Home » Archive for August, 2008
Archive for August, 2008
Everyone’s in on the act
Aug. 30 | Singapore’s public hospitals have raised ward charges in the last two months. Straits Times
On the Opposition’s redundancy
Aug. 30 | The following is a reply by Lim Jialiang to a blog post by Young PAP member Nicholas Lazarus titled, “The ever redundant opposition”, on the Young PAP blog. Lim Jialiang / Guest Writer I feel compelled to correct the limited and flawed understanding...
Workers’ Party rejects motion to amend Parliamentary Elections Act.
Aug. 30 | The Workers’ Party chairman, Sylvia Lim, spoke in Parliament about her party’s rejection of the motion to introduce changes to the Parliamentary Elections Act. NCMP Lim said this is because her party has never accepted the GRC system in the first...
The crisis is over? Crisis?
Aug. 30 | I had made comments which had been misunderstood and had upset some Singaporeans. I sincerely apologise for causing any grievances and any stress. Lee Bee Wah Below is a news report from Channel NewsAsia:
AIMs’ press conference
Aug. 30 | The Advisory Council on the Impact of New Media on Society (AIMs) held a press conference to release its recommendations to the Government on August 29. (Read TOC’s report here.) Below are two videos of the press conference. Part One: Part Two:
Don’t wait
Aug. 29 | I don’t think we should be waiting for the government to give us the stamp of approval before we start moving forward and doing some work ourselves. Gerald Giam – On AIMs’ recommendations
Advisory council proposes further liberalisations of the Internet
Aug. 29 | Gerald Giam / Deputy Editor A government-appointed advisory council this morning released its draft recommendations on changing Singapore‘s Internet regulatory regime. Titled “Engaging New Media – Challenging Old Assumptions”, the...
By-election denial a sad case of irony
Aug. 29 | Andrew Loh / Deputy Editor It is not unexpected that the Government has rejected calls to hold a by-election in Jurong GRC, following the death of Dr Ong Chit Chung. Many reasons have been proffered by both those who support a by-election and those who...
Jack of all trades
Aug. 29 | Is it necessary for MPs to sit as heads of sports clubs or clan associations, religious or cultural associations that are outside their constituencies? My Singapore News
Don’t be a stupid cupid
Aug. 29 | Gerald Giam / Deputy Editor This is the first of a two-part series in response to the marriage and parenthood package announced by the Prime Minister in his National Day Rally speech 2008. In his National Day Rally speech, Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong...
The people have spoken
Aug. 27 | Sir, we are here today debating the nature of democracy in Singapore. Democracy is about the people, about how they have the power. And the people have spoken. They have spoken, their voice rings loud and clear, and they want a by-election. NMP Siew Kum...
NMP Siew Kum Hong presents TOC’s poll findings to Parliament
Aug. 27 | Nominated Member of Parliament, Siew Kum Hong, spoke in Parliament to support the motion to make amendments to the Parliamentary Elections Act. He also presented the results of a street poll of the people of Jurong GRC, conducted by The Online Citizen,...
Singaporeans want by-election in Jurong GRC
Aug. 27 | Update: Parliament rejects motion to fine-tune electoral system. “PM Lee said Singapore must never blindly follow others.” – Channel NewsAsia. NMP Siew Kum Hong, who helped with the poll, mentioned the poll results in Parliament today. Watch the...
Anwar wins!
Aug. 27 | PRESS STATEMENT FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE PERMATANG PAUH, MALAYSIA, 26 AUGUST 2008 We won! And our victory is decisive and overwhelming. I share in the joy felt by all Malaysians on this historic day. This is a victory for the people. And it’s great...
Crass woman
Aug. 27 | This woman is not fit to be the president of the Pussycat Dolls Fan Club, much less our STTA and much less an MP. This is the same MP who talks about “pang sai” in Parliament. How unbecoming and inappropriate, not to mention, extremely crass. Xtralicious
A Straits Times campaign against alternative therapies?
Aug. 27 | Richard Seah / Guest Writer Why is The Straits Times waging a vociferous campaign against alternative therapies for autism – and singling out biomedical treatment? On its own, an ST article questioning alternative and complementary therapies is nothing...
