TODAY’s brief, Wednesday, July 1

Roy Ngerng returns to court

Blogger Roy Ngerng will return to court for a three-day hearing to assess the damages he has to pay Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong for defamation. The court in November last year issued a summary judgment against him, deeming that he had defamed Mr Lee through blog posts alleging misappropriation of money placed in the Central Provident Fund. So far, Mr Ngerng, 34, has paid S$29,000 in total costs for court proceedings.

Three Myanmarese, TRS couple back in court

The three Myanmarese charged with conspiring to murder a fellow countryman will have their cases mentioned in court today. On Monday, two of the suspects were taken by police investigators to a car park in Pasir Ris where they had allegedly attacked their victim with a Taser gun but failed to abduct him. Also returning to court today are the couple behind the defunct The Real Singapore website who have been charged with sedition for publishing content that could incite hostility between Singaporeans and foreigners.

SAF Day at SAFTI

The Singapore Armed Forces (SAF) commemorates SAF Day with a parade at SAFTI Military Institute in the evening, which Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong will attend. Ceremonies to reaffirm Operationally Ready National Servicemen’s commitment to the defence of Singapore will also be held at various locations across Singapore.

China’s Communist Party marks 94th anniversary

The Communist Party of China marks its 94th anniversary today. Recent reports show that the party recruited 14.6 per cent fewer members last year compared to 2013. Of these two million recruits, the majority were below the age of 35, and there were more college graduates. With President Xi Jinping moving to weed out corruption in the party, the decreased membership could be in line with the party’s recent focus on better-qualified candidates.

Investigation into Medan crash

Following yesterday’s crash involving an Indonesian air force transport plane that has been in service since 1964, investigators will look into whether the cause of the crash was mechanical in nature. The crash highlights Indonesia’s patchy aviation safety record – with the European Union banning Indonesian airlines from flying to Europe between 2007 and 2009. According to the Aviation Safety Network, the air force has had five fatal crashes since 2008.

Weather forecast


Expect showers mainly over northern and western Singapore in the late morning and early afternoon, with temperatures ranging from between 26°C to 33°C.