of people or sheep

I share the views of Nurul Aziah Hussin in her letter to the Straits Times today titled 'Encourage ownership of national issues.' I quote, 'Public response to issues such as the recent debate on the ministerial pay hike, is more than an expression of "emotion" - it is the expression of citizens taking ownership of these issues, and asing our Govt to rise to the challenge of accountability and justification beyond performance legitimacy.' Basically what she said is that the people must change gear, move up, play a bigger role, take more interest in national affairs. If the people are just sheep, contend to grazing their little patches of grass and oblivious to all things around them, then what good are we as a nation...of sheep?

Power relationship between the ruler and the being ruled

In a totalitarian, authoritarian or dictatorial system, the power relationship is very simple. The ruler has absolute power and owns everything, including power of course. And they act in such a way that power will be theirs forever. This in many instances lead to the wielding of power without any restraint, and abuses are unavoidable. But the rulers have no fear as the ruled are unlikely to do anything, nor can they do anything to the rulers. Unfortunately, history has proven that this is not true as in the case of Saddam Hussein and his family. Also happened in ASEAN countries. But during the reign of these rulers, the ruled will accept whatever that they have to take. It was a defeatist attitude, a hopeless situation. The sheep and the shepherd. The people were owned by the rulers and their lives were meaningless except just to exist, but at the mercy of the rulers. In the western democracy model, the US and Europe, the rulers understand that their power is temporal, transcient. They are elected only for a number of terms. And it is only a matter of time before they become common folks, walking side by side with the people in the market or laughing together in the football stadium. Such rulers tend to be less dismissive and arrogant. For they will fall flat on their face when power is not there. And the people knew the formula. So the people are freer in their thoughts. They speak up when they need to. They need not fear that the rulers will fix them up nicely. And if the rulers do that, they have ways to answer back. Perhaps this is the strength of the western model, when power is not perpetuated as if it will always be there and those who assumed power can do what they want. The probability of abuses is that much lower as all good things will come to an end very rapidly. Where are we? Why did so many people that I talked to, even my friends, all have this undisclosed fear? Didn't they know that the bugger could be his kampong kid or the boy in the next HDB flat, but once in power, he becomes something different, someone to fear? Would they feel the same if they know that the bugger will in a matter of time become being ruled rather than the ruler?

myth 134

Intelligence not linked to wealth I can't help but to quote this amazing truth that was confirmed by a US study. "People don't become rich because they are smart.' Jay Zagorsky, a research scientist at Ohio State University. He added that IQ has really no relationship to a person's wealth. So for those who wanted to acquire more wealth to prove that they are smart, or afraid that they will look stupid to the stupid guy who is richer than them because of money, have no fear. If you are smart, you are smart. If you are stupid you are stupid. And for those who still want to pursue more wealth to look smart, then it is a case of plain stupidity. But if you can, you should grab more. Nothing wrong with having more money even if one is stupid. Hope this will take away some pressure for some people: )

En bloc Rules

Why are people crying foul of the en bloc rulings? In a democracy or democratic system where the majority rules, this is what it should be or must be. The majority, even if 51%, assumes all the power of the rest. And this en bloc ruling is even more stringent, demanding that 80% majority only can the group impose their wills on the 20% who disagree. Yes, the 80% can sell off your property against your will. And that is what the minority must accept. This is the beauty of a democratic system. I think when the rules were first mooted, it was a way to prevent a small unreasonable minority from going against the good sense of the majority. Now the table is turned against the minority by the tyranny of the majority. They knew that the law is on their side and they just lumped it to the minority. And they even ignored the minority completely by not informing them. I am impressed with such intelligent people. Play by the rule and take full advantage of the rule that favours you.

Taking on a bigger role

After spending time at the St James Station partying with the young PAPs and explaining the ministerial hike to the Press, LKY came out to address the fear of the Indon Extradition Treaty. It will not affect our property prices and the Indonesian rich will not be running away. That is about the gist of what he said. There is fear of how this treaty will impact our large pool of rich Indonesians who have been staying here and investing in our properties and businesses. And the fear is genuine as the main reason that has been floated all these while is to deal with the 'corrupt' rich Indonesians that are here. You can't blame the rich Indonesians for having second thoughts about their well beings. And one can't dissuade the property speculators that this will not have any impact on the property markets. There will be some who will have to change their investment plans and sell off some of their holdings. The rich are mobile and when there is uncertainty, the best option is to disappear to safer ground. No point and no need to put themselves to risk. Now we watch and see how this extradition treaty will play up or down our property market.

