Dear Editors,

I write this article with reference to so many people out there claiming that foreigners gets more jobs than the locals.

The reason?

This is due to the obvious fact that foreigners are much more hard working compared to Singaporeans. Not say only hard working, they are also kind and friendly where as Singaporeans are rude, not friendly and can sometimes be racists. For instance, travel in the MRT and you'd find that a foreigner would be more likely to give up their seat (non priority seat) to a senior citizen, disabled or pregnant travelers. This just something that you'd see everywhere. Singaporeans would mostly give up the seat if only it is a priority seats

Singaporeans also make a fuss about the smallest things and demand too much. Some one talk loud, make fuss. Someone blocking your way, make fuss. Even the manner you say "excuse me" can tell from the tone is already annoyed. I'm a Singaporean myself but actually, this is the ugly truth.

Honest Singaporean
A.S.S. Contributor

Dear ASS Editors,

I am very angry with Mcdonald's how can they even serve food in such condition. I was in the mood to try the new Macs Prosperity Chicken Burger. And order for home delivery.

But to my disappointment look what extra ingredient (sharp chicken bone) I got in my second bite. Ouch! !! Had a real bad painful bite in my life@#$&£%. All thanks to Mcdonald!!!! Anti-climax 1cm sharp long chicken bone????

How on earth did a bone end up in a chicken patty...shouldnt it only be processed minced meat in the first place... I am not a fussy eater...but such sharp bone is good enough to cause injury. I totally thought I lost my tooth when I bit into it...damn!!!

Schinde Gill Pannu
A.S.S. Contributor

<Facebook post by Daniel PS Goh>

I was first notified of the NCMP motion passing when a good friend texted me, while I was washing dishes after dinner, “congratulations duckweed Goh!” I had a good laugh, though this is serious business through and through. Thank you all for the messages since, sorry I have not been able to reply (been busy whole night Skyp-ing with an academic conference happening in Ottawa).

There are some of you who would like me to take up the NCMP seat, and then some of you who don’t want me to, on principle and in response to what you see as ugly ruling party behaviour (vector lah, don't take it to heart). I’ll be doing the former and this is my main reason for the decision.

Mr Low is right: NCMPs are essentially duckweeds. He is using a Chinese flower metaphor in a very natural way, the significance and nuances of which many of us, Anglophones, don’t understand. Very crudely, it means NCMPs are like pretty flowers that sink no roots, floating about and contradicting the values of harmony and community.

Objectively, this is true in the long run, and I am with the WP MPs and the party opposing the NCMP scheme. But for me, personally, at this point in my life, and as I see it, at this point in Singapore’s history, the principle of national service trumps the political principle of opposing the NCMP scheme. If my country sees fit that I contribute as duckweed, then it is my honour to be duckweed Goh. It is no insult; it is a privilege.

In any case, as a good man emailed me to tell me, for Anglophones such as us, duckweeds are not altogether negative, as they are seen as resilient and prolific plants valued as livestock feed, for water purification and for alternative biofuel. That is, to feed, to clarify and to drive the greater good in our shared commons. And so I hope and will strive, wish me Godspeed.

<Facebook call for help by JC Tan>

Hi all,

My cousin was involved in a hit and run accident this morning(29/1/16) abt 4-5am at BKE towards SLE and he was pronounced dead.

If anyone happen to pass by or witness the accident, kindly contact us. As my cousin have a baby girl at 15mths old.

Please help to spread the world and help seek justice for my cousin.

Thanks in advance.

https://www.facebook.com/jian.cun.5/posts/10153614239603705

<Reader Coontribution>

When the 'O' level results were released this year, there was some hoo-ha when the Middle Ground reported that only 1 out of 10 students in RI's pioneer 'O' level class scored well enough to make it to JC. Many people were in shock, including the students, it would seem - RI? How could this have happened?

My reaction is: this was no surprise at all.

I've always been baffled by the intrinsic belief of some parents that because a high percentage of top school students score well, you will automatically score well if you go to a top school. It doesn't work that way. That's like saying if you hang out with a whole bunch of rich people, you will also become rich. So much logic.

