Comments on: TOC Blog Feature: The expats will rule Singapore

By: d

Wed, 10 Aug 2011 10:04:37 +0000

Adamn khoo is a lao chee bai.

By: rem

rem — Sat, 18 Dec 2010 13:15:23 +0000

adam khoo cant even write in proper grammatically correct sentences. i think someone here needs to go back to school instead hahah.

By: donald

donald — Mon, 13 Sep 2010 08:57:35 +0000

nothing strange to excel in foreign countries. when i studied in usa and australia in 80s and 90s, local people there said we singaporeans were very hardworking, we scored straight As and came top in class because we did not want to disappoint our parents. back then, most singaporeans were not so rich. they got nothing to do but study.

By: Queen Mab

Queen Mab — Thu, 19 Aug 2010 15:34:41 +0000

A lot of china nationals who come here to study in our local schools have a distinct, unfair advantage in that they tend to be slightly older than their peers at the level they are enrolled in. This is primarily due to their lack of fluency in English – however, in subjects such as science and math, these china students often already possess a head start as they have already studied these topics back in their motherland. While learning these subjects in an unfamiliar language can be challenging, their understanding of the concepts (which to me, seems to be a more challenging task) is already present and therefore they tend to perform better than their singaporean counterparts. Whether this is reflective of a better ability is ambiguous.

By: josephine

josephine — Thu, 01 Apr 2010 01:24:49 +0000

Dear Adam

You have mis-spelt the name of our founding father, Lee Kuan Yew.

Your blog has achieved its objective of getting attention however, as I had not heard of you before today.

Josephine
Hokkaido
Japan

By: preston loon

preston loon — Mon, 29 Mar 2010 18:38:45 +0000

To All TOC readers,
Those expats who are running our country will eventually become Singapore citizens.So,do not worry lah!.If you could recalled,many of our earlier former MPs and cabinet ministers were also foreigners.Nothing new and unusual here.Do not let this A.Khoo stir up your emotion.

By: David

David — Mon, 29 Mar 2010 17:04:55 +0000

Singaporeans will certainly have the hunger and fighting spirit if PAP regime stop using kangaroo as a whipping stick to tame us, punish us and stop us from doing what we felt is good for the nation and our well beings. The reason why certain people from other nationalities performed well was because their country is far more democratic than Singapore and their leaders were less iron-handed towards its citizen. If this high performers were to live in Singapore as citizen for a prolonged period under the current LEEgime, I can bet that they will eventually find themselves trapped mentally & emotionally and behaved the way Singaporeans have been doing all these years – trying to break free from tight control. Unfortunately, Adam Khoo book fell short of such understanding why many Singaporeans can never be a multi-millionair – not the people fault but forced under unconducive circumstances.

By: mice is nice

mice is nice — Mon, 29 Mar 2010 16:42:55 +0000

the pass generation must assume a larger part of the responsibility for today’s youth, individually, as a community & those who were/are entrusted to shape the future, both S’pore’s & that of her people. it’s always easy to point fingers at others shortcomings, but way harder to admit one’s part it has played in shaping the youths.

hunger for success & fighting spirit are qualities that are inbued from young, qualities are not skills that can be trained like how our dear leaders expect PMETs who are retrenched to just enter another totally industry at the drop of a hat & be as productive as seasoned oldtimers.

hmmm, i have yet see our ministers fight for S’poreans’ welfare, jobs worklife balance, 1st world life, etc for altruistic reasons, rather for then seemingly politically motivated 1s. as our nation’s leaders, youths need examples to emulate but what examples are these leaders setting? just look at SP Power, our public transport operators, now Seng Siong…

By: Greed

Greed — Mon, 29 Mar 2010 15:48:26 +0000

Just found out from wiki that he is a director of Health Promotion Board. So that why all the hard sucking.

By: Greed

Greed — Mon, 29 Mar 2010 15:44:23 +0000

Adam Khoo is just trying to suck up to the gahmen and expats so that they will endorse his courses. I wonder if any working class local would ever wanted to attend his seminars again. Maybe he had suck the wrong ball.

