Singapore Lee Kuan Yew's Judge Lai Siu Chiu abandons a sinking ship

Ladies and Gentlemen,

Singapore's state controlled newspaper the Straits Times of Oct 29, 2013 reports, "Singapore's first female Supreme Court judge to retire" Please see http://www.straitstimes.com/breaking-news/singapore/story/singapores-first-female-supreme-court-judge-retire-20131029

It is reported Judge Lai Siu Chiu who claims that the experience "enjoyable enriching and immensely satisfying" who is 65 will retire immediately and continue to engage in law. The state controlled paper doesn't say much more than that.

There are several things fishy about this case.

Is she really retiring or is she abandoning a sinking ship, the SS Singapore with helmsman 90 year old Lee Kuan Yew? Let me explain. To put it plainly, this woman has blood on her hands. In 2006 she had the honor of sending an innocent man to prison for contempt of court, which in Singapore parlance means any statement critical of Lee Kuan Yew, his family or his courts. It is not really necessary to waste one's time reading the nonsense in these cases but to say this.

Chee Soon Juan a staunch government critic had been bankrupted after failing to pay libel damages on trumped up charges to Lee Kuan Yew and his sidekick Goh Choc Tong of half a million dollars! At his bankruptcy hearing later, he correctly read out a statement calling these judges a bunch of Kangaroos (my words, not his) and what is going on is no better than Alice in Wonderland (my words, not his).

As a result the poor man had not only been bankrupted for not having $500,000.00, he was also to face contempt charges for pointing out that these judges were nothing but stooges (my words, not his). The contempt charges came before this woman whose main duty it appears is to put away critics of her paymaster Lee Kuan Yew.

Naturally she said that Chee's criticism of Singaporean judges was the "the worst case that had come before her court for scandalizing the judiciary" and as expected, at the bat of an eye, she ordered him to jail for seven days if he did not pay a further $6,000.00! Please see http://www.singapore-window.org/sw06/060317dj.htm

You see, it is not expected for Singapore judges to retire as although there is this retirement age, Lee Kuan Yew and his government can extend their tenure for as long as they want. Almost every judge in the past has remained till their eighties and even nineties. And especially since she confesses to love her dirty work, wanting to carry one with it even after retirement, why the need to retire? Moreover it is common knowledge that the Singapore bar is struggling with shrinking numbers, for having a reputation for attracting ass lickers ( I mean Lee Kuan Yew's) crooks and opportunists to make millions doing their master's bidding.

No, it is not a case of her retiring. I think she can read the writing on the wall. Lee Kuan Yew is 90 and going to die after which there may be a day of reckoning of all these Kangaroo judges who spent a career in doing dirty work for lee Kuan Yew by bankrupting and jailing the late JB Jeyaretnam, Chee Soon Juan and dozens of other government opponents who were doing no more than exercising fair criticism expected in any democracy.

I think she is afraid of what will happen to her and rightly so. Will she have to explain what she did to Chee Soon Juan? Will she have to explain a great many other instances of abuse of her office to please her master? Perhaps it is wiser to clear out now before it is too late? Perhaps even better to emigrate to some other country and hope the long arm of the law will not come looking.

I think this woman is the first among Lee Kuan Yew's stooges who will now try to leave. I expect to see many more resignations from the top in the government as 90 year old Lee Kuan Yew's passing becomes more and more imminent. Her face appears below.

Singapore's first female Supreme Court judge, Justice Lai Siu Chiu (above), will retire with effect from Oct 30 after more than 22 years on the Bench, the Supreme Court said in a statement on Tuesday. -- FILE PHOTO: SUPREME COURT 

Gopalan Nair
Attorney at Law
A Singaporean in Exile
Fremont, California USA
Tel: 510 491 8525
Email: nair.gopalan@yahoo.com

Has Singapore run out of ideas on floods, the brain drain and the vanishing citizen

Ladies and Gentlemen,

A reading of the state controlled local Singapore's reports one recurring problem for which the island's millionaire ministers simply has no solution, Mother Nature.

