Singapore needs constructive dialogue and not endless complaining
Posted by temasektimes on October 21, 2012
Singapore has done tremendously well given its small size and that no one owes Spore a living. Those who continue to moan and complain are not seeing the bigger picture.
I was impressed with the development plans of Punggol. And there are other developments that have not being announced. Some months ago I visited the Water Resources exhibition and spoke to a PUB engineer. It is amazing how Spore is harnessing its water resources and will be self-sufficient by 2061. Which small country is able to achieve that?
There plans to integrate the green lungs, to provide connectors for cyclists. I see plenty of improvement efforts. There have been big disappointments such as the floods and breakdown of the MRT trains. But Spore is not one to sit down and give excuses. They are working hard to solve problems.
People now queue up at hawkers centres. Took several decades to inculcate that social grace. It may take years to get everyone to clear their food trays but it will happen. Some things can be leglisated e.g. smoking and littering. And litterbugs will face more penalties. In time to come, Singaporeans and residents will learn not to litter. The MRT stations are showing the way…no dustbins. In Japan, no public bins at all…take your trash home with you.
Visit the IT website and see what Spore is doing countrywide. Look up the Healthcare IT websites and see how Spore is integrating all doctors and hospitals to enable personalized records.
I read plenty of lambasting over the FT policies, the over-crowding of trains, etc. These are but challenges to be overcomed. Solutions may take some months or even years. But over-crowding? Tell me which shopping mall is over-crowded? There are so many now and the trains disperse shoppers island-wide. I see major crowding on week-ends in Little India but that is not caused by Singaporeans but FTs gathering among themselves.. a good way to de-stress.
We need constructive dialogues. Complaining alone does not get us anywhere.
RON
*The above was first posted as a comment on The Temasek Times.
THE TEMASEK TIMES 
Hank said
Ron is dreaming. What Singapore needs is regime change not “constructive dialogues”. Talking to PAP is like talkling to the wall – a useless exercise. Lim “Zorro” Swee Say al;ready said it: “We (PAP) are deaf to all criticisms.”
Mod’s note:
‘The Workers Party believes in constructive dialogue.’
– PAP’s ‘B’ team NCMP Yee Jenn Jong
What more can you hope for?
Zam said
RON is a PAP guy and a new Citizen
Robox said
WP is also a PAP guy. Don’t you see the similarity in rhetorics?
Mod’s note:
WP is PART of the PAP. They are one big happy family. A vote for WP = A vote for PAP!
Alamak said
Each man speak from own expeerience. Nobody deny we progress so far but meybe your opinion from yours good one. What tokking you of green lungs when Singapoh now awreddy just nother concreet jungle for property tycoon and other big shot make many more money.and gahmen oso many more income many more way hor?
Pepple queue up hawker centre? How many more q up buy Toto Banji nearly every
day because hope strike small oso OK. When you last take MRT? Now woman even suggest own compartmen for her. Little India weekend crowd and FT? What tokking you? They all lowpay blew collar jobbers. You forget one MP say twenty more year before awreddy Litle India so dark he cannot see becos ….. Dontch worry CON dialogs awreddy happening, me no got invite, what about you??? If the affect small fry no object who gonna complain, when got some like you say how wonnerful everything.
johndailyproperty said
RON, take your stupid trash home with you!
Heh, I have a garden by the bay, why don’t you pay me $56m a year for me to maintain it? By the way, you are a incompetent worker, pay you even when you are in reservist, you are fired! Stop whining RON! You suck!
Singkaypoh said
Ron sounds like a PAP mouthpiece. How about you organize a “constructive dialogue” and show us your real face?
Lim said
“no one owes Spore a living” -same no one owes foreigners living in Singapore. Why not let the whole world in? – Afghans, Iraqis, Africans, etc and let them be ministers too based on meritocracy since no one owes the ministers a living too.
“Spore is not one to sit down and give excuses” – It is clear who are the ones making all the lame excuses for the backfired policies like insufficient housing, overburdened transport, insufficient hospitals, floods, etc
“But over-crowding? Tell me which shopping mall is over-crowded?” – If Spore is not overcrowded why is there need to queue for every aspect of our lives? Only ostriches with heads in the sand deny this is gross overcrowding in spore.