By: Disillusioned

Disillusioned — Sun, 24 Jan 2010 03:15:43 +0000

i think it is time we look at what is the real issue here. why are singaporeans so ‘picky’ and why do they seem to always ‘demand’ to be paid more? i think as singaporeans ourselves, the answer is very clear – the high and ever-increasing costs of living in singapore means that it is simply quite impossible to settle for less. unlike the expats (i’m referring to the chinese, bangladeshi, indians and malaysians amongst us who are perceived as much more ‘willing’ and ‘less picky’), we are not here ALONE in Singapore. when a chinese or indian worker earns a salary of $800 a month (and with some effort to scrimp and save), the money they have left remaining can feed an entire family back where they come from. give a singaporean $800 a month and you expect him to be able to sustain a family right here in singapore? quite impossible i would think.
just like an Indonesian maid who works for a family here in Singapore, after some years she can build and own houses back home – even though in SG she may be the lowest paid foreign worker.
if we start to pay a bus captain or toilet cleaner $1500 a month, i am sure more singaporeans will be WILLING and ABLE to take up these jobs but of course, it is probably impractical to suggest that? (how about, for every singaporean worker hired, the government pays part of their salaries to reduce the cost impact this will have on employers and at the same time, provide ‘equal opportunities’ to singaporeans and foreign workers based purely on their merit instead – the best worker gets the job, not the cheapest?)
what i am saying is that it is unfair to say that singaporeans are picky and choosy and demanding. take the case of foreign professionals working in singapore instead. in most cases, these FT come from advanced countries with costs and standards of living close to or equivalent to that of Singapore and what do they get? housing allowances, premium pay packages etc… all in the name of attracting these FTs to work in Singapore. all because Singapore needs foreign talent to survive. so for a local singaporean and foreigner doing the same work, the latter gets more perks and $$$ than the former. how is this then considered fair?
so as long as we are singaporean, regardless of whether you are a worker or a professional, we lose out? that – is really very sad for us.

By: Cosy comfort niavety

Cosy comfort niavety — Fri, 01 Jan 2010 01:17:39 +0000

Under relentless oppression, how can I think and move? Give me my share of TH and GIC assets, a dual citizenship rights and then see if I “disappear ” tommorrow to the most remote corner of the world to find fortune for myself and my country.

By: New Era

New Era — Thu, 31 Dec 2009 19:41:59 +0000

He is just another apple polisher. I don’t take him seriously and neither should Singaporeans.

Show complete ignorance on the issues over the ‘foreign talen’ debate.

I have had enough of this ‘blaming Singaporeans for everything.’

Time for Change.

By: Enigmatic

Enigmatic — Thu, 31 Dec 2009 19:04:17 +0000

Adam has over simplified and sees partially from only an enclosed angle -when one does not ask much in a class / seminar could probably be that one has a better grasp and understanding of all that have been taught /elaborated and Singaporeans will not be so lame duck as to entirely permit an outright gentrification in the various aspects of jobs, housing etc etc by foreign breed local /PRs – though it seems imminent now.

Singaporeans are fine breed with many talents who are not able to manifest their various capabilities – esp those who are unwilling to align with an intimidating dictatorial regime.

Time will reveal all – but most important will banished those currenttly rotten ones.

By: Adam Koo Koo

Adam Koo Koo — Thu, 31 Dec 2009 16:25:07 +0000

As Adam Koo Koo, I see more and more Gen Y people not interested in signing up for my various motivational, get-rich-quick courses and schemes.

I don’t know why they are not hungry anymore, why don’t they want to improve themselves through my ISO-certified, expert-testified, money-back guaranteed inspirational courses ?? !!!

Eureka! I’ve found the causal link !!!

They prefer hanging out in cafes instead of paying to attend my company’s courses, so this MEANS they are not hungry and lack fighting spirit !

By: Zefly (aka Joshua Chiang)

Zefly (aka Joshua Chiang) — Thu, 31 Dec 2009 15:10:50 +0000

Adam Khoo’s right. We are not hungry enough. Even though we work the longest hours in the world.

http://www.pressrun.net/weblog/2009/12/singapore-workers-work-longest-hours-ilo-report.html

Thus we have no time to attend his talks.

If you’re hungry, it’s probably ‘cos you’re not hungry enough.

By: nonsense

nonsense — Thu, 31 Dec 2009 13:14:33 +0000

#45- My sentiments EXACTLY!!!

Singaporeans are too busy being robbed blind everywhere by pay&pay to have anything left to fight. Get real. >:P

By: commentator

commentator — Thu, 31 Dec 2009 13:11:23 +0000

Hello! Does being hungry for success and having fighting spirit mean that we must lower our salary expectation so much that employers like yourself can exploit cheap labour?

How can you say Singaporeans are not hungry enough for success? Some are so hungry that they literally collapsed and died. What fighting spirit can you expect from a dying person? – except the fight for “justice and equality”. (so as to achieve happiness, prosperity and progress for the disadvantaged)

By: Disgusted

Disgusted — Thu, 31 Dec 2009 08:55:31 +0000

I don’t agree with Adam. The whole issue is about Singaporean being replaced by cheaper foreigner not better. As illustrated by his experience, employers like him benefited by Gov Foreigner policy.

FYI, Adam, whenever I saw training school associated with you or your company, I will ignore it cos I don’t trust you at all.

By: walau

walau — Thu, 31 Dec 2009 06:11:07 +0000

@48 Triple Threat…its people like Khoo who may have a little talent but are the biggest beneficiaries of a value system that perhaps rewards hungry opportunists and compliant followers. These are the kind of guys who think of themselves as deserving winners and fail to recognize themselves as beneficiaries(of the system); who see it as their given right to condemn, berate and chastise others unlike them. And I don’t know enough whether are these the kind of people who fill the ranks of political leadership but I have a feeling that they do. That said, I believe there are more enlightened businessmen & entrepreneurs e.g. Ho Kwan Ping(?) who have a much better and nuanced understanding of the socio-economic, political complexity.