GE2015 – Marine Parade GRC

Marine Parade would be closely watched by the voters after the close shaved in the last GE. This GRC is ripe for the picking by the opposition given the poor performance against a team of unknown minnows in 2011. In that GE, with Chok Tong and poster boy Tan Chuan Jin’s stars still shining, they could barely win 54% of the votes. This was a clear indication that the voters were not really behind them. And a young Nicole could singlehandedly pulled 46% of the votes must be quite shocking to the PAP camp.

Nicole would not be in the contest this time. But in her place there is a He Ting Ru, a Cambridge trained lawyer,  and a very hardworking and unassuming Yee Jenn Jong. Yee has grown over the years and winning the hearts of the Joo Chiat voters with his persistence to walk the ground. He is likely to be just as well received by the voters in Marine Parade that have grown tired of the PAP.

Tan Chuan Jin has lost his shine as a minister after failing to make any impact in MOM and now in a minor ministry in charge of families and social affair. His dismal effort to reverse the immigration problems and the plight of the PMETs will hang over his head in this GE. And as a PM potential, he is expected to lead the charge, but instead it is an ageing politician taking him along for the ride. This is definitely not going to look well on Chuan Jin and the PAP team.

The contest in Marine Parade would be between an old horse and a PM to be, but not to be, against a hardworking Yee Jenn Jong and a Nicole Seah double with a Cambridge law degree to beat. He Ting Ru is going to be bigger than Nicole from the way the media is avoiding coverage on her. Someone else also pointed this out, that whenever Ting Ru was caught on camera several times, speaking, the sound was muted. Watch out for this girl to rise to the occasion to take the baton from Nicole and bring it higher. This is the surprise and new star in the WP camp.

My view is that with an electorate that is shifting away from the PAP and wanting a change, and with PAP presenting the same slate, the opposition is looking that much more attractive for a change, and looking that much more sincere to serve. This is likely to be another GRC to fall.

GE2015 – Nomination Closed

The final list of the candidates for the GE is out. My disappointment is not to see Nicole Seah in Marine Parade. I thought she would be the surprise that WP was going to spring on the Chok Tong and his team. The good part is that there is He Ting Ru instead of Nicole. Ting Ru is looking like another candidate in the mold of Nicole, and could be even better. Chok Tong’s team is not going to have an easy ride this time. I will do an analysis of this latter.

Let me start with a little forecasting on the easier cases. I would like to touch on Holland Bukit Timah where the PAP led by Vivian with team mates like Sim Ann, De Souza and Liang Eng Hwa standing against the SDP team of Chee Soon Juan, Paul Tambyah, Chong Wai Fung and Sidek Mallek.

I think this is the first GRC that is going to fall to the opposition. Vivian is the anchor man of this team. Standing against him will be Paul Tambyah, a practicing academics, Tambyah is in many ways a head above Vivian other than the latter being a minister. In another way, Vivian as an incumbent minister is also a weakness due to the many foul ups he made while in office. He is best remembered for his comments against Lily Neo and the overspending on the Youth Olympics by hundreds of millions, and also ponding. There are more negatives in Vivian than positives and the higher income voters in the GRC that would have voted for Vivian would now have a comparable professional to vote for in Paul Tambyah.

Tambyah is going to take a lot of votes from Vivian. And Chee Soon Juan is going to take all the hard core anti PAP votes. Sim Ann would be pitted against Chong Wai Fung with a double masters and could break even between them. De Souza, Liang and Sidek would be the so so candidates that would not do any much good or harm to either side.

SDP is likely to gain the upper hand with the two biggies in Chee and Tambyah to make the difference. My view is that Holland Bukit Timah is likely to go to the SDP.

A few legacies that are very costly and redundant

‘We need to put an end to this SM, MM, ESM positions. If these OLD ministers want to "give back to society", surely they can afford to do it for FREE since they have been well paid in their previous ministers' roles. If they feel that this "sacrifice" is more than what they can bear, and they are reluctant to sacrifice their time with their family or their precious privacy, then for goodness sake just RETIRE.

We don't need any SM, MM, ESM to milk our country dry, nor stifle the future prime minister to push forward new reforms to meet changing needs… Are these roles needed? Why are we paying so much of tax-payers' money? Won't they cramp the style of the new PM & his team? With public awareness of the FULL PRICE THAT WE PAY to these positions, hopefully this practice can be put to a stop. OR at least make these position-holders do it for FREE because they want to "give back to society"’.

 

The above is written by a blogger called Thai Laksa.

 

Thai Laksa has a point. These positions were legacies of a past when LKY’s words and decisions were absolute and unchallenged. It is about time that these vestiges of the past be relegated to history. They are redundant and also very costly to the taxpayers. And in a way, their appointments could be a hindrance to the PM who would have to look behind his back to see if he has the approval of these elders. A confident and able PM does not need more guardians and neither would he want to be chaperoned and be looking like an apprentice on the job.

