I was moved to tears
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But the PAP candidate are capable. Look, Besides being an MP, he also have their own job, drawn two salary. And also, some of them be a director of listed company. So they must be very capable. So when you vote, dont cross them away. Put the cross in the box where the incapable party belong. Support themOriginally posted by caramon.:I had always been thinking, "Yes, credibility is important!", but what is more important is do credible people really understand the ground? Many of the candidates from the PAPs are Profs, Drs, ex-Chief and elites. They claimed they know the grounds well. They claimed they can understand the high cost of living standards most Singaporeans are going through.
The point here is, many of them are born with silver spoons. A lot are highly educated, they get highly paid jobs. Those who used to lived in kampongs and HDBs, have long lost touch with life as a struggling Singaporeans who finds life tougher than ever.
Looking at APs, these candidates are the people who really are on the ground and most of them are like us, still feeling the impact of high cost of living standard, effect of globalization and flood of foreign talents. They can better understand people on the ground and object for any price hike that is going to cause more people to suffer, because they too, are a victim.
For example, if I have a son who has congenital heart disease. And If you want to help me, don't tell me you know how I feel, because you don't. I don't need you to tell me you know how I feel, it don't help to get my son better. Find me a good doctor, find me a cure and when I need money for surgery, where can I get them?
This goes the same for those who said they understand the poor, but in fact, they are the rich and was never poor before. What the poor needs are actions, not just words of sympathy. Poor don't need credible people who take out-of-the-world pay to plan policy that solve problem for today's meal. What about the meal for tomorrow?
Therefore, again, credibility is important, however, it doesn't mean just by being highly educated and so-called "Understand what you are going through?", you are credible. You have to earn it. -
R u the sith lord tt we r all looking for? I hate pple carrying balls... esp the PAP's balls.Originally posted by TooFree:How can you be sure based on their looks. Heard of devil in disguise?
In other words, you mean you are voting for someone into office because this person can cry the loudest? Arent we suppose to elected our MPs based on their capability to bring the nation to higher plane. One thing for sure is that the integrity of PAP candidates and their calibre are put through the toughest test by its predecessors to ensure the continuity of the party survival to get the best of the best for the people or for the good of the nation. It is not just getting someone off the street and hoping onto the helicopter as what you think.
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Try carry a ball using 3 men. I am seeing such incident now..
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The PAP ran a horrendous unintelligent campaign. Poorly coordinated and one with a total dearth of a coherent message. The mistakes include:
1. Gomez. Whatever plot they were trying to prove out of Gomez's application forms, they looked like murderous character assassins going after a young man who is a well known speaker and author. They thought they can spin it into the equivalent of a 'CSJ heckling GCT' using the media under their control. But 2 headlines, 7 days later, they realised nobody is convinced. How did they expect to convince people they know what was going on Gomez's head?! Their accusations were also so totally full of holes even if you want to believe them you would have found it difficult. The Worker's Party exploited it to the maximum remaining highly focussed and getting their messages across.
2. Media. Saying that the media is bias during this election is a total understatement, They didn't even pretend to objective. You just have to attend 1 rally and you will realise the disparity of the reporting....and Singaporeans attended rallies by the thousands. The Internet disseminated it to people who couldn't attend. People can see what is real and tell it from the illusion the Straits Times was trying to create. The media lost its credibility....it lost its effectiveness as a propaganda tool.
3.No Intelligent Message. The PAP manifesto looked like it was put together by an advertising company - totally unsincere and motherhood. Frankly it looks pretty hollow and really reflects badly on them. Are the PAP candidates especially the new pnes too busy to come up with a decent manifesto? Where are the new ideas from the new people? Singapore faces the biggest challenge in the coming decades with globalisation & competition - the last thing we need is complacent govt and a group uninspiring group of 'reluctant politicians' who can't even bother to serve us full time as MPs because their own career are more important. You don't see any passion, you don't see any fresh ideas....you don't see effort, just people riding on the coattails....
