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Half Kuala Lumpurian, Half Penangite, Another 0.01 Singaporean

SHOCKING NEWS: NTU Student Stabbed Professor, commited suicide afterwards

with 24 comments

Something happened in my campus today. Something so shocked that I took minutes off my work during my industrial training to think over this. Traumatized and unbelieving, that something like this could have happened in the university that I am in now…

To the family and friends of the victims and involved parties, condolences and to the student – R.I.P.

====================================

Update: 9:24PM

Our NTU President Dr. Su Guan Ning sent 2nd letter to the whole NTU population expressing the deep condolences with a clearer update from the incident. I don’t feel like posting the name of the person involved and if you insisted of knowing who he was, google from the net and not asking from me because I think this is at least some respect that he could earn for the last time. R.I.P. 

 

Dear Faculty, Staff and Students of NTU,

The parents of David H. Wxx., have been informed of the details. Together with Prof Kam Chan Hin, Chair of EEE, Prof Er Meng Hwa, Senior Associate Provost, and Ms Chua Poh Gek from the International Student Centre, I met Mr and Mrs Wxx. and on behalf of the Board of Trustees, management and the NTU community, expressed our heartfelt condolences at the tragic loss. No words can adequately describe how saddened we all are. The university extends every help possible to the family in their moment of grief. Our prayers are with them.

I visited Prof Chan Kap Luk who is recovering at the National University Hospital after surgery which lasted an hour and forty-five minutes. No main arteries or organs were damaged. I am heartened by the many students and colleagues who were also there to offer comfort and support.


DR SU GUANING

PRESIDENT 

 

Everyone has stress. Perhaps he just put it in the wrong way.

==================================

 

Source: http://www.straitstimes.com/Breaking%2BNews/Singapore/Story/STIStory_344879.html

 

The student had apparently jumped from the glass rooftop of a bridge.

This morning, an undergraduate student from Electrical and Electronic Engineering School in NTU had just commited suicide in the campus today, after he stabbed his final year project supervisor and professor.

The seriousness cannot be neglected. And the whole campus is filled with dark cloud during the first day when students were back from their one-week recess.

Stress? Confusion? Frustration? Vengeance? Academic?

There might be a lot of reasons that on why and how the student just like me managed to do something like tat. With due all respect, I shall not come into any conclusion in that. What I am going to tell is just something that poured from my heart immediately after the incident.

\

It reminded my of the Columbine High School incident that happened in USA quite awhile ago, and I couldn’t believe that something like this could have happened in the school I am in! 

Stress. Yes. We are all in stress. For students in NTU (or perhaps NUS and SMU and others..), I CAN TOTALLY UNDERSTAND your feeling. Everyday is like war. Everyday we are filled with commitment and tasks to be fulfilled and no one second can be wasted.

Whatever we do, whatever we say in the campus, it all comes down to the final objective – Exam grade? Results? Or the ultimate degree certificate that we are going to get?

 

No I don’t think so!

Degree is important. But it is just a tool to open the path for you in your career when you are graduated. But whatever it is, it is just the opening part! And often when we concentrate on what we are aiming, sometimes we derail from the most basic stuff that we are supposed to pursue.

Life.

The society nowadays is derailed so much, that many of us mistake that Money is equal to a better life.

I do notice that in myself. I do wish I could have more money, thanks to the mindset of the society nowadays. Because without money you can’t do much for yourself.

But I realised that what we need is to earn what we could, and what we need.

The Last Samurai is a very good movie to remind yourself to be mediocre. Sometimes you walk a big round and return to the starting point, only to realise that what you really need is just some basic neccesities.

OK. Those are not reasons for you to slack off! I don’t mean that. What I am trying to convey here is… Sometimes, we need to slow down, look around, and enjoy.

Don’t be so serious. Just follow the flow of life. And you might find what you really want afterall.

