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Ang moh bruno replies to chua lee hoong

Porfirio Rubirosa

Alfrescian
Loyal
The world doesn't dislike Singapore

I REFER to last Saturday's commentary by Ms Chua Lee Hoong, 'Why they hate Singapore'. Singaporeans celebrated National Day last Saturday and deserve the world's congratulations.
Trying to describe why Western democracies may 'not like' Singapore is absurd and na�ve, and is probably based on a lack of general understanding and knowledge of how most of the Western world perceives Singapore today.

Western perception
Trying to describe why Western democracies may 'not like' Singapore is absurd and na�ve and is probably based on a lack of general understanding and knowledge of how most of the Western world perceives Singapore today.

The world has other problems and people elsewhere simply do not care about having Singapore on their radar screen of dislike
... more
I was born in Belgium, lived in four European countries, the Middle East and Hong Kong.

I have worked and lived in Singapore for the past 10 years; my wife is Singaporean, and so are my two youngest children. Yes, Singapore is a very good place to live and work in, probably one of the best globally. Singapore is very well 'managed' and that's where its difference from many other countries lies. Singapore is not governed, but managed as a company with 4.7 million shareholders.

You have a vision and you have good managers who understand how to implement that vision and its strategies.

You hire the best to ensure you remain competitive and highly profitable in order to secure the future of your citizens.

Singapore's business model achieves its aim, and I am sure many of its achievements can be 're-packed' into potentially highly successful export products.

Success is the creation of balance, stability and prosperity between the managers, employees and shareholders or citizens. Western democracies, on the other hand, have their successes too.

Luxembourg, Switzerland, Austria, Norway and Finland - as well as some Middle East countries - are all worth studying and emulating.

Putting China and Singapore on the same page because both are so-called authoritarian states is wrong. There is nothing common to both, except for the ethnic origin of the majority race.

China is a country of 1.3 billion, pushed into a highly regulated, market-driven economy at lightning speed, causing lots of collateral damage.

We all know what Singapore is. I am sure Chinese and Russians, and many other nationalities, visit Singapore to study and learn its best traits.

They also visit many other countries - as do Singaporeans- which do certain things better than the Republic.

It's na�ve, (or arrogant?), to think that the whole world visits only Singapore.

The meaning of the word, 'hate' should be carefully weighed before using it. There are two meanings to hate: intense hostility and aversion usually deriving from fear, anger, or sense of injury; or extreme dislike or antipathy.

I have travelled the world for the past 32 years. I have never encountered or heard a single person or group who hates Singapore - or even dislikes the Republic. At most, Singapore is criticised for banning 'chewing gum' and for its lack of freedom of speech.

Mostly, however, and especially among Westerners, Singapore is praised for being clean, affordable and secure, and for its wonderful food.

The world has other problems, and people elsewhere simply do not care about having Singapore on their radar screen of dislike.


Bruno Serrien
 

Leongsam

High Order Twit / Low SES subject
Admin
Asset
The world doesn't dislike Singapore

I REFER to last Saturday's commentary by Ms Chua Lee Hoong, 'Why they hate Singapore'. Singaporeans celebrated National Day last Saturday and deserve the world's congratulations.
Trying to describe why Western democracies may 'not like' Singapore is absurd and na�ve, and is probably based on a lack of general understanding and knowledge of how most of the Western world perceives Singapore today.

I'll be perfectly blunt. The rest of the world does not know that Singapore exists. You can't hate an entity that does not even appear on any radar screen.

In Western Nations including the pseudo ones in the Pacific, HK is used as the reference for Asian financial matters (Han Seng Index) and there is hardly ever any news about Singapore except when they are about to hang some foreigner for drug offences.

Even when the SG PM or MM visits a Western nation, it does not make the evening news. However, SPH and Mediacorp would have you believe that the whole country came to a standstill for the Old man or his Pinky Son.
 

Hakka Tiow

Alfrescian
Loyal
I'll be perfectly blunt. The rest of the world does not know that Singapore exists. You can't hate an entity that does not even appear on any radar screen.

In Western Nations including the pseudo ones in the Pacific, HK is used as the reference for Asian financial matters (Han Seng Index) and there is hardly ever any news about Singapore except when they are about to hang some foreigner for drug offences.

Even when the SG PM or MM visits a Western nation, it does not make the evening news. However, SPH and Mediacorp would have you believe that the whole country came to a standstill for the Old man or his Pinky Son.

Sam, the SPGs will kill you when they read this.
 

Porfirio Rubirosa

Alfrescian
Loyal
To be fair I think it was probably worse a decade or 2 ago. But I think Singapore has finally got onto the International radar screen to some extent at least, not just with respect to hanging, canning and chewing gum prohibtion. A big plus point for frequent international travellers like me is that our red dot passport is very well received in most countries. Also the Singapore brand name amongst MNCs; International Professional Firms and top International Academic Instituitions is another plus point. However you do have a point that on the diplomacy front our statesmen rarely make the news abroad. That being said, Singapore still appears to punch above its weight even on the diplomatic front and love him or hate, LKY still appears to get the red carpet treatment where ever he goes notwithstanding the fact that he has stepped down as PM for over 18 years now.

I'll be perfectly blunt. The rest of the world does not know that Singapore exists. You can't hate an entity that does not even appear on any radar screen.

In Western Nations including the pseudo ones in the Pacific, HK is used as the reference for Asian financial matters (Han Seng Index) and there is hardly ever any news about Singapore except when they are about to hang some foreigner for drug offences.

Even when the SG PM or MM visits a Western nation, it does not make the evening news. However, SPH and Mediacorp would have you believe that the whole country came to a standstill for the Old man or his Pinky Son.
 

Leongsam

High Order Twit / Low SES subject
Admin
Asset
LKY still appears to get the red carpet treatment where ever he goes notwithstanding the fact that he has stepped down as PM for over 18 years now.

Singapore ranks well in business circles. Friends of mine who travel on business and go to international trade exhibitions have all enjoyed Singapore efficiency.

However, LKY's red carpet treatment is purely diplomatic. Being the MM, he travels on a Diplomatic passport and he's a cabinet member. He therefore has to be received according to the norms extended to such visitors.

The pearls of wisdom he dishes out to the country never make it to daily newspapers or the TV screens though. If they are reported, it would usually be in some weekly business journal with limited circulation.
 

Porfirio Rubirosa

Alfrescian
Loyal
I get the impression it is more than just diplomatic norms. He appears to be accorded the same treament as a sitting PM.

However, LKY's red carpet treatment is purely diplomatic. Being the MM, he travels on a Diplomatic passport and he's a cabinet member. He therefore has to be received according to the norms extended to such visitors.
 

Leongsam

High Order Twit / Low SES subject
Admin
Asset
I get the impression it is more than just diplomatic norms. He appears to be accorded the same treament as a sitting PM.

That's because foreign govts are confused. They're not quite sure who the PM actually is. After all, they can't very well treat him with less pomp than they rolled out for his son. :biggrin:
 

friskygambit

Alfrescian
Loyal
Sam is right. Singapore is definitely not the leading financial/business hub in Asia. That tag belongs to Hong Kong.

As for Bruno's reply. I think he is right. Putting the running dog Chua Lee Hoong (and the PAP propaganda line that she espouses) in her place.
 

myfoot123

Alfrescian (Inf)
Asset
Chua Lee Hoong and Chua Muii Hoong have constantly caused disgrace to Singaporean through their bias reporting. People don't hate Singapore but they hate the way Strait Times work as a propaganda machines for PAP.
 

NgEjay

Alfrescian (InfP)
Generous Asset
At first glance, Bruno Serrien’s letter appeared to read like just another “praise Singapore” letter, but one statement he made struck me.
“Singapore is not governed, but managed as a company with 4.7 million shareholders.”
That to me was the most revealing, as well as the most contentious statement. It strikes at the very heart of what the PAP Government has turned Singapore into — a mere corporation bereft of national identity, a corporation that treats its employees as mere economic digits, a corporation that focuses only on the bottom line and pays little attention to issues like a widening income gap, a loss of a sense of nationhood due to the large influx of foreigners, and increased difficulties in having a peaceful retirement.


In my view, and contrary to what Bruno Serrien has suggested, the PAP does not treat citizens as shareholders or partners, but as mere employees in a corporation whose sole purpose is to beef up the company’s profit statement and balance sheet. Citizens are expected to perform National Service, display a sense of patriotism that is accorded only to nations and not to corporations, and invest their life savings with the Government in the form of CPF and HDB flats.


Singapore citizens are treated no better than second class employees, but expected to repay their dues to the nation as first class citizens.
 

Leongsam

High Order Twit / Low SES subject
Admin
Asset
“Singapore is not governed, but managed as a company with 4.7 million shareholders.”

If that's the case, the govt has done a terrible job as the ROI for the average shareholder has been in negative territory for more than 10 years!

In a public company, the shareholders would have revolted and thrown out the board.

A more accurate statement is "Singapore is not governed. It is a Private Company owned by Lee and Associates.".
 

chaomonkey

Alfrescian
Loyal
farking chao angmoh with spg wife and 2 pa zheng gian na come here and kao pa kao bu
he gets to enjoy life in sgp without the need to pay his dues as sgporean of course talk big lah. ccb
 

wavier

New Member
Sam is right. Singapore is definitely not the leading financial/business hub in Asia. That tag belongs to Hong Kong.

As for Bruno's reply. I think he is right. Putting the running dog Chua Lee Hoong (and the PAP propaganda line that she espouses) in her place.


just look at how financial news are reported and you'll know... in major stations/market reports, when they mentioned asia, you'll see Han Seng Index, Nikkei, China, etc... STI not even mentioned :P

Also looking at Forex reports, you have JPY, HKD, CNY but no SGD :P
 

neutralsink

Alfrescian
Loyal
I have never agree that spore gahmen treats its citizens as sharehlders or even as employees which employees do have certain rights tagged along with...

I see that the mere 4.7mil are just the walking automatic teller machine for the gahmen where and when they need more dough to fatten their pockets or for cushioning the failed investment, they'll turn to these "atms" and by implementing some new tweak rules/regulations/laws so as to withdraw the loads of cash from all, none will be spare, it is only the measurement of the impacting effect to these atms - more cash-abounded atm will feel less hit while the reversal effect will be on those with minimal cash in them.

How many have take it a norm that paying for the COE is just another process to curb and control the growing of cars population within spore, but is that the real reason and has this policy really takes it effect? Think about it.

After the COE policy, then came along with this ERP gantries fees that drivers must pay, yet again, and now, yes, for curbing and controlling the traffic flow. These policies implemented must have I so thought, will wisen the sporeans, but sadly, a big NO! Most sporeans have to be the dumbest living beings on earth, despite the first class education they have received in their school years, scoring As academically but failed terribly in their mental analytical skills.

I can only conclude that most sporeans are just like a massive hard disk which can store loads of datas for academic excellence but just cannot function well when thought provoking situation arises, this perhaps is much due to the indoctrinated PAP-patriotism mindset throughout the years of studies, blindly believing everything that the gahmen does is for the good of its citizens.

I have previously fallen prey to these cultivated indoctrination too but have wisen and awaken from these lies and schemes that show not much beneficial to the citizens at large with the exception of the MIWs.

Now the question is, how many are still in their slumbeing bed and refuse to wake up????
 

zack123

Alfrescian
Loyal
I'll be perfectly blunt. The rest of the world does not know that Singapore exists. You can't hate an entity that does not even appear on any radar screen.

In Western Nations including the pseudo ones in the Pacific, HK is used as the reference for Asian financial matters (Han Seng Index) and there is hardly ever any news about Singapore except when they are about to hang some foreigner for drug offences.

Even when the SG PM or MM visits a Western nation, it does not make the evening news. However, SPH and Mediacorp would have you believe that the whole country came to a standstill for the Old man or his Pinky Son.

To be fair, in my business travels the Singapore brand name is a premium. Its always equated to efficiency and effectiveness. But all this is due to our very hardworking citizens who really made it happen.
 

chaomonkey

Alfrescian
Loyal
To be fair, in my business travels the Singapore brand name is a premium. Its always equated to efficiency and effectiveness. But all this is due to our very hardworking citizens who really made it happen.

exactly!
its us, the citizens who are making the country well know, not the so call uncorrupted gahmen! :mad:
 
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