4. Upgrading, upgrading and more upgrading. When ever the sense their position weakening, they instantly cough out an upgrading package. The WP mentioned that there were 2 blocks left out in the lift upgrading, the PAP instantly offered it to them. Losing at Hougang....no problem just dump an $80M upgrading package at them...etc. Upgrading as an election weapon is losing its edge, people know it is taxpayers money and are starting to feel insulted it is being used to buy their votes,
The biggest blunder is by PM Lee who admitted to a lunch time crowd he can't handle the opposition, he has to fix them and buy votes from supporters. His quote was instantly spread to thousands through email and the appearance in blogs & webpages. In a single statement he lost alot of credibility, he STRONGLY INSULTED the people from whom he is seeking mandate and admits the PAP is involved in the dirty politics of fixing opponents. Who is going to believe their accusations of Gomez now?!
The PAP lost the moral high ground this elections, they lost credibility, they blackened their own White shirts. -
whichever party wins the campaign, i hope they are placing country interest ahead of their party interest...
today is the day, where singapore future will be mould and decided. Where voters will know, in years to come, how the party they had voted, will perform to what extend from what they had mentioned in their rallies. -
i would rather trust a party that has been successful in turning Singapore to what it is today.
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You are one of those that got stuck in molds..Originally posted by neeyh:i would rather trust a party that has been successful in turning Singapore to what it is today.
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When i was still a kid few years back i used to think ST was like a wonder paper. But as time goes by, i realised it is actually a disguised propaganda tool.Originally posted by pierre^^:my letters to ST forum was rejected again nn again, coz i criticise the way other mp talk like My hougang was a old fork home, ugly and third world
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Yawnz............
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Originally posted by neeyh:
15 posts = no credibility
i would rather trust a party that has been successful in turning Singapore to what it is today.
100 post = commited -
Waste of time and money.. but why there are people still doing it.. Either they are trying to test the system or they have a passion to serve the country, the peoples in the nation, to try to change some of the systems which they think would help the country.Originally posted by killstyle:eh. running oppostion in singapore is plain stupidity.
its either u have too much time to waste, money, or both
period
either that.
or u are asking for a good fcuk.
Not everyone are willing to waste their time and effort to do all this, u could hear that people always complaining about the goverment. But mostly it all talk and no action... where is the actions?
Please respect them, though some of them may proof not to be up to stranded compare to their counterpeers.. but i would say there are heros.. in the eyes of a fews... At least they try to stand up and let their voices be hear... -
i love their passion,
but winning power over the PAP its.
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.Fucking impossible -
caramon., your words in your very first posting invoked some emotions in me.
I attended the WP's rally at Serangoon Stadium last night. Already knew what Low, Gomez and Sylvia would talk about. Then, in oder to avoid the massive people jam, I left at about 945pm. As I walked out past the stadium, I heard the pledge being recited. Tears of patriotism welled up my eyes immediately. The last time I ever had such a strong feeling was singing Majulah Singapura in the NDP contingent 2000.
For the PAP supporters out there, I'm positive that you have your own reasons for voting them. Singapore has been registering really impressive figures and stats in the international arena. I must also admit that the opposition has done little service to itself over the years. Every election that I can remember as far back as 1991, their main strategy has always been criticism of the PAP's policies. So the question is, "what's the solution?" Normally, the opposition does not really focus on that.
Qualifications of candidates have indeed improved tremendously, though they still have none of the "ex-army generals or coporate super high-fliers". The opposition today is very weak in parliament, my question is, "What solution is there to propose? Isn't it pre-mature now?" If all the opposition can do is only criticise now, then so be it. Didn't PAP start off this way? When the opposition gets stronger down the years, more quality candidates will join and that's when I hope to see WP become the government, at least in my lifetime.