Almost daily after a heavy rainfall, there is a report that several parts of the island have flooded and are in some places several feet underwater, causing untold water damage to countless motor car engines, property damage in houses and shops running into millions. Question is, how much more can they take?

It is not my intention to lecture to you on global warming but even a schoolboy should know that Singapore island, which is no more than 80 miles north of the Equator and just a few inches above sea level has no chance whatsoever.

Due to the island's location at the Equator, global warming causes atmospheric  temperatures to rise, far faster than in temperate countries, which allows the same amount of air to hold much larger amounts of water vapor and with condensation resulting in that much more rain in a deluge and torrent.

Secondly the earth's rotation on its axis causes two high tides each day (or one depending on which way you look at it). And with water temperature rising, sea water expands causing water to increasingly encroach into the island.

In combination with high tides, heavy rain and a deluge of rain ground water, it simply cannot flow out to sea causing the almost daily flooding.  We read almost daily of the nonsense put out by the island's million dollar ministers claiming to improve drainage to eliminate flooding but we know the problem is not one of drainage at all.

The island simply lies too low above sea level and it is simply at the wrong place, almost spot on the Equator. No matter what you do, you simply cannot halt global warming nor can you raise the island higher. This is a lost cause and the sooner they admit this the better for them, rather than to put out this nonsense of improving drainage.

And what is worse, with each day passing, the problem is becoming more and more acute; 2012 was worse than 2011 just as 2013 is going to be worse than 2012 and worsen with each passing day and each passing year as the world continues to get warmer. I reckon flooding this North East Monsoon season starting now up till March next year is going to be far worse than anything you have ever seen.

And the island being no more than a tiny speck, no more than 26 miles latitudinal and 16 miles longitudinally, and mostly flat, you have simply nowhere to run from the floodwaters.

Second insurmountable problem is their unhappy people. No matter how many roads and high rise apartment blocks you build, Singaporeans are simply very unhappy and they manifest this in the only way they know, which is to emigrate, not have any children and refuse to get married.

Although the state controlled newspapers no longer reports on the brain drain, it continues to mount. Increasing numbers of Singaporeans are heading abroad for an education or settlement and no amount of persuasion or cajoling, no less with high salaries, perks and benefits has resulted in the brain drain to lessen.

As for the fertility rate for childbirth, the island not only has the lowest fertility rate in the world, it is dropping even further. As a result the Singaporean has become an endangered species in his own island and it is widely believed, although not admitted by the government that foreigners have exceeded Singaporeans in their own island.

Another cause for the record breaking emigration rate and the rock bottom fertility rate is 90 year old Lee Kuan Yew himself. The state controlled newspapers in the island have not reported anything about him for the last few months, an ominous silence when in the past not a day went by without some news about him.

It is widely believed that he is gravely ill and it is anyone's guess as to how long he will remain. For an astute Singapore watcher, this fact has to be really alarming. In an island where even the Sun would not have risen without the all powerful Lee Kuan Yew's permission, it is anyone's guess what or who will take his place when that eventful day happens.

So rather than waiting for the Singapore dollar to be worth no more than Chinese Hell notes which they burn to appease ancestral ghosts during their Chinese Ghost month, it is far better clearing out now at least while the Singapore dollar has any value.

As for the island culture and identity, it is lost forever.

Today there are far more Chinese nationals from the People's Republic of China walking around the island's streets than Singaporeans so much so that you may as well be walking about the Mao Tze Tong street in the Wubi district in the eastern sector of Chengdu in China than Singapore replete with their boorish behavior and spitting in public.

For the native Singaporean, with at least a little more class, influenced at least a little  under the British colonial administration,  there is nothing more to fight for as Lee Kuan Yew has successfully, in almost a short span of no more than twenty years changed the character of the island unrecognizably. This is another reason for so many Singaporeans to want to get out. And this situation again is not getting any better, only worse.

