Breaking The GRC Stronghold

So the votes have been tallied and the results are out. On 8th May 2011, Singaporeans woke up to the reality of a stronger Workers' Party; having wrested the Aljunied GRC stronghold containing 3 Ministers no less from PAP and retained their traditional bulwark of Hougang, their presence in the Parliament has strengthened from 1 seat to 6 (not including any possible NCMPs too). This is also the most number of elected Opposition seats taken up since Singapore's independence.

But the feeling of dissatisfaction is strong in the air and one wonders if PAP will take heed. They have clearly lost ground; the previous election in 2006 PAP having garnered 66.7% of the votes, only 60.14% voted for them in 2011. Two PAP heavyweight ministers, Senior Minister Goh Chok Tong and Minister Mah Bow Tan also received poorer scores for their "report cards" this time round, having lost a significant share of votes from the previous election. These 2 constituencies were also notable for their 'wins' due to the slate of fresh candidates offered up by National Solidarity Party. For first time contestants, their share of votes gained were very credible and noteworthy.

But on a whole, what tips could the opposition parties glean from this election?

1) Consistent Messaging

The Workers' Party's communications plan was the strongest and the tightest amongst ALL the parties contesting this time round. Yes, even the PAP could take a lesson or two. Having attended their rallies and watched their videos online, every candidate knew the party's mission and ideals by heart and embodied it. Ending every speech with a consistent "Vote for the Workers' Party towards a First World Parliament", that line became synonymous with the party and in fact, the strongest rallying cry for the election.

I will not go into whether the message itself could have been better, but their consistent delivery cannot be faulted. The PAP recognised and went for the jugular by attempting to tear it apart, with MP Indranee Singh leading the pack. But Mr Low successfully rebutted every attack backed up by Ms Sylvia Lim in the press and the messaging was reinforced credibly by every candidate during the rallies. So not only did they settle on a communications message, but plans were laid for a vigorous defense and strong comebacks to what was a rather predictable PAP challenge.

2) Brand Loyalty

Workers' Party candidates also stand out by having a strong loyalty to the cause, something in which every other political party (besides PAP) suffers heavily from. In this aspect, I actually believe that WP took a leaf or two from PAP's own book!

The leader and "star appeal" from the get go has always been Mr Low Thia Kiang, flanked by the very capable and charismatic Ms Sylvia Lim and the extremely credible Mr Chen Show Mao. Mr Pritam Singh also came into his own with his steadfast delivery but overall, the strongest spotlight was trained on Mr Low and nobody else fought to detract that from him. And it worked for the voters. Mr Low came across as a strong party leader backed by strong lieutenants and the voters bought it. Having stepped out firmly into the unknown to contest for a GRC, the challenge was thrown during Nomination Day and the battle lines were drawn.

PAP tried to play a game of chicken, challenging Aljunied GRC voters if they dared sacrifice Foreign Minister George Yeo for a normal MP like Mr Low but that strategem backfired tremendously. And it went to show that voters were not impressed with titles and fancy sounding portfolios; instead a strong character coupled with integrity was what counted and WP came out the stronger winner.

The National Solidarity Party got off to a shaky start with the loss of their Principal Election Agent and older brother of party chief Goh Meng Seng. From then on, it sadly became the Nicole Seah Show, with attention within and without the party trained solely on her young shoulders with very little else coming from the rest of the party candidates. But what a marvelous job she pulled off, backing Senior Minister to the polls with only 54% of the votes garnered. This was an incredible feat made no less by the fact that she was a political newcomer. Very little was heard from party chief Mr Goh Meng Seng through out (the other Mr Goh) despite Mah Bow Tan's obvious unpopularity and SM Goh's clumsy gaffes. Previously touted star candidates or "A-team" comprising of former scholars and couple Tony Tan and Hazel Poa also failed to impress or garner much traction amongst voters.

But it could have been better. The musical chair of opposition candidates played out prior to Nomination Day did not help the cause overall with personas and egos jumping ship every so often. The Reform Party suffered the worst of this and generally arrived at Nomination Day with an air of having cobbled their candidates from anybody and everybody willing to "have a go at it". Not the sort to inspire faith in a voter from the get go if they knew that your candidate joined you just a couple of months or even weeks / days prior to the elections. The only party that stood above and away from the opposition fray with regard to "talent" was Workers' Party and they have the results to show for it. Voters like to know you are in it for the long haul and that includes your membership to the party. After all, Singaporeans like stability even when voting for change.

I think Alex Au once stated that to argue for the greater cause of "unity" was to be disloyal to the party's cause of gaining more seats and sadly, this has played out to be true. Perhaps it is the very nature of an opposition candidate that makes him or her unable to stay within a party that has a set of rules and regulations he or she can't agree with. After all isn't the hallmark of a PAP candidate one that submits to group-mandate?

I personally believe that in the months ahead, we will see loser candidates leave their current parties and join others or set up new ones.

3) Having A Media Plan

A pleasant surprise from this election was the improvement of coverage allocated to opposition parties this time round. The local press had obviously realised that they no longer had the stranglehold on news in the era of Facebook and the Internet. Unfortunately most if not all opposition were caught off-guard but how nicely the press was playing this time round and were still playing by the old rules i.e. do not trust or rely the local press to get your message out. This in a way, is a sad indictment of the trust our local citizenry has towards the press but that's a post for another time.

So aside from the traditional podium pounding speeches and the clumsy fumblings of urging supporters to "share" links and videos online, the opposition failed by and large to play to the local media, something that PAP has had the luxury of since inception. By the time various opposition figures realised this, it was rather too late into the campaign and PAP has as usual stolen a march on them.

