Full time MP not a good idea

A very strange article by Rachel Chang in yesterday’s ST made me wonder why she wrote it and what made her came to such a conclusion. At the end of her piece she finally said, ‘MPs here rarely draft laws, and the scrutiny process over government Bills is brief and uncomplex compared with other legislatures…no need to travel long distances to get back to their home constituencies from the capital, nor are they required to raise huge amounts of funds for political activities…’ She took note of the Meet the People Session and the increasing workload but not enough to justify full time MP.

There is also a lack of interest among MPs and potential MPs who are successful professionals to want to give up their profession to be full time MPs. The $16,000 is just not attractive enough for the big income earners to want to become full time MPs.

So, which is the more important justification to say that full time MP is not a good idea, not enough meaningful work or the income of professionals is too good to forgo? It is understandable that top income earners would have little inspiration to want to go into politics and to sacrifice their huge personal income. But this can be resolved in two ways, one, make them ministers or ministers of state when the multi million dollar package will be fairly compatible. The other golden goose that could be a good alternative is to allow them to take up as many directorships as they like. After all the workload of an MP does not need the attention of a full time MP. A caveat is that high earning professionals will make good MPs or even ministers. The reality has proven otherwise. Professionals with their hearts misplaced can caused more harm than good.

There are other views of why people want to become an MP. Some see it as a calling, to serve the people and country, and money is not the most important thing to them. A good example is Chen Show Mao. Some may have made enough bucks and would want to do something more meaningful than just trying to fatten their bank accounts for several generations to feed on.

Seriously, who gave Rachel Chang the idea that MP’s workload is nothing more than a part time job? Actually, an MP’s job can be a part time job and also a full time job. It depends on how much the person is willing to put himself into the affairs of the state and the welfare of the people. If an MP thinks his job is to just spend a little time to meet the people, have a few walkabouts, shake a few hands and kiss a few babies, and suka suka attend a few parliamentary sessions since they are not much legislative work to do except to vote yes or no, then it is indeed a part time job. A machine could do just as fine and cheaper for sure. A machine also does not have a heart.

On the other hand an MP could be so involved in the affairs of the state and the people that there is just not enough time even for a full time MP. It is relative and how one looks at the MP job and how important is his role to better the lives of the people in his constituency and across the nation. Voting in parliament without having to think does not need much time, just 30 seconds to raise the hand.

In a way, a PM or a Minister too can be a part time job. But some will need 25 hours a day to do his job well, or still cannot do his job well. And there are MPs that are so free or so efficient that they can take on as many directorships as they like, advisory roles and full time jobs and still got time to spare to play golf or engage in their favourite past times.

What do you think, MP should be part time or full time?

Kopi level - Yellow

MOM hiring Indian agency to check on CVs and certifications

Dataflow Services has been engaged by the MOM to do random checks on the certificates of Indian professionals working here. About 500 to 600 checks will be conducted annually at $100, and each search must be completed within 4 weeks. With about 200,000 Indian PMEs here, at 500 a year, a complete inventory checks, assuming no more new PMEs arriving, it would take about 400 years to do the job. Maybe Dataflow is not the only agency doing the job. Also maybe a sample check will do as not the whole 200,000 PMEs will be submitting fake qualifications and CVs.

And of course the cost to conduct such investigations is going to be a multi million dollar business with such a high volume of traffic. It becomes a case of want to do or not wanting to do and how much to spend to be effective. What is certain is that hiring foreigners is not going to be a cheaper option anymore. This hidden cost, other than other social and security cost, and the cost of making fools of local PMEs and making them jobless and affecting the soundness of our society, all added up to make this option not that simple or desirable. The best way out is to pretend that everything is ok, don’t check and bury the head in the sand.

How effective will this move be, it is something that has to be done, when the employment of foreigners has become a highly complicated system of fraud with many layers of supporting services to hide the fraud? The problem is so complex that it would need a whole series of counter measures to remove all the fakes that have gone pass our immigration doors. It is becoming a spy vs spy or spooks vs spooks game. And many of the fakes have been so deeply buried that by now they would have chalked in a series of genuine CVs that they could erase their fake CVs of the past. It is like a successful and rich criminal walking around in suits and being driven around in limousines without a trace of their dirty past lingering around them.

We have let this problem to fester for too long and the damage done is so serious and damaging to the citizen PMEs and even the lives of the innocents who have to go under the hands of the fakes. It really beats me to think that it takes so long to realise that we have been cheated by lowly 3^rd cheats. And now the problem has grown so huge that it will literally take hundreds of man years to unravel the mistakes of the past.

There may be a new profession, something like who is to check on the watchdogs assigned or paid to be watchdogs?

The big bangs that went poofs

There were several big bangs that were supposed to cause a big excitement or causes for jubilation. The first was the attack on the WP in the cleaning of hawker centre ceilings. If the accusations stick, it will definitely undermine the credibility of the rising political star party. Unfortunately the story had to come to a premature ending when some notes in the minutes were not in order. Nothing was heard since then.

