Ladies and Gentlemen,
Singapore today has essentially a very unstable political system. It is more like that of Communist China except that it doesn't admit it.
In China, you have the Chinese Communist Party which essentially is the only lawful government of China. By law, there can be no other system. Therefore China's government continues seamlessly from one to another. Politicians in China aspire for leadership in the Communist Party which entitles them to govern China. China officially admits it is a one party state, with Communist Party being the only party. At least with China, we know where we stand.
Politics in Singapore is essentially the same as that in China, except with one difference. Singapore is a fraud. Outwardly it pretends to be be a multi party democracy with human rights and every other element that represents a democracy. But in truth none of this exists. Lee Kuan Yew's Peoples Action Party has been governing Singapore essentially as a one party state since 1959, and they have no intention whatsoever to allow any other party to govern.
In Singapore just as in China, Lee's government go out spotting talent to join them and lead the island. It has no provision that allows independent leaders to develop on their own with independent views. As far as they are concerned, all leaders are those with the view of the party and if you are otherwise, you have no place in Singapore's politics.
Singapore therefore rests on very fragile foundations because it says one thing and does another. At least in Communist China, they admit they are a one party state, take or leave it. In Singapore on the other hand you have a situation where people do not really know where they stand.
Take my case for instance. During my life, I truly believed that Singapore was a democracy. That is what I was taught in school and no one ever told me otherwise. It was a lie from the very beginning. Which is one reason I returned to Singapore after my education. It was only much later that I realized that all that you see is really not what it seems.
And I think this is the problem with a great many people being fooled all their lives into thinking Singapore was something other than what it is. They would been much better off had they openly admitted that they are another Communist China with Lee Kuan Yew another China's Hu Jintao.
In essence, what Singapore does is to make an entire population into mere charlatans and comedians. Every single one of Singaporeans and those working in the government are engaging in this game of make belief. For instance the guy working for the water department goes about his job diligently trying to solve Singapore's flooding problem.
But he is not concerned one bit that he is not allowed to criticize Lee Kuan Yew, that he has no free press or that he is not allowed to protest all. Neither is he concerned one bit that his fellow citizen Chee Soon Juan has been repeatedly abused through the misuse of the law and other citizens have been jailed and bankrupted for doing things completely legal under the Constitution of the country.
In such circumstances, how much respect can you have for the chief of the water department who goes about his job fixing the water pipes? Any other decent human being in any other country would have taken umbrage against a system that so unjustly treats their fellow citizens.
What you have today in Singapore are people prepared to do their jobs, whether senior level or junior level, completely detached from their own lives as human beings. In effect they are just serving the Lee Kuan Yew family, with their careers and future entirely dependant on how much Lee and and his government is pleased.
Singaporeans no longer have the confidence of living lives under certain rights, which they have none. An Australian goes about his life knowing that he is protected under the law, he is confident in himself and his life, there are judges to protect him if anyone tries to abuse him, and he can rely on the integrity and courage of men in authority for acting honorably when the time comes for judgement. An Australian expects elections to be free and fair, he can expect the right to criticism, and know that Australians do not have to live in fear of their leaders but it is the leaders who have to live in fear of them.
This emboldens an Australian. It gives him pride. It gives respect to his country. Which is why Australians excel. They do what they do because they love it. Not because it pleases anyone.
Under these circumstances, Australians can expect to do their best in whatever endeavor they undertake. They work not to please their political leadership, they work because they love their jobs, they love their lives, and they respect Australia.
None of this can be said of anyone in Singapore. There you work for Lee Kuan Yew, your rights depend on Lee Kuan Yew, you may keep or lose your job depending on Lee Kuan Yew and you may in fact lose everything as Chee Soon Juan, a Singapore critic, has suffered if Lee Kuan Yew is displeased.
In these circumstances firstly you never find the best human beings who would give their best. They are more concerned with pleasing Lee than anything else.
This sort of government is inherently unstable. Lee Kuan Yew is 89 years old and he will die tomorrow. After he is gone, what do people do, try to please his son? And if he is not around, who do we try to please, Teo Chee Hean, his deputy? And even if Teo demands obedience, under what authority of the law is such obedience justified?
Singapore is simply doomed. The whole basis of the country is so distorted and crooked, it is impossible to get it right. Even if Lee Kuan Yew family wanted to rectify this unsatisfactory condition, they are not able to do so.
Singaporeans only know how to live their lives by pleasing their superiors. They do not know how to live according to basic tenets of rights which others in democracies live by. Remember people are not like a light switch which you can turn on or off as you please. You cannot tell people on the one hand to kowtow to authority and the next minute tell them that they are free. Just like the caged animal that you have had for years; even if you let him free, he would probably return to his cage.
