AHPETC - Aljunied residents elevated to be judges

There were lapses in the AHPETC, just like there were lapses in other town councils and grass root organisations. There was no dishonesty and all were acting on good intention. I thought these would be good enough to say let’s move on, leaving the benefit of the doubt to the individual to decide what he chooses to believe.

The conditions leading to the problems and lapses faced by AHPETC are there for all to see, starting from the handover of accounts, the AIMS saga, the transfer of surplus funds to the reserves and no longer touchable, and the withholding of govt grants etc etc. In the case of other town councils and grassroot organisations, the lapses were from different circumstances, more voluntary in nature with no exciting saga or drama.

For the moment, and likely, for whole election rally period, the AHPETC issues would be on the lips of all PAP politicians and ministers. They are going to drum, WP is bad, WP is bad, WP is bad. Some even gone so low as alleging whether money was lost without any proof or justifications.

The attack against the WP is furious if you read the main media. It is all over the pages daily with very wide and detailed coverage. While the PAP is launching a massive PR exercise against the WP, they forget that the WP MPs are the elected representatives of the people of Aljunied GRC, Punggol and Hougang. They forget that the masters of the AHPETC are the people of the GRC and the two SMCs. Attacking their elected representatives is in a way attacking the people who elected them to Parliament, that the people made a bad choice. WP is bad, PAP is good or better.

The bottom line of the AHPETC saga would end up becoming case of who the respective constituents choose to believe. Would they believe the PAP story that WP is bad, incapable of running a town council, or would they see this as ploy, as a set up by the PAP against the WP? The PAP has presented its case and would continue to hammer their points in till Polling Day. The WP has spoken and laid their cards laid bare on the table. Both sides have spoken.

Now who is going to judge who is right and who is wrong? Not the supreme court judges, not the whole of Singapore, but the residents of AHPETC. They are now the judges to this saga. They will pronounce who is right and who is wrong. This is about the fairest judgement that can come about, a judgement made by more than a hundred thousand residents. They will deliver their verdict on Polling Day.

If WP is booted out, it would mean the PAP has made their case and the residents believe the PAP story. If the WP wins again, it will be a resounding rejection of the PAP story, that the residents believed in their representatives and trusted them and did not find anything wrong with them. The case would be a test of the intelligence of the residents of AHPETC. Are they intelligent enough to sift through the smokes and know what the whole saga is all about?

Is it a case of right versus wrong, a case of wrongdoings, and who is the wrongdoer? Or is it a plain and simple case of political bickering and petty politics?

The people will be the judge in this case. This is as fair as one can get and the losers would be dealt a severe blow for losing the trust of the people. It would be a case when the majority of the people speak in one voice, we don’t trust you, we reject you. It is a mini referendum in a way. The people will deliver the justice against the unjust.

The Koreans on the verge of war

The South Koreans claimed that their soldiers were killed by landmines planted by the North Koreans and blasted their loudspeakers across the border. This led to the North Koreans firing at the South’sloudspeakers, each set consists of 48 big loudspeakers and with 5 or 6 sets in 11 locations facing North Korea claiming to reach a distance of 24 km. Do the South Koreans believe that it is a friendly thing act, blasting propaganda across the border? And with that excuse, the South Koreans fired more artillery across the border.

And the South Koreans blamed the North Koreans for provocations. Who is really provoking who? Who is conducting annual large scale military exercises to simulate an invasion of North Korea? What about regular monthly exercises? What about the loudspeakers and balloons with propaganda to incite rebellion in the North? No, these are not provocations. The provocations came from the North when they reacted  angrily to these initiatives from the South and the Americans.

Come on, who are you kidding? How many more provocations would the South do before the North hits back? The latest crisis has reached danger point and the North Koreans have started to deploy their troops near to the border. And their fleet of submarines have left their bases and their positions unknown and undetectable. With the attack submarines out in the sea, war is imminent.

Since the South Koreans are so eager to have war with the North, the world might as well give them the blessing and encourage them to go to war with the North. After all they have been provoking the North almost daily and preparing for an invasion of the North.

Good luck to the Koreans if they manage to wipe out each other out and leave the Korean peninsula as a war zone, no man’s land, as a buffer between Japan/USA and China. Leave the peninsula as a waste land with no Koreans.

Is that what the South Koreans want? Is that why they are constantly provoking the North to a fight?

