The following is by Mr Cheong Wing Lee in response to Canadian, Mr Eric J Brooks’s second letter to the Straits Times. Mr Cheong emigrated to Canada from Singapore and is now a Canadian citizen.
Dear Editor,
Mr. Brooks’ second letter published in ST reiterate that Singaporeans should be grateful for what they have. He cited more examples of the failed Canadian welfare system as compared to the successful welfare system that Singaporeans are enjoying but have taken for granted.
Again I am embarrassed by a fellow Canadian who misrepresented his own country. It is easy to verify what Mr Brooks had said through the Canadian High Commission or Amnesty International.
Canada may not have a perfect welfare system but having lived and worked in several countries myself, I must say that Canada is as good as anyone could wish for.
When I immigrated to Canada, I bought three cars for the price of one in Singapore and a 4,000 sq. ft house for the price of a 5-room HDB apartment. A similar house in Singapore would have cost S$2 million
Yes, the Canadian taxes are high but the citizens are well treated. For me, the savings on the purchase of the house and cars could pay my income tax for the rest of my life.
Every child in Canada gets free education from kindergarten to Grade 12, the equivalent of junior college in Singapore. Most schools are within walking distance from home. Free transportation is provided for students living farther away. Each child gets C$250 a month as “milk” allowance until 18 years of age. However this benefit may have been rescinded.
Contrary to what Mr. Brooks claimed, all my three children graduated from reputable universities in Canada without any problem. My children’s university education did not cost me much as my children were able to obtain grants and student loans to pay for their university fees. They took part-time jobs to supplement their pocket money.
The greatest joy for parents is to see the happiness expressed in their children’s eyes when they play in the beautiful parks during the summers, springs and autumns and snow in the winters. The satisfaction is more than money can buy. This is in contrast to the daily intensive tuition that Singapore children are subjected to.
Mr. Brooks’ assertion that many bright Canadian children are denied the opportunity to attend universities in Canada but could obtain full scholarships in Singapore is untrue. In fact it is the other way around. My niece who could not get into Singapore University, was admitted into a reputable American University. She finished her Masters, secured a good job and sadly did not return to Singapore.
In Canada, senior citizens are well respected and treated. Seniors travel free on public transport, i.e. the MRT, bus and ferry rides, from Mondays to Thursdays. They get discount for weekend travel, food and most purchases. They are entitled to old age pension and workman pension when they reach the age of 65. The combined income from these two pensions is about C$1,000 to C$2,000 or more a month. Seniors get subsidies for housing. Seniors can study in reputable universities and get a degree by paying a token fee of less than C$100 per semester.
When I was diagnosed with kidney failure, it cost the Canadian Healthcare C$80,000 a year for dialysis and medical treatments to keep me alive. I paid C$90 a month for healthcare insurance that covers both my wife and I. The Canadian healthcare pays for all hospital expenses including medications. It was free for me. When I travel overseas, my dialysis and medical expenses are reimbursed by Canadian healthcare up to the amount it costs in Canada.
The homeless issue was greatly exaggerated by Mr Brooks. This issue is universal and every country has its fair share of homeless people including Singapore. In Canada, most of the homeless people are there by choice because of their drug addiction. No amount of government assistance can help pay for their expensive habit. In Singapore, most of the homeless people are there because of economic reasons. They are either without pension and too old to get a job or abandoned by their children.
For Mr Eric Brooks to say that Canada has a failed welfare system is unfair and bias. Check with the Canada High Commission and verify what I said.
SM Goh Chok Tong can call us quitters and losers because he cannot see beyond his comfort zone. He has no worries. His job is secured for life and is paying him by the millions. It is little wonder that his wife said that $500,000 a year salary is peanuts. If he could only spend one day outside his comfort zone and live like an ordinary Singaporean drawing less than $2,000 a month with the anxiety of losing his job, the burden of getting his children through the fiercely competitive education system, the stress of living in a materialistic environment and the uncertainty of having a dignified retirement, SM Goh may then understand the plight of the ordinary citizens. It is easy for him to pass judgement when he already has everything.
