Wither Goes Malaysia

                                                                WITHER     GOES      MALAYSIA

The concept of Malaysia was a British idea to prevent Soekarno from taking over British North Borneo and Sarawak .
The British colonial office had invited the Federal Malay states , Singapore, Sabah and Sarawak to join in a federation
of independent states to form a new entity called Malaysia. However each of the five states had different motive and
objective for joining the federation which would eventually tear at the seams to destroy Malaysia. The ultra and radical
Islamic UMNO  of the Malay Federal States took it as an opportunity to eventually take over the British colonies of 
Sarawak and Sabah. Singapore saw it as an opportunity to extend and widen its influence over new horizons. The
autonomous self-governing states of Sabah and Sarawak volunteer to join the federation on the premise that Singapore
is a member of the federation. The British minister of state for colonial affairs Lord Lansdowne signed the Inter-government
Committee Report in 1963. The report stated that any state that voluntarily entering a federation had an intrinic right to secede
at will. Under the IGC constitutional arrangements were formulated that include  the safeguards for the special interest of
North Borneo and Sarawak to cover such matters like religious freedom,education, representation in the Federal Government,
the position of the indigenous races, control of immigration, citizenship and state constitution. The IGC Report was accepted
and signed on 27th February, 1963 by UK, North Borneo, Sarawak and Federation of Malaya. Under the terms of the
agreement a basic clause stated that basically Sabah and Sarawak are free to to leave the federation at any timeand do
not need the approval of each of the federal states to leave or need the support of the Rulers' Council to leave. All Sabah
and Sarawak need to do is to pass a resolution in their respective parliament or Dewan Undangan Negeri to leave and Sabah
and Sarawak will become an independent sovereign nation.

After the British had left the ultra Islamic UMNO leaders began to plan and scheme the taking over of the local self-governing
autonomous parliaments of Sabah and Sarawak. In Sarawak the first local Chief Minister , Stephen Kalong Ningkan was
ousted by UMNO in 1966 and he was replaced by a muslim Chief Minister, Abdul Taib Mahmud. Before long the autonomy of
Sabah and Sarawak was eroded. Datuk Harris of UMNO treacherously cede the oil rich producing Island of Labuan to the
Federal government as a federal territory. In addition the unequal sharing of exploitation of Sabah's and Sarawak's rich resources
of timber and petroleum caused great anger and dissatisfaction. There were strong calls for secession from the Federation by the
Sabahans and Sarawakians. Then in 1994 there was direct political intervention by the Federal Government of Doctor Mahatir.
It was a political tactic by UMNO led Federal Government to seize control and manage the autonomous power of the Borneo
states of Sabah and Sarawak,

It was agreed in the IGC that Sabah and Sarawak will have no official religion. There will be freedom of religion, respect for
adat or customary law and while state government holds authority over land , the natives will pledge loyalty to Malaysia.
However, all original agreements were soon torn to shreds by ultra radical UMNO leaders. The natives such as the Dusuns,
Kadazans,Muruts, Bajau, Ibans, Melanaus and Bidayuh claim that their life was better before Malaysia. There were no Muslim -
Christian conflict before Malaysia. Recruitment for civil  service and schorlarships was based on merit and not on race or religion.
Then soon after usurping the autonomus power of the local assemblies the UMNO leadership began to take in more than 1.7
million muslims from the Phillipines and Indonesia to overwhelm the the 1.5 million Sabahans, Similarly large numbers of muslims
were taken into Sarawak from Indonesia and Philippines. This is a direct travesty of the IGC signed in 1963 .

Since 1963 all governors of Sabah and Sarawak were muslims while others were effectively denied the posts. When native leaders
demand higher royalty for oil and timber resources rather than the measly 5% they were mysteriously eased out or silenced. The
issue of race and religion predominate in Sabah and Sarawak in line with the " Ketuanan  Melayu  " Malay Supremacy and dictates
of the ultras and religious radicals of the UMNO  Federal Government.

UMNO had calculated its strategic move to throw out Singapore from the federation so that ultra UMNO could have its way in
achieving "Ketuanan Melayu" in Sabah and Sarawak. Since Singapore is no more in the Federation the people of Sabah and
Sarawak feel strongly that they too should not be part of the equation and should secede from the federation which is  their
constitutional right. However, because UMNO holds complete political power and dominate the military and police force the
natives are hamstrung and in the meantime unable to secede. The big powers and United Nations must intervene
eventually to help the natives of Sabah and Sarawak to get rid of the yoke of ultra UMNO to achieve their righteous independence
and sovereignty,

Sg
Wednesday,30th September, 2015

The unbelieveable talent of politicians

We have just witnessed the appointment of a new cabinet of ministers, with some ministers taking on new ministries and some new faces being appointed as ministers. Many people have taken for granted that this is a normal thing, just getting people appointed as ministers. There is nothing unusual about it.

From the HR perspective, this is the biggest fallacy that no one ever questioned. Now what am I talking about? These are very important appointments that require exceptional skill sets. They are not the cashier or the counter sales girls. Even these lower skill jobs require some form of training and may be some form of relevant qualifications. Now you are getting it.

In political appointments, there is no skill sets to talk about. There is no profession training needed. You can put Ah Meng as a defence minister or an education minister, as long as he is elected by the people and the party puts him into the job. Now the picture is getting clearer. In the industries, every joker is talking about skill sets and lack of skill sets to hire or not to hire, to go overseas to look for the talent with the required skill sets.

There were hue and cries about our lack of talent in the IT and finance industries. But we never heard of lacking talents in politicians. There was no need for any qualifications or training as politicians. Maybe being a politician is the easiest thing, in born, a natural skill that does not need any training. But when one takes on an appointment like finance, education, defence, law, health, etc etc, is there any specific training or qualifications needed? No, no need, anyone is good enough to be in any ministry. We put a soldier as an Education Minister and he is expected to know what education is all about. We put an eye surgeon to become a Foreign Minister and he will know the job. We put an administrator as the Transport Minister, and instantly he is an expert in solving transport problems.

In conclusion, either the job of a politician even at ministerial level is so easy that no training is needed and any training or experience will do, or a politician is born to be multi talented, born to know everything and be an expert in everything. An MP will automatically become an advisor to clan associations, sports associations, clubs, guilds, industrial associations etc etc. Somehow an MP also becomes a knows all.

It is really good to be a politician, your status, skills and talent immediately changed overnight and one becomes a knows all superman or superwoman without the need for any professional training.

This is the best profession on earth. No need special professional training and good for life.