 

p.s.: Seriously, from a stabbing incident I can talk all the way to something not related at all… =.=”

Written by Boon Ming

March 2, 2009 at 2:36 pm

24 Responses

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  1. I feel sad when i see this post… For me at Sabah, it will be stressed oso for the 1st 2 years, so i understand the condition there although now i m starting to be free and got start a part time job here.. Hope that NTU can do a better management about this matter…..

    LowKemMaw

    March 2, 2009 at 6:14 pm

  2. Hehe, Boon Boon, let your mind out, no need to hold back. It seems we hav the capabilities to really elaborate stuffs endlessly.

    Well, how can we not understand d word ‘stress’ ?

    Life are meant to be press forward, no matter what kind of situation undergone / undergoing.

    ChoyHH

    March 2, 2009 at 10:02 pm

  3. I’m in NTU too…And I’m terribly depressed those days. But never could I imagine such a thing to happen. Poor guy! He might not have really wanted to stab the prof…On realizing what he had done, he must have been shock and committed suicide…

    cherry

    March 2, 2009 at 11:16 pm

  4. @kemmaw: yea.. we must know how to find a way to de-stress and know the ways to get out from our own dilemma. That’s why friends are for and remember to approach them when we are in troubles… … sad…

    @CHH: quoted the infamous Hong Kong Bus Uncle, “YOU GOT STRESS, I GOT STRESS, WE ALL GOT STRESS” .. =)

    @cheery: exactly, perhaps he thought he had reached the point of no return and thus ending it like tat … the whole NTU is in grief now…

    Boon Ming

    March 2, 2009 at 11:29 pm

  5. […] SHOCKING NEWS: NTU Student Stabbed Professor, commited suicide afterwards Something happened in my campus today. Something so shocked that I took minutes off my work during my industrial […] […]

  6. meaningful entry… I like the way u convey your ideas with those pics in between which blends out some nice scent.

    For me, I think that one should appreaciate his/her own life more than anyone else do. Commit suicide is not a way to solve everythg. It will just rather like an excuse to a person who blame thgs around or blame himself/herself. so, no point.

    when stress, try to think of the ppl u whom u love/ or ppl who love u. n u’ll surely figure out some other better solutions perhaps.

    take a rest, take a “kit-kat”… hahaha =)

    KenyZ

    March 3, 2009 at 2:22 pm

  7. What a well-expressed blog, Boon. It carries great weight. Well done! It reminds me of the poem entitled ‘slow dance’ written by David L. Weatherford. To all people around the world, life is so beautiful if we could just slow down and appreciate each and every single little thing bestowed on us! Life is BEAUTIFUL!

    SLOW DANCE

    Have you ever watched kids
    On a merry-go-round?
    Or listened to the rain
    Slapping on the ground?
    Ever followed a butterfly’s erratic flight?
    Or gazed at the sun into the fading night?
    You’d better slow down.
    Don’t dance so fast.
    Time is short.
    The music won’t last.

    Do you run through each day
    On the fly?
    When you ask “How are you?”
    Do you hear the reply?
    When the day is done
    Do you lie in your bed
    With the next hundred chores
    Running through your head?
    You’d better slow down
    Don’t dance so fast.
    Time is short.
    The music won’t last.

    Ever told your child,
    We’ll do it tomorrow?
    And in your haste,
    Not see his sorrow?
    Ever lost touch,
    Let a good friendship die
    Cause you never had time
    To call and say “Hi”?
    You’d better slow down.
    Don’t dance so fast.
    Time is short.
    The music won’t last.

    When you run so fast to get somewhere
    You miss half the fun of getting there.
    When you worry and hurry through your day,
    It is like an unopened gift….
    Thrown away.
    Life is not a race.
    Do take it slower
    Hear the music
    Before the song is over.

