PM on Facebook: 29,200 'likes'... and counting
Apr 22, 2012
A day after its launch that saw thousands of netizens clicking on the thumbs-up icon in support, Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong's Facebook page continued to draw 'likes' on Saturday.
By midnight, the number of 'likes' had crossed 29,200, doubling what he had on Day 1.
His Twitter account, set up at the same time, had more than 7,100 followers.
PM Lee also showed a determination to stay active online: Late last night, he posted messages on Facebook and Twitter, describing what he had done in the evening. 'Just returned from AMK (Ang Mo Kio). Was at a Welcome Party at Teck Ghee Vista, and an MUP (Main Upgrading Programme) Completion at Teck Ghee Grandeur,' he wrote on Facebook. He then went on to talk a bit more about what happened.
I can't believe the main stream media persistence on this piece of news.
I been seeing this old news for at least 2 days, updating the readers how many followers and likers Hsien Loong has.
I wonder how many the 3 legs from the grass roots?
Ok ok we all know Hsien Loong has his own Facebook page and Twitter account and many many people “Like” him.
My point is “SO WHAT”?
So what if you have 1 millions Likes on you Facebook and 2 millions followers in Twitter?
Just do your job properly and engage the citizens, listen and try to do some good for the nation. Then people will definitely LIKE you for who you are and not some virtual Likes in a virtual space.
Monday, April 23, 2012
Tuesday, April 10, 2012
Paying millions for idiots.
Breakdown unavoidable on heavily utilised train system
Ministry of Transport will try to minimise disruptions as much as possible. -myp
Tue, Apr 10, 2012
Disruptions on a heavily utilised rail system such as Singapore's are unavoidable, but breakdowns longer than 30 minutes are considered major disruptions, said Transport Minister Lui Tuck Yew in Parliament yesterday.
He said the Ministry of Transport "will try and minimise as much as possible the major disruptions and to keep them in check".
But with an average of 2.7 million passenger trips daily and thousands of train trips in more than 18 hours a day, "there is no way you can prevent disruptions from occurring".
He was responding to Member of Parliament for Nee Soon GRC Lee Bee Wah's queries on whether more can be done to address the spate of breakdowns.
"If they do take place, you then have an incident-management plan in place that will try to ameliorate the effects on commuters," he added.
Mr Lui also gave details of the resources spent by transport operator SBS Transit on preventive maintenance of the rail track and tunnel of the North-East Line (NEL).
He said it spent about $16 million from 2007 to last year in this area, adding that it was "a fraction of the total maintenance cost that they spent" on the line.
The operator, which has an in-house team of about 470 maintenance staff, also conducts regular inspections in accordance with approved maintenance plans, he said.
This includes a monthly deployment of an engineering vehicle to detect track faults, six-monthly tunnel inspections to check for cracks and leaks, as well as nightly checks to look for signs of defects or wear and tear.
On March 15, some 90,000 commuters were affected by a disruption on the NEL, which lasted some 10 hours. It was the biggest train disruption here since two major incidents on SMRT's North-South Line on Dec 15 and 17 last year.
Mr Lui said he has asked the Land Transport Authority (LTA) to work with the operators to put in place a "condition- monitoring regime" to give a better idea of how to prioritise some of the maintenance efforts needed.
Mr Lui also addressed the issue of employing foreign bus drivers. He was referring to a recent accident in Sengkang, where an SBS Transit bus driven by a foreign driver killed a 66-year-old woman.
While everyone is "saddened" by the incident, Mr Lui stressed that regardless of nationality, it is crucial that every driver is adequately trained and appropriately qualified.
"Especially if they come from abroad, then (they should be) given the kind of orientation that will help them familiarise themselves with the peculiarities of the system here in Singapore," he said.
In the public-bus sector, about 61 per cent of drivers are Singaporeans and permanent residents, about 26 per cent are Malaysians and about 12 to 13 per cent are from China.
Mr Lui added that the training of foreign drivers should include infusing them with the responsibility that they carry and to make sure that they operate their vehicles in a safe manner.
While the two public-bus operators will need to hire about 1,600 more drivers for the additional 800 buses in five years, Mr Lui said the Government will not micro-manage their wages and employment terms.
The LTA is also exploring the use of buses from private bus companies to supplement the public-bus fleet, he noted.
But there are constraints as private operators are trying to maximise the utilisation of their fleet, and are also needed to ferry workers and students during the peak hours, he said.
He added that the current system of rotating an average of two drivers to operate every bus through the course of a day was adequate.
Mr Lui said: "There's the morning peak as well as the evening peak and, in between, some of the drivers will then get to rest in the interchanges."
Now you have a million dollar Minister telling you that it is acceptable for train to break down. This is like throwing in the towel before the match even start.
Terrible mentality I wonder what kind of “quality” people Hsien Loong select to be Minister.
Meanwhile in Tokyo, it is UNACCEPTABLE for any break down.
Say you pay for a cheap “Guess” watch, I believe it is acceptable if it breaks down 10 years later. But if you spent a premium on a Rolex, I will expect it to be working 50years later with proper maintenance.
We now have the most expensive cabinet in the world telling us that too bad you have accept these failures.
Crab.
Then change a cheaper person to run the show or cut the cost of transport then maybe we can accept some sort of disruption.
Running an efficient transport is possible it is just a matter of will and the resource you are willing to pour in.
If we have money minded Minister and Transport operator, do you think their priority is the commuters or bottom line?
The answer is obvious.
Ministry of Transport will try to minimise disruptions as much as possible. -myp
Tue, Apr 10, 2012
Disruptions on a heavily utilised rail system such as Singapore's are unavoidable, but breakdowns longer than 30 minutes are considered major disruptions, said Transport Minister Lui Tuck Yew in Parliament yesterday.
He said the Ministry of Transport "will try and minimise as much as possible the major disruptions and to keep them in check".
But with an average of 2.7 million passenger trips daily and thousands of train trips in more than 18 hours a day, "there is no way you can prevent disruptions from occurring".
He was responding to Member of Parliament for Nee Soon GRC Lee Bee Wah's queries on whether more can be done to address the spate of breakdowns.
"If they do take place, you then have an incident-management plan in place that will try to ameliorate the effects on commuters," he added.
Mr Lui also gave details of the resources spent by transport operator SBS Transit on preventive maintenance of the rail track and tunnel of the North-East Line (NEL).
He said it spent about $16 million from 2007 to last year in this area, adding that it was "a fraction of the total maintenance cost that they spent" on the line.
The operator, which has an in-house team of about 470 maintenance staff, also conducts regular inspections in accordance with approved maintenance plans, he said.
This includes a monthly deployment of an engineering vehicle to detect track faults, six-monthly tunnel inspections to check for cracks and leaks, as well as nightly checks to look for signs of defects or wear and tear.
On March 15, some 90,000 commuters were affected by a disruption on the NEL, which lasted some 10 hours. It was the biggest train disruption here since two major incidents on SMRT's North-South Line on Dec 15 and 17 last year.
Mr Lui said he has asked the Land Transport Authority (LTA) to work with the operators to put in place a "condition- monitoring regime" to give a better idea of how to prioritise some of the maintenance efforts needed.
Mr Lui also addressed the issue of employing foreign bus drivers. He was referring to a recent accident in Sengkang, where an SBS Transit bus driven by a foreign driver killed a 66-year-old woman.
While everyone is "saddened" by the incident, Mr Lui stressed that regardless of nationality, it is crucial that every driver is adequately trained and appropriately qualified.
"Especially if they come from abroad, then (they should be) given the kind of orientation that will help them familiarise themselves with the peculiarities of the system here in Singapore," he said.
In the public-bus sector, about 61 per cent of drivers are Singaporeans and permanent residents, about 26 per cent are Malaysians and about 12 to 13 per cent are from China.
Mr Lui added that the training of foreign drivers should include infusing them with the responsibility that they carry and to make sure that they operate their vehicles in a safe manner.
While the two public-bus operators will need to hire about 1,600 more drivers for the additional 800 buses in five years, Mr Lui said the Government will not micro-manage their wages and employment terms.
The LTA is also exploring the use of buses from private bus companies to supplement the public-bus fleet, he noted.
But there are constraints as private operators are trying to maximise the utilisation of their fleet, and are also needed to ferry workers and students during the peak hours, he said.
He added that the current system of rotating an average of two drivers to operate every bus through the course of a day was adequate.
Mr Lui said: "There's the morning peak as well as the evening peak and, in between, some of the drivers will then get to rest in the interchanges."
Now you have a million dollar Minister telling you that it is acceptable for train to break down. This is like throwing in the towel before the match even start.
Terrible mentality I wonder what kind of “quality” people Hsien Loong select to be Minister.
Meanwhile in Tokyo, it is UNACCEPTABLE for any break down.
Say you pay for a cheap “Guess” watch, I believe it is acceptable if it breaks down 10 years later. But if you spent a premium on a Rolex, I will expect it to be working 50years later with proper maintenance.
We now have the most expensive cabinet in the world telling us that too bad you have accept these failures.
Crab.
Then change a cheaper person to run the show or cut the cost of transport then maybe we can accept some sort of disruption.
Running an efficient transport is possible it is just a matter of will and the resource you are willing to pour in.
If we have money minded Minister and Transport operator, do you think their priority is the commuters or bottom line?
The answer is obvious.
Monday, April 09, 2012
W are foreigner in our own country.
We deserve red card for expat package, says StarHub
Euro 2012 goodies now for first 2,000 who sign up for promotion, not just European fans here
ST Online 09 Apr
StarHub on Sunday apologised for running an expatriates-only football promotion that offered gifts worth $50.
In an attempt to placate angry Singaporean fans, the firm announced that the first 2,000 people of any nationality who sign up for the Uefa Euro 2012 television package will now receive the goodies. They include a travel bag, a mug, a portable fan and a six-can cooler bag.
The promotion, which started at the beginning of this month, was initially targeted at fans from England, France, Germany, the Netherlands and Spain. It was marketed directly to them through their clubs and association publications.
On Sunday, StarHub told The Straits Times it apologised for any ill feelings that might have been caused.
In the first place who ever in Starhub that think of this idea should be sacked.
Now can you blame the expatriate in Singapore behave like a ya-ya-papaya when Singapore companies are blatantly sucking up to them.
Note they can even jump bailed and ran away after beating up some poor Singaporean.
I think Singapore is the only county in the world who treats foreigner better then its Citizen. They got free scholarship, tax benefit and even good cable packages.
Sad.
Euro 2012 goodies now for first 2,000 who sign up for promotion, not just European fans here
ST Online 09 Apr
StarHub on Sunday apologised for running an expatriates-only football promotion that offered gifts worth $50.
In an attempt to placate angry Singaporean fans, the firm announced that the first 2,000 people of any nationality who sign up for the Uefa Euro 2012 television package will now receive the goodies. They include a travel bag, a mug, a portable fan and a six-can cooler bag.
The promotion, which started at the beginning of this month, was initially targeted at fans from England, France, Germany, the Netherlands and Spain. It was marketed directly to them through their clubs and association publications.
On Sunday, StarHub told The Straits Times it apologised for any ill feelings that might have been caused.
In the first place who ever in Starhub that think of this idea should be sacked.
Now can you blame the expatriate in Singapore behave like a ya-ya-papaya when Singapore companies are blatantly sucking up to them.
Note they can even jump bailed and ran away after beating up some poor Singaporean.
I think Singapore is the only county in the world who treats foreigner better then its Citizen. They got free scholarship, tax benefit and even good cable packages.
Sad.
Monday, March 19, 2012
Who they trying to kid this time.
No one will be denied medical treatment: Gan
He pledges to keep costs manageable
ST Online 19 Mar 2012
The Government intends to keep health-care costs manageable and nobody in need will be denied medical treatment, Health Minister Gan Kim Yong said on Sunday.
His pledge, coming after his ministry announced plans recently to double its yearly health-care spending to $8 billion over the next five years, was made at a dialogue in which participants continued to express worries about health care.
Among other things, they cited their concerns over rising subsidised consultation fees at public hospitals and the prices of quality medicine.
Mr Gan said that Singaporeans can expect health-care costs to keep rising, especially if patients want better outcomes from newer technology.
No one will be denied, yes but Kim Yong did not say how much will there charge you? Nor what kind of service they are going to give you.
Also he did not mention how long will you have to wait for your treatment at public hospital? In fact I think they hope you will die first so they don’t have to treat you but hey they DID NOT deny you treatment you just die while waiting for it.
To me this is just another story the Elites came up to pacify the peasants.
For years we are facing with rising medical cost and shortage of class C hospital beds. Why? Because our medical system has turns into a profit making one.
Yes Kim Yong may be right that no one will be denied medical treatment but he did not mention what kind of treatment you will be receiving and how long you need to wait to be treated and what is the cost.
