Latest news with #MCCY
AsiaOne
13-06-2025
- Entertainment
- AsiaOne
Singaporeans can use SG Culture Pass credits for over 200 arts and heritage events from September, Lifestyle News
Locals can look forward to immersing themselves even more into the nation's arts and heritage scene later this year. Singaporeans will be able to use their $100 SG Culture Pass credits on at least 200 arts and heritage programmes when it launches in September, the Ministry of Culture, Community and Youth (MCCY) announced today (June 13). This will include a variety of activities and events ranging from performances and tours to exhibitions and workshops, and will provide a total ticket capacity of more than 700,000. The full list of SG Culture Pass offerings will be available on the official website at from September and will be updated regularly to reflect new programmes. MCCY will also continue to accept programme applications from the arts and heritage sector. The deadline to submit applications to be part of the first wave of programmes launched under the SG Culture Pass is June 30, and new programmes will be considered on a rolling basis until 2028. The SG Culture Pass initiative was first announced in February during Prime Minister Lawrence Wong's Budget 2025 speech, in which the government announced that every Singaporean aged 18 and above will receive $100 worth of SG Culture Pass credits to offset ticket costs to local arts and heritage events. The initiative is to encourage attendance for local arts and heritage activities. View this post on Instagram A post shared by The Intan (@theintansg) Some examples of activities and programmes under the SG Culture Pass include The Intan Tea Experience, a heritage learning tour where participants can experience Peranakan culture through its collections and sampling Nyonya kuehs in a private museum with founder Alvin Yapp. Another is HeyCyann's Jrawing with Jagua workshop on beginner-friendly jagua semi-permanent tattoo art. For those who enjoy sitting back and enjoying the show, there's also Nam Hwa Opera Limited's The Legend of White Snake theatre performance, where four major Chinese opera genres are combined to tell the Chinese classic love story of a white snake spirit and mortal man. Semarak Seni 2025 is a dance performance by Sri Warisan Som Said Performing Arts. Singapore Chinese Cultural Centre (SCCC) will also offer programmes and workshops for both young and old. For the seniors, their Happy Sing Along music concert will happen twice each month and will feature Mandarin and dialect songs performed by local artistes. SCCC will also have a regular series of activities and workshops to encourage family bonding and help them learn the Chinese language like an Egg Tart Making Workshop and Gift of Theatre Parent-Child Bonding Workshop. SG Culture Pass currently has five authorised ticketing partners: BookMyShow, Sistic, GlobalTix, Klook and Pelago. David Neo, Acting Minister for Culture, Community and Youth and Senior Minister of State for Education, said in a statement that he is "very heartened that various arts and heritage partners have enthusiastically participated in the SG Culture pass initiative". "Together, we can make Singapore arts and heritage flourish and thrive even more," he added. [[nid:716075]]
Straits Times
13-06-2025
- Entertainment
- Straits Times
S'poreans can use $100 SG Culture Pass credits for over 200 arts and heritage events: MCCY
Singaporeans aged 18 and above will be able to use their $100 worth of credits under the SG Culture Pass to participate in events such as the Singapore Chinese Cultural Centre's Happy Sing-Along. PHOTO: SINGAPORE CHINESE CULTURAL CENTRE S'poreans can use $100 SG Culture Pass credits for over 200 arts and heritage events: MCCY SINGAPORE – Come September , Singaporeans aged 18 and above will be able to use their $100 worth of credits under the SG Culture Pass to participate in more than 200 arts and heritage programmes, the Ministry of Culture, Community and Youth (MCCY) announced on June 13. Currently, the confirmed programmes provide a total ticket capacity of over 700,000 and more programmes are in the works. The deadline for groups and individuals to submit applications to be part of the SG Culture Pass for the scheme's Sept 1 launch is June 30, and new programmes will be considered on a rolling basis until 2028. Confirmed programmes include The Legend Of White Snake, a theatre performance by Nam Hwa Opera Limited; Semarak Seni 2025, a dance performance by Sri Warisan Som Said Performing Arts; Happy Sing-Along , a monthly programme featuring Mandarin and dialect songs by Singapore Chinese Cultural Centre; as well as art and heritage workshops by soya sauce-maker Nanyang Sauce and art jamming venue Artify Studio. Mr Alex Chua, co-founder of Book Bar in Duxton Road, told The Straits Times that his bookstore will also be participating in the scheme – with Singapore literature titles eligible for purchase using the credits. According to posters by Arts House Limited, tickets to the Singapore Writers Festival, which runs from Nov 7 to 16, can also be purchased with the credits. The five authorised ticketing partners for the SG Culture Pass are BookMyShow, Sistic, GlobalTix, Klook and Pelago. MCCY has not yet announced the logistics for credit redemption, and warned that any message offering redemption before September is fraudulent. Mr David Neo, Acting Minister for Culture, Community and Youth and Senior Minister of State for Education, said in a statement: 'The arts and heritage define who we are as Singaporeans. The Government is fully committed to develop the local arts and heritage sector, not just through direct resourcing, but also in stepping up audience development efforts, to benefit the whole sector.' A total of $300 million has been set aside for the SG Culture Pass initiative announced at Budget 2025 to encourage Singaporeans to attend local performances, exhibitions and experiences. It is the first incentive of its kind here to target the arts and heritage sector. Shawn Hoo is a journalist on the arts beat at The Straits Times. He covers books, theatre and the visual arts. Join ST's Telegram channel and get the latest breaking news delivered to you.
