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作者：新加坡文献馆 英国时报在线7月22日报导了有 关淡马锡首席执行员换班不成的时事新闻，内容基本上也只是重复己经发布的资讯，在9小段叙述中的最后两行文字是：‘她（何晶）既是新加坡两大主权基金之一的首脑，也是总理的夫人，这象征了新加坡政治与财经精英之间的亲密关系。顾先生的到来（加入淡马锡）原本是要消除这一种印象。’ 新加坡驻英国最高专员7月26日为了这一段文字而特别致函报社澄清：‘这一暗示全然无所根据。何晶受委为淡马锡的首席执行员并不是由总理决定。这是淡马锡董 事局的专有权力，董事局成员包括本地与外地人，他们是根据才能条件遴选。此外，这一个委任也要通过总统的否决权，而总统是依据自已的判断而非听命于政府。’ 新加坡的一名博客Dino7月28日对此发表了一些意见：‘我在想为何他的良知会让他写出这些谎言给英国的报章。作为一名外交官他对国人失责因为他编造谎言以援救总理和夫人的颜面…何晶受委为首席执行员之事受到置疑，许多外国报章都提及可能的影响来自她的丈夫和家翁…提出总统有否决权是无济于事，那丹是个李光耀的凡事皆是先生，他有胆否决李光耀儿媳妇的委任？新加坡大使的复函充满瑕疵对新加坡人的尊严是种耻辱…。’ 何晶出掌国家金库具争议性是不争的事实。即便时任新加坡总理的吴作栋在接受《商业周刊》采访时对国际舆论进行的及时回应也认为：“任命何晶掌管淡马锡控股确 实存在着一定的利益冲突，但何晶却是掌管淡马锡的最佳人选” 。为何会有利益冲突之说？那是因为何晶的丈夫李显龙时任新加坡副总理兼财政部长，而淡马锡则是财政部全资控股的国有企业。此外，时任新加坡政府投资公司董 事长的李光耀乃为何晶的家翁。换言之，李家三口直接掌控了新加坡的国家金库。这种独揽财经大权的政治格局，在全球的民主国家体系内应该是只此一家别无分号。因为有此违背常理现象而引发诸多置疑言论也是理所当然之事，又何足怪哉？ 按大使的官方说词所言，淡马锡首席执行员是董事局以才能条件遴选以及总统是凭个人判断认同委任。姑且不论其真实性，但这件陈年往事或许可以从坊间的一些文献中一窥其遴选与认可的政治过程却是如何的进行。 何晶1953年生，18岁得总统奖学金，1976年获新加坡大学工程一等荣誉学位，进入新加坡国防部防卫实验室进行武器系统的改装与研制，其间公派加州斯坦福大学，1982年获电子工程学硕士学位。回来后提升为新加坡防卫实验室副所长。这是何晶进入李家之前的经历。1985年12月与李显龙结婚。之后 1987年何晶加入新加坡科技担任工程副处长，过后升任总裁与首席执行官，2001年离职。2002年初何晶出任淡马锡的执行董事和总裁一职。根据新加坡宪法第五号规章规定，淡马锡的董事会成员以及总裁的任免需由总统批准。这一委任状只半个月时间已快速办成。这就是何晶进入李家之后的经历。 从何晶的学术与工作背景来看，她是个不折不扣的工程技术专家，从来就没有从事过财经投资业务。从遴选是以才能条件而言，如果才是指学术资历，那何晶是绝对有 足够优秀条件，而如果能是指工作经验，那工程与投资应该是两码事。所以何晶在这种才实能虚的情况下出掌高职，从而让外界置疑委任的正确性看来也是合乎情理的，因为掌管国家金库并非等闲之职而是事关一个国家与人民的成败大事。这或许也就是争议之点。 虽然置疑有理，但报章还是会因不慎言辞而遭非难。国际财经新闻通讯社彭博社为了影射何晶的任命乃“裙带关系”而公开道歉认错兼被罚赔款。两年后，英国《经济学人》杂志也因对何晶的任命提出公开疑问而得向新加坡政府认错并缴付赔偿。在这种背景下，必须尽忠职守维护政府要员名声就是新加坡驻英国最高专员遵循的新加坡官商文化守则之一。事实上， 要在报章享有回应反驳权力，以及在新加坡法庭起诉被告者原本就是典型的新加坡政治文化。 从另一个层面来看，淡马锡作为国家金库既 是国家经济也是国家政治的最重要命脉。所以身为淡马锡的首席执行员并非只单纯扮演经济资源分配角色。实质上，所有国有企业的重要职务委任过程本身就是政治行为：职务委任塑造了官商之间施与受双方的主仆政治关系。在国家组织架构上，经济资源由上而下分配，政治支持由下而上巩固。这就是淡马锡塑造的官商政经关 系。在这一过程中关键性的问题应该是在于首席执行员所能担当的确实而非名义上的角色。换言之，首席执行员一职是否是个名副其实的决策者，又或者是否只是个 名不副实的政策执行者。前者是参与经济资源分配的重大政治角色，而后者则只是执行最高权力中心已经决定了的政策。何晶是政治权力的核心成员理所当然既是决 策参与者也是政策执行者。顾之博作为一个政治权力中心之外的外藉人也理所当然的只能作为一名已决定政策的执行者。假如这一解读有其合理性，那么淡马锡要聘 用外来人才担任首席执行员之构想应该是件不可能的任务；要知道人才与奴才是不同之才。顾之博的来去匆匆应该就是淡马锡的官商文化的展现。 此 外，英国时报在线所谓的新加坡政治与财经精英之间有亲密关系的说法是不正确的，因为何晶和李显龙向来都是新加坡的政治精英，而何晶从来就不是财经精英。还 有，新加坡政治与财经精英之间也向来没有什么亲密关系，因为两者之间有的只是主仆关系：政治精英是恩赐者而财经精英则是受惠者。 回顾新加坡历史，1950年代的政治斗争历程塑造了新加坡政治文化，而1990年代的淡马锡与新加坡政府投资公司的发展经历则塑造了新加坡官商文化。而塑造这款新加坡模式的始作俑者就是李光耀。  Read More →

A court in military-ruled Myanmar turned aside opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi's latest bid for freedom Friday, rejecting an appeal against her most recent sentence of house arrest, government sources said. Ms. Suu Kyi was convicted and sentenced in August for sheltering an uninvited American at her home for two days earlier this year, in a verdict that drew international condemnation and ensured that she would not be able to participate in elections scheduled for next year. She argued in an appeal that the conviction was unwarranted, but the Yangon Division court ruled against the appeal Friday, said the sources, speaking on condition of anonymity because of the sensitivity of the case. Already in detention for about 14 of the last 20 years, the Nobel Peace Prize winner was sentenced in August to another 18 months for sheltering the American, John Yettaw. He has said he wanted to warn Ms. Suu Kyi he had a "vision" that she would be assassinated. He was sentenced to seven years in prison but released on humanitarian grounds and deported less than a week after the verdict. Ms. Suu Kyi's lawyer Nyan Win said ahead of Friday's ruling that the defense would take the case to the Supreme Court if her appeal is rejected. "We have made all necessary plans for any outcome," Mr. Nyan Win said. Security was tight Friday, with riot police ringing the court house. In the appeal, Ms. Suu Kyi's lawyers raised no new substantive arguments that had not been heard in the original district court trial. Myanmar's courts almost always follow the same hard line toward Ms. Suu Kyi and the country's democracy movement, which the military government often accuses of collaborating with the