Should Sinkies pay for the impending bus fare hike?

The almost instantaneous reaction by most Sinkies is no, they should not be paying for the pay hikes of the bus drivers. The robotic type will auto reply, if got improve in service quality ok lor. With so many pay hikes in the past, if every pay hike led to a little improvement in service quality, the services would have been perfect by now. Though the pay hike will in a way challenge the principles of cheap, better and fast workers, it seems that right from the top, from the ministers to the masses, there is a consensus and good justification for this pay hike. At least the ministers are saying so or suggesting so.

And the money must come from somewhere, or from someone. Who dunno? From the directors and top management? How could anyone be so audacious to think of this? It would affect their lifestyle and they may be less motivated to work for the bus companies and the service quality will be badly affected. There is still the spectre of corruption lurking in the shadow when they are not paid well. Do you really want this? From the shareholders? How can? The shareholders’ interests must be taken care of as they are shareholders of the company. They took risk of losing their money even in a monopoly business, big big risky. Don’t always expect the Govt to pump in $1b to the rescue.

If not the shareholders or directors or top management, then who? Cheng hu? The Cheng hu already promised to give $1.1b so how to ask for more? Cheng hu where got so much money? Reserves cannot touch.

I think the best source of fund for the pay hike of drivers must still come from the commuters. Some will willingly accept the increase if the bus operators can promise to improve the service quality. As for those who are not willing to foot the bill, one suggestion is to give them a $50 top up to sweeten and soften their resistance. After using up the $50, they will not feel the difference in the new fares, or even forgotten about the higher fares. They would get use to the new fares.

And for the stubborn ones, just tell them that the hike will not cost more than a plate of char kway teow a month. It will only amount to a few cents. They will not feel anything at all. A plate of kway teow a month would not cause them to tighten the belt. The commuters must get use to paying for quality service, for quality management and directors, and the interests of the shareholders. Nothing comes free. There is no free lunch. If they don’t pay, then they must be prepared for lower standard of public transportation.

When Sinkies were illiterate and ignorant

Up till the early 80s, the literacy rate of Sinkies was still not that high. Sinkies were also not so well travelled and they could be easily conned by all kinds of silly logic. They were thus treated as such and told of what was good or bad for them. That was forgiveable then.

One great theory was that privatisation would make govt owned or public services more efficient. And the reverse was equally true. Any private company that is nationalized or turned into a public company will immediately become a flop, inefficient and badly run. Sorry civil servants, I didn’t propound this theory. I was also told that it is so.

There is no need to bother about the quality of the people running it. No matter who, no matter how clever, how dedicated, how motivated, once a person is tasked to run a public enterprise, it would not work. On the contrary, no matter how stupid and silly the person is, let him run a private company, a privatized company, lo, behold, the company will become efficient and profitable.

This management theory should be taught in Harvard or at least in the local universities as the greatest management theory from Sin City.

Some are calling for the nationalization of the SMRT. How dangerous this is. The SMRT will definitely be badly managed and run at a loss. In fact if the civil service and the govt are privatized, things will definitely improved by leaps and bounds. We will have the best civil service and govt as well. Now that they are not privatized, please bear with their level of services for the time being and wait for the day when they are privatized.

How many daft Sinkies will disagree with this management theory? How many Sinkies today think that this is simply bull shit? How many would think that the effectiveness of an organization, any organization, is all about leadership and the quality of leadership and their motivation? How many out there are still thinking that they can con the daft Sinkies today with such lies? What do you think?

They said a lie, when spoken often enough, would become truth. This privatization theory is now a golden rule in Sin City. Dull and stupid people will become efficient and effective when working in a privatized company and vice versa.

Mandarin names of MRT stations

SMRT has just ended its trial to announce Mandarin names of MRT stations. The reason for this trial is due to request by the senior citizens who don’t understand English station names. I think this is laudable on the part of SMRT to be responding to the needs of the commuters. I can understand how difficult it is for the oldies who were mostly illiterate to understand names like Somerset, City Hall, just as examples. Suo Mei Sai, Zheng Fu Da Sha must be more familiar to them, I think. I must confess I have never heard of Suo Mei Sai and find Zheng Fu Da Sha familiar. Bugis, what is its Mandarin name? Would it Peh Sua Por or Bai Sha Po? Should Little India be called Tekka or Zhu Jiao?

What the SMRT could do better is to understand what the oldies are familiar with, what kind of names they used, never mind if the English educated do not have a clue what Suo Mei Sai means. Perhaps it would be more comfortable if they use dialect instead. Chinatown could be Niu Cher Sway or Goo Chia Chwee, or should it be Zhong Guo Zheng?