In an island where you can be arrested for criticism, where teachers are ordered to indoctrinate their children to obey their government instead of  independent thinking, where you don't have any room to run around in a concrete overcrowded sardine packed skyscraper island, where being English speaking you can live in Australia with at least some modicum of an independent free spirit, why should anyone with any capacity to reason want to remain under the grip of Lee Kuan Yew and his son?

As for the huge inflow of immigrants which the government brings in from China, they have no choice but to continue the practice, since they have decided to allow an indiscriminate numbers of foreign businesses into the island who obviously require workers and therefore any attempt to curb immigration would undoubtedly result in businesses closing and a devastating recession.

This outflow of locals and the inflow of immigrants is turning the island into China's Chengdu, People's Republic of China, if it has not already become one. At the same time, local Malay and Singaporean Indians finding they have no connection to the Chinese Singapore island whatsoever are either disappearing in population or are going abroad in even larger numbers.

With Mother Nature against them causing unrelenting almost daily island wide flooding, the huge brain drain and the vanishing Singaporean, I am afraid the million dollar government of the Lee Kuan Yew family have run out of ideas.

As for me, I have purchased the tide tables for the seas abound Singapore island to monitor high tides and spotting the Singapore's flooded areas, a hobby which can be quite interesting if one takes the trouble to study it.

Perhaps you can call me a tide spotter, something like an train spotter, predicting Singapore floods and how high they would be.

Gopalan Nair
Attorney at Law
A Singaporean in Exile
Fremont, California USA
Tel: 510 491 8525
Email:nair.gopalan@yahoo.com

Singapore's stage managed "happiness"

Ladies and Gentlemen,

As recent as Jan 9, 2013 Singapore has been found in respected international surveys to have earned the dubious distinction of being the saddest country in the world. Please see article in Forbes magazine, 1/9/2013/ "The Happiest and Saddest Countries in the World" http://www.forbes.com/sites/christopherhelman/2013/01/09/the-worlds-happiest-and-saddest-countries-2/2/

If that wasn't enough they also have the double honors of being the least emotional people in the world, please see Guardian newspaper article of 11/21/2012, Guardian newspaper reports "Singapore is the world's least emotional country in the world" http://www.theguardian.com/world/2012/nov/21/singapore-least-emotional-country-poll

But here is where the advantage of having a state controlled media comes in. You can literally not only write anything you want, in Lee Kuan Yew's dictatorship, you can instantly turn the saddest people into the happiest in the world as well!

And not unexpectedly, Singapore state controlled newspaper the Straits Times of Oct 31, 2013 reports "Singaporeans seen as happiest among residents in four Chinese majority countries". Please see http://www.straitstimes.com/breaking-news/singapore/story/singaporeans-seen-happiest-among-residents-four-chinese-majority-terri.

I quote "More than half of all Singapore respondents saw themselves as the happiest while a third chose Taiwan".

And as proof of their astounding claim they have conveniently published a picture of beaming faces of ethnic Chinese Singaporeans at the last national day parade proudly waving Singapore flags and grinning from cheek to cheek. What they have forgot to tell as is that these convenient characters are all card carrying members of Lee Kuan Yew's ruling party and they would have got up that very instant and done the foxtrot on the spot if that was what was demanded.

And what is not conveniently mentioned of course is the perks that go with such performance in the  orchestra; perhaps more secure jobs, career promotions and more money and benefits all around. Surely for such benefits, it is not too much to ask to smile broadly for the camera and wave a few flags!

I remember seeing such happy faces carrying their state flags in unison in another place. It was a picture of North Koreans on their republic day. They too appeared very happy indeed and I am sure they would have no problem claiming that their citizens are the happiest in the world too.

Since no mention is made of the other races who also happen to be living in Singapore, I am confident that if it is necessary to prove that they too are the happiest, that too can be arranged by lining up the necessary Lee Kuan Yew card carrying ethnic Malay and Indian members with the necessary photograph to prove the point.

