Dr Lim Hock Siew Speaks POA Showcase Let the showcase begin....APEC meeting first event to be gazetted under new Public Order Act03 November 2009 1805 hrs (SST)http://www.channelnewsasia.com/stories/singaporelocalnews/view/1015617/1/.htmlSINGAPORE : The APEC meeting in Singapore is the first major event to be gazetted as a "Special Event" under the amended Public Order Act introduced earlier this year.Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong told local and international media that he does not expect disruptions from civil society groups. He said that unlike the IMF World Bank meeting, APEC does not engage such groups.Still, security is a concern.Mr Lee said the new Public Order Act was passed in time for APEC so that Singapore will have "adequate powers to ensure law, order and security".Police have the power to stop and search, request reasons for entry and deny entry to the gazetted areas."We can gazette certain areas and within that area, we can instruct people to move along and not dawdle and attempt to do something which is disruptive. And if they don't, we can take action against them," said Mr Lee."When we had a meeting in Sydney two years ago, (the Australians) spent $300 million building a fence surrounding the whole of the centre of Sydney and declared a public holiday, so all Sydney-ans could leave the town and leave us in solitary splendour. We're not going to do quite that but we hope to have a smooth and peaceful meeting," he added.Three years ago, when Singapore hosted the International Monetary Fund-World Bank meeting, the authorities objected to 28 foreigners - all of whom had a history of taking part in violent protests or disruptive activities at previous meetings - from being allowed into the country.During that period, civil society organisations were allowed to protest in a space provided within the Suntec Singapore International Convention and Exhibition Centre. - CNA /lsCopyright © 2008 MediaCorp Pte Ltd--------------------------------------------------------------------A recall of the key features of the Public Order Acthttp://www.mha.gov.sg/news_details.aspx?nid=MTM5OQ%3D%3D-3BtUG%2B2xe3A%3DConsolidated Permit Regime5 Currently, cause-related activities are regulated together with recreational, social and commercial activities under the Public Entertainments and Meetings Act (PEMA) and Miscellaneous Offences (Public Order and Nuisance) Act (MOA). Under the POA, the relevant portions of these two regulatory regimes will be consolidated for cause-related assemblies and processions. Specifically, this will mean that cause-related activities will be regulated by permit regardless of the number of persons involved or the format they are conducted in. This rationalises the current approach of regulating groups of five or more under the MOA and groups of four or less under the PEMA, (where there is public entertainment). 6 Under the POA, there will be different penalties to distinguish between first-time and repeat or recalcitrant offenders. The jail term for first time offender in the present penalty schedule has been removed. Penalties for repeat offenders on the other hand have been enhanced.Enhancing Security during Major Events7 Major international events are trophy targets for terrorists. As Singapore increasingly plays host to major international events and continues to promote the business of Singapore as an international meeting and convention hub, our priority must be to ensure the safety and security of the delegates and our people during such events.8 To do so, our security forces cannot afford to be distracted from their security deployment or allow the level of security measures in place on site to be diminished by the disruption of political activists, militants or mischief-makers seeking to exploit the media and political attention attending the event. The POA comprises provisions to enhance security during such major events. Under the POA, Minister will be able to declare via gazette a certain event as a special event which will then allow Police to exercise powers to preserve public order and safety of the individuals involved in the event. Within the special event area where typically the security-threat level is higher if not highest, Police can exercise enhanced powers such as prohibition of items, stop and search, arrests, security screening, request reasons for entry from suspicious persons, and denial of entry. Persons who refuse to comply with Police orders or interfere with the conduct of the event will be committing an offence. This is the result of careful study of Australia’s APEC 2007 laws and the Australia Capital Territory’s Major Events laws.Move-On Powers9 The POA will broaden the repertoire of Police powers in dealing with public order incidents. Currently, in the face of an illegal assembly or march, Police will have to either prosecute after the offending action is over or arrest to prevent an escalation of the incident. A move-on order, gives the Police an additional intervening instrument to engage the offender and give him a chance to stop his unlawful activity without involving arrest. It allows Police to de-escalate an activity which can potentially cause significant law and order threats by ordering the person to leave. If the person complies, there will be no arrest and the threat will be removed.10 To enhance internal accountabilities, the move-on orders will be issued by a police officer of or above the rank of sergeant on the explicit authorization of a senior Police officer. It will be in the form of a written notice that will state the area, and the time period (up to 24 hours) within which the subject is prohibited from re-entering. Unlike the Australian model, we have scoped the application of our move-on orders narrower so that our move-on powers can be used only in cases where the Police assess that the person’s behaviour fits within certain specified criteria as appended below:a) interferes with trade or business at the place by obstructing, hindering or impeding someone entering, at or leaving the place;b) is or has been disorderly, indecent, offensive, or threatening to someone entering, at or leaving the place;c) is or has been disrupting the peaceable and orderly conduct of any event, entertainment or gathering at the place; ord) shows that he is just about to commit an offence or has just committed or is committing an offence.Order on Filming11 There are specific practical situations where the recording of an on-going incident can potentially jeopardise the success of security operations or the safety of the officers. For instance, in a counter-terrorism operation, real time coverage of the storming operation can expose the special forces and the hostages to great risks as it can undermine the element of surprise critical to such missions. There are also other instances whereby the identities of an officer carrying out such sensitive covert operations can be compromised by the dissemination of video-recording of the operation.12 The POA empowers law enforcement officers to prohibit persons from filming, communicating and exhibiting films of law enforcement activities which if exhibited will either endanger the safety of officers or prejudice the effective conduct of an operation. It will be an offence if a person willfully disobeys the prohibition order given to him. [3] APEC - Showcase for POA With APEC Leaders Week fast approaching, the showcast event for asia pacific might turn out to be a showcase for Singapore's new Public Order Act.As a refresher, amendments to Public Order Act was passed in April 2009 in what many saw as an update to the law with APEC in mind. The new guidelines state that cause-related activities will be regulated, regardless of the number of persons involved. This is a move away from the previous definition of an illegal assembly (5 or more people).The SDP has on numerous occasions in the past gathered in groups of 4 or even one to demonstarte the uneven application of this law. Obviously, the new definitions can be seen as a means to curb their campaigning. Lets not forget the standoff between police and the SDP during the IMF/WB meetings in Sinagpore on September 2007.Expect more arrrests and detentions in days to follow....SINGAPORE: With two weeks to go before heads of state gather for the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) summit here, Singapore is wary about allowing the entry of well-organised civil groups and disruptive individuals bent on derailing the talks or championing their causes.Two Falungong followers, a Malaysian and an Indonesian, were reportedly denied entry into Singapore at Changi Airport last week. According to the Epoch Times, the sect's publication, the pair tried to enter the country separately on Oct 19 and Oct 22. The report also said the pair had previously made frequent trips to Singapore. Falungong, a religious sect, was banned in China in 1999 after it was accused of fanning social unrest.Though it is not outlawed in Singapore, several of its followers here have been arrested for holding illegal assemblies.When MediaCorp cited the Falungong example and asked if Singapore was keeping out individuals who might pose law-and-order problems, a spokeswoman from the APEC Singapore 2009 organising committee said all requests to enter the country would be treated fairly. "All sovereign nations have the prerogative to decide who cross their borders. Singapore is no exception," she said. "This is especially so in the current security climate, where we have a duty to ensure the safety and security of the public."Security analyst Dr John Harrison from the S. Rajaratnam School of International Studies was not surprised with the entry ban related to APEC. "The (Singapore) government will get a variety of information in from all sources - open and classified - from partners in the region and around the world," hesaid. "It will try and mitigate threats and risks as early as possible."Apart from the task of keeping out people with backgrounds tied to terrorism, the authorities would have their eye on individuals who could use the event to carry out violent protests, Dr Harrison said.Three years ago, when Singapore hosted the International Monetary Fund-World Bank meeting, the authorities objected to 28 foreigners - all of whom had a history of taking part in violent protests or disruptive activities at previous meetings - from being allowed into the country.Then, civil society organisations were allowed to protest in a small corner 0f the meeting venue at Suntec Singapore International Convention and Exhibition Centre; large-scale protests were confined to the Indonesian island of Batam.Observers say that unlike the IMF event to which many civil society groups wereinvited, APEC's broader platform is not likely to warrant the same level of involvement and, hence, numbers of activists PAP Convention: Quote of the Quotes Keeping this article for posterity sake. Some of the key quotes:DPM Teo Chee Hean: "We must be open to ideas and open to people. So long as they subscribe to our party ideals, our values "PM Lee: "This leadership for Singapore can only come from the PAP" ..... "we must produce such a line up by the next General Elections - 2011 or 2012.""