Patriotism and gratitude require reciprocity. If a citizen feels unwanted and treated without respect, it is no shame for the outcast to seek greener pasture and realize his potential elsewhere. It would be naive to expect the outcast to be patriotic and risk his life to protect a privileged group who continue to reward themselves unchallenged by the millions.
My decision to immigrate was not politically motivated. It was based solely on the future of my family. I have three children when the Singapore government’s strict policy then was, “Two is enough”.
As for education, I was expelled from school at secondary two. I obtained an “O” level and a certificate from Singapore Vocational Institute (fore-runner of ITE) through evening classes. In a highly competitive society like Singapore where you are judged by academic excellence and materialistic possessions, my credentials would be sneered at. I would most likely be a minimum wage worker, praying not to get sick when I am old and retired.
The lifestyle difference between a typical Singaporean and a Canadian is that a Singaporean spends his life making a living, whereas a Canadian lives his life.
Regardless of all the negative misinformation that Mr. Eric Brooks has said about Canada, I am deeply beholden to Canada who has given me my self-respect, dignity and a chance to realize my potential. Most of all, a bright future for my children. Herein lies my gratitude.
Thank you, Canada.
Yours truly,
Wing Lee Cheong
North Vancouver, BC, Canada
——–
Read: Canadian tells Singaporeans to be grateful.
Read also: Mr Cheong’s first letter in response to Mr Brooks’s original letter to the Straits Times Forum: Be thankful to Canada, Mr Brooks.
——–
The following is a response from Amnesty International’s Coordinator for S’pore and Malaysia, Ms Margaret John.
A different view from Canada:
I understand that Canadian Eric J Brooks recently wrote to the Straits Times in praise of Singapore as a country that takes care of its citizens. He appears, however, to have only part of the total Singapore picture. For a fuller view, he has only to check Amnesty International’s information. There he will read about defamation suits and other restrictive measures used against opposition activists, human rights defenders, foreign media and conscientious objectors.
He may change his opinion of Singapore when he finds that a climate of fear and self-censorship discourages Singaporeans from fully participating in public affairs. And he may be shocked to discover that Singapore is believed to have one of the highest per capita rates of execution in the world (often after trials that fail to meet international standards for a fair trial). Has he discussed his views with Dr Chee Soon Juan, who has been imprisoned some seven times after attempts to exercise his right to freedom of expression?
Margaret John
Amnesty International
Coordinator for Singapore and Malaysia
—–
Mr. Eric Brooks’ second letter in ST:
I REFER to Mr Paul Chan’s letter last Saturday (’…but so should Canadians’), rebutting my view that Singaporeans should be thankful for the benefits of good government (’Be grateful, Singapore’, July 31).
Mr Chan states that in Canada, ‘a distressed family of four with children under 17 years old receives…a total of up to C$1,106 (S$1,480) a month’.
In a large Canadian city, rent for a bachelor apartment starts at about C$800 a month, while an individual public transit pass costs close to C$150 a month. After rent and transport, how will a family of four eat on an allowance of C$1,100 a month? That is why, when I lived in a prosperous part of Toronto, I would pass up to 15 beggars on my five-minute walk to the train station.
Are there that many homeless beggars on a five-minute walk to an MRT station here? Are Singaporeans reading only dry economic statistics? After hearing coffee-shop talk for the past 10 years about how people in Western countries do not have to work because the government pays them, I think it is time Singaporeans learnt the truth.
Many people will refuse to believe that poverty in the West is much worse than in Singapore. Well, google ‘homeless Toronto’ or ‘homeless New York’ and find out. If Singaporeans believe Western governments pay people to be idle, why are homeless beggars freezing to death in the streets?
Most of those homeless Canadians or Americans were not lazy; they were not taken care of, by either the government or private sector job creation.
Indeed, many Canadian citizens were turned down for such generous subsidies, while foreigners claiming refugee status (but without even permanent residence) were granted generous welfare benefits and health care when they landed in Canada.
Does the Singapore Government deny benefits to citizens while giving them to newly landed foreigners? The Singapore Government is not perfect, but it should be respected for the good it does for its people.
