Related: Fernvale Columbarium: Shallow people opposed this
Again pure serendipity. Just what I needed or this post would be too difficult and time consuming to write.
I think it is time to recognize that Singapore has over time become a money pot and very attractive to foreign business. I am probably very late to say this and we have all been distracted from suggesting growing corruption in government. The larger issue might be something else. Our version of how businesses try to weave themselves into government and capture it unaware to further their own interest. As an outside observer, the property sector try the hardest and most shamelessly. Good for us they lost their champion Mah Bow Tan.
Our increasingly less incorruptible government may be suffering more from stupidity than greed. Just like lobby groups capture the American law makers, we may be getting our equivalent. Therefore we must study the various cases carefully and learn from them. The latest could very well be how an ASX company successfully navigated itself into no more our columbarium services but businesses.
Years from now, not only is health care expensive, death rites and burial will also be inflating much faster than GDP and wage growth. I think this Fernvale columbarium just gave us the opportunity to see the moment of its birth.
A clueless government letting big business come in to screw us, typically under the guise of upgrading. True upgrading is when you can afford it. If it is a service that is needed by all, then something is wrong when it inflates faster than wage or GDP growth. Haven't they learn from the troubles at the public transport front.
This government is increasingly only book smart but not street smart. What is the use of book smarts?
And u r saying mbt is stupid.. mmm fat chance
ReplyDeleteMBT wasn't stupid. Just not smart in the things developers were. He will beat them in school any time.
DeleteSimilarly many doctors aren't stupid but still lose lots of money with dishonest financial advisers.....
Noted you put up a snapshot on Stigltz instead. But that is indeed a very interesting piece of news - it tells so much that not just the markets (FX, commodity, interest rate...) are manipulated so are the regulators!! And for those who follow, good luck. Quite related is an article just out in CQ on China's rich people - The BLING DYNASTY - enjoy http://www.gq.com/news-politics/201501/chinas-richest
ReplyDeleteThis government is held hostage to big business. They took a wrong turn many years ago and now half of them are trying to rationalize that move and the rest are trying to cope with it. People like Goh Keng Swee and Toh Chin Chye looked at GDP in the service of people. The latest cohort wants GDP to justify their rewards. At this point reform , if any, will be painful. When LKY dished out hard truths I don't think he was blind to pain. People had to make tough choices but they had choices. This bunch are happy to leave people with no choices.
ReplyDeleteAs MM Lee aptly said "What's wrong with collecting more money?"
ReplyDeleteYou are right up to the point when they collect too much.....then it becomes a terrible idea.
DeleteFirst and foremost, another insightful topic by peng you.
ReplyDeletelooking at Singapore politics, I would be contrary to what some netizens would say, I don't think Singapore govt is captured by bizness. No doubt, they had taken a more pro-biz attitude since the 1990s, but that doesn't mean it is captured by the bizness which is about political power. one indicator you can tell is to look at the presence of bizness people in "positions of power", which Singapore has minimal.
Sadly, most of the time, liberal democracies tend to be captured by bizness. just look at hong kong and USA etc... Firstly, countries with vibrant political competition creates cracks for bizness lobby groups to enter. Secondly, in liberal democracies, govt exercises less control. So that means there is no entity which can curb bizness power. As long as Singapore can retain its one party dominance model, it is hard for bizness groups to capture politics. After all, the PAP's dictum is that the govt will become the dominant political force, at the expense of bizness groups or religious groups etc...
They and others will always try to capture governments all over the world. If they can't they will settle for something less. As long as they can influence the govt in their favor that would make them quite happy. If they could leverage their knowledge over the government then it is much easier to influence the govt too. Since most useful knowledge belongs to the private sector....
DeleteThey are patient and move slowly in a way which would make Lenin proud of them. As and when the opportunity opens up to capture the govt, they will not resist that temptation.
thats why i have always liken politics to eating a cake. the govt has been eating much of the cake since the 1970s. If the govt dont eat the cake, someone else will eat, and most of the time, that someone wont be "the people". Like you say, in the US and HK, bizness eats more of the cake. in Philippines, religious groups eat more. in Europe, civil societies with their own agenda use to eat a big share. But now, the worrying trend in Europe is that far-right groups are eating more and more of the share (read your post about the french cartoon incident).
Delete