--------------------------------------------------------------------------------Some promising PAP candidates identified for next election: PM Lee01 November 2009 1200 hrs (SST)http://www.channelnewsasia.com/stories/singaporelocalnews/view/1015089/1/.html\SINGAPORE : Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong has said the People's Action Party (PAP) has identified some candidates, including potential office-holders, for the next General Election due by February 2012.They are mainly in their thirties and forties. Mr Lee, who is also the PAP's Secretary-General, was the main speaker at the party's convention on Sunday.He highlighted why Singapore's next General Election will be crucial, as it must produce leaders who can take over his generation of Cabinet colleagues.Mr Lee said: "We have made progress, we have got people who will be part of this team, but we do not have a complete team and we must produce such a line up by the next General Elections - 2011 or 2012."By then, Mr Lee believes Singapore will have a new slate of leaders who can instil confidence among investors and Singaporeans and lead the country for the next 20 years . Mr Lee said:"We have kept clean, resolutely against corruption, in the Party in the society, in the government, at the grassroots. "If there is a case we will investigate; if a wrong has been done, we will act on it...If you do not keep the party clean, you are finished."The PAP brought in 24 new Members of Parliament during the last General Election. On the new candidates, Mr Lee said they grew up in the years of prosperity and did not experience turbulence and hardship.But he believes they are just as committed as the earlier generations of MPs. Mr Lee said: "This leadership for Singapore can only come from the PAP, and if the PAP lets Singapore down, we are all in big trouble, not only PAP but (also) Singapore.Therefore, the PAP must never let Singapore down; (we must) make sure when we press the button, things work." He added that the new MPs have done well and have established themselves with voters.Mr Lee also told his audience of party activists that the new office-holders have made significant contributions as well, and have gained confidence in presenting and defending policies in Parliament and on the ground. Prime Minister Lee also reminded the party convention thatSingapore will be amending the Constitution, which will result in more Non-Constituency MPs, smaller Group Representation Constituencies and more Single Member Constituencies. That means there would be more contests in the next General Election.So Mr Lee's message to the party activists is: never assume that your division will get a walkover. Party activists asked questions about the selection process of candidates after Mr Lee's speech.Deputy Prime Minister Teo Chee Hean, who is also Second Assistant Secretary-General of the PAP, said: "If you look at our party, we have got a successful blend between people who have come up from the ground and people who have come in from outside the party, and come in as MPs in the last elections; we have several who have come from the ground."Lim Biow Chuan and Sam Tan were branch secretaries, so we have people who have come from the ground and who are able to hold their own in Parliament and represent the people. "But we also need to make sure that we bring in talented people from outside.We must be open to ideas and open to people. So long as they subscribe to our party ideals, our values and want to do well for Singapore and Singaporeans, we should be prepared to accept them." The PAP leaders stressed that the party's success formula is to ensure that it gets its politics right so that it can attract good people to enter politics. - CNA/so/msCopyright © 2008 MediaCorp Pte Ltd Town Council Reviews: Where is the Green?! I was actually quite pleased when it was first announce that a regular and systematic review of town council performances would be instituted. With the revelations of heavy Town Council loses due to what can only be described as irresponsible and excuberant risk taking, more accountability and transparencey indeed sounded sound.Alas, the reality will not live up to the promises; at least for the near-term.The half-yearly review will focus almost entirely on grading the cleanliness of one town council against another. Really, what is this fascination with clean and green? The 80s are long gone. And as one concerned resident noted, wouldnt this desire to out do each other just lead to higher conservancy charges, and ultimately more wastage?And what is missing is the detailed breakdown of sinking fund usage. This will not be included in the grading system for now, as the ministry said that it wants to focus on bread-and-butter aspects for a start.So while they try to preoccupy us with bread-and-butter, the use of our hard-earned jam and marmalade will continue to be mystery to us.------------------------------------------------------------Half-yearly grading of town councils starting soon They will be graded on how well they maintain their estates' cleanliness and facilities. -myp Thu, Sep 24, 2009, my paperBy Rachel ChanFROM next month, town councils will be inspected more systematically.They will be graded on how well they maintain their estates' cleanliness and facilities, including lifts, and manage conservancy charges in arrears.Using a checklist, Housing Board officers will inspect towns under the 16 town councils every six months, for defects like litter, leaky pipes and damaged playground equipment.They will grade each council's performance in cleaning and maintenance based on the number of defects found. For example, a town council would get the best grade for maintenance if each of its blocks has fewer than two defects on average.Currently, inspections are done on an ad-hoc basis.The town councils have to submit their rates of lift breakdowns and lift automatic-rescue device failures, and conservancy charges in arrears to the HDB.The results will be published by the town councils every six months from middle of next year.The grading is expected to spur town councils to raise their standards.Mr Inderjit Singh, who chairs the Ang Mo Kio-Yio Chu Kang Town Council, said: "Residents will get a chance to see how their town council is performing, with respect to the others."He added that the grading will compel town councils to improve their performance, so as to at least match one another, if not do better.Mr Ang Mong Seng, who chairs Hong Kah Town Council, said that he would instruct his staff to conduct more frequent maintenance checks on public amenities.The Ministry for National Development announced last December that a system to assess town councils' performance would be set up, after it came to light in Parliament that eight People'sAction Party-run town councils invested $16 million in troubled structured products.But their use of sinking funds will not be included in the grading system for now, as the ministry said that it wants to focus on bread-and-butter aspects for a start.Senior Minister of State for National Development and Education Grace Fu said yesterday: "This is something that we're looking to incorporate, perhaps, at the later stage."Ubi resident David Ng, 35, a quality-assurance engineer, expressed concern that higher efficiency would translate into higher conservancy charges.He also hoped that the sixmonthly report could include a simple statement on the use of his town council's sinking funds.He said: "Laymen like me just need to know whether there's a profit or a loss. It's our money they're investing after all."rachchan@sph.com.sgCopyright ©2007 Singapore Press Holdings Ltd. Co. Regn. No. 198402868E. All rights reserved.Privacy Statement Conditions of Access Advertise SingaNews: Divine intervention or distraction? I was reading a Kent Ridge Common feature article on the controversy surrounding the new news website SingaNews.com and could not help but feel disturbed at the direction the debate has taken.The article’s title, “Why a pro-family program should rise above sexual issues”, immediately made my hair stand as it set the article up to miss the point entirely.Firstly, it is not just a simple polemic battle between pro-homosexual and pro-heterosexual camps. To paint it as such is to ignore the real bone of contention; the very real possibility of a hidden agenda.We have all been distracted with this mainstream family values debate, that everyone seems to have forgotten to ask this question: “What business is it of a news portal to have a pro-family/procreation agenda?”. And to use Kent Ridge Common’s words, “why is a news portal having a pro-family program anyway?”.If the people behind SingaNews were really interested in promoting the “heterosexuality of a couple with a view to procreate”, shouldn’t they start an outreach program or a pro-family council that counsels and assists families in all areas that affect family planning? How would having a news portal help with this?Well, since no one wants to say it, I will. They need SingaNews as a propaganda tool for a whole load of agendas, pro-family included. While I agree with Sam that there is nothing inherently wrong with having an agenda and that SingaNews will add to discourse variety, I get rather annoyed with double speak, orchestrated misdirection and hypocrisy.It is plainly obvious that there is a Christian agenda that has been purposefully watered down and made more palatable with the “mainstream values” tagline. Lets not forget that SingaNews CEO Mathew Yap introduced the site in a soft launch in church on 9 Sep 2009. The event was organized by ATRIA (Apologetics Through Rich Internet Applications), a New Media Group (NMG) project that focuses on empowering Christian bloggers and New Media publishers in various forms of “e-vangelism”. He also shared the stage with Thio Li-ann, vocal critic agains the repeal of section 337A and daughter of Thio Su-Mien, self-styled Feminist Mentor that orchestrated the hostile takeover of Aware not too long ago. The site is also funded by Christian donors.Yet with all the writing on the wall, Mathew Yap maintains that SingaNews has no Christian agenda. And in an effort to drill home this point, we have some netters trying to paint the debate as pro-family vs gays when it is more than that.In itself, I fully support pro-family values, but that doesn’t mean I want a news portal to craft stories with a focus on promoting it. That said, there seems to be an orchestrated effort to make it seem that if you are pro-family, you are in turn pro-SingaNews; a direction the Kent Ridge Commons is trying to take.The power of propaganda is the persistent drilling of a desired message through both subtle and not so stubtle message delivery. The Chrisitan evangelical community have power and influence within their own circles, but have realised they are losing the propaganda battle over both the MSM and new media channels. The formations of ATRIA and SingaNews are testiment to this and their renewed desired to expand their clout. It also seems that they are roping in bloggers to help distract the netter community as well.While they have every right to push an agenda, their actions thus far have won them few friends, and i suspect will eventually prove to be their downfall. Which is too bad really, considering that an alternative news site with a who's who of ex-journalists would have dramtically expanded the local discourse. ~~ The road to hell is paved with good intentions ~~ Be Warned but Don't Be Fooled Some thoughts on Minister Lui's remarks during a dialogue at Singapore Press Club.While the MSM in media will likely, and for the foreseeable future, maintained its position as the dominant source of information, it no longer holds the monopoly in truth and breadth of coverage.Bloggers and alternative new media sources have never set out to replace the MSM role and neither has anyone set out to conduct themselves as the pure adversary seeking to undermine the integrity and public confidence in public institutions; although they are often viewed and portrayed as such.Minister Lui’s comments are not earth shattering as we have always understood the Government’s unease with regards to alternative and unregulated media. But they are nonetheless disappointing and betray a continued unease in dealing with dissident voices.The fact that they were uttered by the acting - and no doubt future - Minister for Information, Communications and the Arts, demonstrate a heavy lack of enlightenment and does not bode well for the maturity of the new media sector in Singapore.It probably is also timed to forewarn that during the impending general elections, a light touch approach and easily be calibrated into a crushing hammer response in the defense of national interests.So be warned but don't be fooled.-------------------------------------------------------------------Singapore's mainstream media holds ground as dominant source of infoBy S Ramesh, Channel NewsAsia | Posted: 09 September 2009SINGAPORE: Singapore's mainstream media continues to hold its ground as the dominant source of information, despite developments in the new media scene.That's the view of Lui Tuck Yew, Acting Minister for Information, Communications and the Arts. He was speaking during a dialogue with members of the Singapore Press Club on Wednesday.Keeping up with developments in the new media scene is an on-going challenge, especially with websites emerging daily, said Rear-Admiral(NS) Lui.He said: "I certainly don't have an army to go and ask who all these people are; they use pseudonyms and are largely anonymous, and may they remain that way."There were only three occasions when the police had to step in to take action because the racial remarks that were made were so inflammatory that the police had to come in."Despite the speed with which websites mushroom, RADM(NS) Lui said surveys showed that Singapore's mainstream media remains the preferred choice. In fact, the Nielsen Media Index of 2008 showed that 75% of people polled selected newspapers as their preferred source of news.RADM(NS) Lui said: "Unlike some foreign newspapers, the media here in Singapore has not gone for aggressive journalism; they have not gone for aggressive campaigning. They have taken the position that they will investigate thoroughly before they publish."If there are good grounds for them to take a certain position, which may be detrimental to the interests of an establishment or an institution, they are prepared to do so and they do so from a point of view of responsibility."But RADM(NS) Lui added that the established media cannot escape the speed and immediacy of the new media. Temasek Staff to get No Bonus or Less Bonus? The ST should be careful on how they report their facts. Lest they become even more unreliable and independent.The title of the article states unquivocally that "No bonuses for Temasek staff". Now there is nothing unclear about "No bonuses" is there? Well when you read on you will discover that a Temasek employee's bonus is drawn from a pool that is paid out over a number of years. When the company does well, the pool gets bigger and the individual's share along with it.Hence when Ho Ching announced "negative bonuses" it could either mean each employee will get no money from the pool, or the value of the overall pool shrinks. With the latter, negative bonuses means less bonuses and not no bonuses.The reason why i think it is more likely to be the latter is because of Ho Chings own words: "It is a tough challenge to share negative bonuses". You can't share zero but you can share less.