In Singapore the more you pay the faster and better service you get and if you are the Elite you can jolly well afford to go to a private hospital and get your heart by-pass done the next day while the men on the street has to wait 4 hours at the polyclinics just to get to see a doctor.
In fact Kim Young is telling you directly that you have to pay more to get good service in the above articles
Don’t give me crap that this cannot be done, I personally experience cheap, good, efficient treatment in Taiwan and to be honest I was pleasantly surprised.
He pledges to keep costs manageable
ST Online 19 Mar 2012
The Government intends to keep health-care costs manageable and nobody in need will be denied medical treatment, Health Minister Gan Kim Yong said on Sunday.
His pledge, coming after his ministry announced plans recently to double its yearly health-care spending to $8 billion over the next five years, was made at a dialogue in which participants continued to express worries about health care.
Among other things, they cited their concerns over rising subsidised consultation fees at public hospitals and the prices of quality medicine.
Mr Gan said that Singaporeans can expect health-care costs to keep rising, especially if patients want better outcomes from newer technology.
No one will be denied, yes but Kim Yong did not say how much will there charge you? Nor what kind of service they are going to give you.
Also he did not mention how long will you have to wait for your treatment at public hospital? In fact I think they hope you will die first so they don’t have to treat you but hey they DID NOT deny you treatment you just die while waiting for it.
To me this is just another story the Elites came up to pacify the peasants.
For years we are facing with rising medical cost and shortage of class C hospital beds. Why? Because our medical system has turns into a profit making one.
Yes Kim Yong may be right that no one will be denied medical treatment but he did not mention what kind of treatment you will be receiving and how long you need to wait to be treated and what is the cost.
In Singapore the more you pay the faster and better service you get and if you are the Elite you can jolly well afford to go to a private hospital and get your heart by-pass done the next day while the men on the street has to wait 4 hours at the polyclinics just to get to see a doctor.
In fact Kim Young is telling you directly that you have to pay more to get good service in the above articles
Don’t give me crap that this cannot be done, I personally experience cheap, good, efficient treatment in Taiwan and to be honest I was pleasantly surprised.
Friday, March 16, 2012
Myopic tunnel vision by these idiots.
Disruption seemed to be better managed, says Minister Lui
Mar 16, 2012
Compared to the train service breakdowns in December last year, yesterday's North East Line (NEL) disruption - which was due to faults discovered before the train services began - seemed to be better managed, said Transport Minister Lui Tuck Yew.
SBS Transit's larger fleet of buses, which could be activated to ferry affected customers, and the smaller number of stations involved helped alleviate the situation, said Mr Lui.
So did the lessons learnt from the disruptions on the North South Line - operated by SMRT - on Dec 15 and 17 last year, which resulted in the two train operators working closer together.
"Even if there's a situation that affects lines run by SMRT ... we could see an improvement on the situation compared to the past," said Mr Lui, who was speaking to reporters outside Dhoby Ghaut MRT Station (picture) where he was assessing the situation.
There were announcements informing commuters about the disruption, unlike in December when announcements were made only on the affected lines, he noted. Since then, SMRT and SBS Transit have also come together to allow free travel on bus services that serve affected MRT stations during a disruption, in addition to the bus bridging services.
During yesterday's disruption, commuters could travel on SBS Transit's 124 or SMRT's 190 services for free - but commuters were generally unaware of this, Mr Lui said. "We need to do a better job to make sure that people know that there are other services that are also free," he said.
Mr Lui pledged that the authorities and the operators would carry out a thorough check on the entire NEL for symptoms "that may point towards other problematic areas along the line".
But he added: "The feedback and the update that I have gotten from my people in the operation centre is that they believe that it is confined only to the stretch between Outram and HarbourFront."
I think Tuck Yew is missing the point.
Yes there is definitely an improvement the ways the transport operator handle this incident but the question is, WHY IS THERE A DISRUPTION IN THE FIRST PLACE?
Now MRT disruption seen to be a norm these days and SBS Transit and SMRT must explain why this is so.
Lack of maintenance? Cost cutting? Lousy design?
Is there anymore underlying problem that are waiting to disrupt the system and are all angles covered to prevent future disruptions?
To me all these checks should have been done long ago when the first disruption happened. I guess they are still trying to save on the maintenance, worst still they don’t know what underlying problems are there in the system.
This is what you get for putting “yes man” who only care about profit as CEOs.
Tuck Yew is going to F them for giving him bad publicity now.
Mar 16, 2012
Compared to the train service breakdowns in December last year, yesterday's North East Line (NEL) disruption - which was due to faults discovered before the train services began - seemed to be better managed, said Transport Minister Lui Tuck Yew.
SBS Transit's larger fleet of buses, which could be activated to ferry affected customers, and the smaller number of stations involved helped alleviate the situation, said Mr Lui.
So did the lessons learnt from the disruptions on the North South Line - operated by SMRT - on Dec 15 and 17 last year, which resulted in the two train operators working closer together.
"Even if there's a situation that affects lines run by SMRT ... we could see an improvement on the situation compared to the past," said Mr Lui, who was speaking to reporters outside Dhoby Ghaut MRT Station (picture) where he was assessing the situation.
There were announcements informing commuters about the disruption, unlike in December when announcements were made only on the affected lines, he noted. Since then, SMRT and SBS Transit have also come together to allow free travel on bus services that serve affected MRT stations during a disruption, in addition to the bus bridging services.
During yesterday's disruption, commuters could travel on SBS Transit's 124 or SMRT's 190 services for free - but commuters were generally unaware of this, Mr Lui said. "We need to do a better job to make sure that people know that there are other services that are also free," he said.
Mr Lui pledged that the authorities and the operators would carry out a thorough check on the entire NEL for symptoms "that may point towards other problematic areas along the line".
But he added: "The feedback and the update that I have gotten from my people in the operation centre is that they believe that it is confined only to the stretch between Outram and HarbourFront."
I think Tuck Yew is missing the point.
Yes there is definitely an improvement the ways the transport operator handle this incident but the question is, WHY IS THERE A DISRUPTION IN THE FIRST PLACE?
Now MRT disruption seen to be a norm these days and SBS Transit and SMRT must explain why this is so.
Lack of maintenance? Cost cutting? Lousy design?
Is there anymore underlying problem that are waiting to disrupt the system and are all angles covered to prevent future disruptions?
To me all these checks should have been done long ago when the first disruption happened. I guess they are still trying to save on the maintenance, worst still they don’t know what underlying problems are there in the system.
This is what you get for putting “yes man” who only care about profit as CEOs.
Tuck Yew is going to F them for giving him bad publicity now.
Thursday, March 08, 2012
No public transport fare adjustments this year BUT......
No public transport fare adjustments this year
07 March 2012
SINGAPORE: There will be no public transport fare adjustments this year as the fare formula undergoes a review, says Transport Minister Lui Tuck Yew.
And where bus services are concerned, commuters can expect significant improvements by end-2014, as capacity is ramped up with the government-initiated S$1.1 billion Bus Services Enhancement Programme (BSEP).
Public transport operators will also be subjected to higher service levels than those meted out by the Public Transport Council (PTC).
Speaking in Parliament on Wednesday, Mr Lui said the current public transport fare formula is due for review this year for implementation in 2013.
And while the review is ongoing, there should not be a rush to implement this year's fare adjustments.
He said this is even though the public transport operators are facing significant cost pressures, especially on their bus operations.
Minister Lui said he had discussed the matter with PTC chairman Gerard Ee, who agreed to suspend this year's fare adjustment exercise.
Instead, the new fare formula, which will be ready in 2013, could take into consideration the fact that fare adjustments were not made in 2012.
Mr Lui said he intends to appoint PTC member Richard Magnus to head the committee for the fare formula review.
Mr Lui said that Mr Magnus, having joined the PTC recently, will bring a new pair of eyes and a fresh mind to the task.
The fare review committee will seek views widely, study the possible options and propose improvements to the framework for the review exercise.
Minister Lui said the outcome of the review should be a framework that continues to achieve a good balance between affordable public transport fares and sustainable public transport operations and which continues to ensure productivity and efficiency.
The committee will complete its work within a year.
Meanwhile, public transport fare concessions will not be extended to the disabled and polytechnic students just yet. This is because there will be no fare adjustment this year, said Minister Lui.
Alex Yam, MP for Chua Chu Kang GRC, said: "The explanation that polytechnic students are tertiary ones have been oft-quoted and used. However, this perceived issue of semantics and of administrative pegging has been hardly palatable for many. As more and more of our students aim for poly education, their choice in education should not become an inequitable one when it comes to transport fares."
Mr Lui replied: "Now that senior citizens have been granted their full-day concessions, the next groups that I am sympathetic to are the disabled and polytechnic students. However, I urge Members to be patient as not all of these requests can be addressed immediately or entirely within a single fare revision exercise."
Concession hours for senior citizens were extended as part of the 2011 fare revision exercise.
Mr Lui also revealed that a survey conducted by SIM University (UniSIM) in October 2011 had shown that the overall satisfaction with public transport services fell slightly from a year ago, with the decline in satisfaction levels for bus services being more significant.
But commuters can soon expect improvements.
There will be more buses on the roads. Over the next five years, operators will pump in 250 buses while the government will fund 550. Overall, 70 percent of the 800 buses will be added over the first three years.
Mr Lui said: "It will take some time for the new buses to arrive, for supporting infrastructure like bus depots and bus parks to be built, and more importantly, for the PTOs (public transport operators) to aggressively ramp up their recruitment of bus drivers. By the end of 2014, with 70% of these new buses in operation, there will be tangible and significant improvements across the bus network."
Of the 550 new buses the government will pay to add, about 300 will go towards reducing crowding and improving the frequencies of existing bus services, while 250 will be for new bus routes.
Operators will also be expected to deliver higher service levels, beyond the current Quality of Service (QoS) standards required by the PTC.
Firstly, operators would have to ensure buses are less crowded during peak hours. Minister Lui elaborated: "The PTOs (public transport operators) will be required to reduce the loading levels for all basic bus services from the current 95% to 85%.
"Commuters can expect about 10% more capacity along the more crowded stretches of bus routes during peak hours. With more buses injected to spread the load, bus frequencies will also go up. Overall, this will mean shorter waiting times for commuters during peak hours, a higher likelihood of getting onto the first arriving bus, and a more comfortable ride."
Secondly, the PTOs will have to improve the peak-hour frequencies of feeder bus services. 95 percent of all feeder services must operate within 10-minute scheduled intervals or better and the remaining 5 percent, within 15-minute intervals compared to the current 30 minutes.
These must be sustained over two hours during the morning and evening peaks.
Thirdly, the PTOs must improve the frequencies of trunk routes.
While the focus in the initial years will be to improve service levels for existing bus services, commuters can also expect better connectivity.
40 new bus routes will be progressively added over the next five years, typically in new towns like Sengkang, Punggol and Yishun.
The new routes are also expected to enhance local connectivity in towns.
There will also be eight more parallel bus routes running along MRT lines and expressways to connect major towns to the city centre. Six have been identified so far.
Minister Lui also said his ministry will look into what more can be done to make MRT stations and major bus nodes more accessible for the elderly and disabled.
He said construction works for lifts at pedestrian overhead bridges next to six MRT stations will be completed by the end of next year.
The stations are Aljunied, Bishan, Khatib, Kranji, Sengkang and Yew Tee.
Hurray? Nah not from the Men In Whites.
In the first place why the used fare adjustment and not fare increase? I never see the fare go down anyway.
What they are trying to con us is that they already raised the fare for buses and train and taxi last year so this year there will no more fare adjustment. Not even downward.
And please note that the new formula will kick in in 2013 and therefore I am pretty sure they WILL be a significant fare increase.
In fact there should be a fare reduction due to the poor performance of SMRT and SBS.
The Minister himself also said that there will be only significant improvements by end-2014, so shouldn’t the fare be freeze or reduced till then?
Why the poor commuters has to face fare increase for the same old lousy services while the gahment are pumping in tax payer’s money to help these profit making companies?
And I am pretty sure there will be another big increase in 2014 because that is 2 years before the election in 2016 and people will tend to forget things that happened 2 years ago.
So people do be careful what the government is trying to tell you especially when they are saying half truths.
07 March 2012
SINGAPORE: There will be no public transport fare adjustments this year as the fare formula undergoes a review, says Transport Minister Lui Tuck Yew.
And where bus services are concerned, commuters can expect significant improvements by end-2014, as capacity is ramped up with the government-initiated S$1.1 billion Bus Services Enhancement Programme (BSEP).
Public transport operators will also be subjected to higher service levels than those meted out by the Public Transport Council (PTC).
