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Tag: values

  • PM Lee Hsien Loong ‘Saddened’ By Statement From Siblings Lee Wei Ling And Lee Hsien Yang

    PM Lee Hsien Loong ‘Saddened’ By Statement From Siblings Lee Wei Ling And Lee Hsien Yang

    Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong has expressed his disappointment and sadness over a statement issued by his siblings “publicising private family matters”.

    “I am deeply saddened by the unfortunate allegations that they have made. Ho Ching and I deny these allegations, especially the absurd claim that I have political ambitions for my son,” said Mr Lee, in response to a six-page public statement issued by his siblings on Wednesday (June 14).

    Dr Lee Wei Ling and Mr Lee Hsien Yang had said in their statement that they had lost confidence in their brother, PM Lee.

    In response, PM Lee said: “While siblings may have differences, I believe that any such differences should stay in the family. Since my father’s passing in March 2015, as the eldest son I have tried my best to resolve the issues among us within the family, out of respect for our parents. My siblings’ statement has hurt our father’s legacy. ”

    In their statement, which they publicised on their Facebook pages around 2am, the two siblings said they felt closely monitored and fear the use of organs of state against them and Mr Lee Hsien Yang’s wife, Suet Fern.

    They also said the situation is such that Mr Lee Hsien Yang felt compelled to leave Singapore “for the foreseeable future”.

    The two siblings allege, among others, that since their father Lee Kuan Yew’s death on March 23, 2015, there have been changes in Singapore that do not reflect what the late Mr Lee stood for.

    At the centre of their statement, titled ‘What has happened to Lee Kuan Yew’s values?’, is the long-running dispute over the demolition of their father’s house at 38 Oxley Road.

    The two siblings are joint executors and trustees of the estate of the late Mr Lee.

    In their statement, they reiterated their father’s wish that the house be demolished upon his passing, and said their brother and his wife Ho Ching had opposed this wish as “the preservation of the house would enhance his political capital”.

    The two siblings also alleged that preserving the house would allow their brother “and his family to inherit a tangible monument to Lee Kuan Yew’s authority”.

    Prime Minister Lee responded to this by saying: “I will do my utmost to continue to do right by my parents. At the same time, I will continue serving Singaporeans honestly and to the best of my ability. In particular that means upholding meritocracy, which is a fundamental value of our society.”

    The statement from the siblings came 1 1/2 years after Dr Lee, Mr Lee Hsien Yang, and PM Lee issued a joint statement in Dec 2015 saying the brothers had each agreed to donate half the value of 38 Oxley Road to charities named in their father’s obituary notice.

    Dr Lee and Mr Lee Hsien Yang had said they would like to honour their father’s wish for the house to be demolished after Dr Lee ceases to live in it.

    PM Lee had said he had recused himself from all government decisions involving the house and, in his personal capacity, would also like to see this wish honoured.

    This morning, he ended his response by saying: “As my siblings know, I am presently overseas on leave with my family. I will consider this matter further after I return this weekend.”

     

    Source: http://www.straitstimes.com/

  • Some Parents Don’t Understand Why Birthday Celebrations Should Be Kept To Minimum

    Some Parents Don’t Understand Why Birthday Celebrations Should Be Kept To Minimum

    No goody bags, no sweet treats and no gifts. Instead, a simple birthday song sung in class should suffice.

    Some primary schools are laying down the law on birthday festivities in schools, saying they should be kept to “no-frills” celebrations.

    This, they say, will curb concerns about food allergies and the consumption of junk food.

    Just as important, it prevents students from making comparisons between the haves and have-nots.

    The Straits Times found that at least six schools have issued such guidelines in recent years: Dazhong Primary School, Pei Chun Public School, Geylang Methodist School (Primary), Oasis Primary School, Springdale Primary School and Riverside Primary School.

    The Ministry of Education has no policy on this, allowing individual schools to decide.

    But some parents whose children are in these schools are unhappy, saying that they celebrated their children’s birthdays in pre-school and should be allowed to continue the custom in primary school.

    Housewife Betha Bhanu Valli Kalyani, 36, who has a son in Primary 2 in Springdale Primary, used to mark birthdays with him in pre-school by distributing goody bags containing toys and tidbits to his classmates, in addition to ordering balloons and a cake.

    “He used to have celebrations in kindergarten, so I don’t see why he is not allowed to do so now,” she said.

    Housewife Geraldine Tan, 41, who has a son in Primary 2 at Holy Innocents’ Primary School, said his school does not discourage such celebrations.