-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------July 30, 2009No bonuses for Temasek staffhttp://www.straitstimes.com/Breaking%2BNews/Singapore/Story/STIStory_410035.htmlTHE entire staff of Temasek Holdings are taking personal financial hits, with annual bonuses likely to be slashed in the wake of the investment firm's losses over the past year.Part of every Temasek employee's bonus goes into a pool that is paid out over a number of years rather than at the end of each year.When Temasek meets its internal performance benchmarks with higher-than-targeted returns, the pool of bonuses to be distributed grows and each employee gets a bigger slice.But when it fails to do so, employees get 'negative bonuses': They get no money from the pool, or the value of the overall pool shrinks.This compensation structure is based on a key principle of having staff 'share in the institution's performance, both for positive and negative results', said chief executive Ho Ching yesterday.In her speech at the IPS Corporate Associates Lunch, she said: 'We share gains and pains alongside our shareholder. This is in essence having an owner's approach to our business and operations.'Temasek came in below its targets last year as well as this year, which means staff get 'negative bonuses'.'From CEO to office attendants, all our staff were allocated negative bonuses last year, and will be allocated more negative bonuses this year,' said Ms Ho.If Temasek achieves above-target returns, known as Wealth Added and reported in the annual Temasek Review, it will have gains to share with its staff.'It is a tough challenge to share negative bonuses...it is even tougher to deliver a positive Wealth Added every year,' she said.-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------Other related stories:Temasek Suffers S$40 Billion Loss In AssetsRumours 'far from truth'Temasek may let public invest, retain 'family jewels'Temasek’s Public Co-Investors Plan May Ease Suspicion AG Report - MDA Conflicts of Interest & Financial Mismanagement Media reprintGOVT AGENCIES' RESPONSE TO AUDITOR-GENERAL'S REPORTMDA backed mentors' stakes in start-upsBy Nur Dianah Suhaimi July 19, 2009It was no secret.The Media Development Authority (MDA) was fully aware several of the mentors it appointed to recommend interactive and digital media start-ups for funding held stakes in the companies they rooted for.The mentors had declared their stakes before funding was approved. In fact, MDA not only approved the funding, but it also viewed the mentors' stakes in the companies favourably.MDA revealed this when asked to comment on the Auditor-General's (AG) report released last week, which faulted the way MDA handled the Microfunding Scheme.The scheme allows MDA to disburse $40 million to start-ups in the interactive digital media (IDM) sector over five years, as part of the Government's drive to boost the industry. Each approved start-up can get up to $50,000 each.The AG report noted how four start-ups which got grants were founded and co-owned by their mentors. There was also a conflict of interest in the evaluation of applications for funding.In 10 approved cases, one of the three experts appointed by MDA to evaluate the applications was either a shareholder of the company he evaluated or a business partner of the mentor.Responding to the report, Mr Michael Yap, the agency's executive director for the IDM research and development programme office, said MDA's efforts over the last two to three years have focused on encouraging experimentation and supporting young start-ups and entrepreneurs in their innovations.'Critical to their success is matching them with more experienced incubators, that is mentors, who can value-add, provide networks and advice on their growth,' he said.'This being a young industry, the pool of incubators is small and it is common for incubators to have ownership in start-ups. This can help further the growth of the industry as it gives them a stake in the success of the IDM ventures.'On the four start-ups in question, 'the incubators had fully declared their involvement with the start-ups during the application process', he said. 'Their applications were approved on their own merits and the participation of the incubators was viewed as positive.'MDA said it will be strengthening its application procedures and will also require the evaluation panel members, who are volunteers, to declare their independence.The Microfunding Scheme is expected to benefit some 750 to 1,000 projects over the next five years. So far, 200 start-ups have received funding from MDA. The mentors, or incubators as they are referred to, get $10,000 for each project for providing services such as mentoring, legal guidance and matchmaking with venture capitalists.According to the scheme's website, there are nine mentors, including NUS Enterprise and Singapore Infocomm Technology Federation.These mentoring companies are usually represented by their heads.Lapses by MDA filled nine pages in the 40-page AG report. Other salient lapses included overcollecting $6.06 million in radio and TV licence fees from some 684,000 households since 2005. The money has yet to be refunded.It did not collect $844,600 in licence fees from a broadcaster and almost $10 million of sales revenue from films it co-invested in.MP Zaqy Mohamad, Government Parliamentary Committee (GPC) chairman for Information, Communications and the Arts, declined to comment on the matter as he was part of the Public Accounts Committee.The committee, comprising eight MPs, pores over financial statements of government agencies and the AG's annual report, and seeks written explanations from agencies concerned.The GPC's vice-chairman, Mr Baey Yam Keng, said the approval process in the Microfunding Scheme should be fine-tuned such that mentors are not put in the position that they are able to recommend their own interests.However, he does not think the funds which have been disbursed to the four start-ups should be returned.'Ultimately, the whole purpose of the scheme is to look out for good start-ups. So if the companies are really deserving of funding, then it's fine,' he said.On MDA's failure to collect $10 million in revenue from the films it invested in, Mr Baey said MDA has probably not fine-tuned this process as the programme started only some years back. He was less forgiving on the agency's overcollection of some $6 million in radio and TV licence fees.He said: 'MDA has been collecting licence fees for many years. There is no reason why the system is not robust enough to prevent this from happening. By now, there should not be any problems with this simple task.'MDA should really look into how it can close the gaps.' Are our Friendly Skies ... Safe? UPDATE: ST Aerospace President Tay Kok Khiang has responded to my query on the legitmacy of the claims. Here is his response (emphasis are mine):Thank you for your interest and feedback.You are assured that the allegations being made by the wfaa are untrue. We have the highest regard for safety of our products and would notcompromise that. Our customers are also fully aware of our exacting qualitystandards and are with us.Have a good day.+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++In lieu of the tragic Air France and Yemeni air crashes, aircraft safety is very much in the foreground of our thoughts as we embark on holidays or send love ones of at the terminal.When I spoke of my concerns to a relative that was flying off to London, she confidently replied that if iwas scared I should just pay more and fly SQ. I felt reassured then, but now I am not so sure.In an age of globalisation, the only thing that spreads across national borders faster than information and goods, is greed and incompetence.I saw the article attached below in the 3in1kopitiam Forum and needless to say i was dissappointed. In a nut shell, aircraft mechanics, yes the ones supposed to do the safety checks, were being 'imported' into the US by companies that are subsidiaries or direct entities of ST Aerospace, a company of ST Engineering. And in order to cut costs and maximize margins, their qualifications, such as their ability to read the english instruction manuals, are being overstated.I am not well informed enough to known the level of direct involvement of ST Aerospace in this hiring policy, but I do think they have a responsibility to respond and clarify their position.I will be sending this post to the ST Engg management, Our Labour Chief and to The Press==========================================================Aircraft repair jobs sold to foreign workers, resumes not important02:12 PM CDT on Wednesday, July 1, 2009By BYRON HARRIS / WFAA-TVA News 8 investigation found that hundreds of aircraft mechanics have been brought into the United States to work at aircraft repair facilities.Insiders say the companies that are importing the mechanics are so eager to save money, they’re overstating their qualifications. The result may be a threat to safety, abetted by lax enforcement of immigration law.At daybreak any morning at San Antonio Aerospace, hundreds of workers amble through the gates for the day shift. They repair big jets like Airbuses, Boeing 757s and MD-11s. But, despite the fact that it's a huge facility in the middle of the San Antonio International Airport, a large number of the mechanics are only temporary workers from foreign countries.News 8 found they’re from Mexico, the Philippines and Chile, among other places. They have been brought specifically to the United States to work for San Antonio Aerospace (SAA). News 8 followed a special bus San Antonio Aerospace, used to pick up foreign workers every morning. Workers riding on the bus were from the Philippines. The workers, who wouldn’t say how much money they make, are part of a stream of imported mechanics brought to this country at cut-rate wages, according to several sources familiar with the business.Jada Williams used to work for one of the contracting companies, Aircraft Workers Worldwide (AWW), based in Daphne, Alabama. AWW supplied workers for two facilities, Mobile Aerospace Engineering (MAE) in Mobile, Alabama and San Antonio Aerospace, which are both controlled by ST Aerospace. San Antonio Aerospace is a division of ST Aerospace, the largest aircraft repair company in world. "They’ve employed over 200 since I left,” said Williams, who said she was unfairly fired by the contractor last fall. "And I know we had over a hundred when I was in there, just in Mobile.”She said in San Antonio, AWW supplied 600 workers. The workers stay in the United States and come from various countries because of the different kinds of visas available in those places.San Antonio Aerospace uses several contracting companies to supply it with workers. It can be a high-profit business for the contractors. They can make $3 to $12 an hour for every worker hired by SAA, contractors say.The drive for profits is so big, Williams and other insiders said, that the contractors often falsify the qualifications of the imports."We had two,” she said. “One of them was a female. She was about 16. It was a brother and a sister. One guy was a grocery bagger, one was a security guard in Puerto Rico. Their ages were between 18 and 22.”Their ages are important because it takes years of experience or schooling to learn how to repair a big jet, experience they couldn’t have had."There had been padded resumes at SAA before,” said an administrator at another contractor. “That’s why another contract house was kicked out (of SAA).”One former SAA mechanic, who spent years learning his trade before being laid off, said foreign workers got their training on the job from the Americans they worked with."The more experienced mechanics, we would get paired up with either one or two of these guys,” he says. “And they would watch us for a month or so. And that’s how they would get their training.”Williams is suing her former boss, Daniel Harding, for unlawful termination and racial discrimination. She has a computer full of company documents that were acquired accidentally when AWW got new computers for its office and gave her an old one. Spreadsheets, resumes and payrolls revealed many company practices, from interviews, to trips to the U.S. Embassy in Mexico City for visas, charts marked the progress of Mexican workers to the United States. Documents also showed workers were charged $3,500 each by AWW to get into the United States.Williams also has an e-mail trail from AWW president Harding to Moh Loong Loh, the President of San Antonio Aerospace. He described one candidate as having “ 25 percent English skills.” Workers need English to communicate with their supervisors and to read repair manuals, so this is a key safety issue. American SAA workers said many imports cannot speak English at all.In another e-mail, Harding described a group of imported workers from Mexico, just like a commodity.