Vote for PAP to stay in power and you will only pay and pay. Bloody MBT and his ERP, car mortgages, house mortgages, and bloody hell, I heard that GST will be increasing to 7% (my inside news) after the election. I don't struggle in Singapore and dare to say I'm comfortable enough. I can enjoy a "hippie's" life anytime. But what about the average housewives who have to buy vegetables and groceries everyday?? 7% GST kills. What abt the average joe who pays 30 years of HDB mortgage, depletes his CPF savings and cannot meet the CPF minimum sum for retirement?? PAP's policies are going wrong in many areas.
Lastly, please look at Japan. They have the world's second largest economy and look how many different parties and PMs have come through......BUT they are still an economic power. Please stop being naive and still think that only PAP can secure our future. -
I think Minister Mah is the one who started to COE, not ERP. ERP is the idea of our current Minister of Transport, if I'm not wrong.Originally posted by Rock^Star:caramon., your words in your very first posting invoked some emotions in me.
I attended the WP's rally at Serangoon Stadium last night. Already knew what Low, Gomez and Sylvia would talk about. Then, in oder to avoid the massive people jam, I left at about 945pm. As I walked out past the stadium, I heard the pledge being recited. Tears of patriotism welled up my eyes immediately. The last time I ever had such a strong feeling was singing Majulah Singapura in the NDP contingent 2000.
For the PAP supporters out there, I'm positive that you have your own reasons for voting them. Singapore has been registering really impressive figures and stats in the international arena. I must also admit that the opposition has done little service to itself over the years. Every election that I can remember as far back as 1991, their main strategy has always been criticism of the PAP's policies. So the question is, "what's the solution?" Normally, the opposition does not really focus on that.
Qualifications of candidates have indeed improved tremendously, though they still have none of the "ex-army generals or coporate super high-fliers". The opposition today is very weak in parliament, my question is, "What solution is there to propose? Isn't it pre-mature now?" If all the opposition can do is only criticise now, then so be it. Didn't PAP start off this way? When the opposition gets stronger down the years, more quality candidates will join and that's when I hope to see WP become the government, at least in my lifetime.
Vote for PAP to stay in power and you will only pay and pay. Bloody MBT and his ERP, car mortgages, house mortgages, and bloody hell, I heard that GST will be increasing to 7% (my inside news) after the election. I don't struggle in Singapore and dare to say I'm comfortable enough. I can enjoy a "hippie's" life anytime. But what about the average housewives who have to buy vegetables and groceries everyday?? 7% GST kills. What abt the average joe who pays 30 years of HDB mortgage, depletes his CPF savings and cannot meet the CPF minimum sum for retirement?? PAP's policies are going wrong in many areas.
Lastly, please look at Japan. They have the world's second largest economy and look how many different parties and PMs have come through......BUT they are still an economic power. Please stop being naive and still think that only PAP can secure our future. -
Let us put aside PAP and the opposition for now. I have a question to ask and I hope to see really interesting and smart replies.
We all hate the high COE, road tax and ERP charges in Singapore, especially current car owners and most probably future car owners too.. It makes owning a car in Singapore so darn expensive! However, the main reason for making ownership of cars in Singapore expensive is that we seriously do not have enough roads to accomodate high numbers of cars. Next, even if the number of cars have been limited by high COE and road tax, we still face the problem of traffic jams in certain areas due to peak hours, therefore the ERP was implemented.
We complain about the high costs of car ownership in Singapore, but at the same time we do not want to be caught in a jam every now and then. So anyone has any brilliant ideas to solve the above problems? (Make car ownership cheaper but at the same time not having over-congested roads in Singapore) -
better late than never.Originally posted by Don©:When i was still a kid few years back i used to think ST was like a wonder paper. But as time goes by, i realised it is actually a disguised propaganda tool. -
Regarding the high petrol prices, the Singapore government has got no say over it. So please do not blame the government. The only thing you can do is to start digging deep into the ground and hope to see crude oil
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What about the proposed increase in 7% GST?Originally posted by freakass:Let us put aside PAP and the opposition for now. I have a question to ask and I hope to see really interesting and smart replies.