country's enemies to destroy the nation. But Friday's ruling came amid a tentative change in the political winds, after the United States announced last week it was modifying its tough policy of seeking only to isolate the military regime and would instead try to engage it through high-level talks. The U.S. will not give up its political and economic sanctions against the regime. It and other Western nations apply sanctions because of Myanmar's poor human rights record and its failure to turn over power to Ms. Suu Kyi's party. U.S. Assistant Secretary of State Kurt Campbell, the top U.S. diplomat for East Asia, told the Senate Foreign Relations Asia subcommittee Wednesday that lifting sanctions as the administration tries to start a dialogue, without Myanmar making any democratic changes, would be a mistake. - AP  Read More →

By Joyce Koh from Bloomberg THE Government of Singapore Investment Corp's assets fell more than 20 per cent in the year to March 31 as a collapse in financial markets slashed the value of its stake in the investment bank UBS. GIC, which invests more than $US100 billion ($114 billion) of the city's foreign reserves abroad, said it continues to lose money on its holding in UBS, though it has made a profit on its investment in Citigroup. It has also recovered more than half of last fiscal year's loss as stockmarkets surged this year, its chief investment officer, Ng Kok Song, said in GIC's annual report. Under its chairman, Lee Kuan Yew, Singapore's Minister Mentor and former prime minister, GIC has expanded through investments ranging from British shopping malls to European and US banks. ''The lion city was pretty well mauled compared to other sovereign wealth funds, and is now licking its wounds,'' said Song Seng Wun, an economist at CIMB-GK Securities in Singapore. ''While the worst may be over, given the excesses of the last few years, we could find that this recession could still affect the portfolio in years to come.'' GIC, established in 1981, said annual returns in the past 20 years averaged 5.7 per cent in US dollar terms, from 7.8 per cent reported in the previous fiscal year. Its portfolio value had fallen about 25 per cent between October 2007 and December last year, the Finance Minister, Tharman Shanmugaratnam, said in March, after GIC bought stakes in UBS and Citigroup during the credit crisis. GIC last week pared its shareholdings in Citigroup to less than 5 per cent from more than 9 per cent, realising a $1.6 billion profit. Its investment in UBS will ''take longer to recover,'' GIC said in its annual report. The company said both investments have recovered ''significantly''. It did not take part in the recent placement of 6 billion Swiss franc ($6.6 billion) of UBS shares sold by the Swiss Government. ''The investment thesis was to capitalise on the unique business franchises of UBS in global wealth management, and of Citigroup in global consumer and corporate banking, especially in the emerging economies,'' Mr Ng said in the annual report. ''We maintain our confidence in their long-term prospects.'' The US is home to as much as 38 per cent of GIC's assets. Europe accounts for as much as 29 per cent and Japan as much as 11 per cent, GIC said. In the fiscal year ended March 31, 2008, its US investments were 34 per cent, while European investments were 35 per cent. GIC's investments in stocks dropped to 38 per cent, from 44 per cent the previous fiscal year, according to the report. It increased its allocations to alternative investments to 30 per cent from 23 per cent in the year ended March 31, 2008. Its cash holding rose to 8 per cent, from 7 per cent. Bond investments fell to 24 per cent of its portfolio, from 26 per cent the previous year. The company said it cut public equities by more than 10 per cent between July 2007 and September 2008, helping it avert a larger loss. It bought back the equities at the start of the year to restore its portfolio's public equities to its pre-crisis levels. - Bloomberg  Read More →