TR EMERITUS

NTU students including foreign students are getting increasingly peeved at the inconveniences they have to put up lately due to the Youth Olympic Games. NTU is the site of the Youth Olympic Village. Over the last few days, we have received numerous complaint letters from NTU students about the disruption in their daily routine brought about by the YOG. Janet Pang, a 2nd year student from the Engineering Faculty wrote: "August is usually a slack period for us, but because of the YOG preparations, we are forced to finish our assignments and projects early. There is plenty of re-scheduling of lectures with many brought forward. Some of the lecturers are poorly prepared because of the rush to complete the lessons on schedule. Our studies have suffered as a result of the YOG. To be frank, we rather not have it." Christina Lye concurred: "Hello, because of YOG, our assignments, presentations and exams are all pushed forward and is affecting our result. Semester one is supposed to end in another month, but because of YOG, everything is being pushed forward and we are all stressed up. We lost our sleep for more than two weeks. Do we actuall deserve this?" Lau Ting Ting, a student from Hong Kong added: "All thanks to YOG, there are so many reconstruction going on and road blocks set up in NTU. NTU has literally transformed into a prison.  During this period, you cannot imagine how much inconvenience the YOG has brought to ppl working here. All internal shuttle bus has been shut down, public bus no longer comes into NTU because the Jalan Bahar exit of NTU is totally shut down!" Dan Lim, from Malaysia said: "NTU has been turned into a high-security prison! Can't imagine what will happen when the YOG officials and athletes arrive. We are just here to study. Why should we put up with so many inconveniences?" Despite the extensive publicity given to YOG by the state media, the response from Singaporeans has been lukewarm so far. In an online poll conducted by Channel News Asia, a shocking 88 percent or 5,639 respondents indicated that they are "not interested" in YOG at all. Public disaffection and disdain for the YOG continues to snowball with more than 600 Singaporeans joining the "I hate YOG" Facebook to protest against it. Unfortunately, the PAP regime is unlikely to listen to the concerns of NTU students as it is busy indulging in is self-created "vanity fair" to showcase itself to the world. In the words of PAP strongman Lee Kuan Yew, Singaporeans (and maybe now foreigners) are all CHAMPION grumblers.   EDITORS' NOTE: NTU students, how has the YOG affected you? Are you happy that NTU has been chosen as the site for the Youth Olympic Village? Are you looking forward to YOG? Please share your views with us here or email us directly. You do not have to suffer in silence. Let the world knows the truth about YOG!   Related articles: >> Dr Vivian: Sports is not about “petty politics” >> More than 300 Singaporeans joined “I hate YOG” Facebook >> CNA poll: 90 percent of Singaporeans “not interested” in YOG >> Slovak YOG Ambassador slams YOG venues of “school standard” only >> Two Facebook groups calling for boycott of YOG >> Free condoms for YOG officials and athletes >> Singapore helping to repair Jamaica’s stadium in return for YOG marketing >> Former stripper to choreograph opening ceremony of YOG >> Desperate PAP wants Singaporeans to get “passionate” about YOG >> PAP to Singaporeans: Give way to YOG vehicles or get fined $130 >> PM Lee wants Singaporeans to do their part for YOG >> Only six teams in YOG soccer tournament 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 →

Somehow August elicits patriotism. It is inevitable because the whole island is decorated with the national flag everywhere you look. From Pasir Ris to Pasir Panjang, from Bedok to Bishan, we are reminded that this country has amazingly survived independence for 45 years. From the moment you arrive to the day you depart, red and white flags greet you. There is no escaping because it is simply ubiquitous, Singapore's birthday bash. At this age, it is still considered a young nation by international standard since Singapore is not even half a century old. But our impeccable clean image, our rapid progress and our prosperity belie our age. On a per capita income basis, we are the richest among our fellow neighbours. And our economic prowess and sovereign wealth alone makes the Singapore Story standing out and standing tall among our envy neighbours. Sadly, not one of them even come close. Like our latest F-15 fighter jet, this unique Singapore story is hard to match and impossible to catch. So by simple logic every citizen in this country should count themselves a contented and proud group of populace in Asia. Surely a majority must be in this category since this same majority returns the government to power in successive election after election. You just can't ask for a more compatible union to celebrate a nation's 45th birthday. But somehow, in 2010, one gets the feeling something has jolted the equation of co-existence. Like the Eurasian plate below us, this political plate is undergoing some sort of momentary adjustment if not shift. If you are net savvy enough, you feel it from the thousands of netizens yelling complaints and clamoring for changes almost on a daily basis. Whatever it is, they are screaming at the top of their voices to be heard. And they have two main issues to bellow out their hearts out. Favorite among them is the rising skyrocketing houses which is fast becoming a necessity beyond the reach of normal young working people. Public housing starts from 6-digits and the COV is set at 5-digits. Forget about condos. They are beyond reach unless you have something to trade in. And there are severe implications than just the question of astronomical property prices. If young couples can't own a house, they can't get married and if they can't get married, there won't be enough of Singaporean babies. Without these children, who will serve National Service in 2030? Sounds logical because I know foreigners are not allowed to enlist in National Service. Then they turned their fury and objections to the influx of foreign workers who threaten their jobs, compete for space and houses and affect their livelihood. Suddenly there is a perceived threat and a rude awakening to the status quo. From every corner of the globe they descend on Singapore in drove; from Europe, India, China, Bangla, Philippine just to name a few. Why Singapore? Because we make this place such a fertile ground for opportunities, for employment, for business, for leisure, for attraction, for relocation, for starting a family, Singapore has inadvertently become the Big Apple of Asia. You name it we have it! Business enterprise, Financial services, Formula One, Casino, Universal Studio, Clarke Quay, Orchard Road Shopping belt, Singapore Flyer, Sentosa Tower, Night Safari. Incredibly we are such a small entity but we managed to create so much more than we can handle at the shortest possible time. Against all odds you may say. Hence, it is not surprising that the plate is full and we need help to manage the spillover. And the result is we just need more people to manage the place, especially professional people in the resorts and the casino. To be fair, it is not necessarily our fault to welcome people to manage our place. And on the 9th of August, these foreign people will also be there to celebrate National Day as one big diverse people gathered on this small island. They may not be true blue Singaporeans but they are part of this entity over time. So under all this cloud of unease, do we still have the mood to celebrate? Well, the bash is for and about the country we were born and grew into.  We celebrate, we party, because we are part of this land we call home and country. We should be proud because this place belongs to us. So long as we feel that this place belongs to us, this place is where we call home, this place is where we live with family and friends, this place is where our roots originally took place, we have every moral right to shout for Singapore. And be genuinely patriotic about it. There is no doubt this place is unique and liveable. If you have been to many other countries in the world, you would realise that most of it is devoid of life, devoid of people and devoid of purpose. You will appreciate why Singapore is such a magnet for attraction for all sorts of people seeking a better, brighter and even a safer life. Yes this is a whole lot better. It is nothing short of a miracle that we have come so far, offered so much in such a short time to all our fellow Singaporeans and then some. And in August, we should all feel the tempo of patriotism greater than ever before. Douglas Chua  Read More →

With National Day a few days away, the PAP's Resident Committees (RC) are busy hanging flags in the HDB heartlands to generate a sense of fake patriotism among Singaporeans - another classic example of "astroturfing" by the increasingly unpopular PAP regime. According to a Channel News Asia report, RCs have been decorating their estates with the Singapore flags and "competing" with one another to see who can put up more flats. "We're going door-to-door to remind them to get them to fly the flag. And if they don't have the flag, we will supply them, give them the flag to put up. And from downstairs, we'll look up - if the flag is not hung in the right way, we'll go up to them and tell them to arrange it the right way," a RC Chairman was quoted as saying in Channel News Asia. The number of flags put up voluntarily by Singaporeans has declined steadily for the last few years, a sign of decreasing support for the ruling PAP and a form of silent protest against its policies. As such, RCs have to resort to giving out free flags for Singaporeans to hang. The source of funding used to purchase the flags in the first place remains unknown. This "astroturfing" by the RCs leads to an unique phenomenon which is easily observable - flats along the main roads are usually decorated with the Singapore flags while those located deep inside the estate are often undecorated. With National Day only a few days away, the PAP RCs may have to employ Bangladeshi workers to put up more flags to prevent their political masters from being embarrassed by the lack of show of patriotism among the citizenry.     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 →