“I hope to be able to bring increments no larger than ten at a time,” he wrote to Loh.While this was happening, SAA former wokers said they got laid off.WFAA-TV The companies involved may face serious questions, said a former judge.“I feel like we are being betrayed in our own country,” said one who was terminated. “And I feel it is not right.”“These big layoffs of 20 to 30 people would go out,” said the contract administrator. “The very next Monday, 30 or 40 [imports] would be coming in.”Williams said in Mobile the numbers were even bigger. She said she picked up a group of 60 people from Puerto Rico at Mobile Regional Airport last February. Since Puerto Rico is a U.S. territory, its residents are U.S citizens. For the contractors, this is a bonus because they can pay the Puerto Ricans low wages without having to deal with foreign immigration requirements.When the FAA came to inspect San Antonio Aerospace, the company got a one-hour warning, said a former employee.“And a lot of guys who were not able to read English, they would hide those guys or send them home for the evening," the former employee said.News 8 submitted written questions to both SAA in San Antonio and MAE in Mobile. The questions asked how many foreign workers they employ and what they are paid. The response from each said “we are an equal opportunity employer.” Another question was whether AWW is owned by ST Aerospace. The terse answer was no, “AWW is an independent contractor.”AWW did not respond to questions. An attorney retained by the company and Daniel Hardin said “Mr. Hardin is a responsible businessman who has greatly benefitted his community and his country.”In Dallas, former judge David Finn, now in private practice, told News 8 that all the companies involved may face serious questions.“Federal prosecutors would probably look at making false statements, material false statements," he said. "That’s a federal offense, a felony ... Mail fraud, wire fraud, there are any number of statues on the books that would apply to a situation like that.” Losing touch and sense of proportion While Temasek is losing its investment touch, Alvin Foo of the ST is losing his sense of proportion and reality (as you will see from his article attached below). With great conviction it is declared that Temasek out performed nearly very index and person worth noting (Buffet no less), but it comes with a caveat: "assuming the value of its portfolio remained unchanged since November last year".What value is there in making a comparison for a 10 yr period that ends in March 2009 when the data is only updated to November 2008??It is also quite convenient that the period of comparison ended at march 2009; a period that many analysts consider to be the bottom of this economic downcycle. Temasek's recent investment disasters were offload either prior to or during this period. This meant that they did not benefit from the vicious rebound since the march lows to date. Would Temasek still beat the street if the months of april to june were included? It probably would if you continue to only consider their holdings as of Nov 2008.The first 3 months of 2009 were torrid times for ALL investors, including Buffet that earnestly came out and declared he had make big investment mistakes in late 2008 and apologised to his sharehlders.Did Mdm Ho make such public apologies for her countless blunders? No. She had no regrets and picked up an award for it.We must also understand that Buffet's Berkshire Hathaway is unlike Temsasek which has constant captial injection (tax payers money). This naturally puts Temasek at an advantage as we all know the market moving power of big money. And without fear of losing this captial injection, Temasek can basically throw caution to the wind and place their bets at the roulette table knowing full well that their chips will be replenished every month at a rate of 33% of gross salary.http://www.straitstimes.com/Breaking%2BNews/Singapore/Story/STIStory_392459.htmlSINGAPORE investment agency Temasek Holdings may have taken a hit recently on some of its high-profile banking investments, but over the longer term it has outperformed key global benchmarks.Figures obtained by The Straits Times show that over a 10-year period to March this year, Temasek outgunned several closely-watched equity indexes.It also beat other notable long-term investors such as Berkshire Hathaway, a top US investment company headed by billionaire Warren Buffett.Temasek's performance has come under scrutiny in recent months after it suffered significant losses earlier this year on investments in Western banks Barclays and Bank of America (BoA).The state investment house delivered an annualised total shareholder return by market value of 5.4 per cent from March 1999 to March this year, assuming the value of its portfolio remained unchanged since November last year. That is the date of the last available update of the value of its investments.This compares with a return of 4.5 per cent in the same period for the MSCI Asia Pacific excluding Japan index, 3.1 per cent for the MSCI Singapore index, and -3 per cent for the MSCI World index, according to figures obtained by The Straits Times.MSCI indexes are key indicators commonly used by institutional investors to see how well they are doing relative to the market.Temasek's main investments are in stocks, with the bulk of its assets in Singapore and Asia, so these indexes are regarded as a useful gauge of its performance.Temasek's returns were also better than that of long-term investors like Swedish investment firm Investor AB, which delivered 3.7 per cent, and Berkshire Hathaway, which yielded 0.7 per cent.Last month, Finance Minister Tharman Shanmugaratnam told Parliament that Temasek has performed 'respectably' compared to relevant market indexes and reputable institutional investors. Temasek Losing Its Touch? Today marks the 20th anniversary of the Tianamen massacre. Today also brought a news update of yet another massacre; a financial massacre.It was announced that Temasek Holdings sold its stake in British banking giant Barclays in December and January, at an estimated loss of between 500 million pounds (S$1.2 billion) and 600 million pounds.Guess we can’t be too shocked by this news as the MSM was preparing us for it by softening the sentiment with ‘good’ news the day before:Temasek recoups half of losses in S'pore portfolio Temasek portfolio up 13% Once again thanks to ‘astute’ investment timing, Temasek chose to offload its stake just as the stock hit its lowest levels since 1985. It is rumoured that this round of panic selling was over fears that Barclays could be nationalised. That didn’t happen in the end but they would argue that at that time, it was a very real threat. With that said, shouldn’t then GIC be worried about its investment in CitiGroup? Or will the excuse be that the investment thesis changed as it did for its investment in Merril?There are ways to divest can still make a profit. Just look at the Abu Dhabi government which unlike Temasek, made a killing in its Barclays investment. It invested into Barclays last October sold out for a US$2.5 billion profit only last month.Jeremy Warner of The Independent questions if Temasek is losing its touch. He adds “Temasek's loss on a similar investment in Bank of America was an even more jaw-dropping $3bn. If they haven't been already, someone, somewhere, is going to get fired.”If there were a silver lining to be found, perhaps the decision makers at Temasek would be more cautious before they run head in and dump millions into another company laden with financial woes and uncertainty. Ooopss ... spoke too soon. Now they are looking at AIG. My Thoughts on NMP Siew Kum Hong's Police Report NMP Siew Kum Hong has come under attack recently for his role a 'legal advisor' for the Aware Old Guard at the last EOGM. More recently, a slew of accusations have perpetuated in online forums, insinuating that he had received foreign funding from a Swedish politician (who allegedly funds the Singapore Democratic Party (SDP), and is somehow the SDP's representative or "mole" in Parliament.Siew has unequivocally denied these allegations and has filed a police report and requested the removal of said posts.First, I would like to clearly state that i have a tremendous amount of respect for Mr Siew. This respect was formulated from his performance in parliament and his genuine interest in serving society and providing a voice for the disempowered.Second, I do not, nor have ever, condoned nor encouraged irresponsible and inflammatory comments under the cloak of anonymity on the Net.Having established these two points, I am slightly perturbed by the potential ripple effects that his legal actions may have. I hate the "slippery slope" argument but unfortunatley, things always have a way of escalating.Although Alex at yawningbread.org fully supports Siew's actions, he did note that "those who put themselves in the public eye should be more tolerant of public discussion of their activities and motives than truly private citizens." This is just something I hope Mr Siew and other public figures will keep in mind.I have to date refrained from taking any legal action in response to the lies and falsehoods that have been levelled at me. But this latest attack goes beyond anything that a reasonable person could possibly perceive as being a valid or legitimate exercise of the right to free speech, and I certainly will not tolerate the latest rounds of character assassination from cowards hiding behind the perceived anonymity of he Internet. -- Siew Kum HongAlthough I am sympathetic to Mr Siew - no one should be subject to the concerted attacks on his person - I do have doubts over a move to track down anonymous netters when and no action was taken against the real life agents of the former Aware New Guard when they operate in the light of day and accuse him of abusing his position as NMP to further a Gay-agenda.Obviously both are lies and as Alex has noted, the burden of proof (in libel law) lies on the person making the allegation.While we are on the subject of libel, there are some cases to bear in mind:1) The Lee's defamation suit against the publisher and editor of FEERhttp://www.aseanaffairs.com/page/singapore_pm_ups_stakes_in_libel_case2)The use of defamtion against CSJhttp://www.amnesty.org/en/library/asset/ASA36/010/2001/en/dom-ASA360102001en.html3) Libel suit against Gopalan Nair http://cpj.org/2008/06/singapore-detains-us-blogger-over-libel-commentary.phpObviously these cases are different from Siew's curretn predicament, but they serve as reminders that what is deemed fair comment is often skewed by those with the power and money to sue.When the little guy has to watch every single word he uses in fear of being accused of at best innuendo, and at worst libel, the only form in which free speech can take place is ironically in the shape of anonymity.~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~Also read: http://www.sgpolitics.net/?p=3072 Temasek and Bank of America - Are we missing something? Published first at http://singaporeenquirer.sg/?p=3762In December 2007 – the nascent and uncertain times prior to the eventual global credit meltdown – Temasek Holdings placed a strategic US$4.4 billion bet on troubled US investment bank Merrill Lynch. As markets continued to unravel from the subprime crisis and credit squeeze Temasek nearly doubled down with an increased stake of US$ 3.4 billion in July 2008.In justification of this tremendous capital injection in uncertain times, and perhaps to calm nervy Singaporeans, Temasek declared “great confidence” in then Merrill Lynch CEO John Thain.MP Lim Hwee Hua – Singapore's minister of state for finance – announced in parliament that “Because our reserves are invested with a long-term horizon, this long-term orientation will keep us from selling in panic in a market downturn” and that “The downturns also offer opportunities for our agencies to invest in good quality assets at prices that are attractive from a long-term perspective.”History is cruel and unforgiving as less than a month later, Lehman Brothers went bust; setting off a chain of events threatening to take down giant insurers, banks, motor companies, … etc down with it.Having already suffered heavy loses on initial investments, optimism sprung eternal when Bank of America bought over Merril Lynch to prevent it from going bankrupt.The conversion of Merril into Bank of America shares promise some long term recovery given that Bank of America is a much bigger franchise.Had Temasek sold its stake after the Bank of America takeover in Sep 2008, it could have gained US$1.5 billion, according to an estimate by Ilian Mihov, an economics professor at graduate business school INSEAD in Singapore. The stock price of Bank of America ranged from US$26 – US$37 per share in Sep 2008.Perhaps Temasek believed in its mantra of having a long term investment horizon and sought to retain the Bank of America stock to earn more than what to them was a measly potential 20% return on investment.That resolve, or foolishness, was short lived and today it was confirmed that Temasek had sold its entire stake by 31 Mar 09. Choosing instead to increase investments in emerging markets and reduce exposure to developed economies.Market timing is clearly not a strong suit of Madam Ho Ching. Since the end of March, when Temasek completed the sale (at an average price of US$6.73), Bank of America stock has risen 66 percent (presently it is US$11.31).US$11.31 is not much compared to the US$37 it could have made in Sep, but its obviously much better than US$6.73.I’m not an economist but I am well aware of the shortcomings of attempting to time markets. It is often described as a fool’s quest and I therefore can appreciate the long term investing philosophy. So why the sudden abandonment of this philosophy? We will probably never know the real reason.Meanwhile, we continue to reward incompetence over and over, AND over again.Am I missing something?