Yaaaaaaaawn. I love elections - you will get to hear all kinds ofST Jan 22, 2006
Govt warns of 'time bombs' in Workers' Party manifesto
It may claim ideas are like PAP's but WP has four 'dangerous and wrong'
proposals, says Ng Eng Hen
By Lydia Lim and Zakir Hussain
THE Government yesterday accused the Worker's Party of planting 'time bombs' that would destroy key pillars of Singapore's stability and success.
Manpower Minister Ng Eng Hen last night identified as 'dangerous and wrong' four proposals by the opposition party: to scrap grassroots organisations, ethnic integration policies and the elected presidency, and to raise subsidies.
Responding to the Workers' Party (WP) manifesto launched last weekend, he noted that the WP and the PAP were 'moving closer' in some respects. He reminded Singaporeans, however, about fundamental differences separating the two parties.'On these four fundamental issues, PAP and WP are obviously taking different approaches,' said Dr Ng, who is the organising secretary (special duties) of the ruling People's Action Party (PAP).
'The four time bombs within WP's manifesto will weaken and tear Singapore apart,' he cautioned.
'This cohesive society that we have carefully nurtured and kept together for 40 years will be fractured. Racial harmony will be destroyed. Whether or not WP intends for this to happen, this will be the tragic result if they implement these ideas.'
Take for example the Elected Presidency. It may or may not be a good idea to scrap it. But how could scrapping it be a "time bomb" that would "destroy key pillars of Singapore's stability and success"?
From 1965 to 1997 (or thereabouts) Singapore had no Elected Presidency at all and those were in fact the best years of the nation's history.
Without me, this cohesive society that we have carefully nurtured and
15 comments:
I was thinking: Eh, campaigning start already meh?! Man, the opposition don't stand a chance.
but i do agree with hen on one pt. that is at least the racial mix do have to be maintained in HBD households.
I am basing on the premise tt birds of the same feather flock together. If there is no external intervention (from the govt in this case) then it is very likely that diff ethnic groups will find themselves clustered in certain areas.
The elected presidency is more like a leech, wasting taxpayer's money.. 2.5m.. I wonder what he does to deserve so much other than signing the death warrants of those on death row.
Oohh i know! The elected presidency is just a karma shield for the PM! Yea I knew it!
The Hen is clucking away...cluck cluck cluck.
If got timebomb, then we must have another Exercise Northstar. That way Singaporeans can be ready and prepared for this kind of explosion.
lol
Why should an artificial racial mix be maintained for HDB units? It is just the government's way of setting arbitrary limits to issues that are blown way out of proportion - in this case, racial harmony.
I agree with geekgeek, how does maintaining an artificial racial mix in HBD estates promote racial tolerance? I hardly know or speak to my neighbours, regardless of race. I think most HDB buyers do not consider racial composition when buying a HDB flat, it is primarily a location and price decision. Removing the racial mix requirement will not open the floodgates to ethnic groups relocating en mass. Rather, this will avoid causing financial hardship to buyers and sellers.
I don't believe in fighting needless wars. I don't see anything wrong with the elected presidency. Sure, it's useless - some fat guy in a big house holding a key to a lump of money he can't even get counted - but I don't see it being harmful.
The other policies are more salient. The "racial mix" policies were adopted for the purposes of ensuring that no part of Singapore would ever be controlled by a minority. Except maybe certain parts of Little India. Then the GRC was put in as a counter weight, to ensure that there were the token minorities in parliament. But this would ensure that all the town councils were Chinese dominated.
One part of me says, hell yeah, abolish this stupid system. But the other part says, "what the hell for, and what good does it do?"
And that's the question that I pose to you.
Anyway, I've just tagged you with a meme. Go see my blog for details.
Govt = PAP.
Singapore is very fragile, like a Jenga tower!
kiks, what do you expect when we're a country ran by thin skinned politicians and towkays?
While ethnic housing mix might not help solve the "problem", the basic distinction between the two parties appear to be that one party says the problem is no longer there and the other party says that the problem is so bad that without ethnic housing, the country will collaspe.
I think one is too idealistic, and the other, is well, blowing the issue up; but .. hell, why are these election issuse???
Politics has always been a dirty business. It always involves putting down your opponent's manifesto, speeches, etc. 1 way or the other.
me and a couple of mixed race and gender frens went on a lil holiday to KL once. Everywhere we went we attracted wierd stares from groups consisting only of individual races. Take that into consideration please.
Okay. Let's see -
if we scrap the Elected Presidency in Singapore, what will happen to the kind of stares you'll get the next time you and your friends go to Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia?
I don't know. I have no idea. I see no connection. I do doubt if bombs will suddenly start exploding around you.
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