As for ‘free education’, university at undergraduate level in Canada costs about C$5,000 a year, out of pocket, not including textbooks or residence.
I know of many bright Canadians who would have qualified for a full government scholarship if they had been born in Singapore. Instead, they worked in unskilled, low-paying jobs as the price of their unassisted poverty.
How much of what Singaporeans believe about Western social benefits is based on hearsay, rather than reality? Rather than listening to coffee-shop gossip or reading the press statements of foreign governments, Singaporeans should compare Singapore’s ground-level social conditions to those in the West.
Ultimately, actually seeing the street-level socioeconomic conditions of Western countries puts Singapore’s Government in a very good light indeed.
Eric J. Brooks
Source: http://www.straitstimes.com/ST%2BForum/Story/STIStory_413988.html
Related posts:
- A party for patriotism on National Day
- Passion And Patriotism (PAP)
- Be thankful to Canada, Mr Brooks
- Canadian tells S’poreans to “be grateful”
- Why I prefer Canada’s education system – world-ranking or not
Mr Eric J Brooks’s will never migrate to Singapore, he only Talk Cork. The Canadian life is one of world’s best, I have friends migrated there and happy, never to return. The only complaint is sub zero weather.
This is the same for people who migrated to Australia. In Singapore, we did not get reciprocracy from the top, thats the honest truth. Average joe without much education cannot survive in Singapore.
well, the test for any pudding is in the eating.
mr brooks, kindly go get your pink ic before you start singing.
A Big Thank You to Mr. Wing Lee Cheong,
A man like you, away from Singapore for sometime now and yet coming to protect its people and their honest views, show… you too are a Singaporean at heart. Any country would be glad to have someone like you.
To Mr. Brooks,
I hope you are getting money’s worth (if you are getting paid by someone for this) for all your false information and foolishness. I know Canadians are not as stupid like you.
I hope TOC readers don’t think and assume all Canadians are like Mr Brooks. They seriously Are Not.
Anyway, just want to highlight how the Singapore Govt, after allowing LHL’s wife lose all the billions, is now trying to collect back some money from Singaporeans. Check this tactic out…
I have been fined for an army ofence which took place 10 years ago, for not taking an exit permit. I was under Pes E or so they said, no BMT when you enlist. Nothing was mentioned of what I should do or don’t when I ROD (ORD now)
After the Army, I went overseas for studies, then after 10 years. They are sending me a letter saying I am fined $500 for an offence.
It clearly looks like this govt is desperate for money. It will come in all forms to reimburse its coffers, just for LHL’s wife to lose it all again.
This govt is cheap and desperate like never before.
Mr Eric J Brooks should come out of the closet. He should come clean that he is a repressed Singaporean and not an imaginary Canadian.
Talk about reciprocity…….they sure give and know one way or another to take it back..
Brooks is seriously naive to claim that Singapore has no beggars or poor people just because he doesnt see them outside the MRT stations begging. doesnt he know that begging is a crime here? and if he spends enough time to visit and perform community service at the 1 room flats, he will know that there are alot of poor people in Singapore which the govt gives minimal help. so minimal that after paying rental to HDb and utilities, they can only afford 1 meal per day. the rest of the time they eat kong guan biscuits unless social welfare organisations bring them food. yet, this is the group that the govt fought tooth and nail to increase their welfare by $30 by claiming that this would erode Singapore’s work ethic. how does giving $30 more to someone who has no legs/hands/critically ill destroy our work ethic is really beyond any rational, compassionate human being’s ability to comprehend yet there you are; this is the kind of ministers we have. so Brooks please dont skim the surface and lecture singaporeans when you dont even know enough about the problems singapore faces.
Alot of Singaporeans cannot even get a decent job with a decent pay. Those that are more highly paid had to slough day & night. What life? You don’t earn enough you cannot survive, you earn more you need to work most of the time.
Mr Brooks tried to bootlick, but instead, he got bootKICKED by the people.
