The slippery road of no return

The Singapore Brand, a legacy of LKY that makes Singapore ticks and the role model of the world is taking a bashing in quick succession. It looks like they have buried the Singapore Brand with LKY and a new brand like the Chinatown or Rochore Canal Brand is the new replacement. Honesty and integrity are just two slippery concepts that can be twist and turn to suit the user’s needs.

There was an applications consultant hired by the IDA that was found to include an MBA from a degree mill in her resume. The explanation came after the social media went on fire to demand that she be sacked, that she was recruited based on the first degree from a reputable university, the MBA was not considered. Ask around and you will find no Singaporean with a decent grade would enrol in this reputable university that is ranked 551 in an international ranking. If I am not mistaken, many universities in Malaysia ranked even better than 551.

After incessant pressure for the ministries to act, it is reported in Saturday’s msm that an internal investigation found that the staff concerned ‘did not deceive the agency by listing the MBA from Web based Southern Pacific University, an alleged diploma mill, in her resume.’ The staff ‘…had genuinely believed her MBA programme to be bona fide, and she had put in effort to obtain the qualification, the IDA said.’ My auto pilot reaction when reading this was, ‘huh, got like that one?’

Such an explanation would never have been accepted in the past and no one in his right mind would dare to use it as a logical explanation of a wrong. And they have no doubt about her intelligence. She is a graduate from a reputable university and did not know what is a degree mill? Today IDA is using it as an acceptable justification to clear an employee alleged to have used a degree mill MBA in her resume. Can I take it that the govt and the ministers too would agree to this kind of reasoning, if they did not say anything against it, especially the Minister of Infocomm?

And there is another case of a foreign lecturer in the Ngee Ann Polytechnic who ‘received a master’s in education from non accredited, online based Breyer State University three years ago,…(and) is supposedly graduating from the same institution with a doctorate in psychology later this year.’

In defence of his appointment as a lecturer, he had 15 years of experience with the polytechnic’s School of Film and Media Studies, NP said he was appointed not based on his masters and doctorate degree. The polytechnic did not mentioned what qualifications he had when appointed as a lecturer and then promoted to senior lecturer. ‘NP added that Mr Jonet pursued the master’s programme of his own accord, and that it was no a job requirement and had no bearing on his progression at the institution.’

The only positive thing about NP’s explanation is that one does not need a degree or a technical qualification to be hired or promoted as long as one is able to do the job. In the past it was like that. This is the same position taken by a forum writer, likely a FT, in the main media a few days’ earlier that a certificate or degree is not necessary if one can do the job. Our hospitals and architectural institutions would now have a lot of doctors and architects to choose from if no degree or certification is necessary. In the past a dentist can set up a shop to extract tooth without going to medical school. And it worked too. Maybe our PMETs should consider becoming a dentist and apply to the MOH. But first must go learn how to pull a few teeth out from some mouths to show that one knows how to do the job.

Such a flexible approach to hiring talent is like back to the 3rd world. But looking at it positively it is Innovation with a capital I and 3rd world Creativity with a big C. Our rigid and straight jacket system run by our super talents would definitely frown upon such frivolous methods of recruiting talents. Or have they been won over by IDA and NP? No wonder we need more 3rd world talents to teach us how to do it the 3rd world way for progress. It is like anything goes. And please, no need to pay our 'out of this world' salary for this kind of standard.

Ok, forgot it is time to forget about LKY’s Singapore Brand. Now no need qualifications, can do the work OK leow. No wonder some ministers are discouraging our young from going to universities. If you can get someone without a good and respectable degree to teach our students, what is the point of going to get a degree? I like it very much. Non graduates can teach students to become graduates. It is novel for sure. How come I never think of it?

Shit, I am behind time. Our super talents are worth their pay. They have thought of it, ahead of me. I am really slow. Now the new mantra, ‘Bo tak chek’ can teach students to get a degree! Ingenius! And daft Sibkies are in awe of 551 ranked university as reputable, and this kind of talents to help Singapore to grow, to replace our PMETs.