GIC and Temasek’s annualised returns revised?

In the media today, GIC has confirmed that its 20 year annualized rate of return was only 3.9% and Temasek’s was 15%. Who is spreading the misinformation that their returns were 17% annualized? How did people got such a fantastic figure that no fund managers would dare to claim? 17% annualized! Unbelieveable, incredible, insanity!

Oh, I remember that Professor Balding was using this number to compute the missing $160b in the national reserves of the island. At 17%, where have the $160b gone, he asked? There is a big dark hole somewhere that is concealing this fat chunk of money.

Now the mystery is solved. With the declared official numbers of GIC at a meagre 3.9%, less than the payout for CPF’s Retirement Account, GIC may be incurring a loss if the money is borrowed from CPF. And CPF’s annualized returns over 20 years must be much more as the earlier returns were much higher. I think if any funds were to park their money with me, I could guarantee 4% return over 20 years too. And I am not a super talent and need no super talented salaries.

Temasek’s 15% is still a stunting number for 20 years. So the mysterious $160 b could be lowered to perhaps $60b to $80b unaccounted. This is just a wild guesstimate if there was really a $160b missing in the books.

Prof Balding will now have to justify how he got the 17% number and what would now be the new missing cash hoard. It would definitely be less than the $160b that he came out with after scouring over the two funds past financial statements.

What else is new?

M&A will not help selling snake oil

Many financial freaks and fraudsters tried to pass themselves as financial genius by scrambling for more M&A to grow their sick companies. They tried to acquire or merge with other presumingly better managed and viable companies by using their cash hoards. In the short term it looks good on paper that the company is so much bigger and with more products or services available, and more sources of income.

The problem is that what is real is real and what is snake oil is still snake oil. Companies selling snake oil will see their customer base dwindle and their revenue falling daily. The customers either got fed up with the snake oil and refuse to buy anymore, or may have been poisoned and are dying or dead. Without a broad base of customers to support a company, to buy and consume its products and services, no amount of gimmicks in M&A will work or will last. What is the point of a mammoth company through M&As, offering more snake oil when there is no customer?

A rotten company selling snake oil is still a rotten company selling snake oil and will lose its customers in no time. Customers can be cheated once, twice but not thrice. Those who continue to be cheated will also ended up in the critically ill list.

Companies have to be real and sell the real stuff, the good stuff, the stuff that are of real values to their customers. Cheating customers with snake oil is like cheating themselves. The company will be run to the ground. The only survival, unfortunately, will be the snake oil sellers that come and go, peddling their snake oil as the panacea to all company ills. How long can snake oil sellers hold their bluff? It depends on the real owners of the company, the employers. If the employers are dafter than the snake oil sellers and willingly be deceived by the snake oil sellers, the bluff could be sustained for a long time as the daft owners would not know that they are being duped. By the time they worked up it would be too late.

Think Barclay, JP Morgan, think New York Stock Exchange, and many more. And when nothing is done to flush out a rotten system and getting rid of the snake oil, no amount of feedback and window dressing can help.

When tolerance becomes unbearable

Are the people angry with the govt? The govt will conveniently say, ‘What do you think?’ And they will say no problem when they did not hear any complaints, deliberately, by choice or being shielded by their feedback organs from hearing the complaints.

The Sinkies have been very tolerant of the abuses against them, their CPF being treated like tax and taken from them without their consent, the ridiculous high prices of public housing, the outrageous COE prices that put many average Sinkies out of reach to own a car when a car is an essential item to make life easier to get by. The influx of millions of foreigners that was shafted down their throats as good for them when everyone knows who they are good to and who really benefitted from this excesses. The high cost of living, the penalties and discriminations of being citizens while foreigners are given all the advantages to live better, get better jobs than the locals. Some given citizenship and appointed to high positions just to show that they are Sinkies and not foreigners. Despite all the flaws in obviously stupid and nonsensical policies, the citizens swallowed them like bitter pills as long as they could bear with them.

The tolerance of the citizens is breaking. A point is reached like the straw that broke the camel’s back. Everything, every nonsense, every ridiculous policies and their flaws will no longer be tolerated. The people used to be very polite by acting dumb and ignorant and allowed jokers to blare how clever they were. Now the Sinkies are so angry that they are calling a spade a spade, a donkey a donkey. Flawed policies and idiots are being paraded boldly.

Take the example of a letter by Tan Kin Lian, I think this is the same Tan Kin Lian who stood as a presidential candidate, in Today’s Voices. He not only made suggestions about what needs to be done to make the COE more equitable and fairer to all citizens, he pointedly spoke about the flaws of lesser intelligent and responsible people making those policies and regulations. How this flawed system could go on for so long is a manifestation of how tolerant Sinkies are.

Many have written to the media with very good and practical recommendations but all ignored by the gods. The gods only think that they are capable of making good decisions and policies. Whatever written by the people in the media, or spoken up to be heard were ignored. Then they would come out and shout from the podium, please tell us, please give us feedback, please help us to solve the problems. All the comments and recommendations in the main media and social media were not comments, recommendations or feedback. It is as if the people have all been so quiet and did not tell the govt of their pains and complaints.

Feedback is only feedback when they asked for it, and must be channeled to the little hole they put up. Only then would they regard them as feedback. But what happens to this feedback, only god knows.

The issue of housing and car ownership are hurting the people very badly and personally. The people are saying enough is enough to the rubbish regulations and policies which they all know are stupid and flawed but were willing to bear with them as long as they are within a certain threshold of pain. Now the tolerable is no longer bearable and the anger is showing.

The normally quite, unassuming, unthinking and apparently daft Sinkies are standing up and saying, ‘We are not stupid’. The policies are daft, flawed and like what Tan Kin Lian said, ‘Let us have responsible people to make the judgement of appropriate COE prices, rather than leave this to market vagaries and speculations. He fell short of saying people who made the flawed policies are irresponsible.

Why would an obviously intelligent girl….

Why would Darinne Ko kiss and tell? She is smart, got her good grades and the future is all so bright for her. She could become a top notch lawyer, be called up for tea and may end up as a law minister. Why would she want to ruin everything? Now with her name in everyone’s lips and her photograph pasted every for all the wrong reasons, what good is she going to get from this laundry drying except maybe write an autobiography that nobody wants to read?

When all efforts were applied to protect a prostitute for plying her trade, why is it that this young lawyer is being made to defend herself, her dignity and integrity? Why is she being thrashed around doing something that is not really a crime and probably a common indiscretion? Where is she going after this episode hits the ceiling fan? Would she lose her good grades and law degree? Would she be allowed to practise now that she is seen as a person of low repute if all the things said are true, yet to be proven. Has she been fixed?

Where are these things coming from? The underage prostitute is bringing down nearly 60 professionals, the sex for contracts another few, this kiss and tell is going to bring down a few more. Soon there will be no more local talents left in Sinkieland and more FTs will be needed to fill up the gaps.

Looks like an exercise to replace the locals if not for the law professor who was a Malaysian PR. But he is a Sinkie by now I think.

Let’s have more sex

Critics of Sinkieland have been proven wrong these few weeks, that this island is a dull and lifeless place, no action, no fun and no play. What appeared in the media is only a scantily peep into the interesting lives of Sinkies, and the truth and the whole truth are much more exciting and pervasive among the supposedly no nonsense priests and monks populace.

And the govt is screaming its head off asking the people to indulge in more sex and apparently in vain. What the govt did wrong was actually in the way it is saying it. Babies! Didn’t the govt know that ‘babies’ is a frightening word like mother in law? The govt is asking for more babies and not more sex. How can there be babies with no sex? Change the lines, and talk about sex and babies will come naturally as a consequence.

While the govt is so obsessed with the utilitarian purpose of having babies, the populace are having fun in a different way, in having sex. But how come no babies? That is an interesting question isn’t it? So much sex but so few babies.