--------------------------------Also read: http://wayangparty.com/?p=9407 Update: Temasek explains BoA sale - http://www.straitstimes.com/Breaking%2BNews/Singapore/Story/STIStory_380131.html I will not begrudge the series of self-back-patting that will commence from here on. We as Singaporeans demanded that MSk be recaptured and the authorities have delivered in this.MSK's recapture will now provide the real accounts of his escape and this will be put side by side with the COI report to be check for disprepencies. If there are more loopholes in the system, now is the time to identify them and rectify them.Mas Selamat’s rearrest a good lesson — Zuraidah Ibrahim Source: http://www.themalaysianinsider.comMAY 8 — To the paranoid, Singapore’s Internal Security Department, or the ISD, is omnipresent. To many others, it is an organisation to be feared, respected and admired for its ability to keep Singapore safe from any untoward incident that threatens the peace here. But mostly, it is to be feared.It knew the country's business and, if it needed to, it knew your business. So, it was with great incredulity that the public received the news on Feb 27 last year that the organisation had let one of its biggest catches escape.That sultry afternoon, the wily Mas Selamat Kastari went into a Whitley Road Detention Centre toilet and out into the wilderness — using nothing more than his wits and the indolence of officials on his watch as his escape kit. That, plus a baju for a change of clothing.When details of the escape emerged in dribs and confusing drabs over the immediately following days, Singaporeans were dismayed that it was complacency that had created the lax conditions that enabled Mas Selamat to bolt. For a while too, Singaporeans wondered and debated whether complacency had indeed set in to taint their national psyche.Then, there were the conspiracy theories that abounded about how he must have been re-arrested and then beaten to death in detention. By then too, the baju had become a burqa. Hands up those of you who did not receive an e-mail with a photoshopped picture of Mas Selamat wearing a tudung.Amidst all this, a wan-looking Deputy Prime Minister and Home Affairs Minister Wong Kan Seng had to tackle questions in a parliamentary debate that was less wrathful than the mood of the public, but no less intense.He was under severe pressure and Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong stepped in to say that he had full confidence in Wong and the ISD chief. There was no need for Wong to resign, as was being demanded by some quarters, said PM Lee.Since then, even as Wong and others have consistently said that they had not given up hope that Mas Selamat would be found, many other people were sceptical.When The Straits Times' senior regional correspondent Leslie Lopez called to tell me about his scoop which we reported on today's front page, my first reaction too was of sheer doubt. Mas Selamat caught in Johor Baru? Within sneezing distance of Singapore? Not in some remote corner of Indonesia or the Philippines?It didn't help when he said that Mas Selamat was caught on April 1. Too late for that April Fool's joke, I told him.But his thorough checks across the region proved solid and we decided to go with the story.So, it would appear that Mas Selamat was good, but not that good. This is the third time he has been caught while on the run. Security analysts say that fugitives eventually slip up and try to resume contact with the people they know. The challenge for security operatives is to know whom the fugitive knows and be unrelenting in connecting the dots to find a trail.Sources said that it was the Singapore ISD that gave the Malaysians the lead on Mas Selamat's trail. If so, the department, which has come under the heaviest fire, has redeemed itself.The recapture will clear the stain that his escape had left. Indeed the ISD had up to then been doing credible work in the arrest of suspected militants. After the first and second wave of arrests of Jemaah Islamiah (JI) members in Singapore in 2001 and 2002, the department had beavered away at finding out about others who escaped the two dragnets.In the past five to six years, a check of published reports found that it had managed to reel in more than a dozen who had been on the run overseas. This is work that should have enhanced its reputation, but has been largely forgotten in the aftermath of the Mas Selamat episode.Security analysts have often remarked at the high degree of cooperation among regional intelligence agencies that do their work diligently and are unswayed by the political temperature of bilateral and regional cooperation.That the Singapore and Malaysian security agencies work closely is well-known. Mas Selamat's capture is yet another affirming signal of how such cooperation can pay dividends and how such ties must continue to be ring-fenced from the politics of the times.The Home Affairs Minister and the ISD have reason to be satisfied and relieved. With the arrest, they have brought some closure to an embarrassing episode.But this is not to say that there are no more questions to be asked. Once further details of his capture are released, a lot more will be asked about how it all happened.How did he manage to get out of Singapore? Just how porous are Singapore's borders? Can there be steps taken to make them impenetrable without encumbering freedom of passage for law-abiding citizens? Did Mas Selamat have accomplices who were aiding and abetting him here? What other steps are being taken to close whatever loopholes his arrest have exposed? What punishment awaits him?Meanwhile, if nothing else, Singaporeans may have learnt from Mas Selamat's escape the costs of complacency. His recapture should teach us the value of patience and persistence. — Straits Times CDC Bonuses: Take it Back First published in Singapore Enquirer.It has been a year since Bear Stearns, one of the largest global investment banks and trading firms went under in dramatic fashion, sending global financial markets and economies into a seemingly never-ending tailspin. The massive capitulation expected from another spectacular failure of a globally interconnected institution forced the U.S. Government to step in and rescue AIG, the world’s biggest insurer, with a US$85 billion bailout in September last year.Six months on from the dramatic bailout of AIG, details of bailout money use are made known but are far from being transparent. We now know that US$53 billion went to paying off its debts to foreign banks. Controversially, AIG felt compelled to pay US$165 million in bonuses to its staff in the financial products division – the very division that sunk the conglomerate, and the rest of the world with it, to its knees.In the grand scheme of things, US$165 million is peanuts compared to the billions that have been poured into economic stimuli, rescue plans and t-loans. But the principle of the matter cannot be overstated. When individuals take unprecedented risks and are later rewarded for their failures through bailouts form the average citizens who do not have the luxury of such safety nets and exorbitant payouts, we are effectively rewarding incompetence and greed. The Merril Lynch bonus fiasco is another case in point.I have written previously that when taxpayers’ monies are involved, we as taxpayers rightfully are entitled to some amount of accountability and transparency. I harp on this topic again as controversies across the Pacific Ocean are rearing their ugly heads in Singapore.We have now learnt that two Northwest CDC staff were allegedly given 7 months of bonus and 1 month of AWS for their 2008 performance. We were also informed that only staff at the lower-end of the salary range who will receive a higher performance bonus range. If this were true, then perhaps the majority of us would be able to accept a structure that compensates for lower wage with more varying bonus structures. But alas, the Government and government-linked individuals are once again using their text-book “everything is aboveboard”, “this is not an NKF” reasoning, only to be found wanting later.Eugene Yeo of the Wayangparty Blog has exposed the fact that the recipients of these bonuses were in fact senior managers; thus altering the structure from sensible to downright excessive.CDCs are quasi-governmental bodies with the primary role of initiating, planning and managing community programmes to promote community bonding and social cohesion. No doubt some of their work is commendable; but they are ultimately responsible for managing the use of public taxpayer money to finance their activities such as community events and the dispersement of financial aid to the needy. Therefore, their key performance indexes should correlate with their bonuses and be the tied to the efficacy and accessibility of their social safety nets that they provide (i.e. public assistance, comcare…etc). Excessive reward for senior management that concoct elaborate schemes which are increasingly difficult to qualify for let alone survive on is ludicrous and has to be put to a stop.President Obama is looking into legal options to rescind the bonus payouts of AIG. I hope our own President Nathan or PM Lee would do the same. Can we really do that? I say, in the spirit of Obama, yes we can!The AIG staff had pre-existing contracts (prior to bailout) that mandated the payment of bonus. But so too did the U.S. auto workers that had to renegotiate their terms all in order to ensure they have an industry to return to after collecting their bonuses and pay checks. Similarly, CDC staff were paid for performances in 2008. But given the severity of the recession we find ourselves in, wouldn’t a larger reduction in the bonus pool and a lower cap for senior management be more prudent? Could the savings in 2008 bonus payout be then channeled into community programmes for the truly needy and these self-sacrificing servers of the community be judged and rewarded on how they alleviate the financial strains of the pre-existing poor and newly created poor? Otherwise taxpayers are made to fund these projects and salaries during booming times and even more so during trying times. J B Jeyaretnam Memorial Service Event: In Memory of J B JeyaretnamDate: Saturday, January 3, 2009Time: 5:00pm - 6:30pmLocation: St. Andrews CathedralCity/Town:Singapore, SingaporeContact InfoPhone: 6591461976Email: kjeyaretnam@gmail.comFacebook Event page: http://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=40370782985 Video interview with Singaporeans from three different constituencies on their views of Town Councils’ loss of sinking funds Video interview with Singaporeans from three different constituencies on their views of Town Councils’ loss of sinking funds - Posted by wayangparty on November 23, 2008Presented by the video production team, The Singapore EnquirerStreet interviews with:Bukit Panjang residents (Part 1) on 19 Nov 2008Bukit Panjang residents (Part 2) on 19 Nov 2008Ang Mo Kio residents on 20 Nov 2008Whampoa residents on 22 Nov 2008Read the rest here. Teo Ho Pin: Still proud to vote for him? I wonder if Yaw Shin Leong will retract his endorsement of Teo Ho Pin after the revelations of town council fund mismanagement.