Category: Singapuraku

Singaporeans Prefer To Be Fooled by PAP, Good Jobs Go to Foreigners

In PAP’s elitist eyes, Singaporeans are fools and are therefore treated as such. No one should blame PAP.

For years, Singaporeans have been fooled by PAP’s creation of “good” jobs for citizens, which is of course another half truth. We don’t bother, or are afraid, to ask the government point blank to list all the good jobs it has created. Well, there’s likely to be only a handful and that’s about it because most of the “good” jobs go to foreigners.

Whether a job is ‘good’ is relative: it’s dependent on our living costs.

To a foreigner degree holder from India, any job paying between $2000 and $3000 a month is a good job. Damn good in fact for he would be earning only a fraction of this amount back home and could also have been periodically unemployed. In 15 to 20 years, he would have sufficient savings to enjoy an early retirement back home, not eating at hawker centres but restaurants.

For a local diploma graduate, a $2000 starting salary won’t get him far if he is considering marriage and having kids. Our high cost of living, inflated by PAP through property prices, is a killer and there is little prospect of retirement, even if one eats at a hawker centre every day.

One would have thought that after 26 years of prostituting Singaporeans for GDP growth, PAP must have created hundreds of thousands of well-paying jobs. So how come PAP is unable to provide a breakdown of good jobs in the various industries created for SINGAPOREANS?

In a self-insulting statement, DPM Teo insisted PAP was unable to provide “a more detailed breakdown because it may not be in our interests to do so”. “Our” of course refers to “PAP”, not Singaporeans. PAP has resorted to obfuscating the truth by lumping PRs and citizens together. There would be public outrage and all hell will break loose should relevant employment statistics be publicly disclosed.

The majority of Singaporeans appear to be sleepwalking and don’t seem to be aware that government-linked companies are totally dependent on hundreds of thousands of foreigners to mitigate high rental and labour costs. Profit driven PAP will always enact legislations in GLCs’ favour.

(Besides GLCs, there are PAP-affiliated companies – SMCs set up by PAP grasslooters – whose employees are mostly foreigners.)

Sleepwalkers should wake up and take a look at Changi Airport, SATS, SBS Transit, SMRT, NTUC, etc. Still cannot see the hundreds of thousands of jobs created for foreigners?

With the opening of Jewel Changi Airport in 2019, what is the ratio of good jobs created for foreigners vs locals? Of course there are good management positions but don’t they all go to PAP cronies?

Even GLCs in the security industry such as Certis CISCO and AETOS employ at least 80% of foreigners to lower business costs. (AETOS was recently transferred to Surbana Jurong)

If PAP wasn’t profit driven and had focused on improving productivity, it would not have set up an entire business park in Changi for foreigners, mostly Indians. And guess which nationality some of the Indian companies employ. PAP creating good jobs for Singaporeans? Or are we expected to believe that Singaporeans are so choosy that few want good jobs with good pay?

Where is PAP’s ‘blueprint’ for job creation for Singaporeans? How come got no figures?

The business model of most GLCs rely 100% on cheap labour, without which they would have gone ‘pock kai’ years ago. PAP has created hundreds of thousands of jobs which pay peanuts and they do not benefit Singaporeans. PAP has not been creating good jobs for locals.

Singaporeans are supposed to be an educated lot but what’s the point of a ‘good’ education when we choose to go down the same path after being repeatedly fooled?

Source: https://likedatosocanmeh.wordpress.com

October 22, 2016
Gilbert Goh: Global Charitable Organisations Deserve Support

Supported the emboidery work of this handicapped Palestinian refugee woman at Musawat Saida.

The Palestinians are great with their hand-sewn emboidery work and its a pity there is a lack of marketing effort to sell them abroad.

The refugee emboidery market is a great money-churning goldmine that remains very much untapped and we are trying our best to assist in this area.

Moreover, for the refugees themselves, its great to earn one’s keep than sitting at home and wait for handout. The emboidery sewing can also be done at home with minimal interruption to their household chores as most refugee women also tend to look after the children themselves.

The wealthy international charitable bodies these days are stretched to the limits with their funding resources and many local NGOs suffer from this reduction in funds.

The idea of a social enterprise model whereby NGOs self-fund themselves from selling their own hand-made products takes more eminence now.

However, its still difficult to change the mindset of NGOs here as they are used to easy access to funds contributed from the European charitable organisations.

But such days are truly numbered…and my fear is that some noble charitable organisations may need to close down soon due to a lack of funds.

Source: Gilbert Goh

October 22, 2016
2 Perusahaan Milik Anak Melayu Singapura Dinobat Usahawan Sosial Dunia

Dua perusahaan sosial anak Melayu berjaya mengatasi 42 pasukan dari 15 negara untuk meraih hadiah wang tunai $40,000.

Pasukan PsychKick dan Nomad di kalangan enam pasukan pemenang acara Usahawan Sosial Muda (YSE) anjuran Yayasan Antarabangsa Singapura (SIF) siang tadi (21 Okt).

MASALAH SENDIRI JADI ILHAM TANGANI MASALAH PESAKIT LAIN

Setahun lalu, Nurul Syafiqah, pelajar La Salle, 23 tahun, mengalami masalah kemurungan dan dimasukkan ke ward psikoterapi. Melalui pengalaman itu, beliau melihat sendiri kekurangan dari segi sistem rawatan yang diberi kepada pesakit. Ini memberi beliau ilham untuk menolong pesakit yang mengalami masalah sepertinya.

Bersama dua lagi rakan beliau Sayid Hafiz dan Zachary, mereka memulakan PsychKick April tahun lalu.

Kumpulan tiga sekawan ini menghasilkan sebuah aplikasi untuk membantu ahli psikoterapi memantau dan berhubung lebih rapat dengan pesakit mereka, sekali gus meningkatkan keberkesanan program rawatan dan mempercepat proses pemulihan.

Mengulas tentang dana yang dimenangi, Nurul Shafiqah berkata, “Kita mahu menggunakan wang itu untuk operasi dan mbangunkan produk kami. Kami juga mahu habiskan aplikasi kami yang sedang kami buat.”

Kini sedang diuji, PsychKick berharap untuk melancarkan ujian perintis apps itu hujung tahun ini. Syafiqah berharap setelah dilancarkan, aplikasi ini dapat menolong pesakit bukan sahaja di Singapura tetapi di luar negara.

TEKAD TOLONG KANAK-KANAK SEDUNIA HASIL PENGALAMAN MERANTAU

Muhammad Haziq Mohd Rashid dan Mohd Nasrul Rohmat, kedua-duanya pelajar sepenuh masa di Universiti Teknologi Nanyang (NTU), mendapat ilham di Jaisalmer, India, di mana kemahiran menghasilkan kraftangan kulit adalah kemahiran turun temurun penduduk di sana.

Di kawasan berhampiran juga, mereka ketemui sebuah daerah perkampungan di mana ramai keluarga tidak mampu menghantar anak-anak mereka ke sekolah dek kemiskinan. Sekolah di kampung itu juga dalam keadaan serba kedaifan dan memerlukan kerja-kerja naik taraf.

Dengan memanfaatkan bakat penduduk di situ, kedua-dua sepupu ini memasarkan barangan kulit berkualiti tinggi dan mesra alam dari Jaisalmer ke pasaran sejagat.

Ini memberi mereka pendapatan tetap.

Keuntungan selebihnya pula disalurkan bagi kerja-kerja naik taraf sekolah dan membiaya lebih 100 kanak-kanak di sekolah tersebut.

NOMAD kini sedang meneroka pelbagai wadah untuk memperluaskan pasarannya dan meningkatkan penjualan beg-beg tersebut. Buat jangka masa panjang, NOMAD berharap untuk menolong masyarakat-masyarakat miskin di negara Asia lain.

October 22, 2016
Unfair NTUC Put Halloween Decoration But Not Deepavali

A reader shared this post.

“I am clearly disappointed at the sight of a Halloween decoration taking precedence over the Deepavali displays at your Sportshub branch.

May I humbly know when did a commercial celebration that’s not even been recognised as a public holiday in Singapore has become a festivity that overshadows our Ethnic & Cultural importance in Singapore? Is this how you advocate racial respect & harmony of Singapore to visitors & residents in our country?

I’m extremely disheartened that a country that’s hailed for it’s diverse races, in the recent years has become a more greedy commercial hub with focus on main ethnic groups and forgetting the minorities.

