11/15/2021

Why built so many universities?

 In the 70s there were only two universities and the population was about 2m. Today the population of citizens is about 3.5m plus another 2m pus foreigners, and there are 6 universities. Thereotically there should be enough university places for all Singaporeans. Is this the case?

What is the main purpose of building so many universities? The western countries built universities for commercial reasons, as a business to generate income, to create employment for their citizens, to subsidise the cost of education of their citizens. Also to educate their people to get good jobs. Is this the case here?

Some of the strange things that we have heard, don't waste time and money getting a piece of paper that cannot be eaten. What does this mean? Getting a degree is not necessary, cannot get good jobs. Get a skill better than a university degree. Then why built so many universities?

To create jobs for Singaporeans as academics? To create more university places to attract foreign paying students to generate revenue, another source of income for the state? How many per cent of the academic staff are Singaporeans? Are the universities built to provide employment for foreigners, good jobs for foreigners while qualified Singaporeans are not preferred and many rejected?

What about foreign students? Are they paying students or we use public money to pay them to study here and then to steal the lunch of Singaporeans? If this is the case, then it is not a source of revenue but an expenditure, doing charity at the expense of Singaporeans, educating foreigners to take the jobs from Singaporeans? Which is which?

Or the purpose is to built world class universities, to achieve high world class rankings like winning the World Cup or a few medals?  And to achieve this, bring in more foreigners as academics, more foreign students so that the ranking can be high to earn the right to boast around while many of our academics could not be employed and many of our own students cannot find places in the 6 universities built and paid for by taxpayers' money?

Is there any contradiction here? Or is the heart in the wrong place, wrong priorities, better to provide jobs for foreigners, better to educate foreigners using public money, taxpayers's money and our citizens, academics and students left wanting while the foreigners are so happy being employed and paid, the foreign students so happy given free education even with subsistence allowances? 

Is it the responsibility of a democratically elected govt to provide good jobs and university places to foreigners instead of its citizens...using taxpayers' money?

What do you think?

12 comments:

Investigation Required said...


Why Must This Be Happening To Singapore Prison Inmates? Who Is Responsible?


The Singapore Prison Service (SPS) proudly announced on Thursday (Nov 11) that more than 200 people in the prisons were infected with Covid-19.

It is very happy to add that the number included people across all prison facilities, including death row inmates and staff members, and that those infected were in different stages of recovery, with three being hospitalised.

SPS boasted that, as of Wednesday, the count comprised 169 inmates, 54 supervisees and nine staff members. Supervisees are inmates who are at the tail-end of their sentences working in the community in jobs such as those in the logistics, cleaning, and food and beverage sectors.

Anonymous said...

In Covid-Era Experiment, Malaysia Tries Dramatic Reduction in Migrant Labor - WSJ , Nov 14

Malaysia’s government has announced plans to reduce its need for foreign labor, pushing a program called “Malaysianization” that offers extra pay to local workers who take jobs previously held by foreigners. “I can’t afford to make the situation confusing by trying to create jobs for locals while at the same time permitting the intake of foreign labor,” said Human Resources Minister Seri Saravanan in May this year.

Malaysia’s leaders say that instead of injecting dynamism into the economy, the roughly three million migrant workers who lived in Malaysia before the pandemic held the country back by discouraging businesses from investing in automation and moving up the value chain. A paper published by Malaysia’s central bank in 2018 said, “The ease and availability of these low-skilled workers at a cheap cost create deep distortions that disincentivizes firms to transform.”

Similar ideas have gained traction in other parts of the world. Saudi Arabia in recent years has pressed companies to hire locals and introduced levies for companies that employ foreigners. In the U.K., Prime Minister Boris Johnson has said the country is reducing immigration to raise local wages and productivity, even as labor shortages exist there.

Policy makers appear determined to give a jolt to Malaysia, a middle-income country with per capita gross domestic product of around $10,000 that was contending with subdued growth even before the pandemic. One plank has been to offer grants to encourage companies to invest in automation, with the explicit goal of reducing dependence on migrant workers, who come to Malaysia from countries including Indonesia and Bangladesh.

With far fewer migrant workers available, Malaysian employers have little choice but to try to lure locals to the jobs.

Queen of Hearts said...

Not say I want to say, but I must say.

The overall grand strategy of the PAP Leadership is to prolong its grip on unfettered power. To achieve success in this strategy, it must guarantee itself that it is returned to govern, after every general election.

Sensing and seeing that more and more Singaporean voters are unhappy with its way of governance and its unfair, unequal and deceptive policies, the PAP leaders fear that one day they will be voted out of power.

As such, the PAP government, at least 15 years ago, started to adopt various pro-foreigners policies and schemes in order to attract foreigners to become pro-PAP New Citizens.

The University Policies of giving free places and education to foreigners is a part of the PAP's Overall Grand Strategy of Prolonging Power.

CECA is definitely and glaringly another part of the PAP's Grand Strategy of Prolonging Power.

Divisive and discriminative policies and regulations against local population are also part and parcel of the Overall Grand Strategy (or Scheming) to stay in power and in control forever.

Anyone disagree?

Anonymous said...

That powerful one at MHA is growing even more powerful . .

Anonymous said...

Building more Universities is not because they care about Singaporean children, but more to attract foreign students, their education subsidised with GST, and after graduation even provide them a job and eventually a citizenship, that translates into a couple of votes won by the PAP in future.

SSO said...

Yes, whatever the present governmen does is to maintain its power base and support to ensure that it stays in power forever.

