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George Yeo: I ‘Didn’t Expect Landslide” Election Win For PAP

Former Cabinet Minister George Yeo on Friday (Sep 18) said he was surprised by the results of the 2015 General Election, where the ruling People’s Action Party (PAP) took almost 70 per cent of the votes.

“I didn’t expect a landslide (win),” said Mr Yeo, who spoke to media after the launch of an art installation at Bedok Reservoir Park on Friday (Sep 18), which he donated an undisclosed sum to. “I think on Cooling-Off Day, after all that the people saw and heard, people got a little worried that the day after may result in a very different Singapore.”

“So everyone took two steps back and reflected: There are problems, but this is a wonderful country, and we all like coming back here when we travel. This is home,” added the former Member of Parliament, who served Aljunied Group Representation Constituency (GRC) from 1988 to 2011.

“And collectively, when everyone came to that conclusion, I think it contributed to this outcome.”

Pointing out that the battle for Aljunied GRC between the PAP and the Workers’ Party (WP) this election was “very close”, Mr Yeo said that he “thought Victor Lye and his team did a very good job winning back a large part of the crowd”.

The WP team, led by chief Low Thia Khiang, retained Aljunied GRC with 50.95 per cent of the votes against PAP’s Mr Lye, Mr Yeo Guat Kwang, Mr Chua Eng Leong, Mr Shamsul Kamar and Mr K Muralidharan Pillai.

In 2011, the same WP slate of Mr Low, Ms Sylvia Lim, Mr Chen Show Mao, Mr Pritam Singh and Mr Faisal Manap won Aljunied by 54.72 per cent of the votes, ousting the PAP team helmed by Mr Yeo.

Mr Yeo stepped down from politics thereafter.

Source: www.channelnewsasia.com

September 18, 2015
PAP Or Opposition Ward? No Difference To Home Value

With the General Election 2015 over and the People’s Action Party (PAP) winning all but two electoral divisions, research by property portal 99.co has showed that when it comes to housing price movements, it does not matter whether a home is located in a constituency held by the ruling party or an opposition party.

Amid perceptions that Opposition-held constituencies are not upgraded as much as ruling party wards and get fewer amenities, and thus may be seen as being less attractive as a residential area, 99.co studied housing price data from the past 10 years.

The first two graphs show how private housing prices in the four constituencies — Aljunied, Ang Mo Kio, Potong Pasir and West Coast — have changed from July 2006 to July this year.

Both Aljunied and Potong Pasir outperformed the Singapore average in terms of the property price appreciation, 99.co noted. In fact, both constituencies are among the best performing areas in Singapore, with its properties more than doubling in price on average over the last 10 years — a growth rate of over 100 per cent.

For PAP constituencies, 99.co noted that for Ang Mo Kio and West Coast, home prices in the former have performed just as well as those in Aljunied, but those in the latter lagged behind the national average, growing only about 50 per cent in the last 10 years.

The price movements and trend lines in the constituencies have remained in sync with the national average and other wards despite control of Aljunied and Potong Pasir changing hands in 2011.

“The rise or fall of property prices is not dependent on whether the property is in a PAP or an Opposition ward. Rather, the property prices are a factor of the location, and the corresponding supply and demand characteristics at the given point in time,” said Mr Eugene Lim, key executive officer of real estate agency ERA.

99.co noted that over the last 10 years, HDB resale prices in almost all wards have appreciated 80 to 100 per cent. With the exception of the spike in Tanjong Pagar due to Pinnacle@Duxton having matured for resale in 2014, the graph lines for all of the wards have been pretty much the same.

One can buy an HDB resale flat anywhere in Singapore and its price would move very much in line with other parts of the island, unlike private housing, where the price appreciation has varied widely from 50 to 150 per cent, 99.co noted.

“The data from 99.co clearly indicates that there is no difference in the valuations of residences between neighbourhoods. This likely indicates that common areas such as pavements, drainage and landscaping are being managed to similar standards. Otherwise, over two to three years, the differences will show and valuations in badly-managed districts would drop,” said Mr Ku Swee Yong, chief executive of property agency Century 21 Singapore.