Vivian Balakrishnan's attempted smear campaign on SDP backfired and ironically hit him in where he least expected it; via the local press. Disapproving and unforgiving opinions were published and aired in local papers for once, reflecting the louder disgust heard online and within days, the PAP camp found itself in a position of scrambling to regain lost moral high ground. But the fair play exhibited by the local press was unexpected and to be honest, unprecedented and the opposition failed to capitalise on their gains.

All that said, whether this continues to remain as a normal state of affairs remain to be seen as PAP evaluates the performance of the media under their control and whether hidden repercussions are dealt or felt with after the results are known. The loss of a GRC and a well-liked Foreign Minister is guaranteed to rattle the highest management and as history has shown, PAP is not above changing the rules or altering the playing field to suit itself.

The Truth Behind The Bullshit

Patriotism : Blood vs Country?

So by now everyone in Singapore knows a little bit more on how Mas Selamat escaped the authorities and fled the country to Malaysia. Yup, his brother, sister-in-law and niece were in on it. *pause for dramatic gasp of shock*.

R e a l l y? Did it surprise anyone to know that he a) had help and b) had it from FAMILY? Well the fact that he fled dressed as a WOMAN was a cause for some hilarity but honestly, trust a terrorist to once again abuse religion in the name of his own fucked-up agenda.

But it all makes for good reading while the PAP government stumble and blush over their facetiously worded press releases and farcical Q&A in Parliament (what kind of a clown would ask if Shanmugam would ensure that women wearing the tudung would not face discrimination when it came to employment, "entering security areas" etc.?!) Note too, the breathless exhortations by various red-faced figures in the government for the people not to blame the Malay-Muslim community over the latest divulgence in the Toilet-Break case.

Well for a bunch of people who are paid multi-million dollar salaries, they sure are fucking stupid. Nobody and I mean NOBODY is blaming the Malay-Muslim community for this entire bad circus sideshow they have going on here. EVERYONE however is well aware of the monumental cock-up led by Wong Kan Seng in his previous multi-million dollar role as Home Affairs Minister (jog our memory abit, what is he NOW again?!) And everyone is sick of the blame-pushing and "cover-backside" statements (then again, how typically 'government' of them, as anyone who has done NS will attest to).

What would really surprise anyone would be if WKS had the balls to step up and say, "I fucked up, here's my resignation." If he needed help, South Korea's now ex-Defence Minister, Mr Kim Tae Young could give him some tips on how to bow out like a man and with honour. But again honestly, I wouldn't hold my breath. I'd even dare say there are better odds of Mas Selamat saying "Fuck you JI, I wanna be a normal person instead of running around wearing a tudung and planning to blow shit up."

Ok fine, my rant's over. But here's the crux of my post; why on earth did his family, his own flesh and blood help Mas Selamat, an alleged terrorist as proclaimed by the government? According to the sketchy news reports, it seemed that during his 2 day jaunt across the island from Whitney to Tampines, Mas Selamat already knew (or thought he knew) that his niece a) stayed alone and b) would be partial to assisting him further in his escape.

Assuming that his family members aren't raving lunatic terrorists, after all they all seemed to be normal Singaporeans with the niece even working as a teacher for MOE, why did they not take one look at Mas Selamat and go "OMG you're planning to blow up our neighbours and friends! I happen to LIKE Yishun MRT station! GET THE FUCK OUT OF MY HOUSE!" (or something to that effect).

Or did he sell his family a different version of his side of the story? Note that while he has been locked up at Whitney all this while, presumably under the ISA act (I cbf to read up on this), he has not been charged and convicted within a proper court of law. How far would one have to go to ignore his/her conscience in order to help a loved one who is so obviously wrong in his ideals and actions? Did they consider an intervention of some kind or did they in some misguided way, believe that his incarceration was wrong in the first place? Note also that his nephew, who although did nothing of substance to assist his uncle further in his escape, was also privy to the information that Mas Selamat was taking up transvestism in his home and did nothing to alert the bungling authorities about it.

In a nutshell, do their actions hint of a deeper seated root of resentment and defiance against the government?

Opposition Parties: Reaching Out To New Citizens?

Decided to just post up my comment / reply to a friend's FB where commentors were anti-new citizen for the upcoming elections.

"Distasteful as it may be, the truth is the floodgates have been opened and they are here. Whether they are here to stay long term or not, they are here NOW for the immediate future and I'd expect, curious if not eager to exercise their new voting rights.

Reaching out to them is a must. The opposition should not, must not overlook this silent bloc of voters.

Right now they may be feeling the heat from born Singaporeans; it's easy to direct anger and place the blame for the country's woes at the many feet of these new citizens and PRs. But we should not forget the original culprits (i.e. PAP) in favour for an easier target.

If PAP is the only political party offering them succor, then you can be sure they will vote PAP. The ultimate coup de grace would be to get these new citizens to vote PAP out along with every born and bred Singaporean."

That said, what would a new citizen like to hear from an opposition party that would convince him or her to switch sides? I believe everyone agrees that the average new citizen would more or less have a strong preference, if not loyalty towards the incumbent PAP. The propaganda has been carefully laid from the very first moment a prospective citizen hears about Singapore. About how Singapore has only had one political party ruling it since Independence and how it has brought Singapore to where it is today.

The many attributes that foreigners love about Singapore are also tied back to PAP; an efficient government bureacracy, political stability, safe streets and an undisrupted economy, immigration-friendly policies. The many fallacies of the PAP rule are unnoticed by prospective citizens precisely because they are new. Aside from the obvious difference being a shorter amount of time spent in Singapore, many of them are not subjected to localised policies like National Service or subjected to "mix & try" educational experiments. Having spent over a year living overseas (in Phnom Penh no less), I can definitely appreciate how attractive Singapore is as a new home destination and how it all links back to the PAP rule.

So what can an opposition party offer to tempt votes over? After all it is only human to abhor change. And we cannot assume that these new citizens who are sharing the same social spaces as born & bred Singaporeans are ignorant or deaf to the rising resentment towards their presence on this tiny island. If anything, I'd bet they view any opposition party as a threat to their long term survivability in this country, not to mention long term plans to bring over more of their family and friends.

