Just to show how incompetent the PAP is, I will show how just one insignificant, heartlander poly grad (me) can identify and come up with solutions by himself to most of our present problems. Feel free to add. Any party can grab these ideas and use them. I’m just happy if some of them become reality.
Economy
· Move away from service economy that rides on world trends to being a value-add economy that makes its own unique products that can’t be outsourced. Like Switzerland for its watches. More under ‘Technology’.
· Minimum wage for all workers local and foreign. The local will benefit in the end, as employers can no longer discriminate based on labour cost. Equal wages and employment rights/terms for all staff, local or foreign.
· All foreigners who want to work here must pass a basic English test.
· Foster local business, enable more locals to become their own bosses: slash rents for SMEs drastically. Enforce quotas for certain percentage of malls/shophouses to house local-owned stores. Enact laws that prevent MNC retailers from having many branches in a small area.
· Make foreign goods slightly more expensive than local ones to boost sales of local brands, as done in many countries.
· Become self-sufficient in our food supply. Support local organic farms in Lim Chu Kang. Buy land in foreign countries under a nationalized company and grow healthy food to support population.
Technology
· Invest in developments that make our immediate lives better – not the hot item of the day. I.e: car plating that deflects heat so you aren’t afraid to leave it in open air car parks. Air-cons in public trains that dispel body odours. Quiet bikes and electric cars. Smaller cars like those Japan latest models so more people can own a vehicle. Desalination technology. High-rise greenery. Ways to make use of small spaces.
· Kick-start an alternative energy industry. Make use of hdb roofs to collect solar energy and water.
· Transform into a high-tech, “automation nation”. We should rather spend millions on a robot than employ cheap labour that give us social problems. Heavy investment in technology to take over grunt jobs. Think dishwashing machines, vending machines for ordering food in eateries.
· Hire the large pool of tech-savvy locals for this industry. Design, engineer and continuous maintain this trade, catered specially for local circumstances. Tax credit and free warranties for businesses using new machines.
Immigration/foreign labour
· Stop Singapore from being seen as a stepping stone to better places. Admit immigrants who truly want a stake here. That which is hard to get, is coveted.
· Population re-adjustment to 3 MILLION.
· Immediate changes to immigration policy. FIVE YEARS to get PR. FIFTEEN YEARS to get citizenship. No big deal. In many Arab countries a foreigner can NEVER become a citizen. Impose a higher fee on anyone applying for PR or c’ship.
· Monitor marriages of convenience and protect our gullible citizens. Foreigners who marry in only get a ‘provisional PR’, and abide by the c’ship time requirements above.
· New PRs can only get their immediate family in, not their uncles, grandparents, in- laws etc. Their families do not get full PR rights immediately. PR’s whole family will be deported, and his PR revoked, if PR commits even a minor crime.
Social security
· Make CPF more flexible. Give option to withdraw every 5 years or when in need of the money. Let owner decide where to allocate money to OA, SA etc.
· Hire the best financial gurus in the world to get us 4% returns on all amounts. This makes people WANT to put CPF in.
· Unemployment benefits for any retrenched staff lasting up to a year, and decreasing as time goes by. Not applicable for those fired for non-performance or bad conduct. Revoked if the person refuses more than 3 jobs sourced for him.
· Shelters and soup kitchens for the most vulnerable and abandoned citizens. No one should be beggars or collecting cardboards.
· Employ more people as full-time staff working in these social security industries. Find ways to help the vulnerable even if they insist they don’t need help, due to ‘face’.
Defense
· NS is killing Singapore. NS must be abolished to free our men to compete with their counterparts worldwide in the new economy. They graduate faster, establish themselves faster, and retain their youthful idealism and entrepreneurial spirit this country badly needs.
· Abolishment to be done in phases to allow armed forces to transition into a volunteer army model. Attract a new breed of serviceman who joins for adventure, not to be a deadwood.
· Get heavily involved in UN peacekeeping missions, fight pirates, maintain peace in the region. Promotion to be based on experience and performance in these real hotspots, not paper qualifications.
· Maintain reserve regiments of people who are military nuts but don’t want to serve full-time. Organise camps for young people to teach them the very basics of rifle handling and urban warfare, via NCC etc.