====================================================Be thankful to Dr Teo Ho Pin for illustrating the PAP’s hubris and arroganceby Ng E-Jay20 November 2008According to an article entitled “Dr Teo says ‘be thankful’” which was published in the TODAY newspaper on 19 Nov, Dr Teo Ho Pin, MP for Holland-Bukit Panjang, says residents should be thankful that their Constituency’s funds have grown under the Town Council’s watch.He was referring to earlier revelations in Parliament that eight PAP Town Councils have about $16 million invested in troubled structured products, of which the lion’s share of $8 million is from Holland-Bukit Panjang.Dr Teo was quoted by TODAY newspaper as saying that the potential $8 million loss suffered by Holland-Bukit Panjang Town Council “should be viewed in the context of the $24 million in investments generated over the past six years“, and that “if the Town Council had invested all its funds in low-risk investments, it would have earned only $5 million.”My opinion is that rather than giving our thanks to Dr Teo Ho Pin, who is incidentally Coordinating Chairman for all the 14 PAP Town Councils, for generating positive returns for Town Council funds over the past six years, we should instead be grateful that he has beautifully illustrated the sheer level of hubris and arrogance of the PAP.Read rest of article here====================================================SM Goh should send Teo Ho Pin to learn from Hougang Town Council to keep PAP MPs on their toesBy Eugene Yeo19 Nov 2008On 26 July this year, SM Goh urge PAP members to play the role of an “effective opposition” in his speech at the Hougang National Day Dinner at Hougang Community Club:“In Hougang, let us keep Mr Low Thia Khiang on his toes. He is responsible for running the Hougang Town council. But unlike Parliament, town councils do not have open meetings where members from other political parties can question their performance. So, in Hougang, you have to be creative to be an effective opposition. Amongst the things you can do, I suggest you study the annual accounts of the town council to ensure that the funds are properly used. Check whether the arrears for S & C charges are piling up, and eating into their reserves. Make sure that enough money is put aside for cyclical maintenance.”Now who has been playing the role of a watchdog on PAP - managed Town Councils ?Read the rest of the article here. Responses to Chua Sheng Yang's Forum Letter ==================================================My response to the ST letter “Questions on investment products rally” - November 18, 2008Written by Ng E-JayThis is my response to a Straits Times forum letter penned by Mr Chua Sheng Yang published in the print edition on 18 Nov.Entitled “Questions on investment products rally”, Mr Chua claims that “too many people are taking advantage of the situation to get back money from what they knew was a risky investment“. He was referring to the recent rallies organized by Mr Tan Kin Lian at Speaker’s Corner to help investors seek redress over their failed investments in structured products.Mr Chua sounds like a toy-sized replica of Minister Mentor Lee Kuan Yew who also assumed that “investors had no case” and that they went in “with their eyes open”. Like the Minister Mentor, isn’t Mr Chua also jumping to conclusions without any substantial facts, and even before the investigations have been completed? Who is he to assert that investors are taking advantage of the situation and that they knew it was a risky product?Read the rest of E-Jay's letter here==================================================Phone interview with Mr Chua Sheng YangBy Eugene Yeo, Senior writerMr Chua Sheng Yang wrote a letter to Straits Times forum today - ”Questions on investment products rally” in which he appeared to question Mr Tan’s motives for organizing the minibond rallies. He also insinuates that Mr Tan had employed similar sale tactics during his stint as NTUC INCOME Chief which infuriates many netizens.At 11pm on 18 Nov, the Wayangparty Club made an open appeal here for any reliable information of Mr Chua Sheng Yang. Thanks to an alert reader who emailed us his contacts, I was able to contact him to conduct a 20 minute interview. Read the interview here==================================================Character Assasination! Target 1: TKL - 18 NovBy the BlockheadIn my previous post, I was blogging about how some people from you-know-where will start doing character assasination. Today in the Straits Times, it happened.Mr Chua Sheng Yang has decided to give the 1st target Tan Kin Lian a shot below the belt.Read the rest of the article here.================================================== MAS and Stat Boards invest in credit-linked notes as well The ST article below highlights comments by Finance Minister Tharman regarding stat board investment exposure to credit-linked notes.He did not reveal the identity of the 5th stat board, except to admit after questioning from NMP Siew Kum Hong that, "a fifth unnamed statutory board had financial products linked to CDOs and CDS, aside from credit-linked notes"I think everyone would also like to know the name of that 5th stat board. Whats there to hide afterall? Because of this secrecy, I am left to speculate its either the CPF board, Public Transport Council, HDB or People's Association.Thats the real problem with this whole crisis; too much secrecy.Yes, yes, the 4 stat boards invested in credit-linked notes but these were not the ones that have experienced a "credit event". Should I be happy for them?Just because they have yet to experience a "credit event" does not make them sound investments in the first place, as recent history suggests. But rather then to nitpick on investment choices and say "you should have known better", I have a feeling that everyone who is directly or indirectly affected by bad decisions and advice are more upset over the overall secrecy shrouding the issue.Nov 19, 2008 5 stat boards' investments http://www.straitstimes.com/Breaking%2BNews/Singapore/Story/STIStory_304115.htmlTHE Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) - Singapore's central bank and financial regulator - was among five statutory boards that invested in complicated credit-linked notes.But none of the statutory boards - including the MAS - invested in notes that have now become worthless, such as DBS High Notes 5 and Merrill Lynch Jubilee Series 3 LinkEarner Notes. The central bank had invested only 0.1 per cent of its portfolio in such investments, which in fact made a net gain over the past year. A Ministry of Finance (MOF) spokesman, who revealed this to The Straits Times yesterday, did not give the actual size of the investment. He was responding to queries after Finance Minister Tharman Shanmugaratnam told Parliament that five statutory boards had invested in credit-linked notes, but only named four: Singapore Civil Service College, Singapore Land Authority (SLA), Infocomm Development Authority of Singapore (IDA) and Professional Engineers Board. Mr Tharman had emphasised in Parliament that the four boards had invested in credit-linked notes, but not the ones which have gone into default or suffered credit events that have caused their value to plummet to zero and triggered early redemption. The notes that have suffered this fate include Lehman Minibonds, Merrill Lynch Jubilee Series 3 LinkEarner Notes, DBS High Notes 5 and Morgan Stanley Pinnacle Series 9 and 10 Notes. Although he did not provide the actual amount invested by each of the four named statutory boards, he said that the exposure as a percentage of their total combined investment portfolio was only about 0.05 per cent. These investments are currently suffering paper losses of about 14 per cent over the past year, he added. 'On a mark-to-market basis, these credit-linked notes held by the four statutory boards have not performed very differently from the performance of global markets generally this year,' he said. 'The four statutory boards are nevertheless monitoring the situation on all their investments, and will take the necessary steps to minimise any losses in these investments.' MOF later told The Straits Times that the four statutory boards have had positive returns on their overall investment portfolios this year, averaging about 2 per cent. And for the past three years, the average annual return on their investment portfolios had averaged 3 per cent. Mr Tharman was responding in Parliament yesterday to questions from Non-Constituency MP Sylvia Lim, who asked whether statutory boards had invested in risky structured products which were linked to bankrupt United States investment bank Lehman Brothers. Nominated MP Siew Kum Hong also wanted to know if those investments were linked to collateralised debt obligations (CDO) or credit default swaps (CDS), which are both complex investment products at the centre of the global credit crunch. It was in response to Mr Siew's question that Mr Tharman revealed a fifth unnamed statutory board had financial products linked to CDOs and CDS, aside from credit-linked notes. 'These products comprise around 0.1 per cent of the statutory board's portfolio, and have in fact made a net gain over the year,' he added. On how and why these statutory boards invest, Mr Tharman explained that all of them keep some surpluses for 'future capital expenditures and as a buffer against unanticipated spending needs or budget shortfalls'. 'They manage and invest these funds in financial assets to earn an appropriate return within acceptable risk limits, after taking into account their cashflow and liquidity needs,' he added. According to Mr Tharman, statutory boards also have to ensure they have appropriate investment management structures for proper oversight of its financial investments with prudent risk management. Town Council Revelation - let's stop throwing good money after bad In Parliament yesterday, it was revealed that 8 town councils (TC) run by the People's Action Party have about 16 million invested in troubled structured products; 12 million of which belongs to Holland-Bukit Panjang TC (8 million) whose chairman is incidentally the coordinating chairman for all the 14 PAP TCs.Naturally, Dr Teo Ho Pin has defended the TCs' investment strategy as being prudent by quoting the often used financial term “diversified”. His strategy may very well be diversified, but an averaged return of 3% per annum in the last six years before the debacle of this mini-bond saga those make you wonder if the investment choices were sound in the first place.According to Dr Teo, Holland-Bukit Panjang has 8 million is invested in Minibonds and Jubilee notes, which works out to 6.7 per cent of its investible funds. And, it has another $3 million in the potentially-troubling Pinnacle Notes Series 6 arranged by Morgan Stanley.Therefore, his TC had invested about 9% of its investible portion in structured instruments which are worth close to nothing now.But wait a minute, while we know how much went into these bad investments, we do not know the total amount invested in what he described as deposits, securities and other financial products.We do know that the proportion of investible funds are limited to 35%. Since 8 million is 6.7% of this portion, we know that Holland-Bukit Panjang TC alone has about 340 million in sinking funds. Therefore according to the rules, approx 119 million is available to Holland-Bukit Panjang TC for investments.How much money do the TCs have?Dr Teo further added that 16 million is 0.8 per cent of all their funds available for investment. Thus, all the TCs combined have 2 billion apportioned for investments. As he limited to the investible portion is 35% of the total sinking fund, TCs have about 5.7 billion! Yes, billion.But that’s not all. As the sinking fund is distinct from the operating fund for short-term expenses, the amount can only go up. Conservative estimates would probably put the figure between 6 – 7 billion.Crappy returnsEven if you can get pass this excessive hoarding of public monies for who knows what purpose, don’t you think an Investment strategy that returned an average of 3 per cent a year during an extend bull-run - and even before the fiasco this September involving Lehman-linked products – is simply crap!Especially when an average 2.9% return on 10-year Singapore Government Securities bonds was scoffed in the hope of earning a measly 0.1% more.And to rub salt to Division 1/hand-picked /future leaders/A team/PAP-ministars, Hokkien Low’s (Thia Khiang) Hougang TC investment returns averaged 6 per cent a year.Personally, I question the need for quasi-governmental institution to hoard such large amounts of money. For one thing, they often do not know what to do with them and as a result they turn to “financial experts” whom as far as we know could be their nephews, grassroots leaders and what-not.Don’t believe such corruption / graft is possible? When there is money on the table, greedy hands are soon to follow.Two things I would like to seeFirstly, my worry is that as these worthless structured products were once considered conservative and safe options based on guidance from rating agencies. Add in the fact that no one throws all their eggs into a single basket (at least I hope) and a diversified portfolio includes both low and high risk investments, I have to wonder what other products made up the entire portfolio for Holland-Bukit Panjang TC.If these mini-bond notes were considered low risk at that time, what were the high risk items that were purchased with the remaining investible portion of the sinking fund? I hope the TC will be more transparent about its investment portfolio.And secondly, I hope that in light of the performance of the MPs involved, their year-end bonuses would be withheld and pumped back into replenishing that was lost due to their poor leadership and oversight. Let's not reward mediocrity with good public money. Afterall, we are already running a budget deficit 3 times more than expected.Other readings:No Bonuses for Top Executives at UBSGoldman