Next came the PAP’s end of the year party caucus that was meant to be a battle cry, to raise the tempo ahead of the next GE. The young turks led by Chan Chun Sing declared that the party would take the fight to the people, to every corner of the island, to win the right to be the ruling party again. Again things did not go that way when the whole campaign was hijacked or thrown aside by the once in 50 year unexpected riot in Little India. That event shook the very core of the social fabric and got everyone’s attention. The pronouncement at the party caucus became a non event, forgotten, pissssed.

More bangs were lined up but fizzled out along the way. The Media Corp big bang at the Marina Bay year end celebration was meant to be another big PR event on how far and how successful we have been. It suffered the fate of another failed event when it was attacked for having too many Channel 8 artistes present and the use of Mandarin in a Channel 5 event even though Mandarin is an official language. It just did not go down well with the Channel 5 viewers and ended with many excuses and damage control measures.

A big party was also arranged in the 8^th Wonder of the World, though a miniature one in the form of the most expensive stretch of expressway cutting under the sea. It was touted as a great engineering feat and architectural wonder only to be bashed by the most massive traffic congestion the next morning. A great PR event, never mind the money spent, to create free flow of traffic ended with a 3 hour traffic jam and many angry motorists paying to be in the jam. No more harping about how great it was meant to be.

There are several other big bangs that were worth crowing about but faded into oblivion. Just to mention another piece, the wonder Jewel to be built at Changi Airport, touted as a game changer with a billion dollar price tag to propel Changi as the choice destination for air travelers was shot down by many quarters for a failed concept. A weak attempt to deflect the negative comments soon faded away as well.

These big bang potential events marked the closing chapter of 2013 and the new chapter of 2014. The big bangs went poof. Nothing much to cheer about or to jump in joy.

The latest follow-ups, the farmer festival in Little India, yesterday’s Thaipusam and the coming Chinese New Year could bring a little joy and normalcy back to a city trying to celebrate and party the whole year round, signs of more good years and more good times. A nation in perpetual celebration and joy.

Kopi level - Green

Anarchy in Thailand

In Sin City, anyone heard mumbling about burning or beating up an MP would see the law coming down on him fast. No one can simply harass or threaten an MP by words or actions and get away with it.

In Bangkok, the protesters openly announced that they will arrest or kidnap not only the Prime Ministers but also all the ministers. And nothing can be done about it. The protesters are now acting like they are above the law or there is no law. Some are throwing bombs at politician’s houses and some taking pot shots at protesters and killing them and nothing happened to them.

What is happening in Bangkok is that the PM is not allowed to act or cannot act, for any action against the protesters will lead to violence and the army will just step in to remove the PM and the govt. Not doing anything by the govt will also give the army the excuse to do a coup anytime it sees fit that the govt is hapless and ineffective.

It is a strange mind game with the chess players playing behind the scene. The game is played by very powerful forces and calling on all the tricks in statecraft and treachery to outdo the opponent. The devil or the angel is now so well disguised and distorted that no one really knows what is real. How long would Bangkok remain lawless, with no govt? How long will Yingluck’s govt last?

The game plan of the army is quite clear, waiting to take over in a coup for any misstep of inaction by the govt.

What is the game plan of the Yingluck govt? She can be arrested or force to flee anytime. She is now even under investigation for corruption on her rice programme for the poor farmers. When that happens, it is likely that the army will take over. When that happens, the Red Shirts would likely to flood the streets of Bangkok. Another possibility is for the Red Shirts to abandon Bangkok and declare a breakaway with a new independent state in the North and North East.

When this happens, the likelihood of a civil war is very high unless the military is also divided and both sides agree on a truce and a parting of the country into two states. And there is also a likelihood that amidst the chaos, the southern muslim states would also want to break away and form their own state.

Is the army strong enough, united enough, to hold Thailand together? Is the military, the combined arms, willing to take the same path or they are all having different dreams?

The accusation of Yingluck’s govt as being incorrigibly corrupt is gaining momentum. The support and turnout of the Red Shirts would tell if they believe what the Bangkok power elite are claiming or they believe that the Yingluck govt is there to uplift the life of the poor farmers. Which truth will survive?

Whither Thailand?

The latest bombing of the protesters is forcing the hands of the army. It is unlikely that the Yingluck govt will want this to happen to bring to its downfall. It is unlikely that the police that support the govt will be the culprit to do the govt in. The evidence, unfortunately is that the police or the anti protesters are behind the bombing, to provide the reasons to bring down the govt. 

False flag theory anyone?

