1992 in Singapore explained

Events from the year 1992 in Singapore.

Incumbents

• President

Wee Kim Wee

• Prime Minister

Goh Chok Tong

Events

January

• 3 January – Singapore bans the sale of chewing gum in a bid to prevent disruption to MRT services and reduce gum litter-related issues. This came after two incidents where MRT doors were unable to close fully due to gum. In 2004, the ban is partially lifted for gums with medicinal value.^[1]
• 10 January – The Ministry of Education announced the Trim and Fit scheme for overweight children.^[2]
• 28 January – The ASEAN Free Trade Area agreement is signed.^[3]

February

• 18 February – The International Business Park is launched in Jurong, making it the first business park in Singapore.^[4]

April

• April - The Jurong Bird Park Panorail starts operations.
• 1 April -
  • The Institute of Technical Education is established from the previous Vocational and Industrial Training Board (VITB) to improve vocational education, a day after its launch.^{[5] [6]}
  • Nanyang Polytechnic is formed as Singapore's fourth polytechnic.
  • The Telecommunication Authority of Singapore is reconstituted, resulting in the corporatisation of SingTel and Singapore Post.^[7] SingTel and SingPost will hold a telecommunications licence and postal licence respectively for 15 years.^[8]
  • Tradewinds is rebranded to SilkAir as part of an overhaul, first announced on 12 March.^{[9] [10]}
• 2 April – SCV launches NewsVision, a news cable channel. This marks the start of cable television.^{[11] [12]}
• 20 April – The Night Courts are set up as part of the Subordinate Courts, which mainly deal with traffic and regulatory offences. This helps ease the workload of dealing with many court cases.^[13]

May

• May -
  • The first Singapore Green Plan is introduced.^[14]
  • The Singapore Green Labelling Scheme is launched to certify products that are friendly to the environment.^[15]
• 1 May – The National Council of Social Service is formed to coordinate Voluntary Welfare Organisations in Singapore.
• 28 May – Yishun 10 is opened as Singapore's first multiplex, owned by Golden Village.^[16]

June

• 1 June – SCV launches MovieVision and VarietyVision, both of which are entertainment channels.

July

• 14 July – Construction for the Woodlands MRT extension starts.^[17]

August

• 19 August – The first school rankings for secondary schools are published.^[18]

September

• 1 September – The Inland Revenue Authority of Singapore is formed to take charge of tax collection matters in Singapore.
• 10 September – The Special Operations Command is formed to combine the Police Task Force, the Police Tactical Team and the Police Dog Unit into a single command.
• 29 September – A fire at the Senoko Power Station cuts power to Singapore for 13 hours.^[19]

October

• 25 October – Fitzpatrick's Holdings (now Dairy Farm International) announced the acquisition of Cold Storage stores. The deal takes effect the following year.^[20]

November

• 1 November – A corrective work order takes effect for litterbugs, which mandates them to clean up areas instead of just paying a fine.^[21]
• 14 November – Northpoint Shopping Centre (now Northpoint City) opens to the public.
• 23 November – Temasek Polytechnic's new campus starts construction in Tampines. The new campus, which offers panoramic views of Bedok Reservoir, will be completed by July 1995. The campus officially opened in 1997.^[22]
• 28 November – The first school rankings for junior colleges are published.^[23]

December

• 15 December – The Sentosa Causeway is officially opened. It is a road link that connects Sentosa with mainland Singapore.^{[24] [25]}

Births

• 14 January – Benjamin Khoh, lawyer and actor.
• 23 February – Tabitha Nauser, singer, second runner-up of Singapore Idol (Season 3).
• 23 March – By2, composed of twins Miko Bai Wei-Fen (白緯芬) and Yumi Bai Wei-Ling (白緯玲).
• 7 April – Rahimah Rahim, singer, contestant of Singapore Idol (Season 2).
• 25 April – Lynette Lim, swimmer.^[26]
• 18 August – Quah Ting Wen, swimmer.
• 12 September – Shigga Shay, singer.
• 22 September – Julie Tan, actress.

Deaths

• 6 April – George Edwin Bogaars - Former head of Singapore Civil Service (b. 1926).^[27]
• 28 October – J. W. D. Ambrose - High Court judge (b. 1909).^[28]
• 5 December - Andrew Fong Sip Chee former politician (b. 1938).^[29]

Notes and References

1. Web site: Chewing gum ban. 30 June 2019.
2. Web site: TAF for unfit schoolchildren . The New Paper (retrieved from NLB) . 26 July 2019 . 11 January 1992.
3. Web site: ASEAN leaders agree to create an ASEAN Free Trade Agreement . NLB . 29 July 2019.
4. Web site: Some 16,500 professionals, technicians may work at first International Business Park. 2 July 2019.
5. Web site: ITE to take on research and consultancy work . The Straits Times (retrieved from NLB) . 18 October 2019 . 1 April 1992.
6. Web site: Vocational and Industrial Training Board (VITB) . NLB . 13 September 2019.
7. Web site: Singapore Telecom goes public. NLB. 30 June 2019.
8. Web site: S'pore Telecom to monopolise some services for 15 yrs. The Business Times (retrieved from NLB). 4 September 2019. 2 April 1992.
9. News: Tradewinds to be renamed SilkAir, plans to buy more planes . 27 July 2019 . The Straits Times (retrieved from NLB) . 13 March 1992.
10. News: Ng . Huiwen . SilkAir to merge with Singapore Airlines: 5 things to know about the regional carrier . 27 July 2019 . The Straits Times . 18 May 2018.
11. Web site: News channel on pay TV available from tomorrow . The Straits Times (retrieved from NLB) . 18 October 2019 . 1 April 1992.
12. Web site: First subscription television channel . 4 May 2019 .
13. Web site: Night courts to sit every weekday from April 20 . 17 September 2019 . The Straits Times (retrieved from NLB) . 12 April 1992.
14. Web site: Singapore Green Plan . NLB . 31 July 2019.
15. Web site: About SGLS . SEC . 23 August 2019.
16. Web site: Singapore's first multiplex is opened . NLB . 12 August 2019.
17. Web site: Groundbreaking ceremony for the Woodlands MRT Project . NAS . 22 July 2019 . 14 July 1992.
18. Web site: School ranking . NLB . 27 July 2019.
19. Web site: 1992. 28 November 2018.
20. News: Fitzpatrick's Holdings to buy Cold Storage outlets for $130m . 23 August 2019 . The Straits Times (retrieved from NLB) . 25 October 1992.
21. Web site: Corrective Work Order . NLB . 5 September 2019.
22. Web site: Commencement of Piling Ceremony for Temasek Polytechnic's new campus at Tampines . NAS . 13 September 2019 . 23 November 1992.
23. Web site: School ranking . NLB . 27 July 2019.
24. Web site: Sentosa's new link opens with fiery fanfare . The Straits Times (retrieved from NLB) . 21 September 2019 . 16 December 1992.
25. Web site: Sentosa Causeway . 30 June 2019.
26. https://web.archive.org/web/20200418082822/https://www.sports-reference.com/olympics/athletes/li/lynette-lim-1.html Lim's result page
27. Web site: George Edwin Bogaars . NLB . 12 November 2019.
28. Web site: J. W. D. Ambrose. NLB . 12 November 2019.
29. Web site: Andrew Fong Sip Chee. NLB . 18 September 2022.