A matter of ethics

How ethical are we? The word ethics becomes popular over the last few weeks. Even the minibond fiasco becomes a case of ethics to some. But that was pushing it a bit far. The minibond issue is a simple commercial issue, a contractual issue, with legal documents. Once you sign on the dotted line accepting what were written in the document, and if it says you will die after reading it, just too bad. Go to courts, they will interpret it legally. There are contractual terms and obligations. Tough huh? Ethics became an issue in the case of donors of human eggs for scientific experiments. These donors can donate but cannot reap monetary benefits from it. Next came the issue of organ donors. They too should not benefit from donating their organs. But the committe back off a little by saying that some compensation can be made as long as they are not worst off or better off. So the pedicab drivers cannot take more for donating their organs. It will be seen as organ trading. But the specialists operating for these organs can charge for the sky and be paid handsomely for it. Both are saving lives. To stretch the argument a little further, can hospitals whose mission is to save lives be allowed to charge as much as they want as long as the patient can afford to pay for it? Is this a matter of ethics or a matter of business? Is it ethical to keep raising prices of everything because it is convenient to do so and the people cannot object to it? It is quite strange to be discussing about ethics and not being ethical to make money when everyone lives by that principle. Make profits, legally or illegally, is an admirable trait. It is called talent here.

FT PM also can consider

I posted about the possibility of a minority PM and issues like keeping foreigners as PRs as well as having different PMs for different ethnic groups. I am not having much of a discussion, or interest shown in them. Is it a case of distinterest or apathy? Anyone agree or disagree with what I have said? I taunted by saying that the 3 Indian ministers are better than the rest of the majority and I thought this will provoke some reactions. Maybe everyone agrees huh? Or maybe not. Maybe all our locals are not good enough and we should be looking at the new citizens, the FTs that are presumably better than the locals and are here to save us and provide us with better genes. The first foreign talent I have in mind is Gong Li. She is making a lot of money and well known internationally. How? At least she makes more money than any of our ministers and should qualify as a supertalent. The next possible candidate is Taksin. A former PM looking for a job and a home. And he has proven himself more than worthy in all areas to be a possible PM. I think he will have no problems blending in here as he has been here many times. And he has money! Hey, how about Vijay Singh? He was here before, like Obama in Indonesia. He should feel very comfortable being one of us. And he is a supertalent as well, making a lot of money and world famous. These are candidates that we can identify with. And there are many more who are already citizens and living with us. I think our talent pool is much richer now with all the FTs who have turned citizens.

Mission confused or mixed up kids

The pricing of HDB flats to market prices is just a natural and convenient process. When market prices go up, prices of HDB flats must go up. But HDB is also kind enough to price them with a market subsidy so that the buyers still pay less than the market price. Is that not fair? Yes it is fair, and very logical and very reasonable too. What about the immediate and long term consequences of higher property prices? The immediate problem to the new buyers is that their money shrinks every time the market price goes up. The young couple could be saving for their $300k dream flat. And they think they have saved enough only to find that money still not enough because the $300k flat is now $500k. Thanks to the appreciation of property prices and HDB’s pricing policies. And thanks to the great subsidy the HDB is giving them. But money still not enough after several years of savings. It is like chasing an illusion. Ok, buy a smaller dream flat. Don’t buy what you cannot afford. That’s life man! Profit is good. Why shouldn’t HDB make the extra profit when they can? Making profit from who and for what? The person who made this clever decision should be rewarded with a $10m bonus. The decision is so brilliant and the profit so clean and easy. But he shall remember that he has just hung a $200k millstone on the neck of the new buyers. And the affected buyers are not going to think kindly of it. Even donating his millions to charity will not be enough to amend the losses or burdens that the people will have to carry. As a govt body, the mission is to serve the people, not simply making more profit from every opportunity. It is an unnecessary decision that HDB need not make. A smaller increase would be much palatable. Instead, the $200k will be seen as an opportunistic decision by a mixed up organisation that forget its main mission. And it will reflect badly on what govt is all about. When the roles of govt and business got entangled and the bearing lost, this is what the people can expect. When the govt thinks it is doing business and when business thinks it is the govt, everything will be turned upside down.

We create our own model and our own problems

During the early days of our independence, we were still suffering from the colonial hangovers. The residence were not all citizens and still lived as if they were British subjects. Home or obligation was to their motherlands. This island was a transitional place, to make a living and to return to their homelands. Do they bother about who became the Prime Minister or was he of a particular race? In fact they were more accustomed to a European face as the political master. And if not, anyone would do. It was not their concern. For those who were eligible to vote, a minority, they could vote whoever they want. No hard feelings, no emotional attachment, no ethnic pride to boot. They knew that they were just migrants, did not belong here. After 45 years of independence and nation building, we have created a fragile nation from the various races. We wanted one people regardless of race and religion. But we also want every race to retain their own identity as their cultural ballasts. The is our paradox. We want to be one but our policies do not turn us into one. Our identity card still says we are of this or that race. Can we then rise above our racial divide and become one people? There was a time when we were moving closer as one people. Then we have this influx of foreigners whom we called new citizens. They came and they accentuate our differences more distinctly. We are back to square one, to redevelop a new people from all over the world. As the number increases, prepare for more diversities and pulls into all directions. If we have let our socio political development to continue without the disruption of the new citizens, the issue of what colour is our PM will be naturalised over time and a good man will be seen as a good man, regardless of race or religion, and will just fit into the shoe without much hullaboo. The more we raise such questions, the more will be the awareness of our differences and the sensitivity of why not a minority PM. Only time can overcome such differences. But if we keep diluting the pot and prevent a Singaporean identity to surface, we only have ourselves to blame. Two possible path forward to alleviate such an issue. Since we have regarded PRs as locals, it may be better to keep them as PRs. Then they will know how to shut up and stop demanding for their rights as a citizen and for their own PMs, like what we were during the colonial time. The other is to continue what we are doing, have more new citizens and be prepared for the new interest groups to demand recognition of their tribes. Maybe we should evolved a system with 4 or 5 PMs each of difference races.

No easy way out

When asked, Lim Swee Say said that cutting CPF is a last resort and should only be used after all measures have failed. I would presume that retrenchment should be a last resort for companies to take when they are trimming cost. Retrenchment is a very painful process and has a serious psychological effect on the affected staff and should not be treated lightly. Are we going to see more companies starting their retrenchment exercises as we enter a phase of recession? If that is the alternative, pay cut or CPF cut could be more palatable. The Union's stand is that no company will be allowed to take the easy way out by retrenching staff in difficult times.

