Comments on: Public transport fare hike : The fare increase formula

By: FRancis

FRancis — Thu, 14 Jul 2011 02:39:52 +0000

The relationship between the owners of transport companies and the powers-that- be have very cosy over the years. The companies have been allowed to “rationalise” their routes at the expense of citizens. When they have overcharged they have been allowed to make it cumbersome for people to get the few cents back but to pay fines you can go anywhere. Not a squeak from the transport council. Everytime a fare increase is approved, price hikes in everything else follows. This has been the practice. The PAP instead of looking at the source of the problem announces that it will put aside a sum of money for the lower income to address this. That’s has been their answer all along.
Any suggestion from any other quarter is push aside. PAP is the only one who has the best solution. So what has changed? Are they listening? Everything has to be profit making. That’s PAP idea of success. It not wrong to make money surely but consider what the cost is .
If the dollar sign is wht you only see the you will pay dearly for that blinkered vision. History has shown this. You cant take all that money and pension to the grave. When we go we will go as naked as we came, all equal in GOD’s eyes. Good to remember that.

By: Cs2

Cs2 — Tue, 14 Aug 2007 08:42:34 +0000

CPI means cost of living rite?
Sigh! We need to present this statistics properly in layman terms to these lower percentile group. They are at the most disadvantaged group caused by govt policies, yet they dont understand what is happening to them and consistently vote for policies. Another problem is they fear govt backlash if they go against a powerful authority as they have little power. I see it as the same way a servant tries to appease the emperor in hopes for favors. So is that $10million could be PAP’s way of reinforcing that kind of mentality… rather than ‘helping the poor’.
In my personal opinion, democracy has given these lower income people the power to decide for their future with the ‘one man one vote’ but fear of PAP has caused them to vote for the status-quo. A parallel i can draw is North Korea (i know, its extreme). The people cheer their leader not because he is a good leader, but because he wields a significant political power to the point of life and death. And here in Singapore, Money is Power. Power to make rich or make bankrupt. My two cents!

PS i fear govt surveillance of this article for it feels like there is a political police in Singapore. Yet i need to say what i need to say or i go crazy ruminating on it.

By: cs

cs — Mon, 13 Aug 2007 01:44:31 +0000

Speaking about foreign talents, they are having trouble too..
GST up…
Utility Bill up up…
Transport fares up up up…
Rental goes up up up up up…

By: Lesile

Lesile — Tue, 07 Aug 2007 11:16:14 +0000

Transport Hike Formula = OppressionLevel + ChoicelessLevel + Minister’s Package + MoralAuthorityRate.

‘Strait Times’ might want to rename to reflect their honest standing. What not just rename to ‘PAP Times’ because PAP stand for integrity, honesty and democratic ! In this way those newspapers will definitely be read by many leaders of the world because what other countries’ need is a dose of money-loving and oppressive government.

By: Robert Teh Kok Hua

Robert Teh Kok Hua — Sun, 05 Aug 2007 01:07:42 +0000

So many times, so many citizens have written well-articulated letters to the forum page of the Straits Times pointing out wrong policies which seek to tax citizens with direct as well as indirect taxes and fee increases of all kinds even in situation where the ministries or the GLCs are not losing monies with lots of profits declared last seasons.
In fact, the high costs of living and doing business is mainly caused by a system where government double-charges on lands and facilities which were already paid for by citizens through the taxes e.g. HDB acquired lands using people’s monies to do so yet it charges flats at market prices less a discount wrongfully and dishonestly claimed by Mah Bow Tan as subsidy. (Today he still avoids replying to letters to forum page by an ex-HDB staff Mr. Cheong Chee Mun on this wrongful practice or profiteering which causes costs of living and doing business to go up and up)

It looks like PTC of SBS or some councils of some GLCs are going to jack up fees again and again this year going by past occurrences.

Has the government listened to voice of reason. Has it claimed to govern by law and order.

If the government is not so self-centred or hypocritical many citizens’ problems could have been solved today.

So citizens are now left wondering whether it is useful for them to express any more opinions or whether the forum page of the Straits Times and the Straits Times should close down or change name as Feedback Unit has done as it is becoming a national shame to publish news or give feedbacks without any listening by the very government which talks proudly to the world about their cosmopolitan openness and welcoming of talents, views of rightness or opinions.

By: Ned Stark

Ned Stark — Thu, 02 Aug 2007 17:04:43 +0000

Not only the low income. From what i have heard there are some professionals who are preparing to downgrade and get rid of their cars.

Anyway one of my friend’s raised an interesting point. He believed that being low income was not so bad as there would be schemes to help the low income (granted its not much but then some would contend that something is better than nothing). Those who are in the middle or low middle arent very lucky.