The fault lies in how sex is conducted, in car parks and in Paris and in budget hotels are not too conducive to produce babies. And paid sex is less likely to give the desire results.

There are two more serious issues. The men have a fetish craving for sex with the sweet young things. Anything above the legally permitted age is not desirable. Isn’t this serious? The wives better start thinking. If this is true to the majority, marriage is too late as the spouses are far from the desired age group to have sex… and babies.

Another discouraging fact emerging from all the cases in Havelock Road is that the men not only paid for sweet young things or strayed, their only interest is oral sex, no penetration. And they paid good money just for that kind of unorthodox indulgence. How to make babies when the desire fell into the wrong hole?

Sex education must be failing in schools. They are teaching them the wrong things. Sex for babies is done differently and the natural thing is to aim low and not high to score As.. These guys are doing it all wrong.  Or maybe there was no sex education then. The govt needs to seriously look at the syllabus for sex education and do a revision to teach the real stuff and the right things to do.

And if they want babies, make sure it is all about hetero. This is another new danger that is being encouraged, homo sex. And if this trend bites, the babies aren’t going to come.

Funny, so much sex, so much fun, and so few results, and so few babies. What’s wrong with you guys? Putting the money where the mouth is?

Runway 2020 - Fashion out of this World

This is my Runway 2020 Series with models in fanciful hats, hairdos and dresses. They are rar art pieces created by the Art of RAR Technique. I have a collection of more than 30 pieces of this series conceived and created totally by Mother Nature. It is fashion out of this world. A rare treat of what Mother Nature is able to do in fashion designs.

Syria a dangerous precedent

The bloodshed in Syria and the loss of the lives would escalate to a scale surpassing those in Iraq and Libya. The story is the same. Regime change initiated and supported and armed by foreign powers.

Saddam Hussein and Muammar Gaddafi were dead. Now it is the turn of Bashar Al Assad. He is likely to be the next Arab/Middle Eastern leader to be killed by the west in the name of regime change, a people’s uprising. This is a dangerous trend set by the American and western powers, supporting minority dissidents in a country, armed and finance them, even bringing in mercenaries to fight on their side, to over throw a govt.

Every country will have some disgruntled people, people in the opposition, and dissidents. When agitated, promised of power and glory and instant wealth and fame, many would become adventurest and would risk lives and peace to fight and to kill. It is so easy to start an insurgency with enough finance and arms and a super power or many powers backing it.

Syria is a message to all regimes, all govts, in any country that are not seen to tow the line, not in the good books of America and western powers. They will incite an insurgency and turn it into a civil war to bring down established govts and regimes.

Many African, Asian and Southeast Asian countries are easy targets and can be easily manipulated to turn into a war zone. Many of their leaders are tagged as lesser than the expectation of what a leader should be in the western mould. Many are seen as dictatorial, authoritarian, abusive of human rights etc etc, all fitting the recipe for regime change when needed.

More and more countries will be turned upside down, burnt and citizens killed to serve the interest and agenda of America and western powers. Who is next?

China’s new city, Sansha

Tension rises in the South China Sea with China officially announcing its newest city in the Paracel group of islands. It has 1000 inhabitants and only 13 sq km in size. The Vietnamese and Filipinos are protesting wildly. For several centuries, being beaten and impoverished by the western colonial powers and Japan, China was a spent force, to be robbed, discriminated and ridiculed. Its land, islands are free for all to grab and China could do nothing about it.

Today, China has risen from the ashes as one of the two super powers in the world and with economic clout matching those of the US. While it had to take things lying down in the past, it need not do so today. It is about time China takes a firm stand on its territorial sovereignty and reclaims all the land and islands lost during the era of its eclipse. Not doing so would be a sign of weakness and will invite more trouble and counter claims from adventurers and aggressive countries.

Building cities in its own territories and islands is a sign of ownership. Dilly dallying is a sign of weakness, uncertainties and ambiguity. It may even weaken its claims on the islands. China must make its claims in no uncertain terms, tension will arise and clashes will be inevitable but unavoidable. Like it or not, tension and clashes are already on the table and not facing it and standing up to its rights to its own territories will be even worst.

China must face the hostility and the contentious parties squarely and make them know that China is not allowing an inch of its territories and islands to be taken away by wild claims. Enough is enough. There is no turning back for China unless it wants to weaken its own position and encourage more adventurism. China cannot fear to occupy its own territories unless it wants to tell the world that those are not its territories. To do or not to do, tension will rise and must be settled, with force if necessary. The countries making claims on China’s islands will want to resort to whatever means to stake their claims, even inviting the Americans to confront China militarily. The more China wavers, the more likely will it precipitate into open conflict. The only way to avoid open conflict is to make a stand that it would stop any attempt to seize its territories even at the cost of war.

Please tell me what to do with the shit

Last night I went for supper. The buffet spread was so good and I ate and ate and ate. I forgot that being too greedy and eating recklessly would have its consequences. But with so much food on the table and eat as much as you like, how to resist. Eat lah.

This morning worked up big lau sai. Shit every where and everyone complaining of the smell. Now what to do? Can anyone help me to solve this shitty problem?

What? Don’t be greedy, don’t eat too much? Cannot lah. When so much food is laid on the table for grabbing, cannot resist lah.

Inviting and importing new and complex problems

‘The times are changing, the population is changing, the expectations are changing. Singapore’s society is now more diverse and complex now that new citizens from India hail from many regions of the sub-continent,’ Lee Hsien Loong

Hsien Loong spoke to the Indian community on how to integrate the India Indians from northern India into our society. Their presence, and the presence of China Chinese and others, are making our country more diverse and more complex, and definitely with more complex problems. Do we need these problems in the first place? Do we need so many foreigners to raise our economic growth data?

Economic growth, plus inflation, and higher cost of living, congestion and competition for goods and services if not accompanied by real income growth, is making life more difficult and inconvenient, and costly of course, to many Singaporeans. If the income growth does not exceed all the cost of inflation it is as good as downgrading, taking a pay cut.

The housing problem is just a specific issue of what bad policies can lead to. And it is localised, hurting some Sinkies most. The influx of foreigners and high population will impact everyone except for the top end of the population who could pay their way out.

Do we want more congestion, more complex problems, more irritations and tension, higher cost of living, more stress on emotions, on services and infrastructure and systems? Have the people send the message to the govt that they do not want a higher population of foreigners, like the message they sent on high property prices? The full impact of such a policy will not be felt so soon till they multiply and compounded into a problem of multiple proportion. Our roads will not be enough, our housing will not be enough, our supply of energy and water will not be enough, nuclear looks so inviting and necessary, everything will not be enough. We will not only be drinking urine, but shit water as well. That is what a bigger population will bring us, bigger and more complex problems.

The govt is asking the people for the answers. At the bottom, the addiction to population growth for economic growth seems to be the only answer and there is no other solution. Growth by population growth is a self destruct formula whether applied to a single country or to the world as a whole. Rapid growth through population growth is malignant growth, cancerous growth.

Stop the influx of the foreigners and stop the problem from growing. No need to scratch the head to ask for more solutions, how to better integrate them. When they are not here, time and resources can be put to better use, and no unwanted problems. The pace of growth could be slower with comparatively slower inflation. What is needed is real growth through productivity.

The same problem of high growth and quick death is best seen in the banking industry when slower and smaller growth is not enough as every turkey at the top demands to be paid in tens or hundreds of millions. And the only way to feed their insatiable appetite is through gambling and frauds. Sustainable and slower real growth is the only way forward, with lower expectations at the top.

Do not gamble with population growth like the banking industry gambling with derivatives and frauds. As the economy matures, slower and more sustainable growth is only natural and the way to go.

