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Vijay Srinivasan, VJ Musings
Good for Singapore and kudos to its economic management skills in a rather trying environment.
Will Blog for Food
Racism, discrimination and the ungracious manners of the locals have begun to their toll on the image of this country. Most foreigners view the Chinese-Singaporeans as ungracious blood suckers, opportunists, and racists. This will definitely have a negative effect on Singapore in the future.
星洲日報
紅色內衣靠邊站，今年黑色內衣成為新年的新寵兒，銷量高達紅色內衣的一倍。受訪的內衣公司指出，由於今年的新年碰上情人節，使性感的黑色內衣特別受女顧客青睞，銷量甚至超過紅色內衣。
Amanda Yong, New Paper
It was something that should not have happened. This was what the Romanian Ambassador to Singapore, Mr Aurelian Neagu, 50, told The New Paper over the phone from Tokyo yesterday.
Channel NewsAsia
National development minister Mah Bow Tan says he welcomes an electoral fight in Tampines GRC, where he is the anchor MP.
Nick Gentle, Bloomberg
Singapore’s strict licensing rules meant junket operators and their clients would be subject to very high levels of official scrutiny, the paper said, drawing a contrast with the situation in the Chinese city of Macau, where the market relies on junkets.
Singaporean Skeptic
Let me tell you what is daft. Taking the government's promise at face value and naively expecting them to execute it. Deciding not to use your power to vote to check against the abuses of the government. Voting for the PAP and then wondering why election promises are not held up.
Khoo Ai Ling, Singapore Libraries Bulletin Blog
Harry Suhartono and Mariko Katsumura, Reuters
The aviation business, badly hit by the economic crisis and the bankruptcy of Japan Airlines, is unlikely to find much to cheer about at this year's first major industry event, the Singapore Airshow.
Seah Chiang Nee, The Star
A surging tide of young professionals is giving growing strength to the opposition as it readies to mount a serious challenge to the ruling PAP.
Tan Jiaqi, Straits Times
Reuters
With FIFA sticking to its guns and SingTel and Starhub refusing to meet the asking price the stage could be set for a digital media company to whip the rights from under the noses of the traditional broadcasters.
Philip Lim, AFP
From jaguars and chimpanzees to Komodo dragons and manatees, heavily urbanised Singapore is gaining a reputation as a successful nursery for some of the world's rarest animals.
Se Young Lee, Wall Street Journal
Singapore's economy is unlikely to average 5% growth per year over the next 10 years, as it did in the past decade, because the city-state has become more developed, prime minister Lee Hsien Loong said.
Singapore Democrat News
Tragically, the Law Society is but a microcosm of society at large. Singaporeans, like our lawyers, shun the system that dumbs them down. They disengage, preferring to go about their own business.
Gerald Giam
I fail to see how all this benefits Singaporeans. Are Singapore citizens now going to pay less when they are admitted to hospital or attend local schools? No. Is the PAP expecting Singaporeans to rub their hands with sinister glee, as they rejoice that their PR counterparts are paying more? I don’t think Singaporeans are that vindictive.
Therefore my conclusion is that this is simply a pathetic attempt to lull Singaporeans into thinking there is actually a significant distinction between the position of foreigners and Singaporeans in this country. Secondly, it seems this is another revenue-raising exercise for the government, since there has been no mention that the money saved in subsidies is going to feed into any programme that benefits Singaporeans.
Die neue Welle
Ong Dai Lin, Today
As part of the construction work of phase two of the MRT Downtown Line (DTL2), the Land Transport Authority (LTA) has started work this month on realigning 1.2km of the Rochor Canal.
Keith Tam, DFS Changi Airport, Straits Times
In some shops, revenue generated from Chinese nationals can be as high as 50 per cent. With such cases becoming increasingly common, being able to converse in Mandarin is critical to the sales associate's effectiveness on the job. The dramatic growth of the spending power of Chinese nationals is a global trend that cannot be ignored.
Claire Huang, Channel NewsAsia
The government has decided to shave off health subsidies given to Permanent Residents (PRs) by 10 percentage points. This is in a bid to make a sharper distinction between the privileges a citizen is entitled to, as compared to a PR.
Straits Times
New ticketing agencies have sprung up, bringing the number in Singapore to five in just under a year. These include the box-office big boy Sistic, plus newer, small players OneTicketHub, Gatecrash, Bytes.sg and Tickets.com.
鞠靖, 南方周末
我当建屋局长时，经常收到这样的信，说我们这里需要一个公共交通车站，请你设立一个，不过千万不要放在我的门口。民意就是这样。目前新加坡征集民意，基本不是一般的民意，而是相关社团的，他们往往比较理智，收集的资料比较多，而且有宏观的思路。除此之外，我们也做方案展览，期限是几周，任何市民都可以去看而且可以书面提供意见。民意不是大礼堂闹一闹，而是有序的。在规划公示前，规划师要了解社会存在的真实问题，这个是更有意义的民意。
Leong Wee Keat, Today
Alcohol could be sold and consumed by interest groups at Community Clubs (CCs) if June's World Cup gets televised here. Future CCs could be reconfigured to optimise land use and ensure better usage of their facilities. High society - like those who read The Tatler or The Peak - will not be left out either as more will be tapped on to participate or volunteer.
Siva Govindasamy, Flight Global
Australia's Jetstar has picked Singapore as its key air hub in Asia, basing its largest number of Airbus A320s in the region at the island's Changi Airport and committing itself to introducing long-haul services using Airbus A330s.
The Temasek Review
Se Young Lee, Dow Jones
Connie Veneracion, House On A Hill
The clear implication is simply this: The Singaporean government wants the revenue, it has created guidelines to protect its citizens and residents from the “evils” of gambling, it is inviting the rest of the world to visit Singapore and gamble in the casinos and it really doesn’t care if the foreign tourists lose their life savings on the Black Jack tables and put a bullet through their heads or jump off the 50th floor of some hotel afterward. Bankrupt tourists won’t affect Singapore’s economy and viability as a major tourist attraction.
游润恬, 联合早报
反对党革新党乐见政府下来将致力于提高工人的生产力，并相信此举将使人们的生活水平得以提高。革新党秘书长肯尼斯前天发表声明，表示提高生产力正是这个新政党所提倡的。因为它坚信巧干而非苦干才是改善民众生活的关键，而单靠引进大量外国工人，对改善一般国人的生活并无益处。
The Long and Winding Road
When I was growing up in Toa Payoh, my family had the privilege of receiving some rather important visitors to our humble 3-room flat.
Leong Wee Keat, Today
There are not enough people coming forward to represent those who live in public housing; on average there is a shortage of 11 members in each Residents' Committee (RC). While every RC should have 30 members, the average is around "18 or 19 or so", said People's Association (PA) chief executive director Tan Boon Huat.
Who Moved My Singapore Cheese
Maybe it is time for Singaporeans to reflect upon why Singapore's current leaders run our country with such different approaches as the rest of the democratic societies.
Indo The Wild
Singapore Democrats
Isn't it the height of hypocrisy that ASP Yew expected the Defendants to reasonably know something when he didn't know about the gazetted area that he himself had referred to in his charge?
Asha Popatlal, Channel NewsAsia
The Housing & Development Board (HDB) is considering imposing a quota on Permanent Residents buying resale HDB flats. This could be done in the same way that racial quotas are imposed to prevent ethnic enclaves. The issue came up in a dialogue session on public housing with minister mentor Lee Kuan Yew where questions on affordability and aspirations were brought up.