 

Audience members cheering at this year's National Day Parade. -- ST PHOTO: DESMOND LUI

Gopalan Nair
Attorney at Law
A Singaporean in Exile
Fremont, California, USA
Tel: 510 491 8525
Email: nair.gopalan@yahoo.com     

                                        

 

 

Audience members cheering at this year's National Day Parade. -- ST PHOTO: DESMOND LUI

 

NEXT STORY: YouTube video by "Anonymous" hacker group threatens to attack Singapore

 

Singapore Minister says no to setting a poverty line, because it will unjustly enrich the poor.

Ladies and Gentlemen,

Singapore despite the outward appearance of good roads and skyscrapers, in terms of social welfare, it is among the worst developed in the world. For instance the government officially allows racial discrimination as it has no laws prohibiting it. It does not have any minimum wage laws allowing employers to pay a few dollars an hour if they like, and workers have no trade union protection since unions are controlled by employers.

As for the poor who suffer greatly in a Singaporean tiny concrete jungle with no welfare whatsoever to speak of, the government has stated through their Minister for Social and Family Development that it will not legally set a poverty threshold for the poor because, incredibly, such as threshold will enrich them! Please see Singapore state controlled newspaper article of Oct 23 2013 headed "Why setting poverty line may not be helpful: Minister Chan Chun Sing" http://www.straitstimes.com/breaking-news/singapore/story/setting-poverty-line-may-not-be-helpful-minister-20131023

What it says is "Singapore is not considering having an official poverty line as it would not fully reflect the severity and complexity of issues faced by the poor and may also lead to those above the  line missing out on assistance"

Other than this being one long piece of long winded verbiage, or should I say garbage, intended to confound the reader without saying anything, what he is trying to say is simply this; that they are simply not interested in giving any assistance to the poor whatsoever.

It is not too difficult to realize that there are people in Singapore who are in abject poverty in the midst of the recently arrived millionaires and that unless the government helps them, they and their children are doomed to suffer in their lives. This will affect the children's performance in school, among other deleterious societal consequences, and this is certainly not in the interests of Singapore. Surely for a tiny island like this, every man woman and child should count, both rich and poor.

It is also not too difficult to realize that it is easy for a supposedly wealthy government to set a poverty line below which people are recognized as needing help and according to their family size, granted monetary assistance to bring them up to a living standard.

You don't need to be a rocket scientist to understand that, which is why every developed and some not so developed countries as well have used an official poverty line to identify and help the needy to uplift them and their offspring with a hope towards betterment.

These countries realize that setting official poverty thresholds is the only and best way to clearly identify those in need. Since this is an established nationwide figure applicable to all according to family size, it prevents complaints of bias, favoritism and  misuse of the system.

In Singapore which is adamant not to have such legally defined rules, people who are dissatisfied with government assistance can clearly point a finger at racial preference claiming the ethnic Chinese were paid more than them or because certain beneficiaries received more because of government connections.

From what I understand in Singapore today, there is a myriad of measly arbitrary plans for ad hoc assistance, such as giving bags of rice to some, giving transport allowances to others and giving school fees assistance to some others.

All these different schemes, which most do not even understand, end up not only confusing to those who desperately need help, it is intended to make it so complicated, time consuming and demoralizing, you are better off getting your teeth pulled than going through the torture. The sad truth is that many simply starve rather than be put through this nightmare.

Of course you know why they have to suffer the Byzantine rigmarole. It is simply because they don't want you to ask for help.

Ministers such as this Chan Chun Sun or whoever he is should be ashamed of himself. We all know that he draws as much as $3.7 million a year, which is five times more than President Obama and all he can do is to come up with this nonsense which no one can understand.

The only other reason why they don't want to give the poor anything may probably be because they want all the poor to die leaving Singapore island as the millionaires island, for people like him.

