12/28/2010
Singapore logic tak pakai elsewhere
The supreme Singapore logic is unquestionable inside Singapore. This simple and clear logic only Singaporeans can understand. Some examples like privatized companies are run privately with no govt interference are easy to understand. The HDB, privatized govt hospitals, transport companies, are all run under commercial disciplines and using the logic of profits and nothing else. The banks, stock exchange, universities, national newspaper etc etc are independent from the govt. They make their decisions based on their own commercial and business interests.
When the same logic was applied in other countries, somehow they could not understand how our logic and reasoning worked. They kept messing up by insisting on believing that our govt linked companies are part of our govt and controlled by our govt. In Thailand, our purchased of their telco from Thaksin hit a wall. They claimed that their security was compromised by us. How ridiculous.
Then there is Australia who could not separate our Stock Exchange from our govt. They did not like the way our govt functions and implicitly thought that our exchange is less worthy too since it is associated with the govt.
And in Indonesia, just because shares were held by two Singapore owned companies, they simply lumped them together as one entity and accused us of collusion, monopoly and all that jest. Now their courts even ruled to confiscate the assets of our companies. Luckily our head offices were not informed and they can’t do anything about it. If our head offices had been informed, they would have taken everything away, legally of course.
Is this an issue of misunderstanding or a kind of difference in perception? Or is it culture and different way in thinking? Or is it because of different world and different world view?
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4 comments:
The Only Difference is INTEGRITY, all other reasons are secondary.
Uniquely Singapore!
But others aren't exactly impressed.
Another Singapore logic is COE and ERP to control car population.
With all these hare brain schemes, only uniquely Singapore, the car population is still growing and growing with them laughing all the way to the bank.
But we ain't laughing and neither will my grandsons when they want to buy a little cheapo saloon that will cost them an arm and a leg twenty years down the road.
WTF!
singapore, like every other (so-called) "liberal democratic" modern cuntry/ nation state runs a mixed economy -- a degree of capitalism mixed in with regulation, wealth re-distribution and govt interference. The degrees in the different 'mixes' vary from cuntry to cuntry, but the idea is the same: the ultimate arbiter of commercial activity -- public and private is the state.
Singapore's model -- a clever mix of Plato's Republic, British Elitism, Roman Republic and Confucian obedience and filial piety allows Singapore govt to mould the state and and nation into any form for any purpose.
Hence the "logic" can vary for different purposes.
Using the ideas from British Elitism, it is the state who grants the right to incorporate. Therefore the state itself can from corporations to engage in commercial activities -- perfectly "logical".
Singapore's economic success has bread jealousy amongst many people -- especially those of the progressive western liberal persuasion -- people who characteristically HATE capitalism and think that making money is gauche and uncultured. (the majority of these folks are already rich from the private wealth of their families).
Add to that, the mistrust on both sides of the political divide for merchantilist entities i.e. government corporations who are given special 'rights' and are protected by state legislation.
That's where the differences lie: Singapore's GLC's are NOT protected by state legislation. Although the SG.GOV owns (shareholder) a chunk of the SGX it is not interfering or protecting the SGX in any way. If the deal fails and SGX loses, so be it.
Mechantilism is a bad thing. The state should not engage in commercial activities. No matter how you cut it, there will at some point be conflict of interests.
And the most dangerous thing which people miss: in the event of a change in the individuals running the state, the mechanism for absolute corruption is already in place.
So far, to my knowledge at least (which could be wrong), the current group of individuals might exude a lot of unsavoury traits (like talking too much cock, arrogance and not taking responsibility) -- but they are not rorting the system to their own benefit.
Still, you can't escape -- no matter what "logic" you apply -- the conflict of interest.
Would the Singapore Government tolerate foreigners holding big stakes in our telcos or MSM, I just wonder.
Why is it that the Israelis know so much about the secrets of the American Government, enough to make some people say that Israel controls the US Government. The Bush Administration had many Israelis running the show. Why and how come?
The Israelis control some of the most important telecommunication systems in the US. The Israelis also own some of the big MSM and you can imagine that some of their journalists are also doing intelligence gathering for the Israelis. The Israelis also own some of the biggest banks in America. which means even the Fed is under their control.
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