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4G leaders must sincerely listen to the people and make changes to avoid similar fate to BN: Ex-PAP MP

Jewel Stolarchuk
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144
4G leaders must sincerely listen to the people and make changes to avoid similar fate to BN: Ex-PAP MP

Former PAP Member of Parliament for Ang Mo Kio GRC, Mr Inderjit Singh, has opined that the fourth-generation leaders of the country must sincerely listen to and try to understand what Singaporeans are tired of in order to solidify the people’s trust in them.

Drawing lessons from the historic Malaysia General Election that unfolded yesterday – in which the opposition snagged a stunning majority in what became the nation’s first transition of power in the past 61 years – Mr Singh seemed to imply that the 4G leaders need to do this to avoid a fate like the one Barisan National suffered last night, where he felt people got tired of issues and “spoke at the elections through their votes.”

This is not the first time that Mr Singh has shared his opinions on hot button topics in Singapore, since he retired from politics in 2015 after serving the Kebun Baru ward within Ang Mo Kio GRC for 19 years.

Among other issues, Mr Singh lent his voice to the Oxley saga in early June last year, opining that for Singapore to move on “everyone must give up something.” He also weighed in on the reserved presidential election last year and boldly said, “A sitting MP resigning from office to contest Presidential Election may go against spirit of Office as intended by Lee Kuan Yew.”

Read his latest reflection, touching on points made in the recent President’s Address and yesterday’s general election across the Causeway:

https://www.facebook.com/kbinderjit/posts/2103346273025428

In case you cannot read the post above:

Two key events took place this week. First, President Halimah Yacob delivered her address at the opening of the 2nd session of the 13th Singapore Parliament spelling the vision and plans for the PAPs 4G leadership. The second was the historical defeat of the ruling Barisan National government who lost power after continuously holding on to power for 61 years, since the Malaysian Independence. I am sharing what we can learn from these significant events. My article below;

Key Messages of The President’s Address to Parliament

Introduction

The President recently delivered her address at the opening of the 2nd session of the 13th Parliament of Singapore. The President’s address is effectively a message from the government on their plans for Singapore. Which is why this year, and this address, is particularly important because for the first time, the strategy for the future of Singapore has been mainly formulated by the 4G leaders who will soon take charge of the government. Next week in Parliament we will be hearing from the 4G leaders about their vision and plans and from the MPs who should debate on what the government should be doing for the good of their voters – their fellow Singaporeans. I am looking forward to hearing from the 4G leaders and hope they will be able to inspire Singaporeans to be confident about Singapore’s future. Interestingly, the President highlighted a few key points that I feel were very important messages for the 4G leadership and for all MPs to reflect upon and understand.

It is also useful for us to reflect on the Malaysia election results that came in this morning and hopefully draw lessons that our MPS and 4G leaders will address during next week’s debate on the President’s Address. Malaysians created history today- for the 1st time in history after 61 years a new government will be formed. The ruling BN not only got ousted but lost convincingly. The people exercised their right to change government as they got tired of kleptocracy and exercised their democratic rights. Well done Malaysians, very few expected the BN to lose.

Lessons Learnt from the Malaysia Elections

So, what happened in Malaysia yesterday and how is it relevant to Singapore? There are three lessons that interestingly were also signalled by President Halimah Yacob’s address to parliament.

1. The ruling elite lost touch with ground and did not listen to people.

1MDB was a serious issue but the people in power used all tools at their disposal to hide the truth instead of convincingly proving innocence. Cost of living was a serious issue but the leaders who were rich did not feel it and did not listen to the ground to understand the true situation. Malaysians were concerned about the overinvestment by foreigners in their country, as they felt that their country was being “sold” to the foreigners, but the government pressed on to allow more and more investments. Sabah is a surprise. Opposition listened and understood what Malaysians were most concerned about and promised changes.

2. Lack of Bold Changes – What worked in the past does not always work today or in the future.

The incumbent BN government that ruled Malaysia for 61 years continued to depend on old policies, old structures and old politics to run the country and in how they conducted their politics. Bold changes did not happen for a long time. The government did nothing new.

While in early years, infrastructure development was necessary, this remained the government’s main focus – an irrelevant 50-year-old strategy, again fuelled by foreign investment. This led to unnecessary projects like housing that resulted in empty buildings. BN used old tactics and continued the age-old race-based politics. Opposition created a multi-racial alliance and the man responsible for much of the old strategy (Dr Mahathir) made a bold change of joining his past foes to create that multi-racial coalition, promising a return to firm rule of law. Here, I must single out Dr. Mahathir. Many credit him for being an astute politician and rightly so. But more importantly, it is amazing that he has the vision and an open-mind to recognize that many of the old politics that he introduced in his era are irrelevant and that a new approach and new politics is needed. And implement. It is said that it is difficult to teach an old dog new tricks. But here, a 92-year old has learnt it, adapted and taught us all the value of being bold and innovative. Much for all of us to learn.

Moreover, BN again reverted to the old election tactic of handouts and dangling carrots like public holidays and tax exemptions. This showed that they were out of touch with the majority millennial voters who wanted accountability and transparency more than anything, as well as bringing Malaysians back to the core and fore.

3. Right to lead and form govt is not an inherited right.

UMNO took it for granted that they had the inherited right to rule and became complacent taking their voters for granted. The political elites took care of themselves and assumed they will always have the right to rule. They forgot that in a democracy people have the right to choose who leads them and the political leaders need to earn the right to lead. The 92-year-old Dr Mahatir made a stunning comeback – he had a good past track record, he saw things going wrong in his country and worked hard to win a second chance to lead the country. After 61 years, DAP leader Lim Kiat Siang finally will be part of government and not the opposition and he earned that right as did Puan Wan Azizah Wan Ismail, whose family suffered, and she fought hard to earn the right to most likely become Malaysia’s first female Deputy Prime Minister.

So, bottom line is that the BN did not change so the people changed government.

The Singapore President’s Address – The 3 key messages that stood out

President Halimah Yacob shared the government’s agenda in parliament earlier this week, spelling it out for the coming years. The 4G leaders will take the responsibility of implementing the agenda. I think the outcome of the Malaysian elections are timely and the 4G leaders should make the best out of it by learning key lessons so that they can do a good job and what is right to lead Singapore to a brighter future.

1. Key Message 1 : Listen to views of feelings of Singaporeans (to understand them better).

This I think is the most important message which the 4G leaders must internalize and sincerely practice. The Pioneer generation of leaders understood their ground very well and came out with the right policies that transformed Singapore from 3rd World to 1st World in 1 generation. Had they not understood Singaporeans, what their aspirations were and what they wanted for the future, Singapore may have gone the way of many countries that gained independence around the time Singapore did but are today worst off that before they became independent.

Interestingly, DPM Tharman SHANMUGARATNAM made a Facebook posting on the same night of the President’s Address that alluded to the importance of this message and this is what he posted;

“There were several themes in the President’s Address this evening. But this on the 4G leadership was the most important.” DPM Tharman was referring to the part of the President speech which called upon the political leaders to listen to views and feeling of Singaporeans.

He clearly pointed this out as the most important message. Why? DPM Tharman is one leader who has a very good feel of the ground and not many are like him. He has also been able to, in the past, make many bold changes in Education and in how the economy should be structured. He could do so because he listened and understood Singaporeans.

Currently, over the recent past, more and more Singaporeans are feeling uncomfortable about some issues affecting them. It is important that the government listens and understands them. Some say that policies don’t reflect reality on the ground. Some examples are;

a. The Economy – the key messages from government are that our economy is doing very well but many companies, especially SMEs don’t feel that good about it. I wrote about the Dual economy effect where the MNCs and GLCs are experiencing different growth and support compared to SMEs who are struggling.

b. The Future of jobs – are we ready for the Future Economy?

c. Income inequality – this is a global phenomenon, but some feel the government is not addressing this adequately – I am glad Minister Ong Ye Kung raised this issue recently.

d. The cost of living, the ability of our young to afford a house in the future and the quality of life in Singapore. These are serious worries Singaporean have.

2. Key Message 2 : Be Bold enough to make changes (not just tweak things)

If the CFE is a reflection of level of a bold plan for the Future Economy of Singapore, then I feel that the 4G leaders have not displayed boldness. Many of the ideas and plans were tweaks of past ideas and plans. It was difficult to spot and exciting vision for the future of Singapore and how we will get there.

A bold plan for the Future of the Economy would have been to turn things completely around and make SMEs and local companies the core contributors of our future economy. Currently I don’t see any change in the government’s thinking about how we will be driving Singapore’s economy. We are still relying on the MNC/GLC model of the past in most economic policies. A fundamental change in mindset of govt needed for this to happen. Then all policies will fall in place to make real changes happen.

Recently I attended an event where a 4G minister made a speech about the government’s plan and what the government will do to support future economy of Singapore. He shared three things the government will do;

a. The government will build the right Infrastructure quoting some of the same development plans we have been hearing for a few years now.

b. Provide Singaporeans with Education to prepare future generations to fit into the future economy.

c. Build system based on meritocracy and a corrupt free govt.

Frankly, while these three may be important, they did not really inspire. In fact, reflecting on the message, I realize we have heard the same from our founding Prime Minister, Lee Kuan Yew some 50 years ago. I would have hoped to hear something new or at least tell us how differently we will be doing things for these 3 thrusts be to inspire confidence for our future. What worked in the past may not necessarily work in future. My advice to the 4G leadership is : Be bold and make bold changes.

The Late Lee Kuan Yew in an article published on Asiaone on 21st Jan 2011, used the Japan example of how the PAP govt might get voted out one day. He was quoted to say:

“Mr Lee referred to the Liberal Party in Japan as an example. The party held power from 1955 to 2009, with an 11-month interruption from 1993 to 1994. He said that the downfall of the Japanese party was partly because it “carried on with old ideas”.

So, this is a key message that old ways may not work anymore, look for new bold ideas.

3. Key Message 3 : Trust between people and leaders cannot be Inherited by the next generation.

In the same token, the future leaders also cannot feel that have inherited the right to lead Singapore just because they have been put in place by virtue of the past government’s ability to put them in their current positions. They must inspire next generation about their future. They must show Singaporeans, especially our young that there is hope and many opportunities for them in the Future Singapore. We are going to face rapid disruption in the years ahead – many reports quote that 50% jobs as we know today will be gone by the year 2030. Can the government and our 4G leaders do the right things and implement the right and bold changes needed to keep all Singapore employed and have a good quality of life in the years to come. This is my hope for the current 4G PAP leadership and I think they can do it if they listen well and make bold changes and be willing to slaughter ‘sacred cows’.

Perhaps 4G leaders may want to create a vision equivalent to the ‘Swiss standard of living’ again where Singaporeans can aim for a vision of meaningful employment with respectable wages and where there is a balanced lifestyle where we all work hard but also have time, space and resources to enjoy Singapore. And when the 4G leaders make it happen, they would have won the trust of Singaporeans and PAP would have earned the right to lead Singapore many more years to come.

Conclusion

From what I read from reports, corruption and kleptocracy plagued Malaysia politics for some time now. People got tired of this and spoke at the elections through their votes.

We are fortunate that Singapore does not face these same issues. But this does not mean Singapore has no other problems of our own. For the PAP’s 4G leaders to continue to lead Singapore, they must identify these problems and they must understand what are Singaporeans getting tired of. Leaders can identify what these issues are only by listening sincerely. Once they understand the issues, the leaders must be bold enough to make changes even these are fundamental mindset changes never done before in Singapore. When these changes take effect and improve the lives of all Singaporean, only then can our future political leaders earn the right to lead and solidify the trust Singaporeans have in them. 

Our 4G must give birth to a new social compact among govt, the political leaders and the population where everyone can be happy while working hard to entrench a home in Singapore for future generations as we aim for SG100. We thank the Pioneer generation for making Singapore what she is today. But that what the past leaders did for Singapore. What are the future leaders now doing to earn their right to lead Singapore? I hope we will hear more if this from the 4G leaders during the debate on President’s address and hope they can paint a new vision and share their strategy that can inspire Singaporeans to be confident of our future.

Malaysia GE 2018: What everyone is saying

Obbana Rajah
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Malaysia GE 2018: What everyone is saying

Obbana Rajah

As the tallying of the votes for Malaysia’s General Election came to an end earlier today, and the results came as a shock to some, but not so much to others.
Here are the reactions and overall consensus:

Singapore’s Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong: “Many Singaporeans would have followed the news about the Malaysian election yesterday. It is clear that the outcome represents a major change in Malaysian politics. We are now awaiting the formation of a new government.

We are following the situation closely. As Malaysia’s closest neighbour, we have a vested interest in Malaysia’s stability and prosperity. While Malaysian politics are for Malaysians to decide, Singapore wishes Malaysia all the best in its political development. Singapore has enjoyed good relations and close cooperation with Malaysia for many years, with successive Malaysian leaders. We look forward to developing an equally constructive relationship with the next Malaysian government, and to work with it to take our bilateral ties forward and benefit both our peoples. – LHL”

Deputy Prime Minister Tharman Shanmugaratnam: “A clear vote for change in Malaysia. And it was across the board – Malays, Chinese, Indians and even the Dayaks in Sarawak. Wish Malaysia well, and hope we continue to work together for mutual good of our people.”

Speaker of Parliament Tan Chuan-Jin: “Stunning results in the Malaysian GE!
Our Malaysian friends have made their choice and spoken out decisively. Congratulations!
We look forward to working with the new Government and leaders, and to continue to strengthen the friendship and cooperation between our two countries.
We wish Malaysia well.”

International Media:

Bangkok Post: “It was a stunning triumph that almost no one had predicted and ended the long hold on power of the Barisan Nasional (BN, National Front) coalition, which has ruled Malaysia since its birth as an independent country. The victory capped a dramatic political comeback for Mahathir, who previously ruled the country with an iron fist for 22 years, and came out of retirement to taken on Prime Minister Najib Razak after the leader became embroiled in a massive corruption scandal.”

BBC: “This morning Malaysia has woken to an entirely new situation, the first transfer of power in its history, albeit to a very familiar leader. But there are huge unknowns. How willingly will Barisan Nasional, the coalition which has, in various forms, run the country since independence and embedded itself into all areas of governance, relinquish power?”

CNN: “Malaysians will likely be in for days, if not weeks and months, of uncertainty, as a ruling coalition is hashed out and it is decided how and when Mahathir will step aside for Anwar or another opposition figure.”

The Sydney Morning Herald: “Australians will forever recall Mahathir for his “recalcitrant” stoush with Paul Keating in the early 1990s.
Now we, like people around the world, will also know him as the man who finally achieved an unlikely victory by an opposition party in a democratic election in a country that is a near neighbour, ally, and close trading partner.”

The Jakarta Post: “In a huge political upset, Mahathir’s opposition alliance ended the hold on power of the Barisan Nasional (BN) coalition, which has governed Malaysia uninterrupted since its birth as an independent country in 1957. It capped a dramatic political comeback for Mahathir, who previously ruled the country with an iron fist for 22 years and came out of retirement to take on Prime Minister Najib Razak after the leader became embroiled in a massive corruption scandal.”

Singaporeans:

 

What torching Iran deal says about US commitment to nuclear security

The Independent
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Iranian demonstrators burn a picture of the U.S. President Donald Trump. AP Photo/Vahid Salemi

President Donald Trump pulling the U.S. out of the Iran nuclear deal flies in the face of hundreds of inspections that showed Iran was meeting its end of the bargain.

It’s a move that many leaders in the international community opposed, including all other parties to the deal – France, Germany, the U.K., Russia and China. Trump’s decision has generated a firestorm of commentary about what may come next.

But what stands out to me as a researcher on energy policy and nuclear policy, is what it says about the agency that carried out the inspections – the International Atomic Energy Agency – and its mission.

Inspections in Iran

In July 2015, after the Iran deal was signed, the United Nations Security Council adopted a resolution that requested the IAEA carry out the monitoring and verifying of Iran’s compliance with its nuclear commitments. Between January 2016 and February 2018, the agency conducted more than 400 site visits and dozens of unannounced, or “snap” inspections. It installed cameras and employed satellites to perform surveillance work.

The visits covered more than 190 buildings, and the agency’s investigations used hundreds of thousands of images. From this extensive activity, the IAEA repeatedly declared, up through the most recent director’s report of March 2018, that Iran was in compliance.

None of this is affected in the least by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s recent presentation about Iran’s nuclear program, which was based on information dating from well before the Iran deal was even conceived.

And yet, Trump referenced the Israeli intelligence documents as “definitive proof that this Iranian promise was a lie,” in his speech announcing the U.S. was leaving the agreement.

By pulling out of the deal, Trump discounts the IAEA’s findings and signals to the world that he has little faith in it. As I see it, he is effectively saying it cannot be trusted to perform its most critical work in nuclear security.

Further, Trump’s action suggests that officials and intelligence agencies of all other parties to the Iran deal are gullible. Trump’s position is ironic, given that the IAEA was an invention of the U.S. It is not, however, unprecedented.

US commitment to nuclear security

In 2002, the Bush administration claimed Iraq was building a nuclear arsenal. They stated that the results of IAEA inspections, which indicated no evidence of weapons, could not be trusted. History has since shown the Bush administration was wrong about the accuracy of the IAEA’s work.

What, in the end, may really stick is the repeated example of U.S. leaders invalidating a crucial instrument for preventing the spread of nuclear weapons. I would argue that Trump has deepened the world’s dangers two-fold, by walking away from a successful nuclear deal and by showing a lack of respect for a key aspect of the IAEA’s mission to stop the spread of nuclear weapons around the world.

The Conversation

Scott L. Montgomery does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organization that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.


Source: US-Politics

Video of girl in school uniform smoking under void deck goes viral

Jewel Stolarchuk
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25
Video of girl in school uniform smoking under void deck goes viral

A video of a girl in school uniform smoking while sitting at a bench at a void deck has been going viral online, with nearly 50,000 views since it was uploaded to Facebook this morning.

In the video captured by an unknown individual sitting close by her, the teenager can be seen sitting on the bench with another young girl and smoking a cigarette. The girl taps the cigarette ash onto the ground as she smokes. After the girl finishes with her cigarette, she flicks the bud onto the ground.

The girl then looks towards the man filming. Calling him “Uncle”, the girl requests another cigarette for herself, prompting the man filming to express surprise in Tamil since she just finished one.

One netizen captured the exchange in a comment on the video:

Smoking under the age of 18 is an offence in Singapore. Convicted persons are liable to a fine of up to $300. Schools may also take disciplinary action against students who are caught contravening underage smoking regulations internally.

Smoking is also prohibited in the majority of indoor locations and selected outdoor locations in Singapore, including void decks. An individual who is caught smoking in a prohibited place is liable on conviction to a fine of $200. If convicted in Court, the offender may be liable to a fine of up to $1,000.

Littering is an offence in Singapore, as well. First time offenders who throw small items like cigarette butts or candy wrappers are typically fined $300. In 2014, the Environmental Public Health Act was revised and the maximum fine for littering offenders was doubled to $2,000 for a first conviction. Repeat offenders can be fined $4,000 for their second conviction, and $10,000 for their third and subsequent convictions.

While some netizens noted that the girl in the video committed all three offences – underage smoking, smoking in a prohibited area, and littering – the majority of netizens slammed the person who took the video for exposing the identity of the girl, whose face can clearly be seen in the clip:

https://theindependent.sg.sg/viral-video-of-woman-smoking-at-changi-airport-that-riled-singaporeans-is-from-months-ago/

Private residential market continues to gain traction

The Independent
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Sentiment in the private residential market continued to be buoyant in the first quarter of this year, said a report by OrangeTee & Tie Research and Consultancy. Overall private property prices rose across most market segments, with the largest price surge seen in the Core Central Region (5.5%) and Outside of Central Region (5.6%).

As developers’ existing stock continues to diminish and supply of completed homes remain low, many projects especially those in the CCR have raised prices of their unsold units, some by even double-digits this year. Private residential market continued to gain traction with individual re-sellers have also seized the opportunity of increasing their asking prices in light of the more positive market sentiment fueled by the recent collective sales frenzy.

Higher launch prices at some new projects slowed the buying momentum in the primary market, as sales volume dipped 15.2% quarter-on-quarrter. Some developers have also held back their launches in the first quarter in anticipation of higher asking prices. While overall sales had slipped 14.2% q-o-q, volume rose 2.4% on a y-o-y basis.

private residential market

With positive sentiments of the private residential market, sales is predicted to pick up significantly in the months ahead as more projects are slated to be launched and the prevailing market valuations be supported by banks at the higher benchmark prices.

OrangeTee & Tie research and consultancy head Christine Sun noted: “As it seems, demand for resale homes had rebounded strongly by 67.3 per cent year-on-year, the highest number of Q1 resales since 2012.”

She added: “Owing to higher land cost, stronger economic growth and pent-up demand, we expect prices to trend even higher. Some new homes may even see prices rise beyond 15%, going by the recent pricier enbloc acquisitions.”

Median rents for private homes are expected to stabilize this year as there is less supply of completed homes now as compared to the last two years. The limited supply coupled by the positive macroeconomic conditions will mitigate further downward pressure on the private rental market, the report said.

The public housing market however has not kept up with the private residential market. Median resale prices of Housing & Development Board (HDB) flats continued to drop even as the public housing developer announced the release of thousands of new Build-To-Order (BTO) flats. In late April, the HDB today announced that the Resale Price Index (RPI) of HDB flats fell by 0.8 per cent, from 132.6 in 4th Quarter 2017 to 131.6 in 1st Quarter 2018.

Median resale prices of flats continue to drop as HDB announces release of 3,900 new flats

It is however unlikely that the HDB resale prices will continue to free-fall. Analysts are almost unanimous in predicting that there will be more demand for HDB resale flats in the near future, which may drive up the prices of public housing. PropNex Realty CEO Ismail Gafoor, for example, said that there may be “a greater demand for HDB resale properties with some en bloc owners considering bigger sized resale flats in the second half of the year”. Mr Ismail believes that HDB resale prices could climb by 1 per cent this year, especially given the ongoing en bloc fever.

The upbeat private residential market sentiments together with the belief that the Government will intervene to prevent a steady-decline in prices of the public housing market, may reverse the decline of resale flat prices. For the full year, experts expect HDB resale prices to be flat or grow by up to 1 per cent. How much it will grow by next year, as we draw nearer to the next General Election, is anyone’s guess.

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If you are home-hunting, our Panel of Property agents and the mortgage consultants at icompareloan.com can help you with affordability assessment and a promotional home loan. Just email our chief mortgage consultant, Paul Ho, with your name, email and phone number at [email protected].

Are HSR and JLD projects doomed with Mahathir’s historic election win?

The Independent
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The question on those that have vested interest in the High Speed Rail (HSR) and Jurong Lake District (JLD): “Are HSR and JLD projects doomed with Mahathir’s historic election win?” The election of Dr Mahathir Mohamad’s Pakatan Harapan in Malaysia’s 14th General Election has cast a pale shadow on the HSR project between Singapore and Kuala Lumpur – and by extension, the JLD development. The positive vibes surrounding the JLD is hinged on the HSR project and Dr Mahathir has publicly opposed the project.

“We need to do a study whether it is feasible or not because we don’t have the money and we have to borrow money, and that is not something the Government can bear at this moment,” he told a Malaysian publication in January last year.

Adding: “We have to know whether we really need this HSR or not.”

In December 2016, Singapore and Malaysia signed an agreement to build a multi-billion dollar, 350km high-speed rail link between the two countries. The project has been a shot in the arm for developments in and around the JLD.

The Twin VEW development near the HSR and JLD projects is reflective of the upbeat mood in the market of the developments around the area. The project located at West Coast Vale is expected to be completed by 2021.

Twin VEW, CSC Land Group’s maiden residential development in Singapore, saw 85 per cent of its units being sold in its opening weekend. With 442 units out of a total of 520 units sold (including four penthouses), the average price of units sold was $1,399 per square feet (psf).

Twin VEW near Jurong Lake District sees 85% sales on opening weekend

CSC Land Group said that the buyers were a mix of group of singles, young couples, families and multi-generational families. Of the 442 units sold, 83 per cent were Singaporeans, 15 per cent were permanent residents, and the rest were foreign purchasers.

“We are very encouraged by the strong response this weekend,” said Li Xiao Qian, chairman of CSC Land Group.

He added, “all unit-types have been very well-received, demonstrating the diversity offered by Twin VEW. We are confident that this momentum will continue.”

But is the election of Dr Mahathir and his coalition likely to have a dampening effect on developments such as Twin Vew in and around the JLD area?

It is unlikely that the HSR will be the immediate target of Dr Mahathir’s administration for several reasons. One reason being, the HSR is likely to boost in flights between the two cities, making Singapore Changi-Kuala Lumpur International Airport the third largest international route in the world.

The HSR is also expected to reduce commute by air and car between the cities, leading to improvements in commuter safety. As one study noted: “6,872 fatalities were recorded on Malaysian roads in 2010, especially during festive seasons with high traffic figures. As commuters switch to using the HSR instead of driving, this could reduce the exposure of commuters to safety incidents with significant benefits to the economy and society”.

The HSR is expected to create 111,000 jobs, as well. And all these factors, together, may convince the incoming Malaysian Administration that the HSR is necessary as it benefits both countries.

Dr Mahathir had previously assured Singaporeans that they should not worry about Malaysia’s relationship with the republic if his coalition gets elected.

“There were differences between Malaysia and Singapore during my time but we didn’t go to war. We were trying to find ways of solving those things in a peaceful manner,” he said.

Instead of the HSR, Dr Mahathir’s immediate attention could be focused on another Malaysian rail development – the East Coast Railway Link (ECRL). And unlike the HSR (where Dr Mahathir’s comments had been ‘iffy’) his response on the ECRL is sharp and definitive.

Citing the project’s cost of S$18 billion, as well as feasibility and practicality issues, Dr Mahathir said that he will scrap the ECRL project.

Commenting on the practicality of travel by ECRL, Dr Mahathir asked: “A train from Kota Baru to Port Klang would take around 14 hours of travel time. A low-cost flight from Kota Baru to Kuala Lumpur takes just 30 minutes. “Which is more feasible?”

So, developers and recent home buyers who were attracted by the HSR and JLD projects to put down cold, hard cash in realty in that area need not be overly concerned with the election of Dr Mahathir and his coalition government, the actions (if any) it would take on the HSR and its effects on the upbeat sentiments on properties in that area.

Besides the HSR and JLD projects, stakeholders in the western part of Singapore are also expected to get a boost from the announcement of the seventh MRT line – Jurong Region Line. The new line will serve the Jurong area and the western part of Singapore and is expected to lift the fortunes of not just the properties in JLD, but also the real estate in Boon Lay and Choa Chu Kang.

Jurong Region Line to lift fortunes of properties at Choa Chu Kang and Boon Lay along with Jurong Lake District

The Jurong Region Line will be 24km long with 24 stations, and will run above-ground. It will open in three phases, starting from 2026. The Jurong Region Line will give commuters route choices. For example, the two interchange stations at Choa Chu Kang and Boon Lay will connect the North-South Line (NSL) and East-West Line (EWL), giving commuters alternative travel routes.

Singapore’s Transport Minister assured that the Jurong Region Line marks a quantum leap in the Government’s improvement of transport infrastructure for Jurong.

So, with the HSR and JLD projects being very unlikely to be derailed by the new Malaysian government and with the development of of the Jurong Region Line, the properties in and around the JLD area are highly unlikely to lose its shine anytime soon.

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If you are home-hunting, our Panel of Property agents and the mortgage consultants at icompareloan.com can help you with affordability assessment and a promotional home loan. Just email our chief mortgage consultant, Paul Ho, with your name, email and phone number at [email protected].

Singaporeans wish Tan Cheng Bock will follow Mahathir’s lead and contest the next GE as an opposition candidate

Jewel Stolarchuk
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112
Singaporeans wish Tan Cheng Bock will follow Mahathir’s lead and contest the next GE as an opposition candidate

92-year-old Mahathir Mohamad made history last night by defeating the incumbent at the polls and ushering in Malaysia’s first transition of power since independence, at the watershed 2018 Malaysian General Election.

Mahathir, who helped establish the ruling Barisan National (BN) coalition in power and served as Malaysia’s longest-serving Prime Minister, stepped out of retirement and left the ruling party to lead the opposition. Breaking the BN’s six-decade long monopoly, Mahathir beat his one-time protégé Najib Razak and is set to become the world’s oldest head of government when he is sworn in.

Mahathir’s stunning election upset has prompted many Singaporeans to express their desire to see veteran politician Dr Tan Cheng Bock contest the next General Election in Singapore as an opposition candidate.

