Throwback 2014: April

Throwback 2014: April

APRIL 8

Coroner's inquiry into private's death

Time has done little to heal the grief of the family of a 23-year-old full-time national serviceman who killed himself last July.

Mr Renganathan Magindren said of his eldest child, Private (Pte) Ganesh Pillay Magindren, last week: "To us, time has aggravated the situation. The more time passes, the more we miss him. It gets more painful over time."

On April 8 this year, a coroner's inquiry into his death found that his schizophrenic condition had been poorly handled while he was in NS.

Pte Ganesh was found dead at the foot of his Sengkang condominium block and State Coroner Imran Abdul Hamid found that he had killed himself by jumping from height.

His direct superior, Captain (Capt) Jessie Goh, had given him 14 charges of extra duties the day before he died.

Mr Imran said that Capt Goh, who was Pte Ganesh's direct superior when he was posted to the 24th Battalion Singapore Artillery at Khatib Camp in November 2012, was "out of her depth" in dealing with his condition.

He also noted that Dr Mogilan Mohan, the medical officer at Khatib Camp Medical Centre, had not been informed of Pte Ganesh's condition by his former unit at Kranji Camp.

Mr Magindren, 55, said he was miserable and missed his son.

The art director, who also has a daughter, 22, and a son, 15, added: "My wife was recently hospitalised at the Institute of Mental Health as she finds it very difficult to cope with Ganesh's death. "My youngest son was diagnosed with major depressive disorder around May and he badly misses his brother. The pain we are suffering is tremendous."

'MATTER MUST BE ADDRESSED'

When asked if he has forgiven the individuals involved in the case, he replied: "It's not a matter of forgiveness. The matter must be addressed to prevent a similar tragedy from repeating."

In June, Defence Minister Ng Eng Hen said the Singapore Armed Forces took the issue of the mental health of its servicemen "very seriously".

"Mental conditions (occur)... not only within the Army (but) in any part of their lives, whether they are in the military or not. We recognise that the condition is not static and... (we) are trying to beef up... the monitoring mechanisms," he said.

APRIL 13

Man dies after setting himself alight in JB

A Singaporean man died after he doused himself with petrol and set himself alight in Johor Baru (JB), Malaysia.

Mr Stephen Lew Soon Kiang, 42, had bought the flammable liquid from a petrol kiosk then walked to a nearby kerb to commit the act on April 12.

A passer-by reportedly put out the flames with a fire extinguisher.

Mr Lew suffered more than 80 per cent burns on his body and was taken to JB's Sultanah Aminah Hospital, where he died the next day.

According to Chinese daily Lianhe Wanbao, Mr Lew, who used to own an apparel company, was due in court for a drug-related offence.

When The New Paper later spoke to his mother, she said that she was unaware of this and added: "All I know was that he had personal problems."

APRIL 17

Taxi ploughs into Siglap bistro

Five people were injured after a taxi careened off East Coast Road and ploughed into Georges Mad Bar and Grill in Siglap.

In the accident which happened around 8.50pm, a ComfortDelGro taxi went out of control after colliding with a Honda Jazz and slammed into the front of the eatery.

After the accident, the cabby, who was clearly shaken, said: "I tried desperately to step on the brake, but it didn't seem to work. I swerved across the left lane and crashed into a wall."

The five casualties were treated at Changi General Hospital and discharged on the same day.

FOUR INCIDENTS

There have since been at least four other cases of vehicles crashing into eateries, all of which occurred in Geylang.

In an incident on Aug 21, a lorry mounted a kerb and ended up on the walkway in front of the 99 Duck Neck restaurant between Geylang Lorong 11 and Lorong 13. None of its customers or workers was hurt.

On Sept 19, four people were taken to hospital after a car ploughed into a row of tables and chairs at the Geylang Lorong 9 Fresh Frog Porridge coffee shop at about 11pm.

APRIL 23

Television host Quan Yifeng in trouble again

The television host was fined $800 and disqualified from driving for three months on April 23 after pleading guilty to one count of inconsiderate driving.

Quan, 40, knocked down a pedestrian as he was crossing the road at the junction of Selegie and Sungei roads at about 11.20am on July 2 last year.

She stopped the car and attended to Mr Raman Selvaraj, 28, who had an abrasion on his left elbow and a laceration on the back of his head.

Quan told reporters later: "I was negligent, I am sorry. At that time, I was really scared. I alighted immediately and went forward to help the victim to the side of the road.

"I kept reassuring him, telling him not to worry and I said sorry. I also called for an ambulance."

This incident was her third brush with the law here. In 1996, the Taiwan-born host was fined $1,000 for a fight with a bowling alley attendant. In 2011, she was placed on 15 months of probation for committing mischief in an altercation with a taxi driver.


This article was first published on December 22, 2014.
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