TR EMERITUS

From time to time, I share a post in Facebook that exposes my NRIC. Several people send private message to warn me about this exposure. I asked them - what is the risk that someone knows my NRIC? Mostly, they are not able to give me a credible reason. They just think that it is risky to let other people know the NRIC. To me, the NRIC is a public data, just like my name. Some people said that the NRIC could be used by a borrower to borrow money from the loan shark. I do not think that the loan sharks are stupid. They will not lend a few thousand dollars based on a false NRIC. The loan shark may insist on viewing the physical NRIC and will verify that it belongs to the borrower. Maybe a few loan sharks are stupid. But most of them are not. Throughout the first 60 years of my life, the NRIC is a public data. It is used widely to identify a person. This practice changed when one person, who happens to hold a senior position in a government agency, decides that it should be a private data. This person also happens to be related to a prominent government leader. I shall call him L. L was responsible for the SingPass database, which used the NRIC as the ID and password for access. When a fraudster (say F) uses the NRIC of another person to access the SingPass database and gives the wrong password three times, L locks the account "for security reason". This caused inconvenience to the NRIC owner , who has to take a lot of trouble to unlock the SingPass account. This probably happened to many people, causing a lot of problem to countless NRIC holders and the agency that manages the SingPass database. To overcome this problem, L then decided that the NRIC should be a private data and not used publicly. I consider L to be an idiot. He does not need to lock the account. It would take F a few million tries to guess the correct password. Does F has so much time to waste? Even if F manages to have access, he cannot really do much harm. L should learn how the big social media platforms, like Google and Facebook, manages this issue. They use the email address as the ID to log into the account and alert the account owner if there is a wrong password is used. They do not lock the account. I use Google and Facebook frequently and do not have any problem with unauthorized access by other parties. Now, I return to the use of NRIC. I cannot see any harm that my NRIC is known to the wider public. I do not see how anybody can use the NRIC to access my private information, either from SingPass or other databases that use it as an ID. It is a common practice for all accounts have to be accessed with an ID and protected by a password and sometimes by a 2FA PIN. Many accounts use the email address or phone number as the ID, and these are widely know. Actually, the email address or phone number is more risky than the NRIC as marketers can send marketing emails and SMS to the owner. They cannot do anything with the NRIC. It is clear to me that the NRIC can be used publicly. I am puzzled why so many people worry about the NRIC being known widely. Even if one idiot called L says that it is risky, the people should think and assess if it is really the case (ie do not believe L blindly).   Tan Kin Lian      Read More →

