2011 set the stage for change in a new world with new players. The Americans tried very hard to retain its number One super power status and to contain the challenge coming from an emerging China. Much as it tried, American power is dwindling in the midst of economic failures and a mountain of debt. America continues in its pursuit of military power and control, getting itself embroiled in wars, in sanctions, in interfering with the domestic politics of every country on its good book or in its bad books. It poked its finger into Myanmar and North Korea, two countries that have nothing to do with the lives of Americans. While the North Koreans are mourning the death of its leaders, the Americans are furiously engaging the South Koreans on how to deal with the North Koreans when it is totally none of its business. It still thinks it has the privilege and resources to mess around the world.
Domestically we are seeing a party on the defensive. The ruling party has expended all its political capital and with every minister a liability rather than an asset to the party. Without political capital, something that it callously chose not to build over the last decades, it is looking at social capital to fall back on. How much social capital is there when it neglected building on it like political capital?
Singaporeans went through a very painful phase of ‘nothing can be done’, it is all due to market forces, wide income gap is good and natural, that is growth. High housing prices are beyond the govt’s control, so is high cost of living, market forces at work. The high intake of foreigners labelled as foreign talents is for the good of the people, like it or not. It can’t be helped. It is not the norm or responsibility to build housing for the people when they needed it. The govt will dictate when they want to build and how many to build, and 3 to 4 years wait is a take it or leave it position. So what can the people do about it other than to accept it as the norm.
Many people benefited from the govt’s policies of market forces, including very high pay, very high property prices. Those who have plenty kept piling their plates higher and higher when they could live for generations without having to work. The average Singaporeans continue to make ends meet and whine quietly. And the people were told to accept it as normal in a meritocracy. The rich will get richer and the poor poorer. Can’t be helped.
Many things were taken for granted. Retaining more and more of the people’s money in the CPF/Medisave is done against their wishes as if the money belongs to the govt becomes a norm. No need to consult the people. Just legislate to make it legal.
Is there really much social capital that the govt can tap on or call upon when the social economic system benefits only a small group of elites at the expense of the majority? The elites and talented are very happy, very, very happy, as they get richer and richer with favourable govt policies. So are the foreigners and the foreign talents. No where can they find a system that is so friendly to them than Singapore. And they would threaten to move some where if govt policies were not favourable to them. We owe them a living. On the other hand the average Singaporeans are finding life getting tougher for themselves and were told that they have themselves to blame.
Does the ruling party really believe that things are getting better for them and not getting worst for the years to come? The Americans are going to face tougher time ahead, like it or not. The only thing they have left is power, power to destroy, to impose sanctions, to coerce, to start wars. As the born again convert of Americanism, everything the Americans do, we follow. Would the blind believer follow the leader to the same end?
1/01/2012
12/31/2011
Fallen myths and discredited policies
When the concept of super talents in politics was first proclaimed in an edict, the people quietly accepted it as there was nothing to dispute the fact that the country has been very well managed, from the Third World to the First World. Albeit a little flaws here and there, overall the country was in the pink of health and the people were rich and happy.
With this edict out of the way, it was easy to put meat onto this claim. The country needed the best talents to keep it going from prosperity to prosperity. And the best talents needed to be paid the best. The best talents would not want to sacrifice their careers and money making opportunities to serve the country and people if they were to be under paid. It made sense. So they went piling on the plate.
Till sometime last year, this year is not over yet, there were strong indications of more pay hikes for the political leaders. Something like how much you want, $3m, $5m or $10m? No one knows exactly how much the politicians were taking home except the basic pay.
The year 2011 proved to be a turning point of sort, a watershed in many ways. Hot on the heels of the Mas Selamat Escape in 2008, a series of bloops continued to fall on the faces of ministers in charge. Transportation, floods, Youth Olympics, Housing, cost of living, foreign talents and unemployments of local PMETs, all added to become a big pool of grievances.
The ground shift was felt in the May General Election. George Yeo was shaken even before the voters went to cast their votes. Hsien Loong made a quick public apology in his election speech. And the ruling party lost a GRC, an unsinkable contraptions that was not meant to sink, but sank it did, taking with it two ministers and a couple of top talents in the govt. It was only one GRC, but the psychological and emotional impact of this event was like saying more to come.