Source: www.channelnewsasia.com

September 18, 2015
Punggol East WP Supporter: “Irresponsible” Lee Li Lian Is A “Big Disappointment”

HELEN: I find it a big disappointment that Lee Li Lian refused to accept her NCMP nomination even though I respect her decision to choose so.

As someone who voted for her in the GE, it’s very disheartening to know that my vote counts for nothing.

If the ELD doesn’t accept Daniel Goh as a new option, then there will be one less opposition voice in parliament.

I think all this must have been clear at the start that, so for the WP to talk about how important it is for more opposition voices to be in parliament to make sure the PAP doesn’t “ownself check ownself” and after that let a chance like that slip by, I find it unsincere.

If you can’t juggle a job and NCMP duties, which are lesser than the duty of a full MP and much less than a Minister plus MP, then how can I trust you and send you to parliament in the next election?

When the going was good, you took the MP role, when times are tough, you don’t want to stay with us and fight.

All the promises have come to nothing and now we are left with Charles Chong.

What happens now to the half of Punggol that doesn’t want him around?

I’m just feeling very betrayed because I found her very sincere and approachable, and willing to go beyond for us, but when the aristocrats tell us we must vote for people of “calibre” I’m beginning to think they might be right.

I haven’t swung yet to that corner yet, but you can call me a swing voter for now.

Hopefully Daniel will get in and he will be more responsible.

Source: http://redwiretimes.com

September 18, 2015
28 Year Old Bangladeshi Jailed 8 Months For Molesting Woman On MRT

A 28-year-old man was today (Sept 17) sentenced to eight months’ jail after he pleaded guilty to molesting a woman on an MRT train.

A district court heard that Islam Md Mohidul, a Bangladeshi national working in Singapore, had boarded the train at Kranji MRT Station at around 6.45am on June 26 as part of his commute from his dormitory in Kranji to his worksite near City Hall.

Later, the victim boarded the same train compartment at Sembawang MRT Station. After she managed to get a seat to Islam’s right, the woman started reading some documents, and later fell asleep.

Islam decided to take advantage of the situation by touching her. As there were many commuters on the train, he pretended to cross his arms but then slipped his left hand under his right elbow to “surreptitiously reach over” to the victim’s left breast.

He started to rub her breast slowly to test if the woman would be awakened, and did so more forcefully after she did not show any reaction.

Islam retracted his hand when the victim woke up. After the woman told him off, he apologised and claimed he had accidentally touched her.

She also took a photo of the accused before he alighted at City Hall MRT Station. Islam was arrested on July 15.

Yesterday, Islam, who came to Singapore about three months ago to work, told the court through a translator that he was truly remorseful.

Source: www.todayonline.com

September 18, 2015
Saudi Health Minister: MERS Cases Are Reducing Before Haj

MECCA: A recent surge in cases of Middle East Respiratory Syndrome (MERS), a sometimes deadly virus, in Saudi Arabia has ebbed in the run-up to Islam’s annual haj pilgrimage, the kingdom’s Health Minister Khaled al-Falih said on Thursday.

As pilgrims poured into Mecca from around the world, the Health Ministry said it had confirmed two more cases of the disease in Riyadh on Thursday, but the number of cases has declined since last month, Falih said.

Most medical staffers touring hospitals and medical centers around Mecca on Wednesday covered their noses and mouths with masks, as did traffic policemen and army personnel deployed to secure the flow of busses carrying pilgrims into the holy city.

“With the help of God and then with the measures taken by the ministry of health we hope to prevent the virus from getting to the pilgrims,” said Falih in a news conference.

So far around 1.2 million Muslims have arrived in the kingdom for haj.

In past years it has drawn up to 3 million pilgrims, but authorities have limited numbers in the past two years because of construction work around the Grand Mosque.

Saudi Arabia has banned the slaughter of camels around the holy cities during the pilgrimage. The animals have been found to carry the virus and scientists say they are the most likely source of primary infections of people.

Seven people in the city of Medina who have been infected by MERS have been moved to Riyadh as a precaution to avoid any spread of the disease near the pilgrimage sites, Falih said.

“The spread has begun to shrink and we are optimistic the days of spreading are gone and are behind us,” said Falih.

The kingdom has mobilized 25,000 medical staff from different cities into Mecca for the haj season.

Source: www.channelnewsasia.com

September 18, 2015