4/15/2009
Of power, freedom and money
In the debate on the Public Order Act the govt has made it very clear on its position on power and freedom of expression. Actually it does not need this debate to tell the story. For more than 40 years, the govt has been defining and refining its use of power to manage the people's freedom of expression and the people's money in the CPF. And all these were done for their(people's) own good.
In the next election it will be good that these be made an election issue. All political parties should declare upfront their positions with respect to these issues. They should state how much freedom the people shall have, whether they can or cannot demonstrate or assemble in public, and also how they will manage the people's money in the CPF.
The other key issue will be the cost of govt. How many PMs will they need, how many SMs, how many ministers without portfolio in the PMOs, how many deputies and how many deputies to deputies, and also how many mayors they need to run this country. And add all these together to get at the final cost of govt.
Struggling opposition parties may want to make a case to pay the PM $10m and ministers $5m to attract better talents to join them in their quest. And if this is not enough, they should be brave enough to state that they needed more upfront before they come to power.
I feel the people deserve to be told of the position of the political parties before they make their choices.
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9 comments:
Can freedom put food on the table? Can it feed you, clothe you, house you? The electorate are more interested in bread and butter issues rather than abstract ones like freedom. Singapore may be first world in infrastructure, but the electorate's mentality is worse than third country.
i must agree with you. it is better to be a bird in a cage, well fed and well loved, than to be in the wild.
Let's face it, Redbean. How many Singaporeans actually understand abstract notions like the doctrine of Separation of Powers, or what civil liberties are all about? Go to Shenton Way at lunch time, and conduct a survey. What you will get are mostly incredulous looks with the odd "si mi lan". :-)
that's quite true. the only time when they feel the need for freedom is when they really need it. but then it will be too late when the doors are locked and key thrown away.
"the only time when they feel the need for freedom is when they really need it."
The above statement is a bit of a contradiction if you think about it. Singaporeans have never known freedom in the true sense of the word. How can they then have a need for it if they never knew it even existed. Bear in mind that the only freedom that Singaporeans do know about is only what the PAP told them about.
it is so scary to hear them discuss about how much freedom singaporeans should or should not have in parliament. imagine your fellow ah bengs and muthus are deciding what you can do and cannot do.
i am shivering.
Those Ah bengs and Muthus would not be deciding for you if the heartland Ah beng s and Muthus had grown some balls and not put those Ah bengs and Muthus in their current positions of power. Stop blaming the PAP for all your current predicaments, Singaporeans. You wholly deserve them because you brought them upon yourselves.
actually you are very wrong. the singaporeans are not blaming the PAP. the PAP is the best thing that comes into the lives of singaporeans.
Actually Singaporeans have a lot of freedom - the freedom to be controlled, squeezed by the balls, insulted, belittled, taken for granted and conned all the time, every time 24/7 throughout the year.
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