It’s a pity that this trial has come to an end. I was kind of getting a Mandarin lesson in the train, learning new names that I have never heard of, some in my entire life. If successful, I am sure the possibility of using Pinoy and Hindi names could be considered, if they requested for them. That would make our foreign talents feel more welcome as well. This is like killing several birds with one stone. And many Sinkies could benefit from learning a few Pinoy and Hindi words for sure.

I can understand Hong San instead of Ang Swa or Si Kar Teng. What is Dover called? Or what was Commonwealth?

The flutter is turning into a storm

Some thought after the repatriation of 29 strikers, charging a few in courts and the jailing of the leader, the story will come to a natural end. Zero tolerance, nip the problem in the bud, take a tough stand, kill the chicken to frighten the monkeys, easier said than done. A couple of imitation or sympathy strikes had followed. More grievances are surfacing.

The political parties that were in a slumber have risen. Some found it no longer acceptable to remain reticent. Everyone wants to have a say, to be heard. Not doing anything or not saying anything is no longer an option. The biggest opposition party, the WP, has taken a tougher stand with more deliberate comments on the welfare of workers.

The ministers are also chipping in to the latest Natcon. This SMRT drivers strike is taking on a life of its own, overshadowing and silencing whatever was the agenda in the Natcon. Bus fares must go up. Expectations of drivers are higher. Need to attract more Sinkies to be drivers. But there must be a cap. Cheap, better and faster will no longer be cheap anymore.

Professor Lim Chong Yah is smiling. They need to find money to pay the bottom feeders. The ideal choice is to get other bottom feeders to foot the bill. But it seems that the other bottom feeders have gotten the message and already jumped the gun by saying no, they are not going to be the one to pay. They are asking the shareholders, the directors, the top management, to pay for any increases. Is this not what Lim Chong Yah has been suggesting?

Can a financial centre afford not to have a healthy stock market?

All big financial centres will have a full complement of financial institutions and a stock market. In fact a thriving stock market is the cornerstone of a vibrant financial centre. The absence of a stock market, or a fictitious stock market that is dysfunctional just would not do and will lead to the demise of the whole finance and banking industry.

Could there be govts that are growth biased but blindly allowing their stock markets to wind down into a farce, or crippled through neglect or unwise systems or structures? A stock market has to function like a stock market and anything that is only a make belief and unreal cannot do. The industries, the companies, need a vibrant and healthy stock market with all the fund managers, big and small investors, brokerages, banks etc etc participating actively so that fund raising can be conducted efficiently to lubricate the economy. There is no such thing as a fictitious stock market, a sick stock market, a make belief stock market that is dysfunctional and thinking that the whole financial system will not be affected. It just would not work.

Can anyone imagine a stock market where trading is done by a few computers or a handful of funds, or a handful of investors? I know that it is a foolish thought. You either have a stock market or you don’t. Doing away with the brokerages, doing away with investors, big or small, are simply nonsensical unless the intent is to close down the stock market and lead to a highly strung banking industry that is going no where.

The stock market is really the core of the finance and banking industry. Only small and undeveloped countries do not operate a stock market. And companies will have difficulties raising funds from the public for growth and expansion, and have to rely on individual investors in small circles of contacts. The room for economic growth is thus limited.

Can a financial centre like Singapore afford to have a fictitious stock market or a dysfunctional one? Hither is the stock market? Is the stock market thriving or is it dying?

There are many ways to kill a stock market.

1. When companies find it meaningless to list in the stock market.
2. When there is no critical mass of investors, retail or institutions, to provide the liquidity.
3. Believing that a small market, without contra trading, can thrive as a financial centre.
4. Believing in fictitious trades generated by computers with no real tradings done to replace real trades.
5. Believing that with low or minimal commissions, the brokerages can continue to exist.
6. Believing that a stock market can exist without brokerages and their clients.
7. Believing and allowing unfair trading practices by computers and big funds to take advantage of small traders/investors.
8. Believing that a few computers can generate enough trades to keep a stock market viable.
9. Believing in derivatives trades to replace real stocks.

The signs that a stock market is rotting from within is for main board companies to be trading as penny stocks at 10c. Oops, some are trading at less than that, at 1c. When the true value of a company is more than the listed share value, the company will be scrambling to delist in fear of a hostile takeover in the cheap. When the true value of a main board company is really 1c or worthless, there is no fear of anything, no takeover, and continued listing could still allow the company to raise fund from the gullible public.

How healthy is the stock market? Is it in the pink of health, or just a mirage?