Gopalan Nair
Attorney at Law
A Singaporean in Exile
Fremont, California, USA
Tel: 510 491 8525
Email: nair.gopalan@yahoo.com

Singapore's false sense of security and the impending demise of 90 year old Lee Kuan Yew

Ladies and Gentlemen,

If Singapore's leaders today go on their business as if nothing is amiss, they are doing a very good job of hiding their fear. If I was a Singaporean today, especially if I was working for the Lee Kuan Yew government, these would indeed be troubling times.

Singapore strongman, 90 year old Lee Kuan Yew is today as we all know gravely ill. No one knows if he will last another week, let alone a month in an island where he alone ran the whole show with his handpicked scholar turned recently graduated Ministers.

The idea of a democracy of popularly elected government was completely shelved and the islanders no longer know how to hold free and fair elections. Like leeches, these ministers Vivian Balakriahnan, K Shanmugam, Judge Quentin Loh, former judge Selvam and each of these high ranking government employees all hold their power through the grace of this Singapore strongman. And every one of these minions, metaphorically speaking, has blood on his hands.

K Shanmugam was instrumental in enacting laws that denied Singaporeans even an iota of human rights. Judge Belinda Ang Saw Ean shamelessly abused the law to destroy a loyal Singapore patriot Chee Soon Juan. Judge Quentin Loh is one record for sending Alan Shadrake to jail because he wrote a book they did not like. I was sent to jail for 3 months because they did not like a blog I wrote about  corrupt judge Belinda Ang. Not just these people but each and every one of them should be really worried what will happen to them if the Lee government falls after his death.

I have grave doubts if the political situation would remain the same after the fast approaching Lee's demise, principally because there is no accepted protocol in place for continuity of government. I don't think Lee's son could simply strut around like the prize rooster, his father , did bullying anyone in sight in his Singaporean chicken coop. When that eventful day happens either this week or next, his government ministers will either obey the son or simply defy him, the latter being the far more probable than the former.

If I was any of these Lee Kuan Yew identifiable collaborators for actions inimical  to Singaporeans, they should seriously consider bolting to some foreign country right now with their loot and pray Singaporeans will be kind and not pursue them.

But it seems as if none of these Lee Kuan Yew men seem the slightest worried. Either they are naïve which I doubt they are or they have turned into passengers of the sinking Titanic. If it is going to sink and there is nothing we could do, we might as well fiddle and make merry while we can.

Gopalan Nair
Attorney at Law
A Singaporean in exile
Fremont, California, USA
Tel: 510 491 8525
Email: nair.gopalan@yahoo.com

Singapore island needs a new operating manuel

Ladies and Gentlemen,

A student of Lee Kuan Yew's Singapore would know that the island is run, not by it's Constitution which is officially in the books, but through a system which Lee Kuan Yew, the 90 year old ruler had devised himself which is something like this.

You choose students who have done well in school, give them scholarships at government expense at overseas universities and upon return field them at elections where they invariably win because the political opponent has been removed through defamation lawsuits. From that point, paid about $5 million a year each, they will speak at the parliament as if they were all leaders chosen by their people and demanding obedience of them.

This is exactly the system that governed Imperial China (minus the need for defamation lawsuits) where the Emperor chose bright students who passed exams to rule over their subjects with absolute power, being only accountable to the Emperor or in Singapore's case, to Lee Kuan Yew. And just like in ancient China, these scholar rulers remained in power as long as the Emperor approved, and not by any vote of their subjects.

The idea of Parliamentary elections based on the modern concept of democracy are completely ignored. The concept of modern parliamentary democracy of leaders naturally emerging from among the people who vied for the people's vote for office in free and fair elections is not the practice in Lee Kuan Yew's Singapore.

This made elections in Singapore, held every 5 years, a big fraud.

In the last 2011 elections the foreign media has made a big thing of the fact that as much as 40% voted for the opposition Workers Party. But little do they know that a vote for the Workers Party is as good as a vote for the government party because they are in office to dupe the people into thinking they are truly opposition.