Speaking in Parliament on Wednesday, Mr Lui said the current public transport fare formula is due for review this year for implementation in 2013.
And while the review is ongoing, there should not be a rush to implement this year's fare adjustments.
He said this is even though the public transport operators are facing significant cost pressures, especially on their bus operations.
Minister Lui said he had discussed the matter with PTC chairman Gerard Ee, who agreed to suspend this year's fare adjustment exercise.
Instead, the new fare formula, which will be ready in 2013, could take into consideration the fact that fare adjustments were not made in 2012.
Mr Lui said he intends to appoint PTC member Richard Magnus to head the committee for the fare formula review.
Mr Lui said that Mr Magnus, having joined the PTC recently, will bring a new pair of eyes and a fresh mind to the task.
The fare review committee will seek views widely, study the possible options and propose improvements to the framework for the review exercise.
Minister Lui said the outcome of the review should be a framework that continues to achieve a good balance between affordable public transport fares and sustainable public transport operations and which continues to ensure productivity and efficiency.
The committee will complete its work within a year.
Meanwhile, public transport fare concessions will not be extended to the disabled and polytechnic students just yet. This is because there will be no fare adjustment this year, said Minister Lui.
Alex Yam, MP for Chua Chu Kang GRC, said: "The explanation that polytechnic students are tertiary ones have been oft-quoted and used. However, this perceived issue of semantics and of administrative pegging has been hardly palatable for many. As more and more of our students aim for poly education, their choice in education should not become an inequitable one when it comes to transport fares."
Mr Lui replied: "Now that senior citizens have been granted their full-day concessions, the next groups that I am sympathetic to are the disabled and polytechnic students. However, I urge Members to be patient as not all of these requests can be addressed immediately or entirely within a single fare revision exercise."
Concession hours for senior citizens were extended as part of the 2011 fare revision exercise.
Mr Lui also revealed that a survey conducted by SIM University (UniSIM) in October 2011 had shown that the overall satisfaction with public transport services fell slightly from a year ago, with the decline in satisfaction levels for bus services being more significant.
But commuters can soon expect improvements.
There will be more buses on the roads. Over the next five years, operators will pump in 250 buses while the government will fund 550. Overall, 70 percent of the 800 buses will be added over the first three years.
Mr Lui said: "It will take some time for the new buses to arrive, for supporting infrastructure like bus depots and bus parks to be built, and more importantly, for the PTOs (public transport operators) to aggressively ramp up their recruitment of bus drivers. By the end of 2014, with 70% of these new buses in operation, there will be tangible and significant improvements across the bus network."
Of the 550 new buses the government will pay to add, about 300 will go towards reducing crowding and improving the frequencies of existing bus services, while 250 will be for new bus routes.
Operators will also be expected to deliver higher service levels, beyond the current Quality of Service (QoS) standards required by the PTC.
Firstly, operators would have to ensure buses are less crowded during peak hours. Minister Lui elaborated: "The PTOs (public transport operators) will be required to reduce the loading levels for all basic bus services from the current 95% to 85%.
"Commuters can expect about 10% more capacity along the more crowded stretches of bus routes during peak hours. With more buses injected to spread the load, bus frequencies will also go up. Overall, this will mean shorter waiting times for commuters during peak hours, a higher likelihood of getting onto the first arriving bus, and a more comfortable ride."
Secondly, the PTOs will have to improve the peak-hour frequencies of feeder bus services. 95 percent of all feeder services must operate within 10-minute scheduled intervals or better and the remaining 5 percent, within 15-minute intervals compared to the current 30 minutes.
These must be sustained over two hours during the morning and evening peaks.
Thirdly, the PTOs must improve the frequencies of trunk routes.
While the focus in the initial years will be to improve service levels for existing bus services, commuters can also expect better connectivity.
40 new bus routes will be progressively added over the next five years, typically in new towns like Sengkang, Punggol and Yishun.
The new routes are also expected to enhance local connectivity in towns.
There will also be eight more parallel bus routes running along MRT lines and expressways to connect major towns to the city centre. Six have been identified so far.
Minister Lui also said his ministry will look into what more can be done to make MRT stations and major bus nodes more accessible for the elderly and disabled.
He said construction works for lifts at pedestrian overhead bridges next to six MRT stations will be completed by the end of next year.
The stations are Aljunied, Bishan, Khatib, Kranji, Sengkang and Yew Tee.
Hurray? Nah not from the Men In Whites.
In the first place why the used fare adjustment and not fare increase? I never see the fare go down anyway.
What they are trying to con us is that they already raised the fare for buses and train and taxi last year so this year there will no more fare adjustment. Not even downward.
And please note that the new formula will kick in in 2013 and therefore I am pretty sure they WILL be a significant fare increase.
In fact there should be a fare reduction due to the poor performance of SMRT and SBS.
The Minister himself also said that there will be only significant improvements by end-2014, so shouldn’t the fare be freeze or reduced till then?
Why the poor commuters has to face fare increase for the same old lousy services while the gahment are pumping in tax payer’s money to help these profit making companies?
And I am pretty sure there will be another big increase in 2014 because that is 2 years before the election in 2016 and people will tend to forget things that happened 2 years ago.
So people do be careful what the government is trying to tell you especially when they are saying half truths.
Friday, March 02, 2012
More stupid speech by Men In White
DPM Tharman outlines strategies to tackle inequality among citizens
01 March 2012
SINGAPORE: Deputy Prime Minister Tharman Shanmugaratnam on Thursday outlined four strategies in Parliament to tackle the issue of inequality among citizens.
The first strategy is to grow the economy, so as to raise income levels across all segments.
The second strategy aims to preserve and enhance social mobility starting from young.
Another strategy is to encourage a partnership with the community through voluntary welfare organisations and community development councils and lastly, to redistribute wealth among Singaporeans.
Mr Tharman said: "We will have to redistribute through a fair system of fares and tax benefits to provide significant benefits for the low-income group to keep up and upgrade, but avoid placing excessive burden on the middle income group. (This system) is there in all our budgets, including this year's budget."
As for the low income, Deputy Prime Minister Tharman Shanmugaratnam said there are already schemes in place to help them.
These include the Workfare and Comcare schemes as well as the enhanced housing subsidies.
Mr Tharman said these are major interventions made in the last five years and these measures are not new.
"What do taxes mean, and what do transfers and benefits mean over a lifetime for a low-income household? If you add it all up together, you'll find that for every dollar that a low-income household pays in taxes, they get back S$4 in benefits from workfare, housing benefits, healthcare benefits to education subsidies. This is a simple expression of how progressive our system is. Everyone pays some taxes because everyone should contribute to a better Singapore. But the low-income group gets back much more in benefits to support work, education and housing.
"In the last five years, the transfers we've provided to the lower income group, net of the taxes they pay, which is basically GST, and transfers net of taxes amounted to almost 20 per cent of their incomes. It is a significant increase from the previous five years. So, we've moved significantly in the last five years through a range of interventions towards addressing the issue of inequality and building an inclusive society. This is not new. This is not post-GE 2011."
But Mr Tharman added that benefits and transfers given to the low income must not end up as disincentives.
MPs like Mr Ang Hin Kee and Mr Edwin Tong had raised concerns about making sure Singapore does not end up a welfare state.
Mr Tharman agreed, saying that the government should be careful when it comes to giving out benefits.
He said the government has to be focused in its intervention strategies and these include addressing social mobility at the early stage and helping the lowest wage workers.
He said: "There are incentives effects if you provide too much benefit when your incomes are low. It is the natural workings of society. It's not that people are trying to gain on the system. It is natural human behaviour that you have an incentive to stay where you are and not upgrade or you will start losing your benefits. Every society has found this to be a problem.
"As you expand benefits, more people try to stay within the group that gets the benefits instead of upgrading beyond that threshold. We got to be quite careful, and preserve that drive to do better, learn a new skill and move your family up because that drive at every level of society defines us. It's not just the most talented people or the most educated that have this drive. It is actually that drive among ordinary Singaporeans that defines us. Let's not lose that and this means being focused in our interventions as we go ahead."
While extending benefits to those who need it, Mr Tharman was also cautious about suggestions to extend the Special Employment Credit scheme (SEC) to more groups.
These include homemakers, ex-offenders and single mothers.
Though he said Dr Lily Neo's suggestion to extend the SEC to those who did not attend special education schools would be addressed by the Ministry of Community Development, Youth and Sports in their Committee of Supply debate.
Mr Tharman said: "The SEC is a major intervention in the job market. Not everyone faces the same disadvantage because some homemakers move in and out of work and they're not necessarily at a disadvantage when they come back. I would be very careful about extending what is considered a major intervention, in favour of older workers to more and more groups."
Moving on to the middle income group, Mr Tharman said one strategy is to raise the real incomes of the sandwich class.
This, he said, will help them cope with the cost of living.
He shared that median households in Singapore have seen healthy income growth over the past five years, at an average of 3.2 per cent per year, in real terms.
"This 3.2 per cent growth is frankly quite rare over the last five years. In Hong Kong and Taiwan, it was negative over the last five years for median income growth in real terms. There was positive growth in South Korea but it was lower than us. Most developed countries had significantly lower median income growth over the last five years so we haven't done badly."
Another strategy to help the middle-income group is to keep taxes low.
Mr Tharman said this is a very important feature of Singapore's tax system, which is lower than most developed countries.
He gave the example of how a middle-income family which owns a car gets about 80 cents back for every dollar in taxes they pay.
And the benefits are more for those who don't own a car.
Mr Tharman said: "If you don't own a car, even as a middle income Singaporean, you get back $1.50 for every $1 tax you pay over your lifetime. There are very few systems that provide this. And for those who want to have a car for the convenience because they have a large family or with elderly persons who need ferrying around, it's still a very fair system. There are very few systems where for every $1 of tax you pay, you get 80 cents back over your lifetime for the average household."
Its pretty ironic for a million dollar Minister to talk about income equality isn’t it?
These idiots in the cabinet are quite good at making things super complex and trying to sell shit to you as goodies all just to maintain there own millions dollar pay checks.
To hell with all the schemes.
All they have to do is to do away with GST for basic necessity, reduce the cost of public transports and public housing, make utilities more affordable and have a better health care service.
This is all it takes to make Singapore a better place to live in.
And if a certain MP, who stupidly drank water from the water tank with the dead maid, is to ask where to get the money.
You just cut the bloody pay for the Ministers and MPs and increase the tax for the bloody top 10% earner in the country. These people have enough money to last 3 life times while some Singaporeans are starving to death.
This alone make me sick to the core.
01 March 2012
SINGAPORE: Deputy Prime Minister Tharman Shanmugaratnam on Thursday outlined four strategies in Parliament to tackle the issue of inequality among citizens.
The first strategy is to grow the economy, so as to raise income levels across all segments.
The second strategy aims to preserve and enhance social mobility starting from young.
Another strategy is to encourage a partnership with the community through voluntary welfare organisations and community development councils and lastly, to redistribute wealth among Singaporeans.
Mr Tharman said: "We will have to redistribute through a fair system of fares and tax benefits to provide significant benefits for the low-income group to keep up and upgrade, but avoid placing excessive burden on the middle income group. (This system) is there in all our budgets, including this year's budget."
As for the low income, Deputy Prime Minister Tharman Shanmugaratnam said there are already schemes in place to help them.
These include the Workfare and Comcare schemes as well as the enhanced housing subsidies.
Mr Tharman said these are major interventions made in the last five years and these measures are not new.
"What do taxes mean, and what do transfers and benefits mean over a lifetime for a low-income household? If you add it all up together, you'll find that for every dollar that a low-income household pays in taxes, they get back S$4 in benefits from workfare, housing benefits, healthcare benefits to education subsidies. This is a simple expression of how progressive our system is. Everyone pays some taxes because everyone should contribute to a better Singapore. But the low-income group gets back much more in benefits to support work, education and housing.
"In the last five years, the transfers we've provided to the lower income group, net of the taxes they pay, which is basically GST, and transfers net of taxes amounted to almost 20 per cent of their incomes. It is a significant increase from the previous five years. So, we've moved significantly in the last five years through a range of interventions towards addressing the issue of inequality and building an inclusive society. This is not new. This is not post-GE 2011."
But Mr Tharman added that benefits and transfers given to the low income must not end up as disincentives.
MPs like Mr Ang Hin Kee and Mr Edwin Tong had raised concerns about making sure Singapore does not end up a welfare state.
Mr Tharman agreed, saying that the government should be careful when it comes to giving out benefits.
He said the government has to be focused in its intervention strategies and these include addressing social mobility at the early stage and helping the lowest wage workers.
He said: "There are incentives effects if you provide too much benefit when your incomes are low. It is the natural workings of society. It's not that people are trying to gain on the system. It is natural human behaviour that you have an incentive to stay where you are and not upgrade or you will start losing your benefits. Every society has found this to be a problem.