“moan and complain are not seeing the bigger picture” – the bigger picture is to flood this place with foreigners to make money, displace us of jobs and fight with us for amenities & services. Bigger picture is telling us without influx of foreigners economy will die – no jobs and the ageing population can’t be supported. Yet the bigger picture has one of the highest cost of living in the world but seeing CPF withdrawal age pushed further and further supposedly for your own good. .
delacroix said
basically i do agree with the writer that we have to see at the positive side..no point talking about the negative side as what you have mention
we all know that complaining won;t help us and make our life more difficult (since already difficult now)..why don;t we change our mindset..be positive..and work it out…….if we do not fight for our life….nobody will help us…..
God help those to help themselves………
Indignated Citizen on Fire! said
It is so sad this writer dismissed all these as complaints, and yet missed the whole point and the whole big picture of our social decay and the social calamity as a result of the pap’s stubborn, erroneous policies. The one-party thinking, the one-track mind, the channeling effect of the entire leadership strata as a result of a single egoistic despot has brought us to our current state of affair today. We need constructive dialogues, of course! There is plenty on SDP, TRE and Temasek Times, and lots of other social media but the mean and arrogant pappies have altogether dismissed them and ignored them. The National Con job by the pap excluded tax-paying citizens (oppositions with constructive ideas) and bulldozed their way and agenda, shoved things into our throats without any empathetic listening ear to the suffering of the ordinary electorate – shows us please: where is the pap constructive dialogue, and how do we dialogue with the pap’s insistence of hanging the ISD threat ominously over our heads?? We may not be the elites, but we are neither stupid nor blind.
meow meow says said
I’d rather hold a conversation on how to topple this government and how the next government should bring Singapore forward!
afraid to use my name said
Excellent SUGGESTION!!!!
Naivety said
Right on…Meow Meow
You have my fullest support!
Jack said
What do you expect when the mess media is one sided and national conversation is just a show?
findingablognamesucks said
It took decades for Singaporeans to learn how to queue up in hawker centres?
Big deal. It took them only a few years to “chope” seats using tissue paper. You doth give too much credit to Singaporeans, dude.
Pink Panty Loong said
“I read plenty of lambasting over the FT policies, the over-crowding of trains, etc. These are but challenges to be overcomed. Solutions may take some months or even years…”
These are not challenges, Ron. These are problems created by our stupid government’s badly executed immigration policy. The whole world knows that such policy is a very dangerous and have more negative effects than positive ones and that is why it was not adopted by other countries at such a horrendous scale like Singapore. By the way, HOW BIG IS SINGPAORE? We are only a tiny red dot! We are bursting with overcrowdedness already!
We are whining and complaining? If such screwed up immigration policy has been imposed on another country, there would be RIOTS & STRIKES already. And if we continue to compare ourselves to the 3rd world countries, of course we are the best. But we have certainly surpassed that stage where we should be comparing ourselves and emulating the first world countries.
Before challenging us to come up with solutions (the Papigs supporters LOVE to use this tactic), let me tell you one thing. It is exactly that we don’t have the capability to do so and that is why we need to elect a government to respresent us on the MACRO level to drive Singapore’s social and economic success. Mind you, the PeeM and his bunch of white monkeys do not come cheap, ok? They are paid top dollars to do their job!
Zam said
very well said mate
leelili said
U r right man,btw how come u know its pink panty Loong and NOT red?
sam said
Well said Pink Panty Loong. The opposition should focus 2 major issues. FT/immigration policy and on how to revamp MND and HDB policy on land pricing instead of being a price taker from SLA.
Fourty years ago, when PAP formed the government, they owned less than 10% of land. With support from private land owners and cheap buys and something mandatory sales, now they owned more than 90% of land. MND Khaw still claims when it come to land pricing for BTO projects, only SLA can decide, HDB is only a price taker. Present day PAP, MND and HDB had failed us unlike Lim Kim San/Goh Keng Swee era. Both are true-blue civil servants and the pp still loves them.
To me, SLA and HDB should be nationalised. It should not leave to banks, private developers to reap in filthy profits. No to housing corporatization. To Singaporean, HDB housing is not consider asset, but simply an roof over our head., You want more, you invest in private property. Unlike private cars which are luxury, thus LTA’s policies are still proper
Immigration rules are too relaxed. One FT gets a job, suddenly his parents, grandparents, sibling, children and relatives come in as dependents. These pp eats into our resources, Infrastructure, housing and medical, thus costs sky-rocket. After the opposition wins the next election, these FTs leaves and what will happen to our resources? Singapore taxpayers will continue to pay and who we had to thank for? Given a choice, I will give opposition a chance. Personally, The SG CON is just gimmick and for the well-paying civil servants an avenue to tap on our solutions to problems created by them. The scholalistic programs and and public servant musical chairs are the cause of in-breeding policies and moral decline.
