The Workers' Party

[h=5]Yee Jenn Jong, JJ (余振忠)[/h]
I run businesses too. As SMEs, we face tremendous cost increases - rent, manpower, transport, cost of goods, etc. We are often forced to accept lower margins, to constantly innovate our processes and to cut down excess corporate costs and overheads to survive. We can't just raise prices every time we face cost pressures. I hope this applies to our PTOs as well.







Fare increase not just to raise salaries of bus drivers: Lui Tuck Yew
[url]www.straitstimes.com
Public transport fare increases are not for the purpose of boosting the short


[/URL]

sengkang said:

[h=5]Yee Jenn Jong, JJ (余振忠)[/h]
I run businesses too. As SMEs, we face tremendous cost increases - rent, manpower, transport, cost of goods, etc. We are often forced to accept lower margins, to constantly innovate our processes and to cut down excess corporate costs and overheads to survive. We can't just raise prices every time we face cost pressures. I hope this applies to our PTOs as well.







Fare increase not just to raise salaries of bus drivers: Lui Tuck Yew
[url]www.straitstimes.com
Public transport fare increases are not for the purpose of boosting the short


[/URL]

Click to expand...

Thats the difference between SME and gahment companies. Gahment companies are 'protected', they get soft loans from gahment, they get easy time on regulatory issues and they think they can raise prices anytime they feel like it.

WP will be hot favourite for Punggol East by-election: analysts

<cite class="byline vcard">By Deborah Choo | Yahoo! Newsroom – <abbr title="2012-12-12T10:21:16Z">Wed, Dec 12, 2012


</abbr></cite>
WP chief Low Thia Khiang holds up another copy of the PAP manifesto that was distributed to Hougang residents, saying, "I’ve told the PAP it’s not their money — it is the country’s money, and Lee Kuan Yew admitted before that the government’s money is the people’s money," (Yahoo! photo/Jason Ong)



The Punggol East constituency seat left vacant by MP Michael Palmer’s sudden resignation would be fiercely contested, say two analysts Yahoo! Singapore spoke to.

And if the Workers’ Party played their cards right, the opposition could add another seat to their parliamentary voice.

Bridget Welsh, associate professor in Political Science at Singapore Management University (SMU), said that while Palmer did the “right thing” by stepping down, the more immediate challenge would be the by-election.

“This is a competitive seat with a three-corner fight last round. A one-on-one contest will make this a potentially winnable seat for the opposition,” she said.

“How the opposition responds to the situation, timing of the by-election and the political jockeying will shape the contest and make for another important test for political parties at the polls,” she added.

Political analyst Dr Derek da Cunha, also said there would be a strong moral obligation for the PM to call a by-election, especially as Punggol East was a single member constituency, and also because Hougang had established a very important precedent for the calling of by-elections.

Da Cunha, who authored the book Breakthrough: Roadmap for Singapore's Political Future, which analysed the 2011 General Election, said the PM might be able to resist demands for a by-election if a member resigned from a Group Representation Constituency (GRC) as others could cover up for a member who had stepped down or left.

But this is different for an SMC, he said.

"We are still not even halfway through the current parliamentary term and not to hold a by-election within the next few months would defy the democratic right of the voters in Punggol East to have an MP of their choice," said da Cunha.

If a by-election is called, he expects that the Workers' Party would be hot favourites to take the seat.

Earlier on Wednesday, the Workers’ Party said in a Facebook post it urged the PM to hold by-election “as soon as possible” and that it was ready to contest.

At the last general election in May 2011, Palmer defeated WP candidate, Lee Li Lian, by 54.5 percent to 41 percent of votes. A third candidate, Singapore Democratic Alliance's Desmond Lim, received 4.4 percent of votes.

Meanwhile, Welsh said Palmer’s resignation would not greatly impact the reputation of the PAP but warned that politicians are facing higher scrutiny than ever before.

