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#121
26-11-2017, 05:50 PM
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Re: The relentless rising cost of living in Singapore
This is how White Monkeys chut pattern. My OC so shock tax n gst increase, discuss with her sis (both White Monkeys supporter).. then kpkb..
Please lah, this is White Monkey usual tactic. Then, raise Minister's pay, then followed by civil servants pay ministry by ministry but biggest receipients will be the Perm Sec n Upper Echeleons. So, what LHL say is true lor.. ownself say ownself spend anyhow.. look at MRT can see aleli.. the CB CEO recruit at start so many armour officers with him go SMRT liao lui. Many cronies retire already, drawing pension but still go back to ministry and be consultant advisor draw big pay.. one of them is HoJinx sister.. do research n see if i correct or wrong. That ministry need her advice meh ? she contribute what new initiative ? boh lah, sit there, once in a while talk cock n draw pay. LHL sister ? better check her too ! 70% vote for it n everyone get it. Next is charge gst for online purchases ! Kashing kashing ! White Monkeys eyes big big.. lui lai liao lo ! 
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#122
26-11-2017, 11:39 PM
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Re: The relentless rising cost of living in Singapore
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http://www.straitstimes.com/business...in-a-few-years http://forums.$$$$$$$$$$$$.com.sg/eat-drink-man-woman-16/%5Bst-experts%5D-gst-hike-announcement-early-feb-2018-possible-tax-e-commerce-5728616.html Chia Yan Min Economics Correspondent Economists and tax experts expect the goods and services tax (GST) to go up within the next few years, with an announcement expected as soon as Budget 2018. Their predictions follow comments by Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong, who told the People's Action Party (PAP) convention on Sunday that Singapore will be raising its taxes as government spending grows. Besides a GST hike, the Government could be exploring alternative avenues for raising revenue, including taxes on e-commerce spending, experts say. The Government's expenditure already far outstrips revenue - it expects a primary deficit of $5.62 billion for financial year 2017. Experts say higher tax revenues are unlikely to come from raising corporate tax rates, given the need for Singapore's economy to stay competitive. Broad-based hikes in personal income tax rates are also unlikely, because the Government plans to keep taxes progressive. This makes GST the top candidate for a tax increase. CIMB Private Bank economist Song Seng Wun said: "The straightforward one is the GST, which has not been touched in a decade. "At the moment, there is no pressing need to raise it. But it has been more than a decade, and 7 per cent is very low relative to the global average," he said. Mr Loh Eng Kiat, a tax partner at accountancy and business advisory firm Baker Tilly, said: "Globally, there is an increasing shift from direct taxes to indirect taxes as governments relook the composition of their tax base and the efficiencies of the relevant taxes. "In line with these underlying trends, I expect it is more likely for Singapore to raise the GST rate rather than to raise the tax rate for corporates." Mr Chia Seng Chye, tax services partner at Ernst & Young Solutions, said the increase is likely to come "fairly soon, within the next one to two years". "Our GST rates are considered low relative to some other countries in the region. The average is about 10 per cent. As for taxing the growing digital economy, Associate Professor Simon Poh of the Department of Accounting at the National University of Singapore's Business School said imposing GST on e-commerce transactions could come next year. "This would level the playing field in retail for online and bricks-and-mortar sellers," he said. https://www.gov.sg/factually/content...eral-elections There have been claims on some online websites that the Government will raise the GST after the forthcoming General Elections to fund increased spending planned in the next term of government. There is no basis to these claims, and they are inconsistent with what the Government has recently stated. In the 2015 Budget Statement in February, DPM Tharman Shanmugaratnam stated that the revenue measures the Government had already undertaken will provide sufficiently for the increased spending planned for the rest of this decade1. Budget 2015 introduced important revenue measures such as the inclusion of Temasek in the Government’s Net Investment Returns (NIR) framework from 2016 onward2, and the increase in the top marginal rates for personal income tax from Year of Assessment 2017. These measures came after moves in recent years to make Singapore’s property tax rates more progressive, with significantly increased tax rates for high value residential properties, offsetting reduced tax rates for lower value homes. In rounding up the 2015 Budget Debate, DPM Tharman stated, “We have prepared ourselves in advance and that must remain the way in which we plan for our budgets in the decades to come. With the change to incorporate Temasek in the NIR framework and the other tax changes I have introduced, in particular the increase in the personal income tax rate, we will be in a good position for at least the rest of this decade.”3 The Government’s approach remains that of responding to changing circumstances and planning revenue measures in advance of Singapore’s future needs. Through this forward-looking approach, we have been able to meet the growing needs of our people in healthcare and invest in our future, while preserving fiscal sustainability and Singapore’s Triple-A credit rating. 1The Statement for Budget 2015, delivered by DPM Tharman Shanmugaratnam, said, “Based on current projections, the revenue measures we have undertaken will provide sufficiently for the increased spending needs we have planned for till the end of this decade.” (Refer to paragraph G38 of the Budget Speech) 2In July 2015, the Singapore Parliament approved amendments to the Constitution to effect the inclusion of Temasek Holding in the Net Investment Returns framework. 3The Hansard record of DPM Tharman’s Round-Up Speech for Budget 2015 is at http://sprs.parl.gov.sg/search/topic..._3%2Bbudget%2B
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#124
28-11-2017, 05:13 PM
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Re: The relentless rising cost of living in Singapore
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__________________
How can you protect Singapore when you can't protect your own military hardware ? Many thanks to 70% who voted for them .
