Police arrest citizen to protect her

Well, that was what Syed Hamid said about the arrest to Sin Chew paper journalist Tan Hoon Cheng. He said he had information that harm might come to her. So the ISA was invoked to arrest her to protect her. Why didn't he go after those people that want to harm her? And now releasing her would it not expose her to harm again? The use of the ISA is now being questioned even by UMNO leaders and the de facto Law Minister Zaid Ibrahim is threatening to resign if not stopped. The Malaysian govt's use of the police against its political rivals and the willingness of the police officers to go along with it have turned Malaysia into a country not much different from Myanmar or other authoritarian states. Malaysia is quickly slipping away from its democratic principles. And this abuse of political and police power is no longer acceptable to the Malaysians both within and outside the govt. Maybe democracy will triumph against the evil of power.

'Silly' people working for free

Are there silly Singaporeans who are willing to work for free? Apparently there are. But given a society that believes in nothing is for free, that talents will not work for free, people who work for free must be non talents. Logical? If you are good, you must be paid handsomely. You must demand to be paid for your talent. Once you are afraid to demand for your talent, then you jolly well accept that you are not a talent. Only non talent work for free and thinking that they are talents. Obviously their work will amount to nothing much and no attention will be paid to them. I acknowledge that the TOC proposal on public transport requires a lot of effort, time and energy and talent. Is there anything new? The supertalents would have even more better ideas than the 6 points of TOC. These are full time employees, carefully selected, the creme al creme. Just tell them what you want and they will come up with the answers that you want. The problem is not in the solution. The problem is what does the govt want. If profit is the mission, no problem. If world class is what the govt wants, no problem. If you tell the supertalents that you want something good, reasonable, and reasonably cheap, they will give it to you. If you tell them you want a transport system that moves people, as many people as possible, at the lowest cost, not for profit, they will give it to you. There is no need to take more money from the motorists or anyone. No need to rob Peter to pay Paul. We are going in circles with this Peter and Paul formula. There are enough money in the system to provide an efficient service, with lesser profits.

Positive impact of fare hike

Fare hike is not going to bring about better quality of service except better hardware if the revenue is reinvested. But there can be positive impacts with higher fare. As fare goes up, some will definitely feel the pinch and will avoid taking public transport if possible. Walk or cycle or not travelling at all. This will cut down on usage and free up some space in the trains and buses. The foreign workers will be the first to feel the pinch. They will be the first to stay away from MRT. Unfortunately transportation is necessary and many cannot but must travel. These groups will have no choice but keep on paying. Actually, if not for these poor buggers whose pocket is already burnt with a big hole, I would like to see transport fare to double so that the trains and buses will be more empty and more comfortable. But again this is only a fleeting dream. When usage is lower, the transport companies will just cut down on the number of trains or buses to keep them full and packed. The commuters cannot win in this game. They will always have to put up with packed trains and buses. That is the only way to reflect that we are like Tokyo or some big cities. A visual affirmation of progress and high social and economic activities.

The silence is more frightening

Malaysians are appealing for calm and not to provoke the UMNO led govt. The govt is suffering from a sieged mentality. It knows that it can be out of power any moment. Drastic measures will be taken when things turn out that way. Anwar may face the greatest crisis of his life. And so will Malaysians. Hishammuddin and Khairy and the other ultras have been quiet. In fact too quiet and it is becoming more frightening. What are they thinking and planning to do next? And they are going to be joined by Mahathir, the man who singlehandedly turned Malaysia into what it is today, and a crisis of his own doing. Do not light that match or press the door bell. The spark could ignite the tense and highly charged atmosphere and engulf the whole country in flame.

One crime too many

It is time to justify the presence of foreign workers in our midst. Yes, fewer of them were arrested on a per 100,000 number count. So they are safer than Singaporeans. There were 435 Singaporeans per 100,000 as to 286 foreigners arrested. Statistically speaking, foreigners are safer and we should actually replace Singaporeans with foreigners and our crime rate will be lower. Wait a minute. We are talking about number of criminals arrested. How many crimes were still not solved and were committed by foreigners? Can we have an absolute figure on the number of crimes committed by foreigners and the nature of such crimes? The reports in the main media gave the impression that crimes by foreigners, given their numbers, are tolerable and acceptable. And many Singaporeans also think so. Anyone ask the victims and their families of such crimes whether they are acceptable or not? The Serangoon Garden residents obviously think not. One crime committed is one crime too many. One serious and vicious crime committed means many people will suffer for it. Somehow I got the impression that Singaporeans are comfortable with crimes and they do not mind being victims of crimes. Or is it that they think the crimes will not happen to them?

A day without LKY

I posted about this a few weeks back. The news that LKY's heart is fluttering is troublesome even on a Sunday morning. Would his heart dare to attack him? My earlier post was on the transition of power and of a Singapore that can continue to hum quietly and efficiently without LKY in the govt. And we have all the time in the world for that to happen with him retiring to a non govt position. But LKY is around and in the govt, for an uninterrupted period of half a century. The thought and fear of what Singapore will be like without him is going to be very uneasy. Modern Singapore has never had a day without LKY. Now this can happen without notice. The possibilities are endless and the uncertainties are unhealthy. If only LKY had backed out from the govt 10 years ago, life will go on as per normal with or without him when his time is up. Now the suspense is just beginning. Nothing is settled until the so called fat lady sings.

First break into the world of free speech

Not bad for a first appearance at Hong Lim Park by TOC and a spectator size of 150. TOC reported the number to be 150 to 200. Whatever, I would not call it a crowd. But given the high cost of public transport, it is lucky they got the number. They should get a better crowd on a weekday lunch time when the office workers are around. But the midday heat may be too much heat for the speakers and spectators. This is a first for a civil group to stage a mini rally in a public place and the first for them to do so without needing a police permit. It is also a first for the main media to give them a bit of publicity with a generous photo showing a speaker and 10 spectators. Everything starts with a small step.