Singapore a fine and smart city

The govt is turning the city state into a wonderful, fine and smart city of the future. We are going to see all the space age technology being introduced to make life so convenient and so wonderful.  Everything will be at the finger tips, with the push of a button. You want to know when the next train or bus will arrive, whether it is full or empty or how many empty seats are available and at which corner, just push a button in your mobile phone or at any terminals provided at the station. Everything is so smart. The citizens can even park their brains at home and move around without thinking. All the thinking will be done by the computers they carry around or strapped to their bodies. All the buildings, homes, cars etc etc will be smart like hell too.

The catch, can you afford it? The $600.000 bill to transform the National Stadium from football mode to athletics mode is a case in point. The stadium is fabulous, state of the art architecture. It is available for use to the buyer who can afford its clever and useful facilities. This time is looks like the Athletes Association cannot afford it. So sad. How so? Doesn’t the association know that good things, quality things, don’t come cheap. You want style, you want cheap, cannot right.

This prohibitive fee by the National Stadium is going to be the new normal. Singaporeans must get use to live in a fine, smart and futuristic city with fantastic sci fi facilities. Just make sure you can afford it, like $100 taxi fare. How many people earn less than $100 a day?

When the light shuts out

Papa PME was a successful professional and about to retire quite comfortably. His only son, the darling of the family, had completed his A level and applying to get into a local university.  Unfortunately he did not get the course he wanted to do and went back to Papa PME with his disappointment. Papa told his son not to worry. Go apply to get into a reputable university overseas and pursue his dream and his favourite course.  After a successful lifelong career and with some decent savings, life was convenient and options were plenty when money was not an issue.

Son was successful in getting himself admitted into a reputable university in Australia. Everything ended up well as expected and it was time for a big celebration. All the kakis of Papa, all PMEs, were invited to a big send off party for Son on the eve of his departure to pursue his dream in Australia.

The next few years were all happy stories from Australia. Son reported his academic achievements year by year and was in the Dean’s List. And he graduated with a good honours degree. Papa was a very happy man. You could se pride oozing out from all his orifices.  He was the toast among his kakis when they met for a drink. Son was doing Papa proud and it was money well spent.

Son did so well and was offered to do his masters. Papa was again joyous with the good news and told Son money was no problem. Time passed so quickly and son was soon home with his gleaming masters’ degree. The whole world opened up to him. Another big party was thrown on his return. And Papa was the envy of all his kakis. In the party they were looking admiringly at this young man and offered all the advices they could for a wonderful career ahead. There were so many options with such a fine degree and a fine young man. Getting a good job was not a problem.  All the doors would be open to this Son of Papa PME.

After the mandatory one month of holiday to see the world, a reward from Papa PME for doing so well in his studies, Son came back and started to write his beautiful resume. He shared with Papa’s kakis in their drinking sessions of his aspiration and ambition. There was so much confidence in the young man and he was looking for a very bright and illustrious career ahead.

A few weeks passed. No news. A few months passed, all Son could get were a couple of interviews but no job offer. As the days turned to weeks, and weeks turned to months, the smile and confidence on the face of the young man disappeared. He started to get worried. The kakis and Papa PME told him not to worry. There were many applicants and competition was tough but with his good degrees, a masters’ included, and from a reputable overseas Australian university, it was only a matter of time for him to land a job.

More than a year gone by. Son lost all his confidence and hope of landing a job. He suffered depression. He could not believe that he was not good enough to get a job with his good academic records.  He withdrew himself socially and hid in his room most of the day. Papa PME too stop joining the drinking sessions. He was so disillusioned, disheartened and feeling so ashamed that his son was still unemployed after more than a year from graduation. Papa turned into a recluse.

There was no one to talk to. It must be their faults. The son was not good enough, no good for employment. It was as if the light shut on them. All the hopes, promises, confidence and the dreams of a better life, of a successful young man were doomed. There was no more light. Someone snuffed it out for them.

More than $300k and 6 years of slogging in a reputable Australian university and Papa and Son could not believe they were all wasted. And Papa’s savings started to look perilous. He rented a room to a couple of young foreign talents. And they could not understand why they were so happy, and could get jobs so easily, earning more than $4,000 each. And better still, their degrees were from their 3^rd World universities, unknown, unrated.  Papa and Son were so ashamed to tell them that Son got a masters’s degree when the two tenants advised the Son to study hard to get a degree and to get a good job. Son ended up doing some temp job quietly for $20 a day.

PS. The story is genuine though with some dramatics to make it sound interesting. How many Singaporeans, how many papas and mamas, are disappointed after spending a fortune on their favourite children to get a good education only to find out it was a vain hope, a wasted effort?  And the poor child ended up in depression or a broken person, losing all faith and confidence in himself or herself? Does anyone care? Would our responsible and caring govt care? Do they know what is happening?

I was so depressed after hearing this story. I am so angry.

Johore’s Prince Charming passed away

Tunku Abdul jalil Ibni Sultan Ibrahim, the fourth child of the Sultan of Johore, passed away at the tender age of 25 due to cancer. Many turned out under heavy downpour to pay their last respect to this fine young man.

From the photo in the media, this a fine looking prince that befits the title Prince Charming.  And according to Hsien Loong, ‘Tunku Jalil was well loved for his compassion, his charitable work for the Johore community and the police and his passion for the environment and animals.’

And a twitter tweeted, ‘Johore certainly has just lost one of the most beautiful souls to exist.’ They will forever remember him in his prime, a handsome young prince.