To be more inclusive, the government should pass the Whistle-blower bill. The current two corruptions are only the tip of the iceberg. The bill should allow DPM Teo to leverage on during electionb campaign as last seen in the by-election by exposing the WP’s meeting minutes.
blueskysg said
well.i suggest those ppl should view you tube more.please search” north korea” to see how much their dear leader has done for them……then at least you will feel glateful and thankful to our government….useless complaining makes no difference to daily life. Ask and reflect in the first place what you have been contributing to the society and nation to make it a better place for everyone.
Norm said
Constructive dialogue requires trust on all sides. The preconditions for this trust are transparency and a free media.
The government should not selectively reveal information. Citizens must feel that they are not just being fed state propaganda by mainstream media.
Only then can we have a genuine dialogue. Would you talk constructively with someone who doesn’t tell you the whole truth, and suppresses views different to his own?
youbotlicker said
1 word for Ron: Bootlicker
He Loves To Be Screwed said
Another word : ArSS LICKER.
monkey said
Do we need to pay or pay tax for it.or everything is free We pay for service Singapore now is a multi company in this world if I not wrong.
fpc said
those things he mentioned should have been done years ago.
fpc said
hard selling pungol again.
go check hdb website. hdb has been trying to sell pungol for more than 15 years. never stops.
nationalist said
Is that you Harry?
True sinkie said
Dude get real. If we are paying politicians like they do in other countries, I certainly can accept a few cock ups now and then. But if Singapore wants to pride itself as first class and paying millions of tax payers money to the cabinet, then the govt has fallen way way short of expectations. U got to see the whole picture
5vvaper said
We need a regime change asap. Period.
Our children may not have a country to call their own after 2016.
Mr Ron said
This fake Ron name/nick again. LOL.
Santi said
Another running dog in action. Pretending never see the bad sides but the god sides of the pictures.
fuckpinoy said
Hello, who the fuck said that there is no dustbin in Japan? It’s everywhere and they recycled their trash while their cleaners are paid the same as office workers. Damn you have you ever been to Japan? 日本に行ったことはなければ、日本のとこをわかった様にいってんじゃねえヨ。消えろためえ。
ST said
There is no dustbin at Orchard MRT station, I bought a drink at Mr bean at Wisma Atrium, and was drinking while walking to the MRT station, and looking for a dustbin, walk 2 rounds but cannot find one, went to top-up my card and ask the ticketing staff for the nearest dustbin, she say there is no dustbin and have to go back to shopping mall to find it. Crazy ! so I carry the emply cup and check with the security guard, he told me this is a security counter, you have to carry the cup with you ?
Ron said
Your Japanese is wrongly written. I studied, lived and worked in Japan.
Recycle bins are not the general trash bins I am talking about. Not the type you see at our HDB estates. Where about in Japan do you live?
dragon said
Contructive dialogues means sit and wait for fare hike for good services.Contructive dialogues means import more FT/FW or NC first then second build more flat the of demand of flat so prices increase sharply.Contructive dialoguesa means give them more time and slowly solve the problem.Singaporean dun had more 50 years to wait.
Lim said
If 80% of Singaporeans stay in HDB flats then why no MPs, ministers, PermSecs live in HDB flats? If majority of Sporeans use public transport daily why not MPs, ministers, PS and top civil servants also travel to and from work in public transport? How many MPs, ministers eat in hawker centres regularly and queue like everyone else in hospitals? ONLY then can they hold geniuine constructive dialogues with the common people.
Mick Loh said
I absolutely agree with the author that “Singapore needs constructive dialogue and not endless complaining”. But let’s throw out the PAP government first, then we can have a genuine constructive dialogue. Or maybe Chee Soon Juan should start a separate SG Conversation so people who are interested in genuine discussion on how to improve Singapore, can sign up. Chee can call it “The REAL SG Conversation”.
PAP’s “SG Conversation” is essentially a sneaky plan to give false hopes to guillible Singaporeans, and get you put them back to parliament in 2016. Remember its “Next Lap” campaign years ago? saying that if you wish to have a competent team to deliver the wishlist in the Next Lap, vote them in. So this whole SG Conversation is just another exercise. Except that this time, they get you to draw up your own wishlist, letting you think that you have a say in how Singapore will shape in the coming years, and if you want these wishes to be fulfilled, you need to vote them in because they have been through this whole exercise with you to hear you out so they best understand you. What a load of crap for breakfast.
