Punggol East By-Election coming ? MP steps down
-
Dora1:
Dora1, :goodpost:
I'm talking abt 70s and 80s.
90s is the start of the Singapore Inc, which we are seeing now. The whole Singapore has turned into a profit oriented organisation.
Of course, policy makers in the 70s and 80s may not have the best policies when we look at it now. They also do make mistakes, they were a young gov then afterall.
the difference is the fundamentals of the policies back then are nation building, people wellbeing etc. It may not always please everybody, the implementation may be questionable - we had an authoritarian gov anyway. You will hear the older generation complain that the gov is authoritative, strict, no human rights etc etc. The gov back then was like a very old fashioned and strict father, pushing policies down your throat cos they think it's good for your. Whether they really are right or not, we'll leave it to historians to discuss. However, fundamentally, it's for the nation and wellbeing of the people.
The gov of today is obsessed with profit and loss, cost recovery, GDP, being famous in the world. All citizens are reduced to numbers. The country is run like a company. People feel betrayed by the gov, everything is abt money. And not to mention the major influx of immigrants making us feel like a foreigner in our own homeland. All these feelings will not show up in statistics. We are humans with feelings, not money making and baby making machines.
That's why they didn't see the defeat coming -
JannettLee:
For this, I don't really feel it's a wrong move.
- Some middle group fed up with their cooling off measures too because cooling off measures are obstacles that make it difficult for them to upgrade to private property.
If the govt foresee a property bubble burst.. these steps may just save the middle income from some very expensive, high maintenance investments.. -
3Boys,
I’m not sure which part of my post emits ‘insufferable arrogance’. At least I didn’t assume that I am the only one in the world who knows about the history and politics. It doesn’t frustrate the hell out of me when others take a different view point.
I am not sure which part of history and politics you so lean towards to that I don’t know, but my gripe with their dirty politics goes back to Barisan Socialis. Perhaps you are one of those who are convinced that the BS are communists who ought to have been arrested under that accusation in the first place.
BS connected well with people because they spoke the same language, were on the ground with the common people, and identified with the needs of the people.
50 years those people suffered injustice and gave up their entire life for Singapore. Yet there’s nothing no one can do to return the dignity and freedom they were entitled to as well as anyone of us.
Most people are happy and contented with the current state of material life (which includes emotional and social stability) and so they are happy with the ruling party. It doesn’t matter what the party do or did to achieve what they achieve/d. You are grateful to them for giving you a prosperous country, a good job and a comfortable life.
To me, I am happy and comfortable with my own life. However, I can never give my respect to people who have used underhanded methods to achieve what they set out to achieve.
Sure, they have constraints. Who doesn’t? For a small country run by so many ministers with so much money and resources, it’s hard not to have it well-run, really.
I just hate it when you tell me that mc donald’s will do just fine when you are dining in a fine-dining restaurant. I hate it when you tell me that my kids don’t need tuition when you are splurging on them for your own kids. I hate it when you tell me that at least my aged parents got a cleaner’s job to do when your own parents are lounging at home, take strolls for leisure, and go for afternoon tea when they feel like it. -
limlim:
Actually lor, the first phrase of cooling measure is already > 2 year la (since 2010)...the property market is inching up instead le..the property (don't think it bubble) did not come down la...not even in hottest places like China/London/HK le..some of them do not have cooling measure some more la... Again, this is their unreal foresight! I always heard people complaint about they would have bought it before if not the intervention from government... :roll:
For this, I don't really feel it's a wrong move.JannettLee:
- Some middle group fed up with their cooling off measures too because cooling off measures are obstacles that make it difficult for them to upgrade to private property.
If the govt foresee a property bubble burst.. these steps may just save the middle income from some very expensive, high maintenance investments.. -
Dora1:
Really????? Why I get the impression that they are finding means and ways to spend all the allocated budget leh..Also, there is always the cost recovery that we have to bear in mind so all the stat board and ministries have to find ways to increase income to meet the cost recovery KPI.
refer to the MOM purchases of $500++ chairs and NEA $2k bikes etc.... And I believe many can attest that TCs tends to renovate a newly renovated infrastructures and these structures aren't really falling apart in the first place.. WHY are they spending money this way? Why it appears that only contractors are laughing all the way to the bank of all these unnecessary expenses + taxpayer money spending and residents don't really benefit? -
limlim:
Cost recovery in civil service terms means whatever the ministry spends, the ministry must find ways to increase income to cover it (i.e. fees, levies etc). As long as someone above approves the budget, they can buy $500 or $5000 chairs - as long as they are \"appropriately justified\". Then they just have to find ways to balance the \"cost\" via increasing their \"income\".