Do you know what’s the meaning of Deepavali & Halloween? Deepavali’s not a new year as widely misinterpreted. It’s a Festival of Lights (bringing in joy, happiness & peace to our family) whereas Halloween is dedicated to remembering the dead. Even the meaning of Halloween has been lost over the years & it’s being celebrated as a day to invoke fun, fear & tricks.

Fairprice is a well known local groceries merchant with multiple branches throughout Singapore. Being part of the National Trade Union Congress I’m ashamed to say you have failed to show unity in our National Celebration. I’ve always been proud of my country & always will be. Therefore I hope you will also learn to take pride in giving equal importance to all ethnic celebrations. I hope our Citizen’s pledge is not only remembered by it words but by it’s meaning.

‎Puvaneswari Alagan”

Source: www.allsingaporestuff.com

October 22, 2016
Pink Dot Disappointed By New Ruling, Google Pledges Continued Support

In light of new rules that could curb foreign funding and involvement in events held at the Speakers’ Corner in Hong Lim Park, organisers of Pink Dot said they hope more Singaporeans and local companies will step forward to support them in 2017.

Pink Dot, an annual non-profit event, organised in support of the Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender (LGBT) community, also said in a statement on Friday (Oct 21) that while it respects and understands the Ministry of Home Affairs’ position, it is “disappointed” by the latest clarifications from the ministry.

“Pink Dot has always been a local movement dedicated to bringing LGBT Singaporeans closer to their friends and families and closer to Singapore society as a whole – a universal aspiration that we do not consider to be controversial or political,” said spokesman Paerin Choa.

“We remain committed to organising and holding Pink Dot as we have done for the past eight years and we want to work closely with the Ministry of Home Affairs and other Government agencies to ensure that we remain within legal boundaries and keep the event safe for all participants, as we begin planning for next year’s Pink Dot event,” said Mr Choa.

“As our society continues to evolve, we hope that this will be the start of an ongoing dialogue and we look forward to continue engaging with the various Government agencies to better foster understanding between the Government and the LGBT community in the long term.”

The 2016 edition of Pink Dot had 18 corporate sponsors, including Facebook, Google, Barclays, JP Morgan, Goldman Sachs, BP, Bloomberg, and Twitter.

The Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) stated that foreign entities will have to apply for a permit to organise or assist in the organising of events held at the Speakers’ Corner in Hong Lim Park. This covers sponsoring, publicly promoting, or organising members or employees to participate in the event.

Meanwhile, Singapore entities, such as local companies and non-governmental organisations, can organise or assist in the organising of an event, without the need for a permit. This is meant to “reinforce the key principle” that the Speakers’ Corner was set up primarily for Singaporeans, MHA stated.

MHA also clarified that Singapore entities refer to those which are incorporated or registered in Singapore and controlled by a majority of Singapore citizens. This means many of Pink Dot’s foreign sponsors, which are registered and incorporated in Singapore, would not qualify as a Singapore entity, and would need to apply for a permit.

GOOGLE BACKS PINK DOT

At least one sponsor has committed to taking the extra step of applying for a permit in order to continue supporting Pink Dot.

When contacted by Channel NewsAsia, a Google spokesman said: “We’ve been proud supporters of Pink Dot since 2011 and we will continue to show our commitment to diversity and inclusion. So we will apply for a permit to support Pink Dot in 2017 if required by this new regulation. We hope that these new rules will not limit public discussion on important issues.”

Another past sponsor, JP Morgan said via a spokesman that the company is “committed to promoting equality in our workplace and encourage a supportive and inclusive culture”. Channel NewsAsia has reached out to six other past sponsors of Pink, including BP, which said it had no comment.

Other entities which have organised events at Hong Lim Park include the YMCA, but its head of corporate affairs Samuel Ng told Channel NewsAsia that he believes the YMCA “won’t be affected” by the new rules, as its past Proms @ the Park events were held at the main lawn ‎of Hong Lim Park, not at the Speaker’s Corner.

“The administration and all is quite different,” said Mr Ng, referring to whether an entity applies to hold an event at the Speaker’s Corner or at the park. “(Our events) would be under the community shelter that manages the park.”

Source: www.channelnewsasia.com

October 22, 2016