So I would definitely advocate against any xenophobic speeches or proposed policies during the upcoming General Elections. Playing to the audience is expected but not to the extent of driving this bloc of new voters further into the trenches of the PAP side. I'm no policy maker so i can't think what would entice or attract new voters but I can definitely say what wouldn't work and anti-foreigners, anti-immigration and anti-new blood policies is not the route to take in the road ahead.

Rising Tensions & Widening Cracks - The Road Ahead To Elections

I had a kinda oddball conversation with someone online recently regarding political communications and its outreach in Singapore. I mean, even the most casual of observers would notice the palpable tension in Singapore these days with the government. Just for a quick recap (and background info in case you were hiding under a rock), the litany of woes run the gamut from bread & butter issues (foreigners, floods, overcrowding in public transport, rising costs of living against lower wages) to special interests (mandatory death penalty, gay rights, soaring HDB prices).

Singaporeans by and large are unhappy and dissatisfied to the point whereby more and more are shedding the facade of politeness or even institutional fear when addressing "those in charge". This could also be attributed to the increased uptake since the last elections by Singaporeans when it comes to social networking and mobile net access. In the past when blogging or posting one's frustrations was done best from behind a PC or laptop, these days anything and everything could be posted on the fly with a 3G enabled camera phone. Point, snap and tweet.

What's also notable this time round for the upcoming elections; the number of PAP administrative flops being served up as very juicy political fodder for the opposition. Again thanks to the high penetration of Singaporeans on the internet, political farces such as the Mas Selamat break-out, Orchard Road floods, general apathy & distaste towards the YOG and many more would be dredged up in all their pixelated glory for delicious sound bites repeatedly. As they say, you can't delete anything on the internet and many PAP stalwarts would find themselves tasting shoe leather with their infamous quotes replayed over and over again.

Even the PAP's previous trump card of having the state media faithfully devoting columns and columns of fawning print to their candidates WILL backfire this time round if they execute the same old communications plan of denying or worse, censoring opposition parties fair play and coverage in the press. Again, the populace is more net savvy this time round and what's more, hungry for alternative news and information. Whereas the opposition parties were relatively new to exploiting the digital platforms during the last election, they have improved vastly this time round, having laid digital footprints and groundwork years before the PAP even started noticing how far behind they are lagging. And oh trust me lagging far behind they are, especially if the recent farce of a PAP facebook page is anything to go by.

And the comical thing about the PAP institutional mind is how much they shoot themselves in the foot when it comes to managing communications. Their corporate communications philosophy is best summed up in three words: Knee Jerk Reactions. The powers that are have an institutional habit of presuming the people to be simple digits or automatons, best managed with a regulation or law. But when faced with people willing to think out of the box (a certain toilet-prison break comes to mind), challenge the status quo with research and facts, economic factors or even Mother Nature herself, all we hear are lame sounding excuses like "we were caught off-guard" and faulting current technology and science for not being up to the task! (I have to include the Japanese answer to that for posterity though) I am pretty sure nobody will blink in surprise when the PAP unveils their updated "gag order" in a desperate attempt to threaten convince voters that credible information can only be gotten by the state sanctioned press.

Another telling difference for this upcoming elections would be the fact that PM Lee has had an entire first term to show what he was able to deliver for Singaporeans and so far the response from the ground is far from happy. Contrary to the often touted "66.6" number, the PAP only got 35.32% of the electoral mandate, thanks to its 'kelong'-rigged electoral boundaries leading to the Uniquely Singapore syndrome of walkovers in the polls. The Singaporean transferred deference (or preference?) to the son of the still-revered LKY might be wearing off, especially with the widely perceived lack of touch that the PM has with our people leading to murmurs that the previous administration under Goh Chok Tong may be viewed as the "good ol' days" now. The on-ground sentiment is now largely wary at the thought of "5 more years under PAP".

And so far the online efforts by SDP, SPP and RP are paying off, based on my personal perception and interaction with those politically active and inclined. Credit also has to go largely towards independent and alternative news sites like The Online Citizen and Temasek Review (formerly the WayangParty.com lol!), along with numerous blogs and forums for creating digital spaces where the airing of previously taboo or unthinkable subjects, issues or even grouses are now posted, read avidly and commented to death upon. These sites also play a crucial role in being regular soapboxes or podiums for political opposition voices to talk about their policies or reactions to crucial current affairs. (I have to admit at being a little curious though non too surprised at WP's lethargy in exploiting the same arenas or forums, given their lackluster engagement as compared to their more vocal counterparts. As a friend pointed out, it does however lend a sardonic credence to my PAP-lite theory)

But the fallacy of the Internet is that it is still at the end of the day, a fetch medium. Short of a possessing a very large media budget (which is silly given the largely free nature of the Internet!), no less amount of effort should be put into canvassing and spreading the word-of-mouth regarding a political party's ideologies and what they stand for ONLINE than say, the amount of resources poured into a walkabout. If anything, I would say the effort allocated should be even higher. After all it is so much easier to maintain constant visibility online vis-a-vis popping up in person to say hi in a wet market and homes every now and then. Efforts must be made to create and studiously maintain a wide digital network of Singaporeans on various demographic levels, especially in the face of how ineffectual the incumbent government is on this front.

And I cannot stress this enough because while it is easy to assume that most if not all Singaporeans are getting their news online now, THAT IS STILL NOT SO. Media research shows that the majority of the heartlanders, the aunties and uncles, yours and my parents are still very much traditional and conservative in getting their news feeds. Which means they are still being fed the same old government propaganda; the same old diet of PAP excuses, doomsday scenarios and threats of how terrible things would be if they aren't in-charge. it is not that they are not online; they are just unaccustomed to thinking or even considering that alternative truths or versions can be had online, contrary to the milk-sopped diet courtesy of the 133rd.