“The party has been shown to have members who human failings and is adjusting to new demands of accountability. It has abided by the principle of resignation here,” she said.

“Politicians face higher scrutiny and expectations, compared to earlier generations. The application of this principle of maintaining personal marriage fidelity on a first-time PAP MP illustrates a broadening of the areas of accountability and highlights for the PAP that personal attacks can backfire on its own.”
Just minutes after the announcement of Palmer's resignation broke, a Facebook page calling for an immediate by-election for Punggol East SMC surfaced.

http://sg.news.yahoo.com/wp-will-be...gol-east-by-election--analysts-102117591.html

The Workers' Party


[h=2]ST: WP, Computer firm (controlled by ex-PAP MPs) argue over lease
[/h]
by Pritam Singh on Tuesday, December 18, 2012 at 1:57pm ·

WP, computer firm argue over lease
18 Dec 2012
Tessa Wong

A disagreement has broken out between the Aljunied-Hougang Town Council (AHTC), run by the Workers' Party, and a company that had leased computer and financial systems to the council.

Yesterday Action Information Management (AIM) said it would have continued to extend the lease of the systems to the town council if WP had asked for it.

But AHTC chairman Sylvia Lim said last night that it had not been told further extensions were negotiable.

The disagreement follows remarks Ms Lim made last week when she blamed AIM for contributing to her town council's poor showing in the collection of arrears for service and conservancy charges (S&CC).

AHTC scored the lowest banding for this aspect of its work in the latest review of town council management. It also received no banding for corporate governance because it had not submitted its auditor's management letter in time.

The WP took over the running of the AHTC after it won Aljunied GRC in last year's May general election.

Ms Lim had said it received notice from AIM that the systems' lease would be terminated on Aug 1, owing to "material changes" in the town council's membership.

As a result, her council had to develop its own system, causing delays in the audit and collection of S&CC arrears, she added.

But yesterday, AIM's Chairman, S. Chandra Das said in a letter to The Straits Times: "If AHTC had asked for a longer extension, AIM would have similarly agreed. However, after the second extension, AHTC did not ask for further extension."

The first extension was until Aug 31 and the next, until Sept 9, added Mr Chandra Das.

Last night, Ms Lim said the first extension was achieved through an intermediary, who said the extra month had to be "fought for".

She said: "We were certainly not given to understand that there could be any extension after this."

Ms Lim declined to name the intermediary but added, "It's someone who I think also knows the people involved."

The second extension was given to managing agent CPG facilities, which worked for the previous PAP administration of the town council. Its staff had sought the extension to audit some of its processes, she said.

Ms Lim also raised the issue of the systems' ownership, asking why the 14 PAP town councils, which had developed them, had transferred the ownership to a third party.

AIM became the new owners in January last year, and its three directors are former PAP MPs: Mr Chandra Das, Mr Chew Heng Ching and Mr Lay Ping Sum.

She also questioned AIM's contract with town councils, as it allows the company "to issue a one-month termination notice should there be a material change to the composition of the town council."

She said: "How is it in the public interest to have such a thing?"

Asked if she was saying the move was politically motivated, Ms Lim said, "I'm asking why the agreement was structured this way and why the PAP town councils relinquished ownership of the systems."

Attempts to contact AIM last night were unsuccessful.

Ends.

Picture Source: http://sg.news.yahoo.com/pap-elects-new-central-executive-committee--090454384.html

Re: WP Doing Nothing?

WP Doing Nothing? by angmohlian

Wow, I’ve really just had it with smart asses accusing the Workers’ Party of doing nothing, so yes, this is going to be a long rant.

Have a look within the Workers’ Party. 6 MPs, 2 NCMPs, include all those who ran for elections, members and volunteers and we are looking at say 100 – 200 people (please don’t take this number literally, I am very bad at Math). What has the Workers’ Party done since GE2011?