DPA
A Singapore state counsel confirmed Wednesday a Romanian diplomat was behind the wheel of an embassy car when it ran over and killed a Malaysian man in December, a news report said.
Singapore Democrat News
Such a generalisation is deeply offensive to the Malay community.
Straits Times
The Workers' Party (WP) is unlikely to contest in two group representation constituencies (GRCs) in the general election due by February 2012.
Ng Jing Yng, Today
A whistle-blowing hotline was launched on Tuesday by Singapore firm Q2 Consulting Partner and United States' Global Compliance for employees to file allegations against their own company.
胡群智, 广州日报
Sue-Ann Chia & Kor Kian Beng, Straits Times
What draws them is the People's Action Party's (PAP) anchor minister helming the group representation constituency - national development minister Mah Bow Tan.
Why? They are convinced there is some unhappiness on the ground over housing and the contest would give them the opportunity to hit out at housing policies, particularly the affordability of public housing
Catherine Tan, Straits Times
Calvin Ng, Straits Times
Bernama
Ng E-Jay, Sgpolitics.net
The strain on the fabric of Singapore’s society brought about by flawed PAP policies over the past decade has indeed been felt by the electorate, and that is probably why the PAP is rushing to assure Singaporeans that the rate of import of foreigners will be controlled and more priority given to Singaporeans in areas such as education. However the announcements and changes made thus far have been cosmetic.
Khaw Boon Wan, Health Minister Says
I acknowledge the benefits of prevention and early screenings and will see how Medisave can be used to help pay for such expenses, subject to withdrawal limits and other essential conditions. This requires careful study.
Meanwhile, MOH has tried to reduce the cost of essential screening, like mammogram, by subsidising it heavily, for those in the lower income group. With various subsidy and assistance programme, a mammogram costs below $50.
Mustafa Shafawi, Channel NewsAsia
Manpower minister Gan Kim Yong said the number of retrenched workers in Singapore for the whole of last year is likely to be significantly lower than the record level of 29,000 in 1998.
周殊钦, 联合早报
政府需要时间落实之前所提出的政治制度改革，以在下一次大选前使各方面的工作准备就绪，但这并不代表大选即将举行。李显龙总理昨天在“2010年新加坡透视论坛”上谈到政治制度的革新时说，现在距离举行下次大选的期限尚有两年，因此政府“并不急于举行”。
Asha Popatlal, Channel NewsAsia
The second phase of the Circle Line will open to passengers on April 17. The 11-station stretch, from Bartley to Dhoby Ghaut stations, will start operations almost a year after the first five stations were opened to the public last May.
Ng E-Jay, Sgpolitics.net
Andrea Kwan, Straits Times
It seems ironic that we go out of our way to integrate foreigners when we deny the same to our own citizens.
M. Lukshumayeh, Straits Times
It seems Mr Khaw has focused more on avoiding use of Medisave than the purpose of health screenings, including mammograms.
Tan Shao Yi, Straits Times
Leong Wee Keat, Today
Participants debate what Singapore must do to make it as a global city.
Insane Polygons
Long story short - essentially what our gahmen is saying is we only help those who can do something for us or do something to us.
Ian Tan, Empty Vessel
Yet what kind of message are you sending out when you witness the terrifying humanitarian disaster with your own eyes, and you, who have the collective power to do so thanks to your population, offer a small token sum in return? What do I tell my children about a government that is rich in wealth but not so wealthy in spirit?
mrbrown: L'infantile terrible of Singapore
Compassion must be based on guanxi one! Not say our gahmen no heart. They are just very pragmatic and responsible.
Shamim Adam, Bloomberg
Singapore’s consumer prices ended an eight-month decline in December as a recovering economy spurred demand for goods and services.
S Ramesh, Channel NewsAsia
Singapore's prime minister Lee Hsien Loong on Monday identified three areas of priority for the government: restructuring the economy, addressing the population shortfall and updating the political system.
Andy Phillips, Sydney Morning Herald
The MINT Museum of Toys, a five-storey establishment between tall buildings close to Singapore's Raffles City complex, is the manifestation of every big kid's dream.
Joe Weisenthal, Business Insider
Peter Stein, Wall Street Journal
Outsize bonuses at big banks and securities firms have never been more controversial. Governments are on the warpath, imposing bonus taxes and new rules to force bank paymasters to change the way they compensate their talent.
Singapore's Temasek Holdings Pte. Ltd. could give them a master class on the subject.
Maggie Chong and Evelyn Choo, Today
Competition during the next General Election (GE) will be welcome, according to health minister Khaw Boon Wan. It is good that more young and better educated people are entering politics, he said, when asked of the opposition parties' recruitment drive.
Sudesh Maniar, Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Straits Times
The amount or type of humanitarian assistance given by the Singapore Government is not intended to match the scale of a disaster. In the case of massive disasters in countries beyond our own region, our contributions often cannot be more than a show of moral support and a gesture of sympathy to the affected country.
The support from Singapore for Haiti need not be demonstrated just by the Government. Singaporeans who want to make a contribution can do so through the Red Cross and other groups, and indeed many have. The Singaporeans who have gone to Haiti on relief missions amply demonstrate their compassion for the victims of the earthquake.
Singapore Recalcitrant
Does the PAP leadership sincerely believe that leaving the constituents at Tanjong Pagar to decide is the right course to resolve this matter?
Straits Times
Arts studios and sports facilities will replace three buildings at the site of the controversial Serangoon Gardens workers' dormitory. The blocks were originally meant as a buffer zone between the dormitory and the Serangoon Gardens residential areas to assuage residents' concerns about the workers dwelling there.
Zakir Hussain, Straits Times
Singaporeans should also not start getting excited about a general election as the government was still focused on the economy, senior minister Goh Chok Tong told reporters at a Marine Parade constituency event on Sunday.
Wang Meng Meng, Straits Times
With Fifa demanding $40 million, not $100 million, for the football World Cup broadcast rights, Singaporeans do not see the need to pay an arm and a leg in subscription fees to watch the matches.
Karen Yue, TTG
A look at what Singapore's long-awaited and game-changing IRs have to offer.
Sujadi’s Blog
Mathia Lee ~ Plans and Preoccupations
Because who are we to judge? Who are we to pronounce the death sentence on someone? Like the ambulance paramedic, it is not our place to judge and to punish. We help because we can, because we ought to, because they need it. At least I think, that’s our role as human beings.
Wang Meng Meng, Straits Times
The Football Association of Singapore (FAS) has stepped in to help resolve the impasse over the 2010 World Cup broadcasts by asking rights holder Fifa for a speedy resolution to the deadlock. FAS spokesman Eric Ong told The Sunday Times yesterday: 'We have approached Fifa on the World Cup broadcast rights issue and are currently awaiting its response.
Kor Kian Beng, Straits Times
The government's budget for education is 'too little' in the eyes of opposition Reform Party secretary-general Kenneth Jeyaretnam. He wants education spending to go up to at least 5 per cent of Singapore's gross domestic product (GDP), matching spending levels in the United States and United Kingdom.
China Watcher
Singapore has always been pro-Western or more specifically pro-US and China should realize by now that its positive overtures to strengthen military ties with this small republic has been put on the shelf whereas the highly publicized military links with US and the Commonwealth nations will remain as the core defensive structure in this part of the world.
Singapore Dino
However, knowing the attitude of the current PAP government, I realise that such a website will not be possible as long as they are in full control. The PAP knows that knowledge is power and will deprive Singaporeans of it as long as they can so that we will be kept in the dark.
Singapore In General
The Temasek Review
The Singapore government is the only one in the world with a minister mentor, two senior ministers and two deputy prime ministers in addition to the prime minister himself.
Hetty Musfirah Abdul Khamid, Channel NewsAsia
Jagdev Singh Sidhu, Malaysia Star
The exuberance surrounding Resort World Sentosa might be overdone and one broker has now recommended investors switch their focus on Genting Malaysia for value instead of its Singapore counterpart.
Jessica Lim & Lim Wei Chean, Straits Times
It will be months before the first cards are dealt at Singapore's two casinos, but several employees have already been fired because of stringent rules that dictate who can work there.
Rachel Chang, Straits Times
Two innocent people dragged into fray after 'Eric How' posts diatribe on YP's Facebook page.
Singapore Democrat News
Gerald Giam
My friends in the PAP tell me that it is more effective to change Singapore from within the PAP than from outside. I believe that changes to the finer details of policies are possible from within, but fundamental changes to the way the country is governed can only come if the top echelon of leaders in the party either radically change their mind, or are replaced. Neither is about to happen anytime soon.
Lin Yan Qin, Today
Steps may have been taken recently with the aim of encouraging more political participation in Singapore, but is the political landscape truly "stress-tested" enough, and could there be greater freedom of expression? As education minister Ng Eng Hen spoke of Singapore having done well in the last decade economically and socially at a National University of Singapore Society dialogue on Friday evening, such questions on the challenges Singapore could face in coming years were on the minds of the 300-strong audience.
Tham Kwok Keong, Straits Times
SMRT would have us believe that spreading the commuting crowd in a train will help. Well, not once have I experienced a situation where the crowds are standing near the doors and the cars are empty in the middle over a trip that makes 15 stops and lasts as long as an hour.
Denis Distant, Straits Times
Some of that money could be spent helping poor Singaporeans, instead of splurging it on viewing a soccer competition in which we are not even participating.
Chang Ai-Lien, Straits Times
In this Internet age, the government is still 'experimenting' on the best way to lead and interact with Singaporeans, foreign minister George Yeo said on Friday.
Seah Chiang Nee, The Star
Not usually known for speaking up, people in this legalistic society have turned a bit more aggressive in fighting for their rights in public. This is largely due to the infusion of 1.25 million foreigners in the past five years, which has partly altered the texture of society.
The outspokenness has not come from locals but foreigners who have arrived from different parts of the world with their values.
AFP
Singapore on Friday rejected allegations by a US-based human rights group that it is a "politically repressive state". "Singapore is a democratic state with a clean and transparent government, whose public officials are held responsible against the highest standards of probity and integrity," the Ministry of Law said in a statement to AFP.
Nopporn Wong-Anan and Fabian Ng, Reuters
McDonald's apologized to Singapore Friday and brought a pig back to its toy menu, after a decision to leave the animal out of its Chinese zodiac collection upset many in the predominantly ethnic Chinese nation.
单锦昌, 联合早报
让脚踏车上人行道，只照顾了小部份人的利益，还加上了绿色出行、环保行动的美名，行人的权利受到忽视，“人行道”之名亦将荡然无存。
Straits Times
The government has signalled that it would not fund the 2010 World Cup on free-to-air television, as it looks like Singapore will be denied the live telecast because SingTel and StarHub will not pay the price demanded by soccer's world governing body, Fifa.
Ng E-Jay, Sgpolitics.net
The main issue I have with the Tafep report is that it has neglected to consider discrimination against Singaporeans vis-a-vis foreign workers.
Alastair Su, Gimme Some Truth!
Kor Kian Beng, Straits Times
A New York-based rights group has criticised Singapore's new Public Order Act, which gives the police powers to compel a person to move on and refrain from returning to a designated spot for up to 24 hours.
In its World Report 2010 released yesterday, Human Rights Watch (HRW) said the new law has effectively negated an earlier move by the Government to relax rules at Speakers' Corner in Hong Lim Park.
Ted Chen Photography
Believe me, I put in considerable amounts of time deciding whether I should return to Singapore. It was a painful decision. In every mental debate those points above would compel me to stick around longer, and yet there were other frustrations that could be solved by going back. Singapore’s a good place to live; I’ve come to appreciate it.
Heng-Cheong Leong, MyAppleMenu
A lot have been said about the annual television license fee in the blogosphere. But before you add your voices to the mix, consider the following questions: 1. Do you know what are the television programming that are funded (entirely or partially) by your license fee? 2. Of these programmes, which are the ones you want the government to stop funding via license fee? Should Mediacorp continue to produce these programmes, and who will fund them?
There is no point, in my opinion, of crying for license fees to be reduced or removed without answering these two fundamental questions.
Bernama
Amanda Lian, The Temasek Review
Human Rights Watch
"Singapore remains the textbook example of a politically repressive state," said Phil Robertson, deputy Asia director at Human Rights Watch. "Individuals who want to criticize or challenge the ruling party's hold on power can expect to face a life of harassment, lawsuits, and even prison."
Freedom to express views publicly continues to be largely limited to the tiny Speaker's Corner in the city-state, while any procession or assembly for a "cause-related activity" must have prior police approval under the Public Order Act of 2009.
中国新闻网
赵琬仪, 联合早报
据旅游业者估计，圣淘沙名胜世界综合度假胜地的环球影城及赌场一开业，每天会有100至150辆巴士穿梭新加坡和马来西亚之间，从马国往返的游客人数可超过3000人。
Fiona Chan, Straits Times
Despite this being a likely election year, next month's Budget looks set to be a more low-key affair than those of previous election years, with fewer handouts to please Singapore's voters. Economists expect this year's government spending plan to be generous, but more focused on laying the foundation for medium-term growth.
Die Neue Welle
Logic doesn’t operate on “should”, it operates on “is”.
Bernadette Low, SMRT Corporation Ltd, Today
As the MRT system is designed to transport a large number of commuters, during peak hours, we optimise our resources to run trains according to scheduled service frequencies to meet demand. As such, it will not be possible to designate a special cabin for commuters with special needs without affecting train capacity and schedules.
Bibsy M. Carballo, Manila Bulletin
Jonathan Peeris, Channel NewsAsia
More Singaporeans now want to set aside money for financial emergencies as compared with a year ago when their focus was on saving for retirement. That is according to findings from the second wave of the HSBC Asian Insurance Monitor survey conducted in December last year.
Channel NewsAsia
Singapore should invest more in technology development as it moves toward an innovation driven economy. Speaking at a forum, labour chief Lim Swee Say said the strength of Singapore's economy in the long run depends on how innovative its people are.
The Jakarta Post
Former National Police chief of detective Comr. Gen. Susno Duadji said Wednesday that Singapore had cooperated with Indonesia in recovering the Bank Century money stolen by its own owner Robert Tantular.
DFP
The index measures economic freedom within 10 categories of freedoms, including labour, business, trade, property rights and freedom from corruption.
mrbrown: L'infantile terrible of Singapore
But you do know there is a simpler way to check if the pole holders were the right size, right? It's called Ask the Residents to Lend You Their Pole for a While.
Saifulbahri Ismail, Channel NewsAsia
No date has been fixed for the opening of the Universal Studios Singapore theme park at Resorts World Sentosa. Chairman of Resorts World Sentosa Lim Kok Thay made the clarification amid media reports that the theme park is scheduled to open by the end of next week.
Giuseppe De Santis, London Patriot
As Singapore recovers from recession, its residents are questioning a key part of the country’s economic model: its long-standing openness to foreigners.
