JOHOR BARU: An assemblyman caused a stir in Malaysia's state assembly when he suggested that students who fail to master the national language be stripped of their citizenship.

Datuk Dr Shahruddin Salleh (BN-Jorak) (pic) said many students were not able to master the language and this was even prevalent among the Malays.

“Even my own neighbour whose father and mother are Malays but because their child goes to international school, the child is unable to converse in Malay,” he said adding that the situation was prevalent in the vernacular schools.

Dr Shahruddin added that students were now more interested in mastering English and do not take the learning of Malay seriously.

He said the use of the Mandarin and Tamil by teachers in vernacular schools was another reason for students being weak in Malay, adding that the teachers were also not well-versed in Malay.

Dr Shahruddin was interrupted by Tan Hong Pin (DAP-Mengkibol) who cited the standing orders but speaker Tan Sri Mohamad Aziz managed to defuse the situation.

Assemblyman Ali Mazat Salleh (BN-Bukit Batu) later suggested that the state government use Jawi in all its government documents statewide.

As this article is published, thousands of pupils would have gone back to school to collect their PSLE results. Some students will celebrate; others will be in tears, crushed in spirit.

What sort of system inflicts such travesty on 12-year-olds? What sort of education do we have that treats academic performance like a trophy sport: Glory in victory and agony in defeat?

What values are we imparting to young minds? What happens to the self-esteem and the sense of self-worth when he or she discovers that she is only a 'Normal' or 'Technical' student?

And then they can streamed to 'elite' or 'neighbourhood' schools. The really 'smart' ones, who are usually also the richer ones, get extra help in independent schools and gifted programmes.

A radio DJ yesterday had to sound this caution to pupils: “Whatever score you get, your parents love you.” What kind of society have we built where our children have to be reminded that their score in one exam does not mean that their parents hate them?

If they don't do well who have they let down? Themselves? Their parents? The Government?

This subject is not just a theoretical one, good only for an academic discussion. It affects real lives:

• 22% of Singaporean children between 6-12 yrs thought of killing themselves. (ST, Jan 2014) Sadly, many actually carry out the act.
• The no. of children warded for “aggressive, suicidal or hallucination tendencies” at IMH jumped by 35% between 2005-2010. Mental health professionals attribute these problems to academic stress. (CNA, 2 Feb 2013)
• One in three students say they sometimes think that life is not worth living because of the fear of exams. (FEER, August 2001)

We must stop doing this to our children. It is not good for them, it is not good for parents, and it is not good for the future of our country. In its place, we must device a system when we educate our children to be creative, compassionate and intelligent members of society with self-confidence and a strong sense of self-worth.

There are a few ways that we can do this and they are spelt out under the SDP education policy titled Educating For Creativity and Equality:

By David Tan

In line with the new Singaporeans First (SingFirst) logo of a head and a heart within, I thought it would be appropriate and timely to pen my thoughts on why following one’s heart is simply not enough. You need your heart and head to make rational and acceptable decisions.

I am a businessman and I meet with all sorts of people all the time. I had been disappointed several times when I allowed the heart to lead and had also offended many when my head took possession of the decisions made. As one of those few crazy quadruple major graduates during my university days, psychology being one of them, I dug up my old notes to see if I could find something useful for this topic. “Is there a balance between the heart and the head? Can I find something about the need for the heart to follow and the head to ‘decide’?

When Jee Say, Yong Guan and a few other true blue Singaporeans gathered to meet, lamenting on the numerous and repeated failings of the current Lee Hsien Loong led government and reiterating on the urgent need for Singaporeans who love the country to come forward and resurrect the nation, I immediately gave a positive YES!

That was the start of my heart following my head.

The Logo

Amazingly, the chosen logo of Singaporeans First (SingFirst) of an inner heart surrounded by the head (mind) reaffirmsmy personal view that whoever wants to lead the nation well, must believe and put in place, the heart and the head! When the logo was first released, it was hotly debated, regularly criticized and made laughable by some pro-PAP IBs who associated it with a brand of ice cream that they openly love! I do not blame them. They had been cooked long enough in the PAP’s hotpot and have been numbed. Nevertheless, the original 10 founders of Singaporeans First stood firm, believing that over time, Singaporeans will embrace what our logo stands for – Party of Choice – Fair Society, Strong Families and Esteemed People!