One country, two systems
Aug. 27 | Note: Look out for TOC’s first media release at 3pm today, Wednesday, August 27. Tan Kin Lian / Columnist The concept of “One Country, Two Systems” was created by Deng Xiaoping to accommodate the absorption of capitalist Hong Kong into communist...
Please calm down
Aug. 26 | I want you all to understand that people are tired, egos have been bruised, emotional tears and sweat have been shed. Vivian Balakrishnan – on the Lee Bee Wah saga.
Apocalypse: LIVE!
Aug. 26 | Play with strong political themes and angst approved? Ng Sook Zhen / Writer What happens when fire from the sky rains down and thousands, including all our Members of Parliament, are killed, and the Singapore Flyer is nothing more than a smoking symbol...
Meaningless fruits?
Aug. 26 | The freedom to demonstrate is meaningless unless it is applicable to all of Singapore. Alex Au
Of concessions and tokenism, worrying trends in policy making
Aug. 26 | Breaking News: Malaysiakini reports that Malaysian opposition leader Anwar Ibrahim has won the Permatang Pauh by-election with a majority of 16,210 votes. He garnered 26,646 votes while Arif Shah Omar Shah got 10,436. Anwar’s wife, Dr Wan Azizah...
Bloggers up in arms over Lee Bee Wah’s actions
Aug. 25 | The STTA’s president must realise that winning an Olympic medal means nothing if we do not also have basic common courtesy – and professionalism. Andrew Loh / Deputy Editor Bloggers are scathing in their criticisms over the actions of the president...
S’poreans can demonstrate at Speakers’ Corner from Sep 1
Aug. 25 | From Channel NewsAsia SINGAPORE: Singapore citizens may organise or participate in demonstrations at the Speakers’ Corner without having to obtain a police permit from September 1. The demonstrations may relate to anything except matters concerning...
Do your NS before you go
Aug. 25 | Only persons who have emigrated at a very young age together with their families, and who have not enjoyed the privileges of Singapore citizenship, will be allowed to renounce their Singapore citizenships without serving national service. Colonel Darius...
Ms Lee Bee Wah: A new broom sweeps indiscriminately
Aug. 25 | TOC Op-Ed Choo Zheng Xi / Editor in Chief Mr Ng Ser Miang, Singapore’s only representative on the International Olympic Committee, highlighted the arrogance of Member of Parliament (Nee Soon South, Ang Mo Kio GRC) Ms Lee Bee Wah’s decision to fire...
Coming soon to The Online Citizen…
Aug. 24 | Watch for it. Write to us about your views and experiences. theonlinecitizen@gmail.com
Before you speak, please…
Aug. 24 | Please don’t destroy the plants, don’t disturb other people…do it within certain hours, don’t make too much noise… Please exercise the freedom to demonstrate. Please do it within the rules. Please respect and recognise that we...
Enjoy your children – not the money!
Aug. 23 | So, don’t just look at what they don’t get. I think they should look at what they will get but more importantly, look at the baby, look at their own children and enjoy their children! Wong Kan Seng – on baby incentives
Grateful but please do more
Aug. 23 | The following is a comment left on TOC by one of our readers, Leong Loo Ping, on the new incentives for babies, in the article, “National Day Rally – some questions”. We highlight it here without edit. We are excited over the baby incentives. In...
Shortsighted
Aug. 23 | Not only is this deportation policy morally wrong — shockingly, revoltingly wrong — but from a self-interest perspective, it is unbelievably stupid. Alex Au
I am not celebrating
Aug. 23 | The following article is contributed by Anthony Yeo, Consultant Therapist. TOC thanks Anthony for taking the time to pen his thoughts for us. Anthony Yeo In the final analysis, the more I ponder over this matter, the more inclined I am to hang my head...
