Friday the 13th.. So? but Saturday's a 14th!

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End of General Elections 2011

This has by far been one of the most hotly contested elections (contested 82 out of 87 seats) of our lifetime be it our grandparents, parents or us. We have seen new and old faces getting out of their comfort zone to contest in unknown areas to partake in the elections with hopes of becoming elected to help the people, etc. We now have a better feel of all the candidates and are able to size them up should we see them again in the next election. Respect to every single individual out there from both sides. Also good to know that quite a number of us are quite active in this General Elections, going to rallies and discussing about it.

Now I know that the results are not as satisfying as some of you had in mind. Thus being not very happy and fussing over it like TPL being elected. I have to say that I am also disappointed with the results especially for Mr Chiam See Tong and Mr George Yeo but I also felt that Mr Low Thia Khiang did his best to win. If only a different area was contested. However, