TR EMERITUS

The World Cup has brought different unique experiences in different hosting countries. Some would swear that the 2010 South Africa World Cup was the best. The 2018 Russia World Cup, on the other hand, is considered a phenomenal success. The World Cup is here with us again, hosted by Qatar. As usual, fans are expectant as they look forward to seeing their favorite players working the ball on the pitch and placing wagers with sportsbooks. As you wait for the World Cup matches, you could go to Play Croco casino login and play some casino games as you wait for the big season. If you are planning to experience the World Cup firsthand and planning a trip to Qatar, here is what you need to know. 1. Covid-19 Requirements Regardless of immunization status, anyone who plans to attend the FIFA World Cup 2022 in Qatar must provide negative Covid-19 test documentation. A fast antigen test administered within 24 hours of arrival or a PCR test performed within 48 hours of departure must yield a negative result. Both assessments cannot be self-administered and must be obtained from recognized medical facilities. Ehteraz, a government-backed contact tracing tool akin to the UAE's Alhosn mobile app, must be downloaded by GCC nationals and residents over the age of 18. Facemasks are required on public transportation, at the airport, and by employees. Visitors are urged to review the most recent recommendations made by Qatar's Ministry of Public Health while traveling with their preferred carrier. 2. You Should Have a Hayya Card To participate in this event, all visitors from outside of Qatar must be aware of the entry requirements. All foreign nationals who intend to visit Qatar for the FIFA World Cup beginning on November 1 this year must possess a Hayya Card to enter the country. Holders of Qatari residency permits are exempt from this requirement, and the card will be made available as soon as it has been approved using the Hayya app. It is unclear, nevertheless, whether or not visitors with Qatar temporary work visas must possess the Hayya card. All individuals attending any of the games played in Qatar must possess a Hayya Card, sometimes referred to as a Fan ID, provided by FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022. It has been made clear that visitors cannot access the stadium without both a match ticket and a Hayya card. Travelers from other nations can enter Qatar using the Hayya Card. However, those who want to visit before November 1 will be able to do so if they meet the conditions for their visa category. To enter the stadium, they must still have the Hayya card. 3. Will Alcohol Be Allowed? Both grocery stores and restaurants have strict policies on serving or selling alcohol. Additionally, it's against the law to be drunk or drink alcohol in public. These regulations have also caused travelers to wonder if they will be allowed to consume alcohol while visiting Qatar. Qatar's authorities have stated that they are making an effort to make the regulations more palatable for visitors from other nations. 4. Are Tickets Available? Tickets are available even though the Portugal and Argentina games, opening ceremony, and finals have sold out. Fans can buy World Cup tickets in two ways. They can get tickets for match hospitality from Expat Sport or the FIFA website. Expat Sport ticket has category one seats, with a good view of the stadium and four hours of access to food at the stadium. The first person's ticket is $950 (AED3,489.36). Verify the validity of your citation. Buy your tickets through FIFA.com or Expat Sport, the UAE's official and exclusive agent, to ensure they are legitimate. 5. What to Wear While driving, as much as when out in public, tourists should dress modestly; the shoulders of women must be covered, and short skirts must be avoided. When visiting governmental offices, medical facilities, or shopping malls, men and women should avoid wearing shorts or sleeveless tops. You might be asked to leave or denied entrance to these places if you are not dressed modestly. Although the rules are anticipated to be substantially unchanged, they are anticipated to be somewhat eased during the World Cup. 6. Accommodation To boost accommodation, the organizers provide shared rooms in villas, vacant apartments, tents, and fan villages. Two cruise ships are being converted into hotels at the port of Doha. Seventy thousand more rooms are anticipated to enter the market due to all these actions. Qatar will provide up to 130,000 rooms, according to the nation's Supreme Committee for Delivery & Legacy. There are few and pricy lodging choices on the ground in Qatar. Refabricated cabins are being marketed as a low-cost alternative at so-called "fan towns" in Doha's outskirts. Due to the shortage of accommodations, hundreds of fans have been forced to go outside Qatar for solutions, with many choosing to base themselves there. Daily shuttle flights will be run by the United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, and Oman to transport spectators to the host nation. In advance of the World Cup, demand for hotel rooms has skyrocketed in Dubai, a renowned travel destination. The city will run around 50 shuttle flights daily to Doha, which is slightly more than an hour distant by air. Conclusion If you plan to attend the Qatar 2022 World Cup tournament, there is a lot to consider to have an easy time. Ensure you are well-versed with Qatar's Covid-19 requirements to stay compliant. Understand the country's laws to avoid legal issues, and plan for your accommodation in advance to beat the pressure on the available accommodation options.       .    Read More →