Singapore snippets

Singapore has never been so exciting before until the last couple of months. The media is flooded with all kinds of saucy tabloid quality news that should increase their sales by at least 30%. What you want to read you have it, corruption, sex scandals, priests, the elite, law suits, mental cases, murder, suicides etc etc. The hot issues of population explosion and influx of foreigners and jobless Sinkies who have to keep on down grading through downgrading courses, this is funny really, while foreigners are pouring in with abundance of job offers. The young people are now encouraged to be hawkers instead of lawyers, doctors or ministers.

Ask the taxi drivers, which is the most exciting place in Singapore, MBS or RWS? Wrong, the magistrate courts at Havelock Road.

Which is the most exciting jobs to be in, lawyer or hawker? Wrong, psychiatrist.

Which profession pays the most, lawyer or ministers? Wrong, priesthood.

What is the most sought after mode of transport, MRT or Ferrari? Wrong, Brompton Bike.

Who is suffering from bipolar disorder, a lawyer or psychiatrist? No another lawyer.

Who is more powerful than the court of law, the govt or the law society? No, a psychiatrist. Really? Or is it a lawyer? Is that your final answer?

Who decides whether a person is innocent, the court or the minister? Both wrong, its the believers.

Which is the most exciting and reliable news media, main media or social media? Wrong, Facebook.

Essenze features my paintings

Essenze is a top life style magazine in Malaysia, similar to the Peak magazine here. It has featured my paintings, 8 pieces, in a 3 page spread in its latest issue, Vol 27. This can be viewed electronically at www.chtmarketsource.com/. On its content page, p11 is my photograph. My paintings are in p112, p113 and p114.

My paintings are from the series Abstract Faces and Pixiu or Heavenly Beasts.

White Mice Syndrome getting worst

The tension between the newcomers and foreigners and the locals is causing temperature to rise and tempers to flare. The govt is calling the people to be mindful, to integrate. But what is the govt doing about killing the problem at its source? What happens to being proactive, knowing the problem before it becomes a problem, about thinking ahead and nipping a problem at the bud?

The problem is now raring its ugliness everywhere and people have came to blows fighting for space. Even among the locals, carpark is now a big issue. Carparks in HDB estate in some areas are getting scarce. Car parking in private estates is becoming a contentious issue when finding a place to park a car is a challenge, a great inconvenience. The private property residents are quarrelling and fighting with their neighbours and visitors using their neighbourhood as car parks.

What is the cause of this problem? Space and rapid rise in population in a small piece of rock. And some are so crazy about their fetish cravings for more migrants that they blatantly ignored the problems of having more people being squeezed into a tiny box and telling the people to bear with it while more and more people are relentlessly being stuffed into the box at the same time.

How crazy and irresponsible can this be? It is breaking, people are starting to fight for their little private space everywhere. What is going on? Where got problem?

Social media’s growing clout

Monday was a great day for social media. It was quoted profusely by the main media on all the saucy comments about Ravi’s dance performance in Hong Lim Park. It used to be the other way, when social media quotes main media for news and information.

The growing presence and relevance of social media is again proven by the suspension of an NPark officer and the investigation into the irregularities in purchasing $2,200 folding bikes for its officers. The case was brushed off quickly by officialdom when it first surfaced. It was through the tireless great investigative work of social media that revealed so many discrepancies and doubtful practices that this case can no longer be swept under the carpet. Many netizens are calling for an investigation by CPIB.

The main media was at a lost and one main media journalist was quoted to have sought assistance from a netizen journalist on how to go about conducting investigative journalism. This is about the best recognition social media reporters/journalists could ever hope to get from the professional and well paid and well trained main media journalists.

Social media is going to get more relevant with each passing day. But one must be cautioned about how easily social media can be abused. All it needs to do is to plant a few jokers to make all the comments wanted and these can then be quoted as genuine feedbacks from the bloggers or netizens. In reality, the feedbacks and comments were preconceived and to be used for a planned purpose.

While social media is flourishing in its free and unfettered ways, all must be made aware that many disinformation, can be planted to confuse and abuse the social media.

Social media reporters/journalists/bloggers must continue to strive to provide genuine and factual reports and articles to maintain their integrity and the integrity of social media as an alternative source of news and information.

When Minister turns ordinary citizen

After the last GE three ministers turned into ordinary citizens. They left politics and live a more carefree life as one among the millions. No more trappings of power and attention. A few ministers have stepped down but either remained in politics or staying in the inner circle of power brokers and still walk the corridor of power. To them, nothing really changes. Even for the ministers that have left politics, not much has changed. The umbrella of political power is still providing the needed shade and comfort wherever they go. What would life be if the umbrella is no longer there?

2016 looks ominously uncertain. Would the umbrella be folded and replace by a new one? The likelihood of the current political umbrella being removed or changed cannot be ruled out no matter how secure things look now. In a worst case scenario, the umbrella could be changed and many ministers would join the men in the street or civvy street. And without the coverage of the old umbrella, life is not going to be the same again. No more invitation, no more attention, no more large entourage, no one listening to what they talk or what they talk no longer matters. And the 30 titles and appointments will be lapsed. No invitation to be chairman or directors here and there.

Sinkies are being exhorted to prepare for retirement, to integrate with foreigners, accept a life with high cost of living and high cost of everything, to prepare to become hawkers as a new opportunity in life. The ministers who would join the civvy street need not bother with such issues. They are all very well prepared financially to live a life rich in abundance. What they would miss would be the attention and the sense of being important, being in the thick of things, being waited wherever they go. No one will be waiting for them when that day comes except their closed ones and friends.

Are the ministers prepared for such a change, when everyone in the street and their neighbours will regard them just as another ordinary citizen, just another Sinkie? This is no small change. Would they need psychiatric counselling to prepare them for the new life of being ordinary citizens? It is not easy to adapt to a situation when people will disagree with them openly without deference or decorum, or even ridicule or vilify them straight in the face. It can be quite dramatic and traumatic in the new situation, without the power halo over their heads.

Reading at some of the snippets in Chok Tong’s facebook, things can be rough down the road without the umbrella. Talking cock and craps would no longer be tolerated. Hope they will be strong and none would morph into lunatics at the fringes should that day becomes a reality.

US and the West plan to attack Syria

USA accusation of Syria's chemical weapons is a clear signal that the desperate West and US intend to use it as a pretext and preamble to attack Syria and to carry out regime change. Obama is being used by warmongering white masters to sound the alarm.


Obama don't be too swell headed of being the first nigger to be president of the Evil Empire, USA.  You are being used by white men as a psychological factor to win allies in the Third World or developing countries to serve the interest and agenda of US and the West. You had received the Nobel War Price, so you feel obliged to do the bidding of the evil white men. We know as a black prfesident you have no real power, for you have toe serve your white masters in Congress, the Senate and your war criminal masters and overlords in CIA and the Pentagon. You have tried to outdo the previous white presidents in carrying out brutal wars of aggression against Third World countries You are being used by the Evil Empire, USA to sow discord , suspicion and dissension among Asian and African nations and in stirring up China's neighbours to go against China with a view to eventually holding hegemony over them so as to dominate and control them in all spheres of life via territorial, political, finance and economy. You are denigrating yourself in serving as an agent of white men to destabilise and destroy Third World countries and in carrying out regime change of countries which do not accept US dictates you have not only betrayed them but have also grossly and unjustly trampled on their self-respect and dignity.

You are a hypocrite and you have no right whatsoever to accuse Syria or other countries of having chemical weapons when your Evil Empire , US has the world's greatest stock pile not only of chemicals but also tens of thousands of nuclear weapons. In any case the world knows that your false accusation of Syria is only a pretext and a preamble to eventually attacking Syria and carrying out regime change. Heaven is watching and it will not allow that to happen.

As a black president you should take the opportunity to right all the wrongs done by white to black men over the last few hundred years whereby millions of black African slaves were thrown overboard into the Atlantic Ocean or died under the most miserable conditions in America under their cruel white masters. The souls of these dead black men are crying out loud for revenge.

