4/19/2012

Singapore Day for 3000 in New York

We flew our hawkers to New York. We flew the chief of PA to entertain them. We flew Chee Hean and Amy Khor to shake hands with our Singaporeans and let them know that we missed them and want them to feel that there is a home back home. We flew Michele Chong, Hossan Leong and a few of our local entertainers to give them a bit of Singlish humour.

$4m were spent in the process or about $1,300 per head going by the 3000 happy participants. Only a rich country can afford to throw this kind of party for its overseas citizens. It is money worth spending. What is the purpose of the party? To tell them to come home after their studies or after their overseas experience and acquisition of knowledge and skills? Would they come home?

Heard one of them saying he will need $1m to come home but he could not afford to. He will not be eligible to buy a HDB flat as his income exceeded the ceiling to be classified poor but not rich enough to plonk $1m for a 655 sq ft luxurious condominium. So how?

Singapore can wait. And thanks for the food and the thought. To go home and contribute $1m to the property market and another $100k to buy a COE just do not make money sense. One bowl of laksa may be $10 in New York, but still very cheap.

10 comments:

Anonymous said...

Just goes to prove my point.

A Sinkie is never cherished by this Pro Alien Party if he lives in Singapore.

I don't see any million dollar party for the ageing in Singapore.
I guess no more use.
Time to discard & throw away.

Vote Wisely in GE 2016.

Anonymous said...

Anyone surprised that many Singaporeans are praying for
intervention from their almighty
for JUSTICE to prevail in Sin?

Anonymous said...

They think it is so clever to make Sinkies pay through their noses for a roof over their heads and another ransom to buy a car just because some countries are having sky high property prices. Oh, they are all heavily invested in properties and so it is alright as they are the main beneficiaries.

The average Sinkies can pay and pay until nothing left for retirement and live a life taking public transport.

What kind of shit quality of life they are bestowing onto the daft Sinkies? Have they messed up the lives of Sinkies?

Anonymous said...

I was MUCH happier living POORLY in the kampong in the 60s.

Anonymous said...

Does not surprise me. They are starting to sell the notion that Singaporeans love quitters.

Anonymous said...

Redbean,
You are so right.
If they come back, it would confirm to the govt that they are damned fools. Just the sort the govt would welcome with open arms.

Instead they should work very hard to consolidate their positions where they are and bring their own people across.

Anonymous said...

They are needed back to help prop up the property prices and donate to the landlords.

Anonymous said...

Singapore Day is NOT to lure ordinary Singaporeans who left because they do not like to live in Singapore. This event is an outcome of only economic consideration. This is a dream by these millions dollars ministers to try copy Taiwanese's phenomenon (I won't say Taiwanese government did the same as Sinkie government do now) that many Taiwanese returned home bringing back knowledge, experience and business links to set up successful startups. Sinkapore needs badly entrepreneurship, creativity and innovation for next wave of economic growth. It is GDP that matters. But Sinkapore is no Taiwan. If one really compares the two scenarios, one would understand Taiwan has many success factors that Sinkapore does not have in luring entrepreneurs back home. This is a fault line in the Sinkapore model of economic development right from the beginning 45 years ago. The fault line is that Sinkapore economic growth had relied totally on FDI and MNCs and been dominated by GLCs. The real engine for entrepreneurship, i.e. local SME, has been stalled since 45 years ago. Sinkies culture is becoming politicians, civil servant through education and to have stable salary. There is simply no entrepreneurship. The biggest joke is attempting to train entrepreneurship. All these are just dreams. Singapore Day is also one of the great dreams. Anyway, Sinkapore has tons of money to throw at such events including YOG, branding and naming, etc. The only benefit is for us, the participant, had a good taste of Sinkie local hawker foods. Well done, Sinkapore government.

Anonymous said...

They 're not able to convince those living in Sin itself as everyone here knows the situation first hand.
On the other hand, those overseas are thinking of the local food and their kins and frens. So, lure them. But, it wont work nowadays. In fact more are intended on leaving Sin which is of course, VERY WISE!

Chua Chin Leng aka redbean said...

In the US, all the money are sucked up by the defence industry and the crooks in Wall Street.

In Sin, the money are sucked up by the politicians and top civil servants. It is rewarding the unproductive regulators instead of entrepreneurs and industry.

Oh, not to forget the properties, another unproductive asset that all the money are sucked into.

The cost of living has ended in the stratosphere that life is going to be very tough for the average workers. We used to be cheaper, now we are trying to be the most expensive place in the world.

How would the average Sinkies live if they want to come back?