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#125
28-11-2017, 07:26 PM
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Re: The relentless rising cost of living in Singapore
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#126
28-11-2017, 09:02 PM
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Re: The relentless rising cost of living in Singapore
GST could go up 2 percentage points in Budget 2018: DBS economist
A staggered hike is expected to be implemented over two years to help cushion the impact on households, according to DBS senior economist Irvin Seah. PUBLISHED 6 HOURS AGO Chia Yan Min Economics Correspondent SINGAPORE - The Goods and Services Tax (GST) is likely to be raised by two percentage points in Budget 2018 as Singapore's spending needs continue to grow, according to DBS senior economist Irvin Seah. He expects a staggered hike implemented over two years to help cushion the impact on households. His predictions follow comments by Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong, who recently said that Singapore will be raising its taxes as government spending grows. This sparked speculation among economists and tax specialists about the format and timing of the tax increase. Higher tax revenues are unlikely to come from raising corporate tax rates, given the need for Singapore's economy to stay competitive, Mr Seah noted in a report out on Tuesday. Personal income tax rates for top-income earners have also been recently adjusted. This makes GST the top candidate, especially since Singapore's rates are relatively low compared with its regional peers. continue reading here : http://www.straitstimes.com/business...-dbs-economist
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A good government strives to make its citizens' lives better and not make it harder . Ignore list : rocket_boy is a COWARD rocket_boy is now Zapzaplah aka zaplamparlarzap warboi Craz78 Blacklist bros who I up but never return Evetan86 sbftiankon Wally888
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#127
30-11-2017, 10:12 PM
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Re: The relentless rising cost of living in Singapore
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Raymond Lim once proposed a way for “completely free” public transport http://geraldgiam.sg/2010/03/raymond...lic-transport/ Actually Minister Raymond Lim had once proposed a way to have completely free public transport. Here’s what he said about public transport concessions during a constituency visit back in 2008. In response to NCMP Sylvia Lim’s call in Parliament on 11 March 2010 for transport concessions for the disabled, Transport Minister and MP for East Coast GRC, Raymond Lim, said: “I’d be very slow in stipulating (to operators) how best to run the concession policy.” But actually the Minister had once proposed a way to have completely free public transport. Here’s what he said about public transport concessions during a constituency visit back in 2008: “The money still must come from somewhere, right? It is about 1.5 percentage point increase in your GST. So now it’s 7 (per cent), you want it to be free? You want the GST to go up to 8.5 per cent, to run a completely free bus and MRT system?” Increase in taxes is good so that expensive civil servants like Perm Sec of Environment can boast about going expensive cooking class holidays in France while Orchard Road got flooded. Taxpayers need to feed the luxuries and expensive lifestyles of civil servants. http://singaporemind.blogspot.sg/200...yong-soon.html Don't be harsh on Tan Yong Soon.... Did you notice that I don't have a single article on our most famous French chef cum civil servant on my blog? I believe Tan Yong Soon is not to be blamed. He is after all just a product of the system. . Singaporeans please be understanding. Tan Yong Soon and our top civil servants make about $1.54M a year (after the pay cut!). $46.5K for a vacation is merely 3% of his salary or just a fraction of the interest on his savings account. The misunderstanding is the other way round - Singaporeans should have a sense of proportion and be more understanding why Mr. Tan cannot possibly comprehend that you find his vacation so extravagant because it is not extravagant at all to him. ".... My colleagues and I feel very bad about this episode, because it stands in contrast to the values and ethos of the service. " - Peter Ho, Head of Civil Service . "Gee...ethos and values? Tan Yong Soon has merely exposed the truth about our civil service!" - Lucky Tan. . At about the same time I received my "A" Levels exam results, I