Obama shame on you for supporting white men's agenda of destabilising and destroying the whole of the Middle East and North Africa with a view to dominate and control the vast  rich mineral and oil resources of the Arab world. The sins of the Arabs is that they are lazy, weak and disunited  and thus fall easy prey to white men's manipulation and evil design.

We know all the uprisings in the Middle East and North Africa are the results of the wanton West and US in using outside mercenaries and paid proUSA terrorists in creating trouble and starting proxy wars on behalf of US and the West.

Obama, you and your evil US will receive retribution for all the evils and sufferings you have done to poor Third World developing countries.

Born in Singapore

Born in Singapore is going to make a difference as we become a nation of Singaporeans plus foreigners. In the early years of nation building, when the bulk of the population was of migrant stocks, being a migrant or a citizen did not matter much. Citizenship was a fairly new concept as the island was established as a colony of the British Empire. The locals were not really citizens as we knew it today, but subjects of an Empire, a foreign overlord who treated the subjects as lesser beans than their citizens.

The immigrant mentality must change as we progress. We started off as nobody and the island was like no owners but temporarily occupied by the usurpers, the colonial masters. Since given independence by Malaysia, a lot of sacrifices had been made to make this island what it is today by the pioneers who paid a heavy price in the building of a country but did not really benefitted from it. The only people deserving to benefit from the sacrifices of our forefathers must be their descendants, their children as a part of them.

Born in Singapore, Made in Singapore, must be the legitimate trademark for ownership of the island. The island did not become what it is today by accident. It is acceptable and generous for the children of the founding fathers of the island to share the wealth and inheritance with some newcomers if they are willing to. It is foolish of anyone to think that this inheritance should be given away freely to anyone. Only reckless prodigal sons will squander their inheritance away without any inkling of how hard it was down this road. It was covered with blood, sweat and tears of our forefathers. Perhaps the layering of fine material have covered and removed all traces of the past, the smell and marks of old. But look carefully, they are still there. And be thankful for what the forefathers have done for what we have today. It is sinful and irresponsible to throw them away to benefit new migrants at the expense of the descendants of the original nation building. It is not graciousness but sheer stupidity to do so.

Born in Singapore is not the same as Printed in Singapore. The more mature countries like the USA also have special provisions in their constitution to guard the privileges of local born citizens. The President of the USA must be born in America. The local born in the island since 1965 should be in their 40s. There are enough local borns to take over the country from here onwards. It is time to consider amending the constitution to protect the local borns from losing their privileges to the foreign borns and new citizens.

We are a nation with our very own people. The Born In Singapore are not migrants. This is what a country and a nation are all about. It is not a hotel, and hotel guests must not be allowed to usurp the wealth and privileges of the real owners of the country. Those thoughtless people who think of nothing about giving the rights of ownership of the island to any Tom, Dick and Harry should be prepared to give their own properties away first, share their private wealth with foreigners if they think it is ok to give the country away to foreigners. Bet you none of them would want to give away anything that belongs to them simply because it belongs to them, they own them. Why then would anyone think of given the country away so freely? Do they not own the country too?

Or they have plans to leave when everything has been given away and the place no longer pleasant to live in? Hopefully this is not in the thinking. The Born In Singapore must exert their rights to protect their interests in the country built and willed to them by their forefathers’ hands before it ended up as someone else property. This island belongs to those Born In Singapore. But if they are so careless and callous, they could lose it or share it with people that came along without contributing to it.

Do not become a prodigal son and lose your inheritance. Do not be deceived into giving everything away as if they don’t belong to you. As Born In Singapore, this island is yours. Anyone thinking of giving it away needs your permission to do so. This is your inheritance.

The fearsome tag

Many must have remembered the Yellow Ribbon advert of an ex convict talking to a little girl and the fear it sent to the viewers that he was up to something no good. With his tattoo and appearance, the impression was bad, but it turned out that he was the girl’s daddy.

An artistic person performing a cultural dance would often be well appreciated by the audience especially if the dancer was a high profile professional from another field. Wow, the doctor is such a great dancer, or the minister or the CEO of a big corporation being carried on a well decorated sedan chair. There is nothing creepy about that. This is likely to be the reaction in normal circumstances.

The impression will be coloured, tainted, biased, if one wears a tag, especially a tag bordering on insanity. Once a tag is being pinned on a person, anything the targeted person does will be seen through that lens no matter if the case is proven. Any trait or behaviour that fits the looney category could be seen as confirmation that the tag is true.

M Ravi has just been accused of bi polar disorder or unusual behavior. Not proven yet. Now he went to Hong Lim to perform a dance in public. This is immediately seen as weird, that he is really what he was accused of. And the media is picking this point up. Wow, Ravi’s behavior is strange indeed.

Why is this so? Why is it that the commentators were not seeing the good side of Ravi, his other talents, that he could dance a classical Indian dance? And that was what he did.

Now this performance would likely be used by his opponents as evidence to prove their case, that Ravi is really a nut case. The tag is very powerful and destructive. It made the up the mind for many unthinking and innocent onlookers. All it needs is to plant the idea and all actions will be seen through that tinted glass, to confirm or to dismiss it. In this case, the dance performance is likely to be taken negatively against Ravi.

The door of IMH is open and waiting. How is Ravi going to get out of this snare? How many psychiatrists will be called upon to prove that Ravi is indeed of unsound mind? How many would be called to defend him, to prove that he is just another normal person with different talents and temperaments? And not dangerous, and be fit to work as a lawyer in his professional capacity.

Or would Ravi even get a chance to defend himself before the light goes out on him?

Bachelor of Science(Hawking)

If Vivian Balakrishnan has his way, would a new degree course be offered by the universities, Bachelor of Science(Hawking)? Hawking is now so lucrative with so many millionaires in their midst that the profession is getting more respectable, or at least the hawkers are gaining more dignity with their million dollar income. When there is money, there will be people willing to do it.

For the moment, hawkers are seen as those who sweat it out in their cooking stalls selling food in hawker centres or food courts, an upgraded version. In the latter, the hawkers no longer rolled up their sweaty singlets to their chests but put on nice uniforms. Many who are good could end up as chef or owners of upmarket restaurants.

It is a good idea, definitely, to encourage the young to become hawkers. And to make it more respectable, a Bachelor of Science degree, like domestic science, will go a long way. In the not too distant future, parents will be bragging about my son, the hawker, and being driven around in Mercedes Benzes. What is the point of a general arts degree or science degree and ended as a sales representative, an office administrator and earning a lousy salary? Go where the money is. Money smells good, better, when cooked. Now, this is creativity, thinking out of the box.

I rather be a minister politician.

The new million dollar politician mindset

It is your problem and you are to solve it. The govt is there only to facilitate you in finding your own answers. It is not the responsibility of the govt to come up with solutions. It is okay for the govt to create the problems no matter how much you opposed them. The govt is there to do what the govt thing is right and any problem arising…it is the people’s problem and the people have to solve it.

Imagine this is the new mindset of the politicians, after being paid in multi millions annually, do not have to be responsible for providing solutions and even can go on creating more problems.

If this the new mindset of the million dollar politicians. Imagine if this is not a joke but for real? Imagine if a minister actually said that it is not the job of the govt to provide the answers but for the people to come up with the answers?

What about the strategy of creating problems that offered solutions like COE to solve traffic congestion, housing subsidies to solve high property prices, Medishield to solve ever increasing medical cost, more training to help retrenched workers? Or more integration activities to solve new and old citizen tension, or more salary increases to solve corruption problem?

But nothing beats asking the people to provide the answers to all the problems created by dunno who.

