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Straits Times
6 hours ago
- Business
- Straits Times
2026 school year to begin from Jan 2 for MOE kindergarten, primary, secondary school students
Sign up now: Get ST's newsletters delivered to your inbox The last day of school for MOE kindergartens, primary and secondary school students will be Nov 20. SINGAPORE - Primary 1, Kindergarten 1 and secondary school students in Ministry of Education (MOE) schools will kick off the new school year on Jan 2, 2026. Primary 2 to 6 and Kindergarten 2 pupils will report to schools on Jan 5, said the MOE in a statement on July 30. School will start on Feb 4 for junior college and Millenia Institute (MI) students in their first year. Meanwhile, JC2 and MI students in their second or third year will return to school on Jan 12. The last day of school for MOE kindergartens, primary and secondary school students will be Nov 20. But schools that will be used as venues for O-level written examinations will end earlier, on Oct 23. School for those in JC1 and MI students in their first or second year will end on Nov 27. July 6, which is the Monday that follows Youth Day on July 5, is among three scheduled school holidays in 2026, including Teachers' Day and Children's Day, which fall on Sept 4 and Oct 2, respectively. The public holiday for Hari Raya Puasa is slated to fall on Saturday, March 21. Schools will be closed on March 23, though this is subject to further confirmation. Top stories Swipe. Select. Stay informed. Business S'pore's Q2 total employment rises, but infocomm and professional services sectors see more job cuts Asia Japan issues tsunami warning after 8.8-magnitude earthquake strikes off Russia Business MAS keeps Singapore dollar policy unchanged amid US tariff risks to economy Singapore Singapore prepared to recognise State of Palestine in principle; goal is to reach peace, 2-state solution Business Cathay Cineplexes ropes in restructuring specialist as more payment demands pile up Opinion Nobel Prize? Maybe not, but give Asean credit for Cambodia-Thailand ceasefire Asia Fragile Cambodia-Thailand truce faces challenges on day one As Vesak Day, National Day and Deepavali will fall on weekends, the following Mondays will be designated public holidays. The school terms and holidays for 2026 are also listed on the MOE's website at .
Daily Maverick
21 hours ago
- Politics
- Daily Maverick
‘Continue Kenny's good work' — McKenzie appoints PA's Liam Jacobs to replace Kunene
It's been just more than a month since former MP Liam Jacobs resigned from the DA to join the Patriotic Alliance. Now, he's back in a leading role as a City of Johannesburg councillor. Liam Jacobs is the new councillor for the Patriotic Alliance (PA) in the City of Johannesburg, PA president Gayton McKenzie announced on Monday evening, 28 July, during an address to party supporters. Jacobs replaced the party's deputy president, Kenny Kunene, who resigned last week after being found at the Sandton house of murder accused Katiso 'KT' Molefe when police were there to arrest Molefe. 'The party is deploying Liam Jacobs as the new councillor in the City of Johannesburg,' said McKenzie. He said Jacobs needed local government experience. The former DA MP was announced as the PA's mayoral candidate in Tshwane for the 2026 local government elections earlier in July. 'You're about to fix the potholes of Joburg. So you can know what is expected of you when you run Pretoria,' said McKenzie. While Jacobs will fill Kunene's council seat, it's unclear whether he will take over Kunene's role as mayoral committee member (MMC) for transport. Kunene made headlines after he was found at the home of Molefe, who was arrested in connection with the killing of Oupa Sefoka, popularly known as DJ Sumbody, in a 2022 drive-by shooting in Woodmead, Johannesburg. Sefoka died alongside his bodyguard after the vehicle they were travelling in was peppered with bullets. As Daily Maverick reported, Kunene claimed he was not friends with Molefe, but had visited the Sandton house in his capacity as the owner of online publication African News Global. He had gone there with an unnamed individual who had arranged for Kunene's media company to conduct an exclusive interview with Molefe. During his address to his supporters, McKenzie also said Johannesburg mayor Dada Morero would appoint a new MMC to replace Kunene. As Daily Maverick reported, in addition to Kunene's position needing replacing, Morero needs to appoint a new MMC for finance, since Margaret Arnolds has shifted to the role of council Speaker. From Parliament to Joburg Jacobs joins the PA's 10-seat caucus. Following the 2021 municipal elections, the PA received 2.93% of the vote in Johannesburg, enough for eight seats in the council. The party has since gained two more ward seats. In March 2025, when the PA won its 10th seat in a by-election, elections analyst Wayne Sussman wrote: 'The PA is the only party to win new seats in by-elections in Johannesburg since 2021.' This will be Jacobs's first leadership role since joining the PA during a midnight announcement on Youth Day. Before joining the PA he had been a member of the DA