Bernadette Low, SMRT Corporation Ltd, Straits Times
As a result of the improvements, trains are now operating at optimal frequency of 2.5 minutes or less at most stretches during peak hour. Nevertheless, commuters may still face difficulty boarding as people tend to stand near the doors or board the middle train cars.
Raymond Chong, Straits Times
SMRT's reply to my complaint was that photography and filming are not allowed in trains and stations. It cited company policy, yet this is not displayed prominently in stations and trains. In fact, SMRT has held photography competitions in its stations, where winning entries are displayed prominently.
Musings From the Lion City
To say that foreign workers do not affect HDB prices and 'impose no burden' on the public housing system is ludicrous.
Times They Are A-Changin'
This government could definitely use a little humility when the time calls for it. Not every policy is good. Ill-conceived policies cannot be quietly swept under the carpet or discontinued. Singaporeans know how to give credit where it is due. Does the Government know how to accept responsibility in return?
Blowin' In The Wind
mrbrown, CNNGo
Let me share some ways Taipei kicks Singapore's behind.
Ben Bland, Asian Correspondent
While the government may find it inconvenient in a possible election year for pesky citizen journalists to reveal the real nature of poverty and the limits of social welfare in Singapore, how can you argue that TOC's unpaid reporters have not provided a valuable service to their nation?
One of the societal benfits of citizen journalists is that they are more likely to follow a story through from beginning to end rather than abandon it after the first big exclusive. If TOC hadn't followed up on its first story, the campers would probably have been forced out by the police, arrested or made to move elsewhere and the matter would have dropped off the public radar.
The Online Citizen
Ng E-Jay, Sgpolitics.net
The Temasek Review
Lincoln Tan, New Zealand Herald
Immigration New Zealand is for the first time shifting its migrant marketing focus away from America and Europe to Asia. Singapore - with a land area about the size of Lake Taupo and a population of 4.9 million - will be the agency's newest target for migrants.
Andrew Loh, The Online Citizen
Does that sound like “helping” the homeless?
Diary of A Singaporean Mind
What Shanmugam said is absurd. It is an insult to Singaporeans' intelligence.
My Paper
李静仪, 联合早报
虽然德士乘客量仍未走出谷底，德士的租用率还是相当强劲，只有少数德士因为租不出去而“滞放”在特别停车场，以享有政府给予豁免缴交特别（柴油）税的好处。
Deanna Choo, Inland Revenue Authority of Singapore, Today
Small businesses therefore have to make a business decision on whether to register for GST voluntarily to allow their customers to claim GST refund on their purchases.
Lua Eng Chuan, Straits Times
Such a rule will prevent PRs who do not intend to take up citizenship from reaping a windfall when they return home after a few years. It will indeed ensure that foreigners are not responsible for high flat prices.
Today
SBS Transit is offering 15 per cent more pay to Singaporeans who join them as bus captains. SBS Transit executive director Gan Juay Kiat said fewer Singaporeans have been joining the firm as bus captains in recent years. Only 38 per cent of its 5,500 bus captains are locals. By upping the pay, the operator hopes to make it a more attractive profession.
Channel NewsAsia
Residents at Pending Road said their bamboo poles are too big to fit into the new holders, increasing the risk of falling poles. The new holders are 2.5-millimetre smaller in diameter than the original holders.
AFP
Singapore's main exports surged strongly in December from a year ago on rising external demand, the government said Monday, strengthening expectations of a rebound for the economy this year.
Seelan Palay's Blog
Jermyn Chow, Straits Times
The DSO National Laboratories tested the effects of caffeine over three years in 500 experiments on 200 people, wrapping up its final trial last month. It has recommended its use to the Singapore Armed Forces (SAF), which is likely to conduct further tests in the field.
Ben Sandilands, Crikey
Until a few years ago, a fall of -4.3% in passenger numbers in a December, a peak season travel month, would be a calamity for an airline. But for Singapore Airlines, and for that matter any of its competitors, such a fall in December 09 compared to 08 is encouraging, considering that it was down by more than one fifth in customers for much of the worst of the global financial crisis.
Sgpolitics.net
Without any transparency from the Government or from CPF Board, Singaporeans will never know the criteria by which payouts are decided. The CPF Board has the authority to modify payouts based on changes in life expectancy or changes in prevailing interest rates, but any decision can ultimately be made without any accountability to the public because the exact details are never disclosed.
Muhammad Rostam Umar, Singapore Tourism Board, Straits Times
The casinos will be just one of the multifaceted offerings, which include new and exciting retail, entertainment and dining concepts and a diversity of attractions, within each IR. The developers are expected to uphold the integrity of the concept of an IR by ensuring there is a significant amount of non-gaming areas completed when the IRs open for business.
Tan Pang Soon, Straits Times
If bus interchanges cannot meet commuters' needs now, how can they cater to the expanding public transport network?
Today In Singapore
Joshua Chiang and Andrew Loh, The Online Citizen
They have been camped out there for months, but no one from the government agencies seem to have known about them – perhaps until The Online Citizen’s report on 13 January. TOC had reported that some 15 homeless families were camped out in tents at Sembawang Park.
Three days after TOC’s revelation, on 16 January, Saturday, at around 10pm, officers from the Ministry of Community Development, Youth and Sports (MCDYS), and NParks, together with some 10 policemen, swooped down on the park.
Chee Soon Juan, Singapore Democrat News
Kimberly Spykerman, Straits Times
LAW minister K. Shanmugam on Sunday set out to explain the reasons for the perceived silence on the government's part with regards to the hit-and-run accident last month involving a Romanian diplomat's car.
Jeremy Au Yong, Straits Times
The law minister's key message: It is unfair to cast foreigners as the villains driving up the prices of HDB flats.
Rachel Chang, Straits Times
Deputy prime minister Wong Kan Seng on Sunday rejected the suggestion that ethnic-based self-help groups should merge or operate under one umbrella.
Hoe Yeen Nie, Channel NewsAsia
The government is monitoring ground reactions here after recent attacks on places of worship in Malaysia. Deputy prime minister Wong Kan Seng said ground reactions in Singapore have largely been calm.
The Temasek Review
Transitioning.org
What’s the point of sending Singaporeans for retraining? Retraining for what? A lot of Singaporeans walk around with all kinds of WSQ qualifications but no jobs. It’s just wasting of taxpayers’ money and our time.
Xinhua
Singapore's senior minister Goh Chok Tong on Saturday stressed the importance of good leadership for the country's economic development. Addressing graduates from a local leadership program, Goh said it is important to have good leaders in four sectors of the country -- political sector, public service, business sector and the people sector.
HotelClub Travel Blog
Blowin' In The Wind
Bernama
Nearly 400 international animal protection activists gathered here today to discuss concrete long-term solutions for ongoing animal protection and cruelty problems in the Asia region.
AFP
Germany has emerged top and Singapore second in a new World Bank logistics survey that measures how efficiently countries trade their goods around the world.
Shamim Adam, Bloomberg
Singapore’s retail sales declined the least in 11 months in November as year-end holidays drew tourists and an economic recovery boosted consumer spending.
Joshua Foong, The Star
A minimum wage will not contribute to the development of a high-income economy, says an academic from the National University of Singapore.
Seah Chiang Nee, The Star
Many tech-savvy Singaporeans expect the next national election to be fought mainly in cyberspace, hopefully through superior logic rather than using high technology to silence the other.
Bernama
Malaysia hopes Singapore will also help in easing the congestion of lorries heading to the republic via the Johor Causeway, finance minister Datuk Seri Ahmad Husni Hanadzlah said on Friday.