received a pile of scholarship applications form from various govt bodies. I took the whole pile and threw them into the waste paper basket. I wasn't sure what I've done to deserve one of these scholarships and what I'll being signing away if I accepted them. I did pay a heavy price ..... I had to take up a loan to pay for my school fees and gave tuition on weekends to earn an allowance so that I didn't have to burden ageing parents. So while my friends on overseas scholarships were enjoying skiing lessons on weekends, I travelled all over the island to give tuition to primary and secondary school kids. No hard feelings...it was a decision I made and I accepted the outcome. A few months ago one of my cousins called up and told me that he had won a scholarship to study in London, he asked me if I can be his guarantor. I agreed and having supported myself through university, I thought it would be a good idea for him to have a "easier life". I arranged to meet him at the scholarship office to sign the documents. When I got there, the walls of the office was filled with posters of smiling scholars diving, skiing, ...and experiencing the good life around the world. I sat down and the public servant did an outstanding job of explaining the T&Cs of the document I was signing. However, when it came to the bond quantum, I almost had a heart attack - the amount I was asked to guarantee was just short of 7 figures (one reason was my cousin has been with the organisation for a few years and will receive full salary while he is studying). I had a chat with my cousin afterwards and among other things make him promise not to break his bond and get me into trouble. . You see the starting point of our top civil servants are all the same - fully paid education with generous allowance even before they put in a single day of work. After that a well paid recession proof job - they can afford a car and say goodbye to public transport the day they start their working life. If they are as successful Tan Yong Soon and climb the ladder in this elitist system all the way to the top, the pay is $1.5M....entitlements aplenty - free medical care, pension etc. We cannot blame Tan Yong Soon for the lack of empathy because it is impossible for him to understand the struggles of ordinary Singaporeans. He cannot possibly understand what it is like to stay up at night to worry about mortgage payments or having your electricity cut off because you can't pay for your electricity bills. Peter Ho and Teo Chee Hean are completely wrong to expect humility, the "ethos and values of the service" when the entire system breeds nothing but a oversized sense of entitlement and importance. When the civil service pay for top civil servants was hiked to astronomical levels, we are told that they are men of rare talents and their leadership is a scarce commodity....it is only scarce because of the elitist system in place that narrows the selection of good men...with rigid beliefs about what makes a man a good public servant. What is so difficult about about the formulation of public policy? The ordinary citizen cannot understand the tradeoffs and what is good for himself? . What will bring about the empathy, humility, ethos and values are the things the PAP govt continue to resist - the freedom for ordinary men to express their views and demands democratically. The freedom of ordinary citizens to access information....so that there will be accountability, transparency and competition of ideas. Many of us don't understand why Tan Yong Soon deserves his $1+M salary ...we also don't understand why our leaders are paid so much higher than those of all other countries. But it is not Mr. Tan's fault that he paid whatever he is paid, he is just part of a system ....a system that the PAP govt wants to preserve. . ."Maybe it made lesser mortals envious and they thought maybe he was a bit boastful. Would people have taken offence if his wife (a senior investment counsellor at a bank) had paid for everything ?” - Charles Chong . Teo Chee Hean and Peter Ho expressed great disappoint over Mr. Tan's article. This will encourage all the other govt mandarins to keep their extravagant ways secret.....yes, the ordinary citizens can feel better once they do not know. In the words of Charles Chong, the fault lies with us lesser mortals who became envious of Mr. Tan. His only mistake was to let us know what we don't....and the solution is for top civil servants to keep their secrets and keep the people in the dark and that is suppose to lead to great respect for our top civil servants. Last edited by kuasimi; 02-12-2017 at 12:20 AM.
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#128
30-11-2017, 10:19 PM
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Re: The relentless rising cost of living in Singapore
Deep seated culture as mention by SMRT CEO?
Quote:
Witness: I was forced to perform oral sex IT sales manager also explains why she did not make police report MS CECILIA Sue, the IT sales manager at the centre of former Central Narcotics Bureau (CNB) chief Ng Boon Gay's corruption trial, described in graphic detail yesterday how he forced her to perform oral sex on him four times last year. She teared at times as she told a district court that he wanted sex in parked cars and would force her head to his groin. She said her encounters with the then director of the CNB happened at carparks at the Hort Park, Sentosa's Beaufort Hotel, the Singapore General Hospital, and Mount Faber, and usually after they had met for dinner or drinks. She said the sex acts lasted from "split seconds" to minutes. The 36-year-old married mother of one said she did not like being forced to perform the act, but did not make a police report as she did not want to be disgraced, or hurt her family. Nor did she want to jeopardise her IT contracts with Ministry of Home Affairs agencies. The CNB comes under the ministry too. Ms Sue had built up relationships with senior officials in some of these agencies over the years, and was known in the industry for having such close links. Of Ng's requests for oral sex, she said: "I was irritated but didn't want to offend him as he's a high-ranking officer." He was previously head of the Criminal Investigation Department. Describing him as a well-connected man, she added: "You never know what will happen if you offend someone like that. Better to make a friend than a foe." Ms Sue added she would have done the sex acts "voluntarily" if she loved him, but all their encounters involved his "pushing" her to do it. She said he apologised after the first time. She carried on meeting him and thought someone of his stature would keep his word. Ng, 46, faces four counts of obtaining oral sex in exchange for showing favours when Ms Sue was a sales manager at Hitachi Data Systems (HDS) and Oracle Corporation Singapore. He can be fined up to $100,000 or jailed for up to five years on each charge. His lawyers' position is that Ng - who was replaced as CNB chief in February - committed personal indiscretions but was not corrupt. Ms Sue was spotted in the witness room of the Subordinate Courts at about 11.30am yesterday, and waited about four hours while the first witness and her former Oracle boss, Mr Leslie Ong, testified. When the prosecution said at about 3.15pm that it wanted to call Ms Sue as the next witness, defence lawyer Tan Chee Meng objected because she had earlier been listed as the fourth of five prosecution witnesses. "Criminal litigation is not ambush litigation," he said, urging District Judge Siva Shanmugam to adjourn the case till today so he could prepare. But the judge ruled that he expected both sides to be adequately prepared to question all witnesses. The gallery was packed with reporters and members of the public when Ms Sue took the stand at about 4pm, dressed in a white blouse, black skirt and jacket. For most of the two hours she was questioned by DPP Tan Ken Hwee, she kept her gaze fixed on the wall in front of her, hardly looking at him, Ng, or the public gallery where Ng's wife, Madam Yap Yen Yen, sat with family members. She was tearful and appeared distraught when answering questions about the four sex encounters. But she was composed when talking about the IT products she marketed. It emerged that she and Ng, whom the defence claim were in a relationship since they met in a Tanjong Pagar pub in 2009, met on more than the four occasions which involved sex. She said they were at lunch some time last year when Ng asked her: "When you want to take in?" When the prosecution asked her to elaborate, she replied that it was "pretty common knowledge" to mean to take in Ng's sperm. Although she met up with him, she said there were times she felt uncomfortable and she said no when he asked her twice to see him at a Kranji chalet and to accompany him to Macau. She was visibly upset at one point when DPP Tan pressed for details that led to the oral sex on Dec 9 last year, after Ng had asked her to stroke him. "I can't remember. I don't want to remember," she said. Referring to media coverage since news of the case broke in January, she teared up and said: "All the recent publicity has been killing me." The prosecution said on Tuesday that she had been diagnosed with depression. The court adjourned at about 6pm. At least four men surrounded Ms Sue as she walked to a waiting car. The trial continues today with the prosecution continuing with its questions for her. Ng's lawyers will then cross-examine her. [email protected] [email protected]
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#129
30-11-2017, 10:19 PM
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Re: The relentless rising cost of living in Singapore
The answer is Yes if you got power, money and status e.g. top civil servant.