and head of the party's students' organisation at university. McKenzie said he expects Jacobs to 'continue the good work the DP [Kunene] has been doing'. In 2024, he was sworn in as an MP and sat on the oversight committee on sports, arts and culture, of which McKenzie was the minister. Jacobs had been a critic of McKenzie's department, often posting on social media about various alleged failures in the department and its entities. Jacobs also used social media to showcase himself, posing questions to officials, which built his profile among supporters as a rising politician who kept officials on their toes. Critics viewed his online presence and style of questioning as brash. When Jacobs left the DA, another rising star in the party, deputy federal chairperson and campaign manager Ashor Sarupen told EWN that Jacobs had made a 'huge mistake' and that 'he'll come to regret it'. Since his departure Jacobs has been working within the PA doing by-election work, using the same kind of social media blitz. This is something he will bring to the party's Johannesburg caucus in the hope of solidifying more support for the party in the lead-up to the 2026 elections. Jacobs was not immediately available for comment. But he posted on X: Pointing out problems is easy. Fixing the problem is the real work. Let's get to the REAL work! 🕳️ Salute 💚🙏 — Liam Jacobs (@LiamJacobsZA) July 29, 2025 PA deputy position vacant Addressing internal matters – and social media rumours of Jacobs replacing Kunene as deputy president – McKenzie said: 'Liam is not the DP (deputy president) of the PA.' McKenzie claimed this was gossip coming from outside the PA. 'For as long as the result of the deputy president (Kunene) is not out yet, we will not have a DP,' said McKenzie. According to McKenzie, the party will, within about 48 hours, announce a legal firm that will investigate the circumstances of Kunene's presence at Molefe's house. Among the issues the firm would probe was locating the journalist who reportedly accompanied Kunene and how Kunene was able to get Molefe's address. Kunene remains under a 30-day suspension from party activities. McKenzie, who is best friends with Kunene (they are godparents to each other's children), said this was done to show transparency. He claimed information would come out to show 'the DP was set up', but that the party needed to investigate what happened. DM
Boston Globe
4 days ago
- Politics
- Boston Globe
How the Hermit Kingdom forces its people to work in Chinese factories
The video was part of hundreds of hours of footage and other documents obtained by The Outlaw Ocean Project demonstrating that the Chinese government has been using North Korean workers to process seafood, in violation of UN sanctions. Much of the seafood processed in these plants is sold to consumers in the US, in violation of These revelations, which are part of the final episode of the newly released second season of The Outlaw Ocean podcast, have raised pressing questions about the source of the seafood on our tables, and have sent global seafood companies At the risk of espionage charges and execution, two dozen North Korean workers, most of them women, agreed to talk to Outlaw Ocean Project reporters about working in Chinese seafood plants. These workers recounted rampant sexual assaults, violence, constant monitoring, and zero access to the outside world. The podcast is available on all major streaming platforms. For transcripts, background reporting, and bonus content, visit Global attention on the illegal use of North Korean labor has spiked recently because of Russia's deployment of China officially denies that North Korean workers are in the country, but The Outlaw Ocean investigation has identified at least 15 seafood- Some of the social media footage pulled from China featured people openly discussing the presence of these workers. 'They are easy to distinguish,' a resident of Dandong — a Chinese city on the border with North Korean — wrote in a comment on Bilibili, a video-sharing site. 'They all wear uniform clothes, have a leader, and follow orders.' In a video taken at a plant called Dandong Yuanyi Refined Seafoods, 15 women perform a synchronized dance in front of a mural commemorating 'Youth Day,' a North Korean holiday. The video features a North Korean flag and the caption, 'North Korea in Donggang cold storage [with] little beautiful women.' (The company did not respond to requests for comment.) As a result of The Outlaw Ocean investigation, several seafood companies severed ties with plants connected to the North Korean workers. The The investigation pulled back a curtain, revealing a hidden world where forced labor props up global supply chains and international laws are systematically ignored. There has been real progress in tracing these networks, exposing the complicity of corporations, and challenging the illusion of clean audits and ethical sourcing. But despite sanctions, public outcry, and growing awareness, the practice continues, driven by demand and enabled by deliberate ignorance. Until enforcement matches the scale of the abuse, North Korean workers will keep paying the price for the seafood we consume.