15 Prime Ministers for Singapore

This is my recommendation. You don’t have to agree but I have good reasons for it. The appointment of two ministers each in MTI and Education is so well received that the reasons for it must be right. Singapore should seriously be thinking of having 15 Prime Ministers to be efficient and productive and to take the country forward

Here are some of the favourable comments in support of having two ministers in the two ministries reported in the ST. No one has a bad word for it. No one can find anything wrong with it. It has no flaws, as good as a concept in perfection. I will put them down in point forms for ease of reading.

1. Challenging period and tepid economy

2. Two ministers mean greater focus on each area, each dedicated to specific areas, aka dedicated ministers, I like the pun

3. Global competition and fast pace technological advancement

4. Greater attention and accountability

5. Business can expect more help, also know the priority of govt

6. Boosting economic growth like a car with two engines or is it two exhausts

7. Ministers would have more time to interact with business leaders

8. And for better coordination it is apt to have a coordinating minister on top of them. If not we may end up like the housing crisis, influx of population but not building flats

9. SME Association Kurt Wee even suggested a third minister dedicated to SMEs. This is good anticipation ability to see the trend for more ministers

The two minister concept is such an ingenious creation that the govt should have thought of it long ago. Never has a govt initiative been so well received. And by the comments from the business leaders, the govt really needs to have more ministers in every ministry. Singapore is growing, the world is growing, jobs are getting so big and so complicated, one minister is just impossible to cope and do a good job.

Actually the move has already been started long ago in the PMO. There are quite a number of ministers in the PMO, suggesting that there is a need for more PMs. So with ministries getting more ministers to help to run, it is unfair to expect the PM to work alone. The current practice of having so many ministers in the PMO should be abolished and replaced by having more PMs with one PM overseeing one ministry. Then to make sure that there is proper coordination and efficiency, there will be a Coordinating PM to gel the PM team together.

Singapore will have the most effective and efficient govt to take it forward in the next 50 years. This is political entrepreneurship, with creative and innovative new ideas in govt.

What about cost? Never mind, if the new structure of having so many ministers is productive, it would pay by itself even if the cost of govt is 10 times more. You must pay for good quality right? It is the result that counts. Did you see why Singaporeans are paying so much for housing and cars and still able to pay? The simple answer is that they can afford it as they are making a lot of money. So there is no need to worry about cost of govt when there are productivity and growth.

We need to seriously study this new approach to govt for more productivity. The old concept of productivity means one minister wears 10 hats and one MP with 50 directorships. The new productivity formula is many ministers in one ministry and many ministers of state and parliamentary secretaries and Chairman of committees to work together to improve productivity.

This is simply ingenious. Harvard is going to take this idea further and develop a course on it for a Ph D in Govt Administration.

Who else is offending Malaysia?

The Bersih 4 protest had offended Malay dignity and Islam. The Chinese Ambassador’s comment in Petaling Street that China opposed discrimination on ethnic minorities has offended Malaysia, an interference in Malaysia’s domestic affairs. The Acting Foreign Minister had called up the Chinese Ambassador to clarify on his remarks that had ‘attracted attention and caused concern to the Malaysian public’. Interestingly no minister has raised concern about the aborted protest in Chinatown that threatened peace and security and violence against the Chinese minority.

What about the FBI investigation on Najib’s involvement in 1MDB and the threat of arresting the PM? Would that be a concern or important enough to call up the American Ambassador to clarify on the matter and to ensure Najib’s safety in the USA? Maybe the public did not see any problem with that and so not a concern and not offending to Malaysian or Malay dignity.

By the way Jamal is going to organize another protest this time against Dr Wan Azizah in her constituency. This protest is more political in nature and the police have less reason to ban it. Just hope that this protest is just against Azizah and nothing else and would not spread into Chinatown and take on a different slant and different consequences. Maybe the shops would be closed again for good reasons. The public would not be concerned for anything bad to happen surely.

Hsien Loong’s new cabinet

A new cabinet was announced yesterday with Lui Tuck Yew replaced by two new faces in Ng Chee Meng and Ong Ye Kung plus several ministers of states and parliamentary secretaries. Vivian is promoted to Foreign Minister and Boon Wan has taken over the hot seat in Transport. Other than the overloading of several ministers and ministers of states and parliamentary secretaries to helm each ministry, a way of saying that that the job is damn big and requiring many ministers to cover, attention is all on Boon Wan’s role in Transport.

The talk of the town is the matching of the most troublesome job to the most effective minister in the cabinet. Boon Wan is touted as the minister that solved the housing issue which to some was never an issue until his predecessor messed it up with his screwed up policies. Boon Wan should thank the person for digging a hole that all he needed to do was to fill it up and get all the credit like he had done a miracle.

The Transport Ministry is a different kettle of fish from the series of failed housing policies that were in a way consciously created for some spoofy reasons. Though much work and money have already been spent to tidy up the problems in public transport, this is not as easy as filling a hole that someone dug. And if the population is going to rise to 6.9m and more, the little extra lines added would still not be enough to meet the rising demands. Boon Wan would now have to face a real tricky situation that is evolving all the time and any mistake or failure would be felt immediately in real time. The commuters cannot be told to wait for 3 years when the train stops running.

The real test of Boon Wan’s ability has just begun. This transport problem is real and it is not just building more lines and having more trains on the track. It is not just a brick and mortar issue. Let’s hope Boon Wan will do a miracle deserving of praise in transportation.

Who is the real devil?

ISIS is evil, there is no doubt about it and US is constantly portraying it as such. But who is supporting and sustaining ISIS? It is the Pentagon and CIA of the Evil Empire. Why is it so? It confounds people. Why does America want to do such a thing? America is playing a double game , all for its own interest. America wants to destabilise the whole of Middle East by sowing dissension and hatred among the dimwit Arabs and incite them to fight against each other. America can then make money by selling obsolete military hardware to the fighting factions. In this way America can continue to hold sway over the Middle East as the overlord . It is strategic for America in some ways and two of them are to control all the natural resources , largely oil of the region and to deprive China of it. The third advantage is that US hope to outflank Russia and China from military strategic point of view. So both ISIS and US are evil. Both must be destroyyed.

Gilbert Goh’s petition to UN on GE2015

Gilbert Goh, the organizer for the anti Population White Paper protest in Hong Lim Park and a candidate for the Reform Party that contested the Ang Mo Kio GRC and lost, has launched a petition to the UN to complain about unfair practices in the GE.

The link to the petition is https://www.change.org/p/united-nations-office-let-s-have-a-fair-ethical-general-election-in-singapore?source_location=petitions_share_skip

Gilbert is asking for 1000 signatures for this petition. He said he had sent a complaint letter to the UN earlier but has not received any reply and thus the need for a petition. At this point in time more than 700 signatures have been penned for the petition.

