TR EMERITUS

OPINION The flooding at Bukit Timah last Thursday had affected many Singaporeans and damaged properties and cars in the vicinity. Should Bukit Timah residents accept the simplistic explanation from the government that the event was utterly unavoidable or should they take them to task for what is possibly an oversight on their part? Minister for the Environment and Water Resources Yaacob Ibrahim described the flooding of parts of Bukit Timah on Thursday as a "freak" event that occurs once in 50 years. "What happened was very unusual. The intensity was tremendous. We knew the diversion canal was not big enough to take this," he added. (CNA, 20 Nov 2009) One such flooding in 50 years may be considered a "freak" event, but can two "freak" events occur in less than two years one after another? Back in December 2006 when heavy rain caused excess water from the MacRitchie and Upper Seletar reservoirs to overflow and flood the surrounding areas, My Yaacob had said exactly the same thing in an interview with Channel News Asia: "You can't design for rainfall of this level, it is just too huge. The thing we can accept is that we can only design our canal of a certain size, and at the end of the day, we have to live with some of these occurrences which occur once in 50 years or so. I know it is inconvenient to some Singaporeans, but on the part of PUB and NEA, we'll do our best to alleviate the problem as quickly as possible." With due respect to Mr Yaacob, the heaviest downpours in Singapore are nothing compared to those in our neighboring countries. Singapore is a small island of only 700 sqkm2. How many canals does PUB need to build or expand to plan for such "freak" storms? Mr Yaacob obviously had not learn his lesson during the flooding in 2006. The Bukit Timah area is well-known to be prone to floods which begs the question why the canals were not expanded earlier. Even without an outright flooding of such catastrophic proportions, there were occasions when heavy rains caused massive traffic jams along Bukit Timah road. PUB only bothered to speed up the expansion of the canals in the aftermath of Thursday's flooding. Why haven't they done so earlier? Mr Yaacob appealed for patience from the public to enlarge the drains: “I hope the public will have more patience with us because it will take us some time to enlarge those drains. But having said that, it is not possible for us to plan for every event,” he said. His words are scant comfort to those whose properties and cars were damaged by the flood waters. Mr Yaacob had five years to do so when he assumed the portfolio of the Minister of Environment and Water Resources in 2004. Why wasn't the construction work event started during his tenure which is now leading to another one year delay before it will finally commence? Contrary to Mr Yaacob's claims, the Bukit Timah flooding is entirely preventable had he taken the initiaive to start enlarging the canals when the 2006 flooding had seriously exposed the inadequacies of Singapore's current drainage system instead of waiting for the "freak" event to happen. The government can afford to spend $10 million to set up a Community Integration Fund to make the new citizens feel welcomed in Singapore and another $100 million to host APEC, surely it should have invested sufficient resources to ensure that Singapore's public works are up to mark? It doesn't need an engineer to figure out that after nearly 30 years, the canals in Bukit Timah are in urgent need of a complete overhaul. Furthermore with today's technologies,  the National Environment Agency (NEA) should have no difficulties in forecasting the heavy downpour accurately on Thursday and take active, pre-emptive measures to prevent the flood from occurring. It is a joke that NEA's website has failed to even depict the weather conditions accurately at the time of the storm. A netizen posted on STOMP a snapshot of the NEA’s online weather map which did not reflect the heavy rain during the time when there was flooding at Dunearn Road. She said: “This (the above) was shown on the NEA website at 3.32pm. It showed that only a minor part of northern Singapore was raining. However, a check outside my office window showed heavy rain and flooding along Dunearn Road.” It is laughable that a small place like Singapore is allowed to be overwhelmed by flood water from a "heavy" downpour which is no more than a tear drop compared to those in Malaysia, Indonesia and Thailand. When you are paid more than 2 million dollars a year, the public has every right to expect top-notched first class public service without any hitches. Singaporeans will find it hard to accept Mr Yaacob's defense that he is caught out unaware again by a second "freak" event in less than two years. There is no way his ministry can exonerate itself from blame. This is an obvious oversight on its part. Construction work on the Bukit Timah canals should have started immediately after the 2006 flood in the Thomson area close to Bukit Timah. More than 2 years had passed and nothing was done. Is Mr Yaacob waiting