execs choose to forgo 2008 bonuses Lock n Load! - PAP Platoon move out! I read with bemusement Fang Zhi Yuan’s (chief editor of Wayangparty.com) op-ed on why the PAP will win the next election with an increased majority. His piece was in response to rumours of an early election following the news that Election Department has already begun to select and train election officials.The ‘rumour’ was in fact confirmed yesterday when PM Lee came out to say that Budget Statement 2009 will be brought forward a month to January 2009. In addition, he announced that electricity charges would drop in that same month and might be lower than the levels at Oct this year.These promises to stimulate the economy, support jobs and reduce the cost of living were however accompanied with a thinly-veiled caveat: “the country is much better off with one dominant party, as long as the PAP provides clean and good government, and the lives of Singaporeans improve.”The venue of these announcements is also noteworthy. They were not made on the sidelines of community event but as keynotes at the People's Action Party conference. The underlying message to PAP activists, it’s our time to shine!Back to my bemusement at Zhi Yuan’s piece. While I was initially stumped by his level of pessimism over the hopes of the opposition at the next election, I can see clearly how, as he put it, I had “grossly underestimated the well-oiled election machinery of the PAP”.For the past 5 years, Singapore has enjoyed economic growth and prosperity following major crises from 1997 to 2003. But ironically, ‘goods times’ only spell ‘bad times’ for the PAP, as financial worries are replaced by aspirations for political plurality, press freedoms, civil rights and so on. Take the 1997 elections for example. This was held in Jan and thus it was still during a period of prosperity and economic growth. The PAP only managed to garner 65% of the vote.Then the Asian Financial Crisis hit at the tail end of 97 and was followed by another seminal event, the bombing of the WTC in Sep 11, 2001. The PAP swiftly called for an election in Nov of 2001 and won 75% of the electoral vote.The poor vote return won by PM Lee (66.6%), which was achieved during a period of economic ascendance following the slowdown brought about by SARS, could perhaps be partly attributed to the testy ‘transitional vote’ which was mirrored in Goh’s poor performance In 1991 (61%) after taking over the reigns from Lee Kuan Yew.In fact, Goh’s only real mandate was achieved during economically trying times. Hence it would not be surprising for PM Lee to bring forward the next GE as soon as possible to ride on these uncertain times.The PAP is not stupid. They are well-aware that they are clueless in preparing for greater political participation and dealing with a citizenry that is more vocal and politically aware. They do not know how to deal with the foreign press apart from suing for defamation. They do not know what to do with the growing instances of civil disobedience and greater expression .... but one thing they do know is how to spin economic uncertainty in their favour.They will dangle carrots galore during the early budget statement. They will announce a stimulus package to (as they will tell us) make sure we can keep our jobs and maintain our standards of livings. They might even give us some cash to ride out the year till their plans that effect.They will also above all make it clear that without a mandate from the people, they will not be able to follow through with these measures. This is just the beginning. Habeas Corpus is not dead Definition: The writ of habeas corpus serves as an important check on the manner in which state courts pay respect to federal constitutional rights. The writ is "the fundamental instrument for safeguarding individual freedom against arbitrary and lawless state action." Malaysian blogger Raja Petra Kamarudin, fondly known as RPK, was release last week after the Malaysian High court granted his habeas corpus application and ruled that the Home Ministry had acted outside of its powers.But RPK trials are not over and his Sedition hearings continue today.Nonetheless, the ruling was a victory for Malaysian society as a whole as it sends a strong message that the government does not hold absolute power. The ruling may also mark the beginnings of a successful movement to abolish the ISA once and for all. Such a move may have ripple effects on our shores.Blogger Raja Petra freed http://www.nst.com.my/Current_News/NST/Saturday/National/2396279/Article/index_htmlBy : Rita Jong 8 NovSHAH ALAM: The High Court yesterday ordered the immediate release of Raja Petra Kamarudin from his two-year detention under the Internal Security Act. This followed the decision of judge Datuk Syed Ahmad Helmy Syed Ahmad to allow the Malaysia Today editor's habeas corpus application, which was filed on Sept 31.Syed Ahmad held that the home minister had issued the order outside the scope of Section 8(1) of the Internal Security Act 1960.He also allowed the application by Raja Petra's counsel, Malik Imtiaz Sarwar, to order that he (Raja Petra) be brought from the Kamunting detention centre to the Shah Alam court before 4pm for his release.Syed Ahmad said he found there was no merit for the applicant's counsel to state that Section 8 was unconstitutional, as it fell within the ambit of Article 149 of the Federal Constitution.(Article 149 allows action to be taken against anyone who threatens national security even if it violates his fundamental liberties.) "But in issuing the order, the minister can only do so based on grounds provided under the ambit of the act. The minister cannot simply detain someone. He must be confined to the circumstances stated." He said based on the grounds given by the minister for the detention, "I found that it did not fall within the scope of Section 8 (1) of the ISA."On the grounds that the order was made in bad faith, he said that this was not a matter for review by the court as "mala fide is not procedural and non-compliant." Raja Petra was arrested on Sept 12 as he was deemed a threat to national security and the order to detain him under the ISA was issued on Sept 22. He was detained on the grounds that he:- owns and operates the Malaysia Today website;- intentionally and recklessly published his articles as well as readers' comments on Malaysia Today that were critical of and insulted Muslims, the purity of Islam and the personality of Prophet Muhammad; and,- that he published his articles concerning national leaders that were defamatory and false with the intention of undermining confidence and inciting public hatred against the government, which could affect public order and prejudice national security.In filing the habeas corpus application, Raja Petra named the home minister as the respondent.Senior federal counsel Abdul Wahab Mohamad and Dusuki Mokhtar appeared on behalf of the minister. Malik Imtiaz was assisted by Azhar Azizan Harun, Ashok Kandiah, J. Chandra, Sreekant Pillai and H.K. Neoh.After Syed Ahmad delivered his decision, Raja Petra's supporters clapped with joy, only to be ticked off by the judge who reminded them that they were in a court of law.Raja Petra's wife, Marina Lee Abdullah, and their two daughters, Suraya and Sarah, were in tears.Later, Marina said: "No words can describe how I am feeling right now. I am just glad everything went the way I hoped. This is fantastic." Raja Petra arrived at the court in a white van, escorted by five warders, at 3.15pm to a hero's welcome.When he got out of the van, the blogger, clad in a brown T-shirt and jeans and looking tired, gave the thumbs-up sign as some 100 supporters chanted "RPK! RPK!" He hugged and kissed his wife.He was then led into the courtroom and Syed Ahmad ordered his release at 3.20pm. After the court stood down, a supporter placed a garland on him."I am quite surprised that I am released."Not many people who challenged the ISA detention succeeded. So I didn't give it too much hope."He added that the fight to abolish the ISA must continue. Raja Petra had to jostle his way past some 50 photographers to get into a maroon-coloured Rolls Royce with Marina, before leaving the court compound at 3.35pm. Changi Airport Corporatisation: from the hand that swipes the ass to the hand that digs the nose It was recently announced that Changi Airport will be ‘corporatised’ by July next year in a bid to boost its status as a leading aviation hub. In this move, “a new company will undertake the operational functions of managing Singapore's airport, including its emergency services and investments in foreign airports.” These functions are currently handled by entities that are wholly-owned subsidiaries of the Civil Aviation Authority of Singapore (CAAS). CAAS, the regulator of the aviation industry, is a statutory board under the Ministry of Transport.In this ‘corporatisation’, we will see the creation of two entities – a regulator and an airport operations company.Notice I keep using air quotes for the term corporatisation. I do this because this development seems more like governmental restructuring rather than corporatisation as is generally understood (the transfer of the running of state apparatuses to the private sector). I say this because:a) This “new company” is in fact a segment of the business that has changed ownership from a statboard (CAAS) to a sovereign wealth fund (Temasek) whose sole shareholder is the Minister for Finance.b) Soon, the company that manages the airport and invests in foreign airports will be fully owned by a company (Temasek) that is the parent company of Singapore Airlines.c) The current chairman of CAAS (Mr Liew Mun Leong ) will move across to helm this “new company”.d) Taking his place will at CAAS will be Mr Lee Hsien Yang (brother of our Prime Minister who recently stepped down from his post at Singtel). He is also the brother-in-law of Temasek head, Ho Ching, who now owns the company that has split from the regulator.e) The Government assures all that these steps are not part of a cost-cutting measure. “Instead of lay-offs, the combined entities will be hiring more staff. Furthermore, one key reason for corporatisation is to allow the company greater flexibility in paying its top talents more.”So all-in-all what really has changed?The company was moved from the left to the right hand of the government. Perhaps there are more conflicts of interests now, not to mention nepotism rearing its ugly head again. Oh and of course, potentially million dollar salaries for these million dollar talents.Can someone tell me how are these moves going to improve our status as a leading aviation hub? In Memory of JBJ ~~Great man don't come by often. And when they come, they often go too quickly.He was the epitome of resilience and steadfastness. A titan of man whose return to the political fray brought such optimism, and whose passing leaves so much grieving. Our prayers are with this family.~~Share your thoughts, give your tributes and post your messages on this Facebook group set up to honour the man who taught us tenacity, perseverance and compassion. Join the “In Memory Of JB Jeyaretnam” group.Lawyer by training, he was a former district judge and graduated from the University College London with Bachelor of Laws. He was widowed when his wife Margaret Cynthia Walker passed away in 1980, and has two sons of which the elder, Kenneth, is a successful hedge fund manager who has worked in London, Tokyo and Hong Kong and recently returned to Singapore and the younger, Phillip, is a Senior Counsel, former President of the Law Society Singapore and author of various novels. New Media more than blogs The Malaysian experience with politician entry into the New Media realm is somewhat echoed in the Singapore cyber-scape. Notwithstanding the fact that the Malaysian opposition's Internet strategy is far more robust than Singapore's, many of points brought up in this article, and others, are very relevent to your situation.Thursday September 18, 2008New Media more than blogsWikimediaBy OON YEOHThe Internet has become such a key component in the political battleground that any party which ignores its importance is likely to find itself handicapped. RIGHT after the March general election, there was a sense of urgency amongst Barisan Nasional politicians to get aboard the New Media bandwagon.There was talk of requiring current and aspiring MPs to set up their own blogs.But harnessing the power of New Media takes more than just setting up blogs. It requires a sound understanding of how public opinion is shaped through online means and how political news and views are disseminated in cyberspace.