In the petition letter Gilbert has listed down the reasons that he claimed are unfair, mainly due to gerrymandering and the injection of new citizens.

PSI and employment data

Has this country degenerated into a 3^rd World country that information for public consumption has to be massaged to send a feel good message instead of letting the people know what they really wanted to know and to act on for their own good? The employment data of lumping citizens and PRs together has been a bugbear for a long time and people reading the data are getting very frustrated and suspicious of the intent and purpose of such data and the need to hide citizens together with PRs. The people are not that daft to know what is happening. You can cheat some people all the time but not all the people all the time, so they said. When would the govt think it is time to clear this misinformation or muddy information about employment statistics? Or is it another case of it is better that the people do not know?

Now the most important data in the mind of the people must be the PSI. Why is the govt so stubborn to stick to 24 hr average and 3 hr average when what the people need is the latest PSI reading? What the people want to know is the latest to plan their activities, to go out or stay home, for those organizations that have to conduct outdoor activities like field training, sports, etc, to continue or to cancel the event? What good are 24 hr and 3 hr average but just for the record and for the academics and statisticians to use for record purposes? The averaging of the data over 24 hr and 3 hr would deceive the people that it is safe to go out when the condition could be adverse and hazardous. Is this a responsible thing to do, telling history to the people when it is dangerous to go out?

What is the purpose of providing PSI data if the people cannot make full use of them as a guide for their safety? And why is the govt so adamant not to provide the current level of pollution to the people? The data are available and with computerization there is no great effort and stress to make the data public to the people.

Or it is another case of better that the people not know the truth?

Jamal released, an ugly crisis avoided

While many Singaporeans spent their weekends complaining about the irritating haze and the missed opportunities to go out there to have their fun, the minorities in Malaysia heaved a sigh of relief. The harrowing experience of May 13 almost descended on them and many feared that they would end up as carnage on the streets bathed with blood, and their homes and shops razed to the ground like before. It was fear everywhere that prompted the MCA chief to call on Najib to put a stop to the Saturday’s second Red Shirt Rally in Chinatown. And in desperation, the Chinese Ambassador was invited to visit Chinatown to make a statement that what the Red Shirts were planning was unacceptable.

The Police acted and arrested Jamal, the UMNO NGO head who was associated with the Sep 16 rally and the planned Saturday rally into Chinatown. With Jamal out of the picture, and with increasing pressure and international spotlight on the grave acts waiting to happen, reasons and wisdom took over and the rally was called off. It was unimaginable should the Red Shirts be let lose to do what they intended to do in Chinatown and to the ethnic Chinese community. How the situation could escalate to such a level in modern and supposedly moderate Malaysia only showed that beneath the façade of calm, all is not well. A little provocation and instigation and the primordial instinct of mob behaviour would surface. In the 21^st Century, the thought of political leaders tapping on racial hostility and to exploit it to create mob violence for personal interests is scary and unforgiveable.

The Malaysian Chinese from now on would appreciate better the presence of a powerful China to fall back on to avoid being massacred freely like in the past. Those were the days when China was hapless and could only watch in vain, too weak to do anything, and many ethnic Chinese in Southeast Asia were easy meat to be slaughtered with impunity by the natives. Hopefully those days would never happen again because of a powerful China that could intervene to prevent further bloodshed, but more as a result of enlightenment, civilisation and progress among the people in the region, to move away from the old tribal ways when life was short and brutal.

Countries and societies should be governed by the rule of law, not raw naked primitive power. Malaysia is still in transformation, from bad to good and some from good to bad. The power brokers in Malaysia are changing sides. The forces of progress have degenerated while the forces of extremism have turned moderates. In the midst of trouble times, a beckon of light appears from a forgotten royalty that was ostracized by the politicians for the very same reasons the politicians are guilty of today. And the royalties have returned to be a force of moderation, modernization and wisdom, to put the politicians in their rightful place, not to abuse the power bestowed on them by the rakyat. A badly behaved political fiefdom would now have to reckon with the royalties to stand up for the rakyat, to assume their rightful place as rulers and protectors of the rakyat, and to put the usurpers back to where they are.

An unusual calm has returned to Malaysia, but life is still far from normal. There could still be fireworks when Najib returns from the UN. Or would he be retained by the Americans for his vices and remove the source of all the problems during this critical time?

Transboundary Haze Pollution Act in action

According to Vivian the govt is invoking the Transboundary Haze Pollution Act to take the companies suspected of being the cause of the haze to task. According to Channel News Asia, Singapore is taking legal action. However the paper also said, and I quote, ‘APP was asked by Singapore's National Environment Agency to supply information on its subsidiaries operating in Singapore and Indonesia, as well as measures taken by its suppliers in Indonesia to put out fires in their concessions.’ So, is this part of the legal action or just asking to provide information?

By the way, I just took a peep at the window and the sky is clear, no haze. Would the legal action be stopped now that the haze is no longer in the air?  At the way the haze came and gone, would it affect the legal actions or would the legal actions go on until the culprit is found guilty and the court imposes a sentence? The whole process could take some time and by the next haze season, the case could still be in court. And there are provisions for appeals which would drag on further. How long would the whole legal process take before a final judgement is conclusive?

One thing good about the legal process is that it would keep the companies busy in the court and keep paying legal fees even if they are found not guilty. The effort to bring them to court and the publicity plus the legal fees hopefully would be painful enough to make these companies, or just one company, to think twice about being a party to the haze problem.

APP would be the first to face the music for being a registered company here. What about Indonesian companies that have no office here?  Would they be sued here or in Indonesia? Or nothing really can be done to them? Channel News Asia reported that four Indonesian companies, ‘Rimba Hutani Mas, Sebangun Bumi Andalas Wood Industries, Bumi Sriwijaya Sentosa and Wachyuni Mandira -- have been told to take measures to extinguish fires on their land, refrain from starting new ones, and submit action plans to prevent future fires.’ These companies must be working hard at it after receiving the demands from Singapore govt. Just hope they did not throw the letters into the fire to add to the haze.

Oh, Indonesian Vice President Jusuf Kalla said Singapore should be grateful for the whole year of oxygen provided by Indonesia and should not complain about the haze. Vivian could tell him that Singapore is a green country with plenty of oxygen of our own. And Indonesia can switch off the oxygen from their jungles or build a wall to prevent the oxygen from crossing the Straits of Malacca. They can keep all the oxygen to themselves, thank you very much.