    By David L. Weatherford

    sue

    March 3, 2009 at 2:48 pm

  8. @KenyZ: hey.. great to see you dropping by… suicide is surely not way to solve problems… haih… *thinking deep*

    @sue: hey… can’t believe you all appear becoz of this incident!!

    what a great and lovely poem.. a great one I’d use to remind me always!! thanks sue yee!! =)

    Boon Ming

    March 3, 2009 at 3:50 pm

  9. Hey Boon Ming, it really is a meaningful entry.

    I especially like the picture that tells us to slow down, relax and enjoy life.

    Life’s short and I think we should spend every minute with our loved ones together.

    Hope to see u soon. ^_^!!

    ba0ling

    March 3, 2009 at 4:03 pm

  10. @baoling: long time no see … “life is short .. live it as if everyday may be our last” … a very powerful quote from Steve Jobs … really.. so must be happy always ah !!

    Boon Ming

    March 3, 2009 at 4:41 pm

  11. I can totally understand the stress in college. Sometimes it will be good to remind ourselves that trying your best is good enough. The art of dealing with stress lies on the courage to accept your own imperfection and gritting your teeth as you move forward. Just remember that fear is nothingness and the obstacles are only temperal. : )

    Rebeka

    March 3, 2009 at 6:32 pm

  12. ops! It’s “temporal”. Tehehehehe. Blinded *.*

    Rebeka

    March 3, 2009 at 6:35 pm

  13. am from NUS.. poor chap.. even am too stressed.. some modules wil really freak you out..!!

    sumesh

    March 3, 2009 at 8:34 pm

    • You can work your butt out at shcool. But in the real world, life is a different story. Stress is a terrible thing and it will affect your health. We must learn to manage it wisely. First, you got to love what you are doing and be passionate about it. Do it for yourself and not any one else. Understand that it is a priviledge to get in to any university, if you can’t, it is not the end of the world. Seek other avenues. It is not impossible. You can always take your degree at a later age. Bill Gates did that. Compete with yourself and not with others. Learning is a priviledge. Learn to create a better world. If you have this attitude, you will go far. Persevere and persist. By all means do it at your pace that you can handle. You health is worth it.

      Remember life is precious. Everyone is important becasue each of you truly have a gift that need to be discovered or nurtured. It is a priviledge to live. Do not ever give your life up. It is a waste.

      Dragonangel

      January 24, 2012 at 2:31 pm

  14. @rebeka: agree!! i shall have a topic on how to release stress soon … lol

    @sumesh: thank you from coming all the way from NUS… yea.. some modules will really freak the hell out of us but no matter how hard it is, life still goes on right? we still have to move on…

    i got a really freaking hard subject which i couldn’t understand at all even minutes before i entered the exam hall, in the end, i still managed to survived… HEY GUYS it is just exams!! =)

    so many people out there are suffering with no food nor water, and we are here afraid of the exam questions?! omg… lol

    Boon Ming

    March 3, 2009 at 9:03 pm

  15. i think those pple who condemn the student should correct their minds!
    bcoz the mishap did not occur to them, of course they don’t feel the pain.
    only students who are exploited by professors can empathize with david widjaja.

    this, i can fully understand too as those who do not empathize david widjaja may be undergrads of EEE in ntu. it’s really not easy to condemn the prof. as they really have too much control and power over the students’ grades.

    i feel sorry for david widjaja coz it’s a loss of young talent.
    many of us can’t deny that many uni prof just throw the assignments to students, dint do much to help the students…in the end steal the students’ efforts n hard work n claim as their own!!!

    if in the end, the students get good grades, it’s okay.
    but most of the time, if the student is unlucky to get prof who jealous young talents, most likely they get lousy grades…which is not worth it at all!!!

    that is why i don’t go university coz i believe that all these IT ideas are INTELLECTUAL PROPERTIES!!!! instead of paying so much uni fees, learn nothing, get hurt by horrible prof who practically do nothing n earn big bucks, i rather use the money as capital to start up my own company / firm.
    at least i get started with something more worthy.