In expressing my views on this topic, I thought it would be prudent and relevant to go back to my early childhood that has influenced my strong belief that we need to be loved, cared and prioritized because we are Singaporeans! We must use our heart and our head to make Singapore not just a livable place but a constantly progressive nation for the betterment of all current and future generations to come. Political leaders must have that sense of political calling to serve and not to entrench and enrich themselves for selfish means!

Learning the meaning of helping the poor from my parents

My late father was a small time business man, dealing with coffee and pepper. He travelled regularly within Singapore and Malaysia. In one of his trips, he discovered PulauMinyak, an attap huts squatter colony, a place where many poor and unemployed Singaporean ‘Teochew’ people lived. PulauMinyak was then located off Boon Keng and Bendemeer Road but now no longer appears on our map.

My father was not rich although he came from a family in the shipping business. He was a man of great integrity and creative resources. He had a huge appetite for the poor and needy. I noticed on numerous occasions, he would leave home late at night to meet his ‘tong kang’ (small lighter boats) workers from India whenever they needed extra money to send home to their families. The joy on the faces of those Indian workers he had helped remain in my mind  till today!

My father knew that one way to help the poor was to create jobs and to be a fair employer. He believed in ‘teaching others how to fish’ and not just giving them fishes. He was instrumental in teaching me the ropes of business and how to do it in a fair and ethical way. In his work, he had faced many temptations to be bribed. He was also a qualified surveyor and tasked to sign off ‘Quality Survey Reports’ for coffee and pepper. He was an honest man and never once did he fall or succumb to temptations. He still makes me so proud for what he believed in and stood for. His incorruptible stand rubbishes off all the talk that PAP is trumpeting all the time.  Who says that a man can be corrupted if he is not well paid? That is the PAP falsehood and it must be demolished as soon as possible! My father was not rich nor well paid for what he was doing. Yet he did his job well and no amount of temptation caused him to fall. He has been influential in my softer leaning for the poor and needy. To my father, wealth is a means to help others and not to enrich oneself. One must be transparent, trustworthy, humble and be caring to those who are less fortunate.

PulauMinyak – a squatter colony

I remember, one day, hearing a conversation between my father and my mother. They were talking about a squatter village in PulauMinyak. My father shared his pain and concern for those poor people there. Large families were cramped into small attap huts. Most of them relied on fishing and laboring as livelihood and the women folks there were jobless and unemployable due to their economic and academic background. My father suggested buying a piece of land and starting a small coffee business there where the women folks could earn some money by sorting out the coffee seeds.  My mother, being a staunched Methodist and a kind hearted lady, agreed and supported his idea without any hesitation.

Creating employment in PulauMinyak

My father eventually bought a piece of land in PulauMinyak, built a modest attap house and developed the open area in front of the house for the coffee business. His ‘heart and head’ decision came with a huge price and sacrifice. The family had to be uprooted from a comfortable home in Kim Seng Road (opposite the current Great World City) and resettled in a new environment where very few Hokkiens lived. I had to give up my place at ACS (Anglo Chinese School) and relocate to the nearby McNair Primary School. Our family was large, six boys and six girls – a full dozen moving house was not an easy task in those days.

I can still recall that day when we shifted our home from Kim Seng Road to PulauMinyak. I waved goodbye to my friends in Kim Seng Road and as a very young boy then, sitting on a lorry was a great thrill and adventure. PulauMinyak, being a squatter colony of poor people of mostly Teochews, was a strange and odd place for a Hokkien boy. I had no friends there and I could not converse well in Teochew. However, that odd situation was transient as the many Teochew boys were so friendly. They made me feel so much at home and very soon, the Teochew dialect was a part of me. I also joined them in swimming in the murky dirty waters of Kallang River and did all the things the boys did – fishing, catching crabs and spiders, staying late at night to witness how pigs were slaughtered by the villagers and kite fighting! It was a real eye opener and a new adventure for me – something I had never done when staying in Kim Seng Road.