1. Ran for GE2011, won 1 GRC, 1 SMC and got 2 NCMPs into parliament.

2. Took over management of Aljunied Town Council

3. Managed both Aljunied and Hougang Town Councils (merged into Aljunied-Hougang Town Council)

4. Hougang By-Elections

5. Regular Activities:


5. 2011 events:


6. 2011 tours:


7. 2012 events:


8. 2012 tours:


9. Grassroots activities/events (not a complete list)


Bear in mind that this list is non-exhaustive.


Seriously? WP has done NOTHING?

Yes, some may say that PAP has to manage the same and more. But the PAP has the PA, RCs and various other supposedly-independent organisations to support both their parliament and grassroots work. Others look at opposition parties like SDP, who have produced two policy papers. But they neither do they have grassroots activities to run.

The very same MPs and NCMPs in parliament are also involved in all these grassroots activities, while having to battle hurdles and petty politicking from the incumbent. Mr. Low Thia Khiang has weekly Meet the People sessions, faithfully turns up for weekly Hammer sales and all divisional grassroots activities, runs a political party, a GRC and still personally attends every temple dinner and wakes within his division. The volunteers and members you see helping out during GE and BE are the same volunteers at the weekly Meet the People sessions and various other activities listed above.

And yet, WP has done nothing.

Look, this is not a complaint and I don’t blame those who are unaware of the amount of work the party has to do because we get very little media publicity. Neither do I think that WP has done a flawless job in the past year. There is much WP needs to learn and grow, and everyone in the party does as much as possible, considering a rather hostile media, a civil service completely governed by the incumbent for the past 47 years and not-so-independent grassroots organisations.

Let’s try to look beyond parliament and into the work WP has done managing the estates, town councils and as Members of Parliament.

I shared this on my Facebook page earlier, and I think it’s worth another mention.

“They have also approached the Ministry of Manpower (MOM) for help but to no avail so far. “The Manpower Ministry says if the company doesn’t want to pay us, there is nothing it can do,” one of the workers says. The rest nodded their heads in agreement…

In 2010, for example, there were a reported 4,000 pay-related complaints by foreign workers lodged with the ministry, but only four employers were prosecuted for failure to pay salaries.” (Source: Yahoo!)

The sad truth about Singapore is the ministries and unions don’t work for the people, but for the corporations. The government because the people trust that they are the best people to look out for our interests, but are they really? SG of NTUC supports retrenchment, supports the public shaming and demonisation of Laura Ong, wants cheaper better and faster, and is against minimum wage with the exception of ministerial pay. Our government consistently emphasises a rhetoric of fear, that Singapore will crumble under pressure if we are not consistently cheaper, better and faster than our neighbours. This government has us believe that Singaporean citizens should rely on NO ONE but themselves, and cannot expect their government to take care of their needs. Pro- ruling party supporters even mock the opposition, saying that the opposition simply isn’t capable enough to deal with the petty politicking of the ruling party.

Each and every person voted in to office is first and foremost a Member of Parliament, a representative of the division/SMC/GRC of their charge, and the most basic requirement of that Member of Parliament is to represent the voices of the people who voted them in.

Have a look at our MPs. Do they represent your voices? Have they spoken up for you? Have they addressed your needs? Have they defended your cause?

There is a lot of flak going on about the Workers’ Party’s performance in parliament. Yes, we can do better. It may be hard to accept a defense from a member of the party, but at the very least, as a member of the party and as a volunteer in the Aljunied GRC, I can safely say that every single one of our MPs have at the very least fulfilled this most basic requirement of being an elected Member of Parliament. They have voiced out their residents’ concerns, they have not opposed for the sake of opposing or argued for the sake of scoring political points. They have responded to national issues in a rational and fair manner. You may not hear any fancy rhetoric or flamboyant speeches, neither have you read eloquent policy papers, but they have done their best with what little resource they have and will continue to work at getting better. And that is more than I can say of most other MPs and opposition parties. No doubt there are many fine MPs within the ruling party and brilliant minds among other opposition parties, and their efforts are laudable. But also remember that the ruling party had a 47-year head start and other opposition parties do not have SMCs, GRCs and town councils to manage.

