The solution may be simpler than you think. Singapore's economic growth was driven by imported workers and employees-you can plot population and economic growth and they look like twins. When times are hard these imported workers, including non-citizens who are permanent residents, will be a burden as there is not enough jobs to go around. Just reverse the well tried solution-encourage them to leave but with a promise they will be given priority when happy times are here again. taneepak is online now Report Post Reply With Quote Multi-Quote This Message Quick reply to this message Really? Wow we have a genius in BC, Lee Kuan Yew and Najib please take note. Sounds though more like the kind of babble I hear during happy hours in the pub after people had one drink too many and talking about doom and gloom and the hopelessness of the world. I am actually asking a serious question from serious people, how to sustain economic growth and develop new strategies, services, products and markets,development of human capital and knowledge to prepare the economy for the next upturn.
Hey, ease up, we are concerned about human rights and how justice can be attained for an innocent person. To quote from Charle's Dicken's Hard Times, the reply from someone who did something heartless, "Do you have a heart?" Answer: "Certainly, the circulation would not be complete without it." BC has become a forum for political analysts who just can't escape linking politics to just about everything,whether with any basis or not.
Me too, justice is best served when Romania convicts him eventually. Don't you think this is better human rights and justice than getting a pound of his flesh? I hope the news media does not get too greedy and demand for two pounds of flesh.
Look, Singapore is a tiny place in a favored location. It is also riding on the coattails of economic engines like the US, EU, China, Japan. These two givens make Singapore a great re-exporter, hence it sort of defies economic law in that its exports are greater than its entire GDP. In other words it catches all the world's favourable trade winds. But when bad times come, it sort of crashes because international trade shrinks. So, it builds up a huge reserve for that nasty rainy day. Singapore's future is exports, not domestic consumption.
So walk the talk and instead of harping on Singapore's hopeless situation say something positive and constructive and have some consideration for the victim and his family, you are behaving like the paparazzi to gain popularity .
Do you really understand the Singapore economy and its future plans? You are talking about a Singapore 30-40 years ago when it was mainly a port dealing with Entreport trade.Today it has a different strategy focusing on value services such as finance,shipbuilding etc etc. This is the sort of thing Singaporeans are familiar with, do you have the economic facts and data to back your assertions?You should back your statements rationally with facts and figures, otherwise you are desseminating wrong information and archaic misconceptions, anyone reading Loh's articles will know that the government is not an Ah Beng reacting instinctively to business trends and any intelligent Singaporean should be able to clarify the matter, assuming its worth the effort, ie.if people are willing to listen instead of talking to themselves and just hearing themselves talk. Anyway i think any Singaporean can clarify the situation,if its worth the trouble.
Flesh, is that a fact or your opinion and interpretation? Now if you ask me, I will do what most of Singapore's neighbours will do, cover up the matter and close the case, save taxpayer's money,and concentrate on my duty of enriching myself.
Well I reproduced the Romanian news reports because they concern our legal system and how relationships are dealt with among countries. It is important that we give the aggrieved parties (the victims) and even the Romanian ex-diplomat a fair hearing. Unfortunately the latter chose not to return to Singapore to have his case heard and he gave all sorts of excuses. Now our legal experts involved in this accident have even volunteered to go to Romania to assist their authorities sort out the case. Clearly we want justice done and we will go out of our way to achieving this. Investors and others who have an interest in Singapore will be watching. They also want to know what Romania is going to do and whether it is also upholding the rule of law. We cannot predict the result, unlike what you have been trying to impress us with your unfounded judgements and in the course of our discussions you also tried to impress with your political views unrelated to the topic. That's why you should not be allowed to rattle on aimlessly and off-track.
I think such standards are the benchmark for advanced and developed societies. the money parked there can be classified as "safe havens" not growing much but fairly safe, (though not 100 % safe,what is?) Many 3rd world countries are guilty of playing dirty, they attract a lot of investors ,change the rules abruptly and try to play out investors.Then decades later they emerge again ,play the same game but do not realise that people have long memories and once one has developed a bad reputation it takes generations to redeem it, people want to see positive action, not sweet talk. Its like the customer being talked into buying a product and later finding out it is crap and has no after sales service.It is one thing to win in the short term but attention has to be paid to the long run. These "emerging" economies can promise huge gains but also cause huge losses because of their volatility and political stability. In Asia countries ranked high in terms of rule of law are Hong Kong, Singapore and India in that order.
