Changes in China

By Josephine Teo

In 1996 and 1997 when my husband and I lived in Suzhou, China, shopping for suitable work-wear was not easy and television programmes were not particularly entertaining.  Last week, while on a short break in Kunming, I encountered the fast-changing face of China.

A sparkling shopping centre within 100m walking distance from our hotel offered a wide range of ladies’ fashion.  It was winter and so most of the offerings would not be suitable for use back in Singapore.  Still, window-shopping proved to be a pleasant experience.  Shop-fronts were attractive.  Pieces has been carefully selected and displayed.  Lighting and music had been adjusted to suit the theme and target customers.  Impressively, many (not all) of the retail assistants had strong product knowledge and good sales techniques.

Biggest Cover-up in Singapore ? ?

By Bernard

Jurong Island Theft: 100kg of Jet fuel additive STOLEN ! I was shocked to see this piece of news in The New Paper (29th December 2006). It is reported that thieves had made off with 100kg of Stadis 450, a jet fuel additive. Stadis 450 is classified as a flammable liquid and hazardous material. The New paper understands that the jet fuel additive was left in six sealed pails which later went missing. I was even more surprised to read that the jet fuel additive has been missing ever since 4th December 2006. The police was subsquently informed of the theft two days later, on the 6th. According to the Phillipine Daily Inquirer, the incident was serious enough for Singapore authorities to alert a bomb data centre in the Philippines. Mr Joe Moreira, a security and explosive consultant, doubts that the fuel additive will be a threat. He said, “Jet fuel furns quickly in the air and you can’t sustain it for long. You need diesel to sustain the fire. So, you’ll be wasting jet fuel on a bomb.” “Being flammable, the additive can be used as fuel oil together with an improvised explosive device for incendiary effect,” the Singapore police said. According to the Philippine Inquirer, “The Singapore police have alerted their counterparts in the Philippines about the disappearance of six pails of jet fuel weighing about 100 kilograms from an oil storage facility in the city-state, which they said could be used as a component for explosives, an alert bulletin obtained by the Inquirer said. The bulletin came as Metro Manila police were recently placed on full alert in the run-up to the sixth anniversary of the Rizal Day bombings. “ Is it arrogance on the part of the Singapore police that they believed that the stolen Stadis 450 would not be made into bombs which would be used in Singapore? Maybe that’s the reason why the public wasn’t informed as soon as the threat was established. No threat I suppose. Just another case of robbery? Hopefully. I am puzzled, worried and angered at the same time. 1. Why wasn’t Singaporeans informed of the theft until exactly more than three weeks later? On top of that, why wasn’t there any statements made by the Co-ordinating Minister for National Security and Minister for Law, Prof. S. Jayakumar at the point of the theft? Did he deemed it insignificant to warrant notice by Singaporeans? 2. How did the entire theft happen inspite of the tight security on Jurong Island? How can someone go in past all the access controls, and come out with stolen goods?(Since the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks, security on Jurong Island has been stepped up and it has also been gazetted a Protected Area. Armed soldiers and police officers are involved in its security. In November 2003, the chemical hub opened a new securtiy checkpoint featuring X-ray scanners to detect explosives and weapons, as well as three-tier vehicle barriers to bar intrusions. On top of all that, visitors must exchange their identity cards for a pass and all incoming vehicles are searched before being allowed entry). 3. If it is proven that there is a laspe in security on Jurong island, who is going to be held acountable? The Commander in charge of security on Jurong Island or even Wong Kan Seng & Prof. S, Jayakumar? 4. More signficantly, if the100kg of jet fuel is made into a bomb with diesel and is made to be detonated during the year-end countdown parties at Marina Bay, Vivo City, Siloso Beach, Expo, National Museum, who is going to take responsibility for the enormous death toll and subsquently, economic and social damages. PM Lee possibly? I’m not trying to make a fuss out of nothing. I’m just concerned about the authorities’ attempt to hide information from the people. The authorities should alert the people once any breach of security or terror threat is discovered. At least, Singaporeans would not take their peace for granted. Despite all these, why is there still a media blackout on this theft, insignificant it may seem. So does this mean that in future, the authorities would only inform the people once a bomb has went off, or people are killed? I guess it’s a national security issue, thus it should remain secret. Is that the logic of the authorities? I need answers from the top authorities now and when the investigations are done. This is my country, my home. I do not want anything to happen to it and I placed my confidence in the security apparatus to ensure that such incidents do not happen again. I would like to see a transparent and open attitude towards such breach of security issues. For now, I need an open and transparent answers to my questions. Singaporeans deserve to know what happened. Be accountable to all Singaporeans. At least inform me of how jet fuel look like so I can help the police spot it. Copyright © 2006 Union of Concerned Singaporeans, Inc. All rights reserved.

 

An Unbelievable Bargain

By George Yeo

1. I have been trying out a new phone Bee Lan’s friend bought for me from Shenzhen. It is very attractive, slim, with the keys arranged in a circle, looking like an I-Pod, with a function wheel in the middle. Measuring 5cm by 10cm, it is about 8mm thick and has a camera which takes pictures of 2 Mega Pixel quality and can play MP3 and MP4. There is a dictionary built in, Eng-Ch and Ch-Eng, with a menu of input systems. Lots of other interesting features. And all for the price of S$50!