for another "freak" event to knock him out of his complacency? If it is really impossible to expand the drains to "design" for rainfall of this level, then why is PUB embarking on the construction work now to do so? Taiwanese President Ma Ying-Jeou who was paid much less than Mr Yaacob had to issue a public apology not once, but several times to the victims of the recent Typhoon Morakot which hit the southern counties of Taiwan for his government's slow response to the disaster. A few senior-ranking officials in his administration were forced to resign, including his premier. The least Mr Yaacob can do now is to accept responsibility and apologize to those Bukit Timah residents affected by the storm instead of pushing the blame to entirely Mother Nature. It is understandable and forgivable if we are a living in a place as large as New Orleans which was hit by Hurricane Katrina, but not in puny Singapore. Mr Yaacob should remember that he is paid to do his job and not to talk cock sing song to save his ass. Perhaps the biggest "freak" event is not the flooding itself, but how a multi-millionaire minister is allowed to get away with such a juvenile error without having to pay a political price for it. Singaporeans seriously need to start demanding for some form of accountability from their leaders instead of letting them off the hook again and again. We did not ask to pay them such a high salary in the first place and so the onus is on us to ensure that we are getting some "value" for money. "Freak" events should never be allowed to happen under the watch of a highest-paid government in the world.  Read More →

Written by Our Correspondent Dr Vivian Balakrishnan revealed in parliament yesterday that there were about 4,500 new immigrants serving as grassroots leaders. He was replying to a question posed by fellow PAP MP Christopher de Souza and and Nominated MP Teo Siong Seng for the measures taken to integrate the newcomers. According to Dr Vivian, groups such as the People's Association, grassroots volunteer groups and other community organisations had devised a whole host of activities to foster community bonding. "We encourage locals and newcomers alike to participate in these community activities and expand their social circles to include one another," he said. The PAP has been organizing activities for PRs and new citizens such as HDB block parties to make them feel "welcomed" in Singapore. Dr Vivian has no qualms "splurging" on the immigrants. A $10-million Community Integration Fund paid for by taxpayers was set up lately to help the newcomers "integrate" into Singapore society. However, when asked by MP Dr Lily Neo a few years ago to ensure three meals a day for Singaporeans on Public Assistance (PA), Dr Vivian retorted: "How much do you want? Do you want three meals in a hawker centre, food court or restaurant?" While other countries like Australia and Canada require prospective migrants to pass an English proficiency test, the Singapore government will give provide language classes for the immigrants for free. PAP MP Halimah Yacob raised the idea of a citizenship test which was described by Dr Vivian as an "interesting and quite sensible suggestion". Dr Vivian said one of the best ways to plug newcomers into the community though is to get them to volunteer in grassroots organizations like Residents Committees (RC) and Citizens Consultative Committees (CCC) under the ambit of the People's Association (PA). Grassroots organizations are quasi-government organizations which are firmly controlled by the ruling party. The Chairman of the People's Association is none other than Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong himself. Grassroots volunteers are often mobilized to organize PAP events which includes campaigning during the elections. The ruling party has opened the floodgates in a desperate bid to boost Singapore's declining birth rates via immigration. There were over 20,000 new citizens and 90,000 PRs in 2008. The increasing number of new citizens will form a powerful voting bloc to keep the PAP in power for the next few decades or so since they tend to support the incumbent government. nuffnang_bid = "197ccc2fcf15082b02b9056643ea4a8d"; Despite rising resentment and frustration on the ground at the relentless influx of foreigners, the ruling party is adamant that immigration is essential to the future of Singapore. Senior Minister Goh Chok Tong mused publicly whether to allow immigrant "enclaves" to emerge in the HDB heartlands. MM Lee Kuan Yew urged Singaporeans to bear with the "tide" of foreigners which has now become a "flood". Singapore's ruling party controls all state institutions and organs such as the police and media. The weak and feeble opposition is no challenge to its hegemony and it is almost impossible to vote them out of power. Unlike earlier immigrants from Malaysia and Hong Kong, the latest immigrants from China and India show little willingness to integrate into Singapore society and prefer to mix among themselves. Citizens now made up only 64 per cent of Singapore's 5-million population. The percentage of citizens born in Singapore will probably decrease to less than 50 per cent if the current immigration rates continue unabated. Singaporeans may soon find themselves a minority in their own country and have to attend language classes to "re-integrate" into a new Singapore dominated by the new migrants who will ironically be their "grassroots leaders" under the auspices of the PAP-controlled People's Association.   