In case you are wondering, all my arguments on honouring agreements refer to a statement that someone was committing daylight robbery for getting cheap water and also the issue of the railway land, not the accident case which is another matter.
Shell opens $4b complex The Straits Times May 5, 2010 Project is expected to attract new wave of high-value investment By Fiona Chan ENERGY giant Royal Dutch Shell yesterday opened its highly anticipated multi-billion-dollar petrochemical complex in Singapore, producing chemicals used in almost every consumer product from clothes to cars. The Shell Eastern Petrochemicals Complex - a sprawling network of plants on Pulau Bukom and Jurong Island connected by sub-sea pipelines - took four years, more than 15,000 workers and enough steel to construct three Eiffel Towers. With an estimated cost of US$3 billion (S$4.1 billion), the project is Shell's lar-gest-ever petrochemical investment and will give a huge lift to the vital chemical industry in Singapore, which accounts for a third of total manufacturing output here. Already, Shell's decision to expand its petrochemical operations in Singapore has prompted other chemical companies to locate their plants here as well, said Shell chief executive Peter Voser, who was in town yesterday for the opening. Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong, who was guest of honour at the opening, said Shell's new complex is expected to 'catalyse a new wave of high-value' investments in the chemical industry and generate investments of more than $2 billion from leading chemical companies. This is because the new complex will bring a new source of feedstock - or raw materials - to Jurong Island, he said. The Shell Eastern Petrochemicals Complex - a sprawling network of plants on Pulau Bukom and Jurong Island connected by sub-sea pipelines - took four years, more than 15,000 workers and enough steel to construct three Eiffel Towers. -- ST PHOTO: DESMOND WEE
MediaCorp creative teams win international recognition Channel NewsAsia 05 May 2010 0756 hrs NEW YORK: Channel NewsAsia has won big at the New York Festivals International Television and Film Awards taking home one gold and three bronze world medals. The event which celebrates the best of television and film production saw submissions came from 84 countries, with more than 300 gold, silver and bronze medals awarded for all facets of television and film production. Creative Manager for Channel NewsAsia's on On-Air Promotions team Yazid Salomoon, who represented Channel NewsAsia at the festival, said: "It is quite a big deal because the New York Festivals is a world-renowned competition and to be able to win a medal is something that's a recognition towards our work, and we really do look upon it." The biggest prize was the gold world medal for Channel NewsAsia's "Life after People" promotions by the team led by executive producer Lim Cheong Soon, producer and script-writer Vivian Lee and video editor Lee Beng Hoe. Three bronze world medals came for the TV programmes "Scene City: Singapore Living Spaces" in the Educational/Instructional section, "It’s Organic" for the Environment & Ecology category and for the all-day business news promotion. Channel NewsAsia was also awarded a finalist certificate for its Kim Jong-Il teasers in the Information Magazine Programme Promotion category. Commenting on the wins, Ms Debra Soon, Managing Director, Channel NewsAsia said ”I am very proud of the wins by the team this year, particularly as it was a very challenging year financially for all broadcasters around the world. "Our creative and programming talents were able to continue to commission, produce and deliver world class, award winning products, and contribute to the ongoing success of Channel NewsAsia." The first time Channel NewsAsia won a medal at the New York Festivals was in 1999, with a gold world medal for "The Third Age" in the News Documentary/ Special category. It has won six other medals at the New York Festivals from 2001 to 2009. This year's competition which included some of the richest broadcasters such as third-time Broadcaster of the Year, American sports channel ESPN, also saw Channel NewsAsia's parent company MediaCorp being honoured twice. This included special recognition from the United Nations for programming which best exemplifies the aims of the UN. The bronze award shared by recipients from the United States and Singapore was for Caldecott Productions International's production of "Mother Earth Speaks" for cinematography. The environment also proved a winner for website channelnewsasia.com with its Saving Gaia website savinggaia receiving the IMA Outstanding Achievement Award under the News category. The Outstanding Achievement award which has been described as an extremely challenging award to win, is the second highest honour bestowed by the Interactive Media Council that's made up of leading web designers, developers, programmers, advertisers and other web-related professionals. The 2009 Saving Gaia site was deemed to have excelled in all areas of judging criteria with a very high standard of planning, execution and overall professionalism. The surprise win which delighted the multimedia team, caps the website's earlier success at MediaCorp's annual News Awards for the 2007 and 2008 Saving Gaia sites. Winning TV programmes and promotions at New York Festivals