When Singaporeans started to show signs of fatigue and disgust with the PAP, especially after one of the elections that most of the PAP constituencies results were borderline 50 to 53%, during Goh Chok Tong's time, the PAP started to introduce Foreign Talents political scheming in order to get new citizens.

The new citizens have been carefully selected with the Gratefulness-To-Singapore-Government Criteria as one of the Key Factors.

Anonymous said...

Why are there so many strange names in Temasek Holdings. It would seem to me that Temasek has intentionally turning itself into a strange alien species from outer space.

Anonymous said...

Singapore to launch vaccinated travel lanes with India, Indonesia and Saudi Arabia

Singapore will extend its vaccinated travel lane (VTL) scheme to more countries starting from Nov 29, according to the Ministry of Health (MOH) on Monday (Nov 15).

The country intends to launch VTLs with India and Indonesia from Nov 29,and with Qatar, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates (UAE) from Dec 6.

Speaking at the COVID-19 multi-ministry task force press conference on Monday, Transport Minister S Iswaran said Singapore and India have been discussing the mutual recognition of vaccination certificates.

Since Nov 12, India has started recognising vaccination certificates issued by Singapore.

“This means that fully vaccinated travellers from Singapore entering India will no longer need to undergo post-arrival tests home quarantine, they will just need to self monitor for 14 days upon arrival,” said Mr Iswaran.

MOH, added Mr Iswaran, has also updated its public health assessment and will upgrade India to Category 2 from Nov 19.

"We are in discussions on the resumption of scheduled commercial passenger services (with India). As today the only flights from Singapore allowed to carry passengers to India are government charter relief flights under the Vande Bharat mission."

He added: "Our discussions with India are progressing well. And we aim to resume two daily VTL flights each to Chennai, Delhi and Mumbai by Nov 29. The Civil Aviation Authority of Singapore (CAAS) will provide more details once finalised."
UNILATERAL VTL WITH INDONESIA

As for the upcoming VTL with Indonesia, Mr Iswaran said it will be a unilateral vaccination travel lane for now.

“Indonesia remains closed to general travel, but has started to open its borders. Since Oct 14, Indonesia has unilaterally reopened its borders to allow visitors from 19 countries,” said Mr Iswaran. “We hope that Indonesia will likewise soon reopen its borders to travellers from Singapore.”

For a start, Mr Iswaran said, there will be two daily designated services between Singapore and Jakarta. This will progressively be increased to four.

Applications for short-term visitors and long-term pass holders will start on Nov 22 for travellers from India and Indonesia, while travellers from Qatar, Saudi Arabia, and UAE will be able to apply from Nov 29.


Returning Singapore Citizens and Permanent Residents who are fully vaccinated will not need to apply if they are travelling via the VTL.

“Travellers intending to travel from Singapore to these countries/regions are advised to check the prevailing entry requirements of the destination,” said MOH in a release on Monday.

Meanwhile, Health Minister Ong Ye Kung said that Singapore will continue to monitor the situation in all parts of the world closely, and to ensure that travel does not impose a heavy burden on the country’s healthcare system.

Noted rising infections in Europe, Mr Ong said overall infection rates in various countries including in Europe are comparable to Singapore.

In particular, he highlighted the Netherlands - one of Singapore’s VTL partners - which is currently experiencing infection rates that are “slightly higher” than Singapore's and is also on an upward trajectory.

Despite recent social restrictions announced by the Dutch government, Mr Ong said the task force did not think it was “necessary” to rescind the VTL or reduce the VTL quotas as yet.

“Import cases or imported cases are still a very small fraction of total community cases and do not significantly affect local transmissions,” he said.

“In addition, there is a quota of only six flights a week from the Netherlands and most importantly, VTL travellers are all fully vaccinated and tested before departure and upon arrival.”

“Hence, it is very unlikely that continuing with a VTL will increase the burden on our hospital system and our healthcare system.”

Anonymous said...

Why post this here as I can read the same thing from CNA. Think u nothing better to do or what and need to be sodomized jialat jialat

Anonymous said...

Singapore can afford not to have VTL with the rest of the world but die die must have VTL with India. No talent Singapore will sink into the third world, all the agencies would go belly up without CECA Indians to run them.

Singaporeans are so lucky to have CECA and the open leg policy to let them come in freely to save Singapore and create jobs for Singaporeans.

Anonymous said...

Covid-19 Singapore: Poor Performance Should Not Be Entitled To Any Annual Bonus

Japan, with a population of 125 million people, without counting the foreigners in the country, has been reporting average of less than 50 Covid-19 infections per day for the last 30 days.

On the other hand, Singapore, with a population of only 5.6 million, including foreigners, has been reporting an average of 3,000 Covid-19 infections per day for the last 30 days.

While Japan is a big country, Singapore is only a small city.

While Japan is run by leaders paid less than the mediocre SG$500,000 annually, Singapore is run by leaders who shamelessly and very loudly claimed themselves to be outstanding and demanding to be paid the world's highest and most obscene salaries of multiple $millions annually, plus bonuses sometimes many times more than their annual salaries.

From these facts, Singaporeans should have realised that they have been taken for a ride for a very long journey, for a very long time.

Singaporeans should now realise that they have duds, masquerading as outstanding talents, running their city state. Those duds don't even deserve 10% of their present exorbitantly obscene salaries.

On top of that, their poor performances should not entitle them any annual bonus at all.

May justice and fairness reign!


Anti-Discrimation Citizen

Anonymous said...

VTL also stands for Viruses Travelling Loose.