Influx leads to safety issues
Aug. 22 | I find it increasingly hard to feel safe as a woman in Singapore… is it right to endow freedom to workers who terrorise and rob us of the freedom we are entitled to in our own country, and especially where we live? Tyla Teng Ning (ST Forum)
Burmese citizens denied renewal of visas in Singapore
Aug. 22 | Announcement: We have disabled the views count feature as it does not accurately reflect the number of views for each article. We have been experiencing some technical defects recently since our number of hits spiked on the day of the PM’s National...
S$185 billion
Aug. 21 | Growing with our blue chip companies and our direct investment activities, Temasek now owns a net portfolio of about S$185 billion at market value as at March 31, 2008. Temasek’s chairman S Dhanabalan
The Online Media: Untangling Singapore’s web of politics
Aug. 21 | The following is an article which TOC’s Deputy Editor Gerald Giam wrote for Opinion Asia. We would like to thank Opinion Asia for letting us re-publish it in full here. The article has also been published in the Straits Times, under the title “New...
Danger in our education system
Aug. 21 | Andrew Loh / Deputy Editor In a letter to the Straits Times’ forum page, Ang Kian Chuan replied to the remarks made by the Dean of the Lee Kuan Yew School of Public Policy, Professor Kishore Mahbubani. (See here: “Prof, here’s why parents look...
Babies – shrinking numbers
Aug. 21 | Across Asia, birth rates are in crisis — with populations not replacing themselves, pressuring economies, military strengths, and the elderly. Al Jazeera reports on the birth rate crisis in Asia, including Singapore. Part One: Part Two: ———-
Nanny gets serious about babies but…
Aug. 21 | Leong Sze Hian, Andrew Loh The latest slew of measures by the Government to encourage Singaporeans to have babies is welcome. Deputy Prime Minister Wong Kan Seng, who made the announcements, hopes to create a “family-friendly” environment so that...
New Media problematic
Aug. 21 | The more problematic part is how do we, in the process of opening up, come up with some ways of reducing, minimising, if not cut it off completely, this abuse of this technology. Cheong Yip Seng Chairman, Advisory Council on the Impact of New Media on...
I like PM Lee :)
Aug. 20 | I never knew the government did so much and gave us so much money. I wonder if they receive any thank yous and if so, from who. Cause all along, i’ve never heard anyone thank the government. I’ve only heard people complain and blame and resent the...
National Day Rally – some questions
Aug. 20 | Leong Sze Hian / Columnist The Prime Minister spoke about several issues in his National Day Rally speech on Sunday. I would like to focus on three of them – vehicle-related revenue, contributions to the Mosque Building and Mendaki Fund (MBMF) and...
Poor return on life insurance policies
Aug. 20 | Tan Kin Lian / Columnist QUOTE Dear Mr. Tan, May I ask if the non-guaranteed reversionary bonuses are determined by individual insurance company? Are these bonuses declarations subject to MAS regulatory control or are they depend on the mood of the insurance...
The ball is in the opposition’s court
Aug. 19 | Announcement: We apologise if you are experiencing some difficulty with this site. We are investigating the cause. We ask for your patience. Thank you. Andrew Loh / Deputy Editor From “anonymous counter-insurgents” to “openning up” in cyberspace,...
Sensible or sheer stupidity?
Aug. 19 | If it is not sheer stupidity to continue enforcing bans on these films when they are viewable at a click of a mouse, I don’t know what is. Martyn See
The Internet’s reaction to PM’s speech
Aug. 19 | Here are some reactions from the Internet to PM Lee’s National Day Rally Speech. Xeno Boy Sg – Terminal loops The rally speech, an annual discursive masterpiece, piping us like little children merrily to wonderland. A textual orchestra of sensible...
Good effort, but much more substance needed
Aug. 19 | TOC National Day Rally commentary Choo Zheng Xi / Editor-in-Chief “We will progressively open up our system even more. If you compare today with 5 years ago, 10 years ago, it’s much more open today.” –Prime Minister Lee Hsien...
How’s the economy doing? Watch PM’s shirt colour.
Aug. 19 | Anyone noticed the grey shirt that Prime Minister Lee wore at his National Day Rally? Last year he wore pink. Last night, he wore grey. Could it be because of the state of the economy? When the economy was doing well – “a golden era”, as MM Lee...