The Ravi Incident – Another twist

The story so far, Dr Calvin Fones and lawyer Wong Siew Hong have been perceived as the villains of this case, out to do M Ravi in. Every one in favour of Ravi seems to think so. The psychiatrist is seen to have breached his professional code to disclose Ravi’s medical report to the Law Society without Ravi’s consent. Ravi claimed to have seen him for 10 mins on his stress problem and Fones offered to write him a MC but turned down by Ravi who did not feel the need for it. Still a medical report was submitted to the Law Society.

In Wong’s case, it was his barging into the High Court on two occasions in a single day, without ‘any locus to be there’, that were raising eyebrows. His strange actions could be seen as contempt of court and was duly told off by the judges. While everyone thought he acted in the capacity of the Law Society but with the Society claiming not so, it is now a case of acting on his own, on his own volition. This is hair raising.

Apparently both are not on Ravi’s side. However, Uncle Yap in his latest video tape has clarified that Fones was actually on their side, a friend of Uncle Yap and has been helping the WP and Ravi all the while. This would now cast more questions as to why he wrote the medical report which Ravi did not asked for. This point was clarified in the media in that he was asked by Wong to write the report for him on Monday morning, 16 Jul. Thus he did not write any report until told to do so by Wong.

According to Uncle Yap, Fones was required under some terms as Ravi’s doctor to submit report to the LSS. On this point he is cleared. As to who disclosed the confidential report, it is also clear that Wong brought it to the court. Would this constitute a disclosure or a public disclosure and a breach of confidentially? Or was it K Jeyaratnam as there were some comments that he was the one and retracted it later.

If Fones was on Ravi’s side, I think Ravi did not sue him, then he is being dragged into the shit hole by someone to discredit him. If he is not on Ravi’s side, he is also being dragged into the shit hole just the same. Either or, he is dead meat.

What is puzzling is that Fones, other than the very damaging report that Ravi is unfit to practise as a lawyer, he was attributed to have said that the Mental Health Act may have to be imposed to lock Ravi in IMH. This threat is not a friendly one and if he is on Ravi’s side it was unnecessary for him to mention that. Or did someone put the words in his mouth on this?

Though Ravi did not sue him, he still filed a complaint to the Singapore Medical Association against Fones. This did not necessary mean that Ravi is pulling Fones down. It could the necessary step to initiate a hearing to allow the truth to be aired in an official inquiry. Where does Fones really stand, a neutral professional, or on the side of either party?


Lawyer Wong’s case is clearer I think. And that is why the LSS is also distancing itself from him though LSS agreed with his civic minded act as reported. Both Wong and the LSS are being sued by Ravi.

The truth and apparent truth are still very patchy and more twists and turns are likely to surface and no one can presume who is the devil or real devil at this point in time.

Michael J

I have copied the UOB painting of the year 2012 by Esmond Loh. I think Esmond done a great job.

A portrait of Michael Jackson painted by Koi fish. This is a piece of rar art done with Koi fish forming every stroke of colours in the painting.

When I have done my finishing touch to this photo I was in a state of confusion. It did look like the King of Pop and also the King of Rock. The costume could fit any one of them. My mind kept swinging from KOP to KOR. One moment it looked more like one and the next moment it looked like the other. Quite exasperating.

I sat back to take a long stare at the photo. Then a voice screamed out. 'Look, it's Michael! I am Michael! Look carefully at my nose and my complexion. It is all written on my face.'

I stood up and took a second look. Oh God, it was Michael alright. And Michael it is and Michael it shall be. It reminded me of Thriller.

Remove the plastic and cosmetics, I am still who I am.

The thugs have another weapon

The thugs used to threaten people with lawsuits. They will engage the best lawyers to sue anyone who crossed their paths. This reminded me of a lawyer who spoke at a dinner telling the guests he was a gangster and threatened that anyone who crossed his path would be finished. I thought it was a dinner of a registered society but I kept feeling that I was in a triad meeting or a dinner for gangsters. Anyway, it just showed how powerful the legal fraternity can be in the wrong hands or in the hands of gangsters. 

Getting sued by the gangsters with the best lawyers is quite common even when one was right as the NKF case had proven. Those who have the financial muscles would use it to buy lawyers and used the courts as their executioner if the poor buggers could not buy a better lawyer to defend himself.

Now the new thing is to use a psychiatrist to put people in mental hospitals. This one is a bit trickier as the victim must be dumb or be tricked into seeing a psychiatrist in the first place. And once there, anything can happen if the psychiatrist is one without ethics or principles and would violate his code of practice for the money. Of course most of the psychiatrists are professional and respectable people and are safe to deal with. All it needs is a couple of rogues and an unwary patient could turn victim to the gangsters.

So be very frighten when your friends, good or very good friends, advise you to see a psychiatrist. This is a new tool that can be abused in the wrong hands. The gangsters have found another way to get at their enemies.

Dunno what to say

Trying asking anyone about the Ravi Incident in court, ‘What do you think?’

A doctor’s reply, ‘Dunno what to say.’

A psychiatrist, ‘Dunno what to say.’

Go ask a lawyer, also same answer, ‘Dunno what to say.’

Ask a senior politician, the answer, ‘What do you think?’

Ask a junior politician, the answer, ‘Dunno what to say.’

The criminals in the finance and banking system

Betting derivatives and conducting proprietary trading or gambling.


Below are three short paragraphs that could really summarized the shit situation JP Morgan is in as well as many to big to fail bank and sovereign wealth funds. The first is about derivatives and how this monster has grown to a size that could destroy not only the biggest banks but also taking down the global finance and banking system with it.

Simply, ‘A derivative buys you the option (but not obligation) to buy oil in 6 months for today's price/any agreed price, hoping that oil will cost more in future. (I'll bet you it'll cost more in 6 months). Derivative can also be used as insurance, betting that a loan will or won't default before a given date. So its a big betting system, like a Casino, but instead of betting on cards and roulette, you bet on future values and performance of practically anything that holds value. The system is not regulated what-so-ever, and you can buy a derivative on an existing derivative. ….no economist in the world knows exactly how the derivative money flows or how the system works, while derivatives are traded in microseconds by computers, we really don't know what will trigger the crash, or when it will happen, but considering the global financial crisis this system is in for tough….the 9 largest ‘American and European’ banks hold a total of $228.72 trillion in Derivatives - Approximately 3 times the entire world economy. No government in world has money for this bailout.’ These paragraphs are copied from Democracy.info

When banks are indulging in such huge bets, they need to cover their backsides through hedging, betting against a loss position.

‘A JP Morgan trader, Bruno Iksil, has been accumulating a giant bet on U.S. corporate bonds. He used derivatives to do it, and he messed up the bet and lost $2 billion for the bank. He could end up losing $1 billion more if the market doesn't cooperate.’ According to Market Place Easy Street blog.

To add into the mess, banks used to be conservative but could not resist the big money that traders were making. They too want a piece of action for themselves. How else would they be able to make the kind of crazy profits to pay the kind of crazy money to their top management and traders? The big salary must be foot by some operations, and they went for proprietary trading, ie trading themselves with the bank’s or clients’ money. The more they traded, the more hedging they needed and the more derivatives would be written. And they ended up with a mountain of debt, swaps, derivatives and betting slips that they probably did not know what was happening and any small changes in a position could end up in huge losses.

To summarise, fraudulent banking practices were allowed to go on, deregulation allowed the banks and their traders to do as they pleased with the regulators just as blurred as to what was going on. The regulators just lapped it up on whatever information the banks and their traders told them, if they were not in cahoot. When they said everything was in order, under control, the regulators could not be more happy even if it was a big white lie. How could the regulators allow the derivative transactions to balloon to US$228 trillion? Imagine the risk involved and the amount of losses should anything goes wrong? Do they have any clue what is happening? They don’t even have any clue about banks rigging Libors!