No snake oils allowed

It took so many years and a big bust to realise how dangerous the pseudo bonds and notes were. Many the world over were mesmerised by the 'sophistications' of these derivatives and other similar products like CDOs and credit default swaps. As long as they are from Wall Street, as long as the Americans think that they are good, who is wiser to say no to these products. We do now although many still think that there is nothing wrong with such products. Whole industry has sprung up to service and participate in the euphoria of these high earning and high growth financial snake oils. Their failure will now see the industry collapses and many people going out of job. No one is going to touch any of these derivatives for a long time to come. But they will mutate and sneak in again in different forms. Hopefully everyone will be wiser and more careful in scrutinising any such products in the future. There are similar products in the stock markets that are no better than snake oils. There are many highly sophisticated instruments being peddled to the unsophisticated punters who just know how to punt without the knowledge or ability to understand how they work. And there are the flawed IPOs that should never be listed at all but only through the collusion of a number of participants that made them possible. And the end result is that they collapsed within a few years but after taking all the money from the innocent investors. So far no one has been taken to task or held accountable for such misleading IPOs and products. The auditors and rating agencies and issue managers just pat their backside and life goes on as if nothing happens. The investors who lost their monies are expected to accept their fate as a bad choice, as something inevitable. It is time to stop snake oils from being peddled to innocent investors. No snake oil or tainted milk is allowed in our financial system. We have seen it, know what they are. There is no reason to let it be and do nothing. It is irresponsible to let them come in after seeing the dangers they pose to the investors. We must be responsible to ensure that innocent investors are protected from snake oils and tainted milk.

Lehman Bros being sued

Sued for misleading investors Nov 10, 2008 Suit against Lehman, UBS seeks an order certifying it as a class-action. LEHMAN Brothers Holdings Inc's Chief Executive Officer Richard Fuld and UBS AG's US brokerage were accused in a lawsuit of misleading investors who bought Lehman's 'principal protected notes' before its September bankruptcy. The complaint, filed on Nov 6 in federal court in Manhattan, claims Mr Fuld and 10 other past and current Lehman directors deceived investors about the risks of buying notes that are now almost worthless, Bloomberg news reported on Monday. The suit seeks unspecified damages and an order certifying it as a class-action, or group lawsuit, on behalf of other investors.... The above was posted in Tan Kin Lian's blog. I am just wondering how it will affect the cases here if Lehman Bros is found guilty, and has to compensate the investors in full. Will the investors here be entitled to the same full compensation, maybe with damages as well, despite the fact that they have read and signed the disclaimers, that they are implied to have agreed with all the terms in the sales agreements?

06.06.06 and 66.6 are ominous signs

Too coincidental, too bad. Believers of these signs will say, 'I tell you so.' These are signs that may not be relevant to the non believers. But these are not the only signs that are appearing since the ominous day of 06.06.06. Things are happening and getting more serious in nature. The very first inkling of things going awry was the Wee Shu Min episode. This established the kind of discord and the distancing of the elite from the losers in paradise. The divide was not only widening but became public. Then came NKF, Mas Selamat, delay of CPF withdrawal, the ERPs, no pay rise for the workers, high prices of everything, and now the financial crisis. I must not forget to mention the banning of a cycling event in a park. Though these events were trying, testing to the govt, they could be handled and turned towards the govt's favour. Unfortunately every single event was handled in a way that left much to be desired. The consequences were the lost of political capital. Wonder if there is any left in the bag for the next general election. To make matters worst, the comments from the leaders were less than enlightening. Often people felt so hurt by them that they reacted by ridiculing the speakers. Throughout our independence, never have our leadership been found so wanting, so wishy washy in tackling problems and in siding with the wrong side, not on the side of the people. The leaders may think that they were speaking from a legalistic or factual point of view and expected the people to see the logic and wisdom of their words. Would the people be so rational and so sheepish, and accept the profound wisdom, and move on? Apparently the people are dumbfounded.

Time for a minority PM

There were many discussions about the eventuality of a minority PM in govt. This is a rather sensitive issue that is close to the hearts of the minorities. It is only a natural human instinct that they want to see their own kind becoming successful, rising to the peak of any profession. And as the number of the minorities grows in strength, the voice will be louder. The rooting for a minority PM should not be seen as a racial thing. It is just their aspiration. But if the majority takes a stand that the PM must be from the majority, then it may be seen from a different light, maybe a racist thing. So the majority should not talk too much about such an issue and let the minorities air their 'grievances', a bit of letting off the steam. From my observation of events, it would not be long before a minority PM be elected by popular vote. We have excellent minority ministers in the like of Tharman, Vivian and Shanmugam. They stand a head above the others in terms of leadership quality, charisma and eloquence. And professionally they are the cream of their profession. All they need is to turn on their offensive charm. And knowing the shallowness of the majority politicians in politics, though they all believe that they are shrewd and inborn politicians, they will soon vote for a minority PM. As far as politiking is concerned, the majority is at best naive or plainly inadequate. Look at all the interest groups and associations and it is no surprise that the one that is calling the shot is often from the minority. Anyone from the majority that assumes the position of chairman or president is likely to be a pet of the real power holder. Another point in favour of the minority is that the majority are also believers in meritocracy. And when they see a better candidate than themselves, they will be the first to give the candidate their full support. My advice to the minorities is to be impatient. A minority PM is a high probability. And they may get a bonus, with a minority President and a minority PM at the same time. They need not wait for long.

A wise and prudent move

There are many people demanding that Temasek and GIC should be more transparent and to reveal how much they really have in their portfolios. We have heard of $200b or thereabout. Some speculated that it could be more. Temasek and GIC’s stand not to disclose what are in their coffers should be appreciated. The world is infested with ruthless and greedy predators and they are constantly eyeing any organisation that has money. When they have winds of that, soon they will make their way in with their brilliant proposals only to con these organisations of their hoards. To these financial experts, it is as easy as ABC. We have seen this happening a bit too often. The moral of the story is not to let people know that you have money. They will come and help themselves with it. And the $200m per annum calibre thieves from Wall Street are not easy to parry off especially when your treasures are guarded by $20m calibre material. No fight. Alternatively we may want to employ the $200m type to prey on other smaller funds managed by lesser material. Let’s be prudent and not to tell anyone about how much we have in our savings

Equal misery?

I just read Gerald Giam's article on axing staff by companies to boost profitability. Down sizing is always a last step in a company's list of options to cut cost as its impact on the affected employees is more than just losing a job. It is something that responsible management should think very carefully before doing. Maybe the trade unions should take a stand on this issue. Companies that are still making profits, though lower, should not be allowed to axe staff. Such a measure can only be supported by the unions when the company is going into the red. A few years of lower profits or even no profit is not something that is intolerable. And just a play on numbers. If companies are paying 12 mths or more bonuses, by halving the bonus payout is equivalent to cutting the staff by a quarter. And to cut a 10% workforce, the company could simply reduce the bonuses by 20 or 30%. No need for desperate measures like retrenchment. Companies have a social obligation to their employees and to society to avoid such drastic and destructive measures. Do companies resort to retrenchment to protect their big bonuses?