Whether you are likely to turn in good academic results depends on a few factors:

1) Your natural talent or aptitude, which is largely genetic
2) Your work ethic, ie how hard and how well you study
3) How much help you get, eg whether you have tuition, good teachers, father-mother help, etc.

Of course there are other factors like luck, performance during exams etc, but I won't get into those as I think they play a smaller part. In general, how well a student performs in school is largely dependent on those three factors. Students in the elite schools tend to have a good combination of all three. That's why they do well. It's that simple.

However, in every top school, you will have a handful of students who do not perform quite as well academically. The group who entered via sports or arts Direct School Admissions (DSAs), for instance. Many of these kids enter the school far below the cut-off-point (COP), sometimes 30 or 40 points below. While the PSLE t-score is not definitive, it does offer a pretty good indication of general ability. If a student is lacking in Factor 1) and his Factor 2) is compromised because he has to commit a lot of time to his CCA due to DSA, he is already at a huge disadvantage when it comes to performing academically. It's the brutal truth.

I don't know if all the kids who scored badly in the 'O' level class were from DSAs. There could also be students who entered RI due to very high PSLE scores but somehow along the way, slipped and were unable to catch up.

Being in a branded school doesn't automatically mean you get a leg up in grades. In fact, it's often the opposite. Based on my own experience with my two kids, branded schools actually teach less and test more. When they teach, they go very quickly and assume knowledge of basic concepts. Many teachers of branded schools are simply unaccustomed to dealing with less academically-inclined children and much less sympathetic to failing grades (when Lesley-Anne flunked sec 3 maths, her teacher just assumed she wasn't trying hard enough). If you struggle to understand the fundamentals, tuition is often the only recourse for these kids. In contrast, Andre's teachers in a neighbourhood school go through concepts more slowly and hold more extra classes for weaker students.

This whole saga with the 'O' level class at RI is due to the way the Integrated Programme (IP) has evolved. When IP was introduced some years ago, the assumption was that the top PSLE scorers would naturally be JC-bound, so the through-train system made sense - kids in schools like RI/RGS/HCI/NYGH would bypass the 'O' levels and go straight to JC, saving them the hassle of preparing for another national exam. After all, these schools attract the top 5% of kids. Shouldn't be a problem, right?

Except there was a problem. Kids are human beings. They don't always perform according to statistical projections. Plus these schools took in some kids way below the COPs, as mentioned above. The result was that some kids in these schools just couldn't keep up, for whatever reason. The schools then faced a huge dilemma - what to do with these students? They couldn't in good conscience promote a student who failed practically every subject, let alone allow him or her to enter JC. So in the past, these kids would either be retained, transfer to an overseas school or transfer to a secondary school which offered 'O' levels.

The worst case scenarios were the sec 4 kids who couldn't make the grade - it was too late to transfer schools and study a completely different syllabus for the 'O' levels. What route could they take then? Poly? Drop out and take 'O' levels as a private candidate? Graduate with just a PSLE certificate? It was an untenable situation. I say this with first-hand knowledge because Lesley-Anne was from a branded secondary school and during her time, it was pure IP, with no 'O' level classes. There were students who couldn't make the grade and quietly transferred out to different schools, whichever would take them. At the sec 4 graduation ceremony, some students went up on stage to receive a fake scroll, bitterly knowing there was a chance they might not graduate. It's sobering and horrible and nobody talks about it.

So these top schools which previously didn't have 'O' level classes, came to realise that they were not doing right by these students. They had no choice but to open up 'O' level classes for the kids who really couldn't cope. It was with good intentions. However, it's laughable to call schools like RI "dual-track" schools because they're not. A dual-track school is one like ACSI, Victoria/Cedar or SJI where there are two distinct tracks from the start - IP and 'O' levels - and students can move from one track to another at sec 3, depending on their performance. In these schools, teachers are trained and curriculum designed specifically for these two very different tracks and there is a sizeable student enrolment in both.

In schools like RI however, the 'O' level track is not a real option but a last resort for the students whom the teachers feel are not equipped to continue with the IP. In fact, many kids may be borderline cases but the schools often try to keep everyone in the IP (it's that or admit that the IP is a sham). The 'O' level class is a no-choice situation to at least try and give the failing students a decent qualification. That's why there were only 10 RI students in this class, out of a cohort of maybe 400 or so (I don't know the exact numbers).