Fortunately the North Koreans are more sensible than the South and would not be drawn into a suicidal war to destroy the Koreans as a people. The North has initiated high power talks to defuse the tension. Would the South Koreans be wise enough to back off or would they be ordered by the Americans to take a tougher stand and to provoke the North into an open war? The South Koreans deserve to be annihilated for their provocations. The North Koreans do not deserve that. They have been the victims of the South Koreans and Americans plot to go to war and are avoiding it like crazy.

On the other hand the western media have been on a campaign to paint the North as the provocateurs and the war mongers, the demons, and the South Koreans were the victims and the Americans were the angels.

Go, South Koreans, go and kill all the North Koreans as well as South Koreans. The Americans and the Japanese love that and will be very happy to be on your side, to see the two Koreans kill and destroy each other. Amen.

This Asian tragedy is waiting to happen if the reckless and stupid South Koreans continue to be manipulated by the Americans and Japanese to want to kill their Korean brothers and sisters.

The changing fate of the opposition parties

 

 

The opposition used to be a joke for decades, a fumbling and incompetent group of ‘unripes’ going into the political arena to ‘tikam tikam’ or to make a fool of themselves. And in every election, without fail, they would compete among themselves in multi cornered fights against the ruling party at the peak of its power. Even on a one on one they would barely stand a chance. And they would still go in like a pack of ‘gilas’ to challenge the ruling party. Competing was all they wanted, not winning, and making a fool of themselves was something to be proud of.

 

There were some credible and serious candidates and parties but their credibility and reputation were dragged into the mud when the opposition camps were filled with the unspeakables. Occasionally a couple of opposition candidates could make it to Parliament by sheer will of the people and pernicious personal zeal. For decades, the cries for an opposition representation in Parliament, a greater representation, were there. But the people could not put the cross on the opposition boxes for good reasons. They were not presenting themselves as serious choices.

 

The ruling party’s game plan and how they systematically destroyed any good candidate and opposition party added to the demise of the opposition camp. But still, the biggest enemy of the opposition camp was themselves.

 

Things are changing. The political scene has never been like this before. Thanks to the ruling party and their great plans and great policies that they thought were good for the people and ignoring the people’s objections and pain living with them, more good people have started to move into the opposition camp. The 2011 GE, the by elections and the Presidential Election were clear signals that the people were voting the oppositions. As long as the opposition can produce serious and credible people, they would be in the game.

 

A fortnight ago, the opposition camp did the impossible by coming to an agreement to prevent a 3 corner fight. This has never been possible, but it came at the right time and brought a lot of hope and comfort to the people wanting a strong opposition presence in Parliament. There was opposition unity and the clowns have fled the scene.

 

Unfortunately it was too good to be true. Someone sent in the clowns again and opposition unity was shaken. The open criticism by NSP against WP, which was also part of the unwritten agreement not to bitch at each other, was not well received. The intent to go for a 3 corner fight in MacPherson was a hit below the belt. The agreement in the opposition camp could be torn wide open and a clear break was just a matter of time. Fortunately the other parties hold on to their horses and did not jump at the cue and fall into the trap set.

 

Without anyone breaking ranks, except for NSP, everyone will be watching NSP’s next move very carefully and its intent and motive. They knew that there is a bad apple and the circumstances have forced the bad hats to wriggle out from their holes. The bad hats have unmasked themselves in broad day light and social media followed the lead to dig out more evidence of what was taken for granted, with a pinch of salt.

 

Hazel Poa’s fall out and resignation from the NSP is a good thing. It comes at the right time, still in time for the GE before more damage is done to the opposition camp. The voters are now shown the true picture and hopefully the full picture of the credible opposition parties they should be voting for. There are still some doubts as to which opposition party is real or unreal. But a few parties have stood out as genuine and reliable and would receive the blessing of the voters.

 

WP, SDP, SingFirst, SPP and Reform Party are now in good stead as the opposition parties of choice. They have gained credibility and acceptance from the voters by their actions and their stand. I was at the launch of the SDP new office and could sense a quite confidence in the party and the supporters. And there were many young people coming out to support them. SDP is back as a respectable party with respectable leaders. Chee Soon Juan is no more the leper to fear and to stay away. He has matured and looking every inch an opposition party leader. Then there are Low Thia Khiang and his team, and the newcomer in Jee Say with a strong support base among the professionals. Lina Chiam has also earned her spurs in Parliament as a NCMP with her serious questions.