So i guess the next phase of SG Conversation will be timed for maybe 1 year ahead of next election, when they will consolidate all of Singaporean’s “expressed wishes” into a Wishlist, and that will form their carrot and manefesto for coming election. And the cycle of bullshit repeats itself.
You know what? Singaporeans never learned. My guess is enough Singaporeans (maybe the same 60%, or worse some of the 40% will be sucked into this) will back this bullshit again.
PAP’s strategy is quite clear. Get in enough foreigners turned Singapore citizens to neutralize the voting ground. Get this bullshit SG Conversation going to hopefully continue hold the dumb 60% and hopefully some fools from the 40% will also convert.
Do I care whether PAP will still form the government for next few elections? No, because like many Singaporeans who no longer can put up with this bullshit, I have also started making my own plans regardless whether PAP is going to come round to resolve the FT, and other policy issues (too many to list here. LOL).
Folks, we can continue to post and rant on online forums, or better still, participate in the “SG Conversation” (LOL), but it ain’t going to change a thing or improve our lives. I am not willing to waste time waiting to 2016 to see what happens, and again if its another anti-climax, then wait another election. There are only 2 ways to change your lives: (1) take to the streets in massive numbers (which I don’t think we have the culture here so forget about it. This is not middle east.); or (2) find ways to improve lives on your own terms, don’t always wait and depend on the government, we just don’t have many prime years in our lives to waste waiting for change of government.
Mod’s note:
It is IMPOSSIBLE to throw out the PAP because its subsidiary party, aka the useless ‘Wayang Party’ will form a coalition govt with it to keep it in power. The ‘Wayang Party’ is NOT an opposition party, but a pawn of the PAP to weaken and split the opposition so as to prevent the emergence of a credible alternative party to challenge its political hegemony. To throw out the PAP, the ‘Wayang Party’ must be eliminated first.
‘If the PAP fails to win a majority in the next election, the Workers Party will form a coalition govt with it to keep it in power.’
– PAP’s ‘B’ team MP Pritam Singh, May 2011
Jaded said
farking pappy dog, just like TT mod…
denzuko1 said
“constructive dialogue”, it is only PAP polite way of saying, ” we do not accept criticism”. the author certainly failed to realise the origin of complaints. It is a result of PAP turning a deaf ear to people’s need, haven’t everyone been giving them the most basic form of constructive dialogue, that is to listen and act on people’s need? Even with the most recent National dialogue, it is very clear that the communication is simplex, ie, one direction and a monologue.
I despise TT, SDP, Dr Chee Bye said
Well said, we must appreciate what we have now, we Singaporeans always forgot to appreciate what we have now!
fpc said
is the pap listening first? fuck!
halala said
The realities are PAP capabilites had declined. There is no smoke without fire. The fire had started in Aljunied GRC where a top rated PAP’s team had lost. It is times the 60% Ostriches raised their head from the buried sand to acknowlege the black swan.
Ron said
All the mudslinging and brickbats achieve nothing.
The dreamers are those here who think the PAP will be voted out in 2016. More likely it will be the WP that will lose all their seats unless they emerge from being the Silent Minority to be more outspoken in Parliament and in public. I too would like to see some strong debaters in Parliament and my wish will be to see a reformed CSJ and the son of JBJ in Parliament. It need not be confrontational politics but rather to debate serious issues vigorously.
As for those who cannot see much good in Spore, are you being left behind by your own apathy and lack of trying? Are you not prospering along with Spore? And have you tried?
Lack of green lungs? Spore is a concrete jungle? Have you been to Hong Kong, Tokyo, Osaka and other big cities and make a comparison? For a small city state, I will say Spore has done well to integrate greenery with development. And the effort continues.
Investment income is tax free. How many countries (other than the few oil-rich states) offers that?
If you drive, you can still park free of charge at East Coast Park and you know you are not likely to be mugged or shot at. Tell me you feel safe in KL?
Spore has its challenges. The government will not listen to those here who are pitifully throwing pebbles and shouting nonsense. They have the means to analyse all the blogs and find out how many are active, who they are, etc. By and large, the naysayers will be ignored as they are pretty harmless and blogs have not been shown to be influential during the GE.
Yes, go on trying to “overthrow this regime” as some alleges. You will not achieve anything. On the other hand, contribute to a better Spore and you may see Spore in a different light.