Related articles: >> Cosmetic changes made to immigration policy >> SM Goh: New immigrants needed to make up population shortfall >> PAP ministers hailed contributions of foreigners >> SM Goh expressed support for Zhang Yuanyuan >> State media: citizens have more rights over PRs >> Zhang Yuanyuan got her Singapore PR in only 2 months >> Official reply from government on the Zhang Yuanyuan fiasco >> Singapore PRC PR proclaimed loyalty to China publicly >> PRC resident hung China flag to celebrate its National Day >> PRC student in Singapore wants more scholarships for foreigners >> PRC prostitutes solicit for customers on Singapore’s cyberspace >> ERA: 40 per cent of resale flats buyers are PRs   EDITORS’ NOTE: If you like our work and would like to support us, please transfer your donations via paypal to our account ([email protected]). Any amount will be greatly appreciated! Alternatively, you can also help boost our advertising revenue by clicking on the ads displayed. Thank you! Be a fan of our facebook here Join our tweet at: http://www.twitter.com/temasekreview  Read More →

Written by Our Correspondent National Development Minister  Mah Bow Tan told parliament yesterday that PRs do not add further to the demand of HDB flats. "PRs are not eligible for buying new flats, even in the resale market, quite a lot of them actually rent. They are under-represented as far as purchases are concerned," he said. Mr Mah said PRs occupy less than 5 per cent of all Housing Board flats, and are living in estates across the island. He did not quote any source to substantiate his claims. An earlier report by real estate agency ERA revealed that 40 per cent of buyers of resale flats are PRs. The Straits Times reported an Indonesian PR forking out $653,000 for a 4-room flat in Queenstown though he could well afford a condominium. The prices of resale flats have sky-rocketed over the last few months, hitting a record high in June this year. PRs are allowed to purchase resale HDB flats in Singapore. Mr Mah stressed that this is so because PRs also need a place to live: "PR families are not eligible for housing subsidies that Singaporeans enjoy. They are not allowed to buy a new flat from HDB or enjoy any housing grant. However, PRs need to have a home in Singapore. Therefore, they are allowed to buy properties from the open market, including HDB resale flats.' Despite the escalating prices, HDB is adamant that public housing remains affordable in Singapore. In response to mounting complaints from first-time home buyers that they were unable to purchase a flat of their choice, Mr Mah retorted that they were too "fussy". He reiterated his stance again in parliament that expectations of first-time buyers are too high, with many demanding for flats in prime estates or on higher floors. "I cannot build flats only in the mature estates, only in the city area. I cannot build flats that are only on high floors," he said. Mr Mah claimed that HDB will be building between 10,000 and 12,000 new flats per annum over the next five years to meet the housing demand in Singapore. He did not explain why the supply of new flats was not increased between the years 2006 and 2008 when the influx of foreigners is at its peak. The number of foreigners working and living in Singapore has increased rapidly over the last few years as part of the government's policy to boost the nation's declining birth rates via immigration. Foreigners now made up 36 per cent of the population, up from 14 per cent in 1990. This means that one out of three residents in Singapore is a foreigner. According to the National Population Secretariat, about 90,000 foreigners became PRs last year with another 20,000 taking up Singapore citizenship. Mr Mah did not reveal the exact numbers of PRs and new citizens who bought resale flats as well as new flats. The numbers of PRs who made a profit from the sale of their resale flats after they left Singapore is also unknown. The question on whether there are sufficient HDB flats for first-time buyers was actually fielded by a PAP MP. The three so-called opposition MPs in parliament have remained mute on the issue so far. Singapore's ruling PAP won only 66.6 per cent of the valid votes in the last elections, but occupied 82 out of 84 seats in parliament. With an absolute majority, they are able to pass bills and legislation unhindered in parliament with little or no debate. Without a sizable opposition presence in parliament to demand detailed answers from Mr Mah, it is unlikely that Singaporeans will ever know the real impact of foreigners on the cost of public housing in Singapore.  Read More →