Christopher Tan, Straits Times
NEW car sales slowed by nearly 30 per cent last year on the back of a big cut in COE supply, according to Land Transport Authority data. But because far fewer cars were scrapped or exported, the car population grew despite the drop in sales.
Belmont Lay, The Enquirer
In 20 years’ time, we might be wondering whether this present epoch was the turning point where we might have missed an important transition.
Goh Meng Seng, Singapore Alternatives
The Online Citizen
The Court of Appeals’ Yong Vui Kong ruling could signal a change in criminal jurisprudence.
Wang Meng Meng, Straits Times
journalism.sg
Thanks to the National Library, the internet now gives you access to Singapore newspapers dating back to the early 19th century. The library's NewspaperSG service will make it dramatically easier to do historical research.
Prokerala.com
Dow Jones
Temasek Holdings Pte Ltd., the Singapore government-owned investment company, is considering either raising the amount of its US$5 billion medium-term note program or coming out with a new issuance plan this year, two people familiar with the situation said Friday.
Today In Singapore
Asha Popatlal, Channel NewsAsia
Singapore prime minister Lee Hsien Loong said he does not think the recent announcement on double-barrelled race listing will have a big impact on ethnic integration policies, but instead, it is more a liberalisation of the system.
Mr Lee said: "I don't think it will have a big impact on our GRCs or ethnic integration policies because the majority of the population will still be the major racial groups - the Chinese, the Malays, the Indians."
Singaporean Skeptic
They don't return because Singapore has the 'best' government in the world or is even the best country in the world. They are returning because they have no visa restrictions to work in Singapore.
Silachart Lau, National Environment Agency, Straits Times
Given the limited number of stalls, the National Environment Agency's (NEA) current policy is to rent out vacant stalls through our monthly tender exercises and walk-in applications. This is to ensure that any member of the public who meets our eligibility criteria can apply by a process that is open and transparent.
Hoe Yeen Nie, Channel NewsAsia
Former Workers' Party (WP) member James Gomez said he has no intention to turn the civil society group he is trying to set up into a political party.
Andy Lim, The Online Citizen
Straits Times
Travellers at Changi Airport may soon have to walk through screening machines that see hidden explosives and other dangerous items - and their body contours.
Rosie Taganas, Philippine Daily Inquirer
Victoria Vaughan, Straits Times
Kevin Lim, Reuters
Singapore is fast losing its charm for Chinese companies, which once drove its IPO bandwagon, threatening its status as a major Asian bourse and posing a big challenge for new SGX CEO Magnus Bocker.
Chee Soon Juan, Singapore Democrat News
Christopher Tan, Straits Times
Those who drive or cab to the Marina Sands integrated resort or Marina Bay Financial Centre will face a new set of electronic road-pricing gantries planned for the area.
La Nausée
Patrick Barta and Tom Wright, Wall Street Journal
For years, this rich city-state has marketed itself as one of the world's most open economies. But as Singapore recovers from recession, its residents are questioning a key part of the country's economic model: its long-standing openness to foreigners.
龚慧婷, 联合早报
拥有超过80年历史的前大华戏院（The Majestic）已被新加坡赛马公会（Singapore Turf Club）租下，消息人士透露，从今年4月起，这栋位于牛车水的建筑，将“摇身一变”，成为场外赛马投注中心。
Today
Since 2000, the rise in sexually transmitted infections (STIs) among those under age 20 has been "especially alarming", in the words of health minister Khaw Boon Wan - doubling from 61 cases per 100,000 in that age group, to 133 in 2008.
Esther Teo, Straits Times
A High Court action is under way to wind up the tourism and leisure company that used to operate the iconic Singapore Trolley bus service which took tourists through heritage sites.
Marie Morice, CSR Asia
A recent report from UBS found that Singapore is set to be the world's third- fastest ageing nation, as the proportion of those aged 65 and above will double to 20 per cent in 2020. Singapore may suffer the most among Asian economies from an ageing population, with the average growth in economic output falling more than 40 per cent over the next 25 years.
Bhavan Jaipragas, Journalism.sg
Leong Sze Hian, The Online Citizen
The HDB should not on the one hand be the sole provider of rental flats to needy Singaporeans, and yet also at the same time have an interest in a company that rents HDB flats to foreigners for a profit.
Blowin' In The Wind
Yik Keng Yong, Straits Times
This is a sane policy that should be applied not only to voting practice but also in our daily routine.
Gregory Gerald Danker, EZ-Link, Straits Times
When a card is reported lost, a lead time of 48 hours is required for the blacklist to be channelled to all bus, train gate and retail devices to block further transactions on that particular card.
Hoe Yeen Nie, Channel NewsAsia
The latest rule allowing a person's "double-barrel" racial heritage to be recorded on his identity card has drawn a mixed response. While most observers said the implications on Singapore's ethnic policies are still unclear, some noted that this could, in the long term, dilute the need to have racial classifications at all.
Channel NewsAsia
A member of the Jemaah Islamiyah (JI) terrorist organisation and the militant Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) has been detained under the Internal Security Act (ISA). A home affairs Ministry statement said 41-year-old Mohd Azmi Ali was arrested in November last year. He was issued with an Order of Detention (OD) which took effect on 15 December.
Mr Wang Says So
There are things in life which are worth making a fuss over. And there are things in life which are not.
Singaporean Skeptic
Instead of addressing the root cause of low birth rate, our highly paid government resorted to simple minded solutions that try to fix the symptoms rather than the cause.
Channel NewsAsia
An underground pedestrian walkway will link City Hall MRT station to the future development at the Capitol Theatre site, on the other side of North Bridge Road. National development minister Mah Bow Tan said the underground link will be constructed by the developer of the site, as part of the site tender requirements under the Government Land Sales Programme.
赵琬仪 萧洁盈, 联合早报
今年农历新年与情人节喜相逢，向来在春节公假休息的花商因此得在年初一破例开工，受访的花商告诉本报，由于人工成本增加，情人节玫瑰花束价格预计会比往年同期高10%至15%。此外，由于当天送递服务会减少，讲究把花送到情人的办公室的情侣可要提早送花。
联合早报
虽然国际油价在过去八年多里上涨160%，但本地电费同期涨幅却只有15%。贸工部兼教育部高级政务部长易华仁说，这是我国开放电力市场，促进竞争的原因。
Straits Times
Mathia Lee ~ Plans and Preoccupations
Straits Times
Eight in 10 new Housing Board buyers are able to service their housing loans entirely using Central Provident Fund (CPF) monies without forking out any cash. This is possible due to the generous subsidy system, said national development minister Mah Bow Tan.
Alicia Wong, Today
While some groups in society may be more vocal, the Censorship Review Committee (CRC) will "listen to and recognise the concerns" of others and "strike the right balance", said acting minister for information, communications and the arts Lui Tuck Yew yesterday.
Catherine Lim, Straits Times
I was surprised that a shrewd leadership like the PAP could come up with a ruling that first, is of doubtful value and could even backfire; second, exposes an anxiety that could provide political fodder for the opposition, and third, exposes an insecurity that must make even its supporters wonder about how strong, after more than four decades of leadership, the bond between the government and the people really is.
Kee Lay Cheng, Housing and Development Board, Today
The government does not subsidise foreigners' housing. EM Services Pte Ltd, HDB's managing agent, rents these vacated flats at prevailing market rates with no special rental concessions or subsidies.