The only thing perhaps Singapore can learn from the Indonesians is how to create smokes for military operations without spending on expensive smoke grenades. To throw smoke or haze in such a scale to blanket a few countries must be a very costly affair involving millions of smoke grenades. Tactically the SAF must start to think of countermeasures against the haze being used as a smoke screen for a military attack. Though this is remote as our relations with the Indonesians are very good, in times of animosity, what comes through many not be just haze and could be quite toxic or infectious. All our expensive military weaponry will be no match to a haze attack that can be done so cheaply, no need for soldiers, just a few farmers and a few match sticks and we can be defeated.

Come to think of it the haze problem could be an annual military war game the Indonesians are conducting to test its effectiveness on Singapore and Malaysia. And we really have no answers to it. Legal actions and the Transboundary Haze Pollution Act would be meaningless in times of war.

Now this is something that should deserve some detailed studies by the military strategists in Mindef.  Shall this be called biological warfare, chemical warfare or asymmetrical warfare?  Maybe the F35s would be the ultimate aircraft to deal with haze as a weapon of choice by an enemy. It is not funny that the most expensive and highly sophisticated military force in SE Asia could be rendered useless by haze. Mind you, the intensity of the haze is very light but if it is an all out hostile act, the whole island could be covered in darkness and visibility could be less than 10 metres. All human activities could be grounded to a halt, including commercial aircraft and shipping.

The Indonesians have stumbled into a very powerful weapon, cheap and effective, to deal with us or Malaysia if needed be. Singapore and Malaysia better be nicer to the Indonesians. They must be laughing their guts out everything we boast about buying more sophisticated and ultra expensive machine of war.

Xi Jin Ping in the USA

Xi Jin Ping is in the US and meeting the CEOs of America’s top corporations to discuss cooperation in trade and joint ventures. This is the top agenda for his visit. His dinner chat with Obama is secondary, just a courtesy call to appease the American President and to whet his ego of power and being the top dog in the world. Xi Jin Ping probably does not care what Obama is going to raise but would pay some lip service to his show of anger and concern over matters that the Chinese President did not see as problems.

China has no problems with the US and has more important things to do, to engage in mutually beneficial trade and exchanges of commercial activities, cooperation and investments in both countries.  What cyber securities or cyber attacks? The Americans are the experts in these areas and are indulging it at a scale second to none. Remember what was disclosed by Edward Snowden? The Americans are attacking every country, commercially, militarily and politically, to extract as much intelligence as they could for American interests. What Obama is claiming about breaches by Chinese hackers is children play.  Is Obama saying that the Americans could not do what the Chinese were doing, did not have extracted as much confidential data from China but not disclosed, and that the Chinese are more advanced and superior to the Americans? The answer is obviously no. The Americans are doing far more and far more sophisticated cyber attacks against the Chinese and the Chinese are taking it in their strikes without making an issue out of it like many other areas of American infringement, violations and bullying.

What about the spy plane incident in the Yellow Sea? The Americans could not see anything wrong with flying spy planes daily along the coast of China. China is just playing along but would do the same one day when there is parity in military forces. China would then fly their spy planes along the American coasts. What would the Americans say or do when it happens? Cry father and cry mother and declare war with China? There is no point for China to make it a big issue against the Americans today when militarily they are much weaker and raising it would be in vain. They would raise it with the Americans when they are able to tell the Americans that they would knock down the spy planes should they persist in spying along the Chinese coast. That day has not come but will be, sooner or later.

What about the Chinese reclamation of islands in the South China Sea? Now what has that to do with the Americans? Oh, the Americans have a strategic interest in them and so it is American’s right to interfere with China reclaiming islands that are part of Chinese territories. Again, China would take note of the American’s posturing about the island issues and even toast to it. But China would continue to reclaim as many islands as they want within its national boundaries and territorial sovereignty and build what it wants. What is Obama going to do about it other than making a big show of it? There are many things the Americans are doing that are offensive to China and affecting China’s strategic interests. China is not harping about them or making an issue of every one of them. It is pointless. Likewise the American President and Administration can keep harping at China on these issues or any issue, human rights, climate change, North Korea, Iran etc etc, but they would just remain as American rhetoric to be ignored after the dinner party.

Xi Jin Ping has more strategic and tangible matters to deal with corporate America than to waste his time parrying with Obama in futile and unproductive discussions. China seeks to grow economically, scientifically and in technology exchanges and needs the assistance and cooperation of corporate America to work hand in hand for mutual benefits, for the good of Americans and Chinese.

Obama and his soldier boys can play their game of one upmanship, to show who is mightier with the gun and who is boss. Xi Jin Ping would smile and have a good laugh after he wrapped up his commercial agreements, his sales and marketing bags would be full with satisfied customers from both sides and with many jobs to go with for the American and Chinese workers.

Many Obamas will come and go, and many will come after him, to tell the Chinese Presidents that they have problems with China.  China will say thank you very much, let’s trade more, let’s have more exchanges and cooperation in other areas of mutual interests that we can cooperate and to benefit from them.

Yes we can have more dinner discussions about America’s China problem and drink to that. Xi Jin Ping would not sleep on them, would not have sleepless night because of them. There are more important and fruitful things to occupy his time to build China into a more prosperous and developed country. China has no problems with the USA, only the USA has problems with China. They created and fabricated their own problems and got consumed by them in their own fantasies for the grandeur of the Empire. The American govt can continue to spend their money on military weapons and soldiers, China will spend its money and time on economic development and the pursuit of scientific and technological advancements. China only needs to spend enough on military to keep the Americans from any military adventure in China and that would be good enough.

They would not be inviting Obama to Beijing after this visit. They will be inviting the next President in waiting for more dinner talks and food tasting.

Racism hitting a new high in Malaysia

In my last article I thought by telling the ethnic minorities to steer clear of the current political tussle and fallouts they would be safe. By the look of things, they cannot walk away from trouble and trouble is going after them. And they know the situation is dire and MCA President Liow Tiong Lai made a call to Najib to express his concern for the safety of the Chinese.

After the Red Shirt rally many thought it was over and peace would return. There is a Jamal Md Yunos bent on holding another rally tomorrow to march into Petaling Street to protest against the shops mostly owned by the ethnic Chinese. Jamal has been alleged to have threatened the Chinese community during the 16 Sep rally.  His agenda is quite obvious and this time sparks will fly as they are more prepared to do what they failed to do in the last rally.

Najib on the other hand has been very supportive of the Red Shirt rally and likely to support this rally tomorrow. Fear is every where.  Liow Tiong Lai, the Transport Minister, has been quoted in an Agencies report to say, ‘It is obvious that the rally goers intended to stoke fear and create racial tension. BN must take stock and put a stop to this unhealthy problem immediately.’

