Hi guys, I am back/
My apologies for not being able to post over the last two days. Sneaked in a post on Friday before leaving to enjoy a little Malaysian hospitality while I still can and before Najib and his challengers declared open warfare. Some opportunists could divert the attention elsewhere to create public disorder and keep everyone out of the country.

I am still a bit tired but still in excellent health. I will just make a quick post and get some rest before I post again tomorrow.

Oh, my book is almost completed and may be able to send to the printer before next weekend.

Cheers.

A degree course for politician wannabes – Lesson 6

Politicians to be must prepare for the day they get elected and enter Parliament as the people’s representatives or members of parliament. And they must anticipate the hustling and elbowing in parliament, the booing, the sneering and the jeering from MPs of the opposite camp. They need to be properly trained to survive parliament sessions, know how to ask questions, how to apply for leave, know how to go to the toilet at strategic moments when they are called to cast their votes. A very fine art of being an MP is how to sleep in parliament without being seen to be sleeping or be caught by the camera. In the army the soldiers learn how to sleep while standing at senang diri or sedia.
 
There are many things to learn for politician wannabes. There is one very important skills set that parliamentarians must possess, the ability to cut opposition MPs to pieces by glaring. Several parliamentarians have developed this to an art, the acme of killing by staring. When they stand up, pause and deliver the cold steely stare, the opposition MPs will shrivel in their seats, probably wetting their pants. This is fine art, a skill to cut down your opponent without saying a word.
 
Not anyone can impart this skill and a politician wannabe must go to the caves to hunt for a Yoda and call him master to learn the art. It is a survival skill set in parliament.

GE 2015/16 – What would be Chok Tong’s role

The GE is imminent. Many would be wondering what would be Chok Tong’s role this time. Would he still be the goal keeper or would he be history? He is still the most senior member of the PAP team, a very durable politician. He still carries a lot of weight and the Emeritus title. He should be good enough to carry a GRC and Marine Parade would be lighter this time without Nicole Seah staring down at him. Maybe without Nicole Seah PAP may not see the need for this heavyweight to give its team the needed ballast.

Chok Tong is the last of the second generation PAP leaders still in play. Would PAP still need a veteran to hold the fort? At 75, he is still very young, 20 years younger than the oracle and the most senior of the PAP team. It is a case of young but not young, old but not old, to let go or not to let go.

What about Chok Tong’s personal plan? Is he looking for a well deserved retirement and live happily ever after, spending time with his grandchildren? Or is he another LKY, that working is fun and enjoyable, especially as a senior statesman and with all the trimmings of power and glory? What would Chok Tong want? Does he have unfulfilled dreams like building smart cities in India or making CECA more attractive?

Would Hsien Loong be calling the shot and making the final call?  How would the voters see Chok Tong? Would he be tasked to mentor his young talents or have the young talents all grown up and not needing him anymore?

The oracle’s office in the Istana is still vacant and waiting for another deserving occupant, and who else is more deserving other than Chok Tong the Emeritus Minister?

George Yeo told he would lose Aljunied GRC

George Yeo disclosed that he knew he was losing Aljunied before the GE. His professional pollster friend told him so, that he would get between 43 to 47 percent of the votes. The final result was 45.3 percent. This prediction is even more precise than the Oracle. George said he kept it from his team mates. Not sure if he revealed the forecast to the Oracle. Maybe he did and sending the Oracle to give a warning to the Aljunied voters to repent.
 
What happened is now history. One thing is sure, whatever will happen will happen. With the pollster’s forecast, George and the PAP must have worked extra hard, put in extra effort, to change the prediction and to win. It was in vain.
 
George should lend his pollster friend to Hsien Loong to predict the outcome of the next GE. Maybe he already did that and the forecast was a convincing win, a clean sweep. Sorry opposition, if this is the prediction by the professional pollster, it would be best to skip the GE and save money and effort.
 
So, what have the pollster predicted this time? What if he said several GRCs would go down? If that be the case never mind. The ST survey is so good and the PAP is so confident. That is good enough. This time the pollster may not be right. Keep the fingers crossed.
 
Perhaps the opposition leaders should invite the pollster to do a prediction for them and then decide whether to contest or not. It is always a very good thing to know the result in advance.
 
Everyone must be very eager to know who this pollster is and wanting to hear from him. Quick, find him.

Redcon 1 over South China Sea

While China is busy reclaiming more land in the South China Sea, a sinister wind is blowing from Hawaii. More than 20 countries, led by the Americans, Japan, Australia and the Philippines, are conducting a war game simulating how to capture the Chinese made islands. They are planning for war with China, to contain China. And what did China do to invite war in its territories? Is construction and building islands in its territories an aggressive act of war? Is China threatening any country?
 