Right in his face. GO HOME PLEASE. SG DONT NEED PPL LIKE YOU.
suck up to govt like some dog. PAP like these type of ppl, but to sgreans, he’s nothing but another worthless meat.
FT= foreign talent?? more like FT= Foreign TRASH! in this case.
I have migrated to Canada and are unlikely that I would return to live in Singapore again. I can attest that Mr Cheong had given a fair account of the welfare system in Canada, at least in BC. As to the picture painted by Mr Brooks, I am not sure his intent of sucking up to the PAP govt.
Quiter
Coquitlam, BC, Canada
This Eric Brooke is right la! Long live the PAP party! Long live the PAP regime. Long live dictatorship governance because 66.6% voted for it – if the ‘majority’ voted for PAP, it must be good. Don’t fight the PAP system or you will get into trouble.
Ha! I am out of Singapore now because I belong to the 33%.
GCT’s wife said $600,000 a year salary is “peanuts”…..not $500,000.
Eric Brooks must be eyeing some govt contract in S’pore…..which explains his pro-PAP letter.
Well, if he REALLY believes S’pore govt takes the “best care” of its citizens, why isn’t he a S’pore citizen???
Boasting that he has lived in “6 countries” amount to nothing. Does he think that he is the only person in S’pore to have done that??
This Brooks guy is just kissing A##. His version of Canada is so far removed from reality its like science fiction !
I’ve lived in Canada as a student and tend to agree with Mr Cheong’s assessment of the country.
He’s here as a FT. If he didnt have a high paying job, he wouldnt be here whereas people that go to Canada do so without a high paying job. In fact, they go in knowing that the taxes are high.
Ignore this Brooks guy.
This is a very good comparison between what PRs and S’poreans get. You will notice that PRs enjoy almost the same benefits as S’poreans….but in hospital subsidy, PRs in lower income bracket even MORE subsidy than S’poreans!!!!
http://0000pcj.people.delphiforums.com/downloads/Benefits_of_Singaporean_vs_PR1.htm
Hi TOC, am i right to assume his letter was published in the ST ?
I mean, a letter sent need not necessarily get published right?
Mr Brook’s view is just that – his 1 view out of a world of millions of views.
The 1st question readers must know when reading is
What about the majority 99.99% of views?
And that is all i like to remind the youths of a 1st world.
Their minds need to be 1st world also, if not already.
Based on personal observation, i am more pessimistic than optimistic.
oh , i forgot, i do not know if it was published because :
1. I do not buy the news – too expensive for me.
2. I borrow sometimes, if i feel like it – its free.
3. i need to save to pay and pay for price hikes.
When will this Brook shut up?
Can Brook’s identity be proven beyond reasonable doubt?
where is the proof?
thank you Mr Cheong for sharing his view on this matter. All of us have to remember that s’pore is just only a island. So is quite difficult to compare with Canada. Anyway, this Canadian guy got no right to comment on us. Just shut up and mind your own business. we know what is right or wrong.
Hi, Ang Gu Lin, unlike you, I read the Straits Times everyday and I can let you know, so far only Brookes’ Balls Carrying letters were published. Both of Mr Cheong’s rebuttals were not.
I feel ashamed because the local media got no balls to publish Mr Cheong’s rebuttals but are always publishing letters that carry the PAP’s balls!
Be rest assured that Mr Brooke won’t be staying in Singapore for long. He will still miss his wonderful home in canada and he is certaintly planning to retire there gracefully after earning his due for rubbing shoulders with our govt and drawing substantial salaries out of Singaporeans. It doesn’t need a fortune-teller to know all these.
I left Singapore in 1988 becos my children were unable to further their education becos they failed chinese. I had to send them overseas. Both are now graduates, one with a master degree and works in Canada.
I live in Vancouver and I attest that what Mr. Cheong Wing Lee has has written is true and correct.
I am so thankful for being able to live in BC. I have a thriving business and tho the taxes are high, I have free medical care and all the other privileges that Mr.Cheong has mentioned.