The big question is whether Najib would do anything and it is looking very unlikely while he is fighting for his own survival. A rioting on the streets would be a great reprieve to take the heat off him and redirect the attention away. The ethnic minorities in Malaysia, particularly the Chinese, would bear the brunt of any break down of law and order tomorrow. Their are well being and safety are hanging on tender hooks.

What is going to happen tomorrow is harrowing.

Why build universities?

Yes, why would govt and people build universities? To ask this question here is already a sign of strong misgivings and a sense of despair. It is so pathetic to have to ask such a question, but it must be asked. Would anyone expect me to list down the reasons here why govt and people built universities? Anyone who can read and understand this question would be most able to provide himself all the answers to it. The reasons for building a university are so fundamental and so basic that there should not be any need to raise it again. The very fact that it has to be raised is proof that something is seriously wrong with the universities and the important role and purpose for their existence.

If anyone still demands an answer, pay a visit to the Chinese High School in Bukit Timah. Read the carvings inscribed in stones at the entrance of the main building. Yes, they were set in stones like the Ten Commandments as if the pioneers knew that people down the ages would forget the purpose of building the school. The very reasons for building the Chinese High School are the same reasons why universities were built.

In 1958, hundreds of thousands of people marched to Jurong to witness the opening of Nantah, 南洋大学. Millionaires like Tan Lark Sye, 陈六使, donated $5m to build the university. This princely sum could be the equivalent of $5b today in purchasing power. The Chinese community, from the rich towkays to the dance hostesses and rickshaw pullers also answered the call for donation for the university. Why would every one of them think it important enough to want to contribute to this cause, to build a university?

The reasons for building Nantah were not different from the reasons to build the University of Singapore and the renamed Nanyang Technological University. There are now many new universities, many built for commercial reasons and did not share the common altruistic goals of Nantah and the University of Singapore, now NTU and NUS. The commercial universities can be excused for doing things differently as their purposes are slightly different with money making a key objective. The purpose of building universities like NUS and NTU may have changed to some degrees, but the fundamental and basic reasons for their reasons must not changed.

Have they changed? Some may be thinking that the universities existence is to be ranked highly by farcical ranking organizations and to gain frivolous honours for being ranked among the best. Is this the reason for the building of universities?

Again I would ask, what is the purpose of building universities? Have our universities lost their direction and purpose of existence? Universities are not like F1 or Garden by the Bay, some feel good stuff for the rich to have a little fun and fake importance. They have very important roles to play in the lives of the people and the well being of the country.

The haze must be dealt with in haste

Since Wednesday, the haze has been getting worse and air quality has reached a stage when schools have to be closed. And Singapore is several hundred kilometers from the sources of the haze. It does not need much imagination to know how bad the air quality is in Sumatra and Kalimantan. Social and commercial activities in the city state have hit a new low with visibility in many parts of the island falling to less than 50 metres. And some residents are complaining that they have difficulties watching what is on the TV screens.

And we have heard only words, words of what the govt on both sides are doing to curb the haze. Probably in another 50 years we would still be talking and exchanging words. The govt has been telling the people that they have identified some companies involved in the haze and would be taking legal actions against them I supposed. Is it really so difficult to identify the culprits causing the haze, particularly the big companies? Perhaps we need to send a few satellites into space to do so. By the satellite images produced in the media, it is quite obvious that the whole of Sumatra and Kalimantan are on fire. What would that say about the companies involved or how many companies are involved?

A few things can be done immediately instead of acting like lost sheep or headless sheep not knowing what to do. What about imposing an immediate ban on all imports of palm oil and related products from all the companies with plantations in Sumatra and Kalimantan for a year for a start? And the ban should include by products from companies that used palm oil from the same companies in Sumatra and Kalimantan. The ban should be taken up to Asean and all Asean countries should also ban the import of palm oil and related products from these companies. And if needed be, a complaint can be tabled at the UN to impose a world wide ban on these companies.

There must be many things that the affected countries can do instead of sitting haplessly waiting for a miracle to happen. If words are the only instrument available , the haze problem will still be around in the next 100 years and nothing would be done about it except words and more words.

Have we run out of ideas as usual in dealing with this hazardous environmental threat to the health and lives of out people? Maybe we need to bring in a few more foreign talents to help us solve this perennial problem. Oh, an easier way is to engage some top notch consultancy firms from the US or UK or Europe to think up a solution for us. QED.

PS. There is something to be learnt from Mahathir in interstate problems. If the other side cannot or unwilling to tackle the problem seriously, think what Mahathir will do like the crooked bridge issue? Mahathir will solve the problem himself unilaterally without needing the other party to do anything.

The Philippines – Asean’s most power country preparing to take on China

A NYT article appearing in the Today paper on 21 Sep 15 discussed the thinking process of the Philippines and how it is trying to take on China in the boxing ring. In the 80s there was a surge of nationalistic pride among the Pinoys that eventually wrought back their independence from the USA and sending the Americans packing from two of the biggest American military bases in the world in Subic Naval Base and Clark Air Base.  Both bases were the homes for the Americans in their Vietnam War and a home away from home in the USA. The infringement on the national sovereignty of the Philippines, in a way turning the Philippines into a semi American colony did not go unnoticed. The nationalists in the Philippines took to the streets to demand the GIs to go home. That victory was to the credit of the Pinoys unlike the Japanese and South Koreans where the Americans would not go home.

Today, the turn of events in the South China Sea with the Philippines at loggerhead with China, competing with China to claim islands for themselves is making the Pinoys thinking of reinviting the Americans back. They wanted to take on China militarily and are depending on the Americans for more financial and military aid and the possibility of stationing troops in Subic and Clark again.

The Philippines have chosen to fight China head on with the encouragement of Japan and the USA. While neighbouring countries of China chose to cultivate good relations with China and live in peace, the Philippines are thinking that they could take on China with the help of the USA and Japan. Once this mindset and policy are in place, it is all one way, to build up a strong military and even compromising their independence by allowing foreign military bases in their country.

Putting up a China threat with a China not interested or has no intent to set foot on the Philippines, the Pinoys have chosen or are in the process of choosing to become a semi colony of the USA by voluntarily inviting foreign military forces into their country.

No one can beat the Philippines in strategic military planning, in resolve to take on a super power and in nationalistic pride. That’s the way to go Pinoys. The Chinese are shivering in their pants. The GIs will roam the streets of Manila again. The bravery of the Philippines is best demonstrated in the spirit of Ello Ed Bello.