    Making comparisons “is part and parcel of life and shielding children from that is a little excessive”, said Ms Tan.

    But the schools say that they have their reasons.

    “There is also a concern that the students will start to compare between the haves and have-nots,” principal Ong-Chew Lu See said.

    “While we want our students to build quality relationships within the class, we do not want to encourage comparison among them.”

    “Some parents show their love by wanting to celebrate their birthdays in a bigger way, but others love their children in simpler ways…

    “Parents have said that this avoids comparison (of material wealth) among pupils,” she told The Straits Times.

    Civil servant Nur Azlina, 36, who has a Primary 2 daughter and Primary 1 son in Riverside Primary, likes the school’s “no-frills” stance.

    She recounted how her son’s classmate had given out customised pencil cases inscribed with the name of each child during a birthday party in kindergarten and he had asked her if they could do something similar for his birthday.

    “Children already start making comparisons at a young age and it makes things difficult for parents who come from different family backgrounds,” said Madam Azlina.

     

    Source: www.tnp.sg

  • Yaacob Ibrahim: There Cannot Be Double Standards When Dealing With Issues That Touch On Race And Religious Harmony

    Yaacob Ibrahim: There Cannot Be Double Standards When Dealing With Issues That Touch On Race And Religious Harmony

    This incident involving Imam Nalla of Jamae Chulia mosque has been a trying one for the community. Imam Nalla has realised that he is in the wrong and that his words have caused tension and disquiet. His apology over the weekend was a meaningful gesture to reconcile with friends from other faiths. I thank our non-Muslim friends for accepting the apology. Their willingness to forgive reflects the Singapore way, where we uphold mutual respect and harmony for our common good.

    Earlier, I mentioned that there cannot be double standards when we deal with issues that touch on race and religious harmony. Our laws preserve the freedom to practise one’s faith, and protect all communities, regardless of race or religion, from being denigrated. The authorities have done the right thing by applying the law firmly and fairly, as this is in the best interest of all communities.

    As Muslims, we are called to radiate rahmah (compassion) and spread peace. Words matter and words that cause mistrust and apprehension among the various communities have no place in Singapore. Similarly, a case such as this should always be directed to the relevant authorities as and when they arise. It would be irresponsible and reckless to sensationalise such issues on social media.

    This has been a difficult episode. But it is also a timely reminder of how words uttered insensitively can undermine our social cohesion. Let us learn and reflect from this episode, unite as one people and focus on the future we hope to build as a society. Wherever we are, including spaces like our places of worship, we must safeguard the values we hold and cherish as Singaporeans – mutual respect, unity and social harmony. The unity of our nation depends on this.

    #yaacobibrahim

     

    Source: Yaacob Ibrahim

  • PCF Childcare Have No Heart, Instilling Wrong Values In Children

    PCF Childcare Have No Heart, Instilling Wrong Values In Children

    These days, PCF childcare centre management have no eyes to see, no heart to feel.

    You give my child field trip form late last week, expect payment by tomorrow. Cash. What’s the point of the CDA account? Aren’t educational field trips by PCF childcare centres supposed to be funded by CDA account?

    Doesn’t help that they have a “carry balls” Parent Support Group that only thinks about the welfare of their own children. Hey, spare a thought for those parents who find it hard to cough up money at the end of the month! Not everyone is rich, okay! To you, $20 per child is nothing. It could mean the difference between eating tomorrow or not for others!

    To “sell” this field trip, the school has pumped up the children’s spirits. How would a child react when he sees his friends going to field trip but he can’t because Mummy and Daddy can’t afford it?? That’s what a CDA account is for, you know!

    You want to teach about “haves and have-nots”? Don’t need to go to Pertapis! Start with the childcare centre itself! Not everyone can afford what’s affordable to you!

    A big thank you to the management and the “sar kar” Parents Support Group of PCF Sparkletots Yuhua, Block 264 Jurong East Street 24 for introducing our children to the concept of class segregation!

    (Yes, please call me down for a “clarification session” or whatever. I’m looking forward to it. But remember, not all parents work office hours. Sorry to ruin your perfect little worlds.)

    ‪#‎PCF‬‪#‎EveryChildShouldBeTreatedTheSame‬

    Halimah Yacob, Zainal Bin Sapari,

     

    Source: Abdul Malik Mohammed Ghazali

  • Goh Meng Seng: Even Senior Civil Servants Planning To Migrate, Singapore Education System Not Teaching Good Values To Students

    Goh Meng Seng: Even Senior Civil Servants Planning To Migrate, Singapore Education System Not Teaching Good Values To Students

    When I was traveling to visit a friend during the Chinese New Year period, someone called out to me, “Are you Goh Meng Seng?” I returned my greetings and thought that this was just another the usual meeting with a Singapore supporter.