Judging by the tremendous turnout for opposition rallies during the GE2006, it is obvious that Singaporeans by and large are hungry and willing to listen to alternative voices (though whether they get to vote or not is a different matter). Translate that to the ease of reaching out and pulling in these interested audiences online and the oppositions' work is cut out for them. Provided they pick up the pace and act now to put such a huge lead behind them that the PAP has no hope of catching up.

PA's Surest Guarantee Of An Election Landslide Win

So having caught snippets of that old man, LKY giving interviews of what's it like to watch his wife succumb to sickness despite the best medical care available etc. (welcome to the club old man. been there done that without the luxury of a private SQ Boeing too) and talking like his days are running out and how he fights dementia by hanging around to work (is that why our retirement's age going up? So thoughtful of him!) etc. etc. blah blah and the cynical side of me kicked in and went...

"Wow if this old conker kicks the bucket NOW, PAP's gonna sweep the election polls like hell."

I mean, it's not hard to imagine the scene into should HE die. The past few years we've had previous PAP stalwarts buy the farm and the lines of "grieving Singaporeans" forming to weep and share in the moment have been nothing but gag-and-eyeball-inducing. So imagine the frantic mania and faux hysteria everyone will be whipped into when he goes. After all this is no less than the father figure generations have been misled to solely credit for Singapore's current success.

Honestly, I see the aftermath of his death to be pretty much like what happened after Chairman Mao was declared dead. Only ours will be a whole lot neater, better processed and even with matching commemorative EZ-link cards perhaps.

I wouldn't put it past the wily old man to perform one last kamikaze mission just for his son's regime.

Are We All Becoming Pauline Hansons?

Surf anywhere on the local blogosphere, forums and alternative news sites, you'd find an article or more regarding the unhappiness with foreign immigration or as the laughable misnomer by the PAP goverment calls them, "foreign talent".

The government's badly managed PR push to get Singaporeans to welcome these "necessary talent" is met with a rising tide of scorn and cynicism from a populace long assumed to be apathetic or even guileless to the self entrenched ruling parties ham-handed way of pushing unpopular policies through. For years, the smug "men in white" were able and grew accustomed to
steamrolling national initiatives (increase of GST from 5% - 7%, constant revision of public transport fares etc.) with nary a peep or murmur from the usually pliant citizens. But with the ascension of Lee Hsien Loong to the foregone conclusion of Prime Minister-ship and his opening of the floodgates *snicker to allow unrelenting streams of foreigners, particularly the ones from China and India, the administrations usual tactic of issuing positive-sounding-but-devoid-of-substantive-measures sound bites don't seem to be playing out well anymore.

The rising resentment stems from the fact that most Singaporeans have or are realising that these so-called talent are often just a convenient label for importing cheap labour for menial work. The chorus of dissent sings out that these foreign workers are taking up jobs that could and should be filled by a Singaporean. The evidence is as plain as PM Lee's pink shirt during his National Day Rally; foreigners have now taken up work in coffeeshops, retail outlets, bus captains and so many more. A fawning article by our state press helpfully points out all the other menial work currently being carried out by the so-called talent that the government claims Singapore needs in order to grow the economy and create jobs.

Way I see it, call a spade and a fish a fish. Have the balls to step up and admit that Singapore needs cheap foreign labour to take up jobs that Singaporeans have no interest in filling. Cut the crap with calling them "talent". The initial perception of an influx of well-educated and well heeled foreigners here to do some much-needed technology transfer were quickly dispelled when the first of many pei-du mamas started showing up in the press, arrested for moonlighting as "masseuse" and what not.

Next on the resentment list is the fact that these same 'talents' now strain our national infrastructure to the point where it's bursting at the seams. Other complaints point out that these new immigrants evince no interest in learning our language, leading to many a frustrated encounter in local shops and restaurants. Others point out that the practise of offering cheap citizenships to foreigners led to a bull run on the property market and more importantly, the government subsidised housing apartments. Housing prices have soared to astronomical heights. Foreign students are also offered scholarships and take up places in our local schools and universities. The list could go on and on.

The unhappy truth of course (though no one in the government would have the balls to come out and say it) is that capitalism at the end of the day wins. Many companies take advantage of the foreign-worker-to-locals quota wherever possible to hire cheaper skilled labour. All businesses exist for one reason and one reason alone - to make money. To claim otherwise is a crock of bullshit. As they say, money saved is money earned.


So are we in danger of becoming Pauline Hansons with this rising tide of hysteria over foreign workers coming in to steal our jobs, our homes, our childrens' places in schools? Pauline shot to international fame when she espoused a no-immigrants policy when she was running for elections. Her diatribe over "Asians" taking up jobs, homes and places in school now sound eerily familiar.

Truth is, I personally don't believe that the government owes its people long term job security or first priority in landing a job for that matter. It should however be responsible and oversee other factors that makes Singapore a great place to set up business in i.e. office rents, tax rebates. Instead of giving out lame handouts like GST Offset Package, set aside a real fund from which citizens can draw from to further improve themselves via training courses or the like. Grants for a worker to upgrade himself should be accessible to the individual himself, not dependent on a company. Artificially depressing wages by not implementing a minimum wage and making it so easy for a foreigner to find work here is just plain wrong.

That said, I think it sucks that I have to compete unfairly with a foreign worker for a job. But how I choose to deal with it is to make myself the best candidate possible. I do believe in being hired for my skills and knowledge, not because of my nationality. I have had to interview candidates for positions within my team or department before and the appalling examples of ill-prepared applicants are usually the local ones, whereas foreign applicants come across as earnest, hardworking and sometimes eager to please. Coupled with a "lower price tag", how can one blame local employers for choosing to hire "outside" help then?

