TR EMERITUS

OPINION The Singapore media has predictably gone on a publicity overdrive about Singapore being ranked as "a top immigration hot spot for the second successive year in a global survey conducted by Gallup." "The city-state could see its population triple if everyone who wants to move here was allowed to, the poll released last Friday showed. It found that, in that case, Singapore's population of 4.8 million would increase by 219 per cent," proclaimed the Straits Times. The ranking is based on Gallup's Potential Net Migration Index which simply showed that there are more people who are keen to migrate to Singapore than those who want to leave the country. It does not tell us who the prospective migrants are. Is Singapore attracting first world migrants from first world countries like Australia, Canada, South Korea and Japan or second class migrants from third world countries like China and India? According to Gallup, the results are based on telephone and face-to-face interviews with 347,717 adults, aged 15 and older, in 148 countries from 2007 to early 2010. For most countries, aggregated sample sizes (across multiple years of surveys) range between 1,000 and 4,000 interviews. A total of 8,196 interviews were conducted in India, 7,561 in China, and 7,010 in Russia. Gallup's Potential Net Migration Index is based on responses to the following questions: Ideally, if you had the opportunity, would you like to move permanently to another country, or would you prefer to continue living in this country? (If "would like to move permanently to another country") To which country would you like to move? [Open-ended, one response allowed] [Source: Gallup] As we can see from the above, a disproportionate number of the interviewees in the survey came from China and India which contribute the bulk of the migrants coming to Singapore. Since the Singapore government has been actively trying to attract migrants from these two countries, it will not be a surprise that there are more Chinese and Indians indicating that they are keen to move to Singapore compared to citizens from other countries. Furthermore, the lax immigration policies of Singapore make it a much more attractive destination to prospective migrants who are desperate to leave their countries soon. It is so much easier for a mainland Chinese to become a Singapore PR than to get a U.S. Green Card. There are frequent reports in the media on PRC construction workers, beauticians, cleaners and even freelance prostitutes who are here on student passes being given Singapore PRs and citizenships. One PRC lady from Beijing who is working as a Chinese language teacher here is given Singapore PR within two months of application. Even in Hong Kong which is part of China, the mainland Chinese workers may not even be granted permanent residency status after many years if they are not qualified skilled workers. The survey only reveals the "quantity" and not "quality" of the migrants relocating to Singapore. In another poll conducted by Gallup last year, the top three immigration destinations for affluent, well-educated Chinese are United States (28%), South Korea (14%) and France (8%). [Source: Gallup] Singapore, despite the government rolling out the red carpet for Chinese immigrants, is not even featured among the top three. There is no official data available on the origins of the Chinese immigrants in Singapore, but based on anecdotal evidence, the majority of them hail from the poorer inland provinces of China such as Liaoning, Hebei, Henan, Sichuan and Jiangxi rather than the rich coastal cities like Shanghai, Shenzhen and Guangzhou whose GDP per capita income are fast approaching that of Singapore. The government should come clean with Singaporeans on the place of origin, professions and monthly salaries of the new citizens to enable us to judge for themselves if its immigration policy is indeed rational and reasonable. For example, of the 20,000 or so immigrants granted Singapore citizenship last year, what is the percentage holding white-collar, managerial jobs commanding a monthly salary of more than $10,000? What is the government's criteria for a "foreign talent"? Are teachers, technicians and clerks "talents" which Singapore lack? Are we getting real foreign talents or foreign thrash? 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 →

Dear Temasek Review, I am a student at NIE (NTU), beginning my third year in two weeks' time when everyone else has already begun. Even the rest of NTU starts one week earlier than us. This is specifically due to YOG being held in our school campus; it has resulted in us getting a four-month long semester break as opposed to the usual two months or so. Now a lot of people may say that it's actually a good thing to have such a long break. However, look at it this way. Our entire school year is pushed back by a month or two. Judging by the fact that each semester is about three to four months, this means we are a quarter of a semester late. And this, naturally, affects our exams and other semester breaks as well (Usually we get a Recess Week in the middle of term -- this time it's not going to happen because the entire term is squeezed into the space of 2+ months. And get this -- we end exams two days before Christmas. Even the lecturers on Facebook aren't happy.) In short, it affects the rest of our university life. Is it worth it to affect the lives of university students for one event that, to be honest, has had such an underwhelming response? The academic rush means that we undergrads are pressed for time to complete assignments and study for exams, with hardly any break in between. Now I would feel a little less compromised if the YOG had been a roaring success. But we can't deny it. It's been a failure -- even schoolkids think it's 'lame', for goodness sake. It just shows the government doesn't know how to reach out to the younger generation. And on a related note: not only has our academic year been affected, the physical environment of NTU has been altered greatly as well. You know how NTU used to have visually pleasing wide landscapes? Now it's all covered up with ugly white metal fences. Everywhere you see a pavement, there's an accompanying stretch of fence. You can't even cross the road and some places you have to walk in single file because the narrow pavement has been hemmed in. What kind of freedom is that? Now our university campus resembles a prison facility. Is it worth doing all that for YOG? To me it only shows the world our shameful obsession with order. Spaces are zoned out for you, walking areas specified. It's a sad confirmation that we are truly living under rigid rule. I only hope that the government realizes that the opportunity cost for the YOG has completely outweighed the benefits. If there were even any in the first place.   Melody  Read More →