"As you expand benefits, more people try to stay within the group that gets the benefits instead of upgrading beyond that threshold. We got to be quite careful, and preserve that drive to do better, learn a new skill and move your family up because that drive at every level of society defines us. It's not just the most talented people or the most educated that have this drive. It is actually that drive among ordinary Singaporeans that defines us. Let's not lose that and this means being focused in our interventions as we go ahead."
While extending benefits to those who need it, Mr Tharman was also cautious about suggestions to extend the Special Employment Credit scheme (SEC) to more groups.
These include homemakers, ex-offenders and single mothers.
Though he said Dr Lily Neo's suggestion to extend the SEC to those who did not attend special education schools would be addressed by the Ministry of Community Development, Youth and Sports in their Committee of Supply debate.
Mr Tharman said: "The SEC is a major intervention in the job market. Not everyone faces the same disadvantage because some homemakers move in and out of work and they're not necessarily at a disadvantage when they come back. I would be very careful about extending what is considered a major intervention, in favour of older workers to more and more groups."
Moving on to the middle income group, Mr Tharman said one strategy is to raise the real incomes of the sandwich class.
This, he said, will help them cope with the cost of living.
He shared that median households in Singapore have seen healthy income growth over the past five years, at an average of 3.2 per cent per year, in real terms.
"This 3.2 per cent growth is frankly quite rare over the last five years. In Hong Kong and Taiwan, it was negative over the last five years for median income growth in real terms. There was positive growth in South Korea but it was lower than us. Most developed countries had significantly lower median income growth over the last five years so we haven't done badly."
Another strategy to help the middle-income group is to keep taxes low.
Mr Tharman said this is a very important feature of Singapore's tax system, which is lower than most developed countries.
He gave the example of how a middle-income family which owns a car gets about 80 cents back for every dollar in taxes they pay.
And the benefits are more for those who don't own a car.
Mr Tharman said: "If you don't own a car, even as a middle income Singaporean, you get back $1.50 for every $1 tax you pay over your lifetime. There are very few systems that provide this. And for those who want to have a car for the convenience because they have a large family or with elderly persons who need ferrying around, it's still a very fair system. There are very few systems where for every $1 of tax you pay, you get 80 cents back over your lifetime for the average household."
Its pretty ironic for a million dollar Minister to talk about income equality isn’t it?
These idiots in the cabinet are quite good at making things super complex and trying to sell shit to you as goodies all just to maintain there own millions dollar pay checks.
To hell with all the schemes.
All they have to do is to do away with GST for basic necessity, reduce the cost of public transports and public housing, make utilities more affordable and have a better health care service.
This is all it takes to make Singapore a better place to live in.
And if a certain MP, who stupidly drank water from the water tank with the dead maid, is to ask where to get the money.
You just cut the bloody pay for the Ministers and MPs and increase the tax for the bloody top 10% earner in the country. These people have enough money to last 3 life times while some Singaporeans are starving to death.
This alone make me sick to the core.
Monday, February 20, 2012
Bye By-Election
The value of a by-election
20 February 2012 CNA
SINGAPORE: If Parliament eventually determines that the Hougang seat has been vacated with the expulsion of Mr Yaw Shin Leong from the Workers' Party (WP), the spotlight will shift to Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong.
Under the Parliamentary Elections Act, the President issues an election writ stipulating when a by-election is to be held. But it is the Prime Minister who so advises the President.
When asked last Wednesday, PM Lee said he would consider carefully "whether and when to hold a by-election in Hougang". This appears to suggest that a by-election need not be held in Hougang.
There is no obligation under the Constitution to hold a by-election within a specific time-frame. In 2008, PM Lee told Parliament that the timing of one "is the prerogative of the PM. He has full discretion and he is not obliged to call a by-election within any fixed timeline".
While the Prime Minister has the prerogative on the timing, I would argue that this does not extend to his having an unfettered discretion to delay the calling of a by-election indefinitely. In most instances, it has to be called within a reasonable time, or certainly without an inordinate delay. In short, the "default" position should be that a by-election should be automatic, although there is no hard and fast rule on the timing.
GOVT SHOULD STATE REASONS
There may be three reasons why a by-election may not be called. This could be when an MP switches political party, or when Parliament's term is coming to a close within the next 12 to 18 months, or if there is a national crisis. None of them is pertinent at this point in time.
By-elections have been called in the past even though the General Election had taken place recently. For instance, by-elections in 1967, 1968, 1977, 1981 and 1992 were called between six and 16 months prior to or after a General Election in 1968, 1976, 1980 and 1991.
Delaying the calling of a by-election to the point of not calling it would, in my view, not be in accord with the duty of due process. It would, arguably, constitute an exercise of discretion for which a legal challenge can be mounted. The fact that the Constitution is silent on when a by-election should be called does not mean one need not be called.
In any case, if the Government decides to delay or not to hold a by-election in Hougang, the Government should state its reasons.
In November 1987, the Government explained why a by-election was not conducted in both Anson and Geylang West: It was contemplating introducing a Bill to form town councils in which some boundaries might be re-delineated, including the vacated seats of Anson and Geylang West. (Eventually, the GE was held on Sept 3, 1988.)
STAND-IN MP NOT THE SAME
There are still more than four-and-a-half years to the life of the current Parliament. Hougang voters should not be deprived of having their elected representative in the House. Although the WP's five MPs in the adjacent Aljunied GRC can cover Hougang, that is not ideal. Let Hougang residents decide how they would like to hold the WP to account in light of the recent events.
PM Lee hinted at one consideration which he will take into account: "There are many other issues on the national agenda right now." Granted.
But will a by-election involving only about 25,000 voters be a massive distraction nationally?
Of course, some Hougang voters and Singaporeans generally may choose to view the by-election not just as a localised matter but a referendum on the PAP Government's performance since May 2011. This should not stand in the way of holding a by-election.
More importantly, the cardinal principle of representation is crucial: A stand-in MP is not the same as an MP for whom the majority had voted. Not calling a by-election would undermine the importance of representation in our maturing parliamentary democracy.
Our electoral system must endeavour to be inclusive and representative in tandem with the growing democratic aspirations. Doing so can only increase Singaporeans' civic participation and ownership of governmental processes.
SHOULD WP FIELD NCMP?
Assuming a by-election is called, should the WP field in Hougang one of its two NCMPs?
It appears that an NCMP need not vacate his seat to contest in a by-election. Article 46(2A) of the Constitution provides that an NCMP shall vacate his seat "if he is subsequently elected as a Member of Parliament for any constituency". However, the law is not so clear on whether a vacated NCMP seat has to be filled.
Given the legal uncertainty, it may work better for the WP to field a candidate who is not in Parliament. Moreover, this would enable the WP, should it prove victorious in Hougang, to maintain its full complement of eight representatives in Parliament.
If a MP seat is vacated no matter what the reason may be there should be a by Election.
To me it should be even for a GRC as the MP need to serve his or her ward in the constituency and it is simply not right to ask other MPs in the same GRC to cover.
Also MP need to vote in the parliament and one absent vote could change a result of a bill. (Although I don’t see this in the near future in Singapore parliament).
I guess the strategy for PAP is to delay the by-election in Hougang for as long as possible.
Why?
I think because they are also surprised that WP had sacked Yaw and PAP is not prepared for a by election in Hougang.
The last PAP candidate for Hougang, Desmond was probably aiming to run in 4 years time and it totally unprepared. Also PAP doesn’t want to lose more face by losing Hougang again within 6 months.
One less Opposition MP in parliament is good for the incumbent as well as there in one less voice and one less vote against them.
Therefore personally I don’t think the by election will be happening any time soon.
20 February 2012 CNA
SINGAPORE: If Parliament eventually determines that the Hougang seat has been vacated with the expulsion of Mr Yaw Shin Leong from the Workers' Party (WP), the spotlight will shift to Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong.
Under the Parliamentary Elections Act, the President issues an election writ stipulating when a by-election is to be held. But it is the Prime Minister who so advises the President.
When asked last Wednesday, PM Lee said he would consider carefully "whether and when to hold a by-election in Hougang". This appears to suggest that a by-election need not be held in Hougang.
There is no obligation under the Constitution to hold a by-election within a specific time-frame. In 2008, PM Lee told Parliament that the timing of one "is the prerogative of the PM. He has full discretion and he is not obliged to call a by-election within any fixed timeline".
While the Prime Minister has the prerogative on the timing, I would argue that this does not extend to his having an unfettered discretion to delay the calling of a by-election indefinitely. In most instances, it has to be called within a reasonable time, or certainly without an inordinate delay. In short, the "default" position should be that a by-election should be automatic, although there is no hard and fast rule on the timing.
GOVT SHOULD STATE REASONS
There may be three reasons why a by-election may not be called. This could be when an MP switches political party, or when Parliament's term is coming to a close within the next 12 to 18 months, or if there is a national crisis. None of them is pertinent at this point in time.
By-elections have been called in the past even though the General Election had taken place recently. For instance, by-elections in 1967, 1968, 1977, 1981 and 1992 were called between six and 16 months prior to or after a General Election in 1968, 1976, 1980 and 1991.
Delaying the calling of a by-election to the point of not calling it would, in my view, not be in accord with the duty of due process. It would, arguably, constitute an exercise of discretion for which a legal challenge can be mounted. The fact that the Constitution is silent on when a by-election should be called does not mean one need not be called.
In any case, if the Government decides to delay or not to hold a by-election in Hougang, the Government should state its reasons.
In November 1987, the Government explained why a by-election was not conducted in both Anson and Geylang West: It was contemplating introducing a Bill to form town councils in which some boundaries might be re-delineated, including the vacated seats of Anson and Geylang West. (Eventually, the GE was held on Sept 3, 1988.)
STAND-IN MP NOT THE SAME
There are still more than four-and-a-half years to the life of the current Parliament. Hougang voters should not be deprived of having their elected representative in the House. Although the WP's five MPs in the adjacent Aljunied GRC can cover Hougang, that is not ideal. Let Hougang residents decide how they would like to hold the WP to account in light of the recent events.
PM Lee hinted at one consideration which he will take into account: "There are many other issues on the national agenda right now." Granted.
But will a by-election involving only about 25,000 voters be a massive distraction nationally?
Of course, some Hougang voters and Singaporeans generally may choose to view the by-election not just as a localised matter but a referendum on the PAP Government's performance since May 2011. This should not stand in the way of holding a by-election.
More importantly, the cardinal principle of representation is crucial: A stand-in MP is not the same as an MP for whom the majority had voted. Not calling a by-election would undermine the importance of representation in our maturing parliamentary democracy.
Our electoral system must endeavour to be inclusive and representative in tandem with the growing democratic aspirations. Doing so can only increase Singaporeans' civic participation and ownership of governmental processes.
SHOULD WP FIELD NCMP?
Assuming a by-election is called, should the WP field in Hougang one of its two NCMPs?
It appears that an NCMP need not vacate his seat to contest in a by-election. Article 46(2A) of the Constitution provides that an NCMP shall vacate his seat "if he is subsequently elected as a Member of Parliament for any constituency". However, the law is not so clear on whether a vacated NCMP seat has to be filled.
Given the legal uncertainty, it may work better for the WP to field a candidate who is not in Parliament. Moreover, this would enable the WP, should it prove victorious in Hougang, to maintain its full complement of eight representatives in Parliament.
If a MP seat is vacated no matter what the reason may be there should be a by Election.
To me it should be even for a GRC as the MP need to serve his or her ward in the constituency and it is simply not right to ask other MPs in the same GRC to cover.
Also MP need to vote in the parliament and one absent vote could change a result of a bill. (Although I don’t see this in the near future in Singapore parliament).
I guess the strategy for PAP is to delay the by-election in Hougang for as long as possible.
Why?
I think because they are also surprised that WP had sacked Yaw and PAP is not prepared for a by election in Hougang.
The last PAP candidate for Hougang, Desmond was probably aiming to run in 4 years time and it totally unprepared. Also PAP doesn’t want to lose more face by losing Hougang again within 6 months.
One less Opposition MP in parliament is good for the incumbent as well as there in one less voice and one less vote against them.
Therefore personally I don’t think the by election will be happening any time soon.
Thursday, January 19, 2012
The root of the problem had spoken
Lee Kuan Yew defends competitive ministerial salaries
18 January 2012
SINGAPORE: Singapore's former Minister Mentor Lee Kuan Yew has defended the need for a competitive ministerial pay to attract committed and capable people who will serve the country.
In a letter sent to the media on Wednesday after a parliamentary debate on political pay, Mr Lee, who had fought strongly for competitive political pay when he was in the Cabinet, noted how with a different generation, political attitudes change.