And they allowed the presumably smarter banks and traders write bets on anything, and they have not the slightest clue of what they were. And when pushed to allow the banks to trade their own money, even against their clients’ position, the regulators were as good as raising the white flag. Let them do whatever they want, just don’t create a mess, as they were lost in the maze of financial instruments and betting slips. The banks were addicted to gambling as they need to pay their robbers at the top with millions per head and hundreds of millions annually. No amount of loans officers and tellers could make this kind of money to pay these turkeys. Only gambling in derivatives could feed their appetite.

And all it needs is a little trigger and for a bank to surrender when it is no longer able to conceal its losses and cooking of the books, everything is going to come down very quickly. All the façade of well ran, well managed sophisticated systems and instruments by the best brains from Harvard and other Ivy League universities was only a great deception with each rogue bank or trader trying to disguise their excesses for as long as they could, and to demand as high a compensation package, plus an equally atrocious severance package. These turkeys cannot lose. Only the clients of the banks and the general taxpayers that would eventually have to foot the bill.

The colonisation of Africa

When the Europeans landed in Africa, they brought their guns and started to rob, loot and kill. They did that to India and Asean countries as well. They enslaved a continent of Africans and hunted down the men and women like animals to be bought and sold as slaves. 20 million Africans were turned into slaves in the US for 200 years under the western colonial slavery practice. They provided free labour and amusement to make the US what it is today. The continent of Africa was owned by the Europeans, including its inhabitants which became subjects of their various empires and all the resources. Subject is a more polite word than slaves.

After robbing and raping the Africans dry, the Africans picked themselves up through nationalistic uprising and independence movements. Today the nations of Africa are independent nations governed by Africans and charting their own future and developments. They traded with countries of the world on equal basis, no more master and slave relationship. No more one sided agreements.

China has been in Africa for the last 60 years, trading on equal terms with them, from the time when China was still a very poor and weak nation to what it is today. The profit of China is being reinvested in the African countries through generous loans. Yesterday, China announced another loan package of US$20b which is twice the amount given in the last three years. 59 African nations are now in China in a trade conference. No slaves were taken. No African country was looted.

Despite the good relations between China and Africa, the western agents and some unthinking Sinkie thick heads have been spreading misinformation about China in Africa. They are spreading the mischievous message that China is recolonising Africa as if the Africans were as weak and daft as their forefathers under western rule. Such disinformation will continue subtlely to undermine the unwary and the unthinking that China is indeed colonizing Africa. They are planting ideas into the heads of daft Sinkies, telling them how and what to think. The western agents have an interest to sabo the Chinese economic activities everywhere. Why would daft Sinkies do the same job for the West? Every trade deal that the African countries signed with China is on a par basis, both parties studying their terms and agreeing to them, unlike in the past when the Europeans went there with a gun pointing at the heads of the African leaders.

What colonizing shit are these provocateurs talking about?

Sons of laundrymen and cooks making it in USA

The Chinks or Chinese were once discriminated, marginalized and oppressed by the racist European Americans in the early years of the American history. They have laws that forbade Chinaman from the more respectable professions and degraded them to just railroad coolies, laundrymen and cooks. And for centuries the westerns have been rubbishing the Chinaman as good for nothing drags of the human race, untalented, no creativity, and plain stupid, through this racist exclusion. The laundryman tag resurfaced recently in a brawl when a racist Brit used it to insult a local Chinese of the same stock as the Chinky laundrymen and cooks.

The discrimination of Chinaman was nationwide and across the western world, and Chinaman was treated as a good for nothing breed by the West. Even the unthinking Africans and Asians look down on the Chinaman till today. They share the same perception painted by the West that Chinaman are useless, brainless, good for nothing, invented nothing, uncouth ruffians and peasants. Only the civilized descendants of the Chinaman in Sinkieland are different, or they thought they are different. They regarded themselves as a different breed, that they are as polished, cultured and sophisticated as the westerners, speaking western tongues.

Today, a Chinaman by the name of Donald Tan, actually an eminent ophthalmologist, a Singaporean, has been appointed as head of the renowned Cornea Society in the USA. This is the kind of recognition that is rare even today. Prof Tan is at the forefront of cornea transplant technology and has developed many procedures and instruments that were used world wide and named after him. Among his contributions are the DALK(Deep Anterior Lamellar Keratoplasty) Tan Scissors and a procedure called Tan Endoglide.

If Donald Tan would have been born in those ugly racist American days, (today many descendents of Chinaman are conducting leading edge research and technologies in the US today), they would probably end up as laundry boys or cooks. And they will be very familiar with laundry tags on the clothes of their European customers.

The world has changed so much and the laundryman and cook tags are starting to fall off. But Chinks are still Chinks. The difference is whether they are PRC Chinks or Sinkie Chinks. No matter what designer suits they put on or what famous pubs or bars they patronized, or what European company they keep, unless they are as good as Professor Donald Tan, behind their backs they would still be called Chinks. It is not funny to read in the blogs that Sinkie Chinks are spitting at PRC Chinks.

Celebrating Singaporean - Judge Philip Pillai

It is not often that I praise anyone in public or any public officer. The way Judge Philip Pillai conducted himself is highly professional and highly respectable. He knows his job, his rights and what is within his jurisdiction. By upholding the dignity and integrity of his office, he commands great respect from everyone, and I think even his enemies will respect him, for upholding justice and principles.

He has lifted the judiciary a notch higher in the international arena. And everyone in the judiciary and the legal profession, including Singapore as a country, has Judge Pillai to thank for.


Judge Pillai is the epitome of what a civil servant shall strive to become, and be respected in an honorable way. Be truthful and professional in the execution of your duty and responsibility, without fear or favour. This is the only way to command respect and bring a good name to the profession and to oneself and to one's country.

Anyone who compromises his professional integrity will live to regret it later and no amount of money can make it look right again.

A day of mourning

I dunno why. I feel like today is a day for mourning. I feel that something went drastically wrong over the last few days but I just could not put my fingers on it. It is just something out there that is stifling, frightening, shameful and disgusting.

Let me meditate over it. For those who should feel shameful or shameless, please repent.

Those who can feel it may want to wear black to mark this day. The sun is so bright but the feeling is so dark.

M Ravi is so lucky

Lawyer M Ravi must count himself lucky to be in a first world city state that operates under the rule of law. In such an environment he has all the instruments of the state and law to protect him from being put into a mental institution for good and never see daylight again. We have an incorruptible govt that respects the constitution and the law, a highly regarded judiciary with upright judges, a law society made up of professional and learned men and women, and a medical profession that is beyond any ill repute. And we can count on whistle blowers and civic minded individuals that would stand up to tell the truth if anything is wrong.

Put it in another way, if Ravi is living in a communist country, or a dictatorial regime, or in the USA, he must be very wary of his personal well being and freedom. They could easily asked a stooge, like a psychiatrist to diagnose him as mad and get a lawyer to file a charge against him, then the judge will receive a phone call and know exactly what to do. The next thing is that he will be escorted by the secret police in an unmarked car and dumped into a mental institution which is really another kind of prison. Once in there, the doctors will inject into him all kinds of drugs to make him delusionary, videotaped his behavior while in a hallucinated state and publish in the media as proof that he is mad when he is really not. And that will be the last time the citizens hear of him. He will be obliterated from the pages of history.

Back to our civilized first world country, we know that such things would not happen to Ravi. The lawyers and Law Society will be there to assist and protect him in case there are funny charges leveled at him. The Medical Society will have many eminent psychiatrists to challenge any wild diagnosis raised against him. He will have the opportunity to call for a second opinion from a more renowned psychiatrist with better reputation. And he will be given a fair trial in courts when justice will be duly carried out.

Ravi is safe here. Thank God we have such a wonderful rule of law system in place and the citizens can feel so secure, unlike those communist and dictatorial regimes, or even the USA.