The appearance of Chen Show Mao, a truly super talent with international standing and a super income to boot, stood for the opposition and willing to accept a paltry $13,000 as an MP allowance. Small relative to what he could get but huge in many ways to what many MPs could get relative to their incomes. He could earn many times more. This act alone shattered the myth that super talents would only be enticed by money to serve the country and people.
Against this backdrop, the ruling party added to their wound with more questionable and doubtful super talents in their teams and hilarious accounts flooded the media. It was like the strike of a thunderbolt. The super talent myth was gone. There was disbelief as well as affirmation that it was all a myth.
With the fallen myth and the discredited policies that affected the lives of citizens adversely, the super salaries of politicians became a big issue. Suddenly it was seen as unjustifiable, grossly overpaid, leading to Hsien Loong calling for a Salary Review Committee to relook into the whole formula of out of this world salary for the ministers. And the first comment from Gerard Ee, who was tasked to do the review, was that the ‘final answer must include a substantial discount on comparable salaries in the private sector.’ A discount or a substantial salary cut is what the people are expecting. No body in his right mind would think that paying the ministers so much is right. And no ministers were in the right mind to stand up to defend their salaries as deserving and appropriate.
The report by the Committee has been submitted to Hsien Loong and all eyes and ears are waiting eagerly to see what the Committee has recommended. The year 2011 marks the end of the super talent concept and salaries in politics.
With this edict out of the way, it was easy to put meat onto this claim. The country needed the best talents to keep it going from prosperity to prosperity. And the best talents needed to be paid the best. The best talents would not want to sacrifice their careers and money making opportunities to serve the country and people if they were to be under paid. It made sense. So they went piling on the plate.
Till sometime last year, this year is not over yet, there were strong indications of more pay hikes for the political leaders. Something like how much you want, $3m, $5m or $10m? No one knows exactly how much the politicians were taking home except the basic pay.
The year 2011 proved to be a turning point of sort, a watershed in many ways. Hot on the heels of the Mas Selamat Escape in 2008, a series of bloops continued to fall on the faces of ministers in charge. Transportation, floods, Youth Olympics, Housing, cost of living, foreign talents and unemployments of local PMETs, all added to become a big pool of grievances.
The ground shift was felt in the May General Election. George Yeo was shaken even before the voters went to cast their votes. Hsien Loong made a quick public apology in his election speech. And the ruling party lost a GRC, an unsinkable contraptions that was not meant to sink, but sank it did, taking with it two ministers and a couple of top talents in the govt. It was only one GRC, but the psychological and emotional impact of this event was like saying more to come.
The appearance of Chen Show Mao, a truly super talent with international standing and a super income to boot, stood for the opposition and willing to accept a paltry $13,000 as an MP allowance. Small relative to what he could get but huge in many ways to what many MPs could get relative to their incomes. He could earn many times more. This act alone shattered the myth that super talents would only be enticed by money to serve the country and people.
Against this backdrop, the ruling party added to their wound with more questionable and doubtful super talents in their teams and hilarious accounts flooded the media. It was like the strike of a thunderbolt. The super talent myth was gone. There was disbelief as well as affirmation that it was all a myth.
With the fallen myth and the discredited policies that affected the lives of citizens adversely, the super salaries of politicians became a big issue. Suddenly it was seen as unjustifiable, grossly overpaid, leading to Hsien Loong calling for a Salary Review Committee to relook into the whole formula of out of this world salary for the ministers. And the first comment from Gerard Ee, who was tasked to do the review, was that the ‘final answer must include a substantial discount on comparable salaries in the private sector.’ A discount or a substantial salary cut is what the people are expecting. No body in his right mind would think that paying the ministers so much is right. And no ministers were in the right mind to stand up to defend their salaries as deserving and appropriate.
The report by the Committee has been submitted to Hsien Loong and all eyes and ears are waiting eagerly to see what the Committee has recommended. The year 2011 marks the end of the super talent concept and salaries in politics.
Temasek cutting losses
KARACHI:
Fed up with mounting losses at its only major investment in Pakistan, the Singapore-based Temasek Holdings is selling off its stake in NIB Bank and is reportedly in talks with the Industrial and Commercial Bank of China, sources told The Express Tribune.
Senior management officials at NIB Bank were so tight-lipped about the transaction that, not only did they refuse to discuss the matter, but they even refused to go on the record as having said that they have no comment. Neither the ICBC not Temasek Holdings were available for comment, despite repeated attempts to contact them by The Express Tribune….