In other words, the 10 RI students were already struggling academically. That's why they were in the 'O' level class. I also wonder how familiar the teachers were with the 'O' level syllabus as they were all trained for the IP curriculum. Was it any surprise then that the students didn't do well in the 'O' levels? It's not fair to compare their performance with the ACSI or SJI 'O' level cohort because the circumstances are completely different.

So what's the lesson in this whole saga? I loathe to add to the very judgmental "oh, RI is falling from their pedestal!" sentiment. I feel sorry for the students. They probably feel badly enough, first at being downgraded to the 'O' level class, then having to deal with the results. They don't need to be known as "the RI kids who failed".

For me, if there's anything to be learnt, it's this: don't get starry-eyed by the brand name of a school. Schools only share their glory-makers, their top-scorers, their Ivy-league goers. They never tell you about the ones who don't make it. And there are ALWAYS those who don't. Every cohort, every school, not just RI. People don't hear about them, except in whispers, because the parents and students are likely too ashamed to advertise their situation. And it suits all parties involved - the students, the parents and the school, never to speak of them.

Getting into a school is the starting point, not the destination. Otherwise, it's like thinking you've seen the Eiffel Tower in Paris when all you did was board the plane at Changi. If your child is not of that calibre or suited for a highly competitive environment, getting into a top school can have disastrous outcomes. It is not a guaranteed route to success.

Nobody thinks it will happen to them but guess what, it always happens to someone. Know your children and ask yourself if they will truly thrive in that sort of environment. Don't let them be victims of your own ambitions.

Dear admin,

There has been something I've been curious about as of late. It started with the debate surrounding the carpark issue. This led to people comparing teaching to other noble jobs such as medicine or engineering. But for the latter, there is a large amount of scrutiny and accountability. Patients can sue doctors for malpractice. Doctors can risk losing their license if the perform a procedure wrongly. Engineers can also risk being charged if they are found to be negligent in their work.

If all these other important jobs are held to a certain level of scrutiny and accountability, should teachers also be subject to more scrutiny?

What about the Shuqun Secondary bully case? The teacher was aware of the bullying for awhile but failed to act on it. The bullying that was caught on camera happened in a classroom where parents are assured that students will be safe. Should the school and teacher be reprimanded for what occured?

I saw a conversation on another forum whereby a supposed teacher told another former who got into local university to be grateful to MOE teachers for getting the results he had that enabled him to get there. If teachers should be credited for successes, should they also share the blame if there are failures? Especially in the recent case of the RI students. Of which only 1 in 10 managed to go to JC.

Conversely however, if we were to scrutinise teachers even more, less people would join the teaching fraternity as the heavy responsibility might "scare" them away. Too much accountability would just shift more burden to teachers and parents might feel that it is the teacher's job to discipline/teach/babysit all at the same time.

This post is not to "pass judgement" upon teachers. But I really want to get a sense of what people feel about this.

Concerned parent

Most ordinary citizens don’t seem to have realised we pay the highest taxes in the universe.

We should not accept PAP’s conveniently narrow definition of tax which should include any amount which contributes to government revenue.

I will use the example of an ordinary Singaporean couple with 2 children, each earning $40000 a year and highlight all the different taxes they have to pay. For ease of computation, I have assumed generous personal reliefs of $10,000 and a $8000 CPF deduction each.

1 Direct taxes need no explanation. Their personal income tax is negligible. It looks like a happy situation only because we have yet to take into account all other taxes.

2 Indirect taxes are GST, COE, FDW levy, etc The couple is likely to have a car, employ a maid and has little or no savings in high-cost Singapore. Assuming a $50000 COE, it works out to a $5000 annual indirect tax. Concessionary maid levy at $60 per month works out to $720 annually. Assuming an annual expenditure of $40000, GST at 7% works out to $2800. Total annual indirect taxes = $5000 + $720 + $2800 = $8520

With car and maid (A) Without car and maid (B)

The effective tax rate (on dual incomes) is 19% and 6% for A and B respectively. Low tax rates??