https://sg.news.yahoo.com/ex-scdf-ch...074038943.html Ex-SCDF chief Peter Lim starts serving six-month jail term Yahoo! Newsroom May 31, 2013 [Update on 26 June: Adding Lim's commencement of jail term] Ex-Singapore Civil Defence Force (SCDF) commissioner Peter Lim Sin Pang started serving his six-month jail term on Wednesday afternoon, according to a report in a local newspaper. According to a report by The Straits Times, Lim was seen surrendering himself at the subordinate courts, dressed in a short-sleeved black shirt and pants, after being earlier sentenced to six months in jail for corruptly obtaining oral sex from Angie Pang Chor Mui in exchange for advancing her business interests. A further seven charges involving two other women, which he pleaded guilty to earlier this month, were taken into consideration. The remaining two charges against him were withdrawn. While reading out his sentence earlier this month, District Judge Hamidah Ibrahim stressed that a deterrent one was "clearly warranted" given the "vast amount of public disquiet that the present case has generated". She noted that an "uncompromising stance" must be taken against all corruption offenders regardless of their standing, adding that a fine, which was what the defence sought, would "trivialise the severity of corruption committed". "With every public servant's fall from grace, the confidence in the public service is affected and that is a fact which I could not ignore," she said. Speaking to reporters outside court later on, Lim's defence lawyer Hamidul Haq said the six-month sentence was "in our view on the excessive side" and that it was "disappointing". "But we will do our best to ensure that justice prevails in the end," he added, clarifying further that Lim's appeal was against his sentence and not his verdict. Lim, who sat hunched in the dock, rubbed his temples as the sentence was being read out. His existing S$15,000 bail was extended for his lawyers to file a notice of appeal. "Ridiculous" to not know what he did was wrong: Judge The former SCDF chief was in end-May found guilty of corruption in the sex-for-contracts trial against him, which centred around one count of oral sex he obtained from 49-year-old Pang in May 2010. She was at the time general manager of Nimrod Engineering. In reading out Lim's case verdict back then, District Judge Hamidah said it was "downright bizarre and ridiculous" for Lim to say he did not know it was wrong to engage in oral sex with Pang considering he had worked as a public servant for 25 years. The judge also questioned Lim's credibility, noting that Lim's evidence in court was fraught with inconsistencies with his statements to officers from the Corrupt Practices Investigation Bureau (CPIB). Lim looked emotionless as the verdict was read out by the judge. The prosecution had contended that Lim, 52, gave instructions to change the 6 April 2011 closed tender for radiation portal monitors to an open one to let Nimrod participate. The ex-SCDF chief denied it and countered that he was not aware it was a conflict of interest because "nobody pointed it out to him" and that the evaluation process would already have gone though other directors before it came to him for final approval. During the trial in March, Lim said he consented to oral sex with Pang after she begged "pitifully" and that he had met with Pang with the intention to catch up and chit chat. The oral sex, he said, was spontaneous. In her decision, the judge noted that Lim was undoubtedly the initiator of the oral sex as he had directed Pang to the spot where it occurred. Hamidah also did not believe there was depth or substance to the relationship between Lim and Pang. Related stories: Woman in SCDF sex-for-contracts trial: I gave him oral sex Sex-for-contracts trial: Star witness grilled over ‘intimate’ relationship with own boss I didn't stop and analyse... I liked him a lot: woman in ex-SCDF chief Peter Lim's trial
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#131
02-12-2017, 12:04 AM
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Re: The relentless rising cost of living in Singapore
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Whatever old articles posted still apply today. Same issues remained today especially on bread and butter issues which remain a core topic for each election for past 50 years regardless how PAP said Singapore had improved materially. The entire world had improved materially and they had no PAP. Old articles can help measure the credibility of the words and speeches by the Ministers and PAP Government and when bring forward until today, it had proven the Ministers and PAP Government has little credibility in their words and speeches regardless of time.
