Did pianist Melvyn Tan get off too lightly?
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Well said!Originally posted by fudgester:It sends out the wrong message, really.
It kind of tells people that you can get away with not serving the nation as long as you migrate overseas, be talented in some field and pay a relatively small fine if you do return.
So what if he's a world-class pianist? Once my lecturer (an associate professor, mind you) actually had to turn up for ICT and ask another prof to take over his lectures in the meantime. You can be a pianist, taxi driver, entrepreneuer, or teacher, but the bottom line is that when it comes to serving the nation, everyone is meant to be equal.
Or, judging from this case, are some people more equal than others?
But the ministers will still say "ya all equal." -
thing is this.. if the guy kena tekan, there will be people who are not happy.. if the guy never kena tekan, there will be the rest of the people who are not happy
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it is important to stick to the law stipulated.
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if he kenna 50 000 fineOriginally posted by the Bear:thing is this.. if the guy kena tekan, there will be people who are not happy.. if the guy never kena tekan, there will be the rest of the people who are not happy
who will make noise???
he`s a bloody rich person who siamed so many hardship
5 k is really `peanuts` to him...
i wonder will mrs goh like this peanut or not??
or will she think it`s a lotta money to pay for the 2 yrs we missed out in our lives for the nation??? -
Rather, the thing is this:Originally posted by the Bear:thing is this.. if the guy kena tekan, there will be people who are not happy.. if the guy never kena tekan, there will be the rest of the people who are not happy
if the guy kena tekan, the elite will not be happy.. if the guy never kena tekan, the rest of the people will not be happy
Who is more important? Who rules Singapore? Who gives a heck to what the rest think? -
i remember just last month a weekend car cheat was fined 16k.
hahaha.
too bad he is no musician. -
This judgment is sending out a message loud and clear:
If you are the elite, you will get better healthcare, better jobs and you can get away with crimes with a light slap on the wrist.
But the full force of the law will fall on you like a ton of bricks if you are the average heartlander.
Singapore is for the elite. -
x 1 millionOriginally posted by oxford mushroom:This judgment is sending out a message loud and clear:
If you are the elite, you will get better healthcare, better jobs and you can get away with crimes with a light slap on the wrist.
But the full force of the law will fall on you like a ton of bricks if you are the average heartlander.
Singapore is for the elite. -
jus curiousOriginally posted by the Bear:thing is this.. if the guy kena tekan, there will be people who are not happy.. if the guy never kena tekan, there will be the rest of the people who are not happy
who`ll be unhappy??
his father and mother?? -
For the cause of meritocracy..no wonder we are such a crass bunch, stabbing each other in the back..Originally posted by oxford mushroom:This judgment is sending out a message loud and clear:
If you are the elite, you will get better healthcare, better jobs and you can get away with crimes with a light slap on the wrist.
But the full force of the law will fall on you like a ton of bricks if you are the average heartlander.
Singapore is for the elite.
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Ang Peng Siong who was once the fastest swimmer on earth had to serve NS and as a result, he could not train for 2.5 years. He was still fast but never reach the peak again.
He must be mad after reading about this pianist story. He should have swam for another country and come back after winning medals -
he was fastest in the 50m onli...Originally posted by kilua:Ang Peng Siong who was once the fastest swimmer on earth had to serve NS and as a result, he could not train for 2.5 years. He was still fast but never reach the peak again.
He must be mad after reading about this pianist story. He should have swam for another country and come back after winning medals -
read the thread...see the number of people who are not happy.Originally posted by BaByBoY:jus curious
who`ll be unhappy??
his father and mother??
I say that loser should be castrated as punishment....if he has no balls to serve NS, he deserve to be called bo lan jiao, to borrow the words of a prominent Taiwanese diplomat... -
Law or no law, I think he shouldn't come back at all. Firstly, he sold out on Singapore by not doing his NS.(And he got so many years to report to do so!!).
Citing fears of punishment for his inaction is a very lame excuse (in fact not an excuse at all). Secondly, becoming a well-known figure overseas does not erase his wrong doing.
IMO, he doesn't deserve to be a Singaporean. -
He isn'tOriginally posted by highway69:IMO, he doesn't deserve to be a Singaporean.
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only?Originally posted by monoslayer:he was fastest in the 50m onli...
that is an unparalleled achievement for a small country like us. -
well the justice system does not really hold NS as the highest, but rather a burden on the justice system. $5000 will save them a lot of work. To most that have gone thru NS, it makes us feel there are some that can get away with it, so easily.
Not sure whether how hard to punish a born in singapore NS desfulter holding a british passport.
He must be punished according to the actual law taht place NS the highest, probably jailed more than a year jail and fine. Well if he needs to meet his parents they can meet in JB or batam. Or has he been meeting them all along outside singapore. -
for his career advancement he chose to escape NS and leave his parents here. 28 yrs later he came back because he missed his parents and singapore. do you believe such a thing?
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actually if u wanna awol go work in britain and come back coz teh fine is only ard 1500+ pounds
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To be fair to the SAF, sportsmen and musicians get to go SAFSA and MDC these days.Back in the 70s..hardly.If our national players can play for SAFFC/SAFSA, they could just do a simple ability test and attach talented musicians to the Band or even put them in the Singapore Symphonic Orchestra for OJT.
Less wastage of talent, and saves everyone the trouble.Problem is the unwillingness to introduce a more flexible form of national service.Face it, some people are not cut out for military service, but are proportionately better at other aspects.Harness those..we cannot afford to be picky. -
unfairrr
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The law does provide for imprisonment but the judge only fined him. In fact, this S.O.B wrote in to the authorities to inform them his intention to return. Seems to me THEY DID A BACKROOM DEAL! The coward came back knowing that they will not imprison him....that's why he did not dare to return all these years.
But now he is elite...and elites are a law unto themselves...
The great Singapore justice system!
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All animals are equal but some animals are more equal than others.
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4 legs good, 2 legs bad!Originally posted by LinYu:read the story "Animals Farm" - Intially one of the commandment is "All animals are equal" but as time goes by it becomes "All animals are equal but some are more equal than others"
I like this book.
later become '4 legs good, 2 legs better!'
i love the sheeps saying that. -
x1Originally posted by av98m:His getting off with a fine is a slap in the face of every single person who ever did national service, and also a double slap to the parents of national servicemen who died in the course of duty. Melvyn Tan is nothing but an unfillial cowardly scumbag who put his parents through a lot of shit and
now uses them as an excuse to get back into Singapore. I hope someone breaks every single one of his fingers.
So I guess the lesson to be learnt here is, if you're going to avoid doing NS, better make sure you're rich enough to excape overseas and study/live/work there. Later on if you want to come back just pay the $5000 fine.