TR EMERITUS

The posts about Surbana Jurong profiting from the explosion of Covid cases among foreign workers, for which Josephine Teo (whose husband appears to be No.2 or 3 at Surbana) must take some responsibility, have drawn an angry response from the company. Legal threats have been bandied about: We absolutely refute the allegations and will not hesitate to take legal action against any perpetrator who continues to make scurrilous attacks against our company. Unfortunately the PAP Government’s (or its myriad agencies, statutory boards and companies which collectively account for well over 50% of the economy) standard response when any questions are raised is to threaten legal action or to use repressive instruments like the Protection from Online Falsehood and Manipulation Act (POFMA) to try and shut citizens up rather than providing the information that would put to rest any rumours. We saw this with the rapid barrage of POFMAs from Seat Warmer-in-Waiting Heng Swee Keat as he desperately tried to stop speculation about his master’s wife’s salary, even though she supposedly works for a private company and has nothing to do with the Government. The standard response of the PAP to uncomfortable questions is not to shine a light on muddy waters in the interests of transparency and accountability but instead to behave as though we have no right to know about the way our elite divide up the spoils of office or how much they pay themselves out of public funds. Their attitude can be summed up as “How dare you ignorant peasants ask questions of your meritocratically selected betters! Let us get on with the tough business of governing and paying ourselves and our spouses and children salaries appropriate to our vast talents while you stick to scratching a living. And don’t you dare ask us for handouts! You must be self-reliant and resilient.” In my last blog I said that Surbana Jurong was only 51% owned by Temasek with the remaining shareholding held by Jurong Town Corporation (JTC). That was not correct as in June 2016 Temasek acquired JTC’s shares. We need to be told the terms on which Temasek acquired JTC’s shares. Even though Temasek is a state-owned holding company (though the Government is going to some lengths to bamboozle Singaporeans into thinking that Temasek is a private company and therefore the remuneration of its CEO and other top executives is a private matter), the bonuses of its senior management, and in particular the PM’s wife, are determined by the performance of its portfolio. If JTC’s shares were transferred below market value then that would trigger a revaluation gain at Temasek which would be reflected in the performance-related bonus pool for senior executives (read more money for Ho Ching!). Though Surbana’s board might angrily retort that there has been no profiteering from the contracts it was awarded to build (or manage the construction of) the temporary facilities at Singapore Expo (another Temasek-owned entity), this is moot unless the Government can show that the contracts were put out to open tender. Until it does so we have no way of knowing whether Surbana was the cheapest and best proposal. If it was not then Singaporeans will have been cheated and forced to pay higher costs than they need to. When the Government owns so much of the economy and directs business to state-owned companies headed by relatives of Ministers from the PM downwards without competition, it is impossible to know whether Singaporeans are getting a good deal. However basic economics teaches us that where there is monopoly part of the excess profits will be taken in the form of decreased efficiency, featherbedding and increased costs, not least in the salaries of the top executives at those companies. By benchmarking their remuneration against their peers at other state-owned companies, they can collectively raise their pay even though it is completely unnecessary to attract and retain talent (though a glance at the CVs of many of these people suggests that their chief talent lies in being related to people in Government rather than the quality of their academic qualifications!). Even if their relatives are not beneficiaries, MInisters are happy because higher “private” (actually state-owned) sector pay boosts their remuneration via the circular mechanism set up by the ministerial pay review in 2011. The PAP Government, which includes its vast network of agencies, statutory boards and companies, thrives on secrecy and fails basic tests of accountability and transparency. Singaporeans have no idea whether they are getting value for money and who is benefiting just as they have no idea of the size of the reserves and how the reserves will benefit them. Something as basic as how much the PM pays his wife remains a state secret. We need a Freedom of Information Act like in the US and the UK but we also need to ensure that there are enough Opposition MPs in Parliament to held the Government to account. This election will show whether Singaporeans are indeed interested in genuine reform.   Kenneth Jeyaretnam * The author blogs at https://kenjeyaretnam.com/ .  Read More →