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#132
02-12-2017, 12:28 AM
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Re: The relentless rising cost of living in Singapore
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#133
02-12-2017, 01:05 AM
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Re: The relentless rising cost of living in Singapore
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By Tan Hui Leng and Jasmie Yen, TODAY | Posted: 10 April 2007 1028 They expressed support for the need to pay top dollar for top talent in the public sector. But Members of Parliament (MPs) who took part in yesterday's parliamentary debate on the pay hike also spoke passionately about what many Singaporeans believe to be the heart of the issue: The benchmarking formula used to determine ministerial pay. Ang Mo Kio MP Inderjit Singh noted that Singaporeans could not expect their leaders to serve based on altruism alone. "Are we willing to leave the future of the country to chance, that we will get good people who will give up their competence without caring about their salary?" he asked. Some MPs, however, saw problems in benchmarking ministers' pay to the private sector, pointing out to disparities in the risks taken by company chief executives and ministers and top civil servants. Marine Parade MP Lim Biow Chuan said: "I struggle to understand what a top Admin Officer aged 32 at grade SR9 has to worry about that will justify him receiving $363,000 a year … From many people's perspectives, they take no personal risk and are at best, paid employees." Opposition MPs Mr Chiam See Tong (Potong Pasir) and Hougang's Low Thia Khiang took issue with the fact that Singapore's ministers are paid more than their counterparts in developed countries. MPs like Bishan-Toa Payoh's Mrs Josephine Teo, however, pointed out that ministers in other countries may make more money after their term in office ends, such as through public speaking. Some MPs voiced concerns about the timing of announcing the pay revisions, especially with the Goods and Services Tax (GST) due to rise to 7 per cent in July. Mr Singh said: "How do we answer the man-in-the-street when we're told that about one-quarter to one-third of the expected revenue increase this year from the GST is going to be for the proposed ministerial and civil service salary increases, about $240 million, I was told?" Mr Low also referred to the recent debate on increasing the amounts for public assistance. "It's also ironic that we are consuming taxpayers' money and … discussing how much more of a fraction of a million to pay civil servants and ministers while we haggle over additional tens of dollars to hand out to our needy and disadvantaged citizens," he said. Some MPs who supported the pay hike also suggested that the salary benchmarking could be finetuned, such as pegging ministers' salaries to more realistic markers such as top men in private equity firms and top companies based on market capitalisation.
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#134
31-12-2017, 11:50 PM
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Re: The relentless rising cost of living in Singapore
http://sg-truth.blogspot.sg/2012/08/...g-scandal.html
Just how and why did the Michael Palmer affair come to light? Was it because the woman involved, Laura Ong, was involved in a love triangle? The Straits Times on Friday reported that the 33-year-old former grassroots director was in a "serious relationship" with a logistics manager, Andy Lim, for close to two years when she began dating Palmer. Sources told the paper that Lim, who is in his early 30s, would have been one of the few people to have had access to the SMS and email exchanges between Ong and Palmer. These exchanges exposing their intimate relationship had been sent to The New Paper by an anonymous source on Saturday -- the same day Palmer came forward and confessed to DPM Teo Chee Hean. One SMS read, "Hello darling... I love you loads. More than I sometimes show... Sorry. Love love". Another exchange read, “I hope you are having a good massage. I have some mangoes for you. I love you and miss you loads.” Other email exchanges showed the pair met up regularly on Mondays and that Palmer had given gifts to Ong, a former constituency director with the People's Association. Not much is known about Lim except that he is a Anglo-Chinese School and Royal Melbourne Institute of Technology (RMIT) alumni. They reportedly met when he was a grassroots volunteer at Punggol South ward and as recently as two weeks ago posted Facebook photos, which have since been deleted, of a recent trip they made to Johor Bahru's Legoland, reported The Straits Times. On Wednesday, Palmer appeared alongside Deputy Prime Minister Teo Chee Hean to announce his resignation as both Speaker and Member of Parliament. DPM Teo said the party first found out about the matter on Saturday and that Palmer offered to resign on the same evening. Late on Wednesday, the PA also confirmed Ong had resigned from her post. "Ms Laura Ong, constituency director of Pasir Ris West Constituency Office tendered her resignation on 10 Dec 12, citing family commitments," said the PA statement sent to the media. When contacted by Yahoo! Singapore, several of Ong's