TR EMERITUS

One of the most prominent quotes about one of the ladies in my life came from Singapore’s dumpiest hooker, who described my ex-girlfriend, who was had been to Raffles Girls School (RGS) as having “Studied so much that she had become stupid.” I think of this line because in a way, this sums up the biggest problem in Singapore these days. We have top heavy management filled with people who have studied so much that they have become stupid. If one were to look at the performance of the big firms run by born and bred CEOs, as was done in “BE LIKE A PARALYMIAN AND DON’TBUBBLE WRAP YOURSELF” (26 August 2021), you will notice an uncomfortable trend. Our big local firms, run by born and bred Singaporeans have been underperforming in just about every measure of the word and that is despite the fact that they’ve got near monopoly power in their domestic market on essential services. The internet is a buzz with lots of noise about how the influx of dark-skinned Asians has ruined the lot of our local born Singaporeans. The common complaint is this – how can someone from the University of Rubber Pundek Prata on the tip of Tamil Nadu get a position superior to the graduate from the National University of Singapore (NUS), which we are told is a world-class university? As much as the government decries the people complaining about graduates from the University of Rubber Pundek Prata, the government is actually grateful that the complainers are focused on the University of Rubber Pundek Prata because it districts the population from the awful truth that the real problem with Singapore is the fact that the government has stuffed the top positions on every organisation with power over the lives of ordinary citizens with people who have studied so much that they’ve become dumb to the reality of what’s happening on the ground. Our guys have great degrees and the top ones don’t even come from NUS. They come from places like Harvard and Cambridge. If you looked at their qualifications, you’d say that these people are exceedingly smart. You would be right to assume that they’re smart – they’re so smart that they realised that all they had to do in life was to ignore all the basic laws of economics and collect money. The key to success once you’re in a lucrative position is to stay there and avoid getting into trouble – which means not doing anything. Your screw ups will be miraculously turned into a success narrative. Just look at the SMRT Corporation and how it’s CEO, Mr. Desmond Kuek became a hero for creating value for his shareholders by selling the company to his largest shareholder, Temasek Holdings. Or look at another former General, Ng Yat Chung, who ran Singapore Press Holdings in such a manner that he became a hero by hiving off the media part of the company that needs government support and the property part was sold at a few times less than its peak to another property company. Our “local” genius seems to come from creating stories about how fine everything is without checking on the ground. Today (25 January 2022) had one of its best. Apparently, an academic in our world class national university has worked out that the people on the lowest rung of the ladder were in fact the least affected by price increases. The story can be found at: [LINK] As with the case of Singapore, the good professor ensured that he had the statistics to back his claim. It’s quite clear that the good professor is rather sheltered. Sure, the price of certain items that the middle and higher classes buy might have risen a bit more than the prices of the things the poor focus on. However, it doesn’t take a genius to understand that someone earning S$5,000 a month is going to feel the pinch significantly less than someone earning S1,400 (the amount that is considered a minimal wage of sorts in Singapore). What exactly are we trying to prove here? We have a world class university because it can come with statistics that magic away the reality that people face on the ground? There’s no way of saying it other than to say that we are wasting brains and talent of our local achievers on creating a fantasy world. There are plenty of issues faced by normal people, who are paying Rolls Royce prices for a “top-notch” government to solve. The government and our local elites need to spend a bit less time creating stories that have no relation to the reality that the rest of us face and start having an honest dialogue with the people.   Tang Li *Although I’ve been based mainly in Singapore for nearly two decades, I’ve had the privilege of being able meet people who have crossed borders and cultures. I’ve befriended ministers and ambassadors and worked on projects involving a former head of state. Yet, at the same time, I’ve had the privilege of befriending migrant labourers and former convicts. All of them have a story to tell. All of them add to the fabric of life. I hope to express the stories that inspire us to create life as it should be.      Read More →

My uncommon sense tells me that, after the covid pandemic is declared over, the Singapore government will move towards increasing immigration to boost the population to 6.7 million and eventually to 10 million. They will work towards this goal out of economic necessity. Singapore has become uncompetitive and irrelevant in many sectors of the economy due to high cost of doing business and inefficiency. It will still remain attractive as an oasis for the wealthy to make their home here for the following reasons: a) To pay lower taxes, compared to their home countries b) To raise a family c) As a base to operate in the region. We have already developed our MRT systems, hospitals, schools and airports to cater to a larger population. They cannot remain under-utilised and become white elephants. This will pose a challenge to the local competition in facing competition for jobs from foreigners, especially in the higher levels of the workforce. Maybe the ministers think that they will be able to cope with the challenges better in the future. I believe that the challenges are huge and insurmountable, unless there are major changes to several policies on national service, employment practices, improvement in productivity, encouraging childbirth, etc. I do not welcome this strategy. I think that it is exposed to high risks and disadvantages. But my uncommon sense says that this is a likely scenario. I will not be around to see the success or failure that will occur over the next three decades. In case Singapore gets too crowded and life becomes unbearable, I have prepared a retreat in Johor. It will probably be useful for my children or grandchildren.   Tan Kin Lian      Read More →

Mr Shanmugam Singapore will not waver in it's tough stance against drug offences - Shanmugam. I have read the above sentence online and I like it. Despite many other countries having gone soft in their fight against drug abuses, drug traffickers and drug offences, I am greatly hearten that the government is firm in its resolve to keep drug offences in check, keep our people free from the misery and the scourge of drug abuses and our society safe. Our CNB is one of the government organisations that I have a very regards and respect for. The work that their officers do are often out of public eye and they are often times, dangerous too but they have done their job exceeding well, bravely and with strong convictions. Singapore, unlike Europe or North America is very close to a major poppy growing and harvesting region and despite that, the large majority of Singaporeans are reaping the results and benefits of their hard work and professionalism without realising enough. I salute our CNB officers deeply and I admire the minister in charge for his resoluteness and firmness on this issue. Tough laws is good news for good men and bad news for bad men. To those many pap suckers and you know who you are, I will say this to you. I want you to understand that I do not blindly criticise the pap government for the sake or the fun of it. If they perform well and do right for our people, I am not stingy with my public praises and accolades for them and when they have fallen short, perform unsatisfactory or screwed-up, unlike many of you suckers, I will not pretend, condone, keep quiet or turn and look the other way etc. Luckily, I have stronger spine. I voice out often, responsibly and bravely because I live in Singapore, I love my Singapore and my life is in Singapore. In short, because I care. Think.   Simon Lim      Read More →