Home » Archive for January, 2010
Archive for January, 2010
Medisave contribution may increase to cover costs – Leong Sze Hian replies
Jan. 31 | Leong Sze Hian I refer to the report “Medisave contribution may go up to cover costs” (ChannelNewsAsia, Jan 28). It states that “Medisave contribution may go up as the need for long-term care increases with Singapore’s aging population....
Press Muse – Moving news and pushing pills
Jan. 31 | Spiegel A while ago, I noted the inappropriate use of a Habbo survey as a basis for drawing scientific conclusions on ills of computer game addiction. In particular, I insinuated that Habbo, an online social networking site, were delighted recipients...
An indoctrination process during NS
Jan. 31 | Alvin Phoon Being Singaporean means experiencing a lot of things. Good food. High prices. SPGs. It also means constantly receiving some excellent reasons for why things are; reasons that may or may not (mostly not) justify fallacies in the current political...
How many low-wage or unemployed? 600,000? 700,000?
Jan. 31 | Leong Sze Hian I refer to the articles “Big gains in jobs, mostly for locals” (ST, Jan 30), “The optimism gets real: Employers’ caution giving way to confidence, as orders grow: Hudson survey” (Today, Jan 22), Raymond Koh...
RP: Don’t address issues by only looking at symptoms
Jan. 25 | Donaldson Tan / Photo courtesy of Boris Chan Panellists – from left to right – Tony Tan, Hazel Poa, James Gomez, Justin Ong, Kenneth Jeyaretnam, Peter Li, Jason Soh Last Saturday, the Reform Party’s Seminar on Education attracted a...
TOC Polling Day – final poll to pick your favourite representation
Jan. 24 | Top 10 logos emerging from the first stage poll Despite a week of DDoS attacks on The Online Citizen (TOC), the TOC Community has persisted in its support. What that does not kill us only makes us stronger. 35 unique logos, each representing the...
Inadequate public transport
Jan. 23 | SMRT has actually DECREASE their train service frequencies by as much as 13%! An increase of 19% of demand couple by a decrease in supply of 13% will naturally result in packing the MRT cabins with more people! This is reflected in the increase of occupancy...
Facebook’s bra colour campaign for breast cancer hurts more than it helps
Jan. 23 | Note: Our views count feature is not working at the moment. We’re working to rectify it. Martha Lee (Dr) I first learnt about the ‘Facebook Bra Color Campaign’ through the blog post by sex-positive activist Carlin Ross who works alongside...
50 years of HDB – homelessness is its biggest challenge
Jan. 23 | Andrew Loh Come next Tuesday to Friday, the Housing and Development Board will host the International Housing Conference, an event to showcase and boast about the HDB’s achievements over the last 50 years. Titled, “Sustainable Housing : Charting New...
101 East – Calling Singapore Home
Jan. 23 | How will the government’s new liberal immigration policy affect the people? In this 2-part video, Al Jazeera speaks to Mr Kenneth Jeyaretnam, Mr Siew Kum Hong, Mr Jolovan Wham and Dr Dawn Dekle. The Singapore government declined to participate...
US govt will push harder against web censorship
Jan. 23 | Both the American people and nations that censor the Internet should understand that our government is committed to helping promote Internet freedom. US Secretary of State, Hilary Clinton
Blogger Gerald Giam joins the Workers’ Party
Jan. 23 | From Gerald Giam’s blog: I joined the WP because I believe Singapore needs an alternative leadership that is capable of taking over the reins and steering our country to its next level of development, should the PAP stumble. This will ensure that Singapore...
Needy waits 2 years under HDB’s Public Rental Scheme
Jan. 20 | Lisa Li I refer to Ms Kee Lay Cheng’s letter ‘Priority given to truly needy’ in the TODAY paper (13 Jan 2010) in reply to Mr Leong Sze Hian. According to Ms Kee, who is the Deputy Director (Land Administration) Housing and Development Board, “HDB...
Former SAF scholar joins Reform Party
Jan. 20 | Kelvin Teo Reformers at a Jurong Walkabout – from left to right – James Teo, Justin Ong, Tony Tan One can be forgiven for believing that there is somewhat a connection between high-flying scholars and the ruling party. This can be attributed...
The science of motivation
Jan. 19 | Career analyst Dan Pink examines the puzzle of motivation, starting with a fact that social scientists know but most managers don’t: Traditional rewards aren’t always as effective as we think. Future revision of ministerial and civil service...