3 Double tax. Singapore is about the only country that levies GST on water conservation tax. While this may be negligible on an individual basis, the government has profited millions over more than 2 decades from residents and businesses.

4 Housing tax. In a 2009 TOC article, the total construction cost of a 4-room BTO in Punggol was estimated to be about $120,000. Since the average selling price was $293,000, the government made a $173,000 profit from buyers by including the land cost. Divide this by the 99-year lease, it works out to $1747 a year.

HDB buyers also have to pay mortgage interests on this amount which works out to about $73,000 at 3% over a 25-year loan. calculator

(It is unethical of PAP to include a land cost component in pricing HDB flats because the the government remains the owner while HDB‘owners’ are in fact only tenants. This amount is channeled back into government revenue. which makes it a form of tax.)

(A) (B)

Effective tax rates for (A) and (B) are 25% and 12.5%. Low taxes?

5 Unique tax. The PAP creams off, on average, 3% from our CPF returns to supplement the budget. The amount one loses depends on how much CPF one has. Singles staying with parents who have, say, $200,000 in CPF OA are contributing $6000 a year to government revenue.

It’s not possible to list all the different taxes such as road tax, petrol and cigarette duties, etc. In reality our effective tax rates are much higher for ordinary wages. Also, not everyone pays maid levy at a concessionary rate of $60, eg employers who do not have children below 16 years old (previously 12).

According to propaganda, Singaporeans are paying comparatively low taxes. However, if all the different taxes are added up, the tax rate for ordinary citizens could be as high as 30% of wages. You can work out your personal effective tax rate which will convince you the government has been pulling a fast one on us. We should stop deluding ourselves. Time to wake up.

Dear ASS Editors,

I saw FB post by this girl who thinks she's made of gold, looks are normal at best but so arrogant, demand guys to be rich enough to buy her branded bags or can forget about asking her out for valentines day. such attitude makes me sick in the stomach. Her posts are self-explanatory, I hope she is the minority in Singapore if not we are doomed.

<Facebook post by Lucrecia>

"Stop asking me what I want for a present. Unless you're rich enough to buy me that YSL or LV Bag. Don't bother asking me out on Valentine's day either.

I'm not that average cute girl that u can handle. Don't come near me because of my looks, Ill scare u off with my attitude.
‪
#‎notyourfuckingaveragekindofgirl‬"

"Time to get back on track & wake up from a dream. I've gotten too spoilt.

Branded bags, cosmetics, diamonds, hotbod, looks & career.

‪#‎workforit‬ ‪#‎independence‬ ‪#‎女强人‬ ‪#‎iwantmyyvessaintlaurentbags‬ ‪#‎idontneedamantobehappy‬"

Unbelievable
A.S.S. Contributor

Dear A.S.S,

We always make noise about Uber/GC taking away our businesses. But have we spare a thought that we the cabbies are one of the reasons why pax are taking Uber/GC instead of cabs?

1) Cabbies choose locations or pax - I understand that we are driving to make a living and to make the most out of the hours we are on the road.
2) Cabbies don't take cards or nets even if they are issued with these terminals - I do understand its hard for the drivers to monitor if their respective companies pays them and it can take a number of days before the companies pay us and we have to pay our rental daily.
3) Going on a longer route - we are humans not robots, we do make mistakes but some cabbies will take a longer route knowingly especially when their pax are tourists. Don't forget that they might have friends or relatives in Singapore and if they find out, they will probably advise their friends and relatives back home.
4) Overcharging by putting location charges when there are none

It just take a few of these rogue drivers to spoil our reputation. All these will contribute to drive our pax to take Uber/GC.

Dumas T

Full-time police national serviceman Muhammad Shazwan Sapuwan, 21, had a special knack for stalking couples behaving intimately at HDB staircases.

He would chance upon the couples regularly as part of his voyeuristic hobby, record their intimacy on video and then use his status as a police officer to extort money from his victims.

He succeeded in extorting money from 2 couples, and decided to take things even further when he chanced upon a third couple.