The flats cited by Mr Leong are no different from flats available for open market rental. Any person, Singapore citizen or otherwise, can also rent similar flats from the open market without waiting.
Donaldson Tan, The Online Citizen
There is no need for political education in the classroom. Instead, student governments should be liberalised to provide more opportunities for participation by the student population. Opportunities include, but not limit to, forming special feedback group within the student union to advocate or reform school policies, participating in union campaigns.
Bernama
A Malaysian housewife is crying for justice in relation to the death of her son in a hit-and-run accident in Singapore last month. Tong Ah Mooi, 59, wants the Malaysian and Singaporean authorities to bring the culprit, believed to be a Romanian diplomat and linked to the accident, to face the law.
Ben Bland, Asian Correspondent
Temasek, like other sovereign wealth funds, is under more pressure than ordinary fund managers to uphold high standards of corporate governance. Yet something seems to have gone wrong on Temasek's watch at Alliance. Singaporean government officials love to lecture their Malaysian counterparts on issues of transparency and governance. On this occasion, it appears the Singaporeans will have little to brag about.
Siow Yue Chia, East Asia Forum
ECO, Post COP15
Channel NewsAsia
Community development and sports minister Dr Vivian Balakrishnan confirmed Tuesday that Singapore won't host the 2013 Southeast Asian Games because of delays in the construction of a new Sports Hub.
联合早报
Elena Chong, Straits Times
A verdict of justifiable homicide was recorded on Tuesday on the death of an unemployed man who was shot by a police officer at Outram Park MRT station.
Singapore Government
Investigations show that for fatal and serious road traffic accidents involving cyclists over the first 9 months of both 2009 and 2008, slightly more than 50% of the cyclists are found to be at fault. The common causes of accidents where the cyclists are at fault are namely changing lane without due care, failing to keep a proper look out, and failing to give way to traffic with right of way.
Singapore Government
The system, especially with the recent changes, already provides for an appropriate level of flexibility and choice to parents who are of different races. Ultimately, however, parents who are of different races should come to a decision as to which of their races they would like their child to be recorded as belonging to.
S.Ramesh, Channel NewsAsia
The home affairs ministry has decided not to proceed to make borrowing from loan sharks an offence for now. Moving the second reading of the Moneylenders Act in Parliament, senior minister of state for home affairs, Associate Professor Ho Peng Kee explained that the ministry has received mixed feedback on the issue.
S.Ramesh, Channel NewsAsia
Straits Times
From Feb 1, flat owners who sub-let rooms in their Housing Board flats will have to register with the HDB within seven days of doing so, as part of ongoing efforts to eradicate loan-sharking activities and to better protect HDB residents.
Furry Brown Dog
The consequences of such an explosive growth in foreigners has led, among other things, to rocketing home prices, as I wrote earlier, depressed wages and in general a rising cost of living. It has also made the likelihood of a bubble economy stronger as Singapore grows more dependent on foreigners whom have no obligation to Singapore and may leave at a moment’s notice. Where does Singapore go now from here?
Xinhua
The threat of protectionist measures to global trade and economic recovery has decreased, Singapore's trade and industry minister Lim Hng Kiang said on Monday.
Robin Chan, Straits Times
The Government of Singapore Investment Corporation (GIC) has confirmed that it incurred losses from an investment in a prime New York property project after the American owners defaulted on a debt payment at the weekend.
S Ramesh, Channel NewsAsia
Singapore's Parliament on Monday debated changes to the Medical Registration Act, which aims to strengthen penalties against errant doctors.
Hoe Yeen Nie, Channel NewsAsia
The minister for environment and water resources said Monday the government is still working towards reducing carbon emissions by 16 per cent.
AFP
Singapore is unlikely to sink back into recession but economic recovery this year is expected to be sluggish, trade minister Lim Hng Kiang said Monday.
The consumption-boosting effects of government stimulus packages implemented at the height of the global economic slump are waning and continued high unemployment in the United States will hurt demand for Singapore exports, he said.
Shamim Adam, Bloomberg
Singapore’s first casinos and the opening of new pharmaceutical factories will support economic growth this year as overseas demand may remain weak, trade minister Lim Hng Kiang said today.
P.R. Venkat, Dow Jones
A double-dip recession is unlikely for Singapore's economy, but the recovery this year will be uneven as external demand is expected to grow at a sluggish pace, trade minister Lim Hng Kiang said in parliament Monday.
Diary of A Singaporean Mind
Unfortunately for ordinary Singaporeans, the problems they have with the health care system is usually different from what magnates like Tang face with the system. If it is something like kidney transplant that eventually hit someone like Tang, the change comes quickly, almost overnight, to address the problem. However, most of the problems ordinary Singaporeans face such as how to finance their medical bill when they are seriously ill and their retirement will never become problems of the rich so these problems will take a long long time for the PAP govt to solve.
Xinhua
A survey showed that Singapore workers come in first in the number of hours they put in at work, local media reported on Monday.
联合早报
岛国天气炎热，再加上国人以爱干净闻名，因此，光脚对土生土长的新加坡人而言，早已是司空见惯、平常不过的小事。新移民对这样的习惯能否适应？又有些什么看法？从健康角度看，医师怎么说？日本又为何推崇“赤足教育”？
杨萌, 联合早报
环保袋不环保？随处可见的五颜六色环保袋，很多人以为是以布料制成，但专家指出，其实它们也是塑料袋，而且很难分解。
Christopher Ng Wai Chung, Growing Your Tree Of Prosperity
When things improve, don't thank the powers that be, thank the fellow ex-citizens and quitters who did the painful deed by making a point by giving up their citizenships so that you can have a better Singapore.
Ian Jackso, Art In Liverpool
Christopher Tan, Straits Times
Singapore's road network has grown by less than 10 per cent in the last decade, but the bill for maintaining it has more than doubled. Underground roads, in particular, have inflated the tab. These tunnels make up less than 1 per cent of the road network, but keeping them ship-shape is estimated to cost $28 million a year - nearly a third of the total road maintenance bill.
Zul Othman, Channel NewsAsia
A police spokeswoman said on Sunday that the investigation papers are now with the Attorney-General's Chambers "for their direction on the appropriate course of action to be taken".
Leong Sze Hian, The Online Citizen
Chee Soon Juan, Singapore Democrat News
Maria Almenoar, Straits Times
Residents in Admiralty Drive will have a recycling bin at every HDB block as part of a pilot project to get more people to recycle.
Blowin' In The Wind
Jessica Lim, Straits Times
In two weeks' time, four hotels at Resorts World Sentosa (RWS) in Singapore will throw their doors open. But will tourists bite? Not likely, say the travel agents contacted.
Sue-Ann Chia, Straits Times
The government — caught in the crossfire between the demands from Singaporeans and the business community — seems to be in a tight spot.
Irene Tham, Straits Times
Scores of buyers of its first 'own brand' smartphone, the Nexus One, seem to have experienced 3G connection problems.
K. C. Vijayan, Straits Times
The Penal Code spells out clearly, in many situations, what constitutes an offence and the likely punishment, but one anomaly stands out: contempt of the courts. New laws will be put in place so that ordinary people will know the penalties for this offence.
Wong Siew Ying, Today
Even as the Singapore economy shows signs of recovery, companies are still concerned about rising business costs and inflation. But economists believe excess capacity around the world may somewhat cushion the impact.
Singapore Democrats
How is Singapore a First World country when its laws are so backward and the media is controlled? More importantly, can Singapore cope in the future when laws oppress Singaporeans to such a frightening degree?