Uncle Ho to the rescue

Marina Sands in trouble? Fear Not. Vegas, Sands or whatever, are not the only casino operators available. If Sands could not complete the job, there is Genting waiting in the wing. And if two Gentings are too much to stomach, we can always invite Uncle Ho from Macao to pay us a visit. I can't remember why he was not allowed to bid for the Marina Sands then. Maybe he was viewed as another SWF, not welcomed. But now that SWF are welcomed the world over with open arms, being courted even by the US and EU, it would not be too much trouble to tell Uncle Ho that he is welcomed to take over from Sands. There will be many suitors waiting in the queue in case Marina Sands throw in the towel. And it could be had for a song. What a great opportunity! Temasek should seriously consider running it on its own, 100% Singapore owned.

The world then was a different place

When all the banks were selling minibonds and high notes, the world then was a vastly different place. It was like in the 19th Century when the British and the Europeans were selling opium to the Chinese. It was a different world then. America too was a different place when Africans were caught, bought and sold in the market place. At times when everyone is doing it, it is acceptable to join in the fun. When time has caught up, when the moral of the time changes, whatever happens should be relegated to the backyard of history. Let's move on. We are still living in a time when greed is good. It is a time when talents are measured by how much they can command. We will have to wait till this phase of civilisation is over before selling toxic stuff or cheating is found to be criminal. Is it pragmatism, survival instinct, or simple weakness of human beans? Or is it talent at its best, seizing on the opportunities of the moment to make a pile?

Age of No Accountability

This is becoming the new state of affair all over the world. No one will be held accountable for failures or mistakes. And to make it more amusing, the higher the position of power, the lesser is the risk of being held accountable. Only the front line workers will be held responsible and be blamed. The is the Paradox of Power. We have seen this in the Mother of All Mistakes, the invasion of Iraq on the ground that it possessed Weapons of Mass Destruction. All that is passe. Everyone knows that it was a lie. Then the happenings in Guantanamo and Abu Ghraid Prisons. No one will he held accountable for the abuses of prisoners and wrongly held prisoners. No one will be held responsible for the hundreds of thousands of wounded and death, and destruction in Iraq. The latest shit is the financial crisis. Everyone now knows who created all these shits, all the collaborators, from the financial genius who created the products, the rating agencies who colluded to rate them as super safe, the management who approved them for public consumption and the regulators who went in bed with them. None of them will be held accountable. They will go on to live happily with their loots. Our mini version of the minibonds and high notes will go the same way. No one will be held responsible. The fingers are only pointing at the relationship managers. The rest of the gods are simply innocent.

Abuse and wastage of technology

We apply satellite technology to track taxis around the island. We also apply the same technology to tell people how to go from point A to B in this 700 sq km of rock. We wired the island to tell drivers that it would take 5 or 10 minutes to reach somewhere along his destination when you can reach the other end of the island in 30 minutes. We wired the city to tell drivers where got car parks. These are abuses of technology and a big waste of money. Technology and equipment cost money. Then there is the regular maintenance, servicing, repairs, replacement etc. Who is paying for them? Even in MRT stations, you can see technology everywhere. Many are unnecessary or a cheaper form will suffice. They have tried mobile TVs in the train and failed miserably. Last night I heard another childish gadget is going to be installed in the trains. The SMRT is trying out an electronic station map to let passengers know where they are and which is the next station, and which train line they are on, electronically wired to the trained grid. And to make it meaningful and readable to all the commuters, which probably 1% will need it, these expensive and high tech gadgets will be installed generously along the walls of the trains. Who is paying for these toys? I remember that whenever a train approaches a station, they will be a voice calling out the station's name. And before the train moves on, the same voice will say, 'next station, Bishan or City Hall'. Not good enough? Please tell us how much these new toys will cost the commuters. Yes, the commuters will be paying for such bright and ingenious ideas that only super talents can come out with and find them necessary and futuristic, befitting a world class transport system conveying third world illiterate workers. And with such great improvements, fares will have to go up to match the technology.

Time to spend

In good time we spend because money was aplenty. In bad time we lagi need to spend to help the economy. For those who don't have much cash, look into your CPF. There are plenty of money there and it is time to do national service. Use them to revitalise the economy. Go for a stay in the hospital for a good annual checkup, if you can charge it to the Medisave. Or those who have serious illnesses and are not treating it, treat it now. Maybe with recession, the hospital may charge a little less. Then those who are planning to buy a flat, go for it now, and use your CPF. Buy before the price comes down. There is also the spend first pay later schemes like going for a holiday or charging to the credit cards. Do something for the country now. Such benevolent acts will help the economy from going down and the suppliers of goods and services very happy.

Stop complaining about high tariff

All the kpkb in cyberspace, especially in TOC should be toned down. It is a lesson that Singaporeans have not learnt. You know what will happen if Singaporeans complain too much? Of course we all know. Let me put it this way. I can think of 100 and 1 reasons to raise electricity tariff two or three folds. And the logic will be so easy to understand and the people will have to accept them, like it or not. That is the power of good reasoning. All about logic. The first premise is that energy is a precious resource and should not be wasted. People must learn or be taught the hard way to conserve energy. And it is not just about the green movement, to save the earth. Oil and gas are not replaceable unlike water. Water will return to earth after use. But oil and gas will take millenium to reprocess themselves. I think the above are very good reasons to use less energy and not to waste them unnecessarily. Singaporeans must be taught, in the same way we conserve water, to pay more for this precious resource. We will start by a 100% energy conservation tax. Then top it up with a green tax. And to reinforce the message, add another 100%, call it whatever you like, to make sure that Singaporeans will get use to paying high energy tariffs. That will shut them up and they will not have time to complain so much. The Singaporeans had it so good for so long with cheap energy tariffs. Time to make them pay.

World class standard

According to Geoffrey Lim of LTA, our train capacity is 1,600 or 4.9 passengers per square metre. This is lesser than 7 passengers in Tokyo. So we are better than Tokyo. Anyone try to imagine what it is like to stand 4.9 people in a one square meter box? That is not my standard of world class transport. Can we set a standard of our own that we deem as comfortable or decent for our people instead of relying on other people's standard? I reckon that a decent standard should be 4 passsengers per square meter. That will save one from sharing the bad breath and body odour of the other person. And for the ladies, they will be spared the unintentional gropping or rubbing. Let's set our own standard can? Let's show the world that we are a leader and we set what we think is good for us and the world.

Energy prices to be down by 20%

I heard this over the news last night that energy prices will fall by 20% over the next 5 years because of greater competition and LNG. I went really, uh, am I dreaming or is it a joke? Would anyone of you believe that this can really come true? We have heard so many great speeches that privatisation and competition will improve efficiency and bring down cost. I have yet to see one instance that it really happens and the consumers were paying less for improved services and products. All we know is that they were craps. I for one will not believe that energy prices will come down by even 1%. But time will tell. Just hope that everyone reading this will remember it and start counting to see if it is a truth or another tooth in the next 5 years to come.