Boy, am I lucky to be a canadian.
on 20 shock on august 17th 1.43….u r right there, about mr brooke planning to retire in his own country gracefully after milking our system…there are FTs employed by MOE in one of our tertiary institutions in the north, they have no plans to take up PR, they are more interested in earning the big civil servant’s bonus scheme., they charm their ways into getting their contracts extended, in the meantime, behind their colleagues and MOE’s backs, they berate us..one even says the MOE is the worst govt body he has ever had the misfortune to deal with, and that our local civil servants don’t have the balls to think out of their boxes! and this is the kind of so called FTs MOE employs! what fools they are!
Mr Brooks. You old already come and retire in sg lah! Im sure you WILL “enjoy” it very much. You know, you must pay for alot of things anot? Its very “fun” to do that, and im sure by then, you will LOVE the PAP more.
So unless you’ve got integrity. Do so. If not, shut up and MYOB and PS: dont bootlick. Worst failure eva.
honestly, if Mr Brooks has kids, they should be ashamed of him. Now he’s become a bigtime laughing stock.
Mr Brooks, I bet you wont stay here forever, just like the others who treat this place like a hotel. If anyone is prodding you to write a whole lot of lies, please note that you are being played out!
I hope you conscience is clear!
Brook and cheong are just mirror image of one another. The grass is always green on the other side. They are just brother broither.
Probably alot of canadians are cursing within their hearts for “FT” like cheong, as he leeching onto the welfare system of the canadian society, jacking up the property price and competing the limited jobs vacancy, abusing the medical/hospital welfare system.
One day, when the entire canadian welfare system can not sustain itself. Who will be whacked first? Especially at this difficult times, i am pretty sure more and more native canadian will complained that the gov too lax on immigration rules.
Hello Ahgong,
At least Mr Cheong put money where his mouth is, he took up Canadian citizenship. Lets see if this Brooks guy take up Singapore Citizenship?
And Ahgong, I am not sure how you came out with all those short fall of the Canadian system? do you live in Canada?
I live in the Greater Vancouver Area, though only a PR and not yet a Canada citizen, all those thing you have suggested are all bull. I think Canada has its own problems and as immigrants, we also face certaim difficulties but certainly not those rubbish utter by you.
Its very disappointing that only Brook’s letter got published.
Singaporeans are not given the chance to read and judge for themselves. The outcome is that majority of the readers lead to believe the article, given the impression that what was published must be true, without verification or a second opinion.
But then , what do you expect from the Straits Times? It probably will never publish opinions or refuttals that either contradict the government or reflect a negative image of this country.
I am glad that i am still able to read these in TOC. Thats the power of INTERNET.
will Mr Brooks sing “Upturn the Downturn” for us? he is such a sweet song bird… :P
Thanks to Mr Wing Lee Cheong. We need people like you to give Singaporeans a BALANCED VIEW and the truth speaks for itself. I wish to get out of that well!
#26 depends on how you see it. We can say at least brook still retained his citizenship, while cheong has totally given up his. Since cheong has chosen to be a canadian, why still dwelling on his sad past story in sg?
Those “rubbish” are simply logical reasoning. Just look at uk, europe, aust and those so called welfare state. “Green shoots”already been there. The citizens there are just plain mortal like us. When there is enough resources ( jobs, money, woman) going around, people are a little bit more gracious and forgiving abt foreigners. When there is not, hehe, god bless you. Aust is a very good example. Recent\ly anti-indian, previosuly anti-viet, anti-asian, anti-muslims are not unheard of.
Why lambasting the country that give birth to you? One always has to keep in mind that the country and the ruling party is two different entities. Don’t shoot the wrong birds lah.
[i]Ahgong on August 18th, 2009 1.13 am #26 depends on how you see it. We can say at least brook still retained his citizenship, while cheong has totally given up his. Since cheong has chosen to be a canadian, why still dwelling on his sad past story in sg?[/i]
do you feel uncomfortable when 1 who no longer lived in singapoor is tellin the TRUTH?
nothin but the goodamntruth?
comeon be a MAN! don’t alway listened to leekuanyew boostins….
used your own BRAINCELLs if you have any dignity left…
i criticise leekuanyew just for fun or pun? he 1 man make 90% of our fellow singapooriums unhappy or unemployed…
which part of the above sentence you want to rebutt on?
you mereLEE think the 66% who supported his familLEE is doin well?
why they can withdraw their cpf savin$ mey?
