Gerald Giam attempts to stir with mischievous post on the former president of Sri Lanka, Gotabaya Rajapaksa

WP Gerald Giam asked on 1 August whether the former Sri Lankan President was accorded any privileges, immunities and hospitality in Singapore following his resignation.

MFA responded that former President Gotabaya Rajapaksa was not accorded any privileges, immunity or hospitality.

More than 2 weeks later, he posted MFA's reply along with a detailed account of Rajapaksa's convoy upon his arrival in Singapore. Yet he also noted that Gotabaya Rajapaksa was STILL president at the time when he arrived in Singapore, not a FORMER president.

Which makes you wonder at his intention.

Is there anything strange about the president of a country using the VIP complex or terminal? Rajapaksa was still president. He hadn't resigned yet.

Is it unthinkable that the Sri Lanka High Commission here would have made security arrangement for their president including engaging Certis Cisco riders?

So what was Gerald's intention when he posted the details irrelevant to his question on a FORMER president? To cast doubt on the answer given by the Minister for Foreign Affairs to his question?

If he has any further questions, the right thing for him to do is to follow up with another, very specific question to the minister.

To do a Facebook post instead, such as he did (where details irrelevant to his question are placed side by side with his question) shows a lack of integrity and an intention.

We are not an ally to the US: Lawrence Wong

Some Singaporeans may not be aware that Singapore is actually part of the Non-Aligned Movement or NAM. The Non-Aligned Movement is an alliance of states of currently 120 countries from almost all regions worldwide.

We do not choose sides and we conduct our foreign policy based on our own core interests in a principled manner.

Defence Minister Ng Eng Hen says PSP Leong Mun Wai has all the characteristics of a misinformant

PSP Leong Mun Wai has a total disregard for the rules of engagement in Parliament, a total disregardfor other MPs who also want to speak, a total disregard for the answers given to him, treats Parliamentary debates like coffee shop talk and expect rules to be bent for him.

Since 2000, on average, 3,400 new citizens are registered each year to serve their NS duties.

New citizens are not exempted from NS, Defence Minister Ng Eng Hen said.

New male citizens who stayed in Singapore when young and enjoyed economic and social benefits are enlisted when they reach 18 years of age or older. They number on average 3,400 each year, which constitute about half of all new male citizens registered each year.

Males who receive citizenship as mature adults, typically in their 30s and 40s, are not enlisted as they are not suitable for full-time NS at that age and did not enjoy any benefits prior to their citizenship.

Someone asks: what benefits did he enjoy growing up in Singapore?

Here's the answer: You enjoy formal education that is almost free. Primary school fee is $0, Sec school fee is $5 per month, pre-univeristy school fee is $6 per month. That's just one benefit. We haven't talked about healthcare yet or the subsidised childhood vaccination programme and others.

PSP Leong Mun Wai knows very well the average number of new citizens each year by age and by gender. The information were given to him in Parliament.

Yet, he will continue to mislead Singaporeans with his questions. He is exactly how Defence Minister Ng Eng Hen described - a misinformant who gives half-truths and misleading statements. In short, a dishonest politician.

 How many new citizens are enlisted each year on average? Look at the second paragraph. How many new citizens are exempted from NS? Look at the second paragraph.

A less stable, less predictable world: Chan Chun Sing

The world we live in.

At the 9th Singapore Economic Review Conference on 1 August, Education Minister Chan Chun Sing said:

"We should not assume that the next 50 years will be underpinned by the rule of law in a stable international security order.

Neither should we assume that any single global power will be overwhelmingly dominant; willing or able to underwrite the load and responsibilities of maintaining such a global security order.

In addition, we should also not assume that there will be a global trade and economic order founded on clear rules, predictable system of dispute settlement mechanism, or decisions largely premised on economic logic." Speech by Mr Chan Chun Sing, Minister for Education at the 9th Singapore Economic Review Conference | MOE

The majority of Singaporeans give the government a drumstick and take back a chicken.

“The majority of Singaporeans give the government a drumstick and take back a chicken.

𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐩𝐫𝐨𝐛𝐥𝐞𝐦 𝐢𝐬 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐜𝐡𝐢𝐜𝐤𝐞𝐧 𝐢𝐬 𝐦𝐚𝐝𝐞 𝐮𝐩 𝐨𝐟 𝐮𝐧𝐚𝐜𝐤𝐧𝐨𝐰𝐥𝐞𝐝𝐠𝐞𝐝 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐮𝐧𝐚𝐩𝐩𝐫𝐞𝐜𝐢𝐚𝐭𝐞𝐝 𝐛𝐞𝐧𝐞𝐟𝐢𝐭𝐬 𝐥𝐢𝐤𝐞 𝐞𝐝𝐮𝐜𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧, 𝐡𝐞𝐚𝐥𝐭𝐡, 𝐬𝐞𝐜𝐮𝐫𝐢𝐭𝐲, 𝐝𝐞𝐟𝐞𝐧𝐜𝐞, 𝐭𝐫𝐚𝐧𝐬𝐩𝐨𝐫𝐭𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧, 𝐡𝐨𝐮𝐬𝐢𝐧𝐠, 𝐩𝐨𝐬𝐢𝐭𝐢𝐯𝐞 𝐞𝐧𝐯𝐢𝐫𝐨𝐧𝐦𝐞𝐧𝐭 𝐟𝐨𝐫 𝐚𝐭𝐭𝐫𝐚𝐜𝐭𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐛𝐮𝐬𝐢𝐧𝐞𝐬𝐬𝐞𝐬, 𝐢𝐧𝐯𝐞𝐬𝐭𝐦𝐞𝐧𝐭 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐣𝐨𝐛𝐬, 𝐞𝐭𝐜 𝐰𝐡𝐢𝐜𝐡 𝐜𝐨𝐬𝐭 𝐚 𝐥𝐨𝐭 𝐨𝐟 𝐦𝐨𝐧𝐞𝐲 𝐭𝐨 𝐝𝐞𝐥𝐢𝐯𝐞𝐫.

𝐈𝐭 𝐢𝐬 𝐞𝐚𝐬𝐢𝐞𝐫 𝐭𝐨 𝐩𝐮𝐭 𝐚 𝐦𝐨𝐧𝐞𝐭𝐚𝐫𝐲 𝐯𝐚𝐥𝐮𝐞 𝐭𝐨 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐝𝐫𝐮𝐦𝐬𝐭𝐢𝐜𝐤 𝐭𝐡𝐚𝐧 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐜𝐡𝐢𝐜𝐤𝐞𝐧 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐦𝐚𝐧𝐲 𝐨𝐟 𝐮𝐬 𝐨𝐯𝐞𝐫𝐯𝐚𝐥𝐮𝐞 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐝𝐫𝐮𝐦𝐬𝐭𝐢𝐜𝐤 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐮𝐧𝐝𝐞𝐫𝐯𝐚𝐥𝐮𝐞 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐜𝐡𝐢𝐜𝐤𝐞𝐧.

Much of our unhappiness stems from our inability to value the chicken and the drumstick properly.

The smaller number of Singaporeans who actually give the government a chicken and take back a drumstick usually do not complain.

It could be because they know that in other countries, they might have to give up a bigger chicken and/or take back a smaller drumstick. Or it could be they realise that not all countries have the necessary set of favourable conditions to allow them to earn the same amount of money to be required to give the government a chicken.

Some of them feel that it is only fair for the better off to give a chicken and receive a drumstick from the government.”

 

'Give a chicken wing, take back a whole chicken.'

'Give a chicken wing, take back a whole chicken.'

This nonsensical argument is used to dampen people's mood - whenever the government has something good to announce - lest people forget to be angry with the government. It is used to keep people dissatisfied. After all, what can be good if you have to give back a whole chicken whenever you receive a chicken wing?

It works on people who do not think.

How does a government take from citizens. Through taxes.

If you're giving back a whole chicken for a chicken wing that you receive, then you must be paying lots in taxes and outgiving the government even. Are you?

If a chicken is worth 10 chicken wings, and you receive $700 in GST cash (=chicken wing), are you giving back $7000 in taxes (a whole chicken)?

Who gets that 'chicken wing' often used in this argument, the extra that is meant to help the more vulnerable?

These are the lower and middle-income earners. The lower-income group gets S$4 in benefits for every dollar of tax they pay. The middle-income earners get S$2. No one who receives a chicken wing outgives the government.

 

Jamus Lim takes credit for MAS' strengthening of the Singapore dollar

Harsh words but very true.

It is the forex market forces at work and MAS' tightening move is in response to the strength of the USD and not as per Jamus' theoretical and hypothetical suggestion.

Does Jamus really think that MAS' move was in response to his suggestion in Parliament? He must be really naive.