council of elders - redundant talks

Not that a council of elders will be in the cards. Not that it will matter whether there is or there isn't a council of elders to make any material change. I am continuing this discussion simply for discussion's sake as a follow up to an interesting point raised by Chua Soo Kiat in his article in the Today paper on the same topic. Though Soo Kiat was advocating that more women are needed rather than oldies, he pointed out that paying a council of elders a token sum is a problem. How's that? Affordability is one problem, but a minor one. It is the moral authority of a council of elders that will be perceived by the public to be higher than those that work just purely for money. So the more one gets paid, the lesser is the moral authority, and vice versa. If this is going to be how the people will look at our political leaders, then the whole exercise of multi million dollar ministerial pay may erode and undermine their authority as we march towards the next general election. Money now seems to be the foremost factor in the minds of Singaporeans. Though I say that a council of elders may not be of interest to anyone now, but if we consider paying every one elected into the council a million or so, maybe it will revive some interest to have such a council. After all, money talks and many will be interested especially when millions are available for the taking. The more posts and positions created, the more people will stand to benefit. And no one has to come out from their pockets. Just pay from the public coffers.

Two wrong timing good leaders

According to PN Balji, Philip Yeo and Tan Kin Lian could have been great leaders but missed the boat. His misgiving for these two guys is that they left without a successor in place. In my view, they are great leaders, with their warts as all humans possessed, for all their achievements. And I can't blame them as both were young men with many years to go. Compare to all the octogenarians still strutting their stuff around, one cannot possibly expect these two young men in their prime to think of retiring. Philip has a lot more to do to see his baby grow. Kin Lian may be in a different league and may be waiting for a MNC offer. But both are doing extremely well. Then Balji quoted Nelson Mandela who quitted after one term as a great example of great leaders who never over stay their welcome. Now what does that mean? In our little island, dearth of talents, we cannot simply afford great leaders to warm their seats for one term and quit. If that is the game, soon we will be asking FTs to take over all the important leadership positions. We understand our problems and is doing everything we can to attract and retain leaders for a life time as long as they can contribute and still kicking.

Landmark deals with Indonesia

So the extradition treaty and defence cooperation agreement are going to be sealed while our barges are still being detained on hazy charges. And bombs exploded in a Singaporean company in Karimum. And instead of investigating and dealing with the saboteurs, the management of the company are detained for more hazy charges. The public may not know what the deals were and what have been resolved, but coming at a time like this is a bit stinking. And we clapped to trumpet the good relations with Jakarta. Let's hope more sands and reasons will prevail.

The muted silent corner

While the debate and airing of the ministerial pay hike were furious, both in the MSM and cyberspace, the battle line is quite clear. The ruling party is obviously fully behind it, with a few exceptions, and there were Ministers and MPs standing up to defend the position. The opposition's view is as good as anyone can expect. And so are the views of the public. So far I have yet to hear anyone having a good thing to say about the issue. And they are all being polite and circumscribe. What about the opinion makers and those luminaries with a view? The academics, the retired or elder statesmen and civil servants, the professionals and the newsmakers? These are people that must have a view. They cannot be clueless or opinionless. So far there is an almost total silence. Where are the voices of the elite of this Little Red Dot? Their silence could mean two things. For or against. These densely opinionated elite cannot be fence sitters. Perhaps they are all for the pay hike so nothing more to add. Or they are against it but have taken the cue or sense that it is better to shut up. That would be a shame for a first world nation or a little country boasting of being first world when opinions and views that matter were found wanting. The overwhelming presence of LKY and his intense support for the pay hike may be a suffocating factor. Just my opinion. I think not many would want to take the other corner to take on such a heavy weight that holds no punches. Now which is the case? Where are the elite or is this the proof that we need, that Singapore is sorely in need of talents or alternative political leadership?