Seah Chiang Nee, The Star
Like a relentless tsunami, high-tech gimmicks from abroad keep flooding Singapore to the detriment of homegrown innovative capabilities.
Lim Sio Hui, Designers Association Singapore
Jonathan Peeris, Channel NewsAsia
Burger King Singapore on Friday said it has reached an agreement to acquire 35 restaurants in Singapore from franchisee Bon-Food. This represents the bulk of the 40 Burger King restaurants that Bon-Food currently operates.
Alex Tabarrok, Wall Street Journal
In a race to prevent thousands of needless deaths a year, countries from Singapore to Israel are launching innovative new programs to boost organ donation.
Kevin Brown, Financial Times
The sharp fall in traffic inflicted substantial pain on PSA International, the state-owned group that runs five of the terminals, which suffered a 13.1 per cent fall in throughput for the year to 25.14m TEU.
Leow Si Wan & Chuang Bing Han, Straits Times
Fast-food giant McDonald's has stirred up a controversy by omitting pig characters from its latest toy promotions.
游润恬, 联合早报
传统媒体跟政党一样，其实也在摸索应如何应付新媒体所带来的挑战。一种看法是新媒体所反映的只是一小部分人的“民情”，互联网上又充斥着容易误导人的不正确观点或对政府的莫名敌意。因此，传统媒体有必要扮演平衡和捍卫真理的角色，以进一步解说政策以纠正广大读者的误解，并拿出更具代表性的论点去进行驳斥。
Murali Sharma, Straits Times
SMRT is one of the most visible corporate entities here. What will Singaporeans and foreign visitors think of it now? It is time for SMRT to give back to the society which sustains it.
Lim Huay Chih, Ministry of Education, Straits Times
A special education school student who sat for the PSLE and qualified for a course at the secondary level should approach MOE to facilitate his admission. If there are no vacancies in a secondary school of his choice, MOE will facilitate his admission to a suitable school near his home.
Wilberne Persaud, The Gleaner
Imelda Saad, Channel NewsAsia
Singapore and Malaysia have met to discuss the implementation of the International Court of Justice's (ICJ) Judgment on Pedra Branca, Middle Rocks and South Ledge.
AFP
Singapore, one of the world's busiest ports, said it handled 13.5 percent less container traffic in 2009 from the previous year as the global downturn squeezed world trade.
News & Observer
Eight legislators and a handful of state education officials are headed to Singapore this month to see what that country does right in math and science education.
Channel NewsAsia
Singapore Customs has been urged to maintain a light regulatory hand while tackling growing complexities in global trading environment. Speaking at an event to mark Singapore Customs' 100th anniversary, prime minister Lee Hsien Loong said Customs has to maintain a balanced and enlightened approach amidst a changing trading landscape.
Lawrence Delevingne, The Business Insider
Singapore's developed and efficient banking sector make it an important player on the global stage. An October 2009 Bloomberg Global Poll found that the tiny country had topped New York as investors’ preferred place for doing business, second only to London.
News Release by UncleYap
Sim Ann, Overseas Singaporean Unit, Today
As the world globalises, more Singaporeans will go abroad to work and study. The OSU will continue to work with partners in the people, private and public sectors to engage Overseas Singaporeans and keep them emotionally connected to home. Overseas Singaporeans are part of the larger Singapore family. They can certainly make an important contribution to Singapore when they decide to return home to live and work.
Channel NewsAsia
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MFA) has emphasized to the Romanian Ambassador to Singapore, the seriousness of the hit-and-run accident in which its diplomat, Silviu Ionescu, remains a suspect.
Ben Bland, Asia Sentinel
Given the Singapore government's oft-repeated mantra that it has taken the city-state "from third world to first," you would not expect to find refugees fleeing the island's shores and gleaming skyscrapers.
The Online Citizen
The reality is that low-cost housing in Singapore is becoming an increasingly scarce resource, and that adding foreign workers to the mix will only tax it further. HDB has to invest more in building rental flats aimed at low-income Singaporeans, barring which it should provide them with subsidies and vouchers to enable them to afford rental flats in the open market. HDB should stay true to its founding purpose: to provide affordable housing to Singaporeans.
Today In Singapore
Straits Times
Charges to Sentosa Island will be revised from Jan 18 to encourage more people to car pool, in a bid to reduce traffic congestion. The island expects substantial congestion when Resorts World Sentosa opens later this month.
Reuters
A graffiti publicity stunt by Singapore's postal services firm has backfired and sparked a hunt for a mysterious masked artist in a city-state known for being immaculately clean and trouble-free.
Chee Soon Juan, Singapore Democrats
Dear Chief Justice Chan Sek Keong, I refer to the keynote address you gave to the New York State Bar Association in October last year. Given that the Opening of the Legal Year is upon us again, I wish to highlight a few points in your speech that were at once telling and, frankly, rather disturbing.
The Online Citizen
Page 1 is the most important of any newspaper, and to plaster it with anything but the biggest news story for the day would be bad form and a great disservice to readers.
Esther Ng, Today
Romania's Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MFA) has called on its Prosecutor's Office to launch an investigation into the Bukit Panjang hit-and-run accident involving its embassy car in Singapore.
It has also recalled Dr Silviu Ionescu (picture), the charge d'affaires at the Romanian Embassy here, to "allow for a full and fair investigation", it said in a statement on its website.
Leong Wee Keat, Today
Crime Library's publicity efforts to help families find their missing loved ones have hit a bump recently. SMRT had told it in August that the partnership had ended and Crime Library founder Joseph Tan's attempts to revive the tie-up has not succeeded.
Pauline Koh, Straits Times
The Pig is one of the Chinese zodiac signs - part of Chinese culture and customs - and it is just a soft toy, not food.
Jeremy Koh, 938Live
SingPost has apologised for the "acts of vandalism" on its mailboxes recently. At a news conference to announce a sponsorship deal with the Youth Olympic Games, SingPost said it had commissioned the graffiti as a viral marketing effort.
K. C. Vijayan, Straits Times
Unauthorised audio recordings of court proceedings are now liable to lead to contempt of court charges in new rules that kicked in in the new year.
The changes embodied in the gazetted Rules of Court 2009 also provide the courts with more power to act against anyone who obtains an unauthorised copy of a court transcript.
K. C. Vijayan, Straits Times
Singapore's highest court has made clear that it has a duty to correct miscarriages of justice and to hear new evidence or new legal arguments even after a criminal trial has closed.
Chia Hui Keng, Immigration & Checkpoints Authority, Today
The ICA would like to clarify that it does not assign a person's race but only records the information as declared that is reasonably believed to be factual.
Bill Lindsay, Dow Jones
Jetstar, the cut-price carrier under the wings of Qantas, and Malaysian discount airline AirAsia today said they had formed an alliance aimed at cutting costs and pooling their expertise, putting pressure on the SIA-backed Tiger Airways as it begins briefing investors on its listing planned for later this month.
Yawning Bread
The CRC is meant to serve the public interest, which in this case, is to prepare Singapore society for the trueinformation age by doing what is necessary and realistic, not to give excuses to those who would deny reality, procrastinate on needed change, discriminate against sexual minorities, and frustrate our media artists who are eager to seize the day.
Tan Kin Lian
As housing has become a large part of the cost of living in Singapore, it is time for the government to review the pricing for HDB flats, and to find a better system that reflects the true market and keeps the prices in line with the ability of the people, based on their income levels, to afford them. We may return to the good days of Singapore a few decades ago.