At 78, Dr Tan is 14 years junior to Mahathir. Much like Mahathir, Dr Tan was also with the ruling party previously and served as People’s Action Party (PAP) parliamentarian for 26 years, between 1980 and 2006. He was also elected into the PAP’s Central Executive Committee in 1987 and remained a member until 1996.

During his tenure as ruling party politician, Dr Tan served as the Chairman of the Government Parliamentary Committees (GPCs) for Education (1987–90), National Development (1991–95) and the Environment (1995–97), and was the Co-ordinating Chairman for all GPCs from 1987-88. He was also a member of the GPCs for Communications (1997–2000) and Defence and Foreign Affairs (2001–06).

The Ayer Rajah Single Member Constituency (SMC) Member of Parliament (MP) also led the Singapore-European Parliamentary Group between 1991 – 1996 and Singapore-SEA Parliamentary Group between 1997 – 2006. Besides this, he served as Chairman of the Jurong East Town Council from 1989 – 91, Chairman of the West Coast-Ayer Rajah Town Council from 2001 – 04, Chairman of the Bukit Timah Community Development Council from 1997 – 2000, and Chairman of the Feedback Unit at the Ministry of Community Development from 1985-89.

The medical doctor retired from the ruling party before the General Election in 2006.

In 2011, Dr Tan contested the Presidential Election. After a fierce fight with establishment favourite Tony Tan, Dr Tan lost the race to his fellow ex-PAP MP by just 0.35% of votes.

5 years passed. In March 2016, Dr Tan announced his intentions to contest the 2017 Presidential Election. Just 8 months later, in November 2016, Parliament announced new amendments to the elected presidential scheme and outlined that since there has not been a President from the Malay community for five consecutive terms, the 2017 election will be reserved for those from the Malay community.

In his constitutional challenge to the court, Dr Tan disputed the counting of the five consecutive terms and argued that if the AGC counts from President Ong Teng Cheong, Singapore’s first rightfully elected President instead of counting from President Wee Kim Wee who was an appointed president, this year’s PE would not need to be reserved in accordance to the new amendments.

Justice Quentin Loh ruled that, “Ultimately, since (the Constitution) does not fetter Parliament’s power … Parliament’s choice of (the first elected President) is a policy decision which falls outside the remit of the courts.”

Dr Tan responded that the Judge may have misconstrued the Constitutional provisions surrounding the matter and appealed the decision in Singapore’s apex court. In August last year, a panel of five Court of Appeal judges threw out his appeal to dismiss the High Court’s earlier rejection of his application after reserving judgment at the appeal hearing on 31 July 2017.

Following the apex court’s decision, Dr Tan offered to groom political candidates from any political party. He added that “quite a few” individuals have already approached him and that he will be meeting these individuals soon: “I’m prepared to mentor any political group, even PAP chaps can come to me, I’ll still mentor them. Because the objective must be very clear: you want to train people who will be good MPs. MPs who will think of Singapore first.”

As to whether he would join an opposition party in the next General Election, which must be held by 15 Jan 2021, Dr Tan said: “To be a unifying person, I think first you must have acceptance. I cannot just say well, I want to be a unifying figure…let me think more…options will not be closed off just yet.”

He added that he does not intend to start his own political party as there are already too many political parties in Singapore.

Mahathir’s historic victory has prompted Singaporeans to express their desire for Dr Tan to achieve something similar by contesting the next election from the opposition’s camp:

92-year-old Nightmare for 4G Leaders

The Independent
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92-year-old Nightmare for 4G Leaders

By Augustine Low

Who would have thought that a 92-year-old man could present the biggest test for Singapore’s 4G leaders?

Now that Mahathir Mohamed has triumphed against all the odds to become Prime Minister of Malaysia once again, it could signal challenging times ahead for Singapore.

The wily old fox will be no pushover. The relations between Singapore and Malaysia, the good vibes shared by the Prime Ministers of both countries, could soon be a thing of the past.

It is safe to say there is no love lost between Mahathir and Singapore, at least on his side of the equation.

We keep hearing that the 4G leaders have a big challenge ahead. It now comes in the form and shape of Mahathir, who does not suffer fools gladly and who will seek to undo much of what his predecessor has done.

For Singapore’s sake, let’s hope that the likes of Chan Chun Sing is up to the task. But one fears that it could be a mismatch. If our 4G leaders do not step up their game, they will be easy meat for Mahathir who is a sound strategist and a wily politician.

Will the comeback of Mahathir make it necessary for Lee Hsien Loong to delay stepping down and handing over the baton?

Will it be a major setback for Singapore just when relations with Malaysia have taken a more cordial turn in the past several years?

Will the high speed rail still go ahead? Will there be a crooked bridge?

Many, many unanswered questions.

We have to salute Malaysians for the spirit and the courage to throw out the government. It sends a strong message. IMDB was the straw that broke the camel’s back.

Our leaders must be fearing the worst but hoping for the best now that Mahathir is back in business.

Paraguay elige un presidente que recuerda a viejos tiempos de dictadura

The Independent
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Read in English.

Casi tres semanas después de que en Paraguay tuvieron lugar los comicios electorales para la elección de presidente, vicepresidente, el congreso y las gobernaciones, los resultados electorales siguen causando controversia.

El ganador de la jornada el 22 de abril – por una ajustada diferencia de apenas 3,7%, según los datos provisorios – fue el senador Mario Abdo Benítez, candidato presidencial del Partido Colorado que derrotó a su contrincante el opositor liberal Efraín Alegre, de la Alianza Ganar.

A partir del inicio del escrutinio oficial de actas electorales, se ha desatado una seguidilla de denuncias y protestas. Entre acusaciones de fraude de parte de la Alianza Ganar y el pedido de un recuento oficial, Alegre se negó a admitir la derrota.

Todo esto ha puesto en duda la fiabilidad no solo de los resultados sino del sistema electoral paraguayo en general, mi area de investigación académica. Sin embargo, el triunfo de Abdo ya es oficial.