    But I was proven wrong. This meeting with Michael, proved to be different from others. At the very least, we spent about 20 to 30 minutes chatting on the sidewalk of the busy MRT station.

    Michael told me he is an opposition supporter despite the fact that he is a civil servant. The sad thing is that he said he is preparing to migrate out of Singapore to Japan. This is not the first time I met a supporter who will tell me that they are migrating out of Singapore, to Australia, New Zealand, Canada, US etc. The last one I met before Michael was Jack at Cantonment Police Station when he was getting his certificate of good conduct from the police so to facilitate his migration!

    Naturally, I asked Michael why would he and his family want to migrate to Japan? If all supporters like him were to migrate out, then who do we have left behind to give opposition their continuous support?

    Michael explained that he is doing all these for his children. He has been to Japan and was impressed by their education system. They teach “VALUES” to their students, not just subjects or “living skills” like how to deal with internet and the New Media.

    I was stunned by his words. I thought there are no other Singaporeans like me who would talk about “VALUES” or the lack of it in our education system. In fact, from top down, Political Leaders to civil servants and commoners, wrong values were transmitted in various subliminal messaging through the political system and pop culture. One of the reasons why I decided to step into opposition politics was due to my rejection of PAP’s vote buying exercise via using ASSET ENHANCEMENT HDB UPGRADING carrots. It is basically telling Singaporeans that your votes and soul could be sold or bought by such pork barrel politicking. I did not want my children to live under such system which cultivate such BAD VALUES. Thus, I decided that either I fight PAP to change this system or I shall resign myself to making more money and prepare myself to leave this place; for the sake of my future generations.

    In fact, I have decided to let my daughter to study in Hong Kong instead of Singapore, purely because of my rejection of PAP’s indoctrination of BAD values through the education system. The massive brain washing via distorted history books and slanted National Education which mixed PAP’s propaganda into various messaging.

    I do not see the day I could successfully eradicate the PAP’s system of self interests and self preservation. But at least, I tried and am still trying.

    And Michael is right, our education system has stopped cultivating our shared common morals and good values with regards to Morals, Equality, Fairness, Humanity, Social Justice, Social Responsibility and Democracy. Even our National Pledge was treated just as an empty promises of the State and ruling party everyday; rightfully so because PAP has openly declared that this National Pledge is nothing and has no value at all but just a Highfalutin ideals which we should just ignore.

    Our education system is more interested in Elitism, to filter out the “bright” Scholars with high IQ, never mind if he or she has any morals or core values to begin with, so that PAP could just put them into civil service and eventually into their party to serve their political monopoly.

    Michael told me that many civil servants, high ranking civil servants, are looking into migration out of this place we call Singapore. I was surprised because no matter what, civil servants, especially those high ranking ones, were the ones who helped created the current system! Why are they migrating out of their own creation?

    They are just here to work and meet their KPIs which may or may not give the best results that the society needs but definitely serve their own promotions and bonuses. They saw the flaws of the system in many instances but the Top down management would just discourage any dissidence towards the Elite Scholars. Thus, when their time is up, they would just leave Singapore, for the sake of their children.

    Michael also told me that the stifling academic environment will not provide the kind of First World education that Singaporeans deserved. He said that he has known various foreign lecturers employed by the local universities had their contracts or tenure shorten or discontinued just because they have made unflattering remarks on local politics, PAP and its policies. The lack of academic freedom would compromise the standards of learning dependent on critical thinking.

    Our education system basically discourages critical thinking while promotes conformity or group thinking. This is why Michael felt very pessimistic about the future of his children if they were to remain here in Singapore.

    My little conversation with Michael has to end as I was late for my visit. But this little conversation with Michael sets me thinking on the future of Singapore.

    Education is the foundation of every Nation and it involves not merely economic importance but also the cultivation of our Nation’s Soul. This Soul will determine how our society will look like, how our National Identity will be forged or disintegrate. Any political system’s effectiveness will depend on this cultivation of the Nation’s Soul, its cultural and social consensus based on the values it holds. But somehow, our Good Core Values are serious lacking while bad influences like political propaganda have been on the rise.

    Without the Freedom to Think with strong cultivation of Core Values, there will only be Mind Slaves left in the country.

    Goh Meng Seng

     

    Source: People’s Power Party – PPP