will begin cutting natural gas exports to Singapore by 31 billion British thermal units per day (BBTUD).

In a media statement on Oct. 24, Singapore's Energy Market Authority said the cut in gas exports is less than 2 per cent of Singapore's total daily gas demand, which stands at more than 1,000 BBTUD.

PM Wong added that "a significant amount" of this gas is imported through pipelines from Indonesia, but Singapore has invested in Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG) terminals "to import natural gas from different countries, without having to rely on pipelines."

"This gives us more options to manage any disruptions to our gas supply."

Nuclear energy as an option

In his speech, PM Wong said Singapore "must look beyond natural gas" and that the country needs "cleaner sources of power to provide reliable electricity around the clock".

He noted that the government is "studying seriously the potential of nuclear energy" but emphasised that "safety must come first".

"Understandably, there are concerns about the safety of nuclear power in a small and densely populated country like Singapore."

He said: "But, we should not rule out an option simply because it is difficult or controversial."

"We must assess the risks and trade-offs carefully, engage Singaporeans, and eventually make the right decision to secure our energy future."

The ruling People's Action Party (PAP) elected its 39th Central Executive Committee (CEC) on Oct. 25.

Votes at the biennial internal election were made by party cadres, who make up a small proportion of the PAP's membership and represent the party elite.

They are responsible for electing 12 of the CEC members at the party conference, while another up to six members are co-opted.

The 39th CEC, as PAP's highest decision-making body, will steer the party from 2026 to 2028.

Who's in

The members of the 39th PAP CEC, not listed in order of the number of votes they received, are as follows:

1. Lawrence Wong
2. Lee Hsien Loong
3. Chan Chun Sing
4. Masagos Zulkifli
5. K Shanmugam
6. Grace Fu
7. Chee Hong Tat
8. Edwin Tong
9. Indranee Rajah
10. Ong Ye Kung
11. Vivian Balakrishnan
12. Desmond Lee
13. Tan See Leng (Co-opted)
14. Zaqy Mohamad (Co-opted)

Changes

Chee Hong Tat, who was previously co-opted into the 38th CEC, replaced Heng Swee Keat as one of the top 12 vote-getters.

Typically, the secretary-general will co-opt the members who received the 13th and 14th highest number of votes, in this case Tan See Leng and Zaqy Mohamad (not necessarily in that order).

Zaqy Mohamad was previously co-opted into the 38th CEC, but now is one of the top 14 (at least) highest vote-getters.

The CEC will also have the power to co-opt up to four more members in due time.

After the full CEC is announced, the committee will elect its office-bearers from among its members.

This will include the party's chairman, vice-chairman, secretary-general, assistant secretary-general, treasurer and assistant treasurer, as well as other positions it deems necessary.

Food delivery platform foodpanda has rolled out full-time delivery rider roles in Singapore.

The Employee Rider Programme offers at least S$1,800 per month, complete with full CPF contributions and other employee benefits, according to the platform's website.

Other perks include a six-month retention bonus of S$100 per month, as well as medical leaves and coverage.

Full-time employee riders must work 44 hours a week.

Unlike platform riders, who deliver ad hoc and are protected under the Platform Workers Act, they will fall under the Employment Act.

Requirements

The role is currently open only to bicycle or e-bike users, though the company will provide an e-bike to those without either vehicle.

Those who bring their own e-bikes will receive an additional S$100 in vehicle allowance.

To qualify for the base pay of S$1,800 each month, riders need to achieve a target of 320 qualifying orders, which the platform said is possible in just 100 to 110 hours per month.

Upon reaching the target, they can continue working under a freelance account.

According to foodpanda, those who do not reach the 320 orders target will not lose their basic salary, provided they complete their required 44 hours a week.

However, they may still be subject to remedial actions, including termination.

Complementing current delivery riders

The new scheme, launched on Oct. 21, is meant to complement instead of replace its current fleet of platform riders, the company told The Straits Times.

It said the introduction is part of the platform's "ongoing efforts to strengthen delivery capacity and maintain a reliable service" for customers and merchant partners.

There are sufficient energy supplies to meet Singapore's national demands, said the Energy Market Authority (EMA) in a media statement on Oct. 24.

This comes after the announcement that Indonesia will begin cutting natural gas exports to Singapore from Saturday, in a bid to meet domestic demand.

Cuts less than per cent of total daily gas demand

In response to Mothership's queries, an EMA spokesperson said that, based on information received by Singapore's natural gas importers, the total reduction amounts to 17 billion British thermal units per day (BBTUD) over 18 days.