    NB: i’m not saying that all prof as sucks, of course some are good.
    but i think the government should not give uni too much autonomy.
    government should regulate more to ensure that the singapore uni provide quality education!
    it is evident that every organization that are closely regulated by singapore’s government are high-quality.

    another shocking news, do u know that every year there are local undergraduates commited suicide bcoz of unfair injustice by the prof. / or they are being unreasonably picked by the prof.? it’s just that the tragedies did not occur in uni campus…itz just that itz not reported in the news!!! this is a shocking numbers!!
    imagine that young talents we have lost every year??!!!
    it’s a loss to the country too!!! especially for singapore where human resources are our only resources.

    plus, i strongly feel that the university should look into this matter seriously.
    do not be afraid to re-evaluate the qualities of our uni prof and system.
    instead, we should take it as a precious opportunity to refine uni organization.
    it may be painful at the moment, but the result is definitely worth it in the long run.

    if we keep on overlooking these incidents, or cover up for the prof n staff, it may lure students to the uni in the short term, sooner or later, the bad reputation will still spread. itz only a matter of time…an “orstrich” attitude. it not only will scare students from coming to singapore to pursue their further study, it also tarnishes our country’s “high-quality education” reputation!

    clearmind.uprightsoul

    March 5, 2009 at 2:26 pm

  16. whew.. it’s very surprising…

    for the writer thanks for telling that we should be “Slooww down, look around, and enjoy…”

    kawaii

    March 6, 2009 at 5:47 pm

    • thanks for dropping by..

      i’m glad you like the post =)

      Boon Ming

      March 7, 2009 at 5:56 pm

  17. do u know that :
    -the guy who reported suicide was actually fell down?
    -The Family visited David’s room and they found all the computer devices still on. Does someone who intent to suicide still switches on his computer?
    -the stabbing incident was happened in 6th floor but then david jump from 4th floor, isn’t it weird??? why didn’t he just jump from 6th?
    -he is a genius, joined many international science competition abroad such as in mexico, losing some but didn’t depressed him, and why would he depressed for a FYP that is almost finish in 2 months away? he is way too smart to commit such a tragedy…

    i’m just trying to say we should carefully consuming news what the media trying to feed us with. seriously, people nowadays just keep judging from their perspective.
    for example this case, we just say this guy is stress and crazy, lost his mind and stabbed his prof.
    i mean, come on? a brilliant guy like him?
    re-think it guys…

    to find out more about the truth you can visit david’s bestfriend blog:
    http://manusialempung.blogspot.com/2009/03/truth-behind-david-widjajas-incident.html

    moon

    March 8, 2009 at 2:38 pm

  18. it is not that he suicided.. the caused of his death has not revealed yet.
    come on.. don’t take quick assumption..

    pinknozomi

    April 11, 2009 at 2:07 am

    • hi pinknozomi!! thanks for your reply and actually there will be an update on my blog boonming.com about this news for this coming Sunday.. so stay tune!!

      Boon Ming

      April 11, 2009 at 2:13 am

  19. I definitely agree with moon.
    Come on..seriously..do you believe that David kill himself, I think this thing is related with his project. Man..I read on the newspaper in my country that he was making a project about “3 dimension scanner for intelijen”, is he smart or what? I heard they say about his scholarship that was being stopped was the reason why he did the suicide. David is a smart kid, smart kid would know that suicide is a really stupid thing to do, right?
    I’m just joking
    But what if his project is a smart new invention? and someone would really love to have it on his own and that someone might get benefit of that project and he have to shut david for good. What if that “someone” is a powered man that could closed all the traces of evidence? Come on think about it… The evidence, the reason that’s too weak. (Okay this is just a detective story that i made by myself)

    Well..anyway..I just want justice to be served for david

    Rafaela Sparrow

    May 1, 2009 at 6:07 pm

  20. The Trial is still on-going.The family believed he was murdered rather than suicide.Maybe the professor had a fight with the student and the professor won on killing the student.The tragic saga continues …

    OhOh

    June 25, 2009 at 10:46 pm

  21. you like what sia

    applekiss

    February 24, 2010 at 12:58 pm


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