S'pore attractions see 5-8% on-year rise in visitors for first quarter Channel NewsAsia 04 May 2010 1954 hrs By Dylan Loh SINGAPORE: The Association of Singapore Attractions reported a five to eight per cent year-on-year increase in visitors to the republic's tourist destinations for the first quarter of this year. They're also seeing more tourists opting for their own sightseeing itineraries instead of tour packages. Places catering to families and adventure-lovers are becoming increasingly popular and the association has named the Sentosa Luge, Bedok Reservoir Park's Forest Adventure and museums as some examples. It will be a roller-coaster ride for Singapore destinations gunning for tourist dollars and new offerings like the Integrated Resorts mean older or existing attractions have to step up their game. Walter Lim, secretary-general, Association of Singapore Attractions, said: "All attractions should look at a mixture of how they could re-invent their key attractions whether in terms of rides, exhibits, animals, or how they could organise events to extend their reach. And of course we mustn't forget the whole visitor experience so customer service is very important." Attractions like the Singapore Flyer have taken the advice and made efforts to establish its presence overseas. Patsy Ong, spokesperson, Singapore Flyer, said: "Initiatives include being featured in some of the documentaries in Latin America, in UK and across Asia. And we're also working with a few airlines where we're featured in the in-flight audio, including publications, doing a lot of in-market promotions as well and we do work very closely with Singapore Tourism Board." Despite a setback in 2008 when the giant wheel stopped turning due to a technical fault, the Singapore Flyer has since posted a positive year-on-year growth in visitorship of about 20 per cent from February to March this year." And with the Singapore Tourism Board projecting 11.5 to 12.5 million visitors for 2010, the tourism outlook certainly looks bright. - The Singapore Flyer
The Vienna Convention on diplomatic immunity is a legal document. All countries, including Singapore and Romania must abide by it, even over their own laws. Romania's approach on this is based on precedents. An almost carbon copy case involved an American marine serving his embassy in Romania, in which he caused the death of a popular Romanian musician in a car accident after refusing to obey a traffic signal only a few years back. The marine was drunk and refused to be subject to further blood tests. The American marine then hurriedly left Romania for Germany. Romania's request to the US to lift the marine's immunity was refused by the US. Instead the US in a court-martial it conducted convicted its own marine for obstruction and making false statements. Another similar case involved a Russian diplomat in Ottawa Canada, with a history of dangerous driving, killed a Canadian and seriously injured another Canadian in a reckless crash. Canada requested Russia to lift the diplomat's immunity. Russia refused and recalled their diplomat home and tried and convicted/jailed him for the same offence in Russia. Trying to conduct a trial by media on the Romanian ex-diplomat in Singapore gives one the impression you are after that pound of flesh.
Is there no end to the grumpy broken record. 1) What has whatever happened in Singapore got to do with outsiders? 2) What can be achieved by this repetition, only a few people read these comments in BC, if you want to send an effective message go to Singapore and petition like Greenpeace, or appear on TV or sth and Email Lee Kuan Yew. 3) How does this endless grumbling and repetition help anyone, its very tiresome and boring. 4) When did anyone demand a pound of flesh, its the media's duty to follow up on developments in affairs, just like everywhere, the media cannot act a judge jury and executioner,its against the law.
Bbn, may I remind you it was Singapore's foreign minister George Yeo who made an appeal to the Singapore news media to refrain from trial by media on that Romanian chap, less it jeopardized Singapore's case. I am merely saying exactly what he has warned against. Now the chickens have come home to roost. Guess that thirst for a pound pound flesh is just to overpowering for any self-restraint. We now see red faces and the supremacy of the Vienna Convention law.