Lucasfilm’s crazy gambit

When George Lucas decided to plant his Asia regional HQ in Singapore, many thought he was crazy, maybe just as crazy as Sheldon Adelson of Marina Bay Sands. In the latter, with so many strings attached against gambling and a govt of priests and priestesses, how could a casino make money here? And as for Lucasfilm, a country that is so uptight and hell bent on media control and so stifling for creativity, how could Lucasfilm make any headway with a population of proverbial nerds?
 
The success of Lucasfilm here with its signature seven storey complex called Sandcrawler speaks for itself. There is no lack of creativity, and real talents are allowed to shine in their fields of expertise. George Lucas has no regrets and full of praises on his new ship here.
 
This is the kind of industry that the govt should be encouraging, creative, innovative, high tech and high value add. Not those cheap and low cost set up with low tech, low skill, low talent, and those labour intensive cheap labour sweatshops found in some of the business and industrial parks here.
 
We have a good place, good environment and infrastructure for the world’s best companies to operate here. I won’t add good talents since our talents are called daft and need to be replaced by 3rd World talents.
 
We don’t have to sell ourselves cheap, like Geylang prostitutes, selling to 3rd World fake talents and low skilled and cheap labour intensive shops. We must know our real worth and market our facilities to quality companies around the world. We should not go for quantity and turn our island into another 3rd World slum.
 
Lucasfilm can provide the necessary pivot for us to move into higher gear and higher value add industries. We may failed to be the Silicon Valley, but we can be a digital media valley supporting the film industry. Let’s have more of such businesses here, let’s welcome them and not the scums and low value shops and waste our valuable land and to crowd our city with undesirables. We need to reinvent ourselves up the high tech world and get out from our reliance on cheap 3rd world factories and sweat shops. If not will may spiral downwards to become the next call centre in the region.

Fare hike, no point crying over spilt milk

The fare hike came as they intended and planned for. You can expect the same of 6.9m. No amount of natcon or kpkb will change anything or change their minds. They are the masters and they shall decide what is best for the people. No matter what is being said or how much is being said, nothing will change until the next GE when they will be crying and begging for forgiveness.
 
Today they are in charge and the logic is their logic. What they think is logic, what they think is good, must be logical, good and the best. Period. It is the logic of power.
 
The fare hike is adding another $53.5 m profit to the transport companies. What was the profit last year and how much more will it be with this $53.5 m? Why is a monopoly public transport system be guaranteed of profits, handsome profits every year, and still be given a cash grant of more than a billion to buy new fleet of buses, put aside the increasing frequency of disruption? Why can’t the transport companies be run on more or less a breakeven basis or smaller profit margin? Why can’t the MRT raise its revenue from its retail rental and other businesses rather than squeezing more money from the commuters, many of whom are not the filthy rich, some scrimping for a living?
 
Why are there now more differentiation of price mechanism and season cards? Why are they still feeding on the students and seniors that are mostly non income earners?
For so many years, with so many models to pick from, why are these ideas not thought of? The answers are obvious. They did not send overseas missions to study their systems.
 
Would they really refine their thinking of what a public transport system’s main mission is? Would they ever think of not making money from those that are not economically productive or living on handouts or charity from parents or from children’s generosity?
I think they are more concern with helping people to buy the latest sports cars to test the road system. No use kpkb. Nothing will be heard. Natcon, listening to the people? Tan ku ku.
 
Wait till nearer the GE and maybe there will be some pretensions of wanting to listen to the people.

PS. Kopi level - Green

Spending OPM is so easy

Singapore would be spending more than $2b to upgrade the fleet of F16s in service now. With better avionics and weapons system, would the upgraded F16s be good enough to stand in for the trouble stricken F35s until they are proven to be as good as they are made out to be? Or would this $2b plus be on top of the several billions earmarked for the f35s? It would definitely be a nice fit to have the most expensive fighter aircraft on earth to match the most expensive salaries of the ministers.
 
Sure it is no problem when a fake garden cost easily just as much and a 5km expressway cost more than double the amount. It is chicken feat. And if money not enough, the citizens are always there happy to contribute to the kitty. A lot of money in the CPF, really, no joke, just spend.
 
Why would not Singapore consider the Russian MiGs and Sukhois that have proven to be as good, or even better than the trouble infested F35s? The Russians not willing to sell? Or there is no choice and we must give the money to the Americans? Or we are just a part of the American pivot strategy and must operate the same aircraft to fit into their game plan? If this is the case, shouldn’t the Americans be subsidizing the cost of our aircraft as they are the one getting a free ride from us, a safe and dependable base and probably with our flyboys at their disposals?
 
Are the F15s, F18s, F22s, all inferior to the Russian fighters? If so, why not buy Russians? Would the $2b plus allow us to buy brand new Russian fighter aircraft that are superior to the F16s and the whole lot of American aircraft? Would it be better to have another brand new top of the range Russian fighter aircraft and diversified our defence needs to more than just one source?

It is easy to demand the best when it is not your money you are spending. What if the best is not the best and why pay so much for something that is not the best?