Monthly Archives: January 2012

吉祥的预兆！希望国泰民安，风调雨顺

 

  Alex Yam

 
昨天傍晚下了场倾盆大雨，大伙儿在滨海湾浮动舞台为春到河畔亮灯仪式做最后准备，一时之间措手不及。但大家还是并肩工作，守住岗位。就在总理莅临之前，天上出现了两道彩虹，就如双龙在天，把乌云给撇开，亮出灿烂光彩。真是吉祥的预兆！希望国泰民安，风调雨顺，跟今晚一样，无论面对任何挑战都会雨过天晴！
 
 

Your View on the Parliament debate on political salaries

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  • With hindsight, the WP was caught between a rock and a hard place. Even as they agree with the review committee’s 3 principles and cannot deny that the committee’s recommendations are a step in the right direction and better than the existing ministerial pay structure, they couldn’t vote yes. If they did, they can never make ministers’ pay an issue again and would lose considerable credibility and political support from its base.

    So despite the fact that their figures are in the same ballpark and that their ‘original’ proposal are substantially similar to the review committee’s recommendation, they had no choice but to oppose which is essentially saying they prefer the older higher ministers’ pay and are against the drastic cuts recommended by the committee.

    As for the shifting of their stand towards something similar to that adopted by the PAP all along, I wonder if it could be a strategy to impress by showing that they too could come up with constructive solutions and not just criticisms. If it was, they were let down by their preparations and implementation or perhaps the committee did such a fine job that it was a tall order for anyone to come up with something significantly better within such a short time.

 

  • Laying the strategic web of drawing them to commit that they ought to submit feedback to the review committee. Insisting that the common folks wished to see them participating seriously for the betterment of Singapore….
    Followed by getting them to slip arrogantly into declaring their proposal which allowed holes to be “punched” did most of the damages.
    Yes assisted by their inexperience in crisis moments of those challenges.
    They were not well prepared this time

 

  • during GE..the WPs proclaimed their manifesto..with their main emphasis on First World Parliament…well we are viewing this live……people will judge this accordingly…if WP can raised the standard and proved what a First World Parliament is all about..then kudos to them..it can only be good to the people in general and the PAP as well because they too have to raise their standard…we the people deserved the best…thats why i told all my friends who are confused about this Ministerial salary debate…the money is inconsequential…it’s the quality that counts..and it has to keep on improving..

 

  • It is bad enough that they are always clamouring for more transparency and disclosure and yet ‘not privy’ to public information, it is worse to base their entire proposal on something that they don’t understand. They think that packaging the proposal with ‘non-elitist’, ‘bottom-up’, ‘general wage level’ and other nice sounding terms is enough to pull it off.

    When an MP contradicts himself and/or his comrades, it is like shouting an open invitation to members on the other side of the house “Please shoot me!” PAP MPs are human too, how many can resist such a tempting offer.

 

  • Learn from Chen Show Mao’s innuendo laden speech “a man who is not here to join us today” wow sounded like the guy was dead… Oh its George Yeo… remind (govt) that he won and to rub their noses in it. In this way it sounds like si bei cool and the common man has no idea how loaded the words are. If you use simple direct method of speech then everyone will say you attack only. Play with the words so that even if you throw a knife it looks like you offer a flower.

    My thoughts about Chen Show Mao exactly. When he pronounced that political office is primarily a privilege and calling and not a sacrifice and a burden, to some people it sounded so noble but to those that empathise with those holding political office and their families, it is really a knife disguised as a flower. To belittle and to trivialise the sacrifice of those that stepped forward to serve the nation is a mean and cruel act and only serves as an obstacle to others who may be considering to serve the country. To downplay the burden of political office is to flagrantly ignore the challenges that Singapore faces and the immense responsibility on the shoulders of our ministers.

    It is heartening to know that there are others who are also aware that hidden beneath Chen Show Mao’s flowery rhetoric is a bed of sharp knives.

 

  • This is a debate..WP ask for First World Parliament and we expect first class debate…why penalised the PAP MPs for rebutting their points…I don’t witness or personal condemnation against their party members but rather a robust healthy debate which the WP cannot handle…that’s all… 

 

  • For them to base mp pay to mx 9 of 11k, to be in this level of govt service, they have any idea how these govt officers work? When do proposals they really have to cover all their backsides n get all their facts right, else they will be grilled. I expect nothing less from MPs.

 

  • the writers should have praised the MPs for their abilities to take on the WPs on what is considered to be a difficult position for the Government, instead they look for faults…

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Workers’ Party’s “First World Parliament” – Ministerial Salary Debate 2012 – The Real Thing Is…

 

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the link for the full article :

http://therealthingis.wordpress.com/2012/01/20/workers-partys-first-world-parliament-ministerial-salary-debate-2012/

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Slow growth comes with its own perils – by Ng Ya Ken

 

Source :
http://heresthenews.blogspot.com/2012/01/slow-growth-comes-with-its-own-perils.html

SOME experts have opined that slow growth may not be bad, especially if it allows the Government to tackle some of the nation’s woes (‘The slow and steady way to grow’; Dec 16).