Singapore Democrats
Jessica Jaganathan, Straits Times
Singapore might have ordered too many doses of the Influenza A (H1N1) vaccines, just as other countries have done in their haste to beat an unknown virus.
Sujin Thomas, Straits Times
Several 'acts of vandalism' carried out on SingPost mailboxes over the past few days, attracting public attention, now appear to be an attempt by SingPost to drum up publicity - and the police have stepped in.
凤凰网
诚然，不应过分夸大新加坡经济再次萎缩的恐慌效应，否则就容易酿成虚惊一场；但确实也不能无视其警示效应，否则就会看不到世界经济在2010年可能面临的风险。
Herald Sun
Tiger Airways' chances of a $220 million-plus capital raising won't be helped by the recent swag of bad press it has been getting in its home town of Singapore.
Fang Shihan and Fiona Lim, The Online Citizen
The commemoration of JB Jeyaretnam’s birthday was a quiet affair. Held in the historic Hong Lim Park, the speakers took their turns on the mound of soil functioning as a soap box while surrounded by soccer players and tai-chi enthusiasts.
Kenneth Jeyaretnam, The Online Citizen
If JBJ were here today and The Bogey man of democracy and freedom was dangled in front of him I believe he would say something like, “My dear people there is no need to be afraid. You are not children and should not be insulted as such. Live your lives with dignity and take pride in the society and come forward in your way to build the society you want in the future.”
Goh Meng Seng, Singapore Alternatives
My generation has lost the opportunity to really appreciate the democratic light that JBJ has shed on us. But I hope the younger generations which have experienced less indoctrination of political fear in their lifetime, would continue to effect the change that JBJ has worked so hard in his whole life to initiate.
Catherine Lim
Here the fear is far more subtle, far less palpable and noticeable, but no less effective . It is the fear of losing the good life, the material prosperity that the PAP leadership has made possible. It is, most of all, the fear of being sued by the government and being reduced to bankruptcy.
Channel NewsAsia
An opposition candidate, who caused a stir with his application forms at the Election Department during the last General Election in 2006, has quit the Workers' Party (WP).
Straits Times
The Jakarta Post
A legislator has urged the Indonesian government to consider constructing a bridge connecting Batam to Singapore as part of efforts to boost economic development in Batam.
Mr Wang Says So
Diary of A Singaporean Mind
The PAP govt will continue to pass the risk and burden that it should be managing to ordinary Singaporeans as long as they wield monopolistic power and retain control of the media. It is only when ordinary Singaporeans wake up and demand for positive changes that things will change for the better in Singapore and their lives will improve.
Kelvin Teo Writes
Wilson Ang, Today
When seeking to grow the economy and, more specifically, contemplating the tension between injecting vitality into our society through foreign migrants and in ensuring that citizens enjoy a higher standard of treatment than migrants, it appears that there is a piece of the puzzle that has not been given attention. This the role of the overseas Singaporean - in particular, the efforts that should be made to engage with, and attract such Singaporeans to return home.
Thomas Krummer, Straits Times
A cap on stall rentals might be worth considering to protect Singapore's hawker centre culture. There is also the need to encourage younger people to move into this business even as older stallholders retire, so that a heritage is preserved.
Tan Weizhen, Straits Times
Singapore websites are becoming increasingly risky to visit because they expose their users to virus attacks and malicious software.
Straits Times
The police are carrying out "very thorough" investigations into the hit-and-run accident linked to a Romanian diplomat, said foreign minister George Yeo on Monday.
Straits Times
Prices of Housing Board resale flats continued its relentless climb, rising 3.8 per cent in the fourth quarter of last year to hit a fresh record.
Yawning Bread
Yes, our own government has been more than just turning a blind eye to human trafficking; they have been complicit in it.
光明网
媒体总报道新加坡公务员工资如何之高，实际上，领取高工资的就是总统、总理和部长那些人，高官的工资与普通公务员差距之大，可以说是世界之最，全世界公务员工资最高的30人都在新加坡，这是事实。但是，新加坡并非毫无根据地给高官高工资，而是法律根据国情和劳动力市场决定的。
Neil Chatterjee and Kevin Lim, Reuters
Singapore's recovery from its worst recession faltered in the fourth quarter, leading some economists to suggest the central bank may hold back from tightening monetary policy until later in the year.
林明華, 星洲日報
李光耀的表白，令許多因為李光耀晚年的一些“後悔”之言，而對他產生“南大有复辦希望”幻想的南大子弟，再次徹底絕望。
Tan Hui Yee, Straits Times
Instead of erecting speed limit signs and slapping yet more penalties on errant cyclists, perhaps the authorities should be looking in the other direction. Perhaps the spaces - be they walking or cycling trails or secondary roads - should not be so clearly demarcated in the first place.
Seelan Palay, The Online Citizen
Is foreign talent just a myth, a disguised form of racism which Lee Kuan Yew vehemently opposed when Singapore was in Malaysia? Are Mr Lee’s multiracial, multireligious and multilingual concepts also figments of his imagination?
Shamim Adam, Bloomberg
Singapore’s economy shrank for the first time in three quarters as weaker manufacturing output interrupted the island’s recovery from its deepest recession since independence in 1965.
Channel NewsAsia
One merchant association is also advising members to bear the costs, saying the price hike is not significant.
Straits Times
The Ministry of Education (MOE) will announce changes to the teaching and testing of the Chinese language during the Committee of Supply debate in Parliament in March. Some things which are set to change include a more systematic look at a student's language abilities from Primary 1, with teaching modes that will vary right through secondary school.
The Online Citizen
Tan Lee Kiang, Straits Times
Singapore has always prided itself on its meritocratic education system. Why should a child with special needs - who has strived for his future and done as well as or better than some of his counterparts - be disadvantaged because he was not in the mainstream system?
Channel NewsAsia
Prime minister Lee Hsien Loong has said that Singapore cannot expect to go back to the growth rates achieved before the global economic crisis. He said it will be tougher and Singaporeans must work harder and smarter.
Channel NewsAsia
Singaporean Skeptic
Chua Chin Leng, Asian Correspondent
Goh Chin Lian, Straits Times
An online petition has been set up calling on the Romanian government and its embassy here to cooperate with the Singapore authorities to investigate a recent hit-and-run accident which left one man dead.
Ben Bland, Asian Correspondent
In Singapore, as in any authoritarian state, the task of reporting the utterances of the Great Leader is a perilous one for any journalist.
Liau Chuan Yi and Norvin Chan, Asian Correspondent
Yawning Bread
Five minutes is all it takes to realise that in an age when people have unprecedented mobility, marrying and reproducing across racial and ethnic boundaries, the best response is to drop the race label altogether. Trying to modify the failing system the way the ICA is doing is just making a bigger joke of the whole shebang.
But the bureaucrats at ICA can't do the smart thing, can they? Because race is intertwined with our politics. There is not only the politics of second language in schools, there is the politics of race quotas in public housing, and more race quotas in elections. These issues are outside ICA's purview; they can't extinguish race labelling because of these other demands.
Seah Chiang Nee, The Star
Singaporeans are finding it hard to accept that the whole world – rich and poor, big and small – can watch the World Cup, but not their country, which is one of Asia’s richest.
It is more than just about sports or television. It is a story of what is good and bad about Singapore.
Kelvin Teo Writes
Where the current political parties dare not go due to the inherent risks of a political fallout, it has emerged that the NMPs are left to pick up the pieces since they didn’t have an electorate to answer to. Circumstances has indeed resulted in making our NMPs the harginger of controversial and divisive issues.
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