1 November 2025: And that's how the cupcake crumbles

Greetings from Ubud! It's my first time in Bali. I'm attending the Ubud Writers & Readers Festival and it's been great so far, although my introvert self really needs to moderate how much socialising/'networking' I do. I'm actually so relieved to be sitting along in my hotel room writing this newsletter right now...

Also... it's November! My birthday month! And that means the annual WTC November discounts are baaaaackkkk... Click on the buttons below!

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What needs to change after the horrible murder of a four-year-old girl? Five years after Megan Khung died at the hands of her mother and her mother's partner, an independent review panel found multiple lapses at multiple agencies. For example, because the principal at her preschool had been on leave, a report about Megan's injuries was only sent 17 days after the teachers noticed the bruises. Officers at agencies had also failed to follow up properly, and a community worker had been under the mistaken belief that only a family member can make a police report about a missing child. But even after a report was finally made, the investigation officer failed to contact Megan's mother and her partner—then was re-deployed during the pandemic and let the case fall to the wayside.

The panel points to the importance of adequately resourced child protection services that can take on the primary responsibility of handling such cases, and sensitising all professionals who work with children to recognise child safety issues.

Masagos Zulkifli, Minister for Social and Family Development, has apologised, recognising that there was more that could have been done.

And here's an op-ed written by Cindy Ng-Tay, the director of Melrose Home at Children's Aid Society:

Reform is not only about clearer Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) or new frameworks. It must reach deeper into the culture, instincts and reflexes of our child protection ecosystem.

This requires addressing tangible issues that child protection professionals face, such as caseload fatigue, performance pressures and communication gaps that can dull professional judgement.

Capacity building must extend beyond the core protective services. Those who encounter children daily – childcare educators, preschool teachers, healthcare and community workers – should be equipped to notice when something feels “off” and feel confident to act on that intuition.

A strong child protection system is one where each of us feels the responsibility to notice, to act, and, when necessary, to question or challenge assessments, especially when our professional views contradict those of statutory bodies. For this to hold, the authorities too must embrace constructive challenges, respect differing professional views, and be willing to re‑examine their assessments of a child’s safety. 

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Twelve Cupcakes has gone into provisional liquidation. It announced its sudden closure on 30 October, leaving about 80 workers high and dry. The Food, Drinks and Allied Workers Union has slammed this as "completely unacceptable and unfair".

Multiple workers gathered at the Ministry of Manpower's services centre on Friday morning demanding answers and justice. They'd only been told at the end of the work day on 29 October that the chain was closing down, and their salaries for the month are so far unpaid. This is particularly shitty timing for those who are due to pay rent, or risk eviction. Non-Singaporean workers on S Passes now have to find new jobs within 30 days, or lose their ability to stay in the country.

MOM and the CPF Board say they're looking into this case. As it turns out, the company had been in the red for a couple of years.

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Man, that's a lot of money. This past week, the police confiscated or issued prohibition of disposal orders against assets worth more than an eye-watering $150 million, all in relation to investigations into forgery and money laundering. At the heart of this probe is Prince Holding Group, one of the largest conglomerates in Cambodia, and its founder Chen Zhi. The US recently indicted Chen, charging him for "wire fraud conspiracy and money laundering conspiracy for directing Prince Group’s operation of forced-labor scam compounds across Cambodia". The US says that people had been held against their will and forced to engage in cryptocurrency scams. Singaporeans and Singapore-based entities allegedly linked to Chen have also been put on the US sanctions list.

Chen and his group aren't the only ones that have attracted the authorities' attention. The cops are also after the alleged Singaporean masterminds of a scam ring operated out of Cambodia. A total of 27 Singaporeans are on the police's list for alleged involvement in more than 400 scams amounting to at least $41 million. These suspects include brothers and their cousin, Covid-restriction breachers, and... *checks notes*... a guy who went to ACS(I). I guess The Straits Times couldn't find anything else to say about him.

Upcoming trips!

🇦🇺 I'll be at OzAsia's Weekend of Words in Adelaide, where I'll be speaking in two sessions: Fake News / Real Journalism and I Get My News from TikTok (confession: I don't actually, this is just the title of the session). I'm also scheduled to do a live reading—I just have to decide what I'll be reading!

🇦🇺 And after Adelaide comes Brisbane, where I'll be talking about my observations of the experiences of death row families: Between two worlds – death row families in Singapore.

Thank you for reading! As always, feel free to forward this weekly wrap to anyone you like, and spread the word about this newsletter!