Kudos to residents in WP's managed constituencies. They are starting to demand answers from their MPs. Because WP had also voted in favor of the motion, I also expect them to come clean and explain what they will do to right the situation. I had assume they need a lot of time and over time would have just quietly solved the problem and reinvented the wheel taken away by the PAP. We shall see. In my first post on this subject, I had called both parties black pots.
Bernard Lee ought to give himself a few more thoughtful days. He should feel more hopeful afterward when he sees how fellow residents come together over this issue. I have more confidence in the people than the government, which never tried this thought experiment: Exchange this population for any city in this world and see if they can make it work. They will find themselves herding cats and needing bribes, populism. They took our support for granted. When the problems become too difficult to solve they made it bearable, even profitable for themselves demanding more blood, sweat and tears from us. For a while we gave in even as people elsewhere laugh at us (especially the PRCs) and FTs took advantage of us. You can ask any local born but it is clearest for Singaporean men who serve as SQ pilots.
I responded to a comment left for me as follows from: AHPETC: How much slack to cut them?
If a minister or MP is a true patriot, you will be respected and even loved. If you are in this for the money and status enough among us can sense it even if we can't put words to the feeling. You see, we don't just see and hear. What could be said but never. There are also non verbal messages, strong vibes that come out of you all the time. Like Bernard Lee said, "I sense that they are self serving" It is the Singaporean survivor instinct which everyone has but I think we have more.
If we cannot find patriots for leaders, we would simply need stronger check and balance which is sorely lacking when the PAP dominates. The town council act should already have enough teeth to get CAD or CPIB involved if there were signs of wrong doing, but I guess the PAP always thought they would never lose a GRC and they needed the legislation to give them flexibility to do immoral things but not illegal. If only they were willing to set the AGO on themselves, would they look better? I think so, but not by much because they have stronger systems and better resources.
Do the PAP really ever understand why we are so eager for more opposition MPs in parliament? It is the clearest sign that trust in them is eroding! But alas, they love to drink their kool aid and eat their own propaganda. Over the long run the only way to live false virtues is to forget they were fake. Like the Roman Catholic clergy suffered from this big time until Pope Francis came along.
How much longer do they want to play this with us? In our "order out of chaos" unpredictable way we will rid ourselves of the wrong people so that the patriots who were turned off by all these will come forward. As we mature further, may be we will have our own version of governing ourselves like the Swiss have. Would we? Who knows but what choice have we got?
Update: Feb 15 9:00am
Unlike many bloggers, I do not have the time to deeply research for information before writing. This just appeared on my Facebook news feed and now it is here. Often I just need to get on with what I am supposed to do and more often than not, what I need just appear in front of me to use.
The PAP government is riddled with so many conflicts of interest I am sure you can compile a book on them, and the situation is not getting better. We haven't even begin to discuss the hidden things. They must stink like AIM.
Now if the WP is wise they must not judge themselves by the falling standards of the PAP. Citizens expect decency and honesty, nothing more (I didn't say nothing less). Better than PAP is not good enough. Hon Sui Sen would be a good standard bearer. Abraham Lincoln for his genius combination of honesty and guile is even better. He understood unifying moral concepts, which none including the lawyerly Shanmugam who ought to do.
Update: Feb 16 1:20 pm
Only 119 supporters after almost two days. People were far more anxious and excited about the planned columbarium at Fernvale than this one.
Most busy people don't care very much beyond the fact that the rubbish is cleared, the estate is clean. When you flip the switch you get electricity and when you turn the tap clean water flows. To be realistic, you might not even bother to open your door to your WP MP when he or she comes visiting if you are very busy.
You are very optimistic but I do not share your optimism.
ReplyDeleteWhich is why I left.
It is optimism born out of necessity. Remember how we got here after getting kicked our of the Federation. We must always find reasons to be hopeful and work at it. Don't roll over and die which too many SMEs and the property sector spoiled by the government over the years are doing.
DeleteWe must start looking to ourselves than the government whose ambition is to make us addicts of government but tell us to be more independent when it is inconvenient for them help. Suddenly you threaten them with the vote and the impossible become possible. This is terrible.
Its residents like Bernard Lim who drink the MSM's kool-aide that I'm worried about.
ReplyDeleteYou talk about TC Act being changed? Fat hope!! On the contrary, this AHPETC saga had taught PAP a valuable lesson -- when you lose a GRC, pull the rug under their feet by pulling out the software and making clear to all subcontractors you are with us or against us, let the new team struggle to implement a new IT system within months & get operationally up to speed, by definition they'll be unable to pass audit because of inability to access old info and auditors to authenticate numbers; and now under the new legislation, they'll be penalised by witholding $7m grant annually, no money to fund operations, rubbish pile up, residents conclude opposition cannot clean wards, PAP wins back.
Essentially, PAP sticks their feet out, trips the opposition, gets to be prosecutor and referee at the same time, fine $7m ... what a fantastic formula. And you still hold out hope that they'll change the TC Act. Jeesh!!!!
