TR EMERITUS – Untold Hard Truths From Around The World – 淡马锡评论 – formerly Temasek Review

What rubbish is he talking about?

Is Lee Hsien Loong a delusional and out of touch prime minister? Over the years his 4G minions have been doing anything and everything to raise the prices of every day goods and services without caring about the impact on average Singaporeans. Not only are GST rates going to be increased in the middle of an impending recession, we have also seen the 4G goons increasing everything from ERP rates to S&CC charges. To make matters worse, they have proven themselves to be ignorant and uncaring enough not to do anything to reduce fuel duties when other governments worldwide have done so! So what rubbish is he talking about? Prabu Ramachandran Read More →

57th National Day

Today is our 57th National Day and too many people including older native born Singaporeans do not realise enough that it was almost a miracle that we have built a nation out of almost nothing with odds stacked so high against us in our early years into one strong and free nation and have come so far together as one united people. I wish all my fellow citizens a very patriotic and Happy National Day. The whirlwind visit by Nancy Pelosi, Speaker, US House of Representatives, to Taiwan came and gone but the shxx, the tensions and the economic costs for Taiwan and the US continue to spiral. The wise and strategic thinking Chinese leadership didn't fall for a military confrontation trap deliberately orchestrated and provoked by those 2 old hags. China can wait for its unification with Taiwan and it is rightly doing so. After all, it is a more than 5,000 years old civilisation. Briefly put, militarily, Singapore aligns itself with the US and we are a signatory to the 5 powers defence agreement too. Economically, we are reaping huge benefits from the huge and growing Chinese market, however, I want to sound a warning. If we are not careful and this pap government sucks and worships too much of ang mo tua kee mentality and approach, we could drift deeper and deeper unconsciously and willingly to become a proxy or pawn on the US chess chessboard with potentially untold collateral damages and consequences for our country and our people. It is easy to maintain the status quo and reluctant to change but the world has changed. I repeat, the world has changed! Think. Simon Lim Read More →

An alternative to the COE system

I want to give my views about how to replace the COE system. Some people criticized the COE system because it is unfair and favors the rich. I do not agree with this criticism. It is unavoidable that scarce resources will always favor the rich. We all want to live in GCB (good class bungalows), but only the rich can afford GCB. My criticism of the COE system is that the prices are volatile (resulting in large fluctuations) and the system allows certain parties, e.g. car dealers, to corner the auction and make a profit at the expense of the end consumers. We still need a system to restrict COE permits, so that the number of vehicles is under control. I prefer that the COE price be set by the authority. If there are more people applying for the COE compared to the available quota, the COE should be distributed by ballots. The COE price will have to adjust according to demand. But the prices will be more stable, although it must reflect the market demand. More importantly, my proposed system is fairer, and will not allow the middle men to exploit the system to make a speculative profit. This system allows some owners to take a speculative position. They will apply for the COE and hope to win the ballot. They can then sell the COE to make a gain. This speculation could be handled by imposition an appropriate transfer fee within one year of issue. My suggestion recognizes the need to control the vehicle population by limiting the permits, but sets a price that is more stable (but still reflect market demand) and is fairer to the end users. Tan Kin Lian Read More →