However, a drop in economic growth from 6 per cent to 3 per cent or 4 per cent would mean zero or negative growth for many companies. Employees of these companies may suffer a pay freeze or retrenchment.

Low growth would cause a multiplier effect in subsequent years. Future investments may be put on hold or trimmed.

When growth slows, there would be less government revenue for welfare services or for subsidising workers’ training. One economist said some Western countries grow only at around 2 per cent and yet have good welfare systems. We can have that too, but are we prepared to pay higher taxes?

Also, unlike those countries, we have no natural resources.

A labour leader said that when the economy slows down, workers would have more time to go for training. If the setback the companies face is not a temporary one, would the companies still sponsor the training, and what purpose would the training serve?

An economist said that slow growth may not be bad if it helps narrow the wage gap. A manager with a $10,000 salary, who used to get a $500 salary increase, may now get only $200 because of the slowdown. But the tea lady who earns $800 is unlikely to get a similar increase. The income gap would still widen but perhaps at a slower pace.

Another expert opined that inflationary pressures could ease with slower growth. But when our economy slows down, our export earnings would drop and our exchange rate would suffer, causing imported goods to be dearer. The relationship between growth and inflation is not that straightforward.

It is unrealistic to expect the high growth of 8 per cent to 10 per cent to repeat in the future. On the other hand, slow growth of 3 per cent or lower over the long term would bring about new problems and constraints.

The most serious consequence is: Singapore would slowly lose its international standing and attractiveness as a modern city.

It would be a grave mistake if we voluntarily opted for slow growth when other regional cities might be striving for a growth of 8 per cent or higher. We could lag behind them, but must not be too far off.

Ng Ya Ken

Ben Bernanke spoke on the Economics of Happiness too.  While GDP isn’t everything, like money it may not buy you happiness, but it helps.

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Mosque: We tried to help man who stole $32 (There’s always the story from the other side )

 

JAILED FOR STEALING FROM DONATION BOX
Mosque: We tried to help man who stole $32
Efforts over 3 years futile as recalcitrant ‘refused to turn over new leaf’

By Tham Yuen-C, The Straits Times, 21 Jan 2012 ****************************************************************************************

THE man who was jailed a year for stealing $32 from a donation box at a mosque was a recalcitrant it had tried to help for years – without success.

Darussalam Mosque issued a statement yesterday to explain why Noraizam Abdullah was turned over to the police for what seemed a minor theft.

The 40-year-old told the court on Thursday he was jobless when he stole the money on Dec 11 last year to buy food for himself and his wheelchair-bound mother.

Although Noraizam was considered suitable for harsher punishments because of his past offences, District Judge Siva Shanmugam gave him an ordinary jail sentence. He said he had taken into consideration the amount of money he stole, and the fact that it was used to buy food.

Noraizam also said in court that he had gone to the mosque to seek financial help but was unsuccessful.

The mosque has a different account of what happened:

Noraizam first went to the mosque, in Commonwealth Avenue West, in 2008. Claiming to be jobless and homeless, he asked for a job and a place to sleep at night. He also said he used to live with his sister, but was chased out after a family dispute.

‘He did not reveal any information about his mother or her well-being,’ said the mosque. ‘Out of compassion and goodwill, the mosque took care of him and provided some interim financial assistance.’

Its staff found him jobs, but he never lasted long and went missing from work all the time, said the statement.

Eventually, he was offered a job as an assistant caretaker of the mosque, and was supposed to take over the chores when the main caretaker fell ill.

If Noraizam appreciated the help, he did not demonstrate it through his actions, said the mosque.

On several occasions, he threatened colleagues, hurling vulgarities at them and acting aggressively. Although he received food, lodging and pocket money from the mosque, he continued to ask the staff and congregants for money.

‘Darussalam Mosque had continually tried our best to help Noraizam Abdullah on many occasions over the past three years… encouraged him to leave his negative ways and turn over a new leaf,’said the mosque in its statement.

When these repeated attempts failed, and Noraizam stole again by forcing open the lock on the donation box, the mosque decided to make a police report.

It was the best course of action for him, and it was necessary to ‘protect the safety of the mosque staff and congregants’, the mosque said.

Noraizam has been jailed six times for theft since 1997. This includes being sentenced to five years of corrective training in 2002.

Before he stole the $32, he also approached the South West Community Development Council (CDC) for help, said a spokesman for the Ministry of Community Development, Youth and Sports.