On 24th October 2014, Shazwan took pictures of a 16 year-old girl whom he had caught red handed performing oral sex on her 18 year-old boyfriend. Dressed in a Jurong Police Division polo T-shirt, his blue police trousers and a lanyard that displayed his police warrant card, Shazwan threatened to report the couple for public nudity and told the couple that he would "submit" their names as he did not want to lose his job.

After hours of talks, he suggested that they repeat their intimate acts so he could record them. He told them that if he did lose his job, he would use the video recorded to threaten them for money.

Worried that her parents would find out about the acts, the girl convinced her boyfriend to comply. While the couple performed sexual acts, Shazwan touched her breast and forced her to perform oral sex on him. Shazwan then demanded the boyfriend to have sex with the girl but the teenager refused. Shazwan proceeded to rape the girl himself.

After leaving the scene, Shazwan communicated with the boyfriend on WhatsApp and demanded $40 the next morning, which the boyfriend transferred to Shazwan's account.

The whole matter came to light when the girl started crying in front of her friends in school and told them what happened. Her friends eventually found Shazwan's identity on Facebook and got her to file a police report.

Pleading guilty to charges of rape, forced oral sex, outrage of modesty and extortion, Shazwan, now 23, was jailed 18 years and ordered to be caned 15 strokes.

<Blog post by online influencer Andrew Loh>

Reading news reports of what transpired in Parliament the last few days has been disappointing, to say the least. And particularly so is the People’s Action Party (PAP)’s politicking over the decision by Workers’ Party candidate, Lee Lilian, not to take up the Non-constituency Member of Parliament (NCMP) seat.

PAP MPs such as Lee Bee Wah, Edwin Tong and Charles Chong, along with minister Chan Chun Sing, all cast aspersions of various kinds on the WP and Ms Lee.

I do not think it is worth repeating them here. Suffice it to say that the attacks (even if they are veiled ones) reflect badly on the perpetrators.

Here they are, casting aspersions on a lady who had stepped forward to serve her community, and had and continues to do so for 10 years now, including her two years in the highest lawmaking body in the country.

These PAP MPs questioned her sense of service, nonetheless. And cast doubts on the motive behind her declining the NCMP seat.

Mr Chan calls it “political maneuvering” on the part of the WP, even though Ms Lee herself had explained in some details her decision not to accept the seat, and she did so almost immediately after her defeat in the Punggol East elections in September last year.

Lilian’s first foray into politics was in May 2006, when she volunteered with the WP during that general election. The next month (June) she joined as member. She then rose quite quickly through the party ranks, being voted into the central executive council two years later in 2008.

Her contribution to the community and thus to our nation is without doubt.

The WP website explains:

“[She] was elected into the Youth Wing Executive Committee and became the Youth Wing Organising Secretary. In 2008, she was elected into the party’s CEC and was appointed the Deputy Treasurer of the Workers’ Party.

“After GE2011, Li Lian became the Legislative Assistant to MP Pritam Singh in the Eunos division of Aljunied GRC. She was responsible for the recruitment of volunteers and the organisation of grassroots events for Eunos division. Li Lian also worked with the Aljunied-Hougang Town Council to address the concerns of the residents. In the same year, she also became the President of the Workers’ Party Youth Wing.

“Li Lian stood as the party’s candidate in the Punggol East SMC in the 2011 General Elections and again in the by-election of 2013 when she was elected as the Member of Parliament for Punggol East SMC.”

As any volunteer would know, it takes a lot of work and commitment to dedicate oneself to such work, and especially so in opposition politics in Singapore.

That someone like Lilian, a young mother, would find time to serve her fellow men and women is something we should appreciate and be thankful for.

For how many would do what Lilian and her compatriots in opposition parties do?

Click on the link below to read more..

Stressed out over the sounds of a baby's cries, an anonymous neighbor decided to slip an angry note under the door of a fellow HDB resident's flat in an attempt to get them to stop their baby from crying.

The note read: "Please be mindful, the entire floor can hear your infant. Thank you for your courteous attention to the matter."

Little did this neighbor expect to receive this epic response from the family, who decided to paste their response on a wall along the common corridor.

"Dear Neighbour,

Firstly, thanks for the above note slipped under our door unsigned, very community spirited of you.