But he said unless Singapore has a steady stream of people to serve as ministers, Singapore as a little red dot will become a little black spot.
He pointed out that Singapore did not get from Third World to First by "head-hunting ministers willing to sacrifice their children's future when undertaking a public service duty."
He said the leadership took a "pragmatic course that does not require people of calibre to give up too much for the public good."
Mr Lee added that Singapore must not be reduced to another ordinary country in the Third World by dodging the issue of competitive ministerial remuneration.
Mr Lee said Singapore cannot underpay ministers and argues that their sole reward should be their contribution to public good.
"Every family wants to provide the best for their children, to go to a good university. We were pragmatic and also paid competitive salaries in order to have a continuous stream of high calibre people to become MPs, and then ministers. They put their careers at risk and undergo an uncertain and unpredictable election process," he said.
He pointed to the heavy responsibilities of ministers in making Singapore a success.
"A PM and his ministers carry heavy responsibilities for the nation. If they make a serious mistake, the damage to Singapore will be incalculable and permanent. Their macroeconomic policies will decide the GDP of the country, which was more than S$300 billion in 2010, with per capita GDP of S$59,000."
The MP for Tanjong Pagar had spoken.
MP Lee again rubbished that if Singapore don’t pay high salary to Ministers we will be reduced to another ordinary county in the third world….. HUH?
Yes I agreed that every man has to take care of his family and Ministers as well, they should be paid well so they can send their children to good university and get themselves a big houses and a few big cars.
But there is something not right if they are over paid!
With the current salaries, these jokers can send their next 5 generations to good universities and get each and every of their grand children a car and a house, all with tax payer money.
If each and every Minister is so important then they should stand for election on their own and not in GRCs. So if they screwed up we can removed them in the next elections.
Look at the standard of passed DPM Wong Kang Seng and Minister Mah.
They are hopeless but still got away with it.
PAP is made up of Elites for the Elites, they has lost connection with ordinary Singaporean long ago.
18 January 2012
SINGAPORE: Singapore's former Minister Mentor Lee Kuan Yew has defended the need for a competitive ministerial pay to attract committed and capable people who will serve the country.
In a letter sent to the media on Wednesday after a parliamentary debate on political pay, Mr Lee, who had fought strongly for competitive political pay when he was in the Cabinet, noted how with a different generation, political attitudes change.
But he said unless Singapore has a steady stream of people to serve as ministers, Singapore as a little red dot will become a little black spot.
He pointed out that Singapore did not get from Third World to First by "head-hunting ministers willing to sacrifice their children's future when undertaking a public service duty."
He said the leadership took a "pragmatic course that does not require people of calibre to give up too much for the public good."
Mr Lee added that Singapore must not be reduced to another ordinary country in the Third World by dodging the issue of competitive ministerial remuneration.
Mr Lee said Singapore cannot underpay ministers and argues that their sole reward should be their contribution to public good.
"Every family wants to provide the best for their children, to go to a good university. We were pragmatic and also paid competitive salaries in order to have a continuous stream of high calibre people to become MPs, and then ministers. They put their careers at risk and undergo an uncertain and unpredictable election process," he said.
He pointed to the heavy responsibilities of ministers in making Singapore a success.
"A PM and his ministers carry heavy responsibilities for the nation. If they make a serious mistake, the damage to Singapore will be incalculable and permanent. Their macroeconomic policies will decide the GDP of the country, which was more than S$300 billion in 2010, with per capita GDP of S$59,000."
The MP for Tanjong Pagar had spoken.
MP Lee again rubbished that if Singapore don’t pay high salary to Ministers we will be reduced to another ordinary county in the third world….. HUH?
Yes I agreed that every man has to take care of his family and Ministers as well, they should be paid well so they can send their children to good university and get themselves a big houses and a few big cars.
But there is something not right if they are over paid!
With the current salaries, these jokers can send their next 5 generations to good universities and get each and every of their grand children a car and a house, all with tax payer money.
If each and every Minister is so important then they should stand for election on their own and not in GRCs. So if they screwed up we can removed them in the next elections.
Look at the standard of passed DPM Wong Kang Seng and Minister Mah.
They are hopeless but still got away with it.
PAP is made up of Elites for the Elites, they has lost connection with ordinary Singaporean long ago.
Tuesday, January 17, 2012
There is no excuse for Greed.
Drawbacks on pegging ministers' pay to that of foreign leaders
Mr Teo pointed out the differences between Singapore and other countries in terms of size, make-up of population and philosophy of governance
Tue, Jan 17, 2012
my paper
There are drawbacks with the suggestion that ministers' salaries here should be benchmarked to those of foreign leaders, said Deputy Prime Minister Teo Chee Hean yesterday.
Mr Teo, who is also the Coordinating Minister for National Security and Minister for Home Affairs, said: "Political pay levels and structures based on domestic political considerations in one country may not correlate with the conditions in another."
It is thus more apt to benchmark and structure political salaries here to local economic and social conditions, such as employment level.
Mr Teo was putting forth the motion to endorse the recommendations of the Committee to Review Ministerial Salaries set up by Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong last year.
Beyond political factors, Mr Teo pointed out the differences between Singapore and other countries in terms of size, make-up of population and philosophy of governance.
He went on to explain how Singapore has to assemble the Cabinet from a smaller pool of able people, as compared to places with larger populations such as Britain and Japan.
Reiterating the importance of Singapore's leadership selection "more so than in other countries", he said: "We are a small, multi-ethnic country, set in a volatile region and facing the full force of global competition; our challenges are complex and many."
He added: "We are a city-state which is critically dependent on good governance to survive, sustain ourselves and achieve success."
The key recommendations of the committee include pegging the ministerial pay to the median income of the top 1,000 Singaporean earners, with a discount of 40 per cent.
With the proposed changes, which the Government intends to accept, Mr Lee's pay will be equivalent to that of the 382nd Singapore Citizen income earner - with a total annual salary package of $2.2 million.
Mr Lee had stood at the 175th position in 2010 with a salary of $3.1 million.
Mr Teo also revealed that the top 1,000 earners here earn $1.3 million or more, based on data from the Inland Revenue Authority of Singapore.
The data also showed that 48 per cent of them held senior- management positions across industries such as retail and health care.
During the debate which followed, Workers' Party Member of Parliament (MP) Chen Show Mao proposed pegging ministerial salaries as multiples of an MP's allowance as they "are first and foremost elected as MPs to serve and represent the people".
With ministerial pay pegged to that of the top earners here, MP for Ang Mo Kio GRC Inderjit Singh called for high standards of accountability.
He said: "If a minister consistently performs poorly and less than satisfactorily, the Prime Minister should be quick to replace him, as is done in the private sector."
Actually it is interesting to see what kind of lame excuse PAP give for having the most expensive cabinet in the world.
The fact is it is totally wrong and no matter what excuse they give is ridiculous.
Look at Teo’s explanations, it only makes him look like an idiot or maybe they think Singaporeans are just plain stupid.
Teo explain we need higher pay because we have a smaller pool of people to get into politic.
Huh? But are these people qualified? Isn’t it easier to run a smaller country? Isn’t it more difficult to run the United States, United Kingdom and China?
And I am pretty sure we are not the only "small, multi-ethnic country, set in a volatile region and facing the full force of global competition; our challenges are complex and many." in the whole word.
I don’t care about Hsien Loong pay position in the country has dropped. The fact is he is being paid by tax payers and his salary is way above what an average Singaporean get.
This is morally wrong.
In fact if he or any of the cabinet think they want to be rich then they should jolly well join a private sector which they claims they can easily get in to and then they can be the number 1 paid Singaporean in this country.
Mr Teo pointed out the differences between Singapore and other countries in terms of size, make-up of population and philosophy of governance
Tue, Jan 17, 2012
my paper
There are drawbacks with the suggestion that ministers' salaries here should be benchmarked to those of foreign leaders, said Deputy Prime Minister Teo Chee Hean yesterday.
Mr Teo, who is also the Coordinating Minister for National Security and Minister for Home Affairs, said: "Political pay levels and structures based on domestic political considerations in one country may not correlate with the conditions in another."
It is thus more apt to benchmark and structure political salaries here to local economic and social conditions, such as employment level.
Mr Teo was putting forth the motion to endorse the recommendations of the Committee to Review Ministerial Salaries set up by Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong last year.
Beyond political factors, Mr Teo pointed out the differences between Singapore and other countries in terms of size, make-up of population and philosophy of governance.
He went on to explain how Singapore has to assemble the Cabinet from a smaller pool of able people, as compared to places with larger populations such as Britain and Japan.
Reiterating the importance of Singapore's leadership selection "more so than in other countries", he said: "We are a small, multi-ethnic country, set in a volatile region and facing the full force of global competition; our challenges are complex and many."
He added: "We are a city-state which is critically dependent on good governance to survive, sustain ourselves and achieve success."
The key recommendations of the committee include pegging the ministerial pay to the median income of the top 1,000 Singaporean earners, with a discount of 40 per cent.
With the proposed changes, which the Government intends to accept, Mr Lee's pay will be equivalent to that of the 382nd Singapore Citizen income earner - with a total annual salary package of $2.2 million.
Mr Lee had stood at the 175th position in 2010 with a salary of $3.1 million.
Mr Teo also revealed that the top 1,000 earners here earn $1.3 million or more, based on data from the Inland Revenue Authority of Singapore.
The data also showed that 48 per cent of them held senior- management positions across industries such as retail and health care.
During the debate which followed, Workers' Party Member of Parliament (MP) Chen Show Mao proposed pegging ministerial salaries as multiples of an MP's allowance as they "are first and foremost elected as MPs to serve and represent the people".
With ministerial pay pegged to that of the top earners here, MP for Ang Mo Kio GRC Inderjit Singh called for high standards of accountability.
He said: "If a minister consistently performs poorly and less than satisfactorily, the Prime Minister should be quick to replace him, as is done in the private sector."
Actually it is interesting to see what kind of lame excuse PAP give for having the most expensive cabinet in the world.
The fact is it is totally wrong and no matter what excuse they give is ridiculous.
Look at Teo’s explanations, it only makes him look like an idiot or maybe they think Singaporeans are just plain stupid.
Teo explain we need higher pay because we have a smaller pool of people to get into politic.
Huh? But are these people qualified? Isn’t it easier to run a smaller country? Isn’t it more difficult to run the United States, United Kingdom and China?
And I am pretty sure we are not the only "small, multi-ethnic country, set in a volatile region and facing the full force of global competition; our challenges are complex and many." in the whole word.
I don’t care about Hsien Loong pay position in the country has dropped. The fact is he is being paid by tax payers and his salary is way above what an average Singaporean get.
This is morally wrong.
In fact if he or any of the cabinet think they want to be rich then they should jolly well join a private sector which they claims they can easily get in to and then they can be the number 1 paid Singaporean in this country.
Thursday, January 05, 2012
The real thoughts of our millionaires
President, MPs react to pay cut
04 January 2012 1847 hrs (SST)
SINGAPORE: Singapore's President Tony Tan Keng Yam has welcomed the recommendations of the Ministerial Salaries Review Committee announced on Wednesday.
In a statement, a spokesman for the Office of the President said Dr Tony Tan has informed the prime minister he will adopt the president's salary as recommended by the committee, backdated 1 September last year, the day he was sworn into office.
Meanwhile, Member of Parliament (MP) for Jurong Group Representation Constituency (GRC) David Ong said: "Personally, for me, with the reduction of the MP allowance and removal of the GDP Bonus, it won't affect my performance at all, as an MP.
"I'm elected to serve the people of Singapore, my residents in Jurong GRC, and I'll continue to do that.
Mr Ong added he believes there are Singaporeans who will be prepared to step forward and serve the country despite significant cuts to political salaries.
Mr Ong told MediaCorp it is important that the financial sacrifice, however, not be too steep as this will affect the government's ability to attract top-calibre leaders.
"There will be some challenges, but hopefully with this adjustment of the pay package we can attract people with the heart to want to serve and give a little bit more discount in terms of their material gains, and step forward to serve the country," he said.
The president, who only gathered 30% of the nation votes, and Ministers must be feeling quite bad now due to the pay cut but they have no choice as PAP has the worst election result last year.
Well can’t believe one who suffered pay cut can still say nice things but again its on national media.
Therefore I try to think what some their real thoughts may be(with disclaimer):
Tony Tan: Lucky Nathan, I should have stayed at GIC and SPH. ##$@!%#
Lee Hsien Loong: I am still the best paid politician in the world.
Teo Chee Hean: So many portfolio still kenna pay cut. Wah lau still have to explain to the other guys since I am in charge of Civil Service pay.
Tharman: Sian… the other ex-DPM got some much over the years and now I first year kenna pay cut liao… should have gone to work for the world bank.
