SINGAPORE: North Vista Secondary teachers and students who went back to the school on Monday (Nov 23) during the final term break were shocked to see red paint splattered on the wall bearing the school’s name and logo next to its main gate.
On what looked like loan-shark graffiti, there were also posters listing the details of a man and his son, who had apparently acted as a guarantor for the former's debts amounting to S$2,500.
The posters stated that the son was a student from “Rivervale Secondary School”. There is no such school, and North Vista Secondary principal Regina Lee told TODAY that there was no such person enrolled in her school, which is situated along Rivervale Link.
Mrs Lee said she has checked the names of the man and his son with the school’s database and found that they “had nothing to do with the school”. The school has lodged a police report.
A picture of the defaced wall and the posters was sent to TODAY by members of the public. When TODAY visited the school at about 1.30pm, workers were cleaning up the wall. The posters had also been removed.
Residents nearby and North Vista Secondary students said they were shocked by the graffiti, which was purportedly the work of loan shark runners. Nevertheless, the residents said loan shark harassment was not a big problem in the neighbourhood.
Minister of State (Manpower) Teo Ser Luck, who is the Member of Parliament taking care of the area, said he has received feedback from a few residents who have been victims of loan shark harassment. Mr Teo said the town council is working very closely with the police on such cases.
He added that the handful of affected residents had requested for closed-circuit television cameras to be installed outside their flats. These requests would be assessed on a case-by-case basis as there are privacy concerns, Mr Teo said. He reiterated the need for residents to be the authorities’ eyes and ears on the ground. “It is very important for neighbours to feedback to us and keep their neighbourhoods safe,” he said.
-TODAY/ek