I am a Pioneer Generation, having benefited from the PAP Administration but looking ahead, can I be just as optimistic? Sadly, no. PAP have run this country as a corporation for too long. Their obsession with growing our National Reserve has blinded their vision. They have become myopic, unable to see the dangers brewing in the horizon. To understand the issues we need to examine the drivers behind their policies, why they do what they do. Population Expansion If we allow 80,000 foreigners to come in annually and each spends $2,000 a month, around $2 billion will be injected into the economy every year. Besides contributing $150 million into the GST coffer the multiplying effects generated by the $2 billion dollars injection per year, cumulatively, perhaps makes it the main contributor to our GDP growth. Low Total Fertility Rate Is it any wonder that the government is not overly concerned, given the rich reservoir of children in the region? It can be selective, hand-pick the cream of the crop and offer them scholarships and generous perks to relocate to Singapore. Think about the benefits. Only the ablest will be invited instead of relying on the full spectrum of natural births which invariably include the less able, less healthy and the special needs. Welcoming the Super Rich Allowing for more super rich foreigners to bring in wealth is not helping the people, at large. It pushes property prices to new heights and COE prices to record levels only benefitting the government and the well-endowed. En Bloc Sales En bloc sales is another example of putting wealth into the hands of more people to stimulate the property market. Again it is inflationary, benefitting the government and the rich. Selective En Bloc Redevelopment Scheme From past SERS it is quite apparent that the main selection criteria is profitability. That explains why the selection to-date is only 4 %. As the availability of under-utilised land diminishes it is becoming more difficult to justify SERS on financial ground and for the first time HDB requires topping up from owners as in the case of the recent Ang Mo Kio SERS. MRT Construction We only hear of the costs of constructions but is there any mention of the adjacent land sites at many stations which were acquired and deliberately left vacant? When the full potential of land appreciation is finally realised it may even outstrip the construction cost of the lines. A clever move to convert infrastructural development expenses to reserve. Above highlight some excellent policy measures but being addicted may not be a good thing. Obsession with growing and hoarding reserve inevitably breed a culture driven by money, lacking in compassion. We are already seeing it happening. In the midst of global inflation, the government is adamant in raising costs and GST. The relentless pursuit of wealth injection is seeding social divide between the haves and the have-nots. A real concern is the growing disquiet as more and more people become disillusioned and angry. The first issue is car, an aspiration for many to own one but now it is out of reach. Next is home ownership. The degeneration has begun as more and more Singaporeans are squeezed out of private properties by the rich foreigners and resigned to living in smaller and smaller HDB flats. Is this progress? PAP have governed Singapore with a tight grip, lacking in transparency within an impenetrable fire wall. This is dangerous, a time bomb waiting to explode. As the disgruntled ground swells the propensity of people voting against PAP increases. If left unchecked and contained we may eventually end up with a rogue government with dire consequences. Ironically, the fire walls put In place to protect our reserve could be aiding the rogue government to squander it. There is an even more serious consequence if we continue on the journey of relentlessly expanding the naturalized population. Imagine the day when they become the majority and take over the government and by extension the country. No need for Trojan Horse, no bloodshed, just a walk-over. I am sure nothing will happen in my lifetime but can anyone be sure that it will never happen?   PY Wong        Read More →

China has spent billions sponsoring news and media around the world and have successfully brainwashed many overseas Chinese, Middle Eastern and Africans. Recently, they are trying to go into India to do the same but was however caught. To me, all these are just part of their global strategies to be recognised to be a global leader, maybe wanting to take over US, which is fine. Chinese economy has been impacted, inflation is all time high, their wages are low but the prices are similar to what we pay in Singapore. Many rich and powerful due to constant harassment and suppression have moved out of China, that includes Alibaba Jack. Hong Kong and China have lost a lot of investors who have relocated their families and fund to elsewhere such as Singapore. China is planning to compete with the west by grouping itself with renegades like Iran, Saudi and Russia; to use Yuan as the new payment standard and alternate banking system. Again, this is fine, this is a free world, we should allow competition. China declared limitless friendship with Russia because it has its own plan to invade Taiwan and it would need a friend. But again, seeing the war in Ukraine, this plan probably been suspended as Russia's plan was to take Ukraine in weeks but ended up dismay. Say what you want, especially China die hards, the world wasn't this dangerous until Russia's invasion and China constant harassment and bickering over Taiwan and anything that put its in bad shade. Under the ambiguous 1 China policy, staunch supporters will take it as CPC 1 China, not KMT Democractic 1 China. Taiwan will never surrender after watching what happened to Hong Kong who is supposedly 1 country 2 systems. More than 80% of Taiwanese do not want to return to China or be part of China. To take Taiwan, the only way is by force. The Russia war is good for all, it deters particularly China's plan to take Taiwan by force in order to unite. Let us ask ourselves, do we really want war? Will you be happy that China invade Taiwan to unite as 1? If you do, you are as good as PAPPY or CPC, they only think of themselves, citizens are never their priority, do you agree? I would prefer to go back to 1980s where everyone was happy, blissful; east and west were in harmony. Not hearing TKL, GMS, Simon Lim etc rhetoric talking about China's power and constant hammering of US and West (after they were brainwashed by Chinese TikToks).   KNNN      Read More →