They are in fact working for the interests of Lee's Peoples Action Party. History clearly shows that if indeed anyone in the Workers Party truly stood for a change of government, they would all by now have suffered the same fate that the late JB Jeyaretnam suffered through repeated libel actions, jail and bankruptcy. The very fact that none of this has happened to any of them is ample proof as to who they really are.

Except for formerly bankrupted and jailed Chee Soon Juan and a handful of others there are no real opposition politicians. They have all been intimidated or silenced or have fled the island. It is simply too risky to be an opposition politician in Lee Kuan Yew's island.

But while Lee had devised his own system of choosing leaders, it is not what the Constitution demands; in fact all of this is simply unconstitutional. These elections are simply a fraud upon the people, because these hand-picked "leaders" cannot justify their positions under any legal instrument in the law.

Politics has gone on in Lee Kuan Yew's island by his unique style of political selection for the last 52 years but the question is what will happen when the 90 year old leader dies?

How is his son whom he placed as Prime Minister going to justify this practice of selecting his own candidates and make sure they win through  defamation actions against opponents like his father did.

Is he going to assume that he could simply do exactly what his father did without any resistance from Singaporeans?  And will the Singapore electorate simply accept it lying down?

I have serious doubts if political business can go on the same way it has gone on so far. As you can see, the whole thing is a charade, a farce, a theater and simply nonsense.

The Lees should either come out in the open and amend the Constitution to reflect what is going on by admitting that the island's political leaders are not selected by any elections, but by Lee Kuan Yew or his son.

They should also amend the Constitution to remove any reference to a multi party system of government and state that there is only one political party that can rule Singapore, and that is their own party, the Peoples Action Party.

This way the people will know exactly what the deal is, and Lee Kuan Yew and Son would not have to continue with this disgusting make-believe by insisting ad nauseum that Singapore is a democracy when we all know it is not, and have the courage to officially state what it really is, a one party totalitarian police state. At least that is more honorable than the disgraceful charade they carry on each day with their people by proclaiming they are something else they are not.

Gopalan Nair
Attorney at Law
A Singaporean in Exile
Fremont, California USA
Tel: 510 491 8525
Email: nair.gopalan@yahoo.com

Singaporeans in Australia say "I love Singapore". Only problem, noone wants to return! Ha ha. Part 2

Ladies and Gentlemen,

The Singapore government has expended a large sum of taxpayers money recently in Sydney Australia to host a party which they call "Singapore Day" to reach out to Singaporeans who have decided to emigrate to encourage them to return. This party is held once a year in the cities of the world such as London and New York.

Singapore is suffering from an unprecedented rise in the numbers leaving the island for settlement abroad and with a local native born population of not more than perhaps 2 million in a tiny island, they are losing the best of their citizens. At this rate, they simply cannot function.

In this post I want to tell you why the Singapore government's attempt to lure overseas Singaporeans back to Singapore is simply a waste of money. It simply will not work. In fact despite these efforts, the numbers leaving for settlement abroad continue to mount. Once one person leaves, he gets his other family members, his friends to join him. With this multiplier effect the numbers leaving is constantly increasing multifold. Below are a few Singaporeans videos of the Singapore Sydney Party, again produced I am sure with taxpayers money, to promote their doomed plan to hopefully lure these frustrated Singaporeans abroad back.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QG4LAx8U4q8

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9u8yQv2HJ_8

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dMIXWhwvwhQ

In the videos you see the government's hand in trying hard to make Singapore look good, with elaborate career promotion stands all shipped from Singapore for jobs in the military, business and government.

You see elaborate stage managed stage performances of attendees singing songs in praise of Singapore, like the Hitler youth sang for their Fuhrer, and huge signs with the words "I love Singapore", which begs the obvious question, if you love it so much, why did you leave in the first place! It is simply not possible. They will simply not return. This is why.

Australia is a far superior country than Singapore. Compared to Australia Singapore is just a banana republic. If those who left did not know this at first, they would have known this within a few weeks.

