Chitchat From the inside - LTA to be restructured

You heard it here first. The powers that be have finally realised the inevitable. LTA has become too big a monster and has overwhelmed and consumed MOT. I guess the Contract 151A finally broke the camel's back. One caveat though, after 50 years of PAP rule, we all know an admission of a mistake is never on the cards. The name and facade will remain for some time but it will re-structured with a low profile publicly but highly intense in MOT and LTA.

Here are the main reasons
1. It began life pretty much as a regulator and a planner for future state. The regulator role has pretty much has been compromised. Error was made when it took roles such as procurement and maintenance (to some extent) which is directly in conflict with its regulators role.

2. It has become caught in the political vortex with Temasek and in particular SMRT. In July 2012, the Commission of Inquiry looking into the 2 systemic breakdown in SMRT services in 2011, had in its report amongst other things mentioned that LTA and SMRT agreed to form joint teams to conduct inspections to address and avoid future issues. (The COI report is pretty damning and shows how poorly SMRT performed it role). The regulator and PTO(public transport operator) forming joint teamss??? This is in breach of basic risk management principle where clear separation of roles must exist. Which political power suggested the joint teams. And this joint nonsense is still on. By now most people have realised that SMRT has become deaf to criticism and it has everything reason to do so. It is one of the best performing public listed company financially even during Saw's time and now with Kuek. There is no incentive and any financial penalties imposed are easily absorbed by the profits. So is the construct sound despite numerous mishaps.

3. MRTA (Mass Rapid Transit Authority 1980) and later MRTC, (Mass Rapid Transit Corporation 1983) did a sterling job in planning, building and operating Singapore's MRT. The planners and decision makers than realised that it needed a separate authority and not burden LTA. For 13 years Singaporeans had wonderful service from MRTC until SMRT was created in 2000. Even when there was a disruption, the cause was immediately identified and apologies were sincere.

4. LTA issues are not confined to trains. The inability of public listed companies who are GLCs trying to make profits while meeting their customer's demand was already an issue with the bus services. It was no surprise that Ministry of Finance under Tharman lost their patience and introduced the new bus tendering system. It was not only to drive competition but to remove politics from open market practice. I think we are seeing results with Tower Transit who suddenly seemed to have found Singaporeans who are keen to drive buses and SBS announcing the highest pay hike in its history. So where were the profits going if the companies were not re-investing in its business.

Now for the execution. MOT's perm sec is Pang Kin Keong who is well regarded and very familiar with politics and business and has the jump seat. In addition, former Director General of CAAS Yap Ong Heng who in his 6 years with that stat board (CAAS) successfully restructured CAAS and corporatised Changi Airport retired last year. He has however been recalled back and all bets are that he will be involved in the restructuring.

Lastly don't hope for the Brothel Press from Toa Payoh to report important things such as this, Sumiko' relationship with her husband is more important for the public in their view. Nothing will appear. When Warren Fernandez retires like Cheong and Han, he is expected to write in his memoirs how he fought the authorities on reporting important issues but they did their best notwithstanding.

and the PM says nothing of the problem on the press?


Guess cannot find anyone who knows how to prepare his speech for him.

tanwahtiu said:

and the PM says nothing of the problem on the press?

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What's the point of reading or listening to what your Prime Ministar is planning to say of the problem? Does it matter?

Based on what a little bird from the West told me, as long as Familee run businesses on the sidelines, LTA in whatever future restructuring is likely to suffer the same fate.

There's a Chinese saying: One may change the soup but the ingredients that go into it remain the same. (Someone who knows written Chinese please help me here.)

Inside turning to outside
The feeling you can't hide
It's touching a highlight in your eyes

sames scam

they will take it pte as part of MOT and it will be kept away from publics purview and not accountable to anyone

scroobal said:

Lastly don't hope for the Brothel Press from Toa Payoh to report important things such as this, Sumiko' relationship with her husband is more important for the public in their view. Nothing will appear. When Warren Fernandez retires like Cheong and Han, he is expected to write in his memoirs how he fought the authorities on reporting important issues but they did their best notwithstanding.

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The more interesting issue isn't really the chronicle of the debacle. It is more interesting to know why ? Given we have one of the most highly educated and best compensated administrations in the world, shielded from public view and not distracted by short term gyrations, shouldn't they be doing a better job. An earlier generation of leaders and civil servants really did heroic work with far fewer resources. If the reasons are political, then what are the lessons ?

In the UK, the whole rationale for the Chilcot inquiry, incidentally started during Gordon Brown's time, was so that lessons can be learnt for the future. In that we find that the main reason was that Blair wanted to be Bush's buddy. So catastrophic national outcomes can be due to almost unseen motivations.

Satyr said:

The more interesting issue isn't really the chronicle of the debacle. It is more interesting to know why?........If the reasons are political, then what are the lessons ?

In the UK, the whole rationale for the Chilcot inquiry, incidentally started during Gordon Brown's time, was so that lessons can be learnt for the future.....

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Born and bred Sinkies will know there'll be no inquiries of such kind as the Chilcot's inquiry.

Your Prime Ministar will tell you that Sinkieland's democracy is different from Western democracy and the Western form of justice is different from Sinkie one. Furthermore Sinkies will be told that the LTA inquiry will take twice as long as the Chilcot's.

when PAP can come up with S50 that Singapore before LKY was a fishing village, you can see the low IQ PAP A-team have?

