CECA and Smart Cities in India

I hope the MPs would raise these two issues in Parliament and discuss the merits and demerits for Singapore and Singaporeans. Whose big ideas were they? What is in them for us? How much are we going to spend and how much are we going to get in return? Goodwill is not good enough. Praising Singapore as a good friend is not good enough. Praising Singapore as smart or stupid is not good enough. We cannot be doing charity all over the world and squeezing on the people to do it.
 
We need to know the bottom lines. Parliament must draw a line on major decisions involving big money, big projects that must be approved by Parliament. Not everyone can suka suka go and spend the people’s money on their pet projects or hobbies. No one should travel the world and behave like a philanthropist using the people’s money.

Kopi Level - Green

PAP big gun in Aljunied and Hougang

Lim Boon Heng, the big gun of yesteryears, is seen in a grassroot affair in Aljunied and Hougang, leading a team of freshies that are likely to be the candidates for the next GE. Just my guess. The question, why Boon Heng and not some incumbent ministers? Perhaps Boon Heng has volunteered to throw his weight in Aljunied GRC to carry the new team to victory. By the look of things, Boon Heng is the most worthy heavy weight that could to do the job now, or is the bravest to lead the charge.
 
Boon Heng’s first salvo is to question what would happen if WP would be in charge of SG? For him to ask such a question is like saying what PAP has done is the best, or WP would make a mess of everything. Can WP do anything worst? What do you think?
 
The other issue is about the finance of AHPETC. Boon Heng was horrified that the Town Council has turned a $3m surplus to a $734k deficit. I can understand the surplus part, ie excess revenue collected. Good thing. Collect more is good and better to transfer the excess to the Sinking Fund and sink to the bottom and be forgotten. Another untouchable fund?
 
What is this deficit? Is the deficit due to losses due to bad investments or mismanagement? Or is it because some residents are facing hardship and have problems servicing their monthly conservancy fees? Or is it that some ‘above the law’ citizens chose not to pay because they did not vote for the WP and they have the right not to pay?
 
In the first case, hardship, would it be better to ruthlessly chase for payments by issuing legal letters or threats of evictions? In the second case, are there people above the law that they can choose not to pay their conservancy fees because they did not elect the MP? Is there any law about such hooligan behavior? Can the residents in PAP constituencies who did not elect the PAP MP do the same? If can then it would be a good precedent for more lawlessness in this City with gangsters running wild everywhere. And the best part, no law to apprehend them and to bring them to justice in a rule of law country.
 
What is the issue? What do you think?
 
Please also read TRE’s editorial on the disproportionate distribution of govt grants to GRCs and why AHPETC got among the least and how some GRCs covered their deficits by huge govt grants. The TRE article is titled ‘Desmond Lee, all town councils run deficits.’

Kopi Level - Green

Residents to elect their own mayors?

Someone suggested this to be a better thing. My question, why do we need mayors in the first place? To give more pay to the mayors? What can the mayors do that the MPs cannot do or vice versa? Oh, MPs are part timers, too busy working and making money. Are mayors part timers also? If full timers are needed, why not make MPs full timers? $16,000 pm is not small change and deserves to have a full time person on the job.
Either we make the MPs do their job or replace them with mayors. It is an either or option. There is absolutely no need to have both. We are a little pee sai. Got so much work for mayors, MPs and town councils to do? Got very powerful CCC Chairman some more!
 
Please don’t waste public money and resources. We are too small and no need to create so many levels of appointments and work and money to pay to so many people.
 
Why don’t we create a mayor post for every constituency and 5 or 6 mayors for big GRCs? Are our people that incompetent? London and New York with more than 10m population only has one mayor each. They are not falling apart. Are our HDB estates better run by our mayors than London and New York?
 
Do we need mayors for every 20 blocks of flats or every 100,000 people? Hey, our mayors are all super talents earning super talent salaries, definitely more than the mayor of London and New York.
 
Are we getting value for money? Or are we made to become Santa Claus?