We are probably more aware of the crying than you are, the pitch little 7 month old K..... can create within the apartment is impressive to say the least.

I'm sure you are thankful that she sleeps the entire night and only cries occasionally between 9am and 9pm.

Rest assured, we have gave her a stern talking to this evening after receiving your note. I'm not sure she quite understood it, but she did look serious for a second.

I'm hoping baby number 2 and 3 don't cry so much.

Best regards
08-26"

What do you think?

This incident happened when I was younger. I was left at my neighbour's house (same floor, a few units away) because no one's home during the day and i was too young to be by myself. I would love to pester the husband of this lady neighbour for sweets, yelling,"UNCLE, SWEETS! BUY SWEETS FOR ME! UNCLE!" while following him around the house.

So one evening, this uncle came home from work and i went about my usual routine of harassing him for sweets till he went for a bath. I heard a noise in the hall then saw that very same uncle WHO WAS ALREADY IN THE BATHROOM, walked into the master bedroom. Thinking nothing of it, i hopped happily to the bedroom and found the uncle to be leaning at the window grills, looking out. I called out to him," UNCLE!".

Then "he" turned around to look at me, exactly how the uncle was dressed before he went for his bath and disheveled hair, except with a semi-transparent face without a mouth and wide-eyed with surprise, surprised that i could see "him"! "He" quickly turned, casually drifting out the window in a dark shapeless form. I was left rooted to the spot, not knowing what i saw.

He later came out and ask everyone what the fuss was about. Because i wasn't the only one who saw "him". His youngest daughter just came home from sec school and saw "him" drifting out while walking towards me. The whole family was damn worried and kept asking if i had picked up any objects on my way home...

9lon
A.S.S. Contributor

STATEMENT IN FULL:

Police Statement on Death of 14-Year-Old Male Student Under Investigation for Outrage of Modesty

In this case, a Police report was lodged about a molestation. Based on CCTV evidence, Police officers went to conduct enquiries at a school. To keep investigations discreet, the officers went in plainclothes and in unmarked cars. After discussions with the school officials, and the viewing of the CCTV records, Benjamin was identified as the boy in the CCTV records. He was brought to the Principal’s office by a school official and was spoken with in the presence of a Police officer. Before he was brought back to Ang Mo Kio Division, he contacted his mother to inform her of the Police’s investigations. The Police officer also spoke to the mother.

While at Ang Mo Kio Division, he was interviewed by one Investigation Officer at his workstation in an open plan office with other workstations. He was fully cooperative during the interview. He was then released on bail and went back with his mother.

The Police have been asked whether it should review the procedure to allow an appropriate adult to be present when a young person is interviewed. The Police will review and address this issue.

Police investigations have not been completed. A Coroner’s Inquiry will be held upon the conclusion of investigations, where all the relevant facts will be presented to the State Coroner. At the inquiry, the family will also be able to raise all questions that they may have.

Benjamin’s passing was tragic. The Police have expressed their deepest condolences to the family. They have met the family to address their questions on the case and provide clarifications on the actions of the Police officers during their interaction with Benjamin.

<Facebook complaint by Kenny Quek>

Somewhere at Blk 122E Rivervale Dr Singapore HDB cell. Pls have the courage to inform your upstair neighbour face-to-face.

This is a classic "concrete cell spirit" nowadays. Is it necessary to publicise and made known to everyone? #07-478

<Twitter post by Tharsh>

The man in purple shouted at the worker for sitting down on the seats. fucking disgusting really, show some humanity.. The worker already looked damn shag, & nobody has the right to deprive someone of a seat, he's paying the same fare. I felt so bad.

The chinese guy was like in his own world. All I could do was wait for him to leave & then talk to the worker. After the guy left, I asked him to just sit down on a seat but he told me it's okay & just sat on the floor. damn screwed up.

Dear ASS Editors,

My Dad bought for us insurance polices when we were young. I had another older sister and younger brother. So just last week, i decided to drop Great Eastern a call. Telling that the policies were bought in 1997. I don't know what type of polices he bought. The receptionist , said that she would send me the details from the printed copy from Econnect and also the password to log in from in future.