AVA for financial products

I have held back this post for a few days. Now I read that Andy Ho is also thinking along the same line. Yes we need an agency to police financial products. Apparently and already confirmed, more needs to be done to ensure that financial products, derivatives etc are safe for consumption just like what AVA is doing for food and edible stuff. There is no running away from this. We need an AVA equivalent for the financial industry as a safeguard to protect the vulnerable from the highly technical and financially clever products that could be toxic and dangerous for the public. Let’s set up a watchdog quickly before more lethal products are being designed by the financial wizards to be sold to the gullible. Andy Ho lamented that there was lack of regulations in the financial industry. Actually there are plenty, targetted at the small thieves, the front line staff. These people are watched like a hawk, made to undergo a lot of courses, and sign a lot of documents. But they forgot that the real thieves, the big thieves, are the big boys. These are the ones that designed and pushed out the foul products. And they got away with murder while the little boys got roasted. Just a couple of days I was calling for the setting up of an Ethics Committee. Now I am calling for the setting up of another watchdog organization. I know that nothing will be done to all these calls. But it is still necessary to kpkb knowing very well that no one wants to know the truth.

Another issue ,another Tan Kin Lian in the making

The neglect or non recognition of the pre school teachers is starting to stir. Dr Christine Chen, President of the Association for Early Childhood Education is making a call for all the childcare teachers to come together to fight for their neglected cause. And since no one is interested in them except for some lip service, they would rather take the future of their profession into their own hands. Don't be surprise that the next group of people mounting the mounds of Hong Lim Park will be your childcare teachers. Many of them are quite well qualified, with diplomas and degrees and even PhDs but chose to look after children for the love of them and passion. Let's see whether their cause will be taken up and who will take the lead.

Melamine in our backyard?

While the world is engrossed in the melamine scare, do we have the same problem in our backyard? I am not too sure. From some of the snippets that I have heard, the story goes like this. In order to keep goreng pisang and fried chicken wings from turning limp after hours on the shelf, the hawkers just throw a plastic bottle into the boiling oil before throwing in the pisang and chicken wing. And the melted plastic, probably melamine, will coat these foodstuff with a layer of plastic to keep them hard and firm. When you bite into them you know that it is not the natural crispyness, but hardness. The AVA should take a look at the pasar malam stalls selling such products and ensure that they are not plastic or melamine coated.

Freedom of choice and association

Freedom of fear and free to live life. These are the things that make America a great country. I feel so impressed by the way the Presidential Election is being conducted. Both candidates were free to run their election campaign the way they want it without any bureaucratic obstruction. Obama was allowed to buy network time to reach out to the people. In some countries these will definitely not be allowed. And the bureaucracy, the law enforcers, the election committee etc etc, all play an impartial role in allowing both candidates equal room and space, without any favour. And the two candidates fought each other aggressively but without resorting to any threats or underhand tactics. Somehow, while I am immensely impressed by the American ways of democracy and equality in the eyes of the law, I got this feeling of shame.

Tempering with land sales and property prices

The govt is withholding the sales of land for the moment as demand for properties have fallen. That makes good business sense. Sell when the demand is high, to command higher price and also to prevent prices from escalating. Very logical. A letter by Ee Teck Siew in Today questioned the tempering of the supply and demand of land as it will artificially prop up prices but will not allow prices to fall to their real values. His reasoning is that people are complaining that properties and rentals are too high. Shouldn't we let the market determine the price? We have a free market don't we? Now property owners will be up in arms against him. How can he suggest that we let property prices to fall? My property is all I got, my HDB flat is all I got. But the young who are looking for a cheaper flat will be supporting him. Ya, let the market decides the true value of properties. Stop meddling with supply and demand. We cannot buy expensive flats at sky high prices. Let it drop the natural way. Who is tempering with the free market forces?

Looking for an Ethics Committee?

The Bioethics Advisory Committee(BAC) does not agree that women who donate their eggs for research should be reimbursed except for expenses like cab fares, loss of earnings and loss of time. 'They should not, however, expect to be paid for the inconvenience, the pain they undergo, nor the risks involved in egg extraction.' BAC said. The procedures involved in egg extraction go something like this. Women go to hospital daily for 2 or 3 weeks, undergo tests and hormone injection to harvest their eggs, put on sedation and needle injected to remove eggs in a 20 minute operation. I have seen how guinea pigs were handled in the lab. Not much difference. And it is ethically correct that women should be carefully scrutinised and those who gave their excess unwanted egg should not ever think of being reimbursed. The BAC is very clear about using money as an incentive. The amount reimbursed should not be so big that it becomes an inducement. Inducing people to do things with money and more money is unhealthy and unethical. People who are induced to do things because of money are money minded, to say the least. So as for the Ethics Committee that I am calling for yesterday, look no further. The people in the BAC are just the right people to sit in that Committee. These are ethical people that will not be induced by money to do unsavoury things. PS. If I am a woman, I will demand my price for the trouble that I have to go through. And if my genes are of graduate quality, I will demand a ransom for them.

An Ethics Committee is needed

We may be transparent, not corrupt and have no guanxi to worry about. But we still have serious flaws in terms of ethics and morality in the way we do business. Unless we are saying that in business, ruthlessness to make profit is the right way to go forward, then we should not even waste time listening to the victims of minibonds and notes. They did not do their homework and became suckers is their own fault. I am still puzzled that if their cries were not heard, if the people’s hero did not stand up to organize them to take on the financial institutions, will it still be business as usual? That ethics and morality can go into the longkangs? That the minibonds and notes and other toxic products will still be sold to the unwary? I have encountered many cases of unethical conducts in organizations. Some I have fought and dealt with. Some are still waiting for the right opportune moment to do battle. Many corporations stink of lowly creatures in their midst. What we may need now is an Ethics Committee to be appointed in big organizations, private or public, to deal with unscrupulous management who just care for the bottom line and their perks and bonuses. It is a sad call but a reflection of how far down we have gone in decency and respectability. And please, these committees must be made up of people that do not have any incestuous relationship with the management. They must be steadfast and with a conscience to do the job they are assigned to and not be beholden to the people who appoint them. To be real, this is just fat hope.

Foreign workers indispensable?

Shanmugam is emphasising on the importance of having foreign workers again, as if they are indispensable to our growth and viability as a country. Yes, I agree, we need foreign workers, at least to upgrade the depleted and poor gene stocks we are having today. Then the question is how many and how fast? We are not a continent like Australia or the US. We are just a little piece of rock. We cannot keep filling this rock with more people. When shall we stop? 5m, 6m, or 10m? And when we reach these numbers, will we keep adding on? Don't get too ambitious about how big we can be. Just like our financial centre, it has limitations because we are just small. I wish I can type this word small in size 1 to emphasise how small we are. Don't get carried away by pushing for more foreign workers and growth and growth. There is a very heavy price to be paid.

Selling Alaska

Does this tickle your senses and thoughts? The Russians sold Alaska to the Americans for quite a sum of money in those days. By now the money would have been spent and lost. But Alaska still stays, maybe in perpetuity, as a state of America. How much should the Russian price it to make the deal worthy of the land that will be there forever? We have our own equivalent of selling Christmas Island to Australia. Accepted that it was all a British deal and there was nothing we could do about it. The moral of the story is that you do not sell your land, the motherland, away for cash. Cash disappears or becomes worthless, or diminishes in value. The motherland is forever, there, as an inheritance for the future generations. I saw this advert yesterday of this beautiful island called Sentosa Cove. I wish I have the money to buy a unit there. What saddens me is that it is for sale to foreigners. Do we need the cash? Do we need to sell the limited motherland that we have to foreigners for cash, like selling Alaska? Even the Indonesians have better cow sense to lease their lands to foreigner for only 30 years. As a temporary short lease, I have no problem with it. But to sell our inheritance away, my god, what do we have left for our future children? Or are we preparing to migrate to the moon when we have sold off everything?