The basic foundation upon which Singapore rests is unsound. It is not a country based on integrity and principles of honor. Singapore's judges are crooked because they serve Lee, Singapore's civil servants are crooked because they serve Lee, Singapore's teachers are crooked because they instill fear in their children. To put it simply, the entire island is a fraud. It is therefore unstable and incapable of lasting.
Gopalan Nair
Attorney at Law
Disbarred from practicing law in Lee's Singapore, imprisoned and refused entry to the island for criticizing Singapore's judiciary in this blog (see blogpost May 29, 2008 Singapore. Judge Belinda Ang's Kangaroo Court)
Actively practicing law in California and in good standing at the California Bar.
Member in good standing as a lawyer in England and Wales (Barrister).
39737 Paseo Padre Parkway, Suite A1
Fremont, CA 94538, USA
Tel: 510 657 6107
Fax: 510 657 6914
Email: nair.gopalan@yahoo.com
Blog: http://singaporedissident.blogspot.com/
Your letters are welcome. We reserve the right to publish your letters. Please Email your letters to nair.gopalan@yahoo.com And if you like what I write, please tell your friends. You will be helping democracy by distributing this widely. This blog not only gives information, it dispels government propaganda put out by this dictatorial regime.
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5 comments:
Hi, Gopalan
Vivian Balakrishnan is out there with his usual antics - to fool his people.
Nonetheless, we know that nothing can help Singapore's flood problem.
http://sg.news.yahoo.com/%E2%80%98engineering-solutions-will-not-help-s%E2%80%99pore%E2%80%99s-flash-flood-problem%E2%80%99.html
MAJULAH SINGAPURA! THAT'S PROOF OF THE INCOMPETENCE OF THE SINGAPORE PUBLIC UTILITIES BOARD!
To Anonymous,
They dileberately neglected to take into account soemthing which they knew when building all these buildings. Climate change. It is criminal recklesness and they should be held accountable.
comment moderation huh, speaks quite clearly for itself. Singapore has indeed been governed by the PAP and Lee for a good number of years, but by criticizing that the PAP show no will to let an opposition run the government is quite frankly absurd. Which political party doesn't want to hold on to power? If Singapore, really, like you have said is a unstable political system, why hasn't it fallen apart. As much as you might choose to believe that it is a dictatorial regime, Singaporeans CAN practice their right to free voting. If they wanted the PAP out, the PAP will be out. the only reason why our parliament is filled with men in white shirts is that our people see their contributions. Singapore is indeed successful in many ways. being from the workers party, isn't this just groundless slander?
To Anonymous who said
"comment moderation huh, speaks quite clearly for itself." Let me point out where you are wrong in your understanding.
Political parties like the Third Reich, Fascist Spain of Juan Carlos and Musollini of Italy all refused to hold on to power. In fact it it were not for WW2, Hitler would have carried on much longer. But holding on to power this way is not only illegal but criminal.
To a lesser degree, this is exactly what Lee does to hold on to power. His principle tool is his law courts, disgraceful women judges such as his Belinda Ang Saw Ean who "prostitutes" her legal office for person gain. Disgraceful. There goes your argument of how governments should hold on to power.
As to your question, why has it "not fallen apart" Nazi Germany would have taken much longer to fall without Hitler losing the war. But it would have eventually collapsed sooner or later when the truth eventually comes out. Remember there was no Internet in 1933.
You may not know but despite the daily propoganda in Lee's state controlled press claiming that Singapore is a paradise, it is indeed falling apart daily. And Singapore Dissident is contributing to it. You may not know that Singapopre, a tiny island, suffers from a massive on going brain drain mainly to Australia, it has the lowest birth rate in the world and the older Singapore native population is dying. They are being replaced by third rate Chinese from Communist China who do not know any English. These things alone are going to cause Singapore to collapse in spite of the rubbish propaganda spouted from the state controlled media.
Third your argument that Singaporeans vote for the PAP. Firstly I am not sure whether the polls are accurate or whether that all powerful government is merely stuffing the ballot boxes. You know that Lee's son refused international monitors at the last poll. Second, even if they voted for them they had no choice since any real opposition politician such as Chee or JBJ would be sued bankrupted and imprisoned. How do you expect anyone in opposition to stand for elections? With no real qualified opposition at elections, what do you expect the electors to do?
I trust I have answered your questions. And your comment which will be read by Singaporeans will alienate a few more against that regime.
Correction.
In my above comment Political parties like the Third Reich, Fascist Spain of Juan Carlos and Musollini of Italy all refused to hold on to power
Should read
"Political parties like the Third Reich, Fascist Spain of Juan Carlos and Musollini of Italy all refused to step down but held on to power"
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