Learning investigative journalism from social media reporters

TNP reporter tries to track down NParks brompton bike whistleblower


Hardwarezone Forum, 18 Jul 2012


This is abit irritating. The story is not about me, that why i tell them to focus on the actual story instead. EXTRA CSI Attempt -nParks Brompton procurement process ended up with a dodgy winning bidder? [Extra]


Also, i were got so stupid... give them everything now, then next time how i going to continue do any future undercover CSI works to expose other sagas and keep check on the authorities?


Hi Singaporean1st,


I'm Benson Ang, a reporter from The New Paper. I'm contacting you because of your post about the Brompton bike issue. I must say that you have done a lot of research about the matter, which is quite impressive.


I'm the reporter who wrote the initial article about NParks' purchase, and am writing an follow-up article based on the details shared in your post, alleging there was bias in the purchase.


Some of the questions I would like to ask you are:


1. How long did it take to do research on Mr Bernard Lim, BikeHop and Mr Woon Tianwen?


2. What is your motivation to do such research? What do you hope your research will achieve?


3. Are you friends with any of the parties? Are you involved in the cycling community in Singapore?

The above is part of an article posted in Singapore News Alternative but originated from Hardwarezone. This is another evident that social media reporters are getting more recognition from their main media counterparts in investigative journalism. The ability and skills of the writer is receiving admiration from both social and main media and everyone who wants to learn investigative journalism can take a few notes from him.

Exemplary conduct of civic minded citizens

The ST has a pretty good summary of the events leading to lawyer Wong Siew Hong turning up in court to make a representation to the judges while the courts were in session. For a lawyer representing the Law Society to do such a thing is unprecedented and he must have found the matter of grave importance to do it. This is an act that could get him charged for contempt of court. But he is a very brave man, acting without fear or favour, even at risk of offending the judge in a court session.

What happened was that two public spirited professionals, a consultant psychiatrist and a practicing lawyer representing the Law Society, who found something so serious that they must quickly act on it to prevent whatever they thought would happen that could be very bad. This kind of conviction and dedication to walk that extra mile, doing something beyond the call of duty, is truly commendable and the two deserved to be given a medal for civic consciousness, acting for the good of country and people. They acted on their own accord and professionalism, without consulting anyone as it was a weekend. It was like a tsunami approaching and any delay could be a life threatening situation.

On Sat, lawyer M Ravi was examined by psychiatrist Calvin Fones. On Sunday, the police received a report around 8am that someone was causing a disturbance at the Sri Mariamman Temple and the person was Ravi. It was also reported that Calvin Fones alerted Wong Siew Hong who was overseas. When and why he alerted Wong was not stated. Was it because of his examination of Ravi on Sat or was it because of the disturbance at the temple that he came to know about was not clear.

On Mon at 9am, Wong was back in Singapore and called Fones to prepare a letter. He also said he had alerted the Law Society Secretariat and was going to the High Court. There he informed State Counsel David Chong and Ravi that ‘he wishes to get the court to stand down and to inform the judge about the letter in chambers.’ Wong got the letter at 10.45am and entered the court room while hearing was in progress. Judge Pillai did not allow him interrupt the proceedings. After the hearing the two were called into the judge’s chamber and Wong presented the letter. He admitted that there was no precedence of such nature and the judge ruled that as long as Ravi still had a practicing certificate he could continue to represent his client.

Later, not sure what time, Wong went to another court to present his letter again. Justice Quentin Loh too ruled that Ravi could continue to represent his clients.

The event showed how persistent and dedicated was Wong in what he was doing which he must have viewed as of utmost urgency and importance to the good practices of law in the country. The Law Society has also made a statement that the ‘Society not involved in any conspiracy.’ The LSS also stated that Wong ‘decided to go to court “on his own volition” …”LSS is satisfied that although Mr Wong had acted very much on his own, he did so with the best of intentions.”

All the events that occurred only proved that there is a very civic minded lawyer acting on his own, thinking on his own with the diagnosis from a psychiatrist that something must be put right, to do something good. And no joke, the lawyer and psychiatrist were working through the weekend, and trying to rush a letter to court on Monday morning to make sure it got there on time. Such public spirited dedication must be appreciated and highly rewarded. National Day is just around the corner and a National Day Award is deserving as it is unusual for daft Sinkies to work so hard for free but for a good and just cause.

Kangaroo on the lose

A kangaroo was seen hopping around in town and barging into many buildings without notice, causing annoyance to its owners. It was driven out by the respective owners but not before leaving a smelly trail of kangaroo stench.

The zoo did not know that the kangaroo had bolted out on its own until it was reported in the evening news. The zoo owners denied any prior knowledge of the mischievous kangaroos and they would not be responsible for all the droppings it left behind. How the kangaroo could go to town is still puzzling to everyone. And how it got so far without anyone knowing, without being stop by the police or knock down by the traffic on the roads must be a miracle.

The strange behavior of the kangaroo, of all places, appearing in town and try barging into buildings is even stranger. Should not kangaroos be running to places that it is familiar with and comfortable, like the kangaroo grass courts or kangaroo playing fields?

Now the zoo is going to conduct an investigation to check the mental health of the kangaroo. There are vets for animals. Are there psychiatric vets for animals to examine if this kangaroo has any disorders that need to keep it in a lock up for its own good?

It is strange that there are kangaroos in a cosmopolitan city and running around excitedly. This story is totally fictional and any resemblance to anything is purely coincidental.

The quality and credibility of social media

The Bromptomgate and the Ravi case have proven beyond any doubt about the quality and credibility of the social media. Some have gone so far, walked that extra mile, to uncover the hidden truths that the public were dying to know. And social media have done that extremely well, to tell the truth, nothing but the truth.

Anyone want to disagree with me that social media is just some voices in the wilderness or some lunatics fringes? The quality and intensity in the investigation to get to the truth without being paid a single cent is simply remarkable. Social responsibility need not be bought by money. Social media is not only the voice of the people, but also the voice of conscience and social justice.

You want the truth, social media can handle it.

So frightening….

A medical report from a psychiatrist, Dr Calvin Fones Soon Leng from the Gleneagles Medical Centre, was submitted to the court by the Law Society to raise doubts about lawyer M Ravi’s ability to practice law. Some of the contents of the reports in the media state that Ravi is ‘currently unfit to practice law and his illness is likely to affect his professional capacity…is having a manic relapse of his bipolar disorder…this is likely to occur over the past two weeks.’

Ravi was advised by his kind and concerned friends to take a break from his heavy load in cases like the death sentence of Yong Vui Kong, Kenneth Jeyaretnam’s case on Singapore’s loan to the IMF and the case of cleaner Vellama versus the PM on the PM’s discretion to hold by elections. The report did not state whether his good friends advised him to get a medical MC or to see a psychiatrist. But he went to see Dr Fones leading to this report in court, submitted by the Law Society.

The more significant and frightening part of the report in the media is this. ‘He(Dr Fones) added that the lawyer “lacks any insight into his condition as is often the case for many patients who (suffer a) relapse”. If Mr Ravi remains uncooperative, the doctor said that the Mental Health (Care and Treatment) Act may need to be invoked. The Act provides for the admission, detention, care and treatment of mentally disordered persons in designated psychiatric institutions.’

Don’t pray pray with the power of the doctors. When they have diagnosed someone as mad or potentially mad, this is what they can do to the person. And it looks like Ravi is diagnosed as mad or going mad in layman terminology.

Would Ravi be seen running wild brandishing a sword that makes him dangerous to society or to the judges in court? Or would Ravi ended up throwing a shoe at some VVIP. I am wondering what had Ravi done to put him in this dangerous person list?

What can happen now would be for Ravi to be struck off the practicing lawyer’s list, or may be put into a mental institution. End of the story.

Inclusive society, no one left behind

With this grand motherhood statement, one can presumed that it is true, a govt position and all policies will follow suit. So anyone left behind?