Selling caustic soda and lehmon juice

There are many trade fairs and pasar malams that provide opportunities to peddle soft drinks. It can be a very profitable franchise to sell caustic soda and lehmon juice with minimal cost and high returns. Of course there are risks involved. Caustic soda is poisonous. What about lehmon juice? Don't have a clue what it is, but as long as it sells, why not? All that is required is to take a few precautionary measures. First, print a 10 page disclaimer, frame it nicely and hang it in the stall. Can even say specifically that caustic soda can kill. Don't worry, no one will be bothered to read it. The next thing is, yes franchise it. Let other people do the selling. And when trouble starts, let the franchisees take the blame. Just point the finger at them and lie very low. Do everything that is possible to put the spotlight on the franchisees, not on the caustic soda or the lehmon juice or you, the originator of the product. This is entrepreneurship at its best. It needs a lot of talent to come out with it. Entrepreneur of the Year Award akan datang.

Gay rights and gay movement

The gays are planning for a demo at Hong Lim to champion their rights, among which is to repeal the law against homosexual sex and their right to live their lives. Our society has progressed quite far in this area and gays are generally accepted as part and parcel of life, with hardly any discrimination or aversion against them. They are accepted in the profession and as friends and colleagues. The question is whether it is a good idea to champion their lifestyle and sexual preference? Would we also popularise incest, after all incestuous relationship is a secret to our success? Or what if someone's sexual preference is for animals? He/she is not harming anyone in particular and the animal may enjoy the intimacy? I think the gays are pushing their luck too far and may turn society against them if they try to make their lifestyle as a glamorous way of life. Better to just live their life without disturbing anyone than to invite people to look at them under the microscope.

Of greed, corruption, collusion and irresponsibility

Article by WisestSage posted in Singapore Kopitiam. He puts everything about the collapse of subprime loans, minibonds etc in a simple way for all to understand. Greed, corruption, collusion, irresponsible govts and rating agencies are all accomplices in this fiasco. Now it is a case of blame game and see who ended with rotten eggs in the face. In recent months when the subprime-related securities trigger the collapse of Lehman Brothers, many Asians, including Singaporeans, got their fingers burnt. Some 10,000 Singaporeans have lost $500 million in their investments in Minibonds, DBS High Notes, Jubilee Notes, and Pinnacle Notes, some of them becoming worthless overnight. Asians have a reputation of saving habits as they need to save for the old age while most Asian countries do not have social welfare safety net. They inevitably become the victims of the structured products which have been marketed by the greedy bankers and the Wall Street crooks from the west. How come only Asians from Hong Kong, Singapore, and Taiwan are hardest hit by Minibonds, DBS High Notes, Jubilee Notes, and Pinnacle Notes, but none of the western countries is affected? Let me explain why the situation is so dire and dangerous. When the financial shits hit the ceiling fan, I was hoping that the so-called leading economics and financial commentators and opinion makers would explain the situation to the public via the national dailies, the blogs and the TV network. I came across not one article or broadcast that explains the underlying reasons for the inevitable dire consequences. Sure there were articles on the crisis, but they were merely describing the rescue of the largest insurance company in the USA (A.I.G.) if not the world and the amount involved. No explanation whatsoever, as to why only a few days earlier the Fed and the Treasury allowed the 4th largest investment bank, Lehman Bros to fold up but rushed in to rescue AIG with an unprecedented US$ 85 billion. In my various articles published previously, I explained in great detail the corruption within the global banking system and how these financial leeches through fraud and political protection created and amassed a global financial fortune in excess of US$500 Trillion. Let me assure you that this is not a typo error. You got it right. It is not billions but a whopping US$500 trillion. I have been advised that as of the Q2 of 2008, the figure may have reached US$565 trillion. This is a complex subject but I shall endeavour to make it as simple as I can. Starting Point The Ponzi Scheme The crux of the fraudulent Ponzi scheme is the twin pillars of: 1) Fannie Mae & Freddie Mc – the two giant mortgage corporations of USA 2) The Derivative financial tool known as Credit Default Swap (CDS) Once you have a grasp of these two concepts, you cannot but agree that we are facing total global banking collapse. Why? Because the entire global banking system has been built on these two financial pillars! But the system became irreparable in the last 7 years when CDS became the linchpin in the massive expansion of derivative trading and financial engineering. The Mechanics 1. Banks became greedy and were unwilling to earn safe and steady profits from mortgages for housing and commercial properties which usually spread over a period of between 5 to 30 years. 2. Banks wanted massive profits in the shortest period of time and the ability to lend massive amounts and not be regulated as to how to do it. 3. The crooks devised a scheme. It was a simple idea. 4. Banks will provide mortgages to all and sundry. 5. I am going to use a simple example and using small numbers to illustrate for ease of calculation. Thus, assuming the Bank gave out US$1 million to finance mortgages, bearing interest at 10%. 6. The bank then sold the mortgages to Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac at a discount. Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac being Government Sponsored Companies (GSCs) are able to get cheap financing to purchase these mortgages as they were assumed to be “guaranteed by the US Government”. 7. Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac then package these mortgages into all sorts of structured financial products and these were sold to investors (private as well governments). Central Banks hold massive amounts of dollar reserves and they need to find a safe haven for them. Hence, and invariably, Central Banks invest their reserves in US Treasuries and financial “mortgage-backed" products issued by Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac as well as other US financial institutions. 8. With the payment of US$ 1 million by Fannie Mae / Freddie Mac, the bank by law, can lend ten times the amount after keeping 10% reserves i.e.US$100,000. Therefore, the bank can lend US$9 million by “creating money out of thin air” i.e. by crediting the borrowers in their loan accounts in amount of the loans extended. These US$9 million loans secured by mortgages are then sold to Fannie Mae / Freddie Mac again. The cycle keeps repeating and the banks keep creating more and more loans. It was so easy that the banks decided to create dubious loans called “Liars Loans” whereby the borrower need not state the actual income and or ability to repay. 9. As more and more of these loans were created, investors (government and private) demanded assurances that these loans were good for investments. The rating agencies (e.g. Moodys, Standard & Poor and itch etc.) who in collusion with banks, gave AAA ratings to what were essentially junks. This fraud led investors to believe that these financial products were good investments. 10. The rating agencies were only too aware that this scheme needed something more concrete to prolong the fraud and induce the investors to part with their monies. 11. The insurance companies like A.I.G. came into the picture. They were seduced by the idea that if they can insure against risks of accidents, storms etc., they could also insure risks against default by the mortgage holders. Thus was born the financial innovation – Credit Default Swap (CDS). Any financial product with a sound CDS would be rated AAA. It was as good as being guaranteed by Uncle Sam. Assholes the world over, especially central banks, fell for it – hook, line and sinker. 12. The scheme works out like this – AIG sells protection – i.e. in the event there is a default, AIG will pay out to the buyer who buys the protection (the CDS) in exchange for the payment of premiums covering the period of protection not unlike your usual insurance policy. It was easy money for everyone. The banks get to sell their loans and have the liquidity to create more loans. Fannie Mae / Freddie Mac and other financial institutions get the opportunity to repackage these loans / mortgages and sells them to investors with a tidy profit. The investors are happy with their so-called guaranteed returns. The insurance companies, investment banks and other players get their premium income for selling protection. It was old fashion mafia loan sharking and protection business dressed up in modern financial jargon and everyone was too arrogant and greedy to see through the fraud. 13. When loans default and continue to be delinquent, the law (depending on each country) provides that if the loan is in default for 90 days or more, it should be declared a Non-Performing Loan (NPL) and banks must provide reserve to cover the loss. 14. What happened was banks were covering the defaults and kept them on the books for two years or more in the hope that no one would be wiser and interest income from new loans would cover the defaulted old loans – the classic ponzi modus operandi. 15. When the two years default reached critical proportions starting with the sub-prime loans, the fraud began to unravel. Investors began demanding their protection money for the losses arising from these defaults. It has been estimated that the market value of the CDS was in excess of US$60 trillion but the capital of the insurance companies like AIG are only in the billions. It is therefore a physical impossibility to make good the demand for payment for the defaults. 16. If AIG the No. 1 insurer in US and the world is in default, it means the rest are in deep shits. You can take it as a given that no one and no one has good coverage and protection anymore. 17. When there is no coverage and protection, how can there be AAA ratings for new issues of such financial products? Fannie Mae/Freddie Mac etc. cannot package these products for sale to investors and if they cannot sell, they will have no funds to buy more dubious mortgages from corrupt and fraudulent Wall Street banks. With no additional funds, these crooks in JP Morgan Chase, Goldman Sachs, Citigroup, Lehman Bros., Morgan Stanley, Merrill Lynch, Bank of America, UBS, Barclays, HSBC, Deutsche Bank, Credit Suisse, etc. will have difficulty extending new loans. The “Musical Money Chair” will have to come to a complete halt. The entire system gets into a gridlock. Given the above explanation, can the US government and the Fed continue to bail out banks and other financial institutions? When US is in deficit in both the budget and current accounts, where else can they get the extra monies except by creating out of thin air (virtually by keying digits into computers) or print more dollars. If you are a sovereign lender or a private hedge fund, knowing the situation, would you lend more monies to the US Treasury knowing that each dollar issued (whether digitally or in printed notes) are not worth the value stated therein. These dollars ARE NO BETTER THAN TOILET PAPER. When the Asian investors become the insurers of the structured products like Minibonds, you know why they have been conned. It is inevitanle that they would lose their pants through the investments in structured products like Minibonds, DBS High Notes, Jubilee Notes, and Pinnacle Notes. Have you wondered why MAS and other financial regulators allow these structured products to be marketed to the naive general public? If they are not sleeping on their jobs, what are they doing all day long?