AsiaOne
10-06-2025
- Business
- AsiaOne
Singaporean owner of defunct company barred from raising funds for charity after regulatory breaches, Singapore News
A Singaporean man, 26, has been barred from carrying out fundraising activities after he was found to have breached multiple regulations. Eugene Liow Chia Hau will not be able to raise funds for charitable, benevolent or philanthropic purposes from Tuesday (June 10). In a joint statement on the same day, the Ministry of Culture, Community and Youth (MCCY) and the Ministry of Social and Family Development (MSF) said that the Commissioner of Charities had received feedback between July 2023 and January 2024 about fund-raising appeals carried out by Direct Hope, which was run by Liow. The now-defunct company was engaged by the youth charity Bilby Community Development as a commercial fund-raiser between May 2023 and January 2024. Investigations by MSF found that Liow, who is the sole proprietor of Direct Hope, had multiple breaches under the Charities (Fund-raising Appeals for Local and Foreign Charitable Purposes) Regulations. Liow did not place adequate "control measures and safeguards to ensure proper accountability" of donations collected by Direct Hope, and to prevent them from being lost or stolen, MCCY and MSF said. "He also did not maintain proper accounting records of the fund-raising appeals, or a list of the personal particulars of Direct Hope's collectors," they said. Checks by AsiaOne showed that Direct Hope is not a registered charity. Its business records listing its principal activity as "other social services without accommodation". Its other principal activity involved the sale of handicrafts, collectibles and gifts. Direct Hope was registered as a business in August 2021, and its licence expired three years later and was not renewed. A screenshot of the Direct Hope website, shared on social media, showed the group describing itself as a "community-driven social youth enterprise" that purportedly supports "marginalised youths" through "direct selling activities". AsiaOne found that online complaints about Direct Hope going door to door soliciting donations have been circulating since 2022. MCCY and MSF said that while most fund-raising appeals are genuine, it is important for the public to continue practicing safer giving to ensure "their donations are used for genuine charitable purposes". The ministries said that members of the public should ask questions and check the Charity Portal at to find out if a charity is registered or has shared details of its public fund-raising appeal. They can scan a QR code on the official letter provided by the charitable organisation, which will lead to more details on the Charity Portal. Members of the public can also send an SMS to 79777, which should be formatted as FR , followed by a space and the organisation's name, or call the Charities Unit on 6337-6597. "Members of the public should not feel pressured to give if they have concerns or suspect that an appeal for donations is not legitimate," MCCY and MSF said. They can make a report to the COC at mccy_charities@ to alert them on suspicious fund-raising activities. If it is a suspected scam or fraud case, then they should file a police report immediately. [[nid:688365]] chingshijie@
New Paper
10-06-2025
- Business
- New Paper
Man, 26, barred from conducting fundraising for charity
A 26-year-old Singaporean man has been barred from carrying out any fundraising activities after he was found to have breached multiple regulations. Starting from June 10, Mr Eugene Liow Chia Hau will no longer be able to raise funds for charitable, benevolent or philanthropic purposes, said the Ministry of Culture, Community and Youth (MCCY) and Ministry of Social and Family Development (MSF) in a statement that same day. The prohibition order was first published in the electronic gazette on June 9 and was issued by the Commissioner of Charities (COC). The Straits Times had approached MCCY for more information upon the publication of the notice. In their June 10 statement, the ministries said the COC had received feedback between July 2023 and January 2024 about fundraising appeals carried out by Direct Hope, which was run by Mr Liow. Direct Hope had been engaged by the youth charity Bilby Community Development as a commercial fundraiser between May 2023 and January 2024. The feedback led to an investigation by MSF, which found Mr Liow to have breached multiple regulations under the Charities (Fund-raising Appeals for Local and Foreign Charitable Purposes) Regulations 2012. He did not implement "control measures and safeguards to ensure proper accountability" of the donations collected by Direct Hope, nor ways to prevent donations from being lost or stolen. Mr Liow also did not keep proper accounting records of the fundraising appeals, and did not have a list of the personal particulars of those who had helped Direct Hope solicit for donations. A sole proprietorship, Direct Hope was not a registered charity, with a search of its business records listing its principal activity as "other social services without accommodation". Its other principal activity involved the sale of handicrafts, collectibles and gifts. Incorporated in August 2021, its business licence expired in August 2024 and was not renewed, with a search on its website showing that it is no longer active. An archived version dated in August 2024 showed that it marketed itself as a "community driven social