IN THE PAST, WHEN YOU WERE CHIEF MINISTER, YOUTHS PLAYED A POLITICALLY-ACTIVE ROLE. HOW HAS THE ROLE OF YOUTHS CHANGED AS COMPARED TO THE PAST? The role of youths! Ha! In my time, I tried to educate our people in an understanding of the dignity of human life and their right as fellow human beings, and youth was not only interested but excited about what I consider things that matter. Things of the spirit; the development of a human being to his true potential in accordance with his own personal genius in the context of equal rights of others. Today, youth is interested in getting paper qualification and, as soon as possible, shoveling gold into their bank accounts. It’s a different world, even the law. I am a consultant here [Drew & Napier]. When I left in ’78, there were three partners – it was supposed to be a big firm; two assistants – we were a big firm; 17 staff. This office has four floors. They think that it is a waste of time to use the lift so we have an internal staircase. We have more than 90 lawyers, more than 200 secretaries and I don’t know how many staff. The law is no longer a vocation, it is a business. Everything is geared to business! Of course, there is this pragmatic development of our country. Ah, our rising expectations of a pragmatic character! It is a fantastic and almost a miraculous development in my lifetime. When I was Chief Minister, there were men dying of starvation and because of ‘beri-beri’. I took my PA [personal assistant] and an Inspector of Police for night at midnight. For two hours, we toured Singapore and we estimated there were two ten thousand men sleeping on the pavements. No homes. Today - no unemployment, no homeless. I started this business of building homes for our people. Compare the puny work I achieved and the fantastic HDB homes that are available today for our people. I am deeply impressed and I take off my hat to this very able honest government. Dedicated! But I am seen as a critic and I am a critic. I am frankly terrified by this massive control of the mass media, the press, the radio, television, antennae, [and] public meetings. You can’t write a letter to the Straits Times; if there is a shadow of criticism, it’s not published. And the Chinese press follows suit. It’s a very dangerous position because experience proves that no one group of human beings has got all the wisdom in the world. I mean… well, two of you are Chinese and one Indian [Ed: actually, the interviewers were one Chinese, one Jew and one Indian]. I don’t know much about Indian history but look at China. You had Confucian authoritarianism for more than 2500 years. What happened to China? She was a fossil. She had to reinvigorate herself with the Western ideology of communism. Another authoritarian ideology! And what was the result? There must have been a million decent people who were transformed into vipers, vicious obscene vipers. I’m afraid of this control of the mass media. And are youths the miasma of apathetic subservience to authority? But you say to yourselves, “Well, you know, what do we seek in life? We seek a rice bowl, full!” It is full and overflowing, in fact. They serve you your rice in a jade bowl with golden chopsticks; not that it makes much difference to the taste of the rice. But you’re empty! You’ve got technocratic skills and you are seeking more but internally you are empty. Money is your acid test of success. I’ve got nothing against money. I’d like to have money myself! I’d like to have a house and a garden and dogs and a car and a chauffeur but, look, I’ve got a flat. I’ve got a swimming pool attached to the flat. I’ve not even got a car but I use taxis. I have a dignified way of life without being wealthy. I don’t see the necessity of owning a Mercedes-Benz and a swimming pool and a couple of mistresses. I think we’ve got our values all wrong. You know $96,000 a month for a Prime Minister and $60,000 a month for a minister. What the hell do you do with all that money? You can’t eat it! What do you do with it? Your children don’t need all that money. My children have had the best of education. In fact, I’m very proud of them. One of them is a senior registrar to two major hospitals in Oxford. Another of them is a consultant in European law to the Securities and Investment Board in the United Kingdom. They’ve had their education. There are no complaints. I never earned $60,000 a month or $90,000 a month. When I was Chief Minister, I earned $8,000 a month. Look, what is happening today is we are encouraged to and are becoming worshippers of the Golden Calf. We have lost sight of the joy and excitement of public service, helping our fellow men. The joy and excitement of seeking and understanding of the joy of the miracle of the living the duty and the grandeur. We have lost taste for heroic action in the service of our people. We have become good bourgeois seeking comfort, security. It’s like seeking a crystal coffin and being fed by intravenous injections through pipes in the crystal coffin; crystal coffins stuck with certificates of your pragmatic abilities. What has changed? The self-confidence of our people has grown immensely, and that is good to see. Our pragmatic abilities have grown magnificently, and that is good to see. Very good to see! You are very able. You’re ambitious, and the government has heroic plans for the future. It hasn’t finished. I take off my hat to the pragmatic ability of our government but there is no soul in our conduct. It is a difficult thing to speak of because it is difficult to put in a computer, and the youth of Singapore is accustomed to computer fault. There is no longer the intellectual ferment, the passionate argument for a better civilisation. The emphasis on the rice bowl! Tell me I’m wrong, come on. THE PAP GOVERNMENT HAS INDEED DONE A GREAT DEAL FOR SINGAPORE. HOWEVER, THERE IS AN INCREASING DEGREE OF DISCONTENT GROWING AMONGST OUR YOUTHS AGAINST THEM. WHY DO YOU THINK THIS IS HAPPENING? Our lives are empty. The above is an extract of an interview with David Marshall posted at http://thinkhappiness.blogspot.com/2006/08/meeting-david-marshall-in-1994.html. Have we cheapen public service and the passion to serve our nation and people? Or Singaporeans are all a bunch of money grabbers and nothing else?