The average Australian is a normal human being. Singaporeans are not. You may first think this is a gross exaggeration and unfair to say Singaporeans are not normal. But a closer look will confirm this.

An average Australian would tell his government that he is unhappy with it if that is what he thinks, without hesitation; a normal human reaction. A Singaporean is unable to do this because he fears reprisals from the Singaporean dictatorship. He has a fear in him which has been entrenched in his psyche since childhood. So when he begins to live in Australia, he would soon realize how much more comfortable it is to live in a place where you can speak your mind.

In Australia there is rule of law. If your rights are violated you have a remedy in the courts, regardless if you are white, black or multi colored. In Singapore it is not like that. Justice depends on who you are. If you are connected to the government, it is one rule, if not another rule.

If you openly criticize the Australian government, they are not going to sue you for defamation of character, contempt of court or some other law. They are confident of their reputation and need not resort to the courts for reassurance. In Singapore they are not so confident. If you criticize, you stand to be punished. As a result the average Singaporean has no opinion of anything. He is a programmed machine which will come up with the right answers anytime.

In Australia it is illegal to racially discriminate. In Singapore the Chinese majority are encouraged to discriminate by their government against the other races, Malays and Indians. This makes Australia attractive to Chinese Singaporeans unhappy with the government racial discriminatory policy and for Malays and Indians who are second class citizens.

Now I would ask you to view the videos.

You will see that almost every single person there is an ethnic Chinese Singaporean. Except for one Malay and one Indian, there are none.

This does not reflect the Singapore population in Australia which is already huge and growing. There are far more Malays and Indians in Australia except you don't see them in these videos. They want nothing to do with Singapore anymore. They refuse to attend these functions. They don't want to stay connected, thanks very much. They don't want even to be called Singaporeans. Like a bad dream, they have once and for all, rid Singapore from their lives and their minds.

Australia politicians don't pay themselves millions like the corrupt Singapore politicians. Today each Singapore minister pays himself officially $3.7 million a year, much more secretly. In Singapore the politicians are not accountable to the people; in Australia they are. An Australian politician won't even dream of paying himself even a fraction of what is paid in Singapore.

On the whole Singapore has lost it's credibility. In order to retain it's people, the government has to have some respectability. Singapore has simply lost it. They cannot hope either to stem the biggest brain drain nor try to coax any Singaporean who has left to return.

As for the ethnic Chinese Singaporeans you see in the video, most of them are mere opportunists who will go to Australia if the money is better. Otherwise they will return if the money is otherwise. On the whole they have no qualms even if their ministers were monkeys.

Many of them in Australia (those in the video) work in Singapore companies or seek contracts with the Singapore government. They would sing a tune for Singapore today if it is profitable. Tomorrow they will sing a tune for Australia if the profits are the other way round. They will dance this way or that depending on which way the wind blows. These characters are simply spineless who would winningly prostitute their souls for the highest bidder. There are not many of these. You can disregard them.

Once Singaporeans leave for these free democracies like Australia, it wont' be long before they realize how much their minds and their lives have been damaged by the country of their birth.

Once they see how free Australia is, with their respected laws and their government which allows everyone to be counted, a government accountable to the people, they are never going to return to a dictatorship like that of Lee Kuan Yew and his son.

If Singapore wants to retain it's people, they should make travel outside the island illegal; like Cuba. They should restrict the Internet. They should isolate their people like the North Koreans do.
Otherwise as soon as people are able to travel abroad and taste the life in Australia, Canada, the UK or USA, they simply will not ever come back.

And the sooner they stop spending taxpayers money on these lavish parties in Sydney and the other capitals of the world, the sooner they could put this money to good use such as feeding the Singapore poor whom this government has simply chosen to ignore.

Gopalan Nair
Attorney at Law
A Singaporean in exile
Fremont, California, USA
Tel: 510 491 8525
Email: nair.gopalan@yahoo.com