No! Exactly. But the evil Empire of the USA, claiming to be a peaceful country, is lowering its veil of hostility. It cannot accept a rich and powerful China. It cannot accept China reclaiming the islands in the South China Sea. It is bent to contain China. And it is preparing to go to war, to attack China without provocations.
 
It has reported that it has been conducting reconnaissance flight over the Chinese islands at low level using the P8 Poseidon surveillance aircraft. China has been warning the Americans to get out of its airspace in vain. The bully is showing its military muscles like it used to do in the days of U2 spy plane. The provocative acts will continue unabated unless the Chinese is able to put a stop to it.
 
The US will continue to bully China. It is branding China as an expansionist power, a war like country that is going to conquer and control the countries in its neighbourhood. China’s land reclamation on its islands is unacceptable to the Americans. It is agitating the neighbouring countries to claim Chinese islands, calling them disputed islands. With that as an excuse, it is openly backing up these countries in an open war with China with Japan, Australia and the Philippines ready and prepared to strike.
 
China must prepare for a repeat of the burning of the Summer Palace by the eight powers, inclusive of Japan, invading China in the 19th Century. This time it would start with the attacks on Chinese islands in the South China Sea. And these aggressor countries think that war could be limited in the region and they could play with fire. 

When war breaks out in the South China Sea, it will be the beginning of World War 3. American bases in Japan, South Korea and the Philippines would be first to be hit. The Okinawans would be the sacrificial lamb for hosting the Futenma and Kadena Air Bases in their islands. The other bases in the main Japanese islands of Honshu and Kyushu would also be primary targets to be taken out. Japanese and US cities would also be targeted.
 
The dangerous and insane Americans may think that they can light a fire and contain it. Fat hope, when war breaks out, it is intercontinental warfare. China would not accept the lost of any islands and would hit back. These Americans are really dangerous to think they can start a war like in the Middle East, that they can hit at any country and their victims cannot hit back. It is mutual self destruction. Don’t bet on it that the US mainland is safe.
 
What can China do in the face of American provocation and hostility? Taking a slap on the left and offering the right? This would encourage the cowboys to be more trigger happy. Weakness is not an option. China must take down the Poseidon to avenge the death of a pilot in the Hainan Incident and the bombing of its embassy in Belgrade.
 
As a defensive posture, it should conduct live firing exercises in the South China Sea, issued Notams to warn aircraft that the area is a live firing zone. Aircraft entering the zone would risk being shot down. Let the Americans violated the live firing notice and shoot it down. And prepare for an all out nuclear war with the Americans and its cronies.
 
How crazy is Washington and the Pentagon thinking it can still use its military might to threaten and bully other countries? War is no longer for fun when the victim is another super power that can hit back.
 
South China Sea is now Redcon 1.

SEA Games budget $324.5m

This is the budget for the SEA Games and the organizers promised they would not exceed the budget this time. The last YOG was budgeted at $104m but finally cost more than $300m. Was the over spending due to inexperience or bad budgeting or just uncontrolled overspending? Anyway it is history. It must be good value for money spent.
 
With that experience, the current budget of $324.5m is just about there, about right. Not sure how is this computed, based on number of athletes or what? This SEA Games is for adults and they may need more in terms of food alone. Hope it is really enough and no more overspending.
 
With Leong Sze Hian somewhere in the mountain retreat, let me try to crunch some numbers here to see what it means. With 7000 athletes and officials, it would mean the Games will cost $46,300 per participants for the duration of 12 days. Or for each day, it will cost about $4,000 to host a participant. Cheap, quite cheap really.
 
If each participant were to spend $1,000 a day, the net loss will be $3,000 daily per participant. The break even should be for each participant to spend $4,000 daily during the Games duration. Of course the money is well spent for the publicity and goodwill generated. Now more people will know where is Singapore and how good Singapore is. They may migrate here to help us and to help us hit the 6.9m population target faster.
 
The overall picture is definitely money well spent. Oh, the participants need not have to choose whether to eat at the hawker centres, foodcourts or restaurants. The food quality is restaurant standard for sure. We have to play the good host and show them the hospitality of a first world country and standard. They will all return home with good memories of Singapore, the paradise on earth and would return, and return as tourists or future workers. Maybe they are our future PRs and citizens. This is called planning ahead and planting the seeds for the future. Oh, some may want to represent us and don our national colours, become our sporting citizens to bring glory to us.