Skills are easy to teach, heart is not so easy to catch. I’d rather vote someone whom I can trust to speak up and defend me, than someone who can’t even be bothered to fight for my rights as an employee.

Let’s not kill the enthusiasm of our members and volunteers, remember that everyone is doing their best and that it would be much easier to do so with some understanding, support and encouragement.

-- Liane Ng Lijuan

Re: WP Doing Nothing?

[h=2]PAP mis-AIMed, faces blowback[/h] Published by The Online Citizen on December 21, 2012

By Alex Au -

I am a little surprised the story about town council computer and financial systems is not getting as much traction as I think it deserves. Perhaps with the Michael Palmer affair, workers going on strike and climbing cranes, and now a school principal being investigated for corruption, it just got buried by more attention-grabbing news.
However, my sense is that this has the potential to be a big story, causing enormous damage to the People’s Action Party (PAP). Possibly too, the Workers’ Party knows more than they are revealing.

It began with the government trying to be too smart for its own good. The Ministry of National Development said, in its latest Town Council Management Review, that Aljunied-Hougang Town Council (AHTC) got a red score — the worst band — over its management of arrears of service and conservancy charges. Its score for corporate governance was shown in the review as “pending”, with the explanation that “Aljunied-Hougang TC has yet to submit their auditor’s Management Letter, which is material to the banding of the corporate governance indicator”. Everyone knew what the message was: that the Workers’ Party, which runs AHTC, is incompetent. Many in the PAP must have been gleeful for the chance to take this potshot at the Workers’ Party.

On 14 December 2012, Sylvia Lim, chair of AHTC — she is also chair of the Workers’ Party — issued a statement that attributed difficulties faced by ATHC to the sudden withdrawal of the provider of computer and financial systems just after the party took over the running of the town council. She said:After the [general election] in May 2011, the Town Council was served with a notice that the Town Council’s Computer and Financial Systems will be terminated with effect from 1 August 2011 due to material changes to the membership of the Town Council. This Computer and Financial Systems had been developed jointly by the 14 PAP Town Councils over a period of more than 15 months but was in January 2011 sold to and leased back from M/s Action Information Management Pte Ltd, a company which was dormant. This effectively meant that ATHC had to develop its own equivalent systems, in particular a Financial System, within a 2 months’ timeframe.– http://www.ahtc.org.sg/ahtc/wp-content/uploads/2012/12/TCMR-Media-Release.pdf
A few days later Action Information Management (AIM) tried to defend itself by saying that it would have continued to extend the lease of the systems to the town council if WP had asked for it.But yesterday, AIM’s chairman S. Chandra Das said in a letter to The Straits Times: “If AHTC had asked for a longer extension, AIM would have similarly agreed. However, after the second extension, AHTC did not ask for further extension.”The first extension was until Aug 31 and the next, until Sept 9, added Mr Chandra Das.Last night, Ms Lim said the first extension was achieved through an intermediary, who said the extra month had to be “fought for”.She said: “We were certainly not given to understand that there could be any extension after this.”– Straits Times, 18 Dec 2012, WP, computer firm argue over lease
The name Chandra Das would ring a bell: he was a former PAP member of parliament. In fact, it was soon revealed that AIM”s three directors were all former PAP MPs: Chandra Das, Chew Heng Ching and Mr Lau Ping Sum. Then — I think it was TR Emeritus which broke the story — it was revealed that AIM had a paid-up capital of only $2. Chandra Das and Lau each owned one share (of $1). The company’s registered office (at 36 Robinson Road #17-01, City House, Singapore 068877) was also a shell office. As Sylvia Lim pointed out, the questions have to be: Why did the PAP Town Councils relinquish ownership of the computer and financial system, and how much did they sell it to AIM for? It was probably developed with taxpayer money by the 14 town councils, with much input and support from tax-payer-paid town council staff, unless — and it is hard to believe — the PAP paid for the development of the system. What is even more curious is that the service agreement with AIM allows AIM to terminate the contract with only one month’s notice should there be a material change to the composition of the town council. As Sylvia Lim asked: “How is it in the public interest to have such a thing?” (ibid). The carcass smells even worse than a week’s garbage lying in the hot sun. TOC thanks Alex for us to republish the article, view full article on his blog here.