Tan Lark Sye 陈六使 – Early pioneers

The early history of Singapore did not begin in 1965. Singapore existed long before 1965 and there were many pioneering giants that lived through our history.  Tan Lark Sye was one of the great men that lived among us. His contributions were no lesser than other pioneers whose names were remembered in the street and road names of our city, Boon Lay, Joo Chiat, Kim Cheng, Kim Tian, Nee Soon, Hong Lim etc etc. Many of these were very rich and prominent heads of families, the old rich of Singapore. Not many had contributed as much as Tan Lark Sye especially in the field of education.

Tan Lark Sye was best remembered for founding Nantah or Nanyang University, 南洋大学, and his contribution of $5m to the project. The purchasing power of the $5m is easily in the region of $5b today. And on behalf of the Hokien Huay Kuan, he donated 523 acres of land in Jurong to build Nantah. Nantah was then the only Chinese university in Southeast Asia and played a pivotal role in producing many graduates that came from the neighbouring countries that became prominent business, academics and political leaders in the region.

Tan Lark Sye was a giant of his time. He came to Singapore as a young man of 18 but went on to build a fortune in rubber trading and other industries, probably as rich as Tan Kah Kee, and was the President of the Chinese Chamber of Commerce, Chairman of Hokien Huay Kuan and Chairman of Nanyang University’s Executive Committee. His misfortune came when he was stripped of his citizenship for supporting the Barisan Socialis and died stateless.

The Chinese community has not forgotten this man and has honoured him in many ways and telling his stories in the museum that honours the Chinese pioneers in Ee Hoe Hean Club. His contributions in education, donation to the University of Malaya, as the founder of Nantah and as a philanthropist, within and outside Singapore, should deserve more recognition in the annals of our history.

Singapore owes this man a debt of gratitude and it is about time that this man be honoured and given his due respect as one of our great pioneers who once walked among us.  The political bitterness should be left to rest in history. Tan Kah Kee has a MRT station named after him and his statue stands proudly in the Chinese High School. Would a statue of Tan Lark Sye be erected to stand on our soil or a street name after him?

It is a shame that a great man like Tan Lark Sye is only briefly mentioned and remembered in the history of our pioneers. He was a natural leader and could move crowds, and had great influence in the Chinese community, a most feared attribute in politics. The past, present and future alumni of NTU and Nantah were and are what they are today because of this man. He is part of our history, a true son of Singapore. The pioneering spirit of Tan Lark Sye also known as the Spirit of Nantah, and his contributions to Singapore and education cannot be simply forgotten.

Najib versus Mahathir

The battle for supremacy and control of UMNO between Najib and Mahathir is growing with both sides building up their alliances and forces and gearing for a final do or die battle in days to come. Najib the sitting PM and his cousins in Hishammuddin and Hamidi, with the Police Chief and several govt organizations on his side are pitted against Mahathir and the defection members of UMNO plus his former allies whose power and influence have yet to be fully exposed.

The fireworks will start any moment with sparks flying everywhere. This could be the mother of all battles for the control of the Malay ground. Both sides are claiming to be defending the interests of the Malays and would need an enemy to prove their convictions. The events after the Bersih 4 demonstration and the protest by the Red Shirts are frightening examples to send notice to the Chinese and Indian minorities to stay clear of this fight. They must know that it is not their fight and any sign of their involvement will be used as an excuse to direct the fire power in their direction.

The Chinese and Indian minorities are best advised to stay clear of the conflict, disappear if possible and better still to state their non involvement clearly. They just cannot be involved to invite bloodshed on themselves. Do not become the convenient devil for either side. Yes stay out, stay away. It is not their fight. They would not survive when the elephants turn around and trample on them instead.

This is a time when the Chinese and Indian minorities must know their rightful place in the country. It would be plain stupidity to offer themselves again and again as the whipping boy. And this time it is not just whipping. Lives will be lost, homes would be burnt.  Be warned and be wise. Taking any side will bring about their total destruction.

The Royalties are not taking sides. PAS is not taking sides. Would the Chinese and Indians be so dumb to take sides in this tussle for supremacy between the Malay leaders?

We built a Nation

The TV has been broadcasting the history of Singapore during the days of Malaysia and the fallout. There is now an exhibition on the separation from Malaysia with secret files being declassified to trace the events, called the Albatross File. There were letters by LKY, Goh Keng Swee and other ministers being shown to the public for the first time.

‘We built a Nation’ is an appropriate title to recognize and honour the works of these pioneer leaders of our country. As LKY put it, they belonged to a rare breed of people that were founders of countries and nation builders. They took pride in building a country from scratch, creating a nation of people that believed in themselves and took pride in themselves. They were brave men and women that would not say die and slogged to build this country to what it is today.

What would be the next chapter of this nation in the next 50 years? Would the title to celebrate SG100 be, ‘We built a Hotel’? Would there still be a nation left of this country? Would the people still be proud and hard working and be in control and in charge of the country built by the pioneer generation of leaders and people? Or would they be dismissed as losers, working in low level jobs and the country taken over by the foreigners brought in by the leaders today, the likes of Ello Ed Bello?

What would be the fate of Singaporeans in 50 years time? Would the new leaders be celebrating the transformation of a nation to a hotel with no citizens or with the citizens at the lower rung of society scrapping for a living, and new owners taking over this island they now called hotel?

Would anyone remember the founding leaders of this nation and still celebrate them for building a nation? Or would everyone be happily celebrating, ‘We built a hotel’?

Would Singaporeans queue for 10 hours to pay their last respect to Lee Kuan Yew if he and his peers did not build a nation but a hotel instead? Would people lined the streets under torrential rain to say farewell to Lee Kuan Yew if his legacy is a hotel and not a nation?

Ello Ed M Bello jails for 4 months

The Pinoy who insulted and threatened Singaporeans was given a deterrent 4 months jail by District Judge Siva Shanmugam. Though it was meant to be a deterrence and a warning to foreigners not to be naughty in this country, the sentence was far short of the maximum that could be handed down. According to media report, Bellow could be sentenced up to three years and a fine of S$5000 for promoting feelings of ill will and hostility among races. He could also be jailed up to a year and fined S$1000 for giving false information. Looks like the sentence is more like a slap on the wrist and far from being a deterrence.

What did Ello Ed say or do? In his Facebook post, Ello called ‘Singaporeans losers, and said that Filipinos were better and stronger, and would evict Singaporeans from their country as well as take over their jobs, women and future.’ I think he really believed it. And many Pinoys have already been taken over the jobs of Singaporeans.  The Philippines is a very powerful country. Wait for my post on how this Asean superpower is planning to take on China militarily.

