The roles of the president have been clearly stated and explained by so many political luminaries, including Jayakumar. Among the 5 discretionary custodial duties is the protection of reserves.
Nathan has been quoted in the media that he had done a lot, quietly, as the President. Presumably he must have done all that is expected of his 5 discretionary custodial duties exemplarily. While the current attention is on the new candidates to assume the office of the Presidency, would the people be interested to know how well he has done, quietly, all these 12 years as the President? Or would the people be interested to know how much has he done to protect the reserves?
One of the fundamental questions raised during Ong Teng Cheong’s Presidency was the value of the reserves. He wanted to know how much or what he was supposed to guard. Without knowing how much was there in the reserves, it was woolly woolly for him to be able to protect it. Maybe I am wrong. He did not need to know how much there was to protect. All he needed to know was that it was one of his major duties as the President, to hold the second key.
Of course Teng Cheong would not accept that kind of logic. He must know what he was guarding and how much was there to protect in the first place. The stumbling block was that it would take 52 man years to know the exact amount.
Nathan has been the President for 12 years. This is still short of 40 years to reach the magical number of 52 years. Does it mean that it will take another 40 years to churn out the numbers? Apologies, I think another 40 years will be just right for the final numbers to be known. But that is for one man to work on it full time.
I am not sure how many men are working on it to produce the numbers for the guardian. Does the President know the numbers already, or would he be able to tell the people how many more years before the numbers will be available? Any progress been made in this as it is the first thing that any president guarding the reserves must know?
6/12/2011
I am starting to know more about dogs
‘Leadership is in the blood, says Mr Lee.’ This is a headline in ST on 27 May. LKY was expounding his theory on leadership in Japan, and he explained how certain groups of people are born with this quality. It is in the blood, in the bloodline.
LKY then used the example of a sheepdog and explained how easily it is to train sheepdogs to guard and dominate the sheep. Not any dog will do. It must be a certain kind, a sheep dog.
I quote LKY, ‘There is a certain group of dogs that genetically have been born and been specially bred for this purpose. If you just take your ordinary dog, you can spend all your time training it, it will not work.’
So, for those who are thinking of importing dogs, think Australia or New Zealand. Think sheep dog and not mongrels. The latter can be found in the less developed countries, so plentiful, but do not have that special quality of leadership in their blood.
It is more relaxing to talk about pets, hobbies and dogs on a Sunday morning.
LKY then used the example of a sheepdog and explained how easily it is to train sheepdogs to guard and dominate the sheep. Not any dog will do. It must be a certain kind, a sheep dog.
I quote LKY, ‘There is a certain group of dogs that genetically have been born and been specially bred for this purpose. If you just take your ordinary dog, you can spend all your time training it, it will not work.’
So, for those who are thinking of importing dogs, think Australia or New Zealand. Think sheep dog and not mongrels. The latter can be found in the less developed countries, so plentiful, but do not have that special quality of leadership in their blood.
It is more relaxing to talk about pets, hobbies and dogs on a Sunday morning.
6/11/2011
The angry cries for housing
Read the comments in cyberspace and you can’t help hearing the cries of desperation for housing. Yes they cannot afford public housing. Families with little children, broken families, people who because of poor finances, bad luck, circumstances, some of their own foolishness or irresponsible acts, are out there looking for a roof over their heads. Is that not the duty and responsibility of the govt to provide them with a roof, any kind of roof? A temporary shelter, a small rental flat in place of a pitch tent in a vacant land. They may have mismanaged their lives, then what, leave them in the cold?
While these people are pleading, some have gone to the extent of cursing at the govt and HDB. When people are at wits end, and the govt is not there to help, you can’t blame them. And there is no reason for the govt not to help them. It is unacceptable and irresponsible as a govt to forsake its people in times of need.
Boon Wan is cautioning those who have bought or are buying private properties of a bubble bursting. Some may be burnt when it happens. But don’t worry, they can afford to be burnt. Pity the young professionals who were forced by his predecessors and his policies into the private market and with a huge mortgage to service. I dare say, it is no fault of theirs and the blame should be placed squarely on the govt for allowing it to happen, when the crash comes.
In the meantime, the govt must quickly rethink its policies and responsibilities to the people, to provide them with a really affordable roof. Even those who are disqualified for all the right and wrong reasons, the govt must take care of them as a govt is expected. The woes of the citizens will become the stress to the society and country.
Boon Wan has taken the right step to ramp up the building of rental flats. Not everyone is a super talent to be able to afford expensive housing. Not everyone can afford even to buy small affordable public housing. The govt has to cater to all the different levels and needs of the people. What is the use of a govt who shirks this responsibility and leaves the people in dire straights in the lurch?
The well being of the people is the govt’s responsibility. Remember, it is the people who elect the govt to look after them. The people do not elect the govt to tell them you mess up, just too bad, your problem.
Go back to basics and think of providing every citizen a roof over his head first. Stop the stupid policy of an artificial ceiling to disqualify young people and push them towards the cliff. Stop the ruthless mindset of punishing the less able, the losers or unfortunate. Look after the people.
While these people are pleading, some have gone to the extent of cursing at the govt and HDB. When people are at wits end, and the govt is not there to help, you can’t blame them. And there is no reason for the govt not to help them. It is unacceptable and irresponsible as a govt to forsake its people in times of need.