COVID-19 has devastated the whole world with almost 4.9 million infected cases and 320,000 deaths since it started at Wuhan China in December 2019. Singapore is not spared. We have the highest infection rate in South East Asia with about 28,800 cases and 22 deaths, a relatively low death rate of mainly elderly people. In the beginning of COVID-19 in December 2019, our MIW (Man-In-White) took a lackluster approach in tackling the deadly decease and declared with slogans like "Not so serious as SARS", "No need to wear masks unless unwell", "No Social Distancing", no nothing. Basically, it was business as usual with minimal economic and social disruption. But two months later in February 2020, the rates of community infection and death climbed vertically north with hundreds of daily infections and the emergence of many sporadic disease transmission clusters all over the island. This drastic escalation of infections shocked the MIW. They quickly altered their tactics and implemented the self-coined "Circuit-Breaker" ( Lockdown ) from 7th April 2020 for tentatively 30 days, to wait and see. With this Circuit Breaker implementation, instantaneously - non-essential businesses were closed, - people were barred from leaving their home except for buying groceries, - everybody must wear a mask when outside their home, - all schools closed and students were forced to take e-learning at home. - social distancing at operating business outlets and transport services were enforced, - nobody is allowed to visit anybody except those staying in the same address. - parents were barred from bringing their babies to their grand-parents for daycare, The whole island was almost like under curfew. Now, looking at the statistic of infection figures here, the most alarming fact is the horrendously high infections among low-wage migrant workers compared to local citizens and permanent residents. Out of 22,500 infected persons in Singapore, almost 90% (20,250) were low-wage migrant workers. The first four infected migrant workers were detected at a dormitory (S11 Dormitory at Seletar Lin), owned and operated by PA grassroots leader on March 30,2020. Shockingly, from 4 cases it increases to 20,200 cases within 40 days (505 cases/day). What caused such a rapid increase in infection among the migrant workers and also why such a wide disparity between locals and migrant workers?. The simple reason is that these low-wage migrant workers were housed in densely packed quarters in close proximity. Presently, there are about 323,000 low-wage migrant workers in Singapore, who take on jobs shunned by Singaporeans in industries such as construction, estate maintenance and manufacturing, thereby making it possible for Singaporean's PMET to hold their jobs. We must appreciate and be grateful that these poorly paid migrant workers help build Singapore's prosperity and formed the base of our economy. Instead, from day one, almost all migrant workers were housed in purpose-built dormitories, largely owned and operated by MIW lackeys who made hundreds of millions annually. Generally, each room in the dormitory is packed with 10 - 12 workers like sardines and they had to share common cooking, eating, washing, and toilet facilities. Common sense will tell you that with such packed living quarters, it takes only one infected person to easily spread the COVID 19 to the rest of the dormitory community of thousands. These 40 over dormitories with over-crowded living quarters are like time bombs waiting to explode long before the first COVID case. Yet, our Mr. Tan Juan Jin, former Manpower Minister has the guts to say "Conditions in dorms NOT the main reason for cluster" and stupidly compared the worker's dorm to overseas student dorm. In the same breath, he says "Outbreaks likely due to a highly contagious virus and people living in close quarters". What an idiot!. To read more of his explanation on how a hair is split like what he said above, click here No wonder he is supposedly 'demoted' from a minister to be just a Speaker of Parliament. Not long ago, he was a hot favorite to be our future Prime Minister. Thank God has eyes. Now, let me curtailed my political musing and ranting at our 4G leaders. Instead, let me share with you some of my personal experiences and how I manage my time during this tough circuit breaker period. As you probably know, on April 7th the original set of safe distancing measures to bend the curve of increasing local transmission which was supposed to end May 4th, were extended to June 1st. After I stopped driving a taxi in December 2019 ( before COVID 19), I spent most of my time staying at home, tending to my corridor garden, drawing, cooking, and sleeping more than necessary. The Stay At Home rule, therefore, doesn't really affect me. I'm categorized as "vulnerable seniors" which by the way appears to be the "politically-correct" term Singapore is now adopting to replace the term "elderly". I've been out of my house only on alternate days to buy groceries at Sheng Siong and Giant supermarkets just in front of my house, with a mask on. My desktop computer is now my best buddy during most of my waking hours. I surf the internet like a bee in a honeycomb, watching YouTube videos on how to cook simple food, magic shows, Simon Cowell's "Got Talent Show ", and also watched a handful of very good movies on Netflix like Viking, Money Heist, Homeland and Dirty Money (an episode on Najib Rasak). I would love to read some novels or non-fiction books but my defective eyesight damaged by glaucoma makes reading torture with splitting headache. As I depart from this post, may I share with you some meaningful advice from my acquaintance's blog at http://lohandbehold.com/ Quote: "The Singapore Government has given everyone S$600/-. If being 600 bucks richer is important to you, then keep your money, if not, please consider offering a helping hand to our migrant workers by making a donation to MEANS (Migrants Emergency Assistant and Support) Community Impact Fund. "When God blesses you financially, don't raise your standard of living only. Also, raise your standard of giving". "If you're more fortunate than others, build a longer dining table, not a taller fence" These will remain as nice saying unless you actually do something about them.   James Lim * The author blog regularly at http://cabby65.blogspot.com/.        Read More →

Taiwan, hailed as the role model in COVID-19 pandemic management, has a secret weapon at the forefront of its response. Vice-President Chen Chien-jen is a John Hopkins-trained epidemiologist and an expert in viruses. Often called “disease detectives”, epidemiologists search for the cause of disease, identify people who are at risk, and determine how to control the spread or prevent it from happening again. Vice-President Chen has been relentlessly tracking infections and pushing for testing kits. When he gives advice to the public, they pay close attention because he knows what he’s talking about. As of now, Taiwan has only 440 confirmed coronavirus cases and 7 deaths. Taiwan has a secret weapon to lead the fight, Singapore has square pegs in round holes In contrast, let’s look at the three ministers leading the COVID-19 fight for Singapore. Health Minister Gan Kim Yong majored in electrical engineering. Given his background, his key contribution has probably been the adoption of the term “circuit breaker” – a confounding euphemism for lockdown. As for the other two ministers at the forefront of the COVID-19 battle, National Development Minister Lawrence Wong and Manpower Minister Josephine Teo, both are trained in economics. Given their background, it’s easy to see that they could possibly have weighed the cost of moving foreign workers out of dormitories earlier to curb the spread of COVID-19, but decided against it because the cost seemed prohibitively high. Could this decision have been the monumental misstep that led to the huge explosion in migrant worker infections? Yet another electrical engineer in the COVID-19 fight If we were to look at the credentials of a fourth key minister, Masagos Zulkifli, Environment and Water Resources Minister, who has been active in the circuit breaker phase, guess what – he’s an electrical engineer by training. The irony is that aside from electrical engineers and economists and generals, we do have doctors in the cabinet. But Ng Eng Hen is Defence Minister while Vivian Balakrishnan is Foreign Minister. In trying to fit square pegs into round holes, it’s no wonder that we end up dithering and teetering while others move decisively because their expertise is put to the best use. While economists might have been critically held back by cost considerations, electrical engineers were consumed with coining the pretentious muddle-headed “circuit breaker”. No need to copyright this term. No other country wants to copy something that would subject it to ridicule.   Augustine Low      Read More →