Dear Justin/Young Reformers,

I wonder if you can share with us your workplan or activities/events for 2010.

I would also like to ask what are the differences between Young Reformers and Young Democrats. As they are both popular choices.

So I guess you have running dogs everywhere.

______________________________________________________________

Hello Justin
As spoken on the phone, i would like to clarify few points.

1) It is unfortunate that the statement which the member made in her own capacity has made members of the opposition or audience at the event unhappy. Although the member has identified herself to be a member of NUSPA, the statement she made at the forum was of no means NUSPA official stand.

2) As NUSPA is non aligned and neutral, members will attend forums or events in their personal capacity. If the member has ill informed anybody, i would like to take this opportunity to apologize on her behalf.

3) Regarding engagement of parties with NUSPA, the member made the observation based on what she know since joining NUSPA on Aug 2009. From Aug 2009 till present, no other parties other than youth wing of the ruling party has approached NUSPA. I reiterate the stand which NUSPA takes, we are non aligned and non partisan.

4) As NUSPA targets undergraduates, Reformers who are undergraduates are free to participate in NUSPA events on the exception that they must participate in their personal capacity and adhere to rules or regulations set by the director of the event (eg: for events which audience need to sought for ticket, Reformers do not have ticket allocated to them automatically but sought for them as like other undergraduate).

I seek your kind understanding in the issue.

Regards
Eng Kiat
President
NUSPA

That is the inevitable outcome in any dictatorship where those in power don’t depend on the mandate of the people. In Singapore, the entire state machinery is under the jackboot of a tyrant who constantly claims that he and his ministers are overwhelmingly elected by the people for their honesty and incorruptible integrity.

There are so many partisan players in positions of power (not just due to their partisan affliation but partisan behavior) in supposedly non-partisan organs of the state in Singapore it disgusts me!

Look at the MSM, the academic instiutions, the statutory boards, the unions etc.etc.

Says a lot about their “Non-partisan and Non-ideology based” statements if you take this fact into context.

Hopefully the lady who asked the question was just a misinformed member of NUSPA ..

Looking forward to a response from NUSPA to your queries though Justin.

When Jarrod and Justin explained that just because their efforts were omitted by mainstream media coverage, it doesn’t mean that their respective parties have failed to reach out on their part, she further brushed them by further insinuating that their parties have been lazy and further blame them for not putting in enough effort.

The lady then copped out by saying that she is just a normal citizen when Jarrod innocuously consulted back to her on how the opposition can better reach out to people like her, since she is on the receiving end and should know better, which was disappointing.

A simple search on the internet would prove her wrong through and through though, at least on the SDP front, and in fact, their efforts have resulted in a milestone in student activism leading to the first student protest and demonstration in decades, albeit restricted to the boundaries of the Speakers’ Corner. Still a laudable feat though.

http://theonlinecitizen.com/2008/09/ntu-censors-campus-news-coverage-of-chee-soon-juan-visit/

http://theonlinecitizen.com/2008/10/ntu-students-protest-at-speakers-corner/

http://www.yoursdp.org/index.php/news/singapore/397-sdp-vists-nus

http://www.yoursdp.org/index.php/news/singapore/949-democrats-continue-engaging-youth-this-time-at-ntu

http://www.yoursdp.org/index.php/news/singapore/968-sdp-turns-attention-to-nie-

http://www.yoursdp.org/index.php/news/singapore/1036-nus-officials-stop-democrats-from-distributing-flyers

http://www.yoursdp.org/index.php/news/singapore/1110-democrats-write-to-stuident-body-at-ntu

http://www.yoursdp.org/index.php/news/singapore/1203-ntu-students-come-alive

No apologies for the skewed coverage towards the SDP though, since SDP has the strongest web presence amongst the various parties and these are the results that turned up in my search, although it is understandable that RP is a new party and therefore information on them is not that readily available yet. Hopefully that will change in time.

http://yoursdp.org/index.php/news/singapore/397-sdp-vists-nus

http://yoursdp.org/index.php/news/singapore/1036-nus-officials-stop-democrats-from-distributing-flyers

http://yoursdp.org/index.php/news/singapore/1091-ntu-pulls-plug-on-report-on-sdp-visit

Although the representative of the NUSPA reinterated that there was no aversion to opposition parties participating at their events, a statement on their website conflicts this. I hope to clarify what the below-mentioned means.

http://www.nuspa.org/cms/?q=node/107
“The different needs of our members are met through a host of projects, events and activities which are non-partisan and non-ideology based.”

Apart from requesting the Association to invite representatives of the Reform Party to participate in their future activities, I have in return, invited them to our twice-weekly Open House.

I hope the NUSPA would be able to continue their work and further their commitment to “imbue greater political awareness among our youths”.