Hougang by election

Hougang by election

By election is a special election held between general elections to fill a vacancy, as for a parliamentary seat. The results of the by election held in Hougang is finally out, worker's Party (WP) candidate Png Eng Huat has won by 62.09 per cent with 13,447 votes and People's Action Party 's (PAP) candidate Desmond Choo gained 37.91 per cent of the votes that amounted to 8,210 of the votes from a total vote cast of 21,951. By-election in hougang was taken place due to the dismissal of Hougang MP Yaw Shin Leong of his MP’s position. Rumours of Mr Yaw’s  alleged extra-marital affairs has shocked the entire nation, it became the headline news for a few weeks. I felt that it was very irresponsible of Yaw Shin Leong. Being the leader of the country, I believe that he should be responsible of his actions and set a good role model for the citizens to follow. Without good leadership, how is he going to lead the country? How is he going to gain the trust of his citizens? This is really disappointing.
chiewling



I felt that this incident wasn't managed properly. When Mr Yaw know about the rumor of him having extramarital affair , he didn't deny it nor did the Worker's Party said anything. There was a conference where netizen asked about it , comments was denied and Mr Yaw  offered: "My wife has been through a lot with me over the last few years. She's very understanding and has been a pillar of support to me." Mr Yaw also had a very short affair with his translator. When the press contact the women of the affair , neither the husband nor the women give comments. Till now all netizen know is Mr Yaw left Worker's Party but the real reason was not made known yet except for the rumored affair. However i am sure Hougang netizen was glad that WP won the election again.
Eudice 


This whole situation is nothing but speculation by fussy netizens. Yes, Mr Yaw had rumors about him having extramarital affairs and even took it to the press, but did Worker's Party and his wife commented on it in anyway? In my opinion it was a personal mistake that should be left personal instead of netizens coming in and giving comments. There is a fine line between having a personal life and a public figure, but then again Mr Yaw should have known that himself. He probably left Worker's Party to ease the people's minds and I am positive the people of Hougang will be confident with Mr Png Eng Huat than his predecessor.
Khairi


To me, i think that this whole incident is Mr Yaw's personal matters that caused it. Rumors about Mr Yaw's extra-marital affair probably left everyone at the scene appalled. He himself could have settle and close this rumor before the incident. Besides affecting his personal life, he is also showing to the public that he is a leader who wants face. In my personal opinion , i agree with him leaving the worker's party to relieve the people of their concern. With Mr Png Eng Huat being the leader of the worker's party, Hougang citizens will be much more comfortable than Mr Yaw Shin Leong.
Nicholas

SMRT can seek help from poluce and SCDF during emergencies

SMRT can seek help from police and SCDF during emergencies: Lui Tuck Yew

In Saw Phaik Hwa’s previous interview, she said that the operator could not call for help from external agencies in a major rail incident, hence causing long delay during the breakdown in December last year. However, Lui Tuck Yew disagreed with her sentence and said that SMRT can seek help from police and SCDF during emergencies It was the first major disruption that had occurred in Singapore and it has caused much anxiety and inconvenience to many Singaporeans at that point of time as no one would have thought that this would happen to the MRT of Singapore, which everyone has taken granted for. If Miss Saw had called the police, the disruption and delays would not be too serious as they would help to control the flow of traffic and could have quicker access to passengers stranded in MRT stations, the situation will not be as chaotic either. The breakdown of the MRT has indeed taken the whole nation aback.  The LTA said external agencies can be called in even for Level 3 incidents, which includes minor incident isolated to one or two stations.
chiewling


After reading this article, I felt Ms Saw was a little irresponsible. This MRT situation actually happened first time and lead to some rather bad handling of it. After reading a related article, "We had no power" i felt that what Ms Saw Phaik Hwa said was logical. She state that 45 minutes was too long however it was because it was a first time situation and there was totally no procedure to it. She then gave a car analogy, 'If your car stalls, what do you do? You don't call a tow truck straight away. You try and start the car.' and that was why it took 45 minutes. However many neitizens was very unreleased with this as when this took place, many was actually on the way to work and was angry that Ms Saw didn't called the police for help as it was not according to the protocol and thus many had to deal with this delay. Back to this article, Mr Lui actually pointed out that SMRT could have called for external help like the police if there was a fatality and also state that police could then helped redirect traffic so that stranded MRT passengers could have better access to the bridging bus services. 

Eudice


Having read through both articles, the MRT situation is a rather complex one. For this article, I felt that Ms Saw was daft to not have called in aid from the SCDF and Police during the major rail incident. It would have been much helpful if the traffic was managed by the police and the SCDF controlling the crowd during peak hour. However, after reading her interview in "We had no power", I cannot exactly blame her for not doing so. It was an unpredictable turn of events for SMRT when the trains could not move - it was the first of its kind. When it happened it could have been a moment of panic for Ms Saw and instead of asking directly for the Police and SCDF, she wanted to put matters into her own hands. She argued this as a human instinct reaction "If your car stalls, what do you do? You don't call a tow truck straight away. You try and start the car." Thus, in my opinion, amidst the major disorder and chaos of peak hour, I feel that she has a point in trying to put matters into her own hands instead of calling for aid. Looking back and talking about what she should have done does not do any help but generate further debate as I am confident she did her best at that moment. However, let bygones be bygones and I am sure for future incidents like this, the SMRT would definitely use the aid of the Police and SCDF to handle the matter more efficiently and effectively.
-Khairi

View on the Ferrari incident

A split second can determine life or death. I said this because after watching the video clip , i saw how one second can make a difference to a hit in the center, rear or front of the vehicle. Frankly speaking after researching and reading many reports, i believe that the mishap happen because traffic rules are not followed by the Ferrari driver and because of this , he cause two innocent people to die and one to be injured. I felt especially sorry for the taxi driver as he have children that are still below 20 years old and  he is the sole breadwinner of the family. Even though the Ferrari driver also died , but i felt that he is better lived off then the taxi driver as he is much fortunate then compare to the taxi driver.