The Citizen
7 days ago
- Entertainment
- The Citizen
‘You can tell she doesn't know where Thando is' — Sister of missing ex-footballer challenges girlfriend's claim
Mngomeni is reportedly missing, with family members concerned about his whereabouts. However, his lover claims he's alive and well. Former professional footballer Thando Mngomeni is reportedly missing, with family members worried about his whereabouts. However, according to a woman who claims to be his lover, the former Sundowns midfielder has not gone AWOL. 'Thando is not missing. Andile, these people are trying to frustrate me. Thando is alright, he's eating cheesecake, he's fine,' said Palesa speaking on Metro FM's Sports Night Amplified With Andile Ncube. A missing person flyer featuring the former Mamelodi Sundowns midfielder's face has been circulating on social media for the past few days, stating that he has not been seen in more than a month. However, the former footballer's sister disputes the statement. 'She's a liar. You can tell that she doesn't know where Thando is. She's joking and playing around, saying she and Thando are eating cheesecake. This is a serious matter,' Mngomeni's sister, Pat Maki told The Citizen on Wednesday. ALSO READ: Nonku clarifies fallout with Jojo: 'My statement was taken out of context' 'She's just doing this to get attention' Pat said she last saw Mngomeni the day after Youth Day. 'I never saw him after that, and I asked around, and nobody knows his whereabouts. He doesn't have a phone,' said Pat. 'The last time I spoke with him, on the 17th of June, he said he was waiting for his friend, Musa. So I asked Musa, and he also said he last saw him [Mngomeni] that day.' An emotional Pat said that this coming weekend will be three months since their father died, with a family ceremony set to commemorate his passing. 'But Thando is nowhere to be found,' shared Pat. She added that Palesa was doing all of this for clout. 'She's just doing this to get attention. This is a serious matter, we are worried as a family.' According to Pat, the family went to the police, but they were advised to first search for him in hospitals and mortuaries. 'We did that yesterday, and we are planning on going to the police and opening a case today, since we couldn't find him at the hospital and at any of the mortuaries.' ALSO READ: WATCH: Mbalula warns of deepfake video falsely claiming he said Senzo Mchunu is guilty An overly relaxed Palesa An overly relaxed Palesa spoke without any sense of urgency to Ncube on air. Referring to herself in the third person, Palesa described herself as Mngomeni's woman. 'Palesa is a Thando [Mngomeni's] woman, beloved woman,' she said. She denied that she and Mngomeni have split up, 'If Thando wasn't alright, I would call them [Mngomeni's family] and tell them that there's a problem. We're happy, we are eating cheesecake.' Palesa said Mngomeni was in Cape Town and would be flying to Joburg 'very soon'. She claimed to have last spoken to the former footballer on Tuesday morning. When Ncube asked Pat about Palesa, she was unsure of the state of the pair's relationship. 'She's his ex… I don't know what's going on between the two, and I don't want to dwell on it,' said Pat. She added that Mngomeni didn't pack a bag or take one when he left. 'He's used to leaving for about two weeks or so; we'd know where he is. Maybe the Eastern Cape or Joburg. But now no one knows where he is.' NOW READ: Sbongiseni Shezi: 'These are answered prayers but they don't look the way that I anticipated'
Straits Times
15-07-2025
- Business
- Straits Times
Forum: Managing school closure days remains a challenge for parents
Find out what's new on ST website and app. A s a working parent of three primary school-going children, I am grateful for the many ways Singapore supports families. That said, many parents, including myself, face challenges managing school closure days that fall outside official public holidays with our limited parental leave entitlement. Each year, schools close for days such as on Youth Day, Teachers' Day, Children's Day, the day after National Day, and PSLE marking days, which last for four days. In addition, there are occasional early dismissals and home-based learning days, where students stay home and often require parental supervision, especially for younger children. These can easily add up to seven or more working days a year, not counting regular school breaks. Currently, working parents receive only two days of extended childcare leave annually when the youngest child is between seven and 12 years old. This often falls short in meeting caregiving needs. Many parents cope by using annual leave or relying on family support, but this can be difficult for those with multiple children or limited help at home. Perhaps the relevant ministries can consider reviewing ways to better support parents. These could include increasing childcare leave and looking at ways to limit school closure days that require parental supervision. Top stories Swipe. Select. Stay informed. Singapore Las Vegas Sands' new development part of S'pore's broader, more ambitious transformation: PM Wong Singapore Economic headwinds do not dampen outlook for new Marina Bay development: Las Vegas Sands president Business MAS records net profit of $19.7 billion, fuelled by investment gains Singapore Man charged with attempted murder of woman at Kallang Wave Mall Singapore CDL's long-time director Philip Yeo to depart after boardroom feud Singapore Ex-cleaner jailed over safety lapses linked to guard's death near 1-Altitude rooftop bar Life The Violinist, Singapore's first animated historical film, set for August 2026 release Singapore 'Nobody deserves to be alone': Why Mummy and Acha have fostered over 20 children in the past 22 years Such thoughtful adjustments would help working parents manage their responsibilities at home and at work, making it easier to raise families in Singapore while balancing career commitments. Low Wen Wei
