Shitty fight: toilet chairman vs hygiene chairman

[LITTLEREDDOT]

Hawker culture
Forum: Time to work on cleanliness, hygiene standards

A woman taking a used bowl to the return station at a hawker centre on Aug 10, 2020.PHOTO: ST FILE

DEC 18, 2020

I am a Singaporean and a die-hard fan of our hawker centres.

I applaud the National Heritage Board, the National Environment Agency and the Federation of Merchants' Associations Singapore for working tirelessly for nearly three years to secure the Unesco listing for our hawker culture.

However, I worry about the state of hygiene at hawker centres. Most of the centres that I visit, which include many of the well-known ones, still fall short of the cleanliness and hygiene standards that one expects in a food centre. Tables are still littered with leftovers and dirty tissue paper, as well as trays of crockery that have not been returned to the allocated stations.

I wonder how tourists would be attracted to patronise our food centres should the present situation remain unchanged.

Given the latest news, it is timely for the relevant agencies to make a more concerted effort to ensure the bad habits of diners at our hawker centres are curtailed, even by an enactment of law if necessary. This may help improve the situation such that cleanliness and good hygiene practised at the centres become part and parcel of our cultural heritage.

The Unesco listing is an honour and we must strive to always be deserving of it.


Andrew Tan Chye Hee

 

[LITTLEREDDOT]

Forum: No letting up on drive to cultivate cleanliness culture

A woman taking a used bowl to the return station at a hawker centre on Aug 10, 2020.PHOTO: ST FILE

DEC 31, 2020

The Public Hygiene Council (PHC) agrees with the views expressed by Mr Andrew Tan Chye Hee in his letter (Hawker culture: Time to work on cleanliness, hygiene standards, Dec 18).

Like Mr Tan, we are immensely proud that our hawker culture has been added to the Unesco Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity. We are just as concerned about the state of hygiene in our hawker centres.

The PHC has worked very hard over the past years to educate a wide spectrum of society, including schools, parents, grassroots communities, cinema operators, food business operators, non-profit environmental groups and corporations, on the importance of cleanliness and hygiene in public spaces, including hawker centres, but it has been an uphill task.

We will continue with our public education efforts and appeal to all Singaporeans to do their part so that the hawker culture we are so proud of includes the culture of cleanliness and hygiene.

Edward D'Silva
Chairman, Public Hygiene Council

 

[LITTLEREDDOT]

Forum: Cleanliness of hawker centre toilets needs to be improved

JAN 2, 2021

I refer to the letter by the Public Hygiene Council (Hawker centres: No letting up on drive to cultivate cleanliness culture, Dec 31).

The council says it has worked hard to educate a wide spectrum of society on the importance of cleanliness and hygiene in public spaces. But what are the real impact and outcomes?

We need to know what the council has delivered and why toilets in hawker centres and coffee shops are still some of the dirtiest in Singapore.

The council states on its website that it was formed in 2011 "to promote good hygiene practices and to improve personal and public hygiene standards in Singapore".

"The council, comprising representatives from multiple sectors, works to strengthen and coordinate community efforts to improve the cleanliness and hygiene standards in Singapore".

Among the council members is the chairman of the Foochow Coffee Restaurant and Bar Merchants Association.

Why is the council unable to improve the cleanliness of toilets in hawker centres and coffee shops despite having such distinguished members?

The users of hawker centres and coffee shops are the same as those of shopping centres.

I would like to understand why those toilets still fall short of expected standards in hygiene.

Jack Sim
Founder
World Toilet Organisation

 

[LITTLEREDDOT]

Forum: Coffee shop operators and users play a part to keep toilets clean

JAN 17, 2021

Mr Jack Sim correctly pointed out that various stakeholders from across society are represented in the Public Hygiene Council (PHC) (Cleanliness of hawker centre toilets needs to be improved, Jan 2). They work with us to create a culture where everyone disposes of trash correctly and keeps public eating places and toilets clean.

In July last year, PHC announced our partnership with leading coffee shop chains - such as Broadway, Chang Cheng, Foodfare, GHK, Kimly, Kim San Leng, Kopitiam and S11 - to work towards achieving the SG Clean quality mark certification by ensuring higher cleanliness and hygiene standards for their premises and toilets.

The Foochow Coffee Restaurant and Bar Merchants Association, which represents more than 400 coffee shop owners, is another significant partner in this effort.

Coffee shop operators have also responded well to the Toilet Improvement Programme launched last October by the National Environment Agency for coffee shops and hawker centres. Under this programme, coffee shop owners are given grants to carry out improvement works to their toilets. Their toilet cleaners are also given training free.