Minibonds and High Notes - Any mis selling?

It is difficult to find an acceptable definition of mis selling or fit a case under it unless it is an obvious one. What could be more reasonable to ask is whether a toxic product is sold to customers that obviously have no stomach for high risk. The Financial and Securities Acts have provisions to prevent selling high risk products to inappropriate customers. Some customers, especially the old, retirees, the uneducated, unsophisticated, people who are living on their lifesavings, are clearly not the type of risk takers that such toxic products like minibonds and high notes are meant for. The risk of losing everything is simply unacceptable to these people. These are people who are trying to earn a little better interests to live the rest of their lives without bearing the risk of losing their capital. And at 5%, even savvy investors would think very hard to want to risk losing everything. So, why were these retirees targeted in the first place? It seems that there is a pattern of execution, that when someone is about to renew his fixed deposit, regardless of risk profile, he will be approached to switch to these high risk instruments. Were these moves the initiatives of the relationship managers? Or was there a systematic plan to target these investors who are clearly not appropriate for such instruments?

Awarding the Plaque of Distinction

I was considering very carefully whether the Energy Market Authority should be awarded this plaque. In order to qualify, it must satisfy the three conditions, ie no corruption, no guanxi and transparency. I can waltz pass the first two conditions easily. Next, transparency? EMA has been actively engaging the public for their criticism of the 21% tariff hike and has given all kinds of explanation and justification for its high electricity tariff rate, one of the highest in the world, as the best they can do with the electricity price. And it is good to see public bodies communicating with the people when issues are raised instead of hiding under no comments or just keeping mum. What would be better is for EMS to show the public the formula and methodology used to compute the tariff rate which it so far have yet to reveal. If the formula and methodology are so efficient and effective, then all the more EMA should share it with the people and for the rest of world to learn from it. It cannot be an issue of patent or copyright. If only EMA can publish this for all to see, then it shall deserve the Plaque of Distinction. Where is the transparency? Compare to the high water tariff and the rationale behind it, at least the latter is transparent. The Minister said it out front that the exceptionally high price of water was to discourage people from wasting water as water was a precious commodity. And it was charged very high to prepare the people to get use to paying high water prices in the future. I may find the reasoning cocky, callous, arrogant, unreasonable and distasteful, but at least it is transparent.

Hong Kong watchdog may sue banks

Hong Kong watchdog may sue banks over Lehman minibond sales 31 October 2008 1343 hrs . HONG KONG - Hong Kong's Consumer Council said Friday it was considering suing banks which allegedly mis-sold minibonds backed by failed US investment bank Lehman Brothers as risk-free investments.... "We now have 16 million dollars in our legal action fund. But the government has promised that it will give us unlimited financial support once we have identified cases with good grounds," she said. (Johannes Chan, chairman of the council's legal action fund) Would any govt body or CASE take up the case of the minibond and high notes investors and sue our banks? Quite inconceiveable for it to happen. It even sounds queer.

The risks were clearly highlighted

Investors of High Notes and Minibonds are in for a tough time. The risks were clearly highlighted in the front page of the brochures with copies printed in the Straits Times. In the High Notes case, it states 'investors may lose their entire investment and may nor receive any principal amount on the Notes.' In the case of Minibonds, 'There will be no guarantee from any entity to you that you will recover any amount payable under the Notes and you could lose all or a substantial part of your investment in the Notes.' Given the above, it would be better if these were in big black bold letters, it is difficult for the investors to say they don't know or did not read. For those who cannot read English, there can still be an escape route. For the rest, jiat lat liao. The only thing now is whether such an important point has been carefully explained to the investors and they went in with their eyes wide shut. The other point is that indeed the products are highly dangerous and the issuers knew of this risk. The regulators who approved the products too must know of the risk. So it is not a case of nobody knows what they are selling. They are really toxic stuff. For the kind of returns, they should not be sold at all.