I encourage feedback and contributions from fellow netizens regarding this commentary. I post as a concerned citizen and a lay person and if I have got any aspects wrong, I seek your understanding and forgiveness. I goggled our national pledge, 'We, the citizens of Singapore, pledge ourselves as one united people....to build a democratic society based on justice and EQUALITY....so as so achieve happiness, prosperity and progress for our nation'. In this commentary, I want to focus on Equality and specifically, quantum of the fine imposed on offenders by the authorities. For example, if 2 drivers beat the same red light at the same time and both are caught on police camera and assuming that it is their first offence, both of them are likely to get a summon with certain demerit points deducted and I suppose that the amount of financial penalties will be the same too. I ask in order to truly build a democratic society based on justice and EQUALITY, wouldn't it be better to tweak our current system in the way we impose financial penalty on the offenders to one that is based on a certain percentage of their income, say, 0.5% of their annual income and for those without an income such as students, housewives or retirees, a separate formula will apply. If it is a standard punitive quantum of say $1000/ for the said offence, then to a person who earns 24k annually vs another person who earns half a million dollars annually will experience a world of difference on them and make a joke out of deterrence effect, equal misery and Equality lalala. Nothing should be carved in stone and we shouldn't be afraid or lazy to shy away from our status-quo and comfort zone if we can further improve and refine our system in order to work towards a society that is truly based on justice and EQUALITY like what we had pledged every school day when we were little. Think.   Simon Lim      Read More →

The issue of how HDB price its BTO new flats was first raised some twenty years ago by myself and several Forum contributors. I am a 75-year old tertiary-educated Pioneer Generation Senior Citizen who had completed full-time National Service. Like many concerned parents, I was rightly worried how our children and grandchildren can cope with our runaway property prices. This is a national issue of concern to all Singaporeans, including those aspiring to own private property. Why? Because if HDB flat prices are "sky-high", private property prices will be "astronomically-high". Our high property prices is a major contributor to our high cost of living. Average Singaporeans are impacted in these three ways: _ As a home-buyer, having to pay so much for a "brick-and-cement entity" and incurring huge long-term financial debt. _ As an employee. If an employer has to pay high office rent, can it afford to pay better salaries, increments and bonuses? _ As a consumer. If a shopkeeper or supermarket has to pay high commercial rent, will it not charge higher prices for goods and services? I commend young Singaporean Lynne Tan for her two insightful Forum letters. But I take great umbrage at the two long-winded parrot-like HDB replies (Oct 29, Aug 16) that were unconvincing and contradictory. HDB Group Director Tan Chew Ling said "This is why our BTO flat prices are not pegged to the market but are significantly subsidised to ensure affordability." While HDB Director Ignatius Lourdesamy said "HDB first establishes the market value of the BTO flat by considering the prices of comparable resale flats nearby." In the 1970s, HDB new flat prices at Marine Parade Estate were: 3-room $17,000; 4-room $20,000; 5-room $35,000. Current median prices are respectively $228,000; $347,000; $473,000. Inflation in construction costs cannot fully explain such big increases in selling prices. The real reason is that, some 30 years ago, HDB quietly made an unannounced switch from a hitherto "cost-based" to a "market-based" new flat pricing. It was only in 2007, following mounting public anger, did HDB publicly revealed that "...the prices of new HDB flats are based on the market prices of resale HDB flats, and not their costs of construction..." Indeed, HDB's "market-based" pricing is actually the root cause behind the prices of new flats and resale flats chasing each other in a never-ending upward spiral --- which is detrimental to buyers of both new and resale flats. Young Singapore couples also now face the "double whammy" of paying so much upfront for their HDB flats, with their values hitting zero at the end of their 99-year leases. Under HDB Minister Mah Bow Tan, this was an excerpt from a ST 17 Oct 2009 INSIGHT article "Are HDB flats really subsidised?": "...Despite repeated calls, the HDB has not revealed the breakdown of the prices of its flats, and it again declined when INSIGHT asked the board to provide the figures of one unit..." Under HDB MInister Khaw Boon Wan, this was an excerpt from a ST 18 Oct 2011 report "Call to re-look pricing of new flats": "...Giving Singaporeans affordable roofs over their heads was uppermost in the mind of PAP MP Zainudin Nodin, when he called on the Government to re-look the way new HDB flats are priced, with a view to lowering the prices further. Current home prices worry him, he said, because from listening to his residents he finds that Singaporeans are spending a large chunk of their incomes on paying their housing loans..." Current HDB Minister Desmond Lee had merely proclaimed that HDB new flats are "heavily subsidized" and hence "very affordable" --- without substantiating these claims by revealing the "full facts and figures" which HDB has available. New British PM Rishi Sunak rightly said "Trust is earned. And I will earn yours." After 20 long years, it is timely for Prime Minister-in-waiting Lawrence Wong to step forward with his credible public answers as part of his Forward Singapore Dialogue to these two simple questions: (i) WHY is the HDB not doing the right thing as a not-for-profit low-cost public housing developer through passing on to our citizens the economy-of-scale cost savings in its huge developments by pricing new flats on a cost-based breakeven basis? (ii) WILL the HDB do the right thing for Singaporeans in discarding the current "market-based pricing" and reverting back to a cost-recovery "cost-based pricing"?   David L K See   *  Writer's Note for Readers:   Below is text of my 1 Nov 22 letter to STForum Editor Angelina Choy.  It was  "rejected for publication" (read: censored).  Please help forward to our many Concerned Singaporeans, ahead of next General Election.      Read More →