Temasek certainly has reason to be unhappy. The Singaporean state-owned institutional investor has ploughed about $540 million into NIB Bank and has thus far seen the bank make close to $400 million in losses. At the close of trading on Wednesday, NIB Bank had a total market capitalisation of approximately $154 million, which values Temasek’s 74% holding (through its subsidiary Bugis Investments) at $114 million….
The above are the starting paragraph of an article titled, ‘Cut your losses: Temasek may be selling off NIB to China Bank’ by Farooq Tirmizi in The Express Tribune.
I could sense a little sarcasm and sneering by the author that Temasek is making such a huge loss. But smug not, for Farooq did not know how big is Temasek’s portfolio and this loss is just a pittance compared to all the big gains it is making elsewhere. I bet in the next annual report Temasek will announced another scintillating result with profits in hundreds of millions, after minus this small loss. For every loss of a few hundred millions, it will be covered by gains of many hundred millions. That is how good the track record of Temasek.
Our reserves are in good hands with the best money can buy managing them.
Fed up with mounting losses at its only major investment in Pakistan, the Singapore-based Temasek Holdings is selling off its stake in NIB Bank and is reportedly in talks with the Industrial and Commercial Bank of China, sources told The Express Tribune.
Senior management officials at NIB Bank were so tight-lipped about the transaction that, not only did they refuse to discuss the matter, but they even refused to go on the record as having said that they have no comment. Neither the ICBC not Temasek Holdings were available for comment, despite repeated attempts to contact them by The Express Tribune….
Temasek certainly has reason to be unhappy. The Singaporean state-owned institutional investor has ploughed about $540 million into NIB Bank and has thus far seen the bank make close to $400 million in losses. At the close of trading on Wednesday, NIB Bank had a total market capitalisation of approximately $154 million, which values Temasek’s 74% holding (through its subsidiary Bugis Investments) at $114 million….
The above are the starting paragraph of an article titled, ‘Cut your losses: Temasek may be selling off NIB to China Bank’ by Farooq Tirmizi in The Express Tribune.
I could sense a little sarcasm and sneering by the author that Temasek is making such a huge loss. But smug not, for Farooq did not know how big is Temasek’s portfolio and this loss is just a pittance compared to all the big gains it is making elsewhere. I bet in the next annual report Temasek will announced another scintillating result with profits in hundreds of millions, after minus this small loss. For every loss of a few hundred millions, it will be covered by gains of many hundred millions. That is how good the track record of Temasek.
Our reserves are in good hands with the best money can buy managing them.
12/30/2011
Hormuz the next flash point
This will be the big one. No peace in the Middle East with the Empire threatening to impose sanctions on Iran to cripple its economy. The Japanese attacked Pearl Harbour when the West and the US tried to strangle its economic development and curtailing its access to oil and natural resources. Iran is not going to stand still and allow the Americans to hurt its economy. It is threatening to close the Straits of Hormuz if the US applied sanctions against her.
The US has sent its aircraft carrier John C Stennis to the Hormuz. US Chief of Staff, Gen Martin Dempsey has revealed that they are planning to attack Iran once the White House gives the clearance. Israel is opening talking about a preventive strike against Iran’s nuclear facilities.
It is Iran’s fault to force the peace loving Empire and Israel to want to attack it. Blame it on the Iranians. A new coalition of peace loving countries will be gathered to attack the hostile and unfriendly Iran. God bless the peace loving countries. Iran must be destroyed and there will be peace on earth. Iran is only the third country to be attacked by the peaceful countries and the peace loving Empire. One by one they will be attacked by the hordes of hyenas dressed like angels.
Next to be attacked by the peace loving countries and Empire will likely be Pakistan, North Korea and China. All these are aggressive warlike countries planning to attack countries of peace loving people. So the peace loving countries and Empires must strike at all these war mongering countries to maintain peace.
The logic of peace loving countries that daft peace loving people of the world are expected to believe and swear by it. Only peace loving countries will provoke and attack other countries in the name of peace and start wars. With America around, the world can be guaranteed to have wars every day, in the name of peace.
The US has sent its aircraft carrier John C Stennis to the Hormuz. US Chief of Staff, Gen Martin Dempsey has revealed that they are planning to attack Iran once the White House gives the clearance. Israel is opening talking about a preventive strike against Iran’s nuclear facilities.