The Singapore Hotel

So by now the internet and local media is abuzz with the latest National Day Rally by PM Lee Hsien Loong. The state press in its usual oh-so-North Korea style has nothing but plaudits and heavily laden praise for his speech, while the local netizens have been nothing but scornful and cynical.

Personally, my reaction (after reading the bullet points on the PMO website) was more "meh" than anything else. Uneventful as my Sunday was, I didn't wish to further bore myself by watching crap. And the next day's headlines totally justified it.

Let's see, "$9000 to be given to NSmen" reads like a good soundbite, until you realise that most of it will be locked up in CPF i.e. going back to the government anyway. Yeah sure, tell us it's for housing and crap when all along prices have been elevated beyond any reasonable levels. It's like selling rice at an over-inflated premium and then giving you a 10% voucher for it.

What else? Oh yeah, a feeble acknowledgement of how public transport is so over-crowded and how they're going to spend BILLIONS fixing the problem?! Sure, jack up transport costs and then tell us you're looking into adding trains and extending platforms. Thing is, after all these are done, how much MORE are we going to be charged, AGAIN?

One line made me snigger though. He said that if you were not able to get into the first train, be rest assured that you should be able to board the next one. What happened to that joke of a SMRT CEO saying crap like "People can board the trains, it's whether they want to" ? Did the camera pan to her reddened face in the audience? Did she even get an e-invite in the first place? ROFL.

Usual drivel on how foreign talent is here to stay and create more jobs. What's really laughable were the examples he chose to employ. The bus captain who touched lives and sparked off the flood (yeah guess what I'm gonna rant on next :P ) of sentimental letters made me laugh. Maudlin as it sounded, it really begged the question of "Is that it? Bring on the foreigners because we're going to get better bus service!" The way he talked about it, you would have thought the decades of local bus captains prior were all a sullen lot.

I could go on picking his speech apart but let me sum it up. It held N-O-T-H-I-N-G of interest to me as an ordinary citizen. No mention or acknowledgement was given towards the very real fears and dreams of Singaporeans. Nothing substantial about managing the cost of living or base wages. Not a peep about how the government realizes how certain policies may have NOT worked and are looking to address them. Not even a blush on the Orchard Road floods debacle nor an apology the very-real on the ground anti sentiment towards the recently concluded YOG. Forget about the lapse in security in the Mas Selamat or MRT vandalism cases too please. Housing costs have risen at such an astronomical rate it's laughable how young couples are able to afford one, much less consider having babies, so now we finally get a "We're looking into it" a little too late. Seriously, the list could go on and on. Instead we were treated to a rambling monologue more focused on patting himself and his gerry-rigged Cabinet on the back.

I doubt anyone was naive enough to think that our PM would have the guts or gumption to actually step up and say, "We need an open discourse. We know many of you are feeling unhappy and worried. There are bread and butter issues that bother us all. We also need a debate on the death penalty; so many developed countries have signed a moratorium on this. We also need to work towards recognising minorities in our society, racial, sexual and the disadvantaged." Was anyone actually hopeful that for once, our Prime Minister would say something that resonates? Yeah right, keep on dreaming Singapore.

While Singapore may be a great place to do business, it is a lousy place to call home. Because home is where you choose to make a stand and fight for if the need calls for it. Right now, this "country" is more like a hotel. It's run with a 5-star efficiency, with the best amenities and facilities you may ask for. Based on your means, you may live in a deluxe, suite or penthouse unit. The moment something goes wrong, you make a complaint to the management and hope they listen. You don't really have a say in how things are run or managed. Speak out and don't be surprised if security comes knocking on your door. If you don't like it and have the means, check out and book into another country hotel to live in.

I may rave about the good times I have in a hotel, but when it's on fire or worse, attacked by terrorists, hell if I'm going to do anything else other than grab my own stuff and run. Put out the flames and help out? That's what the management is for, man.

When A Family Has To Plead For A Loved One's Life

Yong Vui Kong's Family Plead for his Life from Lianain Films on Vimeo.

This is a damn heart-breaking video, all the more so because it's shorn of any special editing or effects. It's raw, it's real and it's happening whether we are aware or not.

To be honest, I was one of those who were initially cynical and dismissive over this anti-death penalty campaign. Or any of its predecessors for that matter. "Just another drug trafficker sentenced to die, so?" was my general attitude and one that sums up alot of Singaporeans I believe.

I was idly following the coverage that The Online Citizen provides regarding this affair when a sentence from a speech struck me.

"This is about mercy."

And yes, that's when I realised how far removed I was becoming from my own humanity. To be so innured to the thought of another fellow human being that it doesn't cause more than a moment's consideration or worse, a sneer. Is that the kind of person I have become?

To those who say that he was caught and found guilty of a crime, well let those who knows no sin cast the first stone then. If not, STFU seriously.

So yeah, if you aren't aware of this issue, do find out more and sign the petition if you can.

End rant.

OMG I'm Quoted

So a facebook rant of mine got quoted in a Temasek Review article. Woot?

Copied and pasted the article here. My quoted comment in bold.

Chee Soon Juan versus Low Thia Kiang: Who is a more effective opposition leader?
August 22nd, 2010 | OPINION

During a discussion on our Facebook, a netizen compared the contrasting styles between opposition leaders Chee Soon Juan and Low Thia Kiang, claiming that the public sees the latter as a more credible politician than the former.

“Take the case of CJS vs GOV, that guy keeps barking nonstop at anything and everything that the gov do without so much of any viable solutions. what do the general public see of him now? still credible? Take the other case of LTK vs GOV, he doesn’t bark like a mad dog. he criticizes, yet gives credit where its due, what’s the general public’s perception of him?”

It is a common misperception among many Singaporeans perpetuated by PAP leaders and the state media that Chee who minced no words in his criticisms of the PAP regime is a “destructive” politician while Low who almost never does, is a “constructive” opposition.