We all hate the high COE, road tax and ERP charges in Singapore, especially current car owners and most probably future car owners too.. It makes owning a car in Singapore so darn expensive! However, the main reason for making ownership of cars in Singapore expensive is that we seriously do not have enough roads to accomodate high numbers of cars. Next, even if the number of cars have been limited by high COE and road tax, we still face the problem of traffic jams in certain areas due to peak hours, therefore the ERP was implemented.
We complain about the high costs of car ownership in Singapore, but at the same time we do not want to be caught in a jam every now and then. So anyone has any brilliant ideas to solve the above problems? (Make car ownership cheaper but at the same time not having over-congested roads in Singapore) -
Read my question properly. I said put aside PAP and the opposition. I just want to hear some brilliant solutions to the problems that I mentioned. Nothing to do with any political party.Originally posted by will4:What about the proposed increase in 7% GST? -
The following is my 'boiling' response to ST forum regarding an article that featured Mr Khaw. Well, it was not published the next day (as expected) and the editor reply to me wasOriginally posted by caramon.:I had always been thinking, "Yes, credibility is important!", but what is more important is do credible people really understand the ground? Many of the candidates from the PAPs are Profs, Drs, ex-Chief and elites. They claimed they know the grounds well. They claimed they can understand the high cost of living standards most Singaporeans are going through.
Sorry Caramon, I deleted the in-between paragraphs so that my post won't be too long.
Therefore, again, credibility is important, however, it doesn't mean just by being highly educated and so-called "Understand what you are going through?", you are credible. You have to earn it.
"Thank you for writing to us. We do appreciate your making the effort.
We receive 70 letters on average each day. Limited space means we can publish only about a dozen every weekday.
This means having to make often-difficult editorial judgments on which letters to publish.
We regret we are unable to publish your letter this time, and hope you will appreciate the constraints on space we face every day.
We hope you will continue taking an interest in the Forum Page."
Anyway, I cc my comment to Mr Khaw and in the words of my friend, "Are you crazy?" Well, I had to give my full name and address to ST Forum and it makes no difference to me.
I refer to the article, "Ministers' pay high? They can earn much more outside" (ST, 3 May).
Choosing to be involved in public service requires a big heart and a social-conscious mind. It is disheartening to know that we have to equate the earnings in order to attract so-called capable people. If they can earn much more outside, then let them go outside as we really donÂ’t need them. Please be sensitive to thousands of Singaporeans whose earnings are less than 1% of the ministerÂ’s pay. When doing your walkabouts, dear ministers, look in the eyes of that old lady picking cans from rubbish bins and tell her that you understand her struggles.
It is not right to equate one's earning with capabilities as the said capabilities may not apply in all fields. I don't need an eye surgeon to empathize my daily livelihood struggles. I need someone who can come down to my level, understand my frustration of waiting for 15 minutes for a bus to go to work and couldn't board it because it was fully packed, being "sardine-packed" in the MRT during peak period, giving away $5 for my ezylink card at no fault of mine, etc.
MinistersÂ’ pay IS an issue for many Singaporeans. Please do not deny it. No amount of justifications will ever be right. I know, because I am one of the thousands of Singaporeans earning less than 1% of the ministerÂ’s pay."
Corrigendum: In my moment of outrage, I made a mistake as I earn less than 10% of the minister's pay. Can't help it lah, very du-lang already when I read the article. Nevertheless, I still maintain my stand about thousands of Singaporeans earning less than 1% of the ministers' pay. -
I think for Spore, to have a car ineed expensive but unless something can be done to ensure traffic jam wil not reach intolerable level.Originally posted by freakass:Let us put aside PAP and the opposition for now. I have a question to ask and I hope to see really interesting and smart replies.