Mr Sim asked why the hygiene standard of toilets in hawker centres and coffee shops is below that of toilets in shopping centres when the users are the same. We need to recognise that user behaviour varies on different premises. How a user behaves depends on the setting and surroundings of premises. Even so, if users play their part and keep the premises clean, it will lead to other users following suit.

Inculcating good habits takes time. It also takes everyone - not just the owners and operators of these public facilities but also those who use them - being responsible and doing their part to raise the standard of hygiene in our public toilets in Singapore.


Edward D'Silva
Chairman
Public Hygiene Council

 

[LITTLEREDDOT]

Forum: Give details of what is being done to improve cleanliness of coffee shop toilets

20 JAN 2021

The Singapore Management University's Toilet Cleanliness Index survey revealed the failure of efforts to maintain a culture of clean toilets in Singapore, and showed that toilets in coffee shops and hawker centres have been getting dirtier over the years instead of getting better (Singapore's public toilets dirtier since 2016: Study, May 27, 2020).

We disagree with Public Hygiene Council (PHC) chairman Edward D'Silva saying that responsible users are also part of the solution, since cleanliness has not improved over the years (Coffee shop operators and users play a part to keep toilets clean, Jan 18).

He mentioned that the Foochow Coffee Restaurant and Bar Merchants Association, which represents more than 400 coffee shop owners, is a significant partner in the cleanliness drive, but has offered no concrete details on what these coffee shops are doing to improve the cleanliness of their toilets.

The PHC is funded by taxpayers' money and the public has a right to know what it is doing in concrete terms, and what the measurable outcomes of its efforts are.

Jack Sim
Founder, World Toilet Organisation

 

[LITTLEREDDOT]

Forum: Facility's quality and maintenance are key to toilet cleanliness

20 JAN 2021

Singaporeans often visit coffee shops and hawker centres, but dirty public toilets are still a problem in these places.

There is no proof that users' behaviour varies depending on the setting and surroundings of the premises (Coffee shop operators and users play a part to keep toilets clean, Jan 18).

The issue of dirty public toilets in coffee shops and hawker centres is not new. While it is easy to say that every stakeholder, particularly the user, can take ownership to raise the cleanliness and hygiene standards of public toilets, the key to cleanliness lies in the quality and maintenance of the facility.

Coffee shop operators and hawker centre managers ought to follow recommendations from the comprehensive manual, A Guide to Better Public Toilet Design and Maintenance, published by the Restroom Association (Singapore), and which the National Environment Agency website also provides a link to.

If toilet maintenance followed the manual's recommended schedule - cleaning every half an hour during peak hours, and every one or two hours during off-peak periods, with regular replenishment of essential supplies such as soap and toilet paper - we would likely see an immediate marked improvement.

Almost all toilets in Japan are well maintained and kept spotlessly clean, and toiletries are always provided.

We may take years to achieve the high standards of the Japanese.

It is important that the task begins with the right approach and attitude by operators and owners.

Paul Chan Poh Hoi

 

[syed putra]

Chinese filthy eating habit of leaving bones and discarded food on tables.

 

[LITTLEREDDOT]

Singapore's public toilets dirtier since 2016: Study
Key factors likely lack of good hygiene habits, poor facilities; 3 in 5 polled want overhaul

Cheryl Teh

MAY 27, 2020


Despite endless exhortations to keep Singapore's public toilets clean, they have become dirtier since 2016, according to a new islandwide study of more than 1,000 toilets in hawker centres and coffee shops.

This might boil down to two key factors: a continued lack of good public hygiene habits, and creaky toilet facilities such as taps that do not work and clogged toilets, said those behind the project conducted by the Singapore Management University (SMU).

"Public awareness needs to be raised in abundance, and the operators of coffee shops and hawker centres need to step up their game if they care about public hygiene," said project coordinator and SMU senior lecturer of statistics Rosie Ching.

The study, titled "Waterloo", was conducted by Ms Ching and 157 SMU graduates from Jan 10 to Feb 7.

They polled some 6,000 patrons of 104 out of 114 hawker centres in Singapore, and 1,181 of the 1,330 coffee shops across Singapore, asking them 100 questions on toilet cleanliness, including aspects such as mirrors, taps, sinks, soap dispensers, toilet paper, toilet bowls, flushes, floors, rubbish bins, sanitation bins, urinals and ventilation.

This follows a similar survey done in 2016 by Ms Ching and her then students.

The 2020 version found that the dirtiest public toilets are in Tuas, Telok Blangah and Bukit Batok. Marina South topped the list for having the cleanest public toilets, followed by Tanglin and Changi.

Coffee shop toilets are deemed significantly dirtier than hawker centre toilets.

But the latter also saw its cleanliness standards drop significantly compared with four years ago, based on respondents' feedback.

Coffee shop toilets remained as filthy as they were in 2016.