http://theonlinecitizen.com/2012/12/pap-mis-aimed-faces-blowback/

Re: WP Doing Nothing?

sengkang said:

[h=2]PAP mis-AIMed, faces blowback[/h] Published by The Online Citizen on December 21, 2012
By Alex Au

Click to expand...

......

Thick Face Black Heart said:

Alex Au's credibility fell when he apologized. I could sense it. Even my opposition comrades were telling me ALex Au cannot be trusted. I was quite shocked, frankly. I expected more from them.

Click to expand...

Thick Face Black Heart said:

Unfortunately these tactics still work. I have opposition supporters telling me VW just destroyed his own credibility.
Same thing happened when Alex Au apologized. I was quite shocked.

Click to expand...

I thought that Hammerroid zombies and all their comrades have declared that Alex Au’s credibility has been destroyed and that he cannot be trusted?


Then what is this??? Another of Vichy WP countless Lum Pah Pah Lan???


Hammerrhoid zombies like to ridicule and smear Alex Au when he was attacked by PAP.


Instead of supporting another fellow Opposition member when he was down, Hammerrhoid zombies join in to kick his stomach with great gusto simply because he does not toe the Vichy WP line. He has been criticizing Vichy WP for sleeping and idling.


After insulting him mercilessly, Hamerrhoid zombies still have the cheeks to hail him as he now writes favourably for Vichy WP.


Btw, do the notoriously homophobic WP supporters really, really welcome an openly gay person to be fighting on their side? It was only very, very recently that most Hammerrhoid zombies sneer him because of his sexual orientation.

.....

Re: WP Doing Nothing?

Yee Jenn Jong
[h=5]JJ (余振忠) shared a link.[/h]
"the broad conclusion is that Taipei proves it is possible to offer a high-quality, high-frequency and affordable MRT service without losing money. It also suggests that certain services, such as public transport, tend to function optimally as natural monopolies and ought not to be owned by companies that seek to maximise profits."




Why Taipei’s MRT trumps Singapore’s


[url]www.theedgesingapore.com

Business, Investment, Singapore, Asia, China News


[/URL]

Re: WP Doing Nothing?

Re: WP Doing Nothing?


[h=5]Yee Jenn Jong, JJ (余振忠)[/h]
I found our challenge was not about extracting feedback from the ground. It was to persuade policymakers who would rather have status quo, to go for change.




New Attitudes for Better Government-Citizens Engagement
yeejj.wordpress.com
This piece was written for the NUS Students’ Political Association The Diplomat publication. I was a panelist at their Top Gun Forum held on 17 October 2012 which had discussed government-cit...

Re: WP Doing Nothing?

WP has done little to address MFA and MINDEF

Re: WP Doing Nothing?

[h=2]Cover Photos[/h]

Re: WP Doing Nothing?

The Workers' Party


"If anything, this episode clearly demonstrates the risks to Singaporeans of having a lack of alternatives in every sense."






Media Release – 28 December 2012

A Lesson on the Need for Alternatives


I refer to the media responses by Dr Teo Ho Pin and Mr Chandra Das on Christmas Eve regarding the issue of the sale of the PAP-managed town councils’ computer and financial systems and the subsequent termination of the systems at Aljunied-Hougang Town Council (AHTC) by Action Information Management Pte Ltd (AIM) after General Election (GE) 2011.