Stroessner el dictador

Abdo es hijo del antiguo secretario privado del dictador paraguayo Alfredo Stroessner, quien gobernó Paraguay de 1954 a 1989.

Stroessner encabezó un proceso de modernización conservadora que impulsó el desarrollo de infraestructuras en este pequeño país sudamericano y lo orientó hacia la agroindustria. Bajo su mandato, la economía creció a un ritmo de 8% al año.

Al mismo tiempo, durante 35 años, erigió un régimen autoritario brutal. Arrojó como saldo más de 20 mil víctimas directas de violaciones de derechos humanos, con 18.772 torturadas, 9.862 personas detenidas en forma arbitraria, 3.470 exiliadas, 336 desaparecidas y 59 ejecutadas extrajudicialmente, según los informes de la Comisión de Verdad y Justicia. Paraguay tiene actualmente una población de 6.7 millones.

Alfredo Stroessner.
Store Norske Leksikon, CC BY-SA

El padre del actual presidente electo Mario Abdo Benítez, de mismo nombre, formó parte del círculo más íntimo del dictador, conocido como el cuatrinomio de oro. Como secretario privado de Stroessner, Abdo Benítez desarrolló el papel de articulador y referente de la juventud colorada que respaldaba el régimen stronista.

Durante la campaña presidencial, Abdo evitó siempre colocarse en el lugar de defensor del dictador. Ante las consultas sobre cuál es su opinión de Stroessner, intentó separar la política represiva de otros aspectos de su régimen.

“[N]o puedo reivindicar la tortura, la corrupción, el autoritarismo, la persecución a la prensa,” dijo en una entrevista con el medio ABC, “Pero también, en su momento, cuando haya sentimientos menos apasionados, se va a poder hacer un juicio más equilibrado sobre Stroessner”.

A mi criterio, no caben dudas de que su nombre remite con fuerzas a los tiempos de la dictadura a una parte importante de la población.

El Partido Colorado domina

Pero vale reconocer también que casi un tercio los votantes registrados en el padrón electoral nacieron ya en tiempos de democracia. En este sentido, puede que el resultado ajustado tenga más que ver con algunas de las propuestas y posturas conservadoras de Abdo.

Antes de ser nominado como el candidato oficial del Partido Colorado, Mario Abdo empezó la precampaña electoral de 2017 criticando las políticas económicas y sociales del presidente Colorado Horacio Cartes. Incluso le cuestionó la utilización de su posición para facilitar la ampliación de sus negocios como magnate tabacalero.

Esta estrategia intentaba capitalizar un desgaste general con el Partido Colorado, tras largos años en el poder. Este partido, que es el partido de Stroessner, gobernó el Paraguay de forma ininterrumpida desde 1948.

En 2008, los paraguayos eligieron como presidente a un sacerdote progresista, Fernando Lugo, pero fue destituido en 2012 antes de terminar su mandato de cinco años. Oficialmente, el Congreso destituyó al presidente, tras “la matanza de Curuguaty,” una violenta represión policial a campesino ocupantes de tierra que costó la vida de 11 campesinos y 6 policías.

Pero muchos paraguayos y observadores internacionales vieron la destitución de Lugo como un golpe de estado organizado por la derecha.

El Partido Colorado volvió al poder en 2013, con la elección del actual presidente, Horacio Cartes.

Una ola derechista

Una vez designado como candidato oficialista, Abdo se posicionó más cómodamente con posturas conservadoras tradicionales.

Ante las posiciones más progresistas de su adversario, Abdo defendió el servicio militar obligatorio para jóvenes paraguayos, explicando que el servicio militar no es solamente una oportunidad de educación sino “una herramienta más” para aquellas madres en situación de vulnerabilidad que no logran contener a sus hijos.

Abdo además se opuso a las demandas feministas de descriminalizar el aborto en Paraguay y prometió vetar cualquier intento de legalizar el matrimonio gay.

En general, estas consignas conservadoras no confrontaban posiciones de su adversario, ni respondían a propuestas concretas de la sociedad civil paraguaya. En mi análisis, no hubo chance real de que Paraguay impulsara leyes contra el servicio militar obligatorio ni a favor del matrimonio igualitario en esta coyuntura.

Pero azuzar el fantasma del progresismo ayudó a Abdo colocar a su adversario en situaciones incómodas, ante amplios sectores de la sociedad con marcado pensamiento conservador.

Al mismo tiempo que se proyectó a él mismo como defensor de los valores tradicionales católicos latinoamericanos, en un momento en el que toda la región está experimentando una gira hacia la derecha. Brazil, Argentina y Chile – anteriormente conocidos por su liderazgo de izquierda – también vieron a presidentes conservadores llegar al poder en los últimos años.

Con el triunfo de Mario Abdo, el Paraguay continúa inscripto en la senda del conservadurismo, en la que se reencausó tras la destitución de Lugo en 2012. El presidente electo prometió sostener bajos impuestos pero buscar mejores formas de invertir en la educación y salud.

La salida de los outsiders

Pero en Paraguay parecería que lo viejo retorna con rostros renovados.

Hace una década, la entrada de figuras mediáticas, empresarios como el Presidente Cartes y “outsiders” como Lugo – un exobispo católico – a la escena política empujó a algunos analistas a vaticinar que Paraguay entraba una nueva era política.

Eso parece haber cambiado. Los mismos partidos de siempre volvieron a ser los grandes protagonistas de los últimos comicios, tanto al nivel nacional como a nivel local. Con políticos profesionales en las principales candidaturas.

Este retorno a la política tradicional ya comienza a notarse en las primeras designaciones del nuevo presidente electo. Los primeros anuncios de Abdo para su gabinete fueron en la Cancillería y el Ministerio del Interior, con dos políticos de larga trayectoria.

Marcando una diferencia con sus antecesor, Cartes, que había privilegiado a burócratas y gerentes del sector privado, Abdo volvió a considerar a exponentes del Partido Colorado para el nuevo gabinete. De esta forma, el retorno a las fuerzas tradicionales de su partido parecería ser la primera nota que marcará el inicio de su gobierno.