Don't forget personal responsibility

We espoused 'a financial system of free will and flexibility instead of a paternalistic one where the govt decides for the consumer what's risky and what's not.' Said David Gerald in the Today paper. 'Let people make their own choices and decisions, but within a proper system, and with appropriate safeguards.' He added. This is the crux of the matter. A proper system that is fair and transparent. And regulations got to be fair, consistent, transparent and not arbitrary. Gerald ended by saying, 'I expect the financial instututions to be fair to investors because they're going to them with trust.' When we have a fair and proper system, personal responsibility makes a lot of sense. The investors to the minibonds, or investors investing in the stock market must bear personal responsibility when this is the case. If the system is not proper, if the products are found wanting, it is not a simple case of personal responsibility. When you eat in a restaurant, you don't expect foreign objects or poisonous material in your food. Put it in another way, people going into a boxing match will expect that the rules are fair and to fight in their same weight. When a 50kg boxer goes into the ring to fight against a 100kg boxer, and has his eyes blindfolded, it is not fair and unacceptable. Or if the bigger boxer is armed with a pair of gloves with metal inserts, then it is not alright. Under such circumstances, caveat emptor and personal responsibility will not do. The administrators and regulators need to be hanged.

Will head roll?

MAS is still conducting its inquiry into the minibond fiasco. It has assured the public that if there are misdeeds, mis sellings etc, disciplinary actions will be taken. Will we see any heads roll? It's only $500 million under the bridge.

Selling water to Malaysia

The Marina Barrage is hailed as an engineering marvel, one of its kind and the first in the world. It delivers a number of direct benefit to the country. With its completion we should be self sufficient in our water needs and no longer be dependent on Malaysia. The Barrage is also one of the biggest land or water reclamation from the sea. It provides leisure and sporting activities as well as preventing tidal floods. And many things can be built around it. It is time that we negotiate to sell our water treatment plant to Malaysia and also to negotiate to sell them quality water when our water agreement expires in the near future. Now this will be a bigger feat.

Japan banned short selling

Nikkei has been up strongly for two consecutive days after short selling is imposed. SGX is still happily allowing short sellers to destroy the value of stocks. Today's hit is OCBC with the news or rumour that it may be affected by Great Eastern's lower profit forcast. And it got whacked all the way. This is how our market works. World class market. Shit market as far as I am concerned. As the way the game is being played, any stock that has value, especially blue chips, will be bashed down. SGX has a provision to take to task people who cornered a stock. Would they wake up from their sleep and take these manipulators to task?

Paying for nothing

You pay for a car you get a car. You pay for dental treatment, you get dental treatment. You pay for a massage you get a massage. You pay to a hospital to be healed. You die in hospital or your illness did not improve, you still pay. Is this fair? Why admit to a hospital to be healed but die instead and still need to pay hundreds of thousands or tens of thousands? Did the hospital fulfil its part of the contract, to heal or at least return you alive?

For the worth of $500 million!

How much did all the financial institutions made after peddling $500 mil of toxic notes to the consumers? (Heard that High Notes are practically worthless. Let me guess). At 5% commission, this will work out to be $25 mil. At 3% it will be $15 mil. Good money huh? For a profit of $15 - $25 mil, this was deemed good enough a business proposition to go out there and sell. And the loss from the consumers was a staggering $475 to $485 million. I would presume they know what they were selling, and thought that the risk was not high enough to become a reality. What if they truly understood the risk and decided, well, it was somebody else’s money to lose while they have to earn their bonuses? It is very patronizing to assume that these super talents being paid super talent salaries to match did not know what they were doing. Could it be a case of penny wise pound foolish, or penny for me, pound for you to lose? I got this scary feeling that in the financial system we have this same selfish attitude in many organizations that as long as they made their penny, others can lose their pants or go and die. Not their problems. They can sell any products or designed any flawed system is ok. Caveat emptor. How many organizations out there are making miniscule commissions while their customers are losing millions and billions, and they happily patting each other on the back for a job well done? Anyone got any sense of guilt, got a little conscience, that they have betrayed the people who faithfully believed in their leadership and in what they were doing? Or is the commission, translated into fat bonuses, really worth it?

Raising quality of our future generation

Graduates will produce graduates. Good graduates produce good graduates. We need to be careful in the new citizens we are bringing in or they will dilute the quality of our future generations. We must only bring in couples who are graduates, and from accredited universities. We need to check the quality of our new citizens. We cannot contaminate our stock with conmen, tricksters, cheats or third grade graduates from third grade universities. Quality control is the key. Don’t pray pray with our future. Oh, not to forget, Singaporeans must only be allowed to marry foreigners who are graduates of reputable universities. Marrying non grads like chef, musicians, artistes, singers, footballers, sportsmen and women, etc should be banned. In this way our future generations will all be of graduate caliber. A new super race!

Plaque of distinction

We have a superior system based on three pillars of integrity. No corruption, Transparency and No GuanXi. We should engrave these virtues in a plaque and hang them at the main entrance of all Ministries and even in the airport for visitors to see. This is our mark of excellence that we can wave to everyone. PS. I have amended Quanxi to Guanxi, which was originally intended. Thanks for the correction.

End of the road for hedge funds?

The end is near. Hedge funds, the plague of modern financial world is coming to its near death. Over the years these funds have wielded tremendous power to move stock markets across the world, bringing joy when they push up markets and leaving behind shattered dreams and destruction of lives when they depart. That is how powerful when funds, arms with hoards of money, working in collusion, could be. They can literally mow down countries with their selfish and singlemindedness, to make profit at all cost, with no qualms about responsibility to the rest that fell victims to their actions. Will countries wise up to the untold damage and consequences that hedge funds can inflict on them to stop them from resurrecting themselves again? Greed of the past, thinking that hedge funds can bring good, must be relook at. The goodness that hedge funds brought along is incidental and only for their own benefits. When their benefits are no longer there, they will turnaround to bite the countries and tear them apart. Unfortunately hedge funds will not go away and will morph into something else and will be wooed back to repeat what they had done before. The lessons of the Asian financial crisis was not learnt. That's why we are facing this second crisis in more severe manner. A retribution for greed and stupidity. Though they cannot go away, their activities can be curbed if regulators are doing their jobs and not fallen to greed. The juicy carrots dangle by hedge funds are tempting. Don't go for it. Limit their activities, limit the damages they can cause. They are the thieves and thugs of modern world, armed with Ivy League degrees and wearing the most expensive suits and ties.

Some things can be spoken, some can't

Speak your mind freely, but, one needs to have a little introspection to know that there is a limit to this statement. I would like to tell the world that I am a grad and my genes will produce another generation of grads. Please come and share my goodness. Telling this as a joke is acceptable. But telling this as a serious proposition is a no no. Why would people insist on saying such things? Sheer arrogance, or trying to tell the world of their good fortunes, that they are blessed? It can be a kind of conceit, or maybe deceit, that nature's endowment is forever, can be passed down through generations like monetary inheritance. Unfortunately, life or fate, has the habit of playing the most wicked jokes on human beans. When you think all is won, you can end up the loser. Or when all is lost, you may still come out the winner.