If i want a original copy , i would need to go down to their office and pay $20 . Got the mail on a friday, saturday was not a working day. So monday i called in again and was asking about the payouts and details. The receptionist was very helpful. So i told my siblings to call immediately to get their details too and this is where all the crappy shit comes.

My sister called and request for the same items and guess what, they told her to pay $20. She told them that all she wants is the print copy, not the original copy. They insisted that it is payable. My younger brother took the phone and gave them his details , requested for the same items and told them that his older brother just got his last week and he just called in 10mins ago. Great Eastern, then request for MY NAME to do a check if i did call and receive the items. After, putting us on HOLD to talk to higher authority . They told us that they can send us the PIN. Still PAYABLE. Great Work from Great Eastern.

I was wondering, then i realize that i had 2 new policies when i was 2012. While my 2 siblings didn't. All they has were 2 or 3 polices each since 1997. But the amount were not that big.

So, to Great Eastern . Insurance is see how much you buy not how long you have been with them. They don't even want to waste a few piece of A4 paper to print out the econnect details which is already avaliable in front of their screen. They want to charge you $20 for information that can be printed when they send us the password form. they had been with your company for 18years and 11 mths .

Great work ! and people tells me that insurance is for life...... bull shit.

Mr Yap
A.S.S. Contributor

Do HDB residents want to pay higher S & CC? It’s about time we scrutiniseTC expenditures.

Some of the expenditures can be reduced, such as MP greeting banners. I have queried PasirRisPunggolTC but it has refused to disclose the probably embarrassing amount spent.

I am not requesting for confidential information but my TC says it needs to better understand my concerns and is unable to respond via email. I have since written to the PMO on this issue of transparency which has yet to respond. (link to my query, TC’s reply and email to PM Lee)

Should we be paying for MPs to greet us?

Since my TC prefers to conceal the actual banner expenditure, I have estimated the cost to be at about $200,000 every year. This is based on 100 banners printed during each festival and National Day:

• New Years Day
• Chinese New Year
• Good Friday
• Labour Day
• Vesak day
• National Day
• HariRayaPuasa
• Deepavali
• HariRayaHaji
• Christmas Day

If each costs $200, residents would be paying some $20,000 for the banners on each occasion. Multiply that by 10 and our expenditure has increased by $200,000.

MPs are given an allowance and if they are sincere in greeting residents, the banners should be paid from their pockets. I mean, isn’t it ridiculous to make your friends pay for the greeting card sent to you?

Hmm… are my MPs smiling because they have taken us for a ride by forcing us to pay for their greeting banners? How many millions of dollars have been wasted? Why fear transparency if it is not wrong to do so?

After a police report was made against PAP lackey and ex-NMP Calvin Cheng for making comments in support of killing children of terrorists last month, it seems he's back with more foot-in-his-mouth comments, this time in support of making personal attacks in the name of good politics. 

Is he trying to justify the PAP's low brow tactics of making personal attacks against opposition politicians during the last GE like that time where MP Sim Ann took a personal swipe at Chee Soon Juan when she said that he was good at "chu pattern" or conjuring tricks or pretense.  Or when MND Minister Lawrence Wong made attacks against Chee Soon Juan's personal integrity on national television when he accused him of lying in parliament. 

The PAP and their supporters seem to take pleasure in taking personal digs at opposition politicians, but when the same is done onto them like when a WP supporter supposedly insulted Minister Shanmugam when he referred to him as a "barking dog", the PAP cannot take it and say that the action is WP sanctioned and called such personal attacks "disappointing" and "vile". 

It's ironic that Calvin Cheng would say that it is hypocritical to champion 'good politics' and 'decency' when the PAP has been doing so while not practising what they preach. 

Dear Editors,

My dear friends and ladies pls careful this guy. Who ever go single ladies in Little India Tekka mall sunday pls careful. This guy always follow the ladies then asking address to ladies.... really dont know what he want.... last sunday few ladies scolded this guy.

After people try to call police he escape from there..... this fu*ker come singapore for what? Please all our indian friends dont do activities like this. We are coming for earn money for our family. Dont damage our country name.

Saran Kumar‎
A.S.S. Contributor