May I remind you that you have been repeating yourself on the same topic of pound of flesh,media ,Geneva Convention again and again.We have heard it all before, why keep repeating, do you like playing the same cd again and again? WE are no experts on Law, law stands for justice, not the mumbo jumbo one reads verbatim from some web-site.there are experts in International Law. It seems your whole presence here is to persecute and embarass Singapore , without a care for the victims, are you any better than the media? Why keep om persecuting Singapore, when you are Malaysian, you can't even keep your own house or Legal System or media in order, let alone comment on others. Confucius said" Judge not, so you won't be judged". I am surprised that Singaporeans are sophisticated,matured and diplomatic enough not to criticise other societies, in a manner that borders on childishness. When one reads newspapers, one reads things with a pinch of salt, after all the stories are written by journalists and editors and maybe their bosses, how authoritative can they be? In a democracy they can print whatever they like, its up to the reader to be matured enough to be able to discern what they are reading and the quality of the information.Many countries practise censorship of the media, if the people in power do not like what you are writing, they either withdraw your licence, ask the Editor to be sacked etc this has happened to the Star, Sun etc etc inb Malaysia. In a democracy you can say what you like, but there is something called Libel and Slander, you could close shop if you are irresponsible.
Local sports marketing company ESG wins exclusive rights from Badminton World Federat RED Sports May 5th, 2010 Contributed by Merliza Lim http://redsports.sg/2010/05/05/esg-badminton-world-federation/ Singapore, Wednesday, May 5, 2010 – Enterprise Sports Group (ESG), a sports marketing and consultancy firm based in Singapore, has just been appointed by the Badminton World Federation (BWF) as the exclusive Sponsorship agency for the 2nd edition of the BWF World Super Series (2011-2013) after outshining Singapore-based like World Sports Group and International sports giant IMG Sports and Entertainment in the bid. International Olympic Committee vice-president Ng Ser Miang mentioned that ESG’s triumph is the first time an important contract was signed with an international sports federation. According to him, “It’s wonderful and an important milestone for Singapore. Badminton is an important sport, especially in Asia, which has many big events and substantial sponsorship money. This will help to encourage more Singapore companies to go into this area.” ESG will be seeking multi-million dollar sponsorships for the 13-stop BWF world series which will travel to countries like Denmark, Switzerland, Japan, Singapore and China, with viewership of the games rated over 100 million people. “The BWF is very pleased to have TSA and ESG as its partners moving forward to the next phase. We believe that the hosts of the Super Series, the BWF and this new partnership with TSA and ESG will not only secure a significant commercial income, but will also significantly raise the bar in terms of quality and reach of the product. I very much look forward to working with this new team in the next phase,” said Thomas Lund, COO on the confirmation of TSA and ESG. TSA (Total Sports Asia) has been appointed as the official Media agency for this series. This significant win in the global badminton arena is a monumental success for this homegrown company which has been securing successful sports sponsorships and representations in Singapore, Malaysia, Indonesia, Hong Kong and China. “Building and extending our Badminton dominance in Asia and beyond has always been the key focus for our company for the past 5 years,” said Terence Khoo, Founder and Director of ESG. ESG, since its inception in 2005, has helped SBA (Singapore Badminton Association) in areas of event secretariat, marketing, commercial representation, media and logistic for the Singapore Open events in the past 5 years. The Company also secured Aviva as the Title Sponsor for the Singapore Open and worked closely with Aviva to activate their sponsorship. Early this year, ESG was appointed by BAM (Badminton Association of Malaysia) to assist them on sponsorship representations and the company brought in ING for BAM as their new major sponsor. ESG was also selected by the Badminton Association of Indonesia to help raise more than US$1 million (S$1.4million) for the association and its national team.
I wasn't criticising S'pore The Straits Times Apr 30, 2010 New ambassador says remarks on freedom not an attempt to meddle By Jeremy Au Yong COMMENTS he made about Singapore's political freedom two months ago had annoyed many here. So Mr David Adelman, on his first day on the job as United States Ambassador to Singapore, spent much of his first meeting with the Singapore media mending fences. Speaking at a press conference yesterday, he stressed repeatedly that his earlier remarks - on how he would use public diplomacy to promote political freedom in Singapore - were not an attempt to interfere in local politics. He had earlier presented his credentials to President S R Nathan at the Istana. The 45-year-old former state senator of Georgia said his statement was simply an expression of his pride in the American system. It was not a specific comment about Singapore. He said: 'My comment is a comment that could be made by any ambassadorial nominee to virtually any post across the world, which is, we value the United States, our press freedoms, our freedoms of assembly and our multi-party democracy and we believe it's a great example of a working democracy that has been... a constructive force around the world.' Mr David Adelman, on his first day on the job as United States Ambassador to Singapore, spent much of his first meeting with the Singapore media mending fences. -- ST PHOTO: LAU FOOK KONG