Paying the best and getting the best

This must be an open secret to all. We pay the best for the best to give the people the best. The result of this brilliant policy is for all to see. We have the best govt, the best infrastructure and one of the biggest national reserve on a per capita basis in the world. We have billions and billions to spend or to fall back on. We are the envy of the world. At the people level, more than 80% are home owners. The people can afford to buy anything that they want, and paying top prices for them too, happily. For they can afford to. They buy cars at a price beyond anyone's imagination. They pay for a govt flat that can buy them a sprawling home in Australia or in some cheaper countries. They are learning to pay more for medical and legal bills. All these are in tens or hundreds of thousands of dollars. No sweat. Singaporeans can afford to pay. They also pay top dollars for the best people to manage an efficient and reliable power system. And they have the privilege to pay one of the highest electricity tariffs in the world. This is what they get for getting the best to enable them to pay more for things which others will pay less for it. And at the end of the day, many will have several hundred thousands in their savings when they retire, or if they ever retire. And they can carry along with them into the next life with plenty to spare.

Thank you Mr Tan Kin Lian

'Thank you Mr. Tan. You have done a lot for us w/o any compensation. You are such as selfless person. We really appreciated it.' This is posted in Tan Kin Lian's blog by an appreciative anonymous blogger. Two things strike me. One, Tan Kin Lian is a selfless person. I thought such animals are already extinct in paradise, when everyone is working for money? And that's the second point, working for free. Now I understand why Tan Kin Lian is standing there all alone and no one else would want to do the same. Who wants to work for free? The other connotation is that his talent is worthless. If he is worth his salt, then people will pay him for his talent. Or he should demand to be paid. The worst case is that because he is working for free, people start to question his motive. Now that is bad isn't it? I would like to suggest to Kin Lian that he charges a small fee. Then people who question his motive will not have anything to smear him. The more he demands, the more transparent he becomes and the better appreciated will be his talent.

Why are Singaporeans not saving enough?

We have this marvelous scheme called the CPF. This is meant to take care of our savings for old age. We put in a big chunk of our earnings into this scheme, thinking that it would be enough. Now we all know that it will never be enough. Inflation is not the only thing that will eat away whatever we have put aside. That is why Singaporeans are constantly reminded to save, outside the CPF. What a joke! For the baby boomers, one of the most disastrous policy that affected their life savings was the liberalisation of the CPF on the belief that if you put money in the stock market, in the long run, you will be richer. It has been proven that it was a folly and many lost everything they had in their CPF. The stockmarket is not the stockmarket that we knew in the past. It is now a casino, without fundamentals. But what are the main causes to fail this great savings scheme? The biggest item that Singaporeans need to spend on is the flat or home. If we keep raising the property prices, mark to market, Singaporeans will end up saving just to buy a flat and be left with nothing. The younger Singaporeans shall give up hope of withdrawing any money from the CPF when they reach 55, or to receive anything when they reach 62. A big chunk of their money will be buried in the flat with the rest locked up in minimum sum and medisave. The CPF scheme is now a red herring. The Singaporeans are saving but spending at the same time. I should have called this saving scheme a myth.

Myth 193 - We think we know what we are doing

We are a small country, a small economy but with an ambition that is bigger than the universe. We made the world our hinterland. Instead of closing up and retreating into a small corner, we took on the world, open up, liberalised and become a player punching above out weight. We have our successes, and in fact very successful in many areas. We are a role model for many countries. These days, we are starting to feel the pain of liberalising too rapidly embracing everything the world could offer, the good, the bad and the ugly. We forgot to put on the french cap and we are exposed to all the slimes and the sophisticated cocktails of drugs in high society, disguised as a must have for those who have arrived. We forgot to discriminate! The financial fiasco, not only the minibonds, but the stock market and the whole financial system, is leading to a lot of simple questions. Why are we going into things that we don't know, or things that many do not know? Even the financial experts and professionals, the people who make a living in selling these products, in selling derivatives, are fumbling to try to explain things that they too found difficulty to grasp. And we expect the tellers, the retirees, the unschooled, the general public who are not financially trained, to know them. Isn't this amazing? It is good that we now admit that we don't know. It is good that we start to think that we have erred somewhat, that we should not think too highly of ourselves. The financial experts who really understand and know what these products are are very few in between. Most of the Relationship Managers, their bosses, the financial advisers, even the stockbroking agents, did not know their products or the complexities of how these things work or are able to take advantage of them. They ended up being losers. These instruments are only for specialists, not the man in the street. But we keep churning them out, expecting or pretending that people will know, from sellers to buyers. Complicated instruments and derivatives demands full time attention and monitoring, including the assistance of softwares, nothing like buying and selling ice creams. Do we know what we are doing? If not, we must stop doing them and roll back our plans. It is criminal to keep pushing these financial instruments and derivatives when the people and market are not ready for them. Stop deceiving ourselves. Then in education, we want to turn ourselves into an education hub. A good strategy and very lucrative. But do we need to let the slimes to come in? The slimes are like tainted milk. Once our reputation for integrity and quality is destroyed, all our effort will be gone and it will take generations to rebuild them. The latest fiasco of unaccredited university, West Coast University, banned in some American states, is not a laughing matter. It is silly and it undermines everything STB is trying to do. And WCU is only one of them. Do we know what we are doing? We believe we know. We know that if we adulterated the core Singaporeans that we have imbued with our Singapore brand of discipline and culture with too many foreigners, we will lose our cutting edge. So we tell ourselves, the foreigners content must be limited. So we know what we are doing. In reality, in practice, we are doing exactly the things that we want to avoid. We have about 5 mil people here and 3 mil are Singaporeans. So as long as the Singaporeans out numbered the foreigners, we are ok. What if we increased the Singaporeans to 90% by making all the foreigners Singaporeans? Statistically they are Singaporeans, 90% of them. But are we not diluting our base? The new citizens, despite the pink ICs, are not the Singaporeans that we know, that were nurtured from our system from young. It will take them years, maybe a generation or two to be what Singaporeans are. Having a few new and good genes to cross breed with old local genes are good. But to add in so many in so short a time will dilute whatever there is left of the original Singaporeans which we believe are the ingredients that make us different and competitive. Of the 3 mil Singaporeans, how many are Singaporeans like us? Do we know what we are doing?

Quote from HDB

'A new four room flat can cost close to $300,000 to develop, but is priced at about $200,000 to $260,000 in locations such as Punggol and Sengkang, said the board(HDB).' This is quoted from an article by Jessica Cheam in the ST today. Wow, selling at a loss. Real subsidy. And when the Pinnacles were being built at Duxton, they could priced them below $300,000 at the first launched. That price must be a discount too. But they also said the discount was marked to the market price of resale flats. Now that market price of resale flats have gone up, they are pricing them above $450,000! Big year end bonus coming. Why can't I get the reasoning right? I am very confused.