colleagues at Pasir Ris Elias Community Club were not aware she had resigned. Two said she was currently on leave but expected her to be coming back to work. Photos of Ong, who is married but separated from her husband of six years, are also spreading online after they appeared on a mystery blog that was set up on Wednesday. They showed Ong and her colleagues during a People's Association retreat in Beijing, China. It was not immediately clear when they were taken but when contacted by Yahoo! Singapore, Pasir Ris-Punggol MP Teo Ser Luck, who was pictured in several of the photos, confirmed they were taken during a grassroots organisation overseas retreat. Teo, who will take over Palmer's ward in the meantime, said he knew Ong from the time he used to be the MP/Adviser for Punggol South before the 2011 general elections. Ong was then the constituency director of Punggol South. Local media reported that Palmer, accompanied by his wife of 15 years Diane, said his goodbyes to 30 grassroots volunteers at the PAP's Punggol East Branch Office on Wednesday evening. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- SINGAPORE - "My friend got a super scandal about a politician having an affair. Got proof. You interested?" TNP immediately tried to find out more about what seemed like an explosive story. For the next hour, there was silence. Then a couple more messages arrived five minutes before noon from a source close to the woman linked to the scandal. At noon, four e-mails with the header "Michael Palmer" were sent to TNP. Attached to three of them were screengrabs of SMS and e-mail exchanges allegedly between the politician and the woman. Michael Palmer. Speaker of Parliament since last year. Young, dashing politician. This was a big story indeed. The messages, which seemed to have been sent to the woman's smartphone, suggested an intimate relationship between the two, which included regular Monday meetings. One message reads: "Hello darling... I love you loads. More than I sometimes show... Sorry. Love love." Another message says: "But you can't judge our relationship by just what happens on Monday." One e-mail shows a forwarded message: "Your booking at Fairmont Singapore." The last e-mail sent by the source contained a picture of a Dior handbag that Mr Palmer purportedly gave the woman. Shortly after, the informant said in an SMS that the issue needed to be escalated. He declined to speak to TNP and would only communicate through SMS. "You recall Yaw Shin Leong? We need good ministers," he wrote. Mr Yaw, a former member of the Workers' Party, was the MP for Hougang before news of his alleged extramarital affairs caused his sacking earlier this year. As TNP was trying to verify the information given by the source, somewhere else in Singapore that same day, Mr Palmer was coming clean to the People's Action Party (PAP). He met Deputy Prime Minister Teo Chee Hean and said that "he would resign his positions", the media was told in a press conference chaired by the DPM on Wednesday. When Mr Palmer apologised "for what he had done", Mr Teo told him to look after his family and to do what he could "to make up for the hurt he had caused them". First, Mr Palmer's personal Facebook account was deleted in the morning. Then his Facebook page and Twitter accounts also disappeared. At 9.33am, the PAP invited the media to a press conference by DPM Teo at 1.15pm. Reading from a written statement, he told the press he had resigned "to avoid further embarrassment to the PAP and to Parliament". He declined to take personal questions on his affair and how it had affected his family. In his letter to the PM, also dated on Wednesday, he tendered his resignation as MP and as a PAP member with immediate effect. He said he took full responsibility for his "grave mistake". "My conduct was improper and it was a serious error of judgment," he wrote. PM Lee accepted the resignation "with great sadness" yesterday. He said: "It is necessary that all PAP MPs and advisers to grassroots organisations uphold the highest standards of personal conduct... and that the party be seen to hold its MPs and advisers to these standards." Mr Palmer also asked for his family to be spared the publicity. "I humbly request that you be kind enough to respect my family's privacy during this difficult period," he said. This appeal was repeated by both DPM Teo and PM Lee. DPM Teo told reporters that those involved "are suffering much hurt from this episode". "They need time and space for the healing to take place. I hope Singaporeans give them this time and space to do so, and that in time, they will rebuild their lives," he said. The PA identified the woman as Madam Laura Ong, constituency director of Pasir Ris West Constituency Office, in a press statement on Wednesday evening. It said she had tendered her resignation on Monday, citing family commitments. On Wednesday night, Mr Palmer and his wife met grassroots leaders and volunteers of the Punggol East ward. In a Facebook post, DPM Teo, who was also there with Mr Teo Ser Luck, said Mr Palmer had apologised to the grassroots members. "There were tears in many eyes as they wished Michael and his family well," he wrote. Mr Palmer did not respond to TNP's requests on Wednesay to comment on the SMS and e-mail exchanges. Coincidentally, an American novelist named Michael Palmer released his new book this week. Its title - Political Suicide. You might like: Jack Neo's sexploitation on 12 women The SMRT Scandal - by a whistle blower The Legal Way of Providing Access to Online Prostitution Rings ICBC bank staff leaked s e x video