Strangers ‘expect me to have views on everything’

From the Straits Times

29 Dec 2006

WORKERS’ Party (WP) chairman Sylvia Lim found herself being stopped in the street by strangers more often this year.

They chat to her about issues like estate upgrading and about parliamentary debates, and ‘expect me to have views on everything’, she says.

She came into prominence during the general election, where she led her party’s ‘A’ team against the People’s Action Party incumbents in contesting Aljunied GRC.

More Transparency! Great!

by Perry Tong

TODAY, page 7, 28th December 2006 ….. Somebody gotta teach me how to put pictures into my blog.

Anyhow, there was a ‘full’ page ad taken out in today’s TODAY. Where Singapore Power announced a surprising drop in electricity surcharges. Great news to kick of the new year if any!!

What was more amazing was that the full page ad listed the historical (back to 2001) prices and how there were pegged relatived to raw fuel prices.

The level of transparency is great. Applause!! Credit given where it is due.

WP Youth Wing Press Statement

22 Dec 2006

Half Frozen Half Helpful

The article “Govt to freeze fees for one year after GST hike” (ST 1 December 2006) gave much hope for the people that costs will remain affordable. The first paragraph of the article wrote:

“ALL government fees will stay frozen and not be raised for one year when the goods and services tax (GST) goes up from 5 to 7 percent”

These hopes were changed when the article “Government spells out fees to be frozen” (ST 13 December 2006) produced non-exhaustive lists of inclusions and exclusions to the fee freeze.

The Workers’ Party Youth Wing would like to express its disappointment with the government having failed to take into account the need to freeze fees for basic amenities such as transport, utilities fees and polytechnic and university fees.

Shape WP 50th Anniversary Magazine Publication!

By Yaw Shin Leong

Make Your Mark in History

Shape the Milestone Publication of The Workers’ Party

As it Progresses Towards its 50th Anniversary

Play Your Part to Create an Empowered Society

Where Singaporeans Enjoy Freedom, Choices and Equality

Click here for more details.

Refining The GST Mechanism

By National Solidarity Party

A blanket application of GST affects the poor more than the rich. Fortunately, the measure has rooms for refinement. But will the lazy minds of the government, too used to taking the easy way out, figure out the way to improve the scheme, or will they predictably bully their way through?

The signs are discouraging.

Second Finance Minister Tharman Shanmugaratnam dismissed the notion of GST exemption as flawed by citing the experience of “other countries” and how “it leads to all kinds of distortions.” The Minister was guilty of distortion by omitting to differentiate the plan (GST exemption) from the implementation.

Tharman further added that GST exemption would benefit the well-off who spend more on basic goods than the poor. This again was an exercise in perversion to argue the government’s case without stating the obvious truth – The poor spend a higher proportion of their income on basic goods than the rich.

Point-by-Point rebuttal to Ministry of Home Affairs’ statement

By the Singapore Democratic Party

Below is a reply by Dr Chee Soon Juan to the Ministry of Home Affairs’ statement dated 20 December 2006.

Point 1: Marking of food trays.

MHA: It is normal Prisons procedure to record the food consumption of inmates under close watch. This procedure applies not just to Chee Soon Juan but to all such inmates.

CSJ: When the question of the marking was first raised by my wife, Ms Huang Chih Mei, and sister, Ms Chee Siok Chin, on 4/12/2006, Monday, both Mr Chandra Kumar (MHA official) and Queenstown Remand Prison (QRP) Superintendent Hoon categorically denied that prisoners’ trays were marked, unless it’s for vegetarian food. I am not a vegetarian. If it is the “normal” practice to mark the food trays of inmates under close watch, why did Mr Chandra Kumar and Mr Hoon say they had no knowledge of the marking?

My first 100 days in office

By Mr Zaqy Mohamad

POLITICS has not only changed my life, it has also changed my perspectives and created lasting impressions. They say first impressions last and I share mine through my first 100 days in office – Mr Zaqy Mohamad

THE CONSTITUENCY

I was in a business meeting overseas. My mobile phone buzzed : a phone call that I hoped I’d never receive. A resident, his spouse and four children were stranded outside of their flat. Their HDB flat had been repossessed by a commercial bank. They were now homeless, with only five hours left to nightfall. The family was in distress.

Immediate calls were made to my parliamentary colleagues, Mohamad Maliki Osman and Teo Ser Luck, from the Ministry of National Development and Ministry of Community Development, Youth and Sports respectively to inform them we needed immediate attention from their agencies.

Coordinated out of our PAP branch, we had the Residents’ Committee on the ground within the hour, together with government officials, to work out various options. By nightfall, we had a resolution: the family had a place to stay and a long-term housing solution was in the works. This experience manifested a fear I had for residents in the constituency.On the surface, we had new estates that were eight to 16 years old. Most residents were in the middle income group, residing in 4-room, 5-room, executive flats and condominiums. The ward seemed “peaceful” for a new MP to learn the ropes.