A real opposition leader should behave like Chee – keep asking difficult questions and take the PAP to task. That’s why the PAP and the state media tried so hard to demonize and fix him.

Chee is pretty mild compared to opposition leaders in other parts of Asia. Take for example the current Chief Minister of Penang Lim Guan Eng. He was jailed for 18 months under the Sedition Act in 1995 for distributing fliers calling for the arrest of Malacca’s former Mentri Besar Thamby Chik who was implicated in the molest of a minor. Lim also took part in several protests and rallies against the Barisan government. He “barked” much louder than CSJ and did not offer any viable solutions too. Now that he’s the CM of Penang, he introduced so many reforms such as calling for open tenders in public projects and releasing the salaries of public officials online.

Another example is South Korea’s former President Kim Dae Jung who was considered a “radical” in the 1970s. He organized a number of strikes and protests against the autocratic government of President Park Chung Hee and was almost assassinated by the Korean secret police in Japan. He did not offer any alternative vision for Korea either when he was lampooning the government. After he was elected the President of Korea, he dismantled the chaebols and democratized the entire nation. Korea is now a vibrant first world democracy.

Low Thia Kiang will be considered a stooge in other Asian democracies by cuddling up to the PAP leaders instead of taking them to task. When asked by PM Lee in Parliament if Wong Kan Seng should resign over the escape of Mas Selamat, Low dared not even make a single sound.

Singaporeans are getting more and more educated and exposed. Public perception towards Chee will change slowly and gradually. That’s what we have been trying hard to do – to expose the dirty tricks of the state media, to highlight the flaws in the PAP system and to educate fellow Singaporeans on their rights as citizens of this country.

Remember what Joseph Goebbels, the head of Nazi propaganda once said:

“Repeat a lie again, again and again several times and it will become the truth to the masses.”

That’s how Chee got fixed by the Singapore media. He may not be politically savvy, but that doesn’t mean we should dismiss all his criticisms about the PAP as mere “barking.”

Addendum by Nicholas Lim:

People who see Low Thia Kiang and Chiam See Tong as “credible opposition” just because they’ve been given the rubber stamp of approval by PAP are seriously deluded and need to get their heads cleared of the cotton wool so carefully stuffed in by the mainstream press.

Over the years the so-called opposition has been watered down and diluted into 2nd and 3rd class version of PAP or “PAP Lite” if you prefer. After all, what have they been able to achieve in terms of truly opposing the government WHEN IT COUNTS?

GST went up with nary a bump when the government wanted, Mas Selamat checked out and stayed out of the country, floods are now an expected feature with a National Day award as a pat on the back, the drastic increase of foreigners, the financial and international embarrassment of the YOG, wanton increase in fares despite the overcrowding of the public transport system, the need for a proper nationwide debate on mandatory vs judicial discretion on the death penalty, hell there was even a petition in Malaysia on highly probable serious miscarriage of justice: seriously the list can go on and on and just where is the “opposition” in all of this?

Oh sure Low Thia Kiang had his 15mins of fame over the SM&C issue and then? You mean that’s all they can do? Or is the the “you only elect me to Hougang hence I only speak up on Hougang issues” tactic?

I can definitely see how the PAP continually awards their “Preferred Opposition Party” status to the ilk of the Worker’s Party and the rest. After all who needs to worry about losing elections with such “foes” around?

Who is a more credible and effective opposition leader? One who dares to challenge the PAP leaders directly and exerts pressure on them constantly or one who works hard quietly in the background to serve his constituents, but seldom question the PAP over its national policies? Please share your views with us here.

Singapore Police Force At Its Stupidest

f you are living in Singapore, you would have to be in another dimension if you haven't heard by now the notorious escape of Mas Selamat Kastari, a terrorist who planned to hijack and suicide pilot an airliner into Changi Airport in 2001.

What's laughable about the entire affair is the gargantuan host of mistakes the SPF and it's "boss", the Ministry of Home Affairs made and are continuing to make ever since the local Houdini made his escape.

Here's a chuckle I came across online and shared with a whole bevy of my friends and colleagues. Even as I type this now I hear laughter from various corners of the office.

Simply put, we know this feller is a Houdini as he not only escaped from our very own Whitley Centre but a couple of other prison institutions as well. He must be damn cunning, probably cunning enough to assume a new identity already! Here are some of the possible personas he may decide to adopt.

How many can YOU spot? :P (Picture courtesy of TalkingCock.com )

Human Rights Vs. Effing F1

Read this.

"Lawyer Kala Mohan, on the other hand, echoes a long-held sceptic's view — that Singapore does not need a human rights body, for we have good laws already in place."

The sheer fucking HYPOCRISY of it... not to mention the idiocy of which ever freaking toad in CNA who wrote that piece of crap.

Why? Well, apparently I'm living in a country (not that it's any news to me) that manages to ram through a bill allowing casinos, street car drag racing (whatever), bartop dancing faster than one can imagine but when it comes to HUMAN RIGHTS, it treats it like we're talking about buying or building a say, gladiatorial bull fighting ring.

It's a "nice to have", but it might not be "Singaporean". Yes, from the way Singapore speaks of Human Rights, it's like talking about starting a bull fighting culture here. Equally relevant and important. Get it?

So what's gonna happen from here? Our bullshit Government will hem and haw about this for a while, and then quietly shelve it for the next X number of years while it plays it song and dance about having brand new gambling dens and F1 racing, distracting it's citizaens about soaring inflation and CPI rates, lessening returns of CPF, irresponsible handling of our national reserves by Temasek Holdings, lowering of minimum wages due to fucking Foreign Talent.

Oh by the way isn't it sweet irony that thanks to our beloved Foreign Talent 106 people has come down with food poisoning due to Prima Food's embrace of our government's cheap labour scheme? So much for "leavening" our population with foreign "talent". (Sorry, couldn't resist that pun).