youth enterprise" that aimed to help marginalised youth. This was done through "teaching them important life skills & values, giving them community support and by alleviating their financial burdens through job opportunities and entrepreneurial projects". A search online showed that complaints about Direct Hope going door-to-door soliciting donations have been circulating since at least 2022. Advising the public to be discerning when approached by those soliciting donations, the ministries said that although most fundraising appeals are genuine, it is important to verify that their donations are going to legitimate causes. Besides asking questions, the ministries said that people can check through the Charity Portal at to find out if a charity is registered or has shared details of its public fundraising appeal. Otherwise, they can scan a QR code on the official letter provided by the charitable organisation, which will lead to more details on the Charity Portal. They can also send an SMS to 79777, which should be formatted as FR, followed by a space, and the organisation's name, or call the Charities Unit at 6337 6597. "Members of the public should not feel pressured to give if they have concerns or suspect that an appeal for donations is not legitimate," the statement said. If one suspects that a fundraising activity may be suspicious, they can make a report to the COC at mccy_charities@ If it is a suspected scam or fraud case, then they should file a police report immediately.
Straits Times
10-06-2025
- Business
- Straits Times
Singaporean man barred from conducting fundraising for charitable purposes: MCCY, MSF
An archived version of Direct Hope's website from August 2024, which shows it marketing itself as a social youth enterprise. PHOTO: SCREENGRAB FROM INTERNET ARCHIVE SINGAPORE - A 26-year-old Singaporean man has been barred from carrying out any fundraising activities after he was found to have breached multiple regulations. Starting from June 10 , Mr Eugene Liow Chia Hau will no longer be able to raise funds for charitable, benevolent or philanthropic purposes, said the Ministry of Culture, Community and Youth (MCCY) and Ministry of Social and Family Development (MSF) in a statement that same day. The prohibition order was first published in the electronic gazette on June 9 and was issued by the Commissioner of Charities (COC). T he Straits Times had approached MCCY for more information upon the publication of the notice. In their June 10 statement, the ministries said the COC had received feedback between July 2023 and January 2024 about fundraising appeals carried out by Direct Hope , which was run by Mr Liow. Direct Hope had been engaged by the youth charity Bilby Community Development as a commercial fundraiser between May 2023 and January 2024. The feedback led to an investigation by MSF, which found Mr Liow to have breached multiple regulations under the Charities (Fund-raising Appeals for Local and Foreign Charitable Purposes) Regulations 2012. He did not implement 'control measures and safeguards to ensure proper accountability' of the donations collected by Direct Hope, nor ways to prevent donations from being lost or stolen. Mr Liow also did not keep proper accounting records of the fundraising appeals, and did not have a list of the personal particulars of those who had helped Direct Hope solicit for donations. A sole proprietorship , Direct Hope was not a registered charity , with a search of its business records listing its principal activity as 'other social services without accommodation'. Its other principal activity involved the sale of handicrafts, collectibles and gifts. Incorporated in August 2021 , its business licence expired in August 2024 and was not renewed , with a search on its website showing that it is no longer active. An archived version dated in August 2024 showed that it marketed itself as a 'community driven social youth enterprise' that aimed to help marginalised youth. This was done through 'teaching them important life skills & values, giving them community support and by alleviating their financial burdens through job opportunities and entrepreneurial projects'. A search online showed that complaints about Direct Hope going door-to-door soliciting donations have been circulating since at least 2022. Advising the public to be discerning when approached by those soliciting donations, the ministries said that although most fundraising appeals are genuine, it is important to verify that their donations are going to legitimate causes. Besides asking questions, the ministries said that people can check through the Charity Portal at to find out if a charity is registered or has shared details of its public fundraising appeal. Otherwise, they can scan a QR code on the official letter provided by the charitable organisation, which will lead to more details on the Charity Portal. They can also send an SMS to 79777 , which should be formatted as FR, followed by a space, and the organisation's name , or call the Charities Unit at 6337 6597 . 'Members of the public should not feel pressured to give if they have concerns or suspect that an appeal for donations is not legitimate,' the statement said. If one suspects that a fundraising activity may be suspicious, they can make a report to the COC at mccy_charities@ If it is a suspected scam or fraud case, then they should file a police report immediately. Join ST's WhatsApp Channel and get the latest news and must-reads.