A former Singapore national gymnast champion Mr Alex Liang has written an official letter to the Singapore YOG organizing committee (SYOGOC) to complain about the choice of commentators used at a YOG gymnastics event which was broadcast live. His lengthy letter was reposted on the "I hate YOG" Facebook which has garnered more than 2,600 fans in less than two weeks. Mr Liang wrote that he was "mortified" by the two commentators, an American and a Singaporean, neither of whom appeared to know much about gymnastics. He took particular issue with the Singaporean commentator's liberal use of Singlish: "It was embarrassing to hear him mispronounce again and again words like “vault”, “avoid” and “value” – he kept saying, wault, awoid and walue – and his American colleague made no effort to try to correct his bad English." Mr Liang was appalled when the commentator mispronounced the word "third" as "turd" instead: "It was incredible when he said today, “he was already won two medals and has now picked up a turd” (he meant to say THIRD, but being Singaporean, he was unable to pronounce the “TH” sound and said ‘turd’ instead). That I can forgive as many Singaporeans are incapable of pronouncing the “TH” sound (again, not found in Malay or Chinese) – but there comes a point where you have to draw a line and have some quality control and demand that a commentator knows the difference between a third and a turd." The American commentator also come under fire for his lack of knowledge about Singapore: "The American commentator seems to know absolutely nothing about Singapore and makes basic errors when describing Singapore. He mentioned that Singapore was situated off the East Coast of Malaysia – which is wrong, Singapore is at the southern tip of the Malaysian Peninsular." Billed by the organizers and Singapore media as a "premier international sporting event", the YOG is fast becoming a farce with a litany of comical screw-ups beginning on the opening ceremony itself when the flag-bearers walk completely out of sync from one another upon entering the stage. Before ending his letter, Mr Liang urged SYOGOC to learn from the mistakes and stop deceiving themselves that mistakes weren't made:  "When you have the world watching, you have to put on a good show or risk making a fool of your country." Unfortunately, Singapore is already made a laughing stock in the eyes of the world no thanks to the inept leadership of the minister in charge Dr Vivian Balakrishnan who still blatantly refuse to apologize publicly to Singaporeans for mismanaging the YOG. [Please sign the petition demanding a public apology from Dr Vivian Balakrishnan for mismanaging the YOG here.] 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. Related articles: >> SFI forced to outsource preparation of volunteers' food to another caterer >> Exposing the hypocrises of Vivian Balakrishnan >> Online petition demanding public apology from Dr Vivian >> Singapore schools forced to pay for YOG tickets >> Thomas Bach: High cost of YOG a concern >> Jacques Rogge: YOG is perfect promotion for Singapore >> Countering Straits Times ‘hogwash that YOG has caugh the “eyes” of the international media >> Jacques Rogge: YOG is a resounding success >> YOG volunteer: not much improvement in food >> Dr Vivian: YOG glitches unavoidable >> Petition demanding Dr Vivian to apologize >> YOG food poisoning scandal: Open letter to Dr Vivian >> Live maggot found in YOG food >> Ng Ser Miang: YOG gets positive reviews >> Kuo Chuan Primary School principal admits to blackmailing students >> Parents should pull children out of YOG >> No apology from Dr Vivian on YOG food poisoning scandal >> Massive outcry over screw-ups in YOG ticketing >> Why Ng Ser Miang should resign as Chairman of SYOGOC >> Dr Vivian: probe into YOG food poisoning scandal will take time >> PRC photographer fell down from temporary platform at YOG venue >> Cover-up of YOG food poisoning scandal? >> NEA, MOH to probe YOG mass food poisoning outbreak  >> Singaporeans “enslaved” by YOG organizing commitee >> Kuo Chuan Primary School students forced to pay $5 to attend YOG >> Singapore students forced to welcome YOG torch rally >> Mass food poisoning outbreak at YOG venue yesterday? >> YOG! 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