My Take On The Repeal377a (Crap)

First off, I'm gay. I'm mostly out to everyone from my family, friends, NS buddies, former church friends to some of my colleagues.

Yet I find all these call-to-actions by gay rights activists to be rather shallow and frankly, hypocritical. Why? Mainly because alot of said homosexuals aren't even out to their immediate friends and family, living their lives as normally as one can except that well, one's gay.

This little step, coming out of the closet, is something a huge majority of gay people are unwilling to do.

Now before one gets all "yeah but it's because there's a law banning gays!" let's clear things up. By law, it's not a crime to BE gay, merely a crime to well, commit said acts that make you gay. I've told a police inspector in his face before "Hey I'm gay" and he gave me a look that said "So?"

Being gay is not grounds for arrest. Screwing a non female's arse (or maybe even female, I'm not sure here) or receiving a blowjob by a non female lands you in jail etc. Ok fine. But unless you choose to commit those acts in public I don't really see how one gets arrested for it. And throughout my 12 years of being gay in this country with a rather prolific sex life has never landed me in jail before. So what's the fuss all about?

Seriously, there are bigger issues out there. "Championing" this cause is but pandering to the very skewed agendas of a very few minority, all blown up and out of context.

I can't say I trust THIS government to do the right thing and change the laws to be more non discriminatory, but I find the self righteous whingings of a group of activists who themselves, run gay bath houses that provide facilities for gay sex, to be a tad "conflict of self interest" to even want to be caught up with it.

Shut The Fucking Hell Up Lah!

Every local media is bombarding us non stop on why it's good to increase the fucking MP's salaries, we have our pathetic Teo CH's lame excuses and justifications on how the benchmarks are fair and "transparent", we have bootlickers like Irene Ng and Vivian gagging to praise their overlord to the fucking high heavens non stop, and we have the 147th describing in breathless detail on how our queeny PM "spoke in a choked and emotion-filled voice" to let us know if we don't pay his greedy cohort enough, he might be without a job?!

WHAT-FUCKING-EVER LAH!

As if we don't know it's a bloody forgone conclusion already. It was the same with the casinos (call it whatever they want, its a fucking casino at the end of the day!), it was the same with the HOTA & that poor Mr Sim's family issue, it was the same with the GST increase. IT WILL ALWAYS BE THE FUCKING SAME DEAL over and over again so shut the fuck up I don't need to hear any more about it.

But just for good ol' nostalgia's sake, here's ANOTHER exampled on how our idiotic despots have to eat their words over and over again.

"Political entrepreneurs needed for success : SM", 147th The Straits Times, 02 Nov 1994


Qute : "At the end of the day, it is $5 million more. What on earth are we arguing about?"

It was now time to abandon tradition and opt for a new method of paying ministers, he declared.

He predicted that in five to 10 years' time, the benchmark formula would have succeeded and would be accepted as conventional wisdom, just as other policies pioneered by Singapore ministers had been adopted by other countries....

....'There can be no end to this argument. I read what Walter Woon says - let's have a referendum.

"The people at large...Are they in a position to judge? Is it within their range of experience? I have been through this life and had I lived a different life in Lee & Lee, I would never have this experience.

"Because I have gone through this, I say 'do it'. I am in a position to judge.

"I say I am prepared to put my experience and my judgment against all the arguments the doubters can muster.

"In five to 10 years, when it works and Singapore has got a good government, this formula will be accepted as conventional wisdom."

---------------------------------------------------------
It's 13 fucking years later and your people are still not happy. Our elderly have to work as cleaners in public toilets, pick up cardboard and used cans to make a living, people are choosing to die on MRT tracks every other week because f your outdated conventional wisdom. You were boycotted by Australia's politicians and booed by cohorts of truly intellectual students. You are a has-been so shut the fuck up, Lee Kuan Fucking-Yew.

First They Came

First They Came ~ Martin Niemoller

When the Nazis came for the communists,
I remained silent;
I was not a communist.

When they locked up the social democrats,
I remained silent;
I was not a social democrat.

When they came for the trade unionists,
I did not speak out;
I was not a trade unionist.

When they came for the Jews,
I did not speak out;
I was not a Jew.

When they came for me,
there was no one left to speak out.

At the risk of sounding overly dramatic, it seems with recent times its easier for a state to be overrun by facism than ever. Recent events displaying the callous disregard for external sentiments and feelings not pertaining to what the Government wants sends a silent chill down one's spine if you choose to take a step back and consider it.

Fascism isn't an overnight revolution. It starts insidiously, slowly. The collection of authority and power into the hands of a select few. It stacks up over time like a pile of stones, until one wakes up one day to find a mountain of errors and "its always been this way" excuses and by then, it might be too late.

What *is* facism? According to Wikipedia, it states that "Fascism is a radical totalitarian political philosophy that combines elements of corporatism, authoritarianism, extreme nationalism, militarism, anti-anarchism, anti-communism and anti-liberalism." Another consideration of facism is that "Fascism is also typified by totalitarian attempts to impose state control over all aspects of life: political, social, cultural, and economic".

Cheem siah...

I'm not saying that we live in a facist country. We don't. But we could. The political apathy of the majority of the population attests to this. The complacency of the people to leave decisions up to the policy makers paves the way for this. An election system that sees a party largely returned to power before polling even begins & regulations favouring the incumbent allows this. The lack of credible debate and discussion avenues that affects policy BEFORE it is implemented shows this. The crackdown on dissident voices, opposing views and alternative opinions proves this.

The greatest harm often come of the greatest of intentions. It doesn't take evil men for evil deeds to happen.

The problem is, not many Singaporeans can be bothered about this. There is so much wrong about our systems in Singapore, from;

1) a judicial system that presumes guilt before proven innocence.

