general election: prelim round 6

this is more a kopitiam impression of how things have changed over the years. not too long ago the most frustrating compliant by the opposition is that they find it very difficult to contest the election. and the reason was not the redrawing of boundaries or grcs. the reason against the opposition is simply the brand name. it was often heard that you wear the badge on anyone or anything, it will be voted into parliament. the pap brand was so strong that it was quite pointless for the opposition to think of winning. today kopitiam talk is quite different. the impression is that if you wear the badge on anyone or thing, it is likely to lose. what a reversal in trend. a 180 degress about turn. would such an impression really be an indication of a big vote swing? kopitiam talk is one thing and the voting pattern or the actual voting is another. given the track record, the goodies, and the lack of good decent candidates from the opposition, even if there is a vote swing, the impact is not likely to be very great. but it will all depend on how good the opposition is. the issue now is not how good the pap is. so if the opposition is able to attract and put up good people, the mood may be more favourable to them to get voted in.

crooked bridge: a bridge with no returns

by now the message to the malaysian govt must have been very clear. it is a bridge that has no value to singapore but going to burn a big hole in the pocket. now why would the singapore govt go ahead to spend public funds, in the billions, on something that is not only of no real value, but comes with a string of liabilities. this just does not make economic sense to the singapore govt who would have to justify to the population for its unsound decision. but then again, if the money is spent as a goodwill for some other tradeoffs, maybe that can be considered. simply spending the money for no returns is absurb and out of question. now if the malaysians can say, ok, these are the sweeteners for the goodwill. then the issue will be what kind of sweeteners will be worth a billion singapore dollars? that will be the money the singapore govt will have to cough out to go ahead with the bridge. now the horse tradings start. you want the singapore govt to pay, then what is there to offer?

thaksin, shin corp and temasek

the trouble with thaksin is trouble for the sale of shin corp to temasek. and the fallout can be quite painful if the emotions of the thai public is played up. will temasek and singapore be embroiled in a domestic uprising in thailand and scuttle a seemingly business transaction? the rise and fall of thaksin is so dramatic that fortunes can change overnight. let's keep our finger crossed that this is strictly thai internal politics.

expensive health care

i have touched on this topic many times and will continue to bring it up every now and then until the cost of health care becomes reasonable to the average singaporeans. for this is going to be a pain to many singaporeans as age catch up with them but without the money catching up with the high cost of healthcare. and many singaporeans know that this is a serious problem close to their heart. the government's health care expenditure for the year 2004 is $1.71 billion or about $500 per citizen using a rough population of 3 million. on the other hand, govt subsidy for healthcare is a whopping $1.28 billion for the same year. now that is very high indeed. in fact far too high if one extrapolates on the amount of subsidy to the actual users. why is the govt unable to bring down health cost? or are we having the same kind of formula or logic used in the computation of hdb flats and subsidies? there is no reason for healthcare to be so expensive when all the people needs is basic healthcare. maybe a different set of figures shall be produced to look at health expenditure according to the classes of wards. how much is being subsidised at the lower end and upper end. i always call for govt hospitals to provide decent and adequate healthcare and not the luxurious kind. the latter can be provided by the commercial hospitals. and if govt hospitals do provide such services, there must be no subsidy. but the bottom line is still the factors used in coming out with the cost of healthcare.

cartoon caricatures: muslims retaliate

the indignation felt by the muslims over the cartoon incident is expected and understandable knowing how they revered prophet mohammed. the spontaneous protests in muslim countries around the world have driven home the message of how sensitive the issue is and should not be repeated. and i think this point is well taken by the western nations. but further violence and destruction of life may negate whatever injustice felt by the rest of the world for the muslims. the muslims must not assume that the incident is a licence for them to take lives or go on a rampage. the recent incident in sydney should be a reminder to the muslims that there are many westerners who can be as violent as them. there are many rightists and anti muslim groups in western countries that could not wait to retaliate and respond in kind to what the muslims are doing. attacking europeans and their properties in muslim countries may give reasons and justifications for the violent prone to similarly attack muslims and their properties in western countries. it is not an issue for any party to prove how violent they can be for whatever reasons. hatred begets hatred and violence begets violence.