Lim Swee Say: Evertime I look at my CPF I wonder why I feel poorer.
Yaacob: Huh? What pay cut?
Khaw Boon Wan: Guess has to look for HDB flats now.
Vivian: Please don’t rain again! Else no bonus this year.
Shanmugan: Lucky George
Lui Tuck Yew: Shit! Look like really have to take public transport now.
Heng Swee Keat: Wah lan! Kenna con into politic.
Chan Chun Sing: Wah Wah Lan!!! Kenna con into politic and now no one call me Sir anymore.
Mah Bow Tan: Heng Hah. Now only take MP pay can really relax.
Wong Kang Seng: Si Bei Heng man! Must call Bow Tan out and gossip.
04 January 2012 1847 hrs (SST)
SINGAPORE: Singapore's President Tony Tan Keng Yam has welcomed the recommendations of the Ministerial Salaries Review Committee announced on Wednesday.
In a statement, a spokesman for the Office of the President said Dr Tony Tan has informed the prime minister he will adopt the president's salary as recommended by the committee, backdated 1 September last year, the day he was sworn into office.
Meanwhile, Member of Parliament (MP) for Jurong Group Representation Constituency (GRC) David Ong said: "Personally, for me, with the reduction of the MP allowance and removal of the GDP Bonus, it won't affect my performance at all, as an MP.
"I'm elected to serve the people of Singapore, my residents in Jurong GRC, and I'll continue to do that.
Mr Ong added he believes there are Singaporeans who will be prepared to step forward and serve the country despite significant cuts to political salaries.
Mr Ong told MediaCorp it is important that the financial sacrifice, however, not be too steep as this will affect the government's ability to attract top-calibre leaders.
"There will be some challenges, but hopefully with this adjustment of the pay package we can attract people with the heart to want to serve and give a little bit more discount in terms of their material gains, and step forward to serve the country," he said.
The president, who only gathered 30% of the nation votes, and Ministers must be feeling quite bad now due to the pay cut but they have no choice as PAP has the worst election result last year.
Well can’t believe one who suffered pay cut can still say nice things but again its on national media.
Therefore I try to think what some their real thoughts may be(with disclaimer):
Tony Tan: Lucky Nathan, I should have stayed at GIC and SPH. ##$@!%#
Lee Hsien Loong: I am still the best paid politician in the world.
Teo Chee Hean: So many portfolio still kenna pay cut. Wah lau still have to explain to the other guys since I am in charge of Civil Service pay.
Tharman: Sian… the other ex-DPM got some much over the years and now I first year kenna pay cut liao… should have gone to work for the world bank.
Lim Swee Say: Evertime I look at my CPF I wonder why I feel poorer.
Yaacob: Huh? What pay cut?
Khaw Boon Wan: Guess has to look for HDB flats now.
Vivian: Please don’t rain again! Else no bonus this year.
Shanmugan: Lucky George
Lui Tuck Yew: Shit! Look like really have to take public transport now.
Heng Swee Keat: Wah lan! Kenna con into politic.
Chan Chun Sing: Wah Wah Lan!!! Kenna con into politic and now no one call me Sir anymore.
Mah Bow Tan: Heng Hah. Now only take MP pay can really relax.
Wong Kang Seng: Si Bei Heng man! Must call Bow Tan out and gossip.
Wednesday, January 04, 2012
Pay cut of Minister
Wage cuts between 36 and 53% recommended for political appointments
04 January 2012 1208 hrs
SINGAPORE: The Review Committee, appointed by the Prime Minister to look at Ministerial salaries, has recommended cuts of between 36 and 53 per cent.
This was disclosed by Committee Chairman, Gerard Ee, on Wednesday at a news conference.
The Committee was appointed after the general election in May last year, and had submitted its report to the Prime Minister on December 30.
Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong had announced the review at the swearing-in ceremony of the new cabinet in May last year.
Among the recommendations made are the Prime Minister's annual salary to be cut by 36 per cent, to S$2.2 million.
The annual salary of ministers will be cut by 37 per cent, to S$1.1 million.
The President's annual salary is reduced by 51 per cent, to S$1.54 million.
The Speaker of Parliament will see the biggest percentage cut of 53 per cent, to S$550,000.
Previously, salaries were pegged to the median income of the top 48 earners in Singapore, with a one-third discount.
Now, they will be pegged to the median income of the top 1,000 earners who are Singapore citizens.
A 40 per cent discount will then be applied.
Based on 2010 figures, the proposed salary for entry-level ministers works out to S$1.1 million.
The committee also recommended changes to bonus payments, pensions and benefits under the new pay structure.
The committee has recommended that the GDP bonus be removed, and replaced by a National Bonus.
The National Bonus comprises four elements - including the unemployment rate, real median income growth, GDP growth and the real income growth of the bottom 20 per cent of wage earners.
Chairman Gerard Ee said the salary must be a "clean wage" with no hidden perks.
He said: "Our recommendations, while it is a severe cut, should be able to attract not all, but some of the talents to come forward.
"But preserving the message that you're coming forward to serve in a political capacity, and there is some sacrifice to be made.
"The 1,000, basically is, first take note that it's based on Singaporeans only, and eliminate the PRs and everybody.
"So we say if the talent pool from which we want to tap, if we were to hunt for them, we believe if they were to be functioning outside of politics, that's where we're going to locate them."
The new salary will be backdated to 21 May last year, when the new government took office.
MPs will debate the report when Parliament sits for a second session 16 January.
Parliament's first sitting for this year will be on 9 January. It's expected to focus on several questions tabled on the recent flooding and the spate of MRT disruptions.
We are know there will be a pay cut as this is PAP means of pacifying people what had shown their unhappiness during the election in 2011.
But is it enough?
I still think the PM salary is still high, a comfortable $1Million should be enough for him note all his medical are already covered for and not forgetting he still sit on a few Boards.
For Minister I think they should be pay about $500K a year. This is already a whopping $40K a month, much more then an average Singaporean.
It is good that there will be no more pensions for Minister as they already are millionaire.
The new National Bonus is more fair but they should also include the birth rates in there or national happiness index.
I also think the salaries of Perm-Sect should be review as well. They useless people are commanding salaries equivalent to Ministers and they are not doing a fantastic job too.
Another thing… I am wondering what new minister like Chan Chun Sing is thinking now. Got conned by Men In white?
Also Mah Bow Tan must be thinking Heng Man.... I still get my MP pay but no more doing Minister Job liao!
But again this is just a proposal, Hsien Loong may not agreed to everything. Lets wait and see.
04 January 2012 1208 hrs
SINGAPORE: The Review Committee, appointed by the Prime Minister to look at Ministerial salaries, has recommended cuts of between 36 and 53 per cent.
This was disclosed by Committee Chairman, Gerard Ee, on Wednesday at a news conference.
The Committee was appointed after the general election in May last year, and had submitted its report to the Prime Minister on December 30.
Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong had announced the review at the swearing-in ceremony of the new cabinet in May last year.
Among the recommendations made are the Prime Minister's annual salary to be cut by 36 per cent, to S$2.2 million.
The annual salary of ministers will be cut by 37 per cent, to S$1.1 million.
The President's annual salary is reduced by 51 per cent, to S$1.54 million.
The Speaker of Parliament will see the biggest percentage cut of 53 per cent, to S$550,000.
Previously, salaries were pegged to the median income of the top 48 earners in Singapore, with a one-third discount.
Now, they will be pegged to the median income of the top 1,000 earners who are Singapore citizens.
A 40 per cent discount will then be applied.
Based on 2010 figures, the proposed salary for entry-level ministers works out to S$1.1 million.
The committee also recommended changes to bonus payments, pensions and benefits under the new pay structure.
The committee has recommended that the GDP bonus be removed, and replaced by a National Bonus.
The National Bonus comprises four elements - including the unemployment rate, real median income growth, GDP growth and the real income growth of the bottom 20 per cent of wage earners.
Chairman Gerard Ee said the salary must be a "clean wage" with no hidden perks.
He said: "Our recommendations, while it is a severe cut, should be able to attract not all, but some of the talents to come forward.
"But preserving the message that you're coming forward to serve in a political capacity, and there is some sacrifice to be made.
"The 1,000, basically is, first take note that it's based on Singaporeans only, and eliminate the PRs and everybody.
"So we say if the talent pool from which we want to tap, if we were to hunt for them, we believe if they were to be functioning outside of politics, that's where we're going to locate them."
The new salary will be backdated to 21 May last year, when the new government took office.
MPs will debate the report when Parliament sits for a second session 16 January.
Parliament's first sitting for this year will be on 9 January. It's expected to focus on several questions tabled on the recent flooding and the spate of MRT disruptions.
We are know there will be a pay cut as this is PAP means of pacifying people what had shown their unhappiness during the election in 2011.
But is it enough?
I still think the PM salary is still high, a comfortable $1Million should be enough for him note all his medical are already covered for and not forgetting he still sit on a few Boards.
For Minister I think they should be pay about $500K a year. This is already a whopping $40K a month, much more then an average Singaporean.
It is good that there will be no more pensions for Minister as they already are millionaire.
The new National Bonus is more fair but they should also include the birth rates in there or national happiness index.
I also think the salaries of Perm-Sect should be review as well. They useless people are commanding salaries equivalent to Ministers and they are not doing a fantastic job too.
Another thing… I am wondering what new minister like Chan Chun Sing is thinking now. Got conned by Men In white?
Also Mah Bow Tan must be thinking Heng Man.... I still get my MP pay but no more doing Minister Job liao!
But again this is just a proposal, Hsien Loong may not agreed to everything. Lets wait and see.
Tuesday, January 03, 2012
Goodbye to a turbulance 2011 and Hello 2012
A good think about keeping a blog is like a diary. Reading back the post on my new year resolution for 2011 and the summary of 2010 let me keep a check on myself on what I have achieved in 2011 and did I fulfilled my resolution? This also help me setting goals for myself in 2011.
Gosh it also reminded me the prices for electricity fee went up a year ago on the exact same day this year on 1 Jan 2012!
Looking back 2011:
I travelled to Tokyo in Feb, Seoul in March and Taipei in May and Aug.
I have fulfilled my National Duty and officially MRed in Feb.
I also got to vote for the first time in my life not once but twice! Sadly the outcome remained the same.
I got my Shodan in Aikido in May and still going strong in my八卦掌and I also took up形意拳.
Mobile phone contract expired and I renewed with an I-Phone 4S. Yes I have joined the dark side.
I think I also achieved my goal of living a healthier life as I do feel healthier in 2011 compare to 2010.
I will continue to live a healthy life, work less, play more and spending more time with friends and family in 2012.
I think this year will be a difficult year for Singapore. The world is facing recession and inflation and we still got the same clowns in the cabinets. Half year had gone but nothing significant has change for Singapore, we still getting the floods.
Finally I like to share this article. It reminded me the priority in life and I hope it will for you too.
Happy new Year!
Gosh it also reminded me the prices for electricity fee went up a year ago on the exact same day this year on 1 Jan 2012!
Looking back 2011:
I travelled to Tokyo in Feb, Seoul in March and Taipei in May and Aug.
I have fulfilled my National Duty and officially MRed in Feb.
I also got to vote for the first time in my life not once but twice! Sadly the outcome remained the same.
I got my Shodan in Aikido in May and still going strong in my八卦掌and I also took up形意拳.
Mobile phone contract expired and I renewed with an I-Phone 4S. Yes I have joined the dark side.
I think I also achieved my goal of living a healthier life as I do feel healthier in 2011 compare to 2010.
I will continue to live a healthy life, work less, play more and spending more time with friends and family in 2012.
I think this year will be a difficult year for Singapore. The world is facing recession and inflation and we still got the same clowns in the cabinets. Half year had gone but nothing significant has change for Singapore, we still getting the floods.
Finally I like to share this article. It reminded me the priority in life and I hope it will for you too.
Happy new Year!
Thursday, December 22, 2011
SINGAPORE: Singapore's second guide dog for the blind has arrived.
21 December 2011
Bred and trained in Australia, she has found her new home in Bukit Panjang in central Singapore.
Esme looks just like any two-year-old Labrador, but she's not a pet when she has her working harness on.
For vision-impaired Cassandra Chiu, Esme acts as her pair of eyes, and an indispensable guide.
So too much friendly attention is not always a good thing.
"This is a working dog, it would be best if she's not distracted with pats and treats because she has to stay focused on what she's doing in getting me safely from one place to another," said Ms Chiu.
Singapore law allows for guide dogs on trains and buses, and also in restaurants.
But not everyone welcomes Esme.
Dr Francis Seow-Choen, chairman of the Guide Dogs Association of the Blind, said: "Cassandra, in the last few days has been going on the MRT, buses, but in the more individualised forms of transport like taxis, there are queries, there're rejections. When you go into malls there're still rejections.