The Conversation

Ignacio González Bozzolasco does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organization that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.


Source: US-Politics

Identifying with others who control themselves could strengthen your own self-control

The Independent
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0
If everyone else sticks with salad, maybe you will too. Rawpixel.com/Shutterstock.com

Is self-control something you can acquire, like a new language or a taste for opera? Or is it one of those things you either have or don’t, like fashion sense or a knack for telling a good joke?

Psychologist Walter Mischel’s famous results from the “marshmallow test” seem to suggest self-control is relatively stable and not easily learned. In this test, children sit at a table in an otherwise empty room and are given a choice: They can have one marshmallow right away, or, if they can wait for the experimenter to get more marshmallows from another room, they can have two instead. Most children see this as a no-brainer and opt to wait for two marshmallows.

Kids trying their hardest not to eat the marshmallow.

The real test is waiting. Children are left alone in the room for up to 15 minutes or until they taste the marshmallow. Children vary in how long they can last without sampling the delectable treat in front of them, and it turns out that the longer they wait, the better they will fare later in life – socially, emotionally and academically. Other tests find similar patterns. People who demonstrate more self-control in childhood are, as adults, healthier, wealthier and more law-abiding.

Mischel himself has emphasized that children who showed more self-control used a variety of strategies that could be learned – like distracting themselves by singing and turning away from the marshmallow or distancing themselves from the marshmallow by imagining it as an inedible, fluffy cloud.

A less optimistic view holds that children who were good at distracting themselves had more self-control to begin with, which helped them activate self-distracting thoughts and behaviors rather than fixating on the sweet treat in front of them. And although Mischel found that children could be induced to wait longer if they were taught these kinds of strategies, there’s no evidence that such experimental interventions alter children’s spontaneous self-control behavior outside of the lab.

But don’t throw your hands up in resignation and reach for that second slice of chocolate cake just yet. A new wave of studies suggests that maybe self-control can be learned, provided that social forces encourage this learning. In a new study, my colleague and I found that children will use self-control if they believe others they identify with do.

Everybody’s doing it

Despite enormous interest in improving self-control, researchers have had limited success (so far) in figuring out how to train for it. The general approach has been to target the cognitive processes – called executive functions – that support self-control.

Researchers have children practice activities that activate these processes. Training can lead to some improvements on similar tasks, but typically does not generalize to other untrained tasks or outcomes. This is a real problem because a key goal of self-control training is to be able to transfer strengthened skills to real-world situations.

My colleague and I wondered if group influences might be key. Maybe capitalizing on social processes like group values and norms could have a broader influence on self-control skill development. So we designed a study to test whether group behavior influences children’s self-control.

A girl in the ‘green group’ works to resist the temptation of a marshmallow.
Sabine Doebel, CC BY-ND

We randomly assigned American preschoolers to a group – for example, telling them they were in “the green group” and giving them a green T-shirt to wear. Then we told them that their group waited or didn’t wait for two marshmallows. We also told them about another group (the “out-group”) that did the opposite of their group (the “in-group”). This step was designed to enhance their identification with their own group. Other studies have shown that this kind of procedure leads to in-group favoritism in preschoolers and adults alike.

We found that children waited longer for two marshmallows if they were told their in-group members waited and that out-group members did not versus if they were told that their in-group members didn’t wait and out-group members did. Kids who were told their in-group members waited also lasted longer than other kids who didn’t learn anything about their group’s behavior.

Why did children follow their group? In a follow-up experiment, we found that children whose group members waited subsequently preferred other nongroup individuals who waited for things like stickers, candy and money. This suggests children weren’t simply copying what their group members did. Rather, it seems that the group’s behavior influenced the value the child subsequently placed on self-control.

We’ve since replicated these findings in another culture, finding that Japanese children will choose to wait for more stickers if they believe in-group members wait and out-group members don’t. Impressively, Japanese children still follow their group even if they are given reason to identify with the out-group.

Outside influences on internal control

This research is the first to show that group behavior motivates young children’s own actions that involve self-control. Identifying with a group can help kids use and even value self-control when they otherwise would not have.

These findings converge with other recent and classic findings that social forces influence self-control in children. Children will wait longer for two marshmallows if they believe the person dispensing them is reliable and trustworthy. Children also model other people’s self-control behavior. Even infants will work longer to achieve a goal if they see an adult try to achieve their own goal repeatedly.

How do these findings of social influences on self-control square with the fact that the marshmallow test and others are so reliably predictive of later life outcomes? Do they mean that self-control actually isn’t stable? Not necessarily.

You could just be someone who likes to wait for or save things (there are 3-year-olds like this, believe it or not), but this doesn’t mean your behavior in a given moment isn’t subject to social influences. Even young children will adjust their baseline self-control tendencies depending on the context, saving less when saving turns out to be disadvantageous.

‘I’ll be out in a bit, you know I always finish my homework first!’
FamVeld/Shutterstock.com

And social influences could, over time, play a role in shaping how much a person tends to use self-control generally. For instance, imagine a child grows up among peers who really value doing well in school and use self-control to complete homework before running off to play. Exposure to this group norm could influence the child to do the same. The idea is that the more you practice self-control, the easier it gets to use it. Repetition will strengthen the underlying neurocognitive systems that support these skills.

So can self-control be learned? My answer is yes – what can seem like an inborn trait may actually be substantially influenced by social forces. Parents may be able to help kids build this skill by exposing them to role models (in real life or stories) who demonstrate and value self-control. Adults may be able to increase self-control by spending time around friends who use it. Ultimately, cultivating self-control as a personal value and norm may be critical to using and developing it, whether you are young or old. With a little help from your friends, resisting that second piece of cake may be easier than you think.

The Conversation

Sabine Doebel receives funding from the Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health & Human Development of
the National Institutes of Health (award number F32HD079191).


Source: Science-Technology

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