2) a collection of government watchdogs that claim to plan for "open-ness" but clamp down hard on any form of alternative-ness other than their own.

3) a one party government that has presided over an ever increasing income gap between the rich & the poor and is so out of touch with real life issues yet gets re-elected thanks to its monopoly on the media.

4) a standard of living that rises every day and every year but minimum wages that hasn't risen to suit.

5) an economy that sees its people working to feed the government multi-national companies that virtually controls every facet of life we partake in.

6) a National Pledge that recites "regardless of race, language or religion" but sees its government persecuting Jehovah's Witnesses, depriving the entire gay community of any form of recognition or expression and recently, even helping a foreign government persecute Falungong activists trying to drum up support for their own plight back home.

7) a government so confident of its own authoritarian rule that it even puts the facade of inviting debate on the casino issue & then steamrolled ahead with its implementation plans anyway and politely telling the World Bank & IMF that it wants it business but it'll ignore their views on allowing peaceful demonstrations outside its meetings.

The list goes on. But it gets more and more depressing if I were to write on. Did I mention that suicide rates are up too? I kid you not.

So what are we to do? The MDA's favourite tag line recently seems to be "give us solutions" (especially over that silly Mr Brown incident) but frankly, what can an average guy like me do when everywhere you turn or whichever corner you round, you are actively blocked, governed and basically conditioned against speaking out?

Pri-f**king-orities!!???

Of late it seems this seems to be the buzzword - Priorities.

If anyone is following the news OUTSIDE of our state-run media, one would know of the embrassing backlash from the WB-IMF over our government's communist-like handling of the civil activists and their attendance of the Singapore 2006 meetings. The rain of criticism included chortlings of the American media, mostly along the lines of "They're barbaric, they cane people what do you expect" to downright criticism by the WB Chief, Wolfowitz himself.

But while everyone in the know have been deriding the government for their less-than-savvy management of the entire debacle, our local media truly showed themselves to be the mouthpiece of the government solely, by glossing over the international hue & cry over the affair, as well as downplaying the SDP's ongoing attempt at a protest rally & march.

These brave (but foolhardy in my opinion) souls are really trying their darndest to give Singaporeans a chance at a voice of their own, though what do they really expect the WB-IMF to do when our government doesn't even respect their own accreditation criteria really beats me.

What's even more amusing is the blatant attempt at propaganda by the media. From a crowd of over a 100 supporters the media applied for a creative license and whittled down the truth to only 20. But what else can you expect from CNA & the Strait(-Jacket) Times huh?

So it truly seems like our government's main priority at this point is to continue slathering the WB-IMF delegates with bile-inducing Eden-like facts of our (police) city-state while brave (but foolhardy?) activists sit out in the sun & rain for 4 days & 3 nights. Anything to save face, our Singapore Government is.

On the work front, I'm dealing with a Boss who puts unrealistic project goals & income over staff welfare. At times I'm really close to losing it, what with the 4A.M phone calls and emails, constant changing and restructuring of marketing efforts. Meanwhile since our supposed Finance & HR manager was fired in a fit of temper by my Boss, the little things that take care of staff to make sure things operate smoothly has got to the nuthouse.(I say supposed because he never did do what his job scope implied) From irritating facts like a lack of paper to non-existent water in the cooler and a pantry in name only to even an underlying fear that paychecks may not be cut on time to a really really staff-shortfall, I'm beginning to feel the dread of going into work these days.

So with all the wrong priorities happening all over the place, I can't help but wonder why fucking bother!!!

The SG Media Are Bloody Hypocrites

Even as they happily laud the fact that Singapore has been ranked amongst the top 5 of corruption free countires around the world, the silence on their non-reporting of the recent backlash from the World Bank - IMF over our government's rough shod banning of civil activist delegates to the upcoming meetings has been D E A F E N I N G.

Joint Statement From World Bank And IMF On CSO Participation In The Annual Meetings In Singapore

The WB-IMF protesting our government's banning of accreddited NGO reps. In other words, our government thinks its standards of deciding which people to allow to attend the meetings, or not, is waaaaay better than an International body like WB-IMF.

Singapore Under Fire as World bank-IMF Protest

Yay. Now we're publicly being laughed at. way to go marketing Singapore. Wasn't it only recently that some minister was boasting and urging one united brand of Singapore? Well there you have it.

Dictatorial Singapore

Authoritative Know It All Singapore

"We Ban Ya Ass" Singapore

Those press releases or reports (compiled by AFP too, if you notice) has been out for at least a day or 2. But not a single peep from our docile media. No no cannot let Singaporeans know that we are not being as friendly or wlecoming as our government keeps brain washing us to think we should be.

All that bullshit about wanting to attract foreign talent, investors and making this a fun filled creative place. Yeah fucking-bloody "right".

Jailed ST Reporter in China

Ching Cheong, acknowledged by the Straits Times as their Chief China correspondent, was jailed for 5 years today, in China on supposedly trumped up charges of espionage.

Amidst all the furore of protests and petitions drummed up by his wife, Reporters San Frontiers (Reporters Without Borders), human rights activists in the US and Hong Kong, a resounding silence resonates from the country which is his country of residence and his place of employment offers a mere mewling token protest. Given the outright glee which they handled the NKF saga, their enthusiasm for this particular affair seems quite lackadaisical I think.

But it's not really that surprisingly. A line from BBC's coverage states "The government does not allow any challenge to its authority and keeps a tight rein on the media."

Ouch. But before you think it's a slur on our supposedly fine Republic of Singapore, it's not. It of course infers to the draconian state laws of the communist People's Republic of China, long known for its persecution of freedom-loving right-wing activists and religion practitioners of dubious faiths.

But why I say "it isn't surprising" is because that simple statement is probably heartily endorsed by the Lee regime here in Singapore itself. Reading that, a recent post-election ticking off by the elder Lee definitely comes to mind. :P