Boon Wan is cautioning those who have bought or are buying private properties of a bubble bursting. Some may be burnt when it happens. But don’t worry, they can afford to be burnt. Pity the young professionals who were forced by his predecessors and his policies into the private market and with a huge mortgage to service. I dare say, it is no fault of theirs and the blame should be placed squarely on the govt for allowing it to happen, when the crash comes.
In the meantime, the govt must quickly rethink its policies and responsibilities to the people, to provide them with a really affordable roof. Even those who are disqualified for all the right and wrong reasons, the govt must take care of them as a govt is expected. The woes of the citizens will become the stress to the society and country.
Boon Wan has taken the right step to ramp up the building of rental flats. Not everyone is a super talent to be able to afford expensive housing. Not everyone can afford even to buy small affordable public housing. The govt has to cater to all the different levels and needs of the people. What is the use of a govt who shirks this responsibility and leaves the people in dire straights in the lurch?
The well being of the people is the govt’s responsibility. Remember, it is the people who elect the govt to look after them. The people do not elect the govt to tell them you mess up, just too bad, your problem.
Go back to basics and think of providing every citizen a roof over his head first. Stop the stupid policy of an artificial ceiling to disqualify young people and push them towards the cliff. Stop the ruthless mindset of punishing the less able, the losers or unfortunate. Look after the people.
6/10/2011
We are Singaporeans, dare you abuse us
The ill treatment of an aged patient in Nightingale Nursing Home was shown on prime time news last night. The old lady was left topless for half an hour as was reported, in an air con room. She was then bundled by two assistants, looking more like FTs, and dumped into her bed. She growled because of the pain and was smacked by one of the assistants.
The family paid good money to the Nursing Home to take care of their loved one. What she got was not care but being manhandled in a very bad way. It is pitiful and disgusting to see our senior citizens being treated this badly by their caregivers. No matter if they are locals or foreigners, they must be severely punished as an example to protect our elders who are entrusted to caregivers whom we believed are kind and trained professionals paid to do the job.
The case must be swiftly dealt with and all guilty parties punished. If they are foreigners, they must be banished from our homeland for ill treating us, their gracious host, providing them with shelter and the opportunity to earn good money. I say to them, piss off from my country.
For those who are still here, please be reminded that you are guests at our pleasure. Some may open their arms to embrace and kiss you, but we expect no less in return for our kindness. Any Singaporean apologists need to be gorenged by all Singaporeans. This is our home. We are Singaporeans and cannot be victims to foreigners
The family paid good money to the Nursing Home to take care of their loved one. What she got was not care but being manhandled in a very bad way. It is pitiful and disgusting to see our senior citizens being treated this badly by their caregivers. No matter if they are locals or foreigners, they must be severely punished as an example to protect our elders who are entrusted to caregivers whom we believed are kind and trained professionals paid to do the job.
The case must be swiftly dealt with and all guilty parties punished. If they are foreigners, they must be banished from our homeland for ill treating us, their gracious host, providing them with shelter and the opportunity to earn good money. I say to them, piss off from my country.
For those who are still here, please be reminded that you are guests at our pleasure. Some may open their arms to embrace and kiss you, but we expect no less in return for our kindness. Any Singaporean apologists need to be gorenged by all Singaporeans. This is our home. We are Singaporeans and cannot be victims to foreigners
Myth 227 – Logic of superior beans
This friend (call him John, not this real name) of mine related his interview for the head of Asia Pacific Region marketing job. He was about the best in his field and was head hunted for the position.
Everything went fine and the date for him to come on board was fixed. Then they went into the compensation package details. John was quite comfortable with his half a million dollar package. But being an absolutely honest Singaporean, he told the interviewer his true feelings. He said the job was very attractive and he could also be tempted to be corrupt. There were plenty of opportunities to do so in his new position. He confessed that he was after all a human bean and was subject to temptations of the monetary kind.
He suggested to the interviewer that in paradise such a temptation was easily taken care of by paying a sum that was good enough to keep an honest bean from being corrupt. The interviewer nodded and agreed with him that it was a novel idea of superior logic. They finally agreed that another half a million bucks would do the trick and the company could be 100% at peace that John would do his job well, diligently and would never stoop to corruption. It was a win win situation.
They parted with an assurance that the letter of appointment would follow in the next few days. That was more than a decade ago. The letter of appointment did not arrive. John was also taken off the headhunter’s list. He applied his superior reasoning and concluded that his superior logic was ahead of time and his potential employer was still stuck in the medieval age.
John is now happily driving a taxi as a profession. Of course this story is only good for reading as a fiction.
Everything went fine and the date for him to come on board was fixed. Then they went into the compensation package details. John was quite comfortable with his half a million dollar package. But being an absolutely honest Singaporean, he told the interviewer his true feelings. He said the job was very attractive and he could also be tempted to be corrupt. There were plenty of opportunities to do so in his new position. He confessed that he was after all a human bean and was subject to temptations of the monetary kind.
He suggested to the interviewer that in paradise such a temptation was easily taken care of by paying a sum that was good enough to keep an honest bean from being corrupt. The interviewer nodded and agreed with him that it was a novel idea of superior logic. They finally agreed that another half a million bucks would do the trick and the company could be 100% at peace that John would do his job well, diligently and would never stoop to corruption. It was a win win situation.
They parted with an assurance that the letter of appointment would follow in the next few days. That was more than a decade ago. The letter of appointment did not arrive. John was also taken off the headhunter’s list. He applied his superior reasoning and concluded that his superior logic was ahead of time and his potential employer was still stuck in the medieval age.
John is now happily driving a taxi as a profession. Of course this story is only good for reading as a fiction.
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