TR EMERITUS

I agree with both Ho Ching and George Goh, the potential Elected Presidential candidate, that the elected President's role is not to check on the government. Reading the many daily postings online, it is unfortunate that too many netizens are swayed and even got carried away by the word 'Independent' and thus harbour confused, unrealistic and misinformed expectation about the roles of the Elected President. 'Independent' seems to be a very sexy, seductive and over-sold word during this elected presidential run-up. Under our constitution, the Elected President is not another centre of power. Apart from acting as a second key to our reserves and whose permission must be obtained before senior appointments can be made for key public offices, the President is merely a figure Head of State. I only have one question for George Goh. Bearing in mind that one of the EP's key role is to safeguard our collective reserves, would he be willing to Publicly Assure all Singaporeans, I repeat, publicly assure all Singaporeans that he will live up to the seriousness and the likes of the late President Ong Teng Cheong and ask the pap government bravely and resolutely to give a full and proper account of all our reserves, ie, the moveable, immoveable and all other related information etc...in order for him to do his job competently and effectively because if he has no idea about the details of our reserves, how then is he going to be able to do a truly proper job of acting as the second key if he is successfully elected? ( Please read this paragraph again). On the other hand, Tharman Shanmugaratnam being a former finance minister, Chairman of MAS and a senior cabinet minister will not have such a problem. And even if George Goh does that, I am unsure if the pap government will be forthcoming and co-operate or reply with something like they might now need 100 men years to tabulate because our reserves have grown much since the time of the late OTE presidency. 'My loyalty is first and foremost to the people of Singapore. It has always been so and will always remain so' - Ong Teng Cheong. I urge each and every of our Elected President to equal the above quote or at the very least, do not fall short of it. Think.   Simon Lim      Read More →

George Goh’s statement was such a disappointment. He said “you can’t check on the government” and continued to prattle on about “heart”, “brain” and “trust in the government” exactly to the tune of Ho Ching’s asinine Facebook post. I guess rich men need friends in power. It is such a shame to kill the momentum he could’ve built for himself. Now, how is he going to compete with someone who had worked in the government for at least 22 years? Trust in government is not surrendering or prostrating to the powers that be. It is the belief in the reliability and ability of the structure of governance for the good of the citizens. Trust in the government must be earned by the governor. A mandate of five years does not mean anything goes for five years. Trust is conditional upon acting in the interest of the governed. Ultimately, a functioning democracy is the basis of this trust. The application of the principles of checks and balances aim to achieve this end. It follows that if the president is unable to “check the government”, then the presidency is dysfunctional. Under the constitution, the president must be non-partisan and elected by popular vote. This is a kind of two-factor authentication of independency. Non-partisan so that it can check on the government of the day. Elected by popular vote so that it has the moral authority to stand up to the elected representatives. And just in case, if he still lacks the confidence talking to high salaried people, he is paid a salary bigger than the chief executive with tax payers’ money! It is so bizarre to hear this narrative of the President not being political or not to “check the government”. It is clear that what they mean by “working together” is synonymous with “do not challenge the status quo”, “just follow what they say no matter what or you will disrupt the country”. The whole point of the Elected President holding the second key to the reserve is to ensure the government is accountable to the people. There is a dire need to usher in more democracy in Singapore. The PAP does not commit itself to democratic principles such as accountability. The Presidential Office has had significant changes over the years due to the way the PAP amends the constitution on their whims as if it’s their own personal diary. As of right now, this office is neutered. And even the so-called independent candidate doesn’t have the balls to stand up against the bullies in white. Given the unfettered dominance of the PAP government and lack of genuine channels for feedback, Singapore’s Presidential Election has become a much eagerly awaited referendum of sorts for its citizens. In the first Presidential Election in 1993, Ong Teng Cheong, a former Deputy Prime Minister and PAP’s choice scored 58.7% against a reluctant candidate, Chua Kim Yeow, who polled 41.3%. This followed a historical breakthrough by opposition parties in the 1991 General Election when 3 SDP members and 1 Workers Party member were elected to parliament. There were no Presidential elections for the next two terms (1999 & 2005). Subsequently in 2011, another former Deputy Prime Minister, Tony Tan was elected as the fourth President of Singapore with 35.2% of the vote which followed another political breakthrough in the General Election that took place earlier in the same year. How would a maturing electorate articulate their demands this time? Since the Elected Presidency was instituted, the election results clearly show that the PAP’s candidate for the Presidency is not overwhelming popular, if at all, because the people recognise that the President should be able to hold the PAP government accountable. Ong Teng Cheong’s meagre winning percentage against a non-committed candidate who did not even campaign and Tony Tan’s minority win illustrated the expectation of the voters. Whoever wins needs to hold the government accountable. If George Goh is unable to meet this standard, he should just step aside. If he is serious about the contest, perhaps he should relook at his theme of his campaign.   * Facebook post by Tan Tee Seng.      Read More →

For the benefit of those who did not bother to watch the entire video, here's a snippet containing the most important discovery about the mRNA vaccine, that would affect a vaccinated individual's future generations.     The story that you have been told that mRNA doesn't change the DNA is a lie. More than 1.25 billion people on planet Earth are affected.      Read More →