All those victims of past govt policies, especially those citizens that still have no homes, ostracized, discriminated, banned, punished or for whatever reasons, not allowed to by HDB flats, it is time to show your middle finger, together as a group. Some of these were the singles, some could not find a partners to get married and their incomes exceeded the arbitrary ceilings that should not be there in the first place if the govt’s goal is to build homes for the people, not finding excuses not to build and put the blame on high demands, some waited and see their incomes grew or got promoted and found themselves screwed.

If the govt has been caring and know that it is duty bound to build flats/homes for the citizens, and did not hold back from building, there will be no demand exceeding supply problem. And the idiots could not understand that all young people started work with incomes below the ceilings and should be qualified unless they were children of millionaire ministers who already be given private properties in a silver platter.

The children of the working class, worked their way up, saved and stinged, only to be knocked out of the system because they took a little more time to save, to decide to get hitched, to save a little more, or could not get what they want because of limited supply and the curtailment of building more flats by the ministry. And it is their fault, not the ministry’s fault, for taking too long, waiting too long.

Where is the inclusiveness when citizens are not allowed to buy public housing, when new citizens could easily buy them? All discriminated citizens should send a petition to the govt to acknowledge their failure in providing housing to them as citizens, and the flawed policies of the past, not building enough flats to meet the needs of citizens. Would the govt reply that it is the citizen’s fault for not planning their lives and bad decision not to buy a flat when their incomes were low? Conversely, would the govt acknowledge that this is a problem due to flawed govt policies, not building, slow building, and allowing influx of foreigners and new citizens to join the queue to compete with local citizens?

What inclusiveness is the govt talking about? Inclusive of foreigners, new citizens, integrate them and screw the citizens? How many sinkies are out there, never bought or disqualified from buying public housing?

What is the purpose of calling for a public tender?

There is no need for an expert to explain why a public tender is called. At times tenders may be restricted, pre qualified, or selected for various reasons like secrecy, confidentiality, expediency or some peculiar reasons like corruption or cronyism.

Normally a public tender is called to ensure that the buyer has the best deal in terms of quality, choice and price. This is normally achieved by having a good number and selections from tenderers with a good mix of products and pricing. The buyer would then be able to make a more informed decision on what are available in the market and the cost of the product or services.

A public tender also ensures fair play, no favouritism, under hand tactics, no fixing, no collusion or corruption. It is about being fair and transparent to the buyer and sellers.

Govt agencies, public or private companies do not established procurement procedures and tender processes for fun. No responsible management staff would simply place a public tender and accept anything that comes along, and the last thing is to accept a one bid tender. This can only happen when the value is insignificant and when there is a critical time issue at stake.

The very fact that a purchase must go through the process is already a reminder to the buyer that they cannot suka suka buy anything at any price. It is a reminder that the process is to ensure the organisation is getting a fair deal and also suppliers are given a fair chance to bid for the tender. There will always be cheats who go through the motion to give an image of transparency and fair play. There will be those who will game the system for obvious reasons as had happened, and anyone who knows the system could do it so easily. And when caught, pretend to be naive and ignorant and mouth things like the system can be improved.

Are these commonsensical objectives of a tender so complicated and difficult to understand? A moron can be expected to overlook such processes and the reasons for them because a moron is simply a moron. Can anyone be more moronic than a moron and failed to observe and practise these basic rules of procurement and purchases using public money?

The dying days of a dynasty

History students will be familiar with the events leading to the eclipse of an empire or dynasty. Everything seemed so right but so wrong, badly wrong, starkly wrong. But no one would be there to say things were wrong and to put them right. Many would stand up to speak and defend the wrongs and insisted that wrongs were right, nothing is wrong. Either they could not see or would not see or so used to wrongs as being rights as long as they said so.

In recent years, many flawed policies were thrashed out in the open leading to the PM apologising for them. That was about as far as it could get. The flawed immigrantion policy, congestion, high inflation, high cost of living, high property prices, high medical cost, high salary to pay for corruption, widening income gap, rewarding foreign thrash and demeaning the people that are the owners of this land, policies that favoured foreigners and against Sinkies.  And there are many others that were so obviously wrong but pronounced as so right and so good, or as something unavoidable, nothing can be done to change them.

The echoes of HDB prices are affordable, income gap is ok, high property prices are caused by market forces, nothing can be done, more foreigners are good for growth, immigrants are here to help the daft Sinkies,…..can go on and on, are still ringing in many people’s ears.

The charade of charity shows and big fund raisings were fun and a fad for the organisers until the funds were used by some individuals to have more private funs. The running down of the public transport system was never seen and everyone was happily rewarding themselves with more bonuses until it took a simple accident that ended up life threatening to shake everybody up.

The shameless exploitations for profits in the medical profession that led to many patients ended as victims of big scams and paying dearly to the noble profession of life saving until it exploded into a big ugly incident. No, nothing wrong about how much professionals or hospitals billed their patients. Caveat emptor, willing buyer willing selling. You want quality, you pay for quality. Moneyism has replaced ethics as the new social more. The banking and finance industry has been turned into a den of crooks and no one can see anything wrong with it except pointing fingers at the low down front line snake oil peddlers who failed to explain how poisonous the snake oil is. It is their fault. Snake oils were permitted to be peddled to innocent customers as sophisticated products and advanced computerised games.

What else is new? Money is not an issue when there are plenty to go around. The squandering of millions by people and splashed across the front pages of the media were dismissed as nonsense. Many cannot see anything wrong with them but wrong for accusing the squanderers wrongfully. And the good name of God was paraded to defend the squanderers. Some have ended behind bars but the loyal supporters would not see the human failings. What is a few millions?

Was there anything wrong with the purchase of $2,200 high end branded bicycles for public servants? No, definitely no. Minister had spoken out to defend the decision. Academics too sang in support. Nothing wrong. The whole process was done properly, lowest bid, cheapest available, right procedures. The only hint of some wrongdoings was the admission that it could be done better and the system could be improved. My God, our civil service procedures were found wanting in the 21^st century for such a simple straight forward process. I think tendering is such a new thing in the civil service and they are still testing out the processes. I can only think of Ah Beng and his seventh month bidding which is more effective, efficient as a transparent tender system.

Just ask anyone involved in purchasing, any CEOs or dept heads, or any working adults and they will all shake their heads. Was there an elephant in the room? No, swear, no elephant! When a pile of shit stood right in front of everyone and in broad daylight, and respected people are defending it as no shit, you can expect how decadent things have become.

So far, the only person that is brave enough to stand up and call a spade a spade is Lui Tuck Yew. Not for fun like some pretenders claiming to do the same. And he is probably the only minister that is really working 25 hours to get the MRT running smoothly again. But he fell short of saying that heads must roll. Has anyone seen any heads rolling in the last decade or so? There is a phrase in the US called ‘too big to fail’. We may have our equivalent of ‘too talented to fail’. Anyway, this is only a side issue.

The main issue is that Nothing Is Wrong. No one can see anything wrong. And any wrong must be defended by all till it is accepted as right. Used the media to broadcast that it is right daily, get some known personalities to support the wrong as right. The daft Sinkies will believe it after a while.

Events in the dying days of a dynasty often manifest themselves in similar light, similar treatment and attention. Anyone dares claim that things are going wrong?

Look at the American Empire. Anyone dares say they are the problem of the world? Anyone dares say they are the one that is causing tension and wars around the world? Anyone dares say America is free from corruption? Everyone says, America is good, freedom, no corruption, America is saving the world, a benevolent and peace loving nation. And the best part, the Americans and their leaders, the scheming, conniving gangsters and murderers, believe it too. They too cannot see anything wrong with themselves and what they are doing. Did they ever admit that they enslaved 20 million Africans for 200 years! And murdered 10 million Red Indians and seized their lands?  Hitler was a novice compared to the Americans.

Oops, I digress.