There's nothing materially new in the AGC findings than had been disclosed before, particularly on the FMSS vs AHPETC relationship. Voters who think that a new team can just come in, put up a tender and expect to get bids are naive. You really think the contractors do assume they can still get PAP TC biz if they bid for the opposition? Which planet do you live in? I mean, would YOU consider joining the opposition and expect that it has zero impact on your career??? Under that scenario, how do you expect AHPETC to get operationally up to speed, otherwise? Put up an ad and hire cleaners themselves from day one?
Our responsibilities as voters go far more than just banding together to "demand answers". It is OUR DUTY to be informed. If we are not aware by now that the MSM is biased, then .. I don't know what to say. You can't just vote in opposition, and then close your eyes and ears and assume that you've now finished fulfilling your responsibilites as voters. Its your responsbility to stay informed. If your primary way of being informed is to "follow two day debate" and then throw in the towel, yes -- you deserved to be screwed.
You KNEW that when you vote for the opposition, you'll not have upgrading.
Now you know that when you vote for the opposition, you'll not get $7m grant a year. If this still does not work, the PAP will figure something else to add to the pile until repentance comes.
Which brings me to this question -- why in the world did you vote in an opposition in the first place? Is that worth the increasingly price that you will have to pay. Each of us has got to answer that question for ourselves, and for our children. But yes, there will be a price to pay. You just learn a new one today, its $7m per year. Good luck!!
If we have more of Bernards, we will never have any opposition and we continue to be suckered. If this AHPETC episode doesn't materialise (which probably so where no GRC would ever be lost), we would continue to imagine everything's alright. I am really worried.
ReplyDeletePengyu, you picked rightly Mr Hon as the good standard bearer. They don't make such man in white anymore??
ReplyDeleteOf course we still have our Hon Sui Sens. It is just that the very best will not join the PAP. Yesterday cabinet ministers were no Yes-men, and some like Toh Chin Chye said No too often and got removed. Today with have a generation of Yes and paid men and women. It's a different world. Politics was a calling, now it is a career.
DeleteThe PAP says it doesn't have an ideology but they do. Just read LKY. He is a cynical fellow devoid of any ideals. Raja compensated for that lack when he was around. To LKY we ware Darwinian creatures.....the PAP is too cynical to believe that there could exist a patriotic alternative to them. In fact they have too few patriots among themselves and so have to induce people to join them with SAFETY (come in via a GRC), power, money and status. In sum, they think the WP is like the Gou Jian of China's Warring State period. The weak Gou Jian and the powerful one are completely different characters. Singapore can only be safe in their hands. Their cynicism lead them to destroy any opposition. They don't fear the CSJs or the Tan Jee Says. They are afriad of the LTKs and the inscrutable CSM who nobody knows what he is up to. LKY and others even attacked him preemptively.
Without ideals, we become a business nation but they forget that a place that is only open for business and nothing more will have a short life. The modern PAP are ignorant of any moral philosophy because they are too pragmatic, faithless and failed to recognize how much we depended on luck to get here. They keep trying to design luck out of our lives only to repeatedly encounter bad luck. That is why their performance are falling...I could have make myself clearer but I am in a hurry.
How low can you go?
ReplyDeleteWell, not so sure... obviously
As pragmatists, they will go as far as needed to destroy the WP because to the PAP an existential threat to them is seen as a threat to the survival of Singapore.
DeleteThe PAP has no faith in us, that we are daft and need their protection. These days their arguments hold no water because they are dishonest from their fear of admitting what the really thought of us. To them we simply don't get it and are quite ungrateful for what they think are their unseen blood, sweat and tears toiling for our good. I think they have become victims of their own propaganda.
PAP cannot understand that there is safety in danger and danger in safety. They are ignorant of the wisdom of the ancients. Sure they are empiricists but blind to human cognitive bias and disabilities. They play God but are too embarrassed to admit so. Nobody in history have played God and succeeded.
People who play God are doomed to fail and people who use God as a justification of their action especially when they have their own private agenda will go no further. In this age of short-termism, they will not even have one generation of space to bury their shit. What is very worrisome is that the lack of the likes of Hons and the overwhelming of Yes-Men will destroy not just PAP but also the nation. We need a leader who can see through the circle of yes-es that blinds him.
ReplyDeleteToday $7Mil. Tomorrow $70Mil. After that $700Mil.
ReplyDeleteThanks for the thoughtful and in depth discussion. Enjoyed reading it. Food for thought. If I understand the story of 卧薪尝胆，就明白WP的苦心。
ReplyDelete20 years is needed to build a new generation of thinking people to safe guard our nation. The sooner we start the better.
"thoughtful and in depth" hardly because I blog very quickly for myself and family only. I could do a much better job making myself clearer if I were writing for others. Thanks anyway.
DeleteAh, the story of Gou Jian and Fu Chai? I am actually afraid of that story.
See the two links.
1. http://blogging4myself.blogspot.sg/2014/02/wp-vs-pap-our-unusual-politics.html
2. http://blogging4myself.blogspot.sg/2015/01/sg-because-we-let-some-get-rich-first.html