Said Ms Ching: "It's disheartening to see statistical analyses reveal a marked regression in toilet hygiene from 2016, and furthermore, in almost every single attribute of toilet cleanliness on average."

BASIC MAINTENANCE NEEDED
Dry floors, odourless areas and adequate ventilation will help. But maintaining the basic necessities alone - like unchoked, flushable toilets, or taps that work - this is the bare minimum.
MS ROSIE CHING, Singapore Management University senior lecturer of statistics, on the need to upgrade infrastructure.

IMPACT ON FOOD HYGIENE
I don't have high expectations of cleanliness since there are so many people working at and patronising hawker centres with high footfall. But it's hard to think of our food being prepared with 100 per cent cleanliness, with the communal toilet being so dirty.
MR EVAN TAN, a hawker at a coffee shop in Bishan, on the condition of hawker centre toilets.

The students interviewed 8,217 customers and hawkers about the state of toilets in coffee shops and food centres across all postal codes in Singapore.

More than a quarter of 5,948 customers polled said that they would not use the toilets at hawkers and coffee shops, with three in five saying there was a need for an overhaul of the state of Singapore's toilets.

Accountant Jennifer Ng, 27, said she often patronised the hawker outlet at Block 308, Clementi Avenue 4, but was turned off by the "revolting" sight of the toilets.

"I refrain from using the toilets at any hawker centre or foodcourt, because I'm really disgusted by what I see and smell in the bathrooms," Ms Ng said. "It can be very gross and it spoils my appetite completely."

Hawker Evan Tan, 46, who works at a stall at a coffee shop in Bishan, said that the toilets he uses have always been dirty, but not much has been done in the past five years to improve their condition.

"I don't have high expectations of cleanliness since there are so many people working at and patronising hawker centres with high footfall. But it's hard to think of our food being prepared with 100 per cent cleanliness, with the communal toilet being so dirty," Mr Tan said.

The Straits Times also spoke to several cleaners, including Madam Low Loke Heng, 67, who said that she cleans the toilets four to five times during her 12-hour shifts at a Eunos coffee shop but it "just isn't enough".

"Just an hour after I finish cleaning, I come back to find unflushed toilets, water pooling around the basins, and sometimes puddles of urine on the floor," she said. "I wish people would be courteous enough to clean up after themselves, as it would make our jobs easier."

Beyond habits, public toilet infrastructure needs to be upgraded, said Ms Ching.

"Dry floors, odourless areas and adequate ventilation will help. But maintaining the basic necessities alone - like unchoked, flushable toilets, or taps that work - this is the bare minimum," she said.

Meanwhile, Mr Edward D'Silva, chairman of the Public Hygiene Council, proposed a "carrot and stick" approach.

This would involve giving coffee shop and hawker centre operators a one-year grace period to upgrade their toilets with modern, working facilities such as by putting in hand dryers or paper towel dispensers, clean mirrors, and new and unstained urinals and toilet bowls.
He suggests making mandatory a system that rates public toilets in terms of their cleanliness.

If hygiene standards fall consistently below a certain ranking, fines could be imposed, he added.

"This will help improve personal and public hygiene, particularly during the Covid-19 pandemic and beyond," said Mr D'Silva.

 

[eatshitndie]

don’t need to talk about poor sinkie hygiene and habits when eating out, they have the same shitty attitudes and behaviors at home. the worst are the millennials and younger generations. every time there’s a family dinner, the pioneer and merdeka folks are the only ones picking up bones and shells on the table, clearing the dirty plates and bowls, cleaning up the table and floor, and washing the dishes. the younger generation brats sit around, finger their mobiles, lock eyes on screens, and don’t even say thanks nor acknowledge the shit that older generations go through, including cleaning up after them. sg is fucked with young sinkies being served and spoilt by maids. return tray, be considerate, and be gracious policies will remain failures unless sinkie parents avoid hiring maids, teach their kids manners, and inculcate into them some hardship lessons when very young.

 

[Cottonmouth]

Andrew should take a look at shitskin videos on YouTube and realize how clean hawkers are.

 

[knnccb]

these fuckers only know how to talk shit sing song

 

[kaninabuchaojibye]

matter of time fines to be issued for not clearing your tray or utensils
repeat offenders will have to served corrective work order as table cleaners
haaaa
gxgx

 

[Leongsam]

As long as the chinks are the majority in Singapore there is absolutely no way to improve hygiene standards.

 

[countryman]

These are all upbringing.. If the kids or teenagers don't help to clear up after eating, it's all the parents fault for spoiling them.

 

[countryman]

As long as the chinks are the majority in Singapore there is absolutely no way to improve hygiene standards.