 

For the elders who want to serve, since they are so wealthy, do it for free is not too much to ask for. They have been paid very well while in active service and it is time to return their precious time and wisdom for the good of the people. By the way, they are still being paid a handsome pension that is many times the pay of Obama, the pay of an American President on the job.

 

Not to worry about being accused of corruption when working for free. According to Vivian’s definition, a wealthy person working for free is definitely not corrupt.

 

What do you think?

Do not think Singaporeans are daft

The daily attack on the WPs management of AHPETC by the PAP using the main media to its max is based on the assumption that the people are daft. Just set the agenda, keep telling a story, like WP is bad, WP is bad, WP is bad, and the unthinking daft will believe so, or if not, their subconscious will tell them so. WP is bad, cannot manage town council is the election campaign slogan for the PAP.

How are the Singaporeans taking this piece of slogan? Do the Singaporeans believe that this is true, that the WP is really incompetent? Or would the people say, shit, this is what ugly politics is at its worst. Running out of ideas and think this is very clever and would work on daft Sinkies. They keep attacking the WP for a wart on its face but they themselves are rotting all over and trying to look the other way? You think we are fools?

Are the people really that daft and cannot see the truth for themselves? The PAP’s truth is that they are doing all these for the good of the people, with good intention, nothing selfish or personal. They are so responsible and honourable and when they see something is not right they must warn the people, that the WP cannot manage town council when given a chance.

Would the people say, don’t be silly lah, we know what you have been doing,  all the obstacles and traps you have laid in the path of the WP to trip them and make them fall. You think the people are so stupid ya? Don’t treat the people as naïve children and cannot see through the whole farce ok.

What is the real perception of the people? Do they believe the story of the PAP or would they feel offended by the PAP for treating them as daft and unthinking children, to believe everything the PAP tells them, that this election is about running town councils and not running the country?

What do you think? Who is the daft one? Who is the arrogant one?

Singaporean cleansing – A plea from ground zero

Below is part of an article by a Andrew Ho posted in the TRE title, ‘Voting away your children’s jobs’. The full text can be viewed in the TRE.

‘I worked in a financial futures company sometime in 2007. When I started with the company, the managing director, heads of department, back office managers were almost all local citizens with a few PRs occupying these posts. The staff were mainly Singaporeans with a few Malaysians and Indonesians due to language ability as the customer base of the company spanned the ASEAN region.

About 2 years later, the managing director was replaced by an Indian from Mumbai. This new MD was mostly lost about what the company actually did and went about asking all sorts of basic operational questions that set us thinking ‘what the hell’? We know now that there was a high chance his academic qualifications were fake although we did not suspect it at that time. In any case why would someone from Mumbai get hired to run a financial company in Singapore, the number 3 or 4 major financial center in the world after London, New York and Hong Kong?

As months passed, all the local heads of department were replaced one by one by Australians and Britons. The customers who had interacted with locals suddenly found themselves up against the arrogant and racist outlook and attitude of the new managers with their “take it or leave it “attitude, and the local staff were often caught in awkward situations between their bosses and the clients they served.

In the back office, the operations managers were replaced by Australians too. Was this even necessary? The company looked like an ethnic cleansing zone. They even employed this Caucasian to man the phone lines and he had to ask for help whenever he picked up a call where the caller spoke Bahasa Melayu, Mandarin, Hokkien, Cantonese and so on. This company ran itself into the ground in 2012 and is no longer in existence. Nobody in Singapore misses it, I would think….’

This is just one company that I personally worked in that so blatantly discriminated against local born citizens, and nobody could do anything about it. If our elected representatives allow such systematic cleansing of the local workforce in the local economy, why are we still voting for them? I know that this is still happening in many companies in Singapore right at this moment and there are many frustrated locals out there….’

The above is painful feedback from the people that are being hurt. People in ivory towers would not feel anything or would not want to know. They are still enjoying their wealth and comfort and demanding the people to vote them to power with bigger mandate while the people on ground zero are crying for help. They would even blame the people as losers and expect the citizens to compete with cheats and fakes on a level playing field in our very own country.

Think very carefully about the future of your children and your country. How are your children going to compete with cheats and fakes and people who can survive with little pay when their cost of living is far lower than living here? Vote wisely. This is your last chance to do something, failing which there is no hope of saving this country and the jobs for your children and their children. The situation on ground zero is real and dire. Do what you can for your children and your country in this GE. Do the right thing.

For the rich and successful, those with wealth and jobs, do not think they will last forever. And your children may not be as brilliant as you to compete with the foreigners. They need a pro Singaporean govt when they are down and out to protect them. That is what a govt is for, to protect the citizens, not to protect foreigners. Do your part for the future of your children too.