"(The guide dogs) are very well trained, they don't make a noise, they don't bark, they don't chase little animals or children. Therefore people can put their fears to rest that these dogs will cause a disturbance, because they will not."
After undergoing training almost her entire life in Melbourne, Esme is now in the final stage of her settling-in programme in Singapore.
For this, her Australian trainer Aaron Horsington was here for a week.
"Working with people like Cassandra, and being able to see the dog moving on and providing that person with a service... that's very meaningful. Seeing that end product really is what keeps me going back again, and starting with the next group of dogs," he said.
The cost of training guide dogs is high - about S$40,000 per dog for a two-year programme.
But for Ms Chiu, The Singapore Guide Dogs Association of the Blind paid for Esme and her training.
Ms Chiu will be responsible for Esme's daily maintenance, but this, Dr Seow said, is inexpensive.
"The costs, once you get the dog, are minimal. We encourage our clients to feed their dogs dry food, which actually comes up to about S$1 a day," said Dr Seow.
Dr Seow said they are also looking at insurance for their guide dogs in the future.
"Unfortunately, the symbol of being vision-impaired in Singapore has been the white cane for a very long time. Hopefully, in time to come, Singaporeans will recognise that there is a different form of mobility for vision-impaired individuals as well," said Ms Chiu.
With both Ms Chiu and Esme leading the way, the association said it is expecting four more guide dogs from Victoria next year.
I didn’t know how rare guide dogs are in Singapore. Esme is only the second one in Singapore.
I had the fortune of meeting the first, Kendra and her owner Mr Alvin Ng not once but twice!
Kendra was really lovely and obedient and she sat quietly under the seat on the bus which I didn’t even notice until she got up.
I first know about guide dog almost 30 years ago when I watched a documentary on TV. I am a little surprise that Singaporeans are still ignorant of them and the rights they have.
21 December 2011
Bred and trained in Australia, she has found her new home in Bukit Panjang in central Singapore.
Esme looks just like any two-year-old Labrador, but she's not a pet when she has her working harness on.
For vision-impaired Cassandra Chiu, Esme acts as her pair of eyes, and an indispensable guide.
So too much friendly attention is not always a good thing.
"This is a working dog, it would be best if she's not distracted with pats and treats because she has to stay focused on what she's doing in getting me safely from one place to another," said Ms Chiu.
Singapore law allows for guide dogs on trains and buses, and also in restaurants.
But not everyone welcomes Esme.
Dr Francis Seow-Choen, chairman of the Guide Dogs Association of the Blind, said: "Cassandra, in the last few days has been going on the MRT, buses, but in the more individualised forms of transport like taxis, there are queries, there're rejections. When you go into malls there're still rejections.
"(The guide dogs) are very well trained, they don't make a noise, they don't bark, they don't chase little animals or children. Therefore people can put their fears to rest that these dogs will cause a disturbance, because they will not."
After undergoing training almost her entire life in Melbourne, Esme is now in the final stage of her settling-in programme in Singapore.
For this, her Australian trainer Aaron Horsington was here for a week.
"Working with people like Cassandra, and being able to see the dog moving on and providing that person with a service... that's very meaningful. Seeing that end product really is what keeps me going back again, and starting with the next group of dogs," he said.
The cost of training guide dogs is high - about S$40,000 per dog for a two-year programme.
But for Ms Chiu, The Singapore Guide Dogs Association of the Blind paid for Esme and her training.
Ms Chiu will be responsible for Esme's daily maintenance, but this, Dr Seow said, is inexpensive.
"The costs, once you get the dog, are minimal. We encourage our clients to feed their dogs dry food, which actually comes up to about S$1 a day," said Dr Seow.
Dr Seow said they are also looking at insurance for their guide dogs in the future.
"Unfortunately, the symbol of being vision-impaired in Singapore has been the white cane for a very long time. Hopefully, in time to come, Singaporeans will recognise that there is a different form of mobility for vision-impaired individuals as well," said Ms Chiu.
With both Ms Chiu and Esme leading the way, the association said it is expecting four more guide dogs from Victoria next year.
I didn’t know how rare guide dogs are in Singapore. Esme is only the second one in Singapore.
I had the fortune of meeting the first, Kendra and her owner Mr Alvin Ng not once but twice!
Kendra was really lovely and obedient and she sat quietly under the seat on the bus which I didn’t even notice until she got up.
I first know about guide dog almost 30 years ago when I watched a documentary on TV. I am a little surprise that Singaporeans are still ignorant of them and the rights they have.
Wednesday, December 21, 2011
What greed had done to this county.
SMRT suspends bus driver as coma victim's condition worsens
20 December 2011
SINGAPORE: Bus operator SMRT has suspended the driver who was said to have braked abruptly and caused a passenger to fall on Sunday. The victim, 54-year-old Madam Ding Weibo, has since slipped into a coma and her condition has apparently worsened.
Mdm Ding's husband, Mr You Bujia, said: "There are now complications with her lungs, and she has started to develop a fever. Her urinary tract is also infected. Her brain has also started to swell, so that's not good news. When my daughter heard the news, she almost fainted."
Mr You said the doctor has told him to be prepared for the worst.
An SMRT spokesperson said the company has an intensive training programme, of up to one-and-a-half months, to ensure its bus captains or what it calls "Service Leaders" (SLs), are equipped with customer service and safe driving skills.
The spokesperson added: "Trainees will go through a Service Proficiency course which comprises operating technical and safety features on the bus, dealing with demanding passengers and emergencies, and understanding the public transport system such as the fare structure and bus schedules, to name a few.
"In addition, SLs are required to undergo a ten-day on-the-job training to familiarise themselves with their bus routes."
After the first year on the job, they also have to attend a two-day refresher course to learn about advanced safe driving techniques.
SMRT also revealed that the driver involved in this incident has worked in the company for two years.
SMRT has suspended the Singaporean driver from his duties, as investigations continue.
This is sad that it causes someone life to surface the problem of lousy training programme and the poor quality of drivers of public transport.
Personally I felt the quality of bus driver had dropped over the years.
I remember when I was young the ride was much smoother and the drivers more helpful.
Nowadays you get unmotivated drivers who drive like shit.
Taxi drivers are not much better, these days I keep getting taxi driver declaring they don’t know the way to where I am going and ask if I know.
Note it is not asking me which why I would like to go and I am not going to some super remote island but these idiots actually are totally clueless!
F you lah! Have some pride and study the street directory if you want to be a taxi driver.
So what happened to our “world class transport system?”
The main reason is they had all became like our Men In White, Money Money Money.
They all want maximum profit so the CEO can get big fat pay cheques.
So they cut down on maintenance, trainings and staff cost.
Therefore trains and tracks break down, drivers get lost, more accidents due to in-experience drivers, etc.
On top of these poor standards, they still increase fares!
Amazing!
You screwed up big time and you still want more profits.
These greedy people have a first class ticket to hell now.
20 December 2011
SINGAPORE: Bus operator SMRT has suspended the driver who was said to have braked abruptly and caused a passenger to fall on Sunday. The victim, 54-year-old Madam Ding Weibo, has since slipped into a coma and her condition has apparently worsened.
Mdm Ding's husband, Mr You Bujia, said: "There are now complications with her lungs, and she has started to develop a fever. Her urinary tract is also infected. Her brain has also started to swell, so that's not good news. When my daughter heard the news, she almost fainted."
Mr You said the doctor has told him to be prepared for the worst.
An SMRT spokesperson said the company has an intensive training programme, of up to one-and-a-half months, to ensure its bus captains or what it calls "Service Leaders" (SLs), are equipped with customer service and safe driving skills.
The spokesperson added: "Trainees will go through a Service Proficiency course which comprises operating technical and safety features on the bus, dealing with demanding passengers and emergencies, and understanding the public transport system such as the fare structure and bus schedules, to name a few.
"In addition, SLs are required to undergo a ten-day on-the-job training to familiarise themselves with their bus routes."
After the first year on the job, they also have to attend a two-day refresher course to learn about advanced safe driving techniques.
SMRT also revealed that the driver involved in this incident has worked in the company for two years.
SMRT has suspended the Singaporean driver from his duties, as investigations continue.
This is sad that it causes someone life to surface the problem of lousy training programme and the poor quality of drivers of public transport.
Personally I felt the quality of bus driver had dropped over the years.
I remember when I was young the ride was much smoother and the drivers more helpful.
Nowadays you get unmotivated drivers who drive like shit.
Taxi drivers are not much better, these days I keep getting taxi driver declaring they don’t know the way to where I am going and ask if I know.
Note it is not asking me which why I would like to go and I am not going to some super remote island but these idiots actually are totally clueless!
F you lah! Have some pride and study the street directory if you want to be a taxi driver.
So what happened to our “world class transport system?”
The main reason is they had all became like our Men In White, Money Money Money.
They all want maximum profit so the CEO can get big fat pay cheques.
So they cut down on maintenance, trainings and staff cost.
Therefore trains and tracks break down, drivers get lost, more accidents due to in-experience drivers, etc.
On top of these poor standards, they still increase fares!
Amazing!
You screwed up big time and you still want more profits.
These greedy people have a first class ticket to hell now.
Friday, December 16, 2011
Overpaid idiot.
SMRT CEO apologises for train disruption
16 December 2011 CNA
SINGAPORE: SMRT CEO Saw Phaik Hwa on Friday offered her sincere apologies to all commuters affected in Thursday night's five-hour MRT network breakdown on the north-south line.
Speaking at a news conference Friday afternoon at the SMRT Headquarters, Ms Saw promised a full investigation into what caused the breakdown.
She said SMRT will learn from the incident and improve on giving better information.
"We do apologise especially those who experienced considerable inconvenience... What we can promise is that we will spare no effort in preventing such an occurrence," said Ms Saw.
"I will personally look into improving our incident management plan, especially in the areas of giving timely and better information, as well as crowd management, in both our stations and in the trains," she added.
SMRT cited a possible alignment problem in the rail system as the cause of the disruption, and deployed some 60 staff to test for alignment on Thursday night after the incident.
However, the exact point at which the alignment was off has not been established yet.
The disruption affected 127,000 passengers, and some 1,000 commuters were also trapped in each of the four trains that stalled.
More than 300 staff who were not working at that time were activated to help commuters.
SMRT acknowledged that the rail network has grown, and hence is more complex. It said this made it difficult for the operator to execute its emergency plans.
SMRT said it will review its standard operating procedures.
SMRT also said it will be working to improve its communication strategies. This includes possibly broadcasting recorded announcements in four languages.
SMRT has also apologised for the "income opportunity" template that was used by SMRT Taxi on Thursday following the train disruption.
It said this was a "very bad mistake", and the right template should have said "service disruption".
16 December 2011 CNA
SINGAPORE: SMRT CEO Saw Phaik Hwa on Friday offered her sincere apologies to all commuters affected in Thursday night's five-hour MRT network breakdown on the north-south line.
Speaking at a news conference Friday afternoon at the SMRT Headquarters, Ms Saw promised a full investigation into what caused the breakdown.
She said SMRT will learn from the incident and improve on giving better information.
"We do apologise especially those who experienced considerable inconvenience... What we can promise is that we will spare no effort in preventing such an occurrence," said Ms Saw.
"I will personally look into improving our incident management plan, especially in the areas of giving timely and better information, as well as crowd management, in both our stations and in the trains," she added.
SMRT cited a possible alignment problem in the rail system as the cause of the disruption, and deployed some 60 staff to test for alignment on Thursday night after the incident.
However, the exact point at which the alignment was off has not been established yet.
The disruption affected 127,000 passengers, and some 1,000 commuters were also trapped in each of the four trains that stalled.
More than 300 staff who were not working at that time were activated to help commuters.
SMRT acknowledged that the rail network has grown, and hence is more complex. It said this made it difficult for the operator to execute its emergency plans.
SMRT said it will review its standard operating procedures.
SMRT also said it will be working to improve its communication strategies. This includes possibly broadcasting recorded announcements in four languages.
SMRT has also apologised for the "income opportunity" template that was used by SMRT Taxi on Thursday following the train disruption.
It said this was a "very bad mistake", and the right template should have said "service disruption".
With her million dollar salary she still can screwed up.
This is what we call pay lots of money but still get monkey.
She should be sacked!
Thursday, December 15, 2011
Sad Singapore
Youths arrested for stealing money from newspaper vendor
CNA 14 DEC 2011
SINGAPORE: Police have arrested two youths, aged 11 and 12, for stealing from an elderly newspaper vendor.
Madam Son Ah Hon, 71, sells newspapers at Block 174 Yishun Avenue 7.
The two primary school student suspects stole from her twice on December 2 and 7.
On both occasions, Mdm Son was manning her news stand alone.