Now that Ello has been put behind bars, would this be the end of this anti Singaporeans diatribe? How would the Pinoys feel about daft Sinkies? Would there be protest in the streets of Manila? Would Singaporeans visiting the Philippines be safe? What about the Pinoys here? Do they feel the same as Ello and now harbouring hatred against daft Sinkies? Would they take it out in the homes of Sinkies and their children?

I thought our govt and daft Sinkies were very generous and magnanimous to open our legs to foreigners to come here to work and earning good money. Why are the foreigners, or some of the foreigners, turning against Singaporeans and hating Singaporeans? Why do these foreigners think that they are better and daft Sinkies are really daft and deserved to lose their jobs, their womne and also to lose their country?

What is happening? Don’t these foreigners feel any sense of gratitude for the good jobs we offered them, the good money and the hospitality to welcome them to integrate with us, many given PRs and citizenships? Or do they feel that they are more deserving than the daft Sinkies, the real losers?

FBI investigating into 1MDB

What has FBI got to do with 1MDB? Was Najib’s money in the USA, deposited or withdrawn from an American bank or banks operating in the USA? What jurisdiction does the FBI have on Najib, a Malaysian citizen, a Prime Minister of Malaysia?

Oh, the Empire rules the world and has jurisdiction over everyone in this planet. And when it deems fit, it will investigate the individuals, heads of state or govt at its own discretion. Not an American is a non issue as long as the Empire is in control of the world, everyone in this world is a subject of the Empire.

And if Najib is not careful, as Mahathir said, ‘He could also be arrested if he leaves the country. So he has to remain here, like how he withdrew the passports of some people and barred them from going overseas.’ If this is true, this is serious. Is there a violation of the rights of a citizen of Malaysia, that he can be arrested anywhere outside Malaysia by Interpol, by the Empire?

Can Najib visit Singapore and meet Hsien Loong in Singapore without being arrested?  Poor Najib, now a wanted man by the Empire. Would they sneaked in a hit squad like the way they went after Osama in Pakistan and whisk Najib out of Malaysia to face trial in the USA?

This is looking like a James Bond movie script. Can this be real? If Mahathir said so, if the FBI is involved, can it be otherwise?

Muslim leaders have this penchant to put their monies in American and European banks. They trusted and loved the Americans and Europeans despite so many cases of money and assets being frozen at the slightest excuses. Hope Najib did not put any money in America or in Swiss banks. Swiss banks are also under the control of the Americans and would open up their books and their vaults if the Americans said so.

When would Najib be arrested by the Interpol?

NUS ranked 94th, NTU unranked in Reuters ranking of universities

The timing of this ranking by Reuters cannot come at a better time when some were drunk by the QS rankings believing that NUS and NTU were really top universities in the world. And Times Higher Education ranked NUS at 25^th and NTU at 61^st.  On the other hand the Academic Ranking of World Universities put NUS at 101 – 150 band and NTU at the 151 - 200 band. The differences in rankings were due to the factors used.

I would believe if there is a ranking based on gaming ranking systems, our universities would surely be ranked 1^st and 2^nd or some where up there at the very top. If the ranking is based on having the most modern infrastructure and modern equipment and facilities, NUS and NTU would rank ahead of the best in the UK and USA. The same too if the ranking is based on having the most foreign academic and administration staff in a local university.

But if the rankings would to be based on skill sets of graduates and employability of graduates, and the ability to produce top quality finance and banking professionals, NUS and NTU would rank somewhere in the 500s or 1000s. Hundreds of universities in India, China and the Philippines and other 3^rd World universities would rank higher than NUS as their graduates are much sort after here with the right skill sets for employment. Maybe some degree mills would also rank higher as their graduates are also accepted without checking by some organizations, and probably with NUS and NTU graduates working under them and reporting to them. I said, probably, as I have no data to support this. Please feel free to disagree.

So what is so good about rankings? One thing, if there is a lack of substance, go for the superficial. As long as it looks good, sounds good, it is worth the money spent, event at the expense of getting rid of Singaporean academic core and sacrificing places that should go to our children but go to foreigners.

What do you think?

Should Singapore emulate the USA?

‘Governing a country is not simply a matter of circulating the same amount of wealth between the rulers and the ruled. If Americans had insisted on a America only for Americans, it would not have become a superpower. Replenishment of talent is necessary, he who is not working for us is working against us.

Thankfully, the minority faces among us do not fancy the concept that they are competing against the majority. We are all competing against the rest of the world.

China only for Chinese, or India only for the Indians may be workable, but Singapore only for Singaporeans would be a joke.’  Today forum writer Ee Teck Ee

I quoted the above from the Today paper column Voices on 18 Sep.. I wonder how many of you out there subscribe to this mantra. If Singapore is not for Singaporeans, then is Singapore for everyone? We know who have been spreading this mantra and many have been sold without thinking how relevant or irrelevant it is to us. It only requires a little thinking to know that we are not USA the continental America. We are not even the size of a big American city.

The rise of an American superpower is not as simple as what the above writer puts it. The USA was an American Indian country, conquered and taken away from the American Indians, and the people of the land decimated to near extinction. Non Europeans were tolerated not because they were valued as talents and welcomed. The Africans were imported as slaves. The Asians were imported as exploited labours, not allowed to engage in any professional enterprise worthy of the word talent, except as labourers, cooks and laundrymen.

The USA was already a superpower with their own brand of European talents. The Asian and African talents came in only in the late stages of the American history, mostly post WW2. And not to forget, the USA is a continent that can accommodate hundreds of millions of human beans, like Australia. Even today, immigrants are selectively allowed into the USA. In Australia, they don’t need to have more immigrants for economic growth. They are still guarding their immigrant figures very carefully.

The density of this island is already exceeding the most densely populated American cities. Do we need to keep pouring endless human bodies into this island for the sake of economic growth? Can this be sustainable? Economic growth is not the end alls of life. There are many other considerations that are just as important or more important than economic growth. And adding population is not the only way to achieve economic growth. Even Hsien Loong has admitted that we have maxed out in terms of adding bodies into the island. Why are people still flogging this crazy mantra of importing the whole world to our shores?

We cannot compare our little island with the USA. Neither can we compare it with China or India. We have to look at our own characteristics and limitations. Every country should draw on its people for organic growth. Some foreigners can come in to compliment the needs of the island. But to allow them in indiscriminately to eventually replace the original citizens is madness. We don’t owe the foreigners a living, we don’t owe them anything. But we owe it to all Singaporeans and their children a good life. It is treachery and treason to bring in foreigners to replace them and at their expense. What is the point of National Service and a strong defence force?