We all hate the high COE, road tax and ERP charges in Singapore, especially current car owners and most probably future car owners too.. It makes owning a car in Singapore so darn expensive! However, the main reason for making ownership of cars in Singapore expensive is that we seriously do not have enough roads to accomodate high numbers of cars. Next, even if the number of cars have been limited by high COE and road tax, we still face the problem of traffic jams in certain areas due to peak hours, therefore the ERP was implemented.
We complain about the high costs of car ownership in Singapore, but at the same time we do not want to be caught in a jam every now and then. So anyone has any brilliant ideas to solve the above problems? (Make car ownership cheaper but at the same time not having over-congested roads in Singapore) -
We all are tax payer so its really weird we dont get the same deal... or those staying at specific areas pay less tax?? No right?
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why u think like that ..so depressingOriginally posted by caramon.:I think we all know what the results will be tomorrow. In all honesty, I'd like to optimistic, but I truly think the PAP will sweep 83 out of 84 seats. Only Mr Low will be re-elected (with a large majority), with Sylvia and Chiam as NCMPs. But the PAP has been rocked. Their percentage of votes will drop from 75% to 65%, which is a huge decrease. The seeds of democracy have been sown, and in 2011 I am sure the winds of change will blow. Singapore needs people like this to revitalise the nation. I hope that they don't give up, and continue to fight for people like you and me.
well look on the bright side everyone is thinking that the PAP are gonna lose 1 GRC (the gomez one) CCK and the AP will hold back PP and hougang
seriously i hope they lose Pr-p cause the magad is really useless -
Hi, I think that this is a great question to ask...esp in light of the constant criticism by the ruling party of opposition party (and everybody else) for not being able to come up with credible alternative.Originally posted by freakass:
We all hate the high COE, road tax and ERP charges in Singapore, especially current car owners and most probably future car owners too.. It makes owning a car in Singapore so darn expensive! However, the main reason for making ownership of cars in Singapore expensive is that we seriously do not have enough roads to accomodate high numbers of cars. Next, even if the number of cars have been limited by high COE and road tax, we still face the problem of traffic jams in certain areas due to peak hours, therefore the ERP was implemented.
We complain about the high costs of car ownership in Singapore, but at the same time we do not want to be caught in a jam every now and then. So anyone has any brilliant ideas to solve the above problems? (Make car ownership cheaper but at the same time not having over-congested roads in Singapore)
First, I agree that car ownership in Singapore has to be controlled one way or another. The social cost is too high (i.e. traffic jams) as the cost of time wasted just travelling around to go to work or to do business is just too high. I am now living in the Washington DC and the bloody traffic is always a big problem. They have tons of statistics to show how much that is costing the people in terms of wasted time and productivity. I was also in Korea a few years back and on the one hand they are proud of the fact that Koreans can own on average about 3-4 cars per household, they were also complaining of the massive jams in Seoul. In other words, there is much wisdom in keeping the car population in Singapore in control.
Second, I don't agree however that the cost of every mode of transportation in Singapore should be increasing. Especially public transport run by public/govt organizations (trying to be private). I propose that the monies collected from the ERP/COE should be used to subsidise the operations of public transportation. I don't see the rationale that all monies collected by the government via whatever form (e.g. income tax, property tax) should go to a general coffer so that we can see a grossly over exaggerated reserve. Now that everyone is hurting with the gas prices being in the 70dollar a barrel stratosphere, the govt or whoever is in charge of the transportation (PTC e.g.) should step in and give us who care about the environment/or who can't plain afford the car a "break". Like the show, Something's got to give. You can't expect us to just keep coughing up money.
This "solution" is not rocket science and in fact is a practice used here in Virginia and Maryland. The state tolls monies are used to pay for extra roads and other public transportation. Their problem here is that they are not getting enough money and are even contemplating increasing tobbacco tax to subsidise public transportation (so that they can ease traffic jams). I hope this qualifies for a ok response to this teething problem.
This is also in line with the overall societal equalization - the rich should not just get richer. They should also shoulder more of the cost of society. Because in the same line of thought, those who are given more, more is expected of them.