Ahgong,
I am not sure about Europe and I know nothing about them, but Canada is a big country, fyi its a little smaller than 10 mil km sq. even if just 10% is developed which is roughly 1mil km sq, she can affort to continue recieving immigrants and there are still enough space for everyone.
The way the SIngapore Govt are accepting foreigners, given such a small dot, its just short sighted and irresponsible.
And if you ever come to see Vancouver, you will learn a whole new meaning of words like multi racial, multi- cultural, multi-religious as those define by the PAP govt.
So those logical reasons you gave just doesn’t sound logical here.
In the Singapore context, do you REALLY think that there is a difference between PAP and the country? Get real, the PAP have make it quite clear that loyalty to the PAP is a prelude to loving the country.
[i]25) Ahgong on August 17th, 2009 5.16 pm
for “FT” like cheong, as he leeching onto the welfare system of the canadian society, jacking up the property price and competing the limited jobs vacancy, abusing the medical/hospital welfare system.
Why lambasting the country that give birth to you? One always has to keep in mind that the country and the ruling party is two different entities. Don’t shoot the wrong birds lah.[/i]
ok don’t shoot the wron birds…let see lines by lines shall we?
do you know of some minister who commandeer a sia plane and convert it into a flyin ambulance just for the sake of his sick wife who is not supposed to travel in the first place?
the same minister who scold our ole aged parents for visitin china and brin in the SAR flu
since we are ALL singapooriums
can you make tiger airways.com to do the same biddin if your wife suddenly have the h1n1 virus infected? let alone commandeer the whole singapore general hospital as well?
why can the same minister do it onced more while we cannot?
now we want YOU to answer your OWNED question..
the country and the ruling party is two different entities….
please shared with us where are the lines bein drawn on different entities… PLEASE? i beg of you…………
“Those “rubbish” are simply logical reasoning. Just look at uk, europe, aust and those so called welfare state. “Green shoots”already been there.”
What a bunch of stupid nonsense. Whether they are sustainable or not, does that affect you ? Our system is even more pathetic. Isn’t our system come with clauses that they don’t even pay a dim should the CPF goes insolvent ? At least other country didn’t state those clauses. For all we know, more than half of 4 decades of accumulated reserves and assets have been gambled away by the Leegime, and that is why they are manipulating the CPF and increasing inflation at our expenses, so what are you going to do about it ? So wht care about other country when your own country is not much better ? What should have been a welfare for Singapore for more than $100 billions have been gambled at your expenses , so are you happy ?
The question is not a matter of future but of now. the old fart can give all the fart and con reason and excuses of manipulating for the future where he and his family and lackeys get to enjoy those state wealth now.
Do you rather enjoy welfare now and in your lifetime or in next 50-100 years when you dead ? Dead man tells no tale after all.
Dear Mr.Brooks,
God forbids,if you have a illness that needs a major surgery.I wonder where you would go.Stay in Singapore paying thousands $$$,or buy a one
way ticket back to the country you came from.Any answer please?Preston Loon.
Managed to come across both Brooks article (Unfortunately) on Shitty Times…
To make things worse, I come across more PLP people writing in to thank Brooks for “reminding” Singaporean to be thankful of Singapore (or rather garment) as foreigner.
I boil when I saw that.
Regardless of how biase Brooks comments might be, I suppose it would be good to have this letter published as it is meant to be in the forum page, to start off a meaningful debate on his comments.
Sadly, this is so far away from the truth… once again, our Shitty Times just want positive spins on our garment to be spun.
To me, this is the most outrageous thing out of this whole event.
Brooks only represent himself… a single person… hence his personal opinion doesnt really means anything. In fact… who cares!? The way he wrote just shows how shallow he is!
However, the fact that our Shitty Times chose to endorse this article is simply atrocious… they want to achieve their aim of nation building (or Garment building?) but instilling shallowness upon its reader? They want shallowness to be the general norm in Singapore?