Singapore before LKY was British playground for drug trade targeting their non-white British subjects mainly 300,000 overseas Chinese for easy drug monopoly money.


http://www.druglibrary.org/schaffer/history/om/om4.htm


This low IQ PM is waiting for his old fart instruction in his dream.

NaturalAristocratNoHeart said:

What's the point of reading or listening to what your Prime Ministar is planning to say of the problem? Does it matter?

Based on what a little bird from the West told me, as long as Familee run businesses on the sidelines, LTA in whatever future restructuring is likely to suffer the same fate.

There's a Chinese saying: One may change the soup but the ingredients that go into it remain the same. (Someone who knows written Chinese please help me here.)

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Good report, Scroobal. Tks.

pap will not admit its mistakes. This restructuring is a way of distracting and diverting attention from their mistakes. Its main aim is to dilute issues and to create another buzz to divert our attention

I suspect that it has to do with the operating culture that have evolved in the last 20 years or so. Creating and maintaining a cadre class of highly educated Mandarins became the end rather than the means. Posting were typically 2 to 3 years and the duration did not accommodate laying good foundations. Quick results caught hold.

Frankly I thought that the politics did not drive the agenda, the politics helped avoid accountability and responsibility when a mishap occurred. I remember ex Civil Service Head Lee Ek Tieng lamenting that unlike Hon, GKS, Barker etc, the subsequent generation leaders became super perm secs and got into the details rather than getting the Civi Service to do their work. And he named LHL as the first one to go into details. Again, the clarity on roles and responsibilities become blurred.

Satyr said:

The more interesting issue isn't really the chronicle of the debacle. It is more interesting to know why ? Given we have one of the most highly educated and best compensated administrations in the world, shielded from public view and not distracted by short term gyrations, shouldn't they be doing a better job. An earlier generation of leaders and civil servants really did heroic work with far fewer resources. If the reasons are political, then what are the lessons ?

In the UK, the whole rationale for the Chilcot inquiry, incidentally started during Gordon Brown's time, was so that lessons can be learnt for the future. In that we find that the main reason was that Blair wanted to be Bush's buddy. So catastrophic national outcomes can be due to almost unseen motivations.

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scroobal said:

best notwithstanding.

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Blah. Clawback the billions. We have 100 billion to claw back and throw the people involved in jail. Saw must be forced to sell off her ill gotten property. The useless at LTA knew there would be problems even with their limited and pathetic knowledge. They only knew how to remove those that told the truth and got 60 year old and above PEs to fake sign approvals. MRT will fail anytime now for more than half a day. Stay tuned. You heard it from the state of our infrastructure screeching.

CAAS and CAAG is also in quick need of restructure before big disaster comes. It is very near. You can lie with words but numbers and attrition of infrastructure does not lie.

scroobal said:

I suspect that it has to do with the operating culture that have evolved in the last 20 years or so. Creating and maintaining a cadre class of highly educated Mandarins became the end rather than the means. Posting were typically 2 to 3 years and the duration did not accommodate laying good foundations. Quick results caught hold.

Frankly I thought that the politics did not drive the agenda, the politics helped avoid accountability and responsibility when a mishap occurred. I remember ex Civil Service Head Lee Ek Tieng lamenting that unlike Hon, GKS, Barker etc, the subsequent generation leaders became super perm secs and got into the details rather than getting the Civi Service to do their work. And he named LHL as the first one to go into details. Again, the clarity on roles and responsibilities become blurred.

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CEOs and heads of ministries can come and go. But ultimately, when a mistake is made, the govt cant blame the CEOs or ministry heads. the buck stops with LHL.

As in the MRT train saga, we cant point our finger solely on SMRT or LTA. The buck stops at Minister of Transport and LHL.

Do we now see why LTY chose to quit as he knew the lies perpetuated by pap cant be hidden forever. Will we see more ministers quitting or is the lure of $10m salary for 5 years worth the backlash?

Get rid of ALL the general and admiral fat cats appointed to LTA whose job is to idle and skive in the canteen.

NaturalAristocratNoHeart said:

There's a Chinese saying: One may change the soup but the ingredients that go into it remain the same. (Someone who knows written Chinese please help me here.)

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换汤不换药

Angmo equivilent is same shit different day

scroobal said:

Creating and maintaining a cadre class of highly educated Mandarins became the end rather than the means.......

.......Again, the clarity on roles and responsibilities become blurred.

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This is one of the classic symptoms of the decay and decline of a royal/aristocratic dynasty. Don't hold your breath.

Bigfuck said:

They only knew how to remove those that told the truth and got 60 year old and above PEs to fake sign approvals. MRT will fail anytime now for more than half a day. Stay tuned. You heard it from the state of our infrastructure screeching.

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Have you read how the mighty Roman Empire fell? or how the Qing dynasty fell? Some parallels are uncanny.

ckmpd said:

Will we see more ministers quitting or is the lure of $10m salary for 5 years worth the backlash?

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Of course your ministars will choose the latter option. As the saying goes, "make hay while the sun shines". $8 Khaw is a good example.

NaturalAristocratNoHeart said:

Of course your ministars will choose the latter option. As the saying goes, "make hay while the sun shines". $8 Khaw is a good example.

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I agree...that's why a high salary attracts greedy ministers who join not to serve the country but to make $10m in 5year term.

That's why I see LKY's flawed policy of fighting for obscene pay for politicians. The pap ministers poor performance has proved LKY wrong and showed his critics right

U mean the uniquely Sinkapore way not working meh? Own self check own self! Have your cake and eat it!