My mother employed two young girls from the village to look after my two younger brothers and I. I remember always running away from them during meal and bathing times. We made life so difficult for them.  That was my first taste of being a ‘boss’ hahahahaha.

Other than my father and another businessman who operated a hardware business, no one owned a car in the village and they were the only ones who offered employment to the villagers. That may explain why our family was so well respected and highly regarded by the villagers then. My mom was the so-called boss. They called her “chai hoo chim” (equivalent of an official’s wife) and many considered us as well off and educated. My three elder brothers were then students and boarders at Catholic High School, located at Queen Street and every weekend when they returned home, it was always a very happy family gathering. By sheer coincidence, my eldest brother, after his graduation from the then Nantah University, returned back to Catholic High as a teacher and both Hsien Loong and Hsien Yang were his students.

The women living in PulauMinyak were not well educated and mostly unemployed or even unemployable. My father’s small coffee business offered them an opportunity to work and anyone who came for a job was offered one, without any interviews needed. To cater for a larger than expected job seekers, my father expanded the piece of land in front of our attap house to provide more space for the daily increasing number of women seeking work. Every morning, the women and their young children would come to our house to work.  Their job was to separate and sort the coffee seeds and at the end of the day, weigh the good seeds and be paid based on the weight of the sorted seeds.

BACKGROUND STORY: LOCAL SINGAPOREAN MANAGER AT COLD STORAGE BULLIED BY 7 FILIPINO COLLEAGUES

This was first raised to me by an online site who posted the video interview by Marcus Tan or Mohd Bin Japar, and thereafter, a number of you sent various links to me asking me to do something about the injustices done to him. I was quite puzzled by the approach he took especially as the complaint had been sent to us to investigate. MOM followed up on the matter. Since then, the individual appears to have regretted taking the actions he did and has withdrawn his claims. But look at the hate that has been generated.

In our work helping to find employment for individuals, we have come across those who have been made more bitter by others who egg them on by blaming others for their predicament. The negativity comes across in their interviews and it also gets in the way of them trying to improve oneselves...because after all, it was not their fault but someone else, so what is there to change and improve?

Some have taken to make public their rants only to regret subsequently. Unfortunately, these actions backfire as potential employers will be reluctant to take on these individuals. Some have shared with me that they will never hire someone like that because it reflects a certain attitude and values. The sad reality is that when searches are done on the background of the persons, it can surface up. These can be permanent online testimonials.

If there are violations, let us know and we will investigate. We have taken action and rectified the situation for many. However, there are also cases where there is no basis for the appeal. Some who do not want to accept the outcome have gone online.

Do be judicious. We do have the freedom to state what we want to and you are welcomed to do so. But do note that there can be consequences that can haunt us for a long time.

"I thought Lee Kuan Yew said nothing is free?" an elderly resident pointed out when we visited the Sembawang GRC on Sunday. "Then why Lee Hsien Loong giving out this and that? Like he's very scared like that."

He was referring to the recent announcements of goodies that the Government made.

"Yes," we agreed, "the Government is obviously feeling the pressure. But it's important to remember that it is the opposition that is constantly speaking up that the PAP feels it has to react."

It is certain, however, that after the elections the PAP will find ways and means to collect back what it gave out before the elections.

The only way to stop this is to ensure that the next Parliament has SDP MPs in it. We will ensure that the Government genuinely takes care of the people rather than employ such cynical and unworthy ploys.

The SDP will be vigilant and push for policies that will make life for the people less stressful and enhance the quality of life in Singapore.

The PAP must not continue to squeeze Singaporeans just so that it can boast that we have huge reserves and then pay its ministers million-dollar salaries.  

The greater the strength of the SDP, the less the PAP will bully the people.