First, it should be clarified thatduring the post-GE transition period from May till August 2011, the PAP-appointed Managing Agent at the former Aljunied Town Council was still in place and assisted the incoming management to liaise with AIM. AIM had issued notice of termination of the systems, effective 1 Aug 2011. The new management at AHTC had requested an additional month, from 1 to 31 Aug 2011, mainly to do parallel testing of the front-end of the system, which AIM agreed to after intercession. After 31 Aug, the former system was no longer operational at AHTC.


It is regrettable that both Dr Teo’s and Mr Das’ statements have been calculated to side-step the most critical question of how the public interest was served when the PAP-managed Town Councils, which developed the computing and financial systems at significant cost and co-owned them, sold them off to a third party which could exercise rights of termination if there was a “material change” in the composition of a Town Council. What justification was there for the Town Councils to relinquish ownership and leave the continuity of Town Council operations at the mercy of a third party? Residents all over Singapore have a right to know.


Dr Teo has now confirmed that this third party, AIM, is “fully-owned” by the PAP. In other words, the PAP-managed Town Councils saw it fit to sell away their ownership of the systems, developed with public funds, to a political party, which presumably could act in its own interests when exercising its rights to terminate the contracts. Was that the very reason why there was such a termination clause in the first place? And what arrangement, if any, is now in place at the PAP-managed Town Councils to cater for any subsequent “material change”?


As for developing an alternative replacement IT system for town management for AHTC, AIM reportedly said that AHTC had indicated sometime in June 2011 that it was developing its own system to serve residents. At the time, the Workers’ Party (WP) MPs who became the incoming management of AHTC were acutely aware of the possible termination of the computing and financial systems at short notice by AIM, hanging over AHTC like the proverbial Sword of Damocles.


To safeguard the interests of residents who elected the WP Team and gave the WP MPs the mandate to manage the town, AHTC worked overtime to upscale the town management system in use in Hougang TC, which had been tried and tested. AHTC counts itself fortunate to have been able to leverage on the Hougang TC system, which had been developed and in use for more than a decade, customized specifically for town council management requirements. If anything, this episode clearly demonstrates the risks to Singaporeans of having a lack of alternatives in every sense.

http://www.ahtc.org.sg/ahtc/media-release-28-december-2012/


SYLVIA LIM
CHAIRMAN
ALJUNIED-HOUGANG TOWN COUNCIL
28 December 2012

Re: WP Doing Nothing?

The bottom line is you still profitable right? Even if not, don't worry, there are many champion in parliament to champion for the SME, but the poor citizen, who will speak up for them? Who will champion for lower child care cost for the benefit of middle and lower income working parents (not SME boss or service providers)?

sengkang said:

[h=5]Yee Jenn Jong, JJ (余振忠)[/h]
I run businesses too. As SMEs, we face tremendous cost increases - rent, manpower, transport, cost of goods, etc. We are often forced to accept lower margins, to constantly innovate our processes and to cut down excess corporate costs and overheads to survive. We can't just raise prices every time we face cost pressures. I hope this applies to our PTOs as well.







Fare increase not just to raise salaries of bus drivers: Lui Tuck Yew
[url]www.straitstimes.com
Public transport fare increases are not for the purpose of boosting the short


[/URL]

Click to expand...

Yee Jenn Jong, JJ (余振忠)


"AHTC counts itself fortunate to have been able to leverage on the Hougang TC system, which had been developed and in use for more than a decade, customized specifically for town council management requirements. If anything, this episode clearly demonstrates the risks to Singaporeans of having a lack of alternatives in every sense."




Media Release – 28 December 2012 | Aljunied-Hougang Town Council
[url]www.ahtc.org.sg
I refer to the media responses by Dr Teo Ho Pin and Mr Chandra Das on Christmas Eve regarding the issue of the sale of the PAP-managed town councils’ computer and financial systems and the subsequent termination


[/URL]

Re: WP Doing Nothing?

sengkang said:

[h=2]Cover Photos[/h]

Click to expand...

Me support red.

Red is huat!