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#135
31-12-2017, 11:52 PM
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Re: The relentless rising cost of living in Singapore
https://alvinology.com/2016/03/13/in...thy-david-ong/
  I just came out of the swimming pool yesterday afternoon when I heard the sudden announcement over the radio on the resignation of the Member of Parliament (MP) for Bukit Batok single member constituency (SMC) ward, David Ong due to ‘personal reasons’. Later on, I learned that Ong had also quit as a party member of the People’s Action Party (PAP), and he apologised for his ‘personal indiscretion’ in his resignation letter addressed to the Secretary-General of the PAP and also the prime minister of Singapore, Lee Hsien Loong. Lee went on to announce that he will be calling for a by-election for Bukit Batok SMC. By evening, Lianhe Zaobao broke the news that David Ong allegedly had an affair with a married woman, Wendy Lim, 41, who is also a member of the PAP Bukit Batok Branch Women’s Wing and ardent supporter of Ong. Ong himself is married with three kids. It is said that Lim’s husband was the one who leaked the news about the alleged extra-marital affair. What was my immediate reaction following this chain of news? Not another one. First, it was Yaw Shin Leong from the Workers’ Party (WP) in early 2012 who allegedly had an extra-marital affair with a female supporter. He eventually vacated his MP seat and resulted in a by-election being called in the Hougang SMC ward. Then there was Michael Palmer from the PAP at the end of 2012, who also had an extra-marital affair. He vacated his MP seat as well and resulted in a by-election being called in the Punggol East SMC ward.  Now, there is David Ong to add to the string of recent MPs with ‘personal indiscretion’ issues. I want to sympathise with Ong, but found it impossible to do so. Why? This is because the PAP brought this whole issue about infidelity and the need to vacate a MP seat upon themselves. Let me elaborate. First off, infidelity is not a criminal offense. Nonetheless, it is MORALLY wrong in a monogamous society. A MP who committed adultery did not commit any crime and is not legally required to vacate his or her seat in parliament. There are many politicians in other countries who committed adultery, but were excellent leaders whom voters continue to support. Some prominent names include Bill Clinton and Franklin D. Roosevelt, both former presidents of the United States. If you were to ask me, it would have been better to let MPs like Yaw, Palmer and Ong run for election again and let the voters themselves decide if they can accept a MP who is morally flawed, but who is doing a very good job running and representing the respective constituency. This is no longer possible because in 2012, the PAP chose to keep attacking the WP to account for Yaw’s infidelity. They went on and on until WP, probably in a last-ditch measure to prove they can be of a higher moral standing than the PAP, expelled Yaw from the party, vacating his parliament seat and effectively forcing a by-election. For instance, PAP’s chairman, Khaw Boon Wan said then that WP had misled voters and urged the party, not just Yaw, to come clean about its choice of candidate in Yaw and why it took the actions it did. This statement effectively linked an individual MP’s moral grounds to also reflect that of the party he or she belongs to. Hence when Palmer’s indiscretion surfaced, the PAP had no choice but to follow in the WP’s footsteps with regards on the actions to take thereafter – issue an apology, get the naughty MP to resign, force a by-election. Karma is a bitch. Then again, the PAP has a total of 86 MPs in parliament versus just 6 MPs from the WP. With all things being equal, this means that the probability of a PAP committing some ‘personal indiscretion’ is at least 16 times higher! They should have seen it coming. By arm-twisting the WP into a corner with regards to Yaw, a precedent is set for any other MP who is going to be caught in the same situation. An individual’s moral failing becomes the moral failing of the political party he or she belongs to. As such, there really is no other way out than to pluck out the weed to save the garden. This is why I have no sympathy for David Ong. He knew the consequences and has to bear it now. With regards to the by-election, judging by the huge margins the PAP won across most of the constituencies in the last general election, the PAP will win back Bukit Batok SMC easily. Moreover, Bukit Batok SMC is in the WEST. People in the west tend to vote more for the PAP, judging from all the past election results. Plus, the strongest opposition party in Singapore, the WP, do not usually contest in the west. I am predicting the PAP will win back Bukit Batok SMC with 70 to 80% of all votes easily, regardless if they field a veteran or some new face.
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