In September and October last year, the CDC found him a job through its ComCare Work Support programme. By the time he was arrested for theft, he had already lost that job and was jobless. A ministry spokesman said it would work with the CDC to help Noraizam’s mother.

Meanwhile, employees from the mosque visited her home yesterday afternoon, but did not manage to meet her.

‘We are trying to establish if Noraizam’s mother is indeed in need of help, as he claimed. Should we find that she requires help, we would extend the necessary assistance,’ the mosque said.

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Your Voice :

  • many are quick to highlight & criticize the “lack of help” but people must learn to seek more info before shooting .
  • If people wld only bother to find out more about all these ‘poor destitues’ first before condemning any welfare org or the Govt.  I wonder how these same people wld feel if they were to donate money to people like Noraizam and find out they’ve been taken for a ride?

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Instilling values in our children – by MP Lawrence Wong


https://www.facebook.com/LawrenceWongST?sk=wall
 

Our education system and schools operate on the belief that every child is valuable and important. We believe that each child has intrinsic worth, and that he can learn and achieve.

Meanwhile values such as respect, care and harmony are emphasised to our students through the Character and Citizenship Education (CCE) curriculum. Schools reinforce the values through many programmes and activities that provide valuable learning experiences for their students. These include community service and joint activities among schools with different student profiles within a cluster or zone.

However, occasionally, the behaviours and actions of some individuals do not always live up to the beliefs that we wish to uphold. When this happens, the schools will take steps to correct them.

There was a recent letter by a JC student to the media comparing the facilities of ITE and JCs. The letter sparked a lively debate, with many Singaporeans coming forward to defend why ITE students deserved quality facilities. Subsequently, the JC student who wrote the letter issued an online letter expressing his sincere apology. The public reaction shows that many of our people share the value of respect and care for others. In particular, this episode highlights the importance of schools and community to continue working together to mould the character and values of our youths.

Shaping the values and attitudes of our young people is a collaborative effort and one that is always a work in progress. We will continue to work hard at educating our young to respect and value others.

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“Reflections on the Parliament debate on political salaries” by Minister Of State Lawrence Wong

 

Source :
http://www.pap.org.sg/articleview.php?id=8302&mode&cid=23&preview=1

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After three days of debate on salaries for political office holders and allowances for MPs, I learnt more than I ever expected. But I also walked away with some troubling questions.

Honesty or Hypocrisy?

     The independent committee chaired by Mr Gerard Ee upheld three principles for determining salaries of political office holders – competitively salary, ethos of sacrifice for public service, and ‘clean wage’. Both the PAP and WP agreed on these principles.

     But having accepted all three principles, the WP argued strongly that the committee should have listed “ethos of public service” before “competitive salaries” instead of after. So I was surprised when the WP’s alternative formula produced an answer quite similar to what the committee had recommended.

     The WP alleged that the proposal to peg salaries to the 1000 top income earners was “elitist”. They counter-proposed an alternative formula, tied to the MX9 Superscale grade, which they described as “whole of government, and people-up”. But the MX9 grade represents the top 1.2% of the civil service and is also competitively benchmarked to private sector salaries. And the WP multiplied the MX9 salary upwards to give the same salary level for ministers as proposed by the Committee, hence targeting the top income earners as well. So in substance, surely the WP’s alternative is just as “elitist”?

     The PAP was upfront about designing a system that would not make it even harder for capable and committed people to come forward to serve. The WP’s proposal was not so different from what Mr Gerard Ee’s committee had recommended, yet the WP MPs strenuously denied the similarity. I can’t help but wonder if the difference between the PAP and the WP is about honesty versus hypocrisy.

“Principled Approach” or “Political Opportunism”?

      The WP has for many years championed linking political salaries to the poor. In 2006, it proposed making ministerial salaries 100 times the salary of the bottom 20%. In its GE2011 manifesto, the WP declared that ministers? pay should be “benchmarked internationally against the political office of developed countries”. At election rallies, WP candidates used the “million-dollar salaries” of ministers to whip up emotions against the government.

      After the election in Parliament, the WP proposed paying ministers around $1 million per annum. This is exactly what the WP had attacked so fiercely in the general election. I looked forward to hearing the WP MPs explain why they had changed their stand, a change which I considered a step forward. But unfortunately they never mentioned their past positions, much less explain their policy reversal. Mr Gerald Giam even claimed that this had been the WP position in the GE. Party leaders Mr Low Thia Khiang and Ms Sylvia Lim remained silent throughout.

       It is honourable and logical to change one’s position as circumstances change, and new information becomes available. I hope that is why WP has changed its position on ministerial salaries. But when political parties and their leaders change positions, they have a responsibility to explain to the public. This is what it means to be accountable and transparent. Otherwise, how can voters be sure what to make of their future election promises and manifestos?