· Shift doctrine emphasis from conventional warfare to counter-terrorist and intelligence training.
· Invest in cutting edge technology with Japan and USA, not buy 2nd hand hardware. Then one S’pore soldier will be as powerful as 10 enemy soldiers.
· Nurture a martial mindset for regulars with regular and practical training, like street survival, street martial arts, all kinds of weapon handling, disaster relief… we need soldiers who don’t flinch from challenges, not paper generals who are even scared of ah bengs.
Transport
· Nationalize crucial public services again – buses, MRT. Operate on a zero profit model, even free transport if possible.
· Retain COE and car tariffs. Use these surpluses to subsidize public transport costs and design.
· Heavy enforcement on bicycles. No more cycling on pedestrian walkways or roads, only in parks and bike paths. Each bike to be registered. Confiscation and fines for offenders. If young sinkees can get by without bikes, so can older sinkees and foreign workers.
The civil service
· Abolish the nepotistic scholarship system; civil service to recruit from the open market. Present system creates a new class of deluded fat cats who don’t know the real market.
· Revamp work culture of civil service. Use private sector rigour in evaluating people. Those who are liabilities should be kicked out. Promotion on merit and experience, not a pre-planned path for ‘scholars’.
· Revise salaries of top office holders, especially MPs and above.
· Crush nepotism and patronage. Set up a task force under PMO to receive such complaints. The person who tries to bank on his connection, and the VIP who tries to support him, will both be in trouble.
Human rights & the law
· Adhere to all UN human rights laws, like freedom of speech and assembly. Abolish ISA.
· Everyone equal before the law. Separate the judiciary and government. Set up a division of lawyers to represent low-income or lowly-educated people who need legal representation.
· Repeal unfair laws like 20 years’ jail for hitting MPs, or no penalty for hitting normal citizen.
· Take action against any establishment that discriminates against locals, like the restaurants at Chimes and certain nightclubs.
· Protection for all low-skill foreign workers. Same rights and redress as locals. Enact strict housing rules that prevent the current packing of so many people in small rooms. Ban transporting them with open-air lorries.
· Hit hard at human smugglers or errant employers, protect the low-skill foreign workers’ rights. This means employers will only use them when they really need them, not for the low wages or bending of laws.
· Foster academic freedom in all institutions.
Economy
· Move away from service economy that rides on world trends to being a value-add economy that makes its own unique products that can’t be outsourced. Like Switzerland for its watches. More under ‘Technology’.
· Minimum wage for all workers local and foreign. The local will benefit in the end, as employers can no longer discriminate based on labour cost. Equal wages and employment rights/terms for all staff, local or foreign.
· All foreigners who want to work here must pass a basic English test.
· Foster local business, enable more locals to become their own bosses: slash rents for SMEs drastically. Enforce quotas for certain percentage of malls/shophouses to house local-owned stores. Enact laws that prevent MNC retailers from having many branches in a small area.
· Make foreign goods slightly more expensive than local ones to boost sales of local brands, as done in many countries.
· Become self-sufficient in our food supply. Support local organic farms in Lim Chu Kang. Buy land in foreign countries under a nationalized company and grow healthy food to support population.
Technology
· Invest in developments that make our immediate lives better – not the hot item of the day. I.e: car plating that deflects heat so you aren’t afraid to leave it in open air car parks. Air-cons in public trains that dispel body odours. Quiet bikes and electric cars. Smaller cars like those Japan latest models so more people can own a vehicle. Desalination technology. High-rise greenery. Ways to make use of small spaces.
· Kick-start an alternative energy industry. Make use of hdb roofs to collect solar energy and water.
· Transform into a high-tech, “automation nation”. We should rather spend millions on a robot than employ cheap labour that give us social problems. Heavy investment in technology to take over grunt jobs. Think dishwashing machines, vending machines for ordering food in eateries.
· Hire the large pool of tech-savvy locals for this industry. Design, engineer and continuous maintain this trade, catered specially for local circumstances. Tax credit and free warranties for businesses using new machines.
Immigration/foreign labour
· Stop Singapore from being seen as a stepping stone to better places. Admit immigrants who truly want a stake here. That which is hard to get, is coveted.
· Population re-adjustment to 3 MILLION.