It is Iran’s fault to force the peace loving Empire and Israel to want to attack it. Blame it on the Iranians. A new coalition of peace loving countries will be gathered to attack the hostile and unfriendly Iran. God bless the peace loving countries. Iran must be destroyed and there will be peace on earth. Iran is only the third country to be attacked by the peaceful countries and the peace loving Empire. One by one they will be attacked by the hordes of hyenas dressed like angels.
Next to be attacked by the peace loving countries and Empire will likely be Pakistan, North Korea and China. All these are aggressive warlike countries planning to attack countries of peace loving people. So the peace loving countries and Empires must strike at all these war mongering countries to maintain peace.
The logic of peace loving countries that daft peace loving people of the world are expected to believe and swear by it. Only peace loving countries will provoke and attack other countries in the name of peace and start wars. With America around, the world can be guaranteed to have wars every day, in the name of peace.
Tough to get retail investors into stock market
Where have all the retail investors gone? Why is it that so few are interested in the stock markets? Despite all the efforts to woo them, systems and designs tweaked for their benefits, the best stock market in the world, the fastest high speed computers to hand millions of trades in a few seconds, where are the traders? Is it that Singaporeans are allergic to trading stocks?
No body knows why, or no one wants to see what is really wrong with the market? Everyone playing the 4 proverbial monkeys, see nothing, hear nothing, say nothing and do nothing. It is sad that there are so many super talents, including foreign talents, but no one knows or wants to know the truth. And yet, everyone in the industry knows what went wrong. What a farce!
And they all appear to be in a state of shock! Why ah? Why Singaporeans did not want to dabble in stocks? Stock market got no pulling power? We do not have this, we do not have that, we need more marketing to lure the suckers to buy snake oils!
Just flash back the memory to 1993, everyone, housewives, students, hawkers in the market, were all in the market, dabbling in stocks. Everyone was talking nothing but stocks. PhDs and highly qualified professionals were giving up their jobs to be in the market. And we have stocks, plenty of stocks from two markets to trade with. No need big foreign funds, no need high speed computers, no algos, and the stock markets were roaring.
The stockbrokers were smiling, the remisiers were hard pressed for time to breathe, the employees were in glee with 12 months bonuses. Property booms because there was so much liquidity and many people became rich. There was buzz, big buzz instead of big bust.
Today, with high speed computers, big foreign funds, plenty of them, algos, big trading volumes, but you could hear a pin drop inside a broking house. The industry is dying. The broking houses will go into the red if things did not turn around. The remisiers will become taxi drivers or housing agents if these are still available. Anything will be better than to become a remisier. The staff in the brokerages will see retrenchment coming.
A lucratic industry turning to a ghost town. 10,000 people will soon lose their jobs. What is happening? No one knows. All the people supposed to know did not know. Can you believe it? Then who should know? God knows.
No body knows why, or no one wants to see what is really wrong with the market? Everyone playing the 4 proverbial monkeys, see nothing, hear nothing, say nothing and do nothing. It is sad that there are so many super talents, including foreign talents, but no one knows or wants to know the truth. And yet, everyone in the industry knows what went wrong. What a farce!
And they all appear to be in a state of shock! Why ah? Why Singaporeans did not want to dabble in stocks? Stock market got no pulling power? We do not have this, we do not have that, we need more marketing to lure the suckers to buy snake oils!
Just flash back the memory to 1993, everyone, housewives, students, hawkers in the market, were all in the market, dabbling in stocks. Everyone was talking nothing but stocks. PhDs and highly qualified professionals were giving up their jobs to be in the market. And we have stocks, plenty of stocks from two markets to trade with. No need big foreign funds, no need high speed computers, no algos, and the stock markets were roaring.
The stockbrokers were smiling, the remisiers were hard pressed for time to breathe, the employees were in glee with 12 months bonuses. Property booms because there was so much liquidity and many people became rich. There was buzz, big buzz instead of big bust.
Today, with high speed computers, big foreign funds, plenty of them, algos, big trading volumes, but you could hear a pin drop inside a broking house. The industry is dying. The broking houses will go into the red if things did not turn around. The remisiers will become taxi drivers or housing agents if these are still available. Anything will be better than to become a remisier. The staff in the brokerages will see retrenchment coming.
A lucratic industry turning to a ghost town. 10,000 people will soon lose their jobs. What is happening? No one knows. All the people supposed to know did not know. Can you believe it? Then who should know? God knows.
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