It is very difficult to explain stupidity to daft Singaporeans. Like some said, Stupidity is incurable. Other countries are out there seizing every little bits of land or island as their own, for their people. We are begging to give our little island we fought for and built to what it is today, to everyone what wants to be here. There are at least 100m people out there that want to be here. And we are picking up the rubbish instead of the diamonds. We are a dumping ground for human waste.

Why turn our country into a rubbish dump?

A Parliament of millionaires

With the new Parliament getting ready to do business, many have taken for granted that practically every member of the Singapore Parliament is a millionaire. The PAP ministers and office holders are many times a millionaire, with some likely to be billionaires or near billionaires. The rest of the PAP MPs are also millionaires after serving several terms.

For the new MPs, many are already millionaires before joining politics. As for the first term PAP MPs, they are on their way to become millionaires when the offers of directorships to public listed and govt linked companies come their ways. And they could be millionaires after serving a year as an MP or less.

In the case of opposition MPs, they are not so lucky and would need to serve one full term before making it as millionaires unless they are already millionaires on their own. And since most of the opposition MPs are serving their second term, with Low Thia Khiang serving many terms, all of them should also be millionaires by now.

This must be another record worthy of the Guinness Book of Record, a Parliament of millionaires, one of its kind in the whole world. And this kind of record is really unbeatable.

The SDP team that could not have lost

The GE is over, the results are cast in stone. Should have let it to rest and move on. I just want to make a last comment on the SDP’s Holland Bukit Timah team that I wrote earlier that could have taken down the PAP team. Not only that they did not, they fared worst than the team in 2011 and that made the result so much more disturbing. Technically, the SDP team had all corners covered, a medical professional in Professor Paul Tambyah that was a head above Vivian, a woman candidate in Chong Wai Fung to match Sim Ann, a most feared opposition candidate in Chee Soon Juan and a Malay candidate in Sidek Mallek.

The SDP team was carefully crafted to counter the PAP team. With Vivian and his political bloops, he would not be able to stand up against Tambyah, at the very best they would both split the votes evenly. Sim Ann had an edge for being the known factor but many voters were turned off by her antics during the rallies. She too could not gain much advantage over the SDP candidate for the female votes. And Sidek Mallek would have made a clean sweep of the Malay votes as none in the PAP team could be picking them up. Chee Soon Juan’s return would be well placed to increase the anti PAP votes. The SDP could not fall lower than the 30% hard core opposition supporters. How could the team get only 33% of the votes, 6% lesser than the 2011 team?  It just did not make sense. There was no weakness in the team unlike in 2011.

With a hard core of 30% as base, just the Malay votes would take it to near 40%. All Chee Soon Juan and Tambyah needed to do was to bring 5% each and they would be neck to neck with the PAP and likely to win.

The 33% meant that practically all the Malay votes went to the PAP. It also meant that Chee Soon Juan and Tambyah could not convince the voters to give them any vote and actually lost more votes to the PAP team.

I have discussed the reasons for a 10% swing votes, 4% due to new citizens and 6% due to the goodies handed out and changes in some govt policies. The 10% swing would mean the PAP team adding on 5% to the 61% in the last GE and the SDP losing 5% from its 39%, ending with 34%, still one 1% more than the final 33%.

If the demographic distribution of Malay voters was even, there should be a 10% Malay votes in the GRC to square off the 10% swing, and the result should be more or less the same as the last GE.

The final result was just too incredible and unbelievable. This must be the biggest mystery of this GE. It was like a strange event in the Bermuda Triangle that defied all logic and reasons. How could a SDP team that was technically superior or at worst equal to the PAP team lost so badly?

Call it a miraculous win for the PAP team. The other mystery must be the near loss of the WP team in Aljunied GRC. The voters could not switch camp just like that, and without a big crisis. The AHPETC was no crisis but a red herring. The voters of Aljunied were not so daft not to see it to affect their voting decision.

Yes, the truth is stranger than fiction.

University rankings good but not the key objectives

Hsien Loong said this at the Nanyang Technology Institute’s reunion dinner, ‘The key performance indicators (KPIs) of universities in the Republic should not be about how high their rankings are, but how well they serve Singapore.’ This is like what is so good about high rankings if they did not serve the interest of Singapore and its people? And what are these interests, jobs, skill sets, building a Singaporean core in all fields and industries.

What if high rankings lead to a hollowing of the quality pool of Singaporean academics and university students? What is the point to providing so many good paying employments to foreigners at the expense of Singaporeans, of providing good university places to foreigners instead of to our children? A good comparison is the ranking of our media by foreigners. Never mind if we are ranked 146, a few notches from the bottom, if the media are serving national interests, the good of people and country.

He then reiterated the importance of university KPIs as: "Rather, the KPI should be how well the universities serve Singapore. Whether they are academically and intellectually rigorous and vibrant, yet develop an authentic Singaporean character. Whether they give Singaporeans a good education, not just academically but holistically, building skill sets relevant to the economy so that people can get good jobs and fulfil their aspirations….’

It is sad that the Prime Minister had to say this to remind our supposedly very intelligent academics in the academia not to waste money on superficial rankings, on providing good jobs to foreigners and hollowing our academic talent and resources. Isn’t this a crime against the people? Using public funds to feed foreigners and replacing our own academics in the universities? Get your priorities right!

Would Tharman stand up and say ‘Cheap, we have no local talents in the universities and we need 30 years to get it right again like not Singaporean bankers and finance talents?’ Shit, I shouldn’t use the word ‘local’. It should be ‘Singaporeans’ and not meant to include PRs. We need to grow our own timber if we are going to survive as a people who called ourselves Singaporeans and this island home. If not, yes, we would be just a hotel for foreigners and we become the prostitutes servicing them and saying thank you to them for patronising us, and we pay them for it.

Is this not what Hsien Loong meant when he said, and I quote: “(While) at the same time, imbuing in students and alumni a sense of loyalty and belonging to Singapore, a sense of purpose in their lives, so that people are rooted here - with networks, friends and family - and want to give back to Singapore." You don’t expect foreigners to sink roots here and be one of us, to give back to Singapore when they are here for the good time and waiting to make their pile to return home. A few foreigners would be good, but we can’t expect too many to stay, and it is also no good if we have to depend on foreign talents to stay. This is an easy way out to increase our talent pool but would discourage the growing of our own talents. And what is there then for our own people if this is the case?

Don’t give me that globalisation and borderless shit. Treason is the word for these naive terminologies. The quitters and nomads like to use them to rubbish the citizen’s right in their own countries. If not careful, and still blindly going down the road of bringing in more foreigners, one day the daft Sinkies would be like the refugees marching to Europe, people without a place called home, kicked out from their countries they once called home.