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    Entries in PAP (13)

    Friday
    12Mar2010

    Failure of policy, not personal responsibility

    DateFriday, March 12, 2010 at 2:29PM

    This is becoming a familiar and increasingly common theme, as more Singaporeans begin to identify various PAP policies as inadequate and outdated. While personal responsibility is important, we should not overlook the influence of policy over the psyche of a country and its citizens.

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    AuthorCallan Tham | CommentPost a Comment | Reference1 Reference | | |
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    Tuesday
    09Mar2010

    Wrong answers from the wrong questions, continued

    DateTuesday, March 9, 2010 at 3:23PM

    Joshua Chiang's article on TOC again highlights the hollow arguments the PAP government has taken on, portraying homelessness as individual irresponsibility instead of a genuine social problem.

    Imran sold his flat for a profit. With the money, he rented a bungalow in Johor Bahru and even bought a car. Two years later, his money was spent, and he was back in Singapore, homeless.

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    AuthorCallan Tham | CommentPost a Comment | Reference1 Reference | | |
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    Friday
    05Mar2010

    Political appointments get 8.8% raise

    DateFriday, March 5, 2010 at 4:57PM

    Tucked beneath a most innocuous headline:

    Despite inconclusive climate change talks in December, the Republic is nonetheless pushing ahead with more spending for a greener Singapore. Within the Government's expenditure estimates, which were released yesterday, green schemes featured notably as part of the new spending commitments in the year ahead.

    Salaries for political appointments - ministers, ministers of state and parliamentary secretaries - are estimated to be $58.28 million, or 8.8 per cent higher than last year.

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    AuthorCallan Tham | CommentPost a Comment | Reference4 References | | |
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    Friday
    05Mar2010

    Low Thia Kiang vs Josephine Teo

    DateFriday, March 5, 2010 at 11:49AM

    Updated on Friday, March 5, 2010 at 1:59PM by Registered CommenterCallan Tham

    The Workers' Party's Low Thia Kiang slammed the "conventional wisdom" that has squeezed local workers of "every drop of effort and energy from our workers to achieve its desired GDP numbers", in the Budget 2010 parliament debate.

    The Opposition leader pointed out that manual workers like cleaners and garbage collectors in developed economies are paid so much more than their counterparts in Singapore, attributing this to those countries’ more compassionate and effective policies to ensure that workers at the bottom of the economic ladder enjoy a decent and dignified life. Referring to the Government’s latest productivity drive, which is to grow productivity by 2 to 3 per cent each year over the next decade, Low wondered if low wage workers had to wait another 10 years for the wage increases which they had not seen in the last 10 years.

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    AuthorCallan Tham | CommentPost a Comment | Reference3 References | | |
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    Thursday
    04Mar2010

    Who elected these clowns?

    DateThursday, March 4, 2010 at 7:13PM

    Only in Singapore do we elect Members of Parliament who seem more occupied with addressing the needs of foreigners rather than our own.

    Marine Parade GRC MP Seah Kian Peng said more needs to be done to help new immigrants 'work with the old team and feel a part of us'.

    'First, we need to make sure that they are called new Singaporeans rather than new migrants. They are not even new migrants - they are an old hand at migrating, and want a new life. They want to settle down and to make Singapore a new home,' said Mr Seah in his speech during the debate on the 2010 Budget Statement on Wednesday.

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    AuthorCallan Tham | Comment2 Comments | Reference5 References | | |
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    Friday
    02Oct2009

    Mr Mah, is that all you've got?

    DateFriday, October 2, 2009 at 3:31PM

    Mr Mah Bow Tan, Minister for National Development, has again rubbished talk of HDB flat prices being unaffordable, dismissing the concerns of Singaporeans with dodgy numbers and empty words.

    “We’ll keep the prices such that they are pegged to the income, so this is how we manage affordability. We make sure that the prices do not exceed the 30 per cent benchmark.”

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    AuthorCallan Tham | Comment3 Comments | Reference3 References | | |
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    Monday
    28Sep2009

    I can smell the arrogance from here, Dr Teo

    DateMonday, September 28, 2009 at 10:03AM

    The arrogance can be gobsmacking some times, but when it comes from the same people who lost S$16 million of taxpayers money investing in risky funds, paid their managers whopping 8-month bonuses in the midst of a recession, then turned around and said "I don't know", and that we should be thankful they used our tax dollars to play the market,  the grand show of arrogance is further augmented by a level of stupidity and incompetency that makes me wonder why these people are in elected office.

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    AuthorCallan Tham | Comment1 Comment | Reference6 References | | |
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    Thursday
    03Sep2009

    Article 152 of the Singapore Constitution, and why we're different from Malaysia

    DateThursday, September 3, 2009 at 5:27PM

    Updated on Thursday, September 3, 2009 at 10:21PM by Registered CommenterCallan Tham

    I had previously touched on Article 152 of our Constitution when MM Lee Kuan Yew cited it and interpreted that article as one that protects inequality even amongst Singaporeans. In my opinion, my reading of this article is one of affirmative action for the Malays, and seeks to ensure a level playing field for the indigenous and minority race in Singapore against a large Chinese majority. I would also agree if Article 152 spawns an amendment that also does the same thing for all minority races.

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    AuthorCallan Tham | CommentPost a Comment | Reference1 Reference | | |
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    Friday
    28Aug2009

    Francis Seow's lecture on the Singapore judiciary

    DateFriday, August 28, 2009 at 8:36AM

    Temasek Review has a transcript of a lecture given by former Singapore Solicitor General Francis Seow that is worth a read for every Singaporean, particularly those who have an optimistic view of society and the judiciary here, as well as others who have an interest in how things work in this country where expediency is prioritised over everything else.

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    AuthorCallan Tham | CommentPost a Comment | Reference1 Reference | | |
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    Thursday
    27Aug2009

    Probably the funniest post ever from Hardware Zone forums

    DateThursday, August 27, 2009 at 1:20PM

    I'll admit, I don't like internet forums, and I particularly abhor local ones. Most of the time the signal is lost amidst the constant irrelevant noise that clogs up the arteries of places like the Hardware Zone (HWZ) forums. But this one is quite the gem.

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    AuthorCallan Tham | Comment1 Comment | Reference1 Reference | | |
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