Can you leave with a clear conscience?

Those were the words of LKY. He added, 'If we lose our top talent, then we will decline as a nation.' While we are calling for the retention of our talent, we are encouraging many to leave, to work overseas, and in their place, filled with foreign talent. Or did our talent left because they were unwanted, not appreciated in their own home? The prophets are not welcomed in their own towns. The risks and consequences of this craziness is like a blood transfusion for no reasons. Remove our own blood and replaced it by alien blood. How would it affect our system? What if the alien blood contains aids or some other viruses? What if the alien blood is green? If we don't value our own talent at home, we surely will have a new Singapore, more vibrant, but not the Singaporeans that were here before. The talents that left our shore will return to find themselves as aliens. And they may not even be welcomed.

A council of elders

Dharmendra Yadav wrote about the need for a council of elders to act as a check to Parliament amidst the controversial ministerial pay rise. The thought behind this call is simple, there is a need to check Parliament when controversial or untenable bills or issues are raised and passed. The need for a neutral and counterbalancing voice is obviously felt by many except the govt. This is natural as the govt would think that it is the best and, being voted to power by the people, is supreme and has the mandate to do what it thinks is right. And it will not submit to another group to check on its power and actions. Such a call is at best a mental exercise as it will never be implemented by any party in power. Who would want to share power or have their hands tied? Which party will be brave enough, generous enough, to want to do this knowing that it is for the good of the future of the country?

Who is there to stop a rogue govt?

So much have been said about how vulnerable we are as a little island that we cannot afford any mistake. And the worst case scenario is a rogue govt that went about helping itself in state of helping the people. Without good men in leadership we are doomed. This scenario assumes that we have a dud administrative service and a submissive army and police that would allow a rogue govt to go on a rampage, unrestraint. It also assumes that the running of the country is only by the political leaders while the civil servants and uniformed groups will just simply take orders, unthinking and unminding. Would we reach a day when Ah Kow and his gang be elected as the next govt and went about paying themselves $5 mil or $10 mil per head and the civil servants and uniformed services just quietly stood by without lifting a finger? Or would the civil servants and the uniformed groups just join in the party and help themselves as well? Such a scenario is possible when the people are unthinking, or seasoned not to think and rather be sheep and hoping to be led, and hope against hope that good leaders would be picked and chosen. I find this position very dangerous. We need a thinking people in all walks of life to think that the future of the country is theirs to make. And that they must have a say in how the country is being run. And when they think the country is not properly run, they must stand up and step forward to help run the country. This can only come true if we have a system that will facilitate or be conducive for leaders to step forward themselves rather than be chosen. A leader is a leader in his own right, not waiting to be picked. A picked leader is anything but a leader. It is at best an employee, fit the bill of the selection board and put into his proper place. We need to question whether the present formula is the only formula for our continued well being or if there are better formula. One thing is for sure. If we think this is it, this is the only way, I think we are doomed. All empires thought that theirs was the only way. And all failed eventually. Our current system is too dependent on a few good men. And if the next few good men turned out to be rogues, we are in deep trouble when the system is not tuned to react and change for the better but only to take orders.6

Cursing and swearing are in us.

That is perhaps what Janadas Devan was trying to say about how our ancestors acquired this gift from nature. And he has the internet to support his case with plenty of lurid examples, some carved to such refinement that they should be collected in a book and would probably become a best seller. And for those who find it impossible to quit, like smoking, fear not. And also do not despair. Just blame it on nature.

Myth 133

'How Much?' No no, I am not talking about minister's pay again. Practically all the things that need to be said other than the obvious have been spoken. It is time to forget and move on. I am referring to the big bucks in sports. It was horrifying to know that our dream for the World Cup Final is tainted with game fixing. Is this the reason why we will never make it to the World Cup? But if money is an issue, then our World Cup dream can easily be realised. Money is what we have. In our squeaky clean environment, it is incomprehensible to think that bribery or game fixing happens in our super league. I can expect such things to happen in other big leagues, but definitely not here. After all we are all super clean and if not, we just pay them well and the problem will simply go away. We better set up a task force to study the pay of professional footballers. And if they are not competitive enough, surely they deserve a pay rise to keep them clean. But if the problem is small enough, and we have our fame anti corruption agencies to handle them, then perhaps, no payrise is necessary. Of course the football talents would disagree. If there is no huge payrise, then more such cases will appear in the papers.