Eudice


What frustrated me most about the Ferrari incident happens to be in the aftermath. There were many speculations about whose fault it was. However, after watching the video itself, I feel that the taxi driver and his passenger were innocent. It was the Ferrari driver at fault as he was running a red light. This incident also led to the debate about foreigners in Singapore. The driver, whom was from China, was apparently very opulent and actually had a mysterious female passenger in his car who survived. This started another debate about how selfish foreigners are, especially when the family of the Ferrari driver refused to provide compensation for the taxi driver's family who needed him as he was the sole bread winner of the family. The debate on this amongst netizens reached its pinnacle when foreigners in Singapore started to support the Ferrari driver's side and targeted Singaporeans by commenting on how unfriendly and judgmental they are. In my opinion, a mere accident like this can actually spark negativity in Singapore, affecting the social harmony. This shows that the foreign influx is negatively impacting locals here.
Khairi

On 12May, a Ferrari ran a red light at high speed, crashing a taxi and leaving three dead. After watching the video of the crash, I feel that the driver of the Farrari was in the wrong as he continued to speed even though it was red light. Due to his carelessness and irresponsible behaviour, it has caused him his life and the two other innocent lives of the taxi driver and the passenger. If he was more alert and played a part as a good road user, the accident would not have even happen. One moment of folly, leads to such a disastrous outcome, the hurt and traumatized caused to their love ones is unthinkable. Is it worth it? It is so heartbreaking to know that life is fragile and we do not know what would happen the next second.
chiewling

When i first saw the accident, i was appalled. The crash was so huge that even the motorcyclist next to the taxi was thrown a few meters away. The driver of the Ferrari was in the wrong as he passed the red light and smashed into the taxi, causing the taxi driver to lose his life instantly. Such behaviors are the reasons of why traffic lights are important. I feel that there would be conflicts or disputes between foreigners and Singaporeans. Singaporeans , on the other hand, would think that foreigners are impulsive and a threat to their lives. foreigners would think that Singaporeans worried much .Such different thinking  will eventually lead  to fights and death. This appeals to me that all the more government should take note of the number of foreigners coming into Singapore. 
Nicholas 

Wages can be raised through productivity: PM Lee


As quoted from the article "Mr Lee said that raising productivity is "more important than ever in our mature economy, because it is the only way to upgrade ourselves and our lives." I disagree with this statement, as productivity output takes more than just words to materialize. On a personal level, to actually have an effective production, a worker has to be motivated in order to reach the goal. If productivity does give us more revenue, will we truly be satisfied? What are we working towards for? There are other factors that constitutes to an upgrade in a citizen's life. Yes, increasing productivity is essential in contributing to the economy. Yes, it will upgrade ourselves and our lives, but are we not living comfortably now at a satisfactory level? Why bite off more than we can chew for an already stable economic survival
Khairi
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The main focus of PM Lee would be to thrive Singapore economy despite intense global competition. Yes I would agree that we should constantly keep our economy rank up high however going more then what we can afford might not be a good thing. It used to be undergrads are usually the ones with secured higher ranking jobs however now , undergrads are no longer something great because most people in society are now competing among undergrads. When this happens , people get stressed up and tend to get married older, why? Simply monetary issues because earning this amount a few years ago might be a lot but now , its hardly enough to meet with the ongoing standard of living. After marriage , people also get stressed up over not being able to afford as well as have enough free time for children which lead to the low birth rate in Singapore. With so many little things that can affect productivity, perhaps lowering inflation and bringing more life to family would turn out with better productivity.
Eudice


I agree with what Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong says. By increasing wages through productivity, people will be more motivated to do well and give in their best in whatever they do. Workers will work more effectively and efficiently which will help boost the economy. Companies are able to raise their productivity which benefits the economy and society as a whole. Hence, Singapore market will stay relevant and able to keep up to the competiveness in the world economy.
However, not everything he said is true because many companies prefer to employ foreign workers compared to Singaporeans as they are cheaper in labour. What’s the use of improving, mastering new skills and pushing up our education standards when companies prefer to hire foreigners. Singaporeans would then be fighting with the limited number of jobs with them.
Chiewling


"Raising our productivity will benefit workers, firms, and our economy as a whole. 
Workers can earn more in higher-quality jobs." I disagree with this statement because this shows that our working hours will be extended which means we may need to work overtime most of the time. For workers who have a family , they will have lesser family time"R to bond and live together as a whole. Besides that, although the workers will be able to earn more money than usual, their healthy lifestyle will be highly affected and instead more money will be spend on their medical fees due to their poor health, which appeal to me not being efficient. In my opinion, raising productivity is not an alternative option for me.
Nicholas