Hence guys… dun blame Brooks… he is there just because this system requires him to be there…
In Canada, I am sure no one will dare to display this kind of shallowness and stupidity in public. Singapore, and not Canada, is a the place for him to display his talent.
Hi Eric Brooks,
If Singapore is so good and Canada so bad, please exchange citizenship with me.
We Singaporeans have to work til over 65 in order to earn a living, and without savings in Cpf, do you think it is a good country ??
Some questions for Mr Brooks
I live in Singapore all my life , 50.5 years to be exact.
How long have you been here?
And you are here to pass judgement on us?
Since Singapore is such a fairyland to you
just as Canada and Australia is to me.
Why not we trade citizenship?
#32 Just like what you stated and awared of, canada is a very very big country with many resources and singapore is very small country. Then why cheong expected a social welfare system like canada ??
I did agree that the current gov should be more prudent in immigration rule. BUT hey, which singaporean going to do the construction work or clear the rubbish bin for us??
The reasoning is valid, just that we don’t know when that will reached a boiling point. Given the vast resources of canada.
Well, i admitted that many over here can not get over the emotional barrier. Just like a lousy joke i always cracked, to many here, they seems to think that anyone wearing white shirts is a PAP. :P
Hatred sometimes just clouded everyone’s mind.
BUT to me, it is very CLEAR. I may not like the current ruling party, BUT no doubt abt the COUNTRY, singapore.
[i]BUT to me, it is very CLEAR. I may not like the current ruling party, BUT no doubt abt the COUNTRY, singapore.[/i]
i too love OUR country singaPORE, unfortunateLEE some1 here make it his familLEE county, everythinggie he changed from the peoples’ companies to his familLEE companies and endup to make it a profitable corporation irregardless of who usin the faciLEEties.
ole youn never mind all must pay FULL rates………..
~sigh~
“Ultimately, actually seeing the street-level socioeconomic conditions of Western countries puts Singapore’s Government in a very good light indeed.”
Sigh, after staying in Singapore, Brooks fellow still cannot see the street-level socioeconomic conditions of Singapore.
That Why my advice don’t buy, don’t read & don’t believed whatever is published in straits times, only go to Library to read to seek for job. Me out job more than 6 months and before that was contract job so we s’porean do share a same frustration with their policy,can anyone tell me how to root and stay loyal, and the hungry man turn to…..
Thanks for sharing your personal experience and shedding light on the Canadian system.
You hit the nail on the head when you said: “The lifestyle difference between a typical Singaporean and a Canadian is that a Singaporean spends his life making a living, whereas a Canadian lives his life.”
Indeed, most Singaporeans will spend 30 years of their live paying off the mortgage of their PUBLIC HOUSING flats whose prices are astronomical even in a recession – thanks to all the foreign nationals from China and India here.
I’m very happy that you with a vocational education have done very well for yourself and your children. If you had stayed in Singapore, you’d be a low-wage PMET earning just $1,700 and probably retrenched.
I seriously think our PMETs would do so much better in New Zealand, USA, Australia and Canada if only they had the chance to migrate. In these countries, even cleaners, mechanics, electricians, brick layers can afford to buy and live in a house, albeit not in pricey zone 1 areas, but in outlying suburbs.
There is SPACE to bring up your children there, there are rivers, national parks, cricket fields, ovals, lakes etc to take your family on the weekends. And if you’re too poor to buy food, at least you can grown them in your backyard!
100 bucks says this chao ah gua elic brooks wont take up singaporean citizenship
Eric
This is what Spore does to homeless people,
http://www.straitstimes.com/Breaking%2BNews/Singapore/Story/STIStory_418240.html
jail them, that’s why no beggers in Spore…..
sgcynic
“Sigh, after staying in Singapore, Brooks fellow still cannot see the street-level socioeconomic conditions of Singapore.”
But of course. Back home in Canada, Mr. Brooks is most likely “street-level” himself. Here in Singapore, he should be at least “10th floor-level”. So far above the street, how to understand street conditions?