Men in White silent on key historical issues, say scholars
Jan. 19 | Wong Chun Han / Pictures courtesy of Asia Research Institute, NUS Rather than shedding light on the unfamiliar chapters of Singapore’s political history, the authors and publishers of Men in White have kept readers in the dark in some regards,...
Youthquake 6: Alternative media can’t replace traditional media
Jan. 18 | Nur Izyan / Photos courtesy of WP Youth Wing Last Saturday, Workers’ Party Youth Wing (WPYW) organised a public forum titled “The influence of online media on Singaporean youths”. It is the 6th Youthquake Forum, part of a forum series founded...
Homeless in the parks – a symptom of flawed housing policies?
Jan. 18 | Andrew Loh When the National Parks Board (NParks) relaxed camping rules in December 2004, it cited the popularity of the activity among Singaporeans as a reason. Campers would no longer be required to obtain camping permits. “With the relaxation...
Raiding the homeless – in the middle of the night
Jan. 18 | Update: (18 JAN 2010) The homeless in Sembawang Park have been given proper lodging. Some of them met with MCYS this morning. All of those who lived in the tents have moved – voluntarily – to flats. TOC will keep our readers updated. Joshua...
Presenting data so it tallies with objectives? Hmm….
Jan. 16 | The figures are all released, it is just a question of whether you dig it out and publish it. But we will study how to present it, so that it tallies with the objectives we have. Lee Hsien Loong, on releasing more data on the GNP
City Harvest Church acquires land for S$310m in central-south Singapore
Jan. 16 | Breaking News: City Harvest Church has acquired a piece of land in central-south Singapore with the intention of building a 12,000-seater hall at S$310 million, said the church’s senior pastor, Kong Hee. He disclosed the news at a service at...
Should Singapore’s Home Minister be thrown into a Vietnamese jail?
Jan. 16 | Alex Au (Yawningbread) takes up the issue of human trafficking, in particular those by so-called “marriage brokers” and how the local press and the Singapore government may be complicit in this. Excerpts from Yawning Bread: I hope the Vietnamese police...
TOC Editorial: A hint of assertiveness
Jan. 16 | The Court of Appeals’ Yong Vui Kong ruling could signal a change in criminal jurisprudence The Court of Appeals’ surprisingly liberal ruling on the Yong Vui Kong case, delivered in a written judgment on 31st December 2009 by Chief Justice Chan Sek...
PAP MP says he is a man of ‘passion and purpose”
Jan. 15 | I just have the passion. And that’s why when people ask me, I always say I am a PAP man, I’m a man with Passion And Purpose. Aljunied GRC MP Yeo Guat Kwang, on why he took up the chairmanship of NTUC’s Migrant Workers Centre. (Straits...
TOC Poll – Pick your favourite logo!
Jan. 15 | The Online Citizen (TOC) has been online for 3 years but we’ve never had an official logo. So, we asked our fans on Facebook to help us design one – and they did. We thank everyone who took the time to create the following logos. We now need...
Double-barrelled but no big impact
Jan. 15 | I don’t think it will have a big impact on our GRCs or ethnic integration policies because the majority of the population will still be the major racial groups – the Chinese, the Malays, the Indians. And these are the other racial or ethnic...
SFD will take “bearings from the pledge”
Jan. 15 | Fang Shihan and Khairulanwar Zaini Gracing the tenth session of Talk Politics All Night Long, an informal political discussion initiative, Dr James Gomez shared more details on Singaporeans for Democracy (SFD), the upcoming non-governmental organization...
Violation of foreign workers’ rights – in Singapore and Japan
Jan. 15 | Video of scuffle at Japan airport when some foreign workers were to be forceably repartriated Ralph Hosoki / additional input from Jolovan Wham During the late 1980s, the Japanese government was faced with a predicament. With depleted domestic sources...
It is affordable – Mah Bow Tan
Jan. 15 | This is possible due to our generous subsidy system. All new flats come with a generous market subsidy. Mah Bow Tan, insisting that HDB flats are affordable.
HDB’s reply on flats for foreigners – a conflict of interest?
Jan. 15 | Leong Sze Hian In my letter to the Today newspaper titled, “A precious resource”, I had asked why two blocks of flats in Toa Payoh were being reserved for rental to foreign workers from the two Integrated Resorts (IRs). I had said that HDB flats,...