“The Barisan’s attitude towards bloggers, blogging and the blogosphere has been reactionary, erratic and inconsistent,” says political analyst Ong Kian Ming, who recently did a study comparing the use of New Media by Barisan and Pakatan Rakyat.Barisan did get off on the right footing after the election, Ong notes. Information Minister Shabery Cheek declared that the Government would engage with bloggers and he even went as far as to invite some bloggers to appear on a TV interview show.One of the first online personalities on this programme was none other than Raja Petra Kamarudin, whose website, Malaysia Today, was subsequently banned and then later reinstated.Currently, he’s being detained under the dreaded ISA for stuff found on his website. “RPK’s case demonstrates the schizophrenic nature of the Barisan Government’s attitude towards bloggers,” says Ong.Six months after the election, how much have the Barisan representatives responded to the call to set up their own blogs?Not much, says Ong who found that of the 85 Barisan MPs in Peninsular Malaysia, only 13 of them currently have their own blogs (15%).In contrast, 59 out of the 79 Pakatan MPs from the peninsula (almost three quarters of them) have their own blogs.Note that he did not include independent MP Ibrahim Ali in his survey as he is neither with Barisan nor Pakatan.Nor did he include East Malaysian MPs in his survey because blogs are not so important there.In the past, the Barisan could rely on the mainstream media not to report or under-report any offensive remarks that may have been made by a Barisan politician.Now, it is likely that such remarks would be picked up by online news sites or observant bloggers. Once such news leaks into cyberspace, the fallout is instantaneous.And the mainstream media, which has already been emboldened since the election, will pick it up too. We’ve seen this phenomenon of blog scoops trickling into mainstream news happen in the United States and now it’s starting to happen here.The Barisan is not used to playing the role of the underdog in the political sphere. But it is clearly outmanned and outgunned in cyberspace.The number of independent blogs which can be categorised as anti-Barisan significantly outnumber the blogs which are supportive of the Barisan, says Ong, who adds: “It’s hard to name a single influential blogger who can be categorised as pro-Barisan.”Barisan cannot overcome this disadvantage in cyberspace by throwing money at the problem. Even if it paid a whole army of bloggers to set up pro-Barisan blogs, it wouldn’t work as their credibility would be suspect straight away.Mercenary bloggers just can’t match the passion of the ones who do it as a labour of love, who do it as a matter of personal commitment.This is not to say that New Media is a lost cause for the Barisan. Even if it can’t get the blogosphere to support it immediately, it can set a good example by having its MPs and senior leaders maintain good websites or blogs.They can start by emulating DAP stalwart Lim Kit Siang who began embracing the Internet in the mid-90s.He even bothered to learn HTML just so his party could have its own website and was one of the key drivers in continuously upgrading the party website, publishing the press statements and also encouraging its MPs to start blogs of their own.Anwar Ibrahim’s website is very comprehensive and it has sections where one can make financial contributions, request Anwar to speak at events and view his past speeches and op-eds.He also has a blog which has his public schedule, YouTube videos, related news items as well as press releases.Even Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad has joined the blogosphere with over six million visits to date, a remarkable achievement by any standards.In stark contrast, no senior Barisan leader can claim to have the same kind of Internet presence or traffic.The most vilified person in the Malaysian blogosphere, Khairy Jamaluddin, does have his own website and it includes a blog.It will take more than having his own online presence to counter all the negative postings about him but Khairy did garner some attention recently when he criticised the MCMC’s decision to block access to RPK’s website.Perhaps other Barisan MPs can follow his lead and be willing to express their views frankly and openly through blogs.The online advantage that Pakatan enjoys does not guarantee them electoral success.There is no replacing the ‘offline’ activities that are part and parcel of what political parties and politicians need to do – the constituency servicing, the face-to-face meetings, the ceramahs, and so on, says Ong.“But the Internet has become such a key component of the political battleground that any party that ignores its importance is likely to find itself handicapped,” he adds. Reporters without Borders on Gopalan's Sentence Blogger Gopalan Nair gets three months in prison for insulting judgeReporters Without Borders condemns the three-month prison sentence which a Singapore court imposed yesterday on blogger Gopalan Nair for insulting a high court judge in a blog entry. A Singaporean lawyer who became a US citizen in 2005, Nair plans to file an appeal on 20 September, the day he is due to begin serving his prison sentence.“This sentence is disproportionate,” Reporters Without Borders said. “Nair was given the severest sentence possible under the criminal code for insult. We urge the judicial authorities to be reasonable and to reverse this decision to send a blogger to prison.”Nair’s trial under article 228 of the criminal code began on 10 September. He defended himself.During the first hearing, Nair denied allegations that he had sent emails to Belinda Ang, the high court judge he was accused of insulting, and to another judge. “What I wrote on my blog is addressed to the whole world,” he said. He also accused the police of taking his notebook containing the password to his email account and blog.Nair, 58, was arrested in Singapore on 31 May under article 13 (d) of the Miscellaneous offences Act) and was charged four days later with “sedition” (http://statutes.agc.gov.sg/) for criticising Ang and another judge, Lai Siew Chiu, for their handling of a defamation case that resulted in Chee Soon Juan, the head of the opposition Singapore Democratic Party, spending 12 days in prison (and his sister, Siok Chin, spending 10 days in prison).Nair was freed on bail on 5 June pending trial. His blog is still accessible in Singapore. How Good News Becomes Bad Press A recent Political and Economic Risk Consultancy (PERC) survey has place Singapore as having one fo the best judicial systems in Asia; only second to Hongkong.If only we could say the same about our press.This is the article as found in the CNA website.HK, Singapore voted having best judicial systems in AsiaPosted: 15 September 2008 0334 hrs SINGAPORE: Regional financial centres Hong Kong and Singapore have the best judicial systems in Asia, with Indonesia and Vietnam the worst, a survey of expatriate business executives showed. The judiciary "is one of Indonesia's weakest and most controversial institutions, and many consider the poor enforcement of laws to be the country's number one problem," said the Political and Economic Risk Consultancy (PERC). Some court rulings in Indonesia have been "so controversial that they have seriously hurt confidence of foreign companies," said PERC, without giving specific examples. In the PERC survey, Hong Kong's judicial system topped the vote with a score of 1.45 on a scale that has zero representing the best performance and 10 the worst. Regional rival Singapore was in second place with a grade of 1.92, followed by Japan (3.50), South Korea (4.62), Taiwan (4.93) and the Philippines (6.10). Malaysia was in seventh place with a grade of 6.47, followed by India (6.50), Thailand (7.00) and China (7.25). Indonesia got the worst score of 8.26 after Vietnam's 8.10. The Hong Kong-based consultancy said 1,537 corporate executives working in Asia were asked to rate the judicial systems in the countries where they reside, using such variables as the protection of intellectual property rights (IPR) and corruption. Transparency, enforcement of laws, freedom from political interference and the experience and educational standards of lawyers and judges were also considered. "Year after year our perception surveys show a close correlation between how expatriates rate judicial systems and how they rate the openness of a particular economy," PERC said. "Better judicial systems are associated with better IPR protection, lower corruption and wealthier economies." The less favourable perception of China's and Vietnam's judicial systems are rooted in political interference, PERC said, adding that the Communist Party "is above the law in both countries." Despite India and the Philippines being democracies, expatriates did not look favourably on their judicial systems because of corruption, PERC added. Malaysia's judicial system has suffered a "serious reputation damage due to political interference", while expatriates in Thailand "have serious doubts" that moves to expand the judiciary's powers will be good for the country, it said. PERC noted the survey involved expatriate business executives, not political activists, so criteria like contracts and IPR protection were given more weightage. - AFP/deNow these are the closing paragraphs that was conveniently left out by CNA."This bias is possibly most obvious in Singapore," it said, noting that the city-state's top rating in the survey is not shared by political activists, who have criticised the ruling People's Action Party (PAP) for using the judiciary to silence critics."In Singapore, the general perception of expatriates is that local politics has not compromised the way commercial and criminal law is conducted," PERC said. Source: http://asia.news.yahoo.com/080914/afp/080914181252business.htmlThere you go. In terms of business protection and fostering a stable business environment, we are top notch. And in the view of big business, as long as the impartial dispense of justice vis-a-vis political opponents is concerned, they don't really care as long as it does not effect their business.No wonder the PAP always repeats the point that the economy will crumble when they go. BlaaaFor another point of view on Singpaore's judiciary and press freedoms, you can download the report by the International Bar Association’s Human Rights Institute (IBAHRI).P.s. At least I’m glad to say that the Today paper has far more editorial integrity than their big brother press. The above closing paragraphs were included in their website. Two Hats, Same Story Why WP didn't get permit for event http://www.straitstimes.com/ST%2BForum/Story/STIStory_276601.htmlI REFER to last Thursday’s letter by Mr Tan Ghee Gay, ‘Why ‘no’ and ‘yes’?', regarding police decisions with respect to the Workers’ Party’s (WP) proposed mass cycling event last year, and the carnival on Aug 31.Police do not issue permits for outdoor political events in public places due to the potential for disorder and unruly behaviour. This applies to events organised by all political parties. For this reason, police rejected WP’s application to hold a mass cycling activity in East Coast Park, to commemorate its 50th anniversary in September last year.The event on Aug 31 was very different. The permit was issued after taking into account the organiser and the nature of the event. It was organised by the PAP Community Foundation, which is a registered charity and not a political party. The event was not assessed to have the potential for disorder and unruly behaviour. It was a carnival that involved children and families from various kindergartens and educational institutions. The Prime Minister, as guest of honour, and a few other guests, made their entrance by cycling a short distance. During the event, a sum of $664,000 (which had been raised earlier) was distributed to 17 charities, including Beyond Social Services, Children’s Aid Society and Chung Hwa Medical Institution.DSP Paul TayAssistant Director (Media Relations)Singapore Police ForceThis latest public relations announcement is frustrating to read.In essence, the response is that events organized by political parties will promote disorder and attract unruly behaviour, therefore all such events will be denied permits. This is an excuse we are now all familiar with. Our instinctual response then would be to wonder why PAP events get special concession. Reason is, since the PAP is the incumbent government, all their outdoor activities, no matter how obviously party-related, are rewarded permits on the basis that they are wearing their ‘government hat’ and not their ‘party hat’. Or better yet, they are merely invited guests to ‘non-political’ outdoor events.I understand the rationale for taking into account the organisers’ antecedence when considering permits. Groups (political parties, NGOs, charities… etc) known to be rowdy or aggressive in their campaigning should rightly have their subsequent requests for permits rejected. But to issue a blanket ban on political groups from organizing outdoor events (other than rallies during election time), is absolutely ridiculous.Does that mean opposition parties (who apparently have only one hat – the ‘trouble-maker hat’) have no chance of organising outdoor events beyond the confines of the ‘yellow-boxed’ Speakers’ Corner? One Country, Two Hats, Two systems indeed.P.sLet us not forget:Banned National Day Pink PicnicBanned Indignation Pink RunDisrupted Tak Boleh Tahan protestApproved 5000 strong Case Consumer Rights Day protest march on 16 March 2008.Approved Expatriate Women gathering for Myanmar