“Due Diligence” or “Gross Negligence”?

      The WP MPs claimed that its benchmark, based on the MX9 salary grade, was representative of the general wage level of Singaporeans. When queried, they admitted that they did not know only very few senior civil servants were at this grade. I found it disturbing that the WP had based its whole proposal on a salary benchmark that it was not familiar with, and furthermore, made sweeping inaccurate statements about what this benchmark represented.

       Basic research from easily available public information would have shown that the MX9 salary does not represent the typical wage level of Singaporeans. I believe this is the basic level of care and due diligence that responsible parliamentarians ought to demonstrate.

Towards a First World Parliament?

        Many had hoped for a first world parliament after GE2011. The last three days of debate show that we still have quite some way to go. It is not always easy or popular to take an honest and principled approach. But Singaporeans expect no less, both from the ruling party and the opposition.  

 

Lawrence Wong
Chairman, Publicity and Publication Sub-Committee
PAP HQ Exco
20 January 2011

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China’s Parallel Universe – by Mr George Yeo and Mr Eric X. Li

 


The Chinese government recently issued new rules to strengthen Internet regulations.  Most notable is the real-name requirement for micro-blog (Weibo) accounts – China’s equivalent of Twitter.  Some Weibo users have attested to an increase in government monitoring and self-censorship by hosting companies.  Many are decrying this as China’s further violation of freedom of expression.  The reality is far more complicated.

More than a decade ago, when China’s Internet was in its infancy with a few million users, the government made it clear that it would exercise political oversight on the nascent cyberspace while allowing it to grow.  Many experts then predicted that such efforts were doomed to fail.  The Internet, they said, was to be a brave new world that could not be controlled.  There were only two possible outcomes:  A freely expanding Internet beyond the reach of political authority and subverting it, or an Internet stifled by government control and unable to realize its social and economic benefits.   Rupert Murdoch famously proclaimed that advances in communications technology posed an “unambiguous threat to totalitarian regimes everywhere.”

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the link to read the full article :

https://www.facebook.com/notes/george-yeo/chinas-parallel-universe-published-in-scmp-lhzb-st-huffington-post/10150494495428616

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Look at Singapore system: Boediono

 

The Straits Times, 20 Jan 2012

Look at Singapore system: Boediono
Indonesian Vice-President says public officials should be paid adequately to fight graft

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JAKARTA: The ongoing issue of how much Singapore’s ministers are paid is being discussed in Indonesia as well.

Indonesian Vice-President Boediono yesterday told ministers and provincial leaders from across Indonesia at the government’s workplan meeting for the year, that public officials should be paid well so that they will not be corrupt and can focus on serving the people well.

Dr Boediono, a respected economist, said he had heard Singapore Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong’s recent speech in Parliament on the debate over ministerial pay cuts, and felt several points were worth repeating.

He told his audience he was citing Mr Lee’s speech to emphasise the importance of good governance to a country’s success, adding that Singapore’s tremendous growth was due to the good intentions of its office-holders, who were of high calibre.

‘Office-holders are the key to the country’s success. He (Mr Lee) said in terms of remuneration, office-holders should be adequately paid in the true sense of the word,’ Dr Boediono said.

The Vice-President told his audience how Mr Lee said office-holders ought to be paid sufficiently, that many were recruited from outside the public service, and that they accepted the decision to serve not just because of salaries, because they could command higher pay outside.

‘In short, they joined the government not to seek more money, but because they have the intention of contributing to the country. But of course, the pay has to be enough so there is no temptation to do what is not right,’ he said. ‘(And) if you want to get rich, don’t join the government.’

Addressing hundreds of Indonesian ministers, police chiefs, regional commanders and legislative councillors in Central Jakarta, the Vice-President said: ‘We should strive for this mindset and system. We should rival a country which has a good system in place.

We should carry out bureaucratic reforms as best as we can.’

Adequate salaries, said Dr Boediono, can prevent corruption among public officials.
‘If a doctor is incompetent, the patient will die. If company officials are incompetent, the company will go bankrupt. If public officials are incompetent, the general public will lose out,’ he said.

The high salaries that Singapore ministers are paid have attracted attention worldwide.

This week, Singapore’s Parliament held a three-day debate on the issue. It ended with the House endorsing a review committee’s recommendation to cut ministers’ pay by about a third. With the revision, the benchmark salary for a minister is $1.1 million.

The Singapore system is different from that in other countries because ministers’ compensation is pegged to that of top private-sector earners. Unlike other countries, Singapore also practises a clean wage system, which means ministers do not receive any additional allowances or hidden perks. Their salaries are also subject to tax.

In his speech in Parliament, Mr Lee also said that several foreign leaders had said in private that they wished they could follow Singapore’s approach to setting political salaries, but their politics did not allow it.

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