Kopi Level - Green

Big banks fined in the billions in Europe and the US

Saw a few pieces of crawlers over Channel News Asia a few days back. UK fined big banks US$1.7b for forex rigging. US fined big banks US$1.4b for forex riggings. Swiss authority fined UBS US$139m for forex rigging. My doubts about how the big banks could make billions in the business of banking suddenly got clearer. No, just on lending and earning interests would not make that kind of money. And no, just on trading would not make that kind of money either. When the big banks are cooking up billions in profits, the likelihoods of fraud and rigging are not far fetched. Give them a chance, like the last US financial crisis, every one of these banks will declare insolvent, bankrupt over night. History will repeat itself.

Who believes that banks are honest bankers doing honest and conservative businesses? Today, the big banks are the biggest rogues in fraudulent practices, money laundering, and rigging in forex and sell toxic derivatives. And if they are not caught and fined, it is not that they are innocent. It is just because they have yet to be caught. So be wary, be very wary, when banks are blowing their trumpets about the billions they are making, just like before the global financial crisis. And until today, none of the CEOs have to be locked up in jail. They continued to cheat and fraud using their banks and some low level traders would be used as the scapegoats. Any fines would be paid by the banks. The CEOs are blameless. They did not know what was going on.

A note of clarification. The big banks I am referring to are those in the US and Europe. Those that are here are absolutely safe, 101% sure. They would do what the rogue bankers are doing in Europe and the US. Our banks are making genuine small profits from loans and financing. We are so very lucky. Must be the good govt, the good governance and the good men in charge of the banks and all the good regulations we introduced.

I hope there is no nightmare in the making. Just remember Murphy’s Law.

Kopi Level - Green

Redbean - I can help alternative parties get good quality candidates

I thought about it for one whole night and finally got the answer to alternative parties’ problem of not enough good quality candidates. Now I cannot ‘tahan’, must quickly type out my solutions to solve their headaches. The most basic problem is that alternative parties dare not dream big and think big. They think they got no money, not enough strong candidates, so go slow and steady, ‘poon pee pee’. I say think big and go for it and attract the big boys, the super talents, the successful professionals, those earning multi million dollars, by offering them better pay, better terms to join politics, fast track to ministership. They must be prepared to take PAP by the horns and do better. What the PAP can do, they must offer more.

It all boils down to the political organisation structure. The alternative parties must not be shy and say they cannot be the govt or when they become the govt, screwed up everything as predicted by all the expert analysts, see them no up. Then ‘kena’ booted out again in the next GE, easy come easy go. What I am going to suggest would sure to bring them all the super talents they need to prove to the expert analysts that alternative parties also can buy super talents to serve.

The solution, provide a lot of opportunities to be appointed as ministers or as appointment holders. PAP offers only one PM and 13 ministers and 5 mayors I think. Change the organisation structure to one PM, 3 Dep PMs, 20 ministers, 40 dep ministers, (two to one minister), 20 ministers of states and also 40 deputy ministers of states, and 20 mayors. Like that all the super talents see also ‘lau nuar’, I mean salivate. Practically everyone can be an appointment holder other than just be MPs. Then no need to work so hard to go and collect directorships, so ‘malu’. And some more people make unsavoury remarks if take up too many directorships and, ‘lagi terok’, no time to attend Parliament. Always apply leave for board meetings and got criticisms by people watching Parliament in session. And poor Speaker sometime sleepy never count attendance then got no quorum also dunno. Make the Speaker’s job very ‘susah’.

And if the above is not enough, tell them that PM can also be promoted to Senior PM with more pay, or have 3 PMs to go round, Ministers to Senior Ministers, Mayor to Senior Mayors or Chief Mayors to manage all the Mayors. Like that sure ‘jalan’ one.

Where to find the money? What money? You are already the govt, all the money is your money, like your Ah Kong’s company. All the assets and reserves and taxes are your money to give to attract the best talents money can buy. And the people cannot complain either. The people will know all these are good for them and also to prevent corruption. When spending OPM, no need to be ‘khek khee’ 客气one, just spend lah. Make every cent worth spending. Just 3 plates of char kway teow only.

I think if alternative parties take my recommendations, sure a lot of super talents will join them. The carrot always works, the bigger the carrot the better the results. And with so many layers of appointments, can promote them every year to make them happy and laughing to the banks.

What do you think? ‘Swee swee’. All the super talents will form a long queue for tea sessions to be selected.

Kopi Level - Green