Really????? Why I get the impression that they are finding means and ways to spend all the allocated budget leh..Dora1:
Also, there is always the cost recovery that we have to bear in mind so all the stat board and ministries have to find ways to increase income to meet the cost recovery KPI.
refer to the MOM purchases of $500++ chairs and NEA $2k bikes etc.... And I believe many can attest that TCs tends to renovate a newly renovated infrastructures and these structures aren't really falling apart in the first place.. WHY are they spending money this way? Why it appears that only contractors are laughing all the way to the bank of all these unnecessary expenses + taxpayer money spending and residents don't really benefit? -
3Boys:
Thanks for sharing..
I actually don't agree with your analysis.
The current lot put more thought into policies, they finesse.
Think back to things like graduate mum's priority school admission, sterilisation of lowly educated women, stop at 2.
Who's policies were those?
How about ministerial pay? Who was the strongest advocate for high pay, threw the gauntlet down to CST and LTK back in the early 90s? Hint, our founding PM.
You think extra-marital affairs of PAP office holders are new? There are strong rumours of at least one high ranking minister of the 80s and 90s engaged in EMA, covered up.
The leaders of the '80s......
People don't know history, they don't study politics.
Frustrates the hell out of me.
The current lot is better, they try to convince, they rationalise.
But people have rose tinted glasses. They forget the political strategies of PAP today are firmly embedded in the past.
The older generation had their time, they were wildly successful.
But they are wholly unsuited to leadership today.
This whole concept of the past being better than the present is just fallacy.
Good read..
Maybe, maybe the last sentence could be right..
Maybe, the older generation had it's successes bcoz internet are not so widespread and MSM is closely controlled.
I probably need a hard look again.. about the old vs new.. althou I still disagree with some of the recent policies..
Nevertheless.. I still believe that some of the the earlier leader like OTC deserves our utmost respect.. -
Harlequin:
I buy flat to stay, not to sell leh.When you sell your flat, do you want to make money? Yes?
So, can the gov sell the new flats at the \"affordable\" price? Selling all the new flats that are significantly lower price than your old/resale flats?
Then who is going to pay the higher price to buy your older flat?
Your flats price appreciate, is not by chance, the market has been carefully crafted out .
Locals always need a roof.. visitors naturally only look at profits.
I don't really care if the prices goes up or not.
If prices goes up, I sell high also need to buy high. So? what's the benefit of high prices? unless the person sell already no need to buy? does it applies to locals? -
[quote]Last year, his administration cut ministerial pay, sped up construction of homes and made permanent a program to provide cash and medical funds for the elderly and low-income households. This month, it said it will give priority housing to families with children and provide greater childcare subsidies.
“I asked myself if my life and my standard of living have improved in the last few years, and the answer is no,” said Perry Koh, an insurance agent who’s a Punggol East resident. “Looking at the results, it looks like I’m not the only one who feels that way.”
The island’s population has jumped by more than 1.1 million to 5.3 million since mid-2004, driving up property prices and stoking social tension as the government used immigration to make up for a low birth rate. Strains on the housing market and public services appeared “quite suddenly” rather than progressively or gradually, Lee told a conference today.
“The population grew faster than we expected,” Lee said. “The infrastructure didn’t keep up.”[/quote]http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2013-01-26/singapore-ruling-party-suffers-vote-defeat-in-setback-for-lee.html -
3Boys:
I agree with this!
How does knowing the parking woes of residents prepare us for SARs, 9-11, banking crisis, eurozone crisis and interest rates below 1%?
Like it or not, high COE ain't the most important problem in the world.
But I feel the ministers should at least go and take MRT and buses to understand the pple's needs. These are no \"personal/individual problems\" like COE or parking lots.. This issues affects the whole country..
Hello! It looks like you're interested in this conversation, but you don't have an account yet.
Getting fed up of having to scroll through the same posts each visit? When you register for an account, you'll always come back to exactly where you were before, and choose to be notified of new replies (either via email, or push notification). You'll also be able to save bookmarks and upvote posts to show your appreciation to other community members.
With your input, this post could be even better 💗
Register Login