Jeff Dickey said
The reason we complain so much is because we can do so little to effect positive change. Or so our Ministry of Indoctrination and Regurgitation (surely “Education” is pompously inaccurate) has conditioned us to believe for nearly half a century.
Many of us have awakened and seen the Matrix for what it truly is. If we work hard, organise, motivate others as well as ourselves and maintain focus in the face of wayang from The Minister and His Cronies, we may well effect meaningful change by 2021.
But long before the day Singapore wakes up to a post-PAP Government, we need to start taking true responsibility for ourselves and our country. If we want a Government that pays attention to the needs and sentiments of all its citizens, rather than the favoured few as now, then we’ve got even more work to do! We need to figure out how to get people to see that taking action is possible; that instead of complaining and sitting on their hands whilst waiting for the Government of the day to “make everything all better”, that we all need to pitch in and define what “better” is, and how we get there. It’s not going to be easy; it’s not going to always be fun; there are always going to be people, as decades ago, who tell us it can’t be done. But Singapore has beaten the naysayers before, long before the current Cronies did their amazingly-competent best to run the country into the weeds. It’s going to take years for us to pull it out of those weeds, clean off the remaining PAP mud, and get back onto the expressway.
But we can do it — if we let ourselves.
ST said
well said Jeff..
.IT’S EASIER TO FOOL (like what PAP had fooled its citizens for the past decade with beautiful speches & promises) PEOPLE THAN TO CONVINCE THEM THAT THEY HAVE BEEN FOOLED…
jjj said
Unlike many people who depended on the government to heal their own social degeneration, and shield them from their own ill-preparedness in the marketplace, Ron lived in a world where people take responsibilities for their own actions.
Many of us refuse to view the world as it is, but rather choose to believe in the worse in people and make up excuses why we cannot bring change or change ourselves. The easiest way to make “change” is to delegate the power away when somebody comes along and promises to solve everything. That’s the way Hitler got elected.
Wong said
Singaporean will have constructive dialogue with future leaders because the present PAP is not listening to us !
Sim said
Yay more clickbait content that’s headed nowhere
leelili said
how is it possible for the miw with daily income around S$4,000/5,000 to listen to folk with daily income around S$40/50…expect the unexpected?
Lim said
Casinos and problem gambling – Mr Chan Chun Sing said “While the Government, community and family can play their respective roles, individuals must take personal responsibility for their action” – I think a constructive dialogue would put the hard truth to Mr Chan – the govt must take personal responsibility for building the 2 casinos exacerbating pathological gambling and not wayang about their respective roles – as if the evils of gambling and problems e.g. loansharks, it espoused has got nothing to do with the govt who has bankrupted all ideas to improve our economy and so builds these satanic houses to bring in dirty money.
gary said
Ron, you forget to mention the health care cost when visiting govt hospitals. You compare this other developed countries or our neighbour Malaysia. One gets good and cheap medical bills for their citizens. Over here, better to die than fall sick as the high medical bills will definitely kill you. So pls dont sing praises for the govt as the day will come when you and your family members fall sick.
Fox said
Can…. I’ll pretend to be CONstructive in the future national CONversation.
Ron said
It is not possible for a constructive dialogue when one has already closed his mind to the tremendous progress Spore has achieved.
I have just returned from Marina Bay Sands and admired the excellent layout and integration of MRT, Convention Mall and Hotel complex. I was not there for gambling. On another day I had wandered around Chinatown and must say it is the best Chinatown setting anywhere in the world. The Bhuddha Tooth Temple was exquisite.
I can go on but the anti-establishment crowd will just not want to open their minds. Their eyes have see all these and if they have travelled widely they can make a fair comparison. Spore has tried and is trying.
It is easy to criticize. It takes courage to give a balanced view.
massage my bola said
You mean carrying PAP bolabola, licking PAP bolabola and sucking PAP bananas is a balanced view and it takes courage ? …….LOL
Anyway, it’s kind of fun having you around on TT and I wish you will step up your effort and post more comments.
leoisnotmyname said
We need more people with brains tbh. The guys above and below me has posted a load of nonsensical COMPLAINTS. Why dont you grow up and appreciate that we have a government WHO DOESNT SPREAD PROPAGANDA AND OPPRESSES THE OPPOSITION. The PAP is not a selfish and dictatorial government. Look at our neighbouring countries lie malaysia. They used to form political parties ON RACIAL LINES. Our government encourages racial harmony. And do you think the government owes you a living? Many singaporeans have been pampered so much that u expect your standard of living to be the highest in the world is it? Dream on.