This is less than 2 per cent of Singapore's total daily gas demand of more than 1,000 BBTUD.

Importers will pursue all relevant recourse under their gas supply contracts, the spokesperson added, and contingency plans are in place to deal with such reductions.

The spokesperson said reductions of 20 BBTUD to 100 BBTUD in recent months, due to planned or urgent maintenance, were replaced with other gas sources without incident.

Singapore GasCo, the country's central procurer and supplier of natural gas, is also operationally ready to import more Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG) at any time.

The spokesperson also noted that Indonesia is not Singapore's only source of natural gas.

Power generation companies are also required to maintain sufficient fuel reserves, including diesel.

"We therefore have sufficient energy supplies to meet our national demands," the spokesperson affirmed.

"EMA will continue to work with the energy industry and our partners to ensure the reliability and resilience of Singapore’s energy supply."

The cuts

On Oct. 23, SKK Migas chief Djoko Siswanto said exports from Natuna would be reduced by 15 BBTUD, while another 16 BBTUD would be cut from supplies originating in Sumatra, bringing the total cut to 31 BBTUD per day, according to CNBC Indonesia.

Indonesia’s plan to scale back gas exports to Singapore is not new, The Straits Times (ST) reported.

It agreed in 2022 to extend supplies to 2028 at lower volumes, and in April 2025, Djoko said Sumatra exports would be cut while Natuna supplies made up the shortfall.

Review agreements with countries that "did not respect" Indonesia

The cuts also come days after Indonesia's Coordinating Minister for Downstreaming and Energy Transition Bahlil Lahadalia threatened to stop energy exports to countries that "disrespect" Indonesia.

"I will not hesitate to consider stopping exports to countries that do not respect Indonesia," he said on Oct. 22.

He added that he would "conduct an evaluation" of Indonesia's current energy export contracts, and urged countries with issues with Indonesia to discuss them amicably and resolve them on the principle of mutual respect.

Five of the 10 Singapore-based companies that were served legal notices by the National Environment Agency under the Transboundary Haze Pollution Act (THPA) have said they will cooperate with requests for information on their links to fires in Indonesia.

Will comply with requests

Three of the firms, Wilmar International, Bumitama Agri and First Resources, said in filings on the Singapore Exchange (SGX) that they had received the notices and intend to comply.

Wilmar International made its announcement close to midnight on Oct. 23, a few hours after NEA issued a media release on the legal notices.

First Resources followed at 1:15am on Oct. 24, saying it had agreed to provide the necessary details.

Bumitama Agri and its subsidiaries subsequently announced at 1:15pm the same day that they would provide the requested documents and information to NEA.

A spokesperson from Asia Pulp & Paper (APP) also told Mothership they are cooperating with the authorities.

"We are reviewing the notices and will respond to NEA as required," the spokesperson said.

The other five companies have yet to respond to the notices:

• Golden Agri International Pte Ltd
• Indofood Agri Resources Ltd
• Kencana Agri Ltd
• TSH Global Plantation Pte Ltd
• TSH Oversea Pte Ltd

Legal notices

NEA said the 10 firms either own land concessions in Indonesia, or have related companies that do.

Through the notices, it is seeking details on the companies' links to associated firms, their land concessions, fire prevention measures, and firefighting efforts by the firms or their associated companies on the ground.

Representatives of firms that do not comply face a fine of up to S$5,000, up to one month's jail, or both.

NEA had also earlier sent preventive measure notices (PMNs) under the THPA to 10 companies in Indonesia for fires in Sumatra and Kalimantan on Oct. 16 and 19.

The 10 companies are:

1. PT Bumi Andalas Permai (BAP)
2. PT Bumi Mekar Hijau (BMH)
3. PT SBA Wood Industries (SBAWI)
4. PT Paramitra Mulia Langgeng (PML)
5. PT Sumatera Alam Anugerah (SAA)
6. PT Hutan Lestari Raya (HLR)
7. PT Bangkanesia (BKN)
8. PT Buana Megatama Jaya (BMJ)
9. PT Mananjung Hayak (MH)
10. PT Baratama Putra Perkasa (BPP)

The notices require the 10 foreign companies to:

• Deploy firefighting personnel to extinguish or prevent the spread of fire on land situated outside of Singapore owned or occupied by them;
• Discontinue or not commence any burning activities on such land; and
• Submit to NEA any plan of action to extinguish any fire on such land to prevent its spread or recurrence.