My admiration for the Chairman of the COI for the Little India Riot,
Pannir Selvam. Senior State Counsel David Khoo pointed to his attention
of an article in the ST on an interview with the bus driver involved in
the accident that started the rioting. Pannir Selvam took the
opportunity to caution the public and other civil society groups not to
act too clever and interfere with the COI with their clever suggestions.
He said, and I quote:
‘This is all highly improper and we don’t need their advice. If anybody
thinks that you, your witness or anybody else can fool us, then you’ll
be fooling yourselves because we have had enough experience and we know
what we are doing. We don’t need your guidance or advice or anything
like that.’
This is not only a statement of wisdom but of fact and conviction. Many
of the boards of inquiry formed comprised of eminent and experienced
people with the right expertise to do a proper job. Unless of course the
people appointed to such boards are wishy washy type that do not know
what they are doing or are incompetent. This is rarely the case. Then
they would need the advice of any Tom Dick and Harry to help them with
suggestions that they came up with after a few minutes in the kopitiams.
Calling for public contributions, suggestions, public consultation
papers, presumes that the public knows better. How can this be when the
best super talents that are paid millions are the professionals while
the public are mostly ignoramus or at best with a little knowledge in
the subject? The calling of suggestions from the public inadvertently
can be an admission of incompetence or inadequacy, or even a farce.
There are things that the public can be invited to express their views,
like whether we want 6.9m population as there is no right or wrong in
such a position but a matter of preference. It is like a life style
choice that is subjective in nature. In professional and technical areas
when technical expertise is involved and needed, how much can the lay
public contribute in things they don’t know much about? In this riot
case, the public can at best offer eye witness evidence for the COI to
make an educated assessment of what actually happened.
I must say respect to the Chairman of the COI for putting his foot down
on the noises coming from the public. It is not wrong to claim they know
best as they really are the best. Now who else is asking for the layman
uncles and aunties for advice and suggestions on technical matters? Are
they saying that the uncles and aunties know more and better than them?
5 comments:
Allow me to express my view on this matter.
Just 'hahaha' would suffice.
Why the Top Level Ministers always asked the uncles and aunties : what do you think??? You must also come out with solutions if you want to criticise.
Let me hear your opinion s and solutions do I do not have to crack my brains.
My gaji buta.
Everyone is equal except ahneh? PAP has turned this place into ahneh territory in 50 years.
Ahneh territory with ahneh PM to boot. Ok, Ok, maybe ahneh seat warmer.
Maybe, also a change of name from Sinkieland to 'Republic of Little India'.
Respect can come in two ways.
Respect should be earned, but sometimes we are forced to respect something or someone, like the law.
So, which is it?
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