China Africa relations – 60 years after Bandung

China Africa relations – 60 years after Bandung By Chua Chin Leng (chinadaily.com.cn)Updated: 2015-12-02 08:13

President Xi Jinping and his South African counterpart Jacob Zuma attend a bilateral signing ceremony in Beijing on Dec 4, 2014. China and South Africa signed 11 agreements. PHOTO BY WU ZHIYI / CHINA DAILY
After two centuries of colonization and exploitation by European colonialists, African nations regained their independence from Western domination after World War II. The new nations gathered at Bandung, Indonesia in 1955 to inaugurate the Non Aligned Movement of newly independent and developing countries of the world. Sixty years forward, individual Asian and African countries took separate paths towards social, economic and political development. All the countries of the Non Aligned Movements are still developing nations but at different level of success.

China has returned to Africa over the last few decades to trade and invest in the continent. China brought along technology and finance to develop the infrastructure, manufacturing and mining industries in the African countries in exchange for natural resources. The Chinese development projects cost a fraction of those offered by the Western countries and were attractively packaged with soft loans and terms that were freely negotiated by the governments on a willing buyer and seller basis and on fair and equitable terms for both parties, unlike during colonial days. The African countries have enjoyed a good era of peace and economic growth with Chinese technology and soft loans.

President Xi Jinping and his entourage, including the commerce minister, trade representatives and private corporations, are visiting Africa, meeting good friends in Zimbabwe prior to attending a China-Africa Summit. President Xi's delegation is arriving with promises of closer economic cooperation and strengthening relations with the African states.
China has a lot to offer the African countries. According to Vice-Commerce Minister Qian Keming, "China will help African countries to upgrade their industrial systems and structure, safeguard food security and to build infrastructure". And "Chinese companies will exhibit their competence in railways, aviation, electricity, telecom, machinery and smart manufacturing, (and)…To finance bilateral cooperation, China will set up funds and give African countries more low-interest bank loans."

Sixty years after the Bandung Conference, China is now in a better position to help the African countries with financing, technology and know-how to bring their countries to a higher level of economic development that the West failed to do so for centuries. China's assistance and foreign aid are strictly commercial, with no interference in the domestic politics of the African countries.

Against the negative Western narratives of exploitation, China's investments, developments and assistance to the African nation states are viewed very positively and welcomed by the African governments. How can there be exploitation when both parties negotiated on an equal partner basis on terms they mutually agreed to with no coercion? China will stick to its policy of non-interference in the internal affairs of sovereign states and will strictly stick to trade and development. Many of the African states have developed very close relations with China since post-independence and will continue to favor Chinese aid and economic relations. Many trade deals and investment projects will be signed during this trip by President Xi and his trade delegation.

China's relations with the African states have reached another level of sophistication, maturity and stability and will move to a higher plane after this summit with the African leaders in Johannesburg, South Africa. China has the blueprints for economic and infrastructure development and could share its expertise with the African nations. And with technology and financing, China could raise the quality of life of the African nations to become rich and prosperous developed nations of the 21st Century.

The author is a political observer from Singapore.

Gearing up for the next General Election

The PAP is celebrating their recent GE victory in a big way at its biennial party Convention. The morale is very high and PAP is extremely confident they will continue to be the ruling party to SG100. And the signs are good that they will be the govt of the day if they continue to deliver the goods that the citizens want and continue to work for the good of the citizens.

So soon after a GE the PAP is already talking about preparing to win the next GE. This, on its own, is a big plus factor in its favour. There is nothing to replace being prepared and working for a goal and not leaving things to chance.

What about the opposition parties? Are they going to prepare and gear up for the next GE and work as hard as the PAP, to start working now?  Understandably their morale must be low after the rubbing in the last GE. But as politicians, aspiring leaders of the people, this is no reason to be dejected, to wallow in self pity. The defeat must make them stronger, push them to want to work harder. Some people are lucky to have success thrust onto their laps. Some people would have to work very hard for success and must go through a lot of trials and tribulations.

Are the opposition parties busy preparing for the GE just like the PAP?
They could be but not beating the drums.  So far only the SDP seems to be active and trying to show that they have not been defeated. At least there was some news on the activities in the opposition camp. It may be a strategy not to ruffle the grass and warn the enemy. But this strategy of not to be seen has proven to be disastrous in the last GE. The opposition parties must be seen to be working, not just during the GE. They must be seen to be involved in the affairs of the state and the people the whole year round. Keeping mum and not being seen is not the way to go.

The opposition parties cannot be seen as parties that have no views on things, have no issues to talk about. By being reticent, not to be seen, not to be heard, they are indirectly saying everything is fine, there is no issue to talk about. Don’t they have any views about the CPF, the MedishieldLife Scheme, the high cost of living, the influx of foreigners to take away the good jobs of Singaporeans, the silly schemes to train our PMETs to be security guards and taxi drivers and throw away all their experience and training to remain in the main stream of economic activities? What about the high cost of living, the regular breakdowns of public transport system, the selling of national icons, the trading of assets from left hand to right hand to generate fictitious growth and value?

There are many issues that are troubling and need to be questioned, addressed and alternative solutions be offered. There are many things that the opposition parties can do and should be doing to tell the people they have not gone to sleep, to hibernate and to wake up to run as candidates in the next GE. The battle starts now if they want to be counted.

The ball is in the courts of the opposition parties. If they are not doing anything, not seen to be doing anything, they will lose by default in the next GE, with another good rubbing.