Is it so difficult to run a command economy?

Yes, it is very difficult when there is no absolute power, when there are many powerful interest groups with strong support bases, when the rule of law and constitutions are supreme, like the USA. In the most recent case of the unmasking of a secret agent by a top govt official, only in the USA that the culprit can be brought to task. There is not only a separation of power, but the opposition is equally strong to prevent abuse by the top national executives. Then life is not so easy. George Bush is now facing opposition in his war in Iraq. He needs to convince the people's representatives that what he is doing is right and for the good of the nation. As long as others are not convince, he cannot do as he wishes. But when there is hardly any opposition, hardly any strong interest groups to challenge the govt, everything goes. And running a command economy is about the easiest thing to do. All essential services are a monopoly in every way. The supplier dictates the service, the quality of service, the price to be paid, without competition and opposition. How difficult is such a task? And to lose money in a monopoly is criminal. Yes there are airlines, steel mills, etc that gone bust despite being monopolies and with govt backings, all because of corruption and incompetence. In a functional govt when there is rule of law, when there is transparency, when there are watchdog agencies, incompetence and corruption will be nipped in the bud. Unless everyone is walking with eyes closed. Compare to the private sector that operates by demand, when the customer is king, life is not so easy. Any goods or service providers thinking of raising his price should be wary of losing his customers and market share. And they cannot dictate to the customer what is good for the customer. The customer decides what is good for him and what price he is willing to pay. There are alternatives and substitutions from competitive suppliers and service providers. So, which economy demands greater skills and greater talents? (Matilah, your favourite thesis)

revisiting means testing

Revisiting Means Testing Of the many reasons behind means testing is the assumption that family is the core and all family units are functional. In the Singapore of today, when many are trying to make ends meet, the family unit that is intact is probably the parent and small children. The parents will often sacrifice for their children, paying and giving without asking for anything in return. Unfortunately this only holds true when the family is young. When the children have grown, it becomes to each his own. An extended family or a bigger family may look good on paper, with household income of $5k a month, but 5 or more mouths to feed. And bet you, this is not a large sum and a lot of tightening is still required. And when it comes to a big lump sum to be paid, many do not have the spare capacity to do so. A $10k or $20k hospital bill is going to turn their lives upside down. The premise that children must pay for their parents, when children have children to pay for, is stretching the ability a little too far. But of course, when children are earning a million a year, filial piety is a given. For there are a lot of spare cash flowing around. Thinkings of people earning millions are definitely different from those earning a couple of thousands a month. Even husband and wife may not be on speaking terms or on the verge of a divorce. So would a cash rich husband or wife be forced to pay for a spouse that they would not want to see for the rest of their lives? We may have laws to enforce such payments. But if the paying party just refuse to oblige, the problem is still with the patient. What can the law do? Or can the hospital says, your husband or wife or children must pay. Otherwise the bill is still your problem? How I wish all the Singaporeans are all earning a million dollars and their family units are functional. The reality is far from it. And paying hospital bills can break up family ties and strain relations.

one people, one country

Great People, great country A country can only be great when its people are great. The people can only be great when their hearts are one, thinking only of country. The ruler should rule wisely, and the people should be thinking people and obey wisely. To borrow from Confucius, The ruler must be ruler, the people be people, the father be father and friends be friends. The relationship of these four groups forms the basis of a good and strong nation. When the relationship is wrong, when ruler does not rule wisely, when people do not think wisely, when father does not behave like father and when friends are less than friends, the country will be disunited. Are our ruler and people having the same dream? Are our people thinking people or blind sheep?

a little bit of history

During the days of the Japanese Occupation, life was tough. And the worst of human traits were allowed to be given full play. Everyone was fighting for his own survival. There was no more righteousness, no more loyalty, no pride, no shame. Many locals sold their souls to the dark side. They became informers for the Kempeitai and reported on their friends, neighbours and even relatives. Many were killed or savagely tortured by the Japanese, all because of these informers. When the Japanese surrendered, many of these informers were identified by their neighbours and beaten to death on the streets. Do not be tempted by the dark side and lose your souls.

NKF everywhere

Reading the newspapers daily, one cannot be helped but to find that NKF is everywhere, but in different shades and shapes. The blatant violation of good corporate governance, the violation of fundamental principles of propriety and management principles, and the tolerance to such violations seems so convenient when people just refused to call a spade a spade. Do we need the same kind of exposure of another NKF to see more red faces? Our standard of right and wrong, of good practices, fair play etc are being eroded away right below our noses. And the party continues.