· Immediate changes to immigration policy. FIVE YEARS to get PR. FIFTEEN YEARS to get citizenship. No big deal. In many Arab countries a foreigner can NEVER become a citizen. Impose a higher fee on anyone applying for PR or c’ship.
· Monitor marriages of convenience and protect our gullible citizens. Foreigners who marry in only get a ‘provisional PR’, and abide by the c’ship time requirements above.
· New PRs can only get their immediate family in, not their uncles, grandparents, in- laws etc. Their families do not get full PR rights immediately. PR’s whole family will be deported, and his PR revoked, if PR commits even a minor crime.
Social security
· Make CPF more flexible. Give option to withdraw every 5 years or when in need of the money. Let owner decide where to allocate money to OA, SA etc.
· Hire the best financial gurus in the world to get us 4% returns on all amounts. This makes people WANT to put CPF in.
· Unemployment benefits for any retrenched staff lasting up to a year, and decreasing as time goes by. Not applicable for those fired for non-performance or bad conduct. Revoked if the person refuses more than 3 jobs sourced for him.
· Shelters and soup kitchens for the most vulnerable and abandoned citizens. No one should be beggars or collecting cardboards.
· Employ more people as full-time staff working in these social security industries. Find ways to help the vulnerable even if they insist they don’t need help, due to ‘face’.
Defense
· NS is killing Singapore. NS must be abolished to free our men to compete with their counterparts worldwide in the new economy. They graduate faster, establish themselves faster, and retain their youthful idealism and entrepreneurial spirit this country badly needs.
· Abolishment to be done in phases to allow armed forces to transition into a volunteer army model. Attract a new breed of serviceman who joins for adventure, not to be a deadwood.
· Get heavily involved in UN peacekeeping missions, fight pirates, maintain peace in the region. Promotion to be based on experience and performance in these real hotspots, not paper qualifications.
· Maintain reserve regiments of people who are military nuts but don’t want to serve full-time. Organise camps for young people to teach them the very basics of rifle handling and urban warfare, via NCC etc.
· Shift doctrine emphasis from conventional warfare to counter-terrorist and intelligence training.
· Invest in cutting edge technology with Japan and USA, not buy 2nd hand hardware. Then one S’pore soldier will be as powerful as 10 enemy soldiers.
· Nurture a martial mindset for regulars with regular and practical training, like street survival, street martial arts, all kinds of weapon handling, disaster relief… we need soldiers who don’t flinch from challenges, not paper generals who are even scared of ah bengs.
Transport
· Nationalize crucial public services again – buses, MRT. Operate on a zero profit model, even free transport if possible.
· Retain COE and car tariffs. Use these surpluses to subsidize public transport costs and design.
· Heavy enforcement on bicycles. No more cycling on pedestrian walkways or roads, only in parks and bike paths. Each bike to be registered. Confiscation and fines for offenders. If young sinkees can get by without bikes, so can older sinkees and foreign workers.
The civil service
· Abolish the nepotistic scholarship system; civil service to recruit from the open market. Present system creates a new class of deluded fat cats who don’t know the real market.
· Revamp work culture of civil service. Use private sector rigour in evaluating people. Those who are liabilities should be kicked out. Promotion on merit and experience, not a pre-planned path for ‘scholars’.
· Revise salaries of top office holders, especially MPs and above.
· Crush nepotism and patronage. Set up a task force under PMO to receive such complaints. The person who tries to bank on his connection, and the VIP who tries to support him, will both be in trouble.
Human rights & the law
· Adhere to all UN human rights laws, like freedom of speech and assembly. Abolish ISA.
· Everyone equal before the law. Separate the judiciary and government. Set up a division of lawyers to represent low-income or lowly-educated people who need legal representation.
· Repeal unfair laws like 20 years’ jail for hitting MPs, or no penalty for hitting normal citizen.
· Take action against any establishment that discriminates against locals, like the restaurants at Chimes and certain nightclubs.
· Protection for all low-skill foreign workers. Same rights and redress as locals. Enact strict housing rules that prevent the current packing of so many people in small rooms. Ban transporting them with open-air lorries.
· Hit hard at human smugglers or errant employers, protect the low-skill foreign workers’ rights. This means employers will only use them when they really need them, not for the low wages or bending of laws.
· Foster academic freedom in all institutions.