Not only chinks, Sinkies are just as bad. U go to any hawker centre n you'll see them leaving a big mess on the table after eating. Used tissues lying everywhere on the floor n even used tissues can be found @The sink area for washing hands!
Big turn off!

 

[Leongsam]

Not only chinks, Sinkies are just as bad. U go to any hawker centre n you'll see them leaving a big mess on the table after eating. Used tissues lying everywhere on the floor n even used tissues can be found @The sink area for washing hands!
Big turn off!

When I say "chinks" I'm referring to Sinkie chinks ie the yellow ones that were born and bred in Singapore.

 

[laksaboy]

I wonder how tourists would be attracted to patronise our food centres should the present situation remain unchanged.

Don't worry about that, I'm sure the tourists are still attracted to dine at the hawker centres without your concern trolling.

The Unesco listing is an honour and we must strive to always be deserving of it.

Indeed, bribery is such an honour. I bet you've never checked the other nominees on UNESCO's list. Never change, you silly lanjiao langs who write to the Shitty Times Forum.

 

[laksaboy]

Forum: Facility's quality and maintenance are key to toilet cleanliness

20 JAN 2021

Singaporeans often visit coffee shops and hawker centres, but dirty public toilets are still a problem in these places.

There is no proof that users' behaviour varies depending on the setting and surroundings of the premises (Coffee shop operators and users play a part to keep toilets clean, Jan 18).

The issue of dirty public toilets in coffee shops and hawker centres is not new. While it is easy to say that every stakeholder, particularly the user, can take ownership to raise the cleanliness and hygiene standards of public toilets, the key to cleanliness lies in the quality and maintenance of the facility.

Coffee shop operators and hawker centre managers ought to follow recommendations from the comprehensive manual, A Guide to Better Public Toilet Design and Maintenance, published by the Restroom Association (Singapore), and which the National Environment Agency website also provides a link to.

If toilet maintenance followed the manual's recommended schedule - cleaning every half an hour during peak hours, and every one or two hours during off-peak periods, with regular replenishment of essential supplies such as soap and toilet paper - we would likely see an immediate marked improvement.

Almost all toilets in Japan are well maintained and kept spotlessly clean, and toiletries are always provided.

We may take years to achieve the high standards of the Japanese.

It is important that the task begins with the right approach and attitude by operators and owners.

Paul Chan Poh Hoi

Paul Chan Poh Hoi is a Tiananmen Massacre apologist.

Paul Chan Poh Hoi's letter.
https://www.straitstimes.com/forum/letters-in-print/tiananmen-crackdown-was-necessary

A response.
https://www.straitstimes.com/forum/letters-in-print/read-history-before-referencing-it

---

Probably this guy:
https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100008578817749

 

[LITTLEREDDOT]

World Toilet Organisation chairman Jack Sim asked Public Hygiene Council chairman what has been done to improve the cleanliness of coffee shop toilets.
https://www.sammyboy.com/threads/sh...rman-vs-hygiene-chairman.298589/#post-3308046

Instead of replying, PHC chairman writes a por lum par letter to take Senior Minister of State for Sustainability and the Environment (what a mouthful) Amy Khor for her explaination.

The PHC chairman knows his priority. It is ok to ignore Toilet chairman and the cleanliness of coffee shop toilets because it is more important to be seen to be supporting SMSSE Amy Khor.

Forum: Make clearing one's own table a way of life

26 FEB 2021

The Public Hygiene Council (PHC) fully supports the Clean Tables Campaign launched by the National Environment Agency on Feb 6.

A national campaign is timely. It will reinforce the work that the PHC has been doing all these years, with institutions and business operators across the public, private and people sectors to persuade and educate the public on cleanliness and good hygiene habits in public places.

Used tissues and food waste left on the table are potential biohazards. These pose a threat to the people who have to clear these up when we leave them behind on the table. Thus, cleaning up one's own table can potentially minimise the risk of infectious diseases spreading.

The cleaners can then focus on their work to clean and disinfect tables, as well as sort and distribute trays and crockery to the stalls.

The PHC also thanks Senior Minister of State for Sustainability and the Environment Amy Khor for explaining so clearly why clearing tables ourselves will not deprive cleaners of their jobs. This is something the PHC has been reiterating in our outreach efforts.

The more important point is this - we need to be ready for the time when this generation of senior citizens retires or passes on, because the next generation will be different.

They will be more educated and less willing to become cleaners in their senior years. Their numbers will dwindle. So we had better get used to cleaning up after ourselves.

PHC will do its part to support the Clean Tables Campaign and hopes that the public will respond by helping to keep the tables clean and free of litter.

Only when the environment is clean and healthy can we enjoy a pleasant and enjoyable dining experience.

Edward D'Silva
Chairman, Public Hygiene Council

 

[hairylee]

This will give PAP an excuse to increase prices across the board.