TR EMERITUS

Former ISA detainee Vincent Cheng has called for the abolishment of the Internal Security Act during the SDP pre-election rally yesterday at Hong Lim Park. Mr Cheng was detained for three years without trial under the ISA from 1987 to 1990 for being involved in a "Marxist Conspiracy" to overthrow the PAP regime. He claimed that he initially stood firm and denied the charges imposed on him by the PAP regime, but relented in the end after being physically assaulted and tortured by ISD officers. "I was put in a cold room, interrogated for hours, slapped on the face and kicked in the abdomen," he said. Mr Cheng was forced to appear on television to "recant" his mistake to which he protested quietly by changing his hair-style to that of PAP strongman Lee Kuan Yew. He subsequently filed an affidavit to deny the charges and that they were extracted under torture, but it never reached the public as his lawyers were harassed by ISD officers to drop the case. Mr Cheng was never charged openly in court or convicted of any criminal offence. Even PAP minister Tharman and the former Attorney-General Walter Woon expressed doubts about the genial Cheng plotting to overthrow the PAP regime. In 1986, Philipines dictator Ferdinand Marcos was overthrown by the people with strong support from the Catholic Church. Some of the 22 arrested and detained under "Operation Spectrum" were Catholic priests and social activists whom the PAP regime might regard as a threat to its rule according to Mr Cheng. Mr Cheng ended his speech by calling on ex-detainees to step forward and speak about their experiences under detention and for the ISA to be abolished. The Temasek Review supports Mr Cheng's call to abolish the ISA which has no place in a first world democratic country like ours and is easily abused by those in power to serve their own nefarious political interests. The ISA should be replaced with an anti-terrorism act to deal specifically with terrorists instead of being the unofficial "mafia police" of the PAP regime to cripple its political opponents.   Please join our Facebook page here and invite your friends to do so to create awareness of the current affairs affecting Singaporeans. Please use our online web form to contact us.  Read More →

The PAP regime has been on a damage control mode of late to placate angry Singaporeans by unveiling a slew of measures to improve the public transport, education and housing sectors. Not a single day pass without the mainstream media proclaiming that the PAP regime has spent this and that amount of money on this and that to put up a "wayang" that it is trying its best to solve our problems. At the same time, senior leaders such as the affable Senior Minister Goh Chok Tong has been called upon to manage public expectations by exhorting Singaporeans to stop griping and take positive steps to help the PAP regime such as providing "constructive proposals." The current predicament of Singaporeans stems from a systemic failure in public governance rather than isolated glitches. The dismal performance of the PAP regime since the 2006 elections is obvious for all to see, even among its hardcore supporters who are running out of excuses to defend their political masters. While Singapore's economy has grown by leaps and bounds over the last ten years in tandem with the salaries of the PAP ministers, the median wages of ordinary Singaporean workers have remained stagnant at $2,400 monthly as the income gap between the rich and the poor continues to grow. The relentless influx of foreigners not only depress the salaries of Singaporeans and increase the cost of living, it also dilute the sense of national identity which we have painstakingly built over the last fifty years. All these woes could be prevented in the first place if we have a stronger opposition in Parliament to engage in robust debate with the ruling party on each individual policy before it is implemented on the ground. For example, why do Singapore needs 6.5 million people? Was there any study done to analyze the negative impact of immigration on society? Were Singaporeans asked if they are able to accept the newcomers from non-traditional sources such as China and India? Without warning, the flood-gates were suddenly opened and Singapore became flooded by immigrants overnight which caused its population to increase to 5.08 million people. The PAP regime is now trying to contain the damage from the fallout, but it is all too little and too late. Unless we change the way Singapore is being governed, the same mistakes will repeat themselves time and again and Singaporeans are ultimately the ones who are paying the price for it. The last few years have demonstrated that Singaporeans cannot trust the PAP anymore to govern the country in their interests. It appears that the PAP regime is more concerned about its long-term political survival than the welfare of ordinary Singaporeans. The immigration policy is no more a ploy to convert large numbers of uneducated economic refugees from China and India to new citizens to vote for them. Regardless of what "wayang" the PAP will put up next together with its sycophantic propaganda mouthpiece, many Singaporeans have already made up their minds on who to vote in the coming general election. With public disaffection and disgruntlement against the PAP regime at an all-time high, the possibility of a freak election is becoming very real. Singaporeans should not and will not be deceived by the PAP again. The PAP electoral slogan for the 2006 election is "Staying Together, Moving Ahead." While the PAP ministers and MPs have moved far ahead, the rest of us are staying together behind in abject misery. Things cannot get worse with the opposition in power. At the very least, we all know they will not continue the PAP's insane policies of marginalizing true blue native Singaporeans to appease the foreigners.   Chris Low   Please join our Facebook page here and invite your friends to do so to create awareness of the current affairs affecting Singaporeans. Please use our online web form to contact us.  Read More →

Dr Vincent Wijeysingha New Singapore Democratic Party member Dr Vincent Wijeysingha has called for the implementation of a minimum wage for low income Singaporeans and unemployment benefits for those laid off during the SDP pre-election rally at Hong Lim Park yesterday. Dr Vincent graduated with a PhD in Sociological Studies from the prestigious University of Sheffield in England. His doctoral thesis was on "Political Economy of State Social Policies in Singapore" (2001). He is the son of Eugene Wijeysingha, the respected and long-serving former headmaster of Raffles Institution and currently works as an executive director of a local NGO. Speaking from his personal experience in England, Dr Vincent debunked the PAP argument against the minimum wage that it will drive up cost of living and lead to increased unemployment. Dr Vincent said the United Kingdom set up a "Low Pay Commission" to study the minimum wage in 1998 and introduced it two years later. In 2006, a comprehensive study done by Professor (industrial relations) David Metcalf on the effect of minimum wage on jobs revealed that: (a) it did not have an impact on the aggregate rise in jobs; (b) the number of low-paying jobs did not decline; and (c) there were no differences in jobs in those parts of the country which had more lower-paid jobs that those that had more higher-paying jobs. More than 90 percent of the countries in the world have some form of minimum wage structure with Hong Kong being the latest. Dr Vincent proposed setting the initial minimum wage at $6.80 per hour so that Singapore workers can earn a decent living without having to take up two or more jobs just to make ends meet which will translate to higher labor productivity. He also presented the idea of giving unemployment benefits to those laid off from their jobs to help them tide over the difficult period which will cost the state no more than $1 billion dollars. Unemployed citizens will be given 75 percent of their last drawn pay for the first six months of their unemployment followed by 50 percent for the next six months and finally 25 percent for the last six months. They are required to accept one of the first three job offers that come their way. With more educated professionals like Dr Vincent joining the ranks of the opposition, the PAP will be in for a really tough fight in the next general election.   View more than 30 photos of the SDP pre-election rally at our Facebook album here.   Pamela Tang, Citizen Journalist   Related articles: >> Singaporeans at SDP rally concerned about influx of foreigners >> Strong turnout at SDP rally >> Singapore opposition calls for fewer foreigners   Please join our Facebook page here and invite your friends to do so to create awareness of the current affairs affecting Singaporeans. Please use our online web form to contact us.  Read More →