4 more ERP gantries
Jan. 15 | The Land Transport Authority (LTA) announced on Thursday that four ERP gantries will go up in Marina Centre, which will be part of an enlarged Central Business District (CBD). Straits Times
Cooling-off to remember PAP’s success
Jan. 15 | The following letter is by Mr Andy Lim. It is in reply to Dr Yik Keng Yong’s letter (see below, “It’s a sound policy”) in the Straits Times forum page to Dr Catherine Lim’s interpretation of People’s Action Party’s announcement...
Malaysia: whose God?
Jan. 15 | Religious tensions are rising in Malaysia over the name of Allah. A recent high court ruling, allowing the use of the Arabic word for God, has sparked protests in Mosques and attacks on Christian churches. The issue has highlighted the fate of the minority...
Fairness – not patronage!
Jan. 14 | Ng E-jay In his article entitled, “A masterstroke?” (Jan 9), TODAY correspondent Loh Chee Keong argued that the recent proposal of allowing more NCMP seats might fragment the opposition and diminish the lure of trying to capture a GRC. Loh...
Youth leaders from S’pore & Malaysia condemn attacks on Malaysian churches
Jan. 14 | Wong Chun Han Young Singaporean and Malaysian politicians have united in speaking out against recent attacks on churches in Malaysia. Youth wing leaders from the Singapore Democratic Party and Parti Keadilan Rakyat (People’s Justice Party) issued...
Deep sympathy and solidarity with the people of Haiti
Jan. 14 | Picture from Associated Press here. Ravi Philemon The Haiti earthquake is probably one of the worst humanitarian emergencies in the Americas. Over 100,000 people are feared dead. What may be even worse is that over 3 million are in need of immediate...
Google: a new approach to China
Jan. 14 | Google Like many other well-known organizations, we face cyber attacks of varying degrees on a regular basis. In mid-December, we detected a highly sophisticated and targeted attack on our corporate infrastructure originating from China that resulted...
TOC Editorial: The edge of tolerance
Jan. 13 | Malaysia pulls back from the brink, again – but it should not rely on riding its luck It always seems to take the worst to bring out the best in people. Days after a rash of attacks on churches in Malaysia last weekend, the country’s politicians...
Cooling off – PAP’s insecurity exposed
Jan. 13 | I was surprised that a shrewd leadership like the PAP could come up with a ruling that … exposes an insecurity that must make even its supporters wonder about how strong, after more than four decades of leadership, the bond between the Government...
CPF: the risk of living too long
Jan. 13 | In this 6-part video, Leong Sze Hian gives his take on the CPF Life scheme which will become mandatory in 2012. You can download the powerpoint slides for his presentation here.
YouthQuake 6 – The Influence of Online Media on Singaporean Youths
Jan. 13 | The Central Executive Committee of the Worker’s Party’s Youth Wing. With the prevalence of online media on political parties, this topic takes on special significance as the role of online media vis-à-vis print media will come into prominence...
Rebutting Law Minister K Shanmugam
Jan. 13 | Donaldson Tan Sometimes, one can’t help wondering if the Law Minister K Shanmugam is eyeing the the Education Minister Dr Ng Eng Hen’s job. After all, the Ministry of Education is seen as a crucial stepping stone to senior ministerial position...
People of the tents
Jan. 13 | Home to the homeless Story and picture by Joshua Chiang The campsite had a holiday feel to it. Clothes hung on makeshift clothes-line. Small stoves and barbeque pits occupy the floor around the park shelter. There were fishing rods, crab traps, guitars,...
The tabernacle of respect
Jan. 13 | Tng Ying Hui Recently the internet has been abuzz with news of a scantily clad woman who was molested at Sentosa Siloso beach party by four men. Bystanders, instead of taking action whipped out their phones for an exciting scoop (Read more here), mistaking...
Are evangelists religious extremists?
Jan. 13 | Alvin Phoon Speaking at the TOC year in review, Miss Braema Mathi tells of her encounter with a religious group that showed up at her doorstep with the intention of spreading its gospel. Her opinion is that they should not have knocked on her door, as...
Discovering the Uncovered
Jan. 11 | Fang Shiyuan and Jax Tan Uncovered is a temporary retail manifestation put up by Reckless Ericka in conjunction with ELOHIM by Sabrina Goh. This pop-up store retails for a restricted timeframe of one week starting from 7th Jan to 13th Jan 2010 at the...
Copenhagen: failure or success
Jan. 11 | ECO Singapore Assoc Prof Pauline Tay-Straughan had the following questions brought up to the Minister of Environment and Water Resources Dr Yacoob Ibrahim and the Parliament over the weekend. Response is to be expected at the Parliament session on the...