Mdm Son said: "I told them I didn't have the newspaper they wanted and told them to leave. After a while, they came back again and kept asking for newspapers. They kept walking around and banging on the back door of the stall. All of a sudden, they grabbed the money and ran. They snatched my purse. One took the cash container, the other took my purse. I screamed for help, but no one came."
The suspects fled with cash totalling nearly $100.
Police arrested the youths on Tuesday.
The two youths are now released on bail pending further investigation.
When I first saw this report during yesterday evening news I was totally disgusted and disappointed with what our youth and society had became.
These 2 bastards not only prey on the weak but they bloody did it twice.
To me they should be shot as I doubt they will be of any use to the society.
I absolutely hate people who prey on the weak, if you have balls, you go and rob the banks or Lee Kuan Yew. Bloody weak ass targeted this old poor woman who still has to work at 71 to feed herself.
These news reported all the sad facts on what our society has become, youth with no moral, seniors still have to struggle to make ends meet and lack of social courage as no one came to help Madam Soh.
CNA 14 DEC 2011
SINGAPORE: Police have arrested two youths, aged 11 and 12, for stealing from an elderly newspaper vendor.
Madam Son Ah Hon, 71, sells newspapers at Block 174 Yishun Avenue 7.
The two primary school student suspects stole from her twice on December 2 and 7.
On both occasions, Mdm Son was manning her news stand alone.
Mdm Son said: "I told them I didn't have the newspaper they wanted and told them to leave. After a while, they came back again and kept asking for newspapers. They kept walking around and banging on the back door of the stall. All of a sudden, they grabbed the money and ran. They snatched my purse. One took the cash container, the other took my purse. I screamed for help, but no one came."
The suspects fled with cash totalling nearly $100.
Police arrested the youths on Tuesday.
The two youths are now released on bail pending further investigation.
When I first saw this report during yesterday evening news I was totally disgusted and disappointed with what our youth and society had became.
These 2 bastards not only prey on the weak but they bloody did it twice.
To me they should be shot as I doubt they will be of any use to the society.
I absolutely hate people who prey on the weak, if you have balls, you go and rob the banks or Lee Kuan Yew. Bloody weak ass targeted this old poor woman who still has to work at 71 to feed herself.
These news reported all the sad facts on what our society has become, youth with no moral, seniors still have to struggle to make ends meet and lack of social courage as no one came to help Madam Soh.
Wednesday, December 14, 2011
Substandard
Husband used wife's IC to enter casino 9 times
ST online 14 Dec 2011
A man who used his wife's identity card to enter a casino was on Tuesday fined a total of $6,000.
His wife was fined a total of $3,000 after pleading guilty to two charges of abetting him to use her IC to enter Resorts World Sentosa casino last December.
Deputy Public Prosecutor Elena Yip told the court that on the evening of Dec 20 last year, Philip Oh Choon Aik suggested to his wife that he could use her identity card to enter the casino.
The 45-year-old, who is self-employed in the piping industry, could not enter as he had applied for a National Council for Problem Gambling exclusion order.
I think the Casino should be fined as well and the security sacked for letting a man entering the casino with a women's IC.
Either she look like a man or he look like a woman, the joker on duty is sleeping on the job.
ST online 14 Dec 2011
A man who used his wife's identity card to enter a casino was on Tuesday fined a total of $6,000.
His wife was fined a total of $3,000 after pleading guilty to two charges of abetting him to use her IC to enter Resorts World Sentosa casino last December.
Deputy Public Prosecutor Elena Yip told the court that on the evening of Dec 20 last year, Philip Oh Choon Aik suggested to his wife that he could use her identity card to enter the casino.
The 45-year-old, who is self-employed in the piping industry, could not enter as he had applied for a National Council for Problem Gambling exclusion order.
I think the Casino should be fined as well and the security sacked for letting a man entering the casino with a women's IC.
Either she look like a man or he look like a woman, the joker on duty is sleeping on the job.
Tuesday, December 13, 2011
Lost and Found. Really?
The most common misplaced item at Changi Airport
12 December 2011 CNA
SINGAPORE: Are travellers getting more careless? Well, between January and November this year, some 15,600 items were lost and found at Singapore's Changi Airport - more than the 14,000-odd belongings recovered in 2010.
So what's the most common misplaced item? The answer: mobile phones.
In 2010, 1,800 mobile phones were found. Between January and November this year, some 1,700 mobile phones were recovered.
At the airport's "lost and found" storeroom, there's a treasure trove of various odds and ends, much like an antique junk store. Here, the items are catalogued according to the months in which they were found.
For example, in November 2011, someone left behind a giant mirror. In December, a walking aid was found. There is also a stuffed dog. And, get this - someone left behind a giant television set.
Changi Airport Group's senior assistant for ground operations, Aslihan Tanay, said: "When we receive a lost item, we'll generate a report. Items will be kept for about 60 days, after which we'll incinerate it. This is because we want to protect the privacy of the owner. Perishable items such as bread, cakes, flowers, will be disposed within 24 hours."
Changi Airport Group's customer service officer, Germaine Victoria, said: "We had this Indian couple transiting through Singapore going back to India. And they actually lost their bag which contained their travel documents as well as valuables and 10,000 Australian dollars. We actually managed to find the bag for them within a few hours and they were able to make it back home with their bag and they were very happy."
So, if you misplace something at the airport, there's hope you can get it back.
In 2010, 57 per cent of lost items were returned to their rightful owners.
I wonder how many percent of people who lost their belonging actually managed to get them back in Singapore on the whole. CAG claims 57% in the airport.
I knew a few people who lost mobile phone in taxi and public places in Singapore and none of them actually manage to get their phones back even after extensive search and report to the authorities.
I guess there are lots of greedy people out there.
I also doubt whether CAG is telling the truth that they will incinerate unclaimed lost item after 60 days.
What if you find a wallet with USD$600 in it? Is it illegal to incinerate notes?
I hope the donate money found.
What if you find a 500 years old classic violin that may be one of it kind? Don’t tell me GAG actually burnt it to ash.
I knew some organisation do auction off these unclaimed property after a period of time and the money are donated to charities. I think this is a much logical way of dealing with lost properties.
Maybe you can incinerate phones and hard disks which may contain sensitive information and may cause you a lawsuit but who care about your privacy if you lost a stuff dog, walking sticks or a book at the airport in a foreign land.
12 December 2011 CNA
SINGAPORE: Are travellers getting more careless? Well, between January and November this year, some 15,600 items were lost and found at Singapore's Changi Airport - more than the 14,000-odd belongings recovered in 2010.
So what's the most common misplaced item? The answer: mobile phones.
In 2010, 1,800 mobile phones were found. Between January and November this year, some 1,700 mobile phones were recovered.
At the airport's "lost and found" storeroom, there's a treasure trove of various odds and ends, much like an antique junk store. Here, the items are catalogued according to the months in which they were found.
For example, in November 2011, someone left behind a giant mirror. In December, a walking aid was found. There is also a stuffed dog. And, get this - someone left behind a giant television set.
Changi Airport Group's senior assistant for ground operations, Aslihan Tanay, said: "When we receive a lost item, we'll generate a report. Items will be kept for about 60 days, after which we'll incinerate it. This is because we want to protect the privacy of the owner. Perishable items such as bread, cakes, flowers, will be disposed within 24 hours."
Changi Airport Group's customer service officer, Germaine Victoria, said: "We had this Indian couple transiting through Singapore going back to India. And they actually lost their bag which contained their travel documents as well as valuables and 10,000 Australian dollars. We actually managed to find the bag for them within a few hours and they were able to make it back home with their bag and they were very happy."
So, if you misplace something at the airport, there's hope you can get it back.
In 2010, 57 per cent of lost items were returned to their rightful owners.
I wonder how many percent of people who lost their belonging actually managed to get them back in Singapore on the whole. CAG claims 57% in the airport.
I knew a few people who lost mobile phone in taxi and public places in Singapore and none of them actually manage to get their phones back even after extensive search and report to the authorities.
I guess there are lots of greedy people out there.
I also doubt whether CAG is telling the truth that they will incinerate unclaimed lost item after 60 days.
What if you find a wallet with USD$600 in it? Is it illegal to incinerate notes?
I hope the donate money found.
What if you find a 500 years old classic violin that may be one of it kind? Don’t tell me GAG actually burnt it to ash.
I knew some organisation do auction off these unclaimed property after a period of time and the money are donated to charities. I think this is a much logical way of dealing with lost properties.
Maybe you can incinerate phones and hard disks which may contain sensitive information and may cause you a lawsuit but who care about your privacy if you lost a stuff dog, walking sticks or a book at the airport in a foreign land.
Monday, December 12, 2011
Cyclist problem
Fewer people caught for illegally modifying electric bikes
11 December 2011, CNA
SINGAPORE: Fewer people were caught for illegally modifying their electric bicycles in the first four months of this year.
The number dropped by more than 10 percent to 264 compared to the same period last year.
But some like Mr William Ong were caught repeatedly.
Mr Ong has been caught three times in five months for riding an illegally modified bicycle.
He had paid some S$1,000 for an electric bicycle which had been approved by authorities.
But he was slapped with a S$500 fine for adding a button that powers up the bike automatically.
Mr Ong said he knew it was illegal to do so, but added the modification allows him to ride uphill with ease, because he has leg problems.
He was fined S$300 the first two times when he borrowed his friend's illegally modified bike to ride.
Mr Ong said the modifications were done by someone at a bicycle shop, who had warned him that it is illegal to do so.
But when Channel NewsAsia news team visited the store, the shopkeeper denied having done so.
In a reply to Channel NewsAsia, the Land Transport Authority said merchants who illegally modify electric bicycles may be fined up to S$500.
Repeat offenders may be charged in court.
Fewer people caught do not imply there are fewer offenders. It also can imply that less enforcement is being carried out by LTA or Traffic Police.
There is a increase in motorised bicycle in Pasir Ris and also I have encountered many near missed personally by cyclist riding on pedestrian walk ways.
Many of these cyclists have no proper lightings and travelled in a high speed.
Not once did I see any enforcement.
The police are busy protecting the VIP and I don’t know what LTA suppose to do.
The case above involved Mr Ong is a mockery to the law as well.
He was caught 3 times in 5 months but still no one is stopping him. Shouldn’t he be charged in courts the 3rd time?
LTA please explain why he was not charged as per your reply to Channel News Asia.
Over the years many pedestrian are injured, some fatal, by cyclists travelling on pedestrian walkway and so far the authority are not doing enough to prevent the problem from getting worst.
I am just waiting for the day when a cyclist kills a VVIP doing his walkabout. Till then nothing will be done for peasants (lesser mortals) like us.
So keep a lookout for the killer on wheels next time when you talk a stroll home.
11 December 2011, CNA
SINGAPORE: Fewer people were caught for illegally modifying their electric bicycles in the first four months of this year.
The number dropped by more than 10 percent to 264 compared to the same period last year.
But some like Mr William Ong were caught repeatedly.
Mr Ong has been caught three times in five months for riding an illegally modified bicycle.
He had paid some S$1,000 for an electric bicycle which had been approved by authorities.
But he was slapped with a S$500 fine for adding a button that powers up the bike automatically.
Mr Ong said he knew it was illegal to do so, but added the modification allows him to ride uphill with ease, because he has leg problems.
He was fined S$300 the first two times when he borrowed his friend's illegally modified bike to ride.
Mr Ong said the modifications were done by someone at a bicycle shop, who had warned him that it is illegal to do so.
But when Channel NewsAsia news team visited the store, the shopkeeper denied having done so.
In a reply to Channel NewsAsia, the Land Transport Authority said merchants who illegally modify electric bicycles may be fined up to S$500.
Repeat offenders may be charged in court.
Fewer people caught do not imply there are fewer offenders. It also can imply that less enforcement is being carried out by LTA or Traffic Police.
There is a increase in motorised bicycle in Pasir Ris and also I have encountered many near missed personally by cyclist riding on pedestrian walk ways.
Many of these cyclists have no proper lightings and travelled in a high speed.
Not once did I see any enforcement.
The police are busy protecting the VIP and I don’t know what LTA suppose to do.
The case above involved Mr Ong is a mockery to the law as well.
He was caught 3 times in 5 months but still no one is stopping him. Shouldn’t he be charged in courts the 3rd time?
LTA please explain why he was not charged as per your reply to Channel News Asia.
Over the years many pedestrian are injured, some fatal, by cyclists travelling on pedestrian walkway and so far the authority are not doing enough to prevent the problem from getting worst.
I am just waiting for the day when a cyclist kills a VVIP doing his walkabout. Till then nothing will be done for peasants (lesser mortals) like us.
So keep a lookout for the killer on wheels next time when you talk a stroll home.
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