 

Many good things are happening on the opposition camp. The best thing to happen of course must be the unmasking of the questionable parties representing the opposition camp. This rain has clear the sky and no one can hide or disguise himself as opposition if he is not. The old game plan of confusing the voters in 3 corner fights has fallen through. Things are so much clearer as to who should receive the votes from opposition supporters. 3 corner fights there would be, but the real opposition parties would get all the votes from the voters. The voters would not be deceived and would vote for the opposition parties that count even in a 3 corner fight.

 

The feeling and support for the opposition camp has never been better and focussed. And the choice is clearer and simpler for the voters. No more deceptions and impersonations and misrepresentations.  And with an enlightened voters who would only vote for an opposition party that can win, not like before, vote blindly, this GE is going to be a big battle for or against the two camps, the ruling party or the opposition.

 

It is PAP or the best opposition party. No fakes or imposters or callafares. The winning formula is the Punggol East formula. The voters will vote in the same way and send the spoilers packing and losing their deposits.

Silver Support Scheme – Your money or my money?

The govt has announced the Silver Support Scheme to pay a stipend to honour the pioneer generation and as a form of retirement benefit.

According to the Straits Times, “Seniors to enjoy payouts from 2016” (Aug 18) – “150,000 eligible Singaporeans, aged 65 and above, to get a quarterly payout of $300 to $750 from early next year.”

The details have yet to be published and theoretically all the pioneers will get something. There is something like 500,000 pioneers out there which means that more than 2/3 will not be getting this stipend.

Where is this money coming from? Is the govt dipping into the reserves or is it taking from the interests accrued from the CPF savings it has ‘tangkap’ from the pioneer CPF members?

The other question is that for the sum of the stipends, tens of thousands or hundreds of thousands, belong to the people, is it a fair trade off for the pioneer generation to receive the stipends? Should the pioneer generation be grateful, be thankful to such a generous govt, out of the blue offering to pay them a few hundred dollars every quarter? Or should they cry foul, and demand to have their CPF money back?

Some pioneers would be grateful, especially the older cohorts that have little in their ‘tangkap’ accounts. But for those with hundreds of thousands in jail house rock, I don’t think they are happy with the peanuts being returned to them.

Where is the money or where is my money?

Who do you think? Happy, grateful or angry, feel cheated?

Steve Chia withdraws from MacPherson SMC

On Sunday morning Steve Chia wrote on his Facebook, ‘The trolls have won’ and announced his withdrawal from contesting in the MacPherson ward. He also said he would not contest in this GE. In the same message he commented that Tin Pei Ling was not a strong candidate and wished the WP well in the election.

This is a big contrast to his earlier angry remarks, attacking WP for not responding to the overtures by NSP during the husting to prevent a 3 corner fight. And the NSP CEC’s decision to send in a team was somewhat a reaction to WP’s stance, a kind of defiance. If WP was aloof, they would put in a team to challenge them.

The events following NSP’s decision to engage in a 3 corner fight was not well received and social media went on overdrive to dig out every scrap of juicy news of Steve Chia’s past and the nude episode with his maid. This might prove too much for Steve Chia. The heat was too hot to take and would not go away at least till the GE if Steve Chia were to contest MacPherson. Steve Chia also admitted that he had to take care of his family and their feelings and thus this withdrawal.

Steve Chia is not the only victim of this saga. NSP’s President Sebastian Teo also had his dirty linen brought out for airing. According to an article in the TRE, Sebastian Teo was charged in court for corruption and was bankrupted. The information was not volunteered or disclosed to the NSP. Netizens wondered aloud why such sensitive information was not raised by the PAP, suggesting something fishy in the matter. They openly concluded that NSP is a mole party of the PAP or at least many members of the CEC were. Of course these were just allegations and difficult to prove.

The biggest loser is of course NSP. NSP has lost all credibility after this incident. It appears to be a wishy washy party and acting rashly, even negated on its commitment, on its words not to engage in 3 corner fights. The comments in the social media have put NSP as a party with no standing in the eyes of the electorate, a questionable party with a hazy background. It would not be easy for NSP to redeem itself from this mess and to regain its credibility as a trustworthy  opposition party.

Whether NSP is really a mole party is now immaterial. The immediate impact is that it has a lot to answer and given the imminent GE, it does not have time on its side to do damage control. The fate of NSP in this GE is as good as gone with the wind. Many netizens have been calling the NSP to withdraw from the GE and allow other opposition parties to replace them in the constituencies they have choped for the GE.

Maybe NSP may just have to do it to show some sincerity, take a break to explain what actually happened, to rebuild the trust of the people. Failure to win back the people’s trust could see it being thrashed in the GE and losing their deposits as well.

Who are the trolls? This is a question in everyone’s mind.