By Goh Chok Tong 

Monday, 24 Nov 2014

An Umno Youth delegate today called on party members to rise up in response to non-Muslims who were growing bolder in challenging Malay sensitivities, adding that being too tolerant with them would see the end of Islam.

Negri Sembilan Umno Youth information chief Shamsul Amri Mohd Kamal told delegates at the party's assembly that they must not fear defending their religion, and anyone who called them extreme for doing so should face police action.

"Before, they did not dare disturb us, they did not dare criticise us, but now they dare to challenge us with all sorts of issues that shake our patience and tolerance‎," he said when debating the policy speech.

"Rise up, my race, rise up, my friends, realise that our patience and tolerance has its limits. Let us not risk it all, including our beloved Islam, just because we are too diplomatic and tolerant."

As examples of how Islam was being challenged, he brought up the "I want to touch a dog" event, the Court of Appeal decision that favoured Muslim transgenders and the custody tussle between a Muslim convert and his Hindu wife.

"Sixty years ago, 1,500 people gathered in this hall. There were union members - postmen, hospital attendants, public works employees, teachers, busmen, workers in trade and industry. There were white-collar office workers, there were students, and a wide spectrum of Singapore society - people of all races, speaking different languages - but come together for an important occasion.

On stage, Mr Lee Kuan Yew spoke at a table like this. And the Party's conveners sat behind him in a row, in a semi-circle. And amongst them were Dr Toh Chin Chye, Mr S Rajaratnam, Mr Devan Nair, and Mr Ismail Rahim, who was from the postmen's union. It was a multi-racial line-up, with substantial union representation and support. And this was a signal that a new party was being formed in Singapore - different from any of the other parties which were then already in Singapore, the People's Action Party, a party for all, a national party.

PAP's stewardship of Singapore creates successful nation

We built up the SAF to defend ourselves. We housed our nation with the HDB. We educated our people, with schools, polytechnics, universities, everyone, all the way. We industrialised our economy, modernised, created jobs and better lives for all Singaporeans. And we led the country through crises, because from time to time, crises came to us. In 1973, when oil prices went up suddenly, and the world went into a recession.

In 1985, we went into a deep recession, because we had lost our competitiveness, and had to turn around quickly. In 1997, during the Asian Financial Crisis, when all around us, countries were running into trouble, we were the safe harbour in a very troubled region. With SARS in 2003, when you are fighting an enemy you can't see, and you don't know where it is, and you have to maintain confidence and calm, and react rationally as one people. Or during the Global Financial Crisis, 2008 - already six years ago but a very serious storm which came and would have hit us with full force had we not responded in the right way, taken cover, protected ourselves, and come through safely, with the people's support.

How did the party do this? With the original team, but also by constantly renewing ourselves. Bringing in new generations of leaders with ability, with commitment, with integrity. Keeping the trust and support with new generations of Singaporeans, keeping ourselves it and lean, and it to lead Singapore.

And so we won the trust of the voters, and the mandate to serve Singaporeans in every successive general election ever since then - in 1959, 1963, 68, and so on, until 2011 most recently. And we will win the next one too!

For the last 60 years, the PAP has played a vital role in Singapore, bringing us from the Third World to the First.

PAP pioneers' efforts laid strong foundation for nation

And for all this, we must thank our activists, all through the years who have served on the ground, who have taken care of residents, who mobilised support, provided feedback and kept the party close to the people.

Activists like Comrade Seah Chin Heng, who has been a selfless active party member for 55 years. Or Comrade Png Wee Chor, who's a die-hard loyalist who made sure every time we have a campaign, an election, he's there, and all the other activists and members are catered for, and the food will always be ready.

And other activists as well, including some who were here back 60 years ago, and some, for the founding of the party, in this hall, like Comrade Chen Li Zhao, whom I spoke of just now. So we thank all of them for their contributions.

I would also like to pay tribute to our party leaders. That's why we've invited some of the pioneer generation of MPs to join us on stage today for this ceremony. Including Comrade Ong Pang Boon, our first organising secretary, who helped to hold the party together through its darkest years. Comrade Mahmud Awang, who helped to get the NTUC started and stood on the frontline in our fight against the communists. Or Comrade Chan Chee Seng. He was one of those who was here 60 years ago, arranging the room and getting it ready. A real stalwart. On the day of the vote of confidence in 1961, if he had not persuaded Madam Sahorah (Ahmat), one of our Assemblymen, who was sick in hospital, to come out of her hospital bed, in an ambulance, carried to the chamber, and to come here and vote, we would have not won by that one vote. Singapore would have been very different!

Or Comrade Yeo Toon Chia, who was in Kampong Kapor as branch secretary, went to Ang Mo Kio, set up the first branch in Ang Mo Kio new town, when the town was still being built, prepared the ground, made it ready, assembled the resources, gathered the volunteers, and when the rest of us came to Yio Chu Kang, to Chong Boon, to Bowen, to Kebun Bahru, to Teck Ghee, we found ready kindergartens, activists, a little bit of money, resources, and we were launched. All from the pioneer, Yeo Toon Chia who helped us get started.

There're some others who are not able to be with us this evening. Sixty years have passed, some have passed on. Others are old, frail, unable to come. But I think we should remember them too. People like P. Govindasamy, who was one of the postal workers who approached Mr Lee Kuan Yew to represent the postmen in the postmen's strike in 1952 - which was Mr Lee's first service for the unions and got him launched on this path. Or Dr Goh Keng Swee, or Mr Rajaratnam, or Mr Othman Wok, Dr Toh Chin Chye, or Mr Devan Nair, all Mr Lee's key lieutenants.

Re-dedicating ourselves to the party and to Singapore

But most of all, we are grateful to Mr Lee Kuan Yew, our first secretary-general, who founded the People's Action Party, made it into a national movement, led it to build Singapore, and to continue building beyond him and his colleagues, to his successor Mr Goh Chok Tong and his team, to his successor's successor, me and my team. And I'm particularly happy that he is able to join us today, 60 years after launching the party here in the Victoria Memorial Hall.

So let us remind ourselves how we got here. That's why we are launching the book today, PAP 60, Forward Together to celebrate our party's achievements and our people. And that's why we re-dedicated the marker that commemorates the founding of the PAP.

Mr Lee Kuan Yew had unveiled this marker ten years ago, on our 50th anniversary. But subsequently, Victoria Concert Hall underwent major upgrading and the marker was put away for safekeeping. Now that the building is restored to its former glory. I think it is right that on the 60th anniversary, we gather here again to restore the marker to its proper place, and to re-dedicate ourselves to the party, and to Singapore.

RESPONSE TO VERDICT IN NEA v AHPETC TRIAL

We are disappointed with the verdict but we will consult our lawyers on our legal options and do not rule anything out.

PRITAM SINGH & PNG ENG HUAT
VICE-CHAIRMEN
ALJUNIED-HOUGANG-PUNGGOL EAST TOWN COUNCIL

Background story:

The courts have ruled that the Workers’ Party Town Council had indeed held a fair without a permit during the Chinese New Year period this year.

The court found that the Aljunied, Hougang, Punggol East Town Council (AHPETC) had contravened section 35 of the Environmental Public Health Act.

During the court hearing, AHPETC had pointed out that their fair was actually just a mini-fair which did not need a permit from NEA as it did not fall under the fairs described in section 35.

A Selangor state, Malaysia delegate at this week’s UMNO party general assembly in Kuala Lumpur has warned against allowing LGBTI people to have equal rights in the majority Muslim South East Asian nation – but not for the reasons you would think.

Ruling party delegate Ismail Kijo fears that same-sex marriage will lead to lesbians bringing home partners that put their mother’s breasts to shame.

‘Malaysian mothers would be forced to face the harsh possibility that the partners of their daughters could have bigger breasts than them some day,’ Kijo warned, according to MalayMail Online.

‘Could you imagine how shocked the mother would be when she sees that this future “husband” [sic] has breasts bigger than hers?’

‘The breasts may be bigger than those owned by your mothers, ladies and gentlemen.’

Kijo also warned that allowing gay sons to get legally married could lead to the prospect of them bringing home partners with mustaches that put their father’s to shame.

‘The mother will be elated to meet her future “daughter-in-law” [sic], only to be shocked when she sees that her future “daughter-in-law” comes with a mustache bushier than [UMNO party permanent chair] Tan Sri [Badruddin Amiruldin].

The audience reportedly laughed at this second warning after sitting awkwardly through the first.

UMNO has been the main ruling party in Malaysia since it gained independence from Britain in 1957 and all six of Malaysia’s prime ministers since then have been UMNO members.

In Singapore, property price movements are closely watched and commented upon. With more than 90% of Singaporeans being home owners, the state of the property market, especially the housing market, is of strong interest to all. This is particularly so in the HDB resale market. When resale prices shoot up continuously, buyers or potential buyers are anxious. When resale prices continue to moderate, the table is turned and sellers or potential sellers become nervous.

At one NTUC Dialogue, Secretary -General Lim Swee Say, in jest, asked me if I could create two housing markets in Singapore, a market for buyers where prices continue to fall, and a separate market for sellers where prices continue to rise. The audience had a good laugh!

Managing the property market is therefore both an art and a science: projecting and ensuring a good matching of supply and demand, while correctly sensing the mood takes some skills and good luck.

The science part of the skills requires a good property price index. For the HDB resale market, we currently have the Resale Price Index (RPI) which HDB publishes every quarter. The index gives a general sense of resale price movements and serves as a useful reference point for home buyers and sellers in their decision-making.

To construct the RPI, HDB takes the average resale flat prices for a representative basket, by flat types, flat models and region, based on actual resale flat transactions. The average resale flat prices for each segment are then aggregated to derive the index.

To be effective and representative, RPI must reflect the prevailing resale market. In recent years, the HDB resale market has actually evolved considerably. First, we now see a wider range of flats, differing in designs and attributes. For example, newer flat models, including taller blocks, are increasingly being transacted in the resale market. We have also reintroduced 3-room flats since 2004, after the current RPI was last revised.

Second, there are now a lot more resale transactions for flats in newer towns, such as Punggol, Sengkang and Sembawang, but these towns are not included in the representative basket currently. In other words, the current RPI does not capture movements in resale flat prices in these towns.

Singapore’s consulate-general to Hong Kong responds to Chee Soon Juan’s Nov. 28 article.

He takes issue with income inequality in Singapore. Indeed it has increased, as it has in many other countries. But in Singapore, the low-income have access to high-quality education, health care and public housing, like other citizens. Families earning just 1,000 Singapore dollars ($800) a month can afford to own a two-room apartment. Indeed, 80% of households in the bottom income quintile own their homes, with an average of more than S$200,000 net housing equity. Their wages have also grown by 10% (in real terms) in the past decade, unlike the stagnation often seen elsewhere. There is no parallel in other countries. Our model is not perfect, but it is dishonest of Mr. Chee to claim that it has failed, or that we have done nothing.In his op-ed last week (“A New Vision for Singapore,” Nov. 28), Chee Soon Juan rehashes old arguments without a sense of reality.

Mr. Chee criticizes government-linked companies. His charges are absurd. GLCs include highly successful, internationally renowned companies, such as Keppel, SembCorp and Singapore Airlines . They provide good jobs and opportunities for Singaporeans, but they make up just 10% of the economy. Privately owned small and medium-sized enterprises employ seven in 10 Singaporeans and enjoy the bulk of government support.

But Mr. Chee is not interested in facts. He is out to make a political case and trim his sails to the wind. When he writes in The Wall Street Journal, he attacks GLCs, but when he writes for the Huffington Post, he attacks free-trade agreements, in particular the U.S.-Singapore FTA.

Mr. Chee claims Singapore lacks a democracy. The reality is that elections in Singapore are free and fair. Every time Mr. Chee and his party have contested, Singaporeans have rejected them. He might do better to take the interest of Singaporeans to heart, rather than pander to the editorial tastes of the Western media.

There are indications that PM Lee Hsien Loong will call for elections in 2015. As such, the SDP will get underway our preparations for the electoral campaign.

The GE, widely anticipated to be held at the end of next year, is crucial as it will determine the future direction of our country. Depending on circumstances, Mr Lee may call for one as early as the second quarter of 2015.

It is, therefore, not early at all for the SDP to step up our campaign and prepare ourselves for the much anticipated contest.

This is why we are officially holding our GE2015 Campaign Kick-Off on 10 January 2015, Saturday at 2 pm at the Holiday Inn Atrium, Outram Road (see map).

The launch will present our strategy and campaign activities. We will unveil our vision and direction for Singapore. It will also be an occasion for Singaporeans to share your views with us and get involved in the campaign.

2015 also marks the 35th anniversary of the SDP. As such, a series of activities will be held to commemorate the occasion which will complement the election campaign activities.

Singapore is at a crossroads and the general election is a crucial opportunity for voters to decide the future of our country. Our launch in January kicks-off the process and we invite all Singaporeans to join us on this important occasion.

If we wait until elections are announced before we start increasing the tempo, it will be too late and we will have lost the battle.

One great advantage of HDB living is the convenient access to shops within each precinct.  Beyond convenience, one must not underestimate the importance of the close-knit relationships many HDB shopkeepers have built with the residents over the years.  This social glue is hard to measure but we all know it to be important.  A smile and a greeting as you leave for your office early in the morning can brighten your day.  An acknowledgement and an expression of concern when you return home from a busy day can blow away any office blues.

That is why we continue to build HDB precincts with a good range of HDB shops, in order to complete an endearing HDB home experience.  We also conduct annual surveys on HDB shopkeepers as their perceptions and feedback can help us in our planning and management of HDB towns.

The 2013 survey is now ready.  The results of the survey continue to be encouraging.  61% of shopkeepers expressed satisfaction with their current businesses.  This was comparable to 2012 and higher than the years before.

Not surprisingly, established businesses and those located in high human traffic precincts were most satisfied.  These included restaurants, fast food operators, medical and dental clinics, and childcare/education centres.

RECAP: Apr 30, 2011

Minister Mentor Lee Kuan Yew has warned Aljunied voters they will have to live and "repent" for the next five years if they vote in the Workers' Party (WP) team at Aljunied GRC.

Speaking at PAP's Radin Mas branch on Saturday, Singapore's founding father said the PAP will not lose in this election, as the only hot-seat is Aljunied.

But he said, "If Aljunied decides to go that way, well Aljunied has five years to live and repent."

MM Lee added that he does not consider it a major setback if the People's Action Party (PAP) loses the the contest, that it would not be "the end of the world" as the PAP would fight to get the GRC back.

"We accept the verdict of the people, but they must also accept the consequences of their actions. You must expect the PAP to look after PAP constituencies first."

Press Release

Ang Mo Kio GRC is more than a local constituency

There are two key reasons why we chose Ang Mo Kio GRC for our next walkabout.

Firstly, it is the Prime Minister’s ward. The PM decides on national issues. His election or non-election determines the fate of the nation. Voters in the constituency are electing a national leader, not just an MP.

Secondly, after having had our first walkabout in Mr Lee Kuan Yew’s Tanjong Pagar GRC, a visit to the son’s ward will highlight the dominant role of one family on the life of our nation. For 41 out of  the past 55 years, Singapore has been ruled by a dominant family; the PM has come from the same family in three-quarters of this period of rule; father 31 years and son 10 years.
 

Uniquely Dominant Family

It is a remarkable record, unequalled anywhere in the recent history of elected leaders : Pakistan’s Bhutto family (father and daughter – 11 years), India’s Nehru-Gandhi family (father, daughter and grandson – 38 years), USA’s Bush family (father and son – 12 years), Taiwan’s Chiang family (father and son – 36 years). The unique record goes to North Korea’s Kim family with a continuous period of 66 years’ rule by father, son and grandson.

Will we see this from North Korea in Singapore?

Conservative MP Nigel Mills has been caught playing popular mobile puzzle game Candy Crush Saga game during a Commons committee hearing.

Pictures were published in the Sun newspaper of the MP playing Candy Crush Saga on his tablet during a Work and Pensions Committee session on pensions.

Mr Mills, a member of the committee, was said to have played it over a period of two and half hours.

He admitted he "probably had a game or two" but said he was "fully engaged".

The committee was taking evidence on pension reforms from representatives of the pensions and insurance industries ahead of the Autumn Statement.

Mr Mills, MP for Amber Valley, told the Sun: "There was a bit of the meeting that I wasn't focusing on and I probably had a game or two.

"I shouldn't do it but if you check the meeting I would say I was fully engaged in asking questions that I thought were particularly important in how we get the pensions issue right. I shall try not to do it in the future."

Classics degree

The House of Commons authorities have now launched an investigation because the photographs in The Sun of Mr Mills playing Candy Crush were a breach of parliamentary rules.

PM Lee Hsien Loong said in his PAP60 speech that the opposition have not articulated a vision for Singapore. So Chee Soon Juan tweeted him this message.

In the meantime, some of the newspapers wanted SDP's comments about Mr Lee's remarks regarding the next general elections. This is the SDP's response:

PM Lee Hsien Loong said in his speech that the opposition have not articulated a vision for Singapore. This is untrue. The SDP published Dare To Change: An Alternative Vision for Singapore in 1994.

Dr Chee had also recently described a new vision for Singapore in an op-ed published in the Wall Street Journal. Mr Lee ignores these and claims that the opposition has not articulated one.

But more than just a vision, the SDP has laid out concrete and comprehensive alternative policies in key areas such as housing, healthcare, population, the Malay community, education, Ministerial salaries, and (soon-to-be launched) the economy. The SDP's campaign for the next GE will focus on these alternative policies.

As announced we will be holding our GE2015 Campaign Kick-Off on 10 Jan and stepping up our effort in preparation for the elections which many expect will be held next year.

9 December 2015

Monday, 08 Dec 2014

Mdm Tham, Ang Mo Kio resident, 65 years old, Hawker Centre Cleaner

During our Sunday AMK GRC walkabout, we met Mdm Tham as she was doing her rounds in the hawker centre. A petite woman, Mdm Tham was soft spoken and pleasant to communicate with. When one of the CEC members introduced himself and passed the SingFirst flyer to her, she quickly removed her heavily stained plastic glove and shook his hands with a soft smile. In the short chat, we discovered that her monthly salary is about $600 to $700 as she works part-time due to a health condition. Mdm Tham lives with her only son, a technician who draws a gross pay of $3000 before CPF deduction.

Her monthly wages pays the rent of $700 for a room that she shares with her son. She has no other income and relies on her son for other expenses.

When we asked if she has approached her Member of Parliament for assistance to improve their standard of living or for a better paying job, her answer was “Do you think he can help me?” She was instead thankful to have a prudent and filial son who worries over her health and well-being.

We enquired further about her son’s personal life and discovered that he is still single at the age of 40. Her son’s reason for remaining single was that his take home pay of about $2500 is barely enough for their regular expenses, let alone dating or starting a family.

Mdm Tham’s circumstance is not uncommon. She is one of too many elderly people we encounter daily on this crowded island, a fellow Singaporean who needs to wipe tables or clean toilets just to keep up.

From this short conversation, we know that the current government has failed many elderly Singaporeans like her:

1. The wage of a cleaner is the same today as 10 – 15 years ago. With the current inflation of 4% – 5%, how are low-income workers coping with the escalating cost of living?
2. Due to this high cost of living, her son feels that his pay is barely sufficient to cover their monthly expenses and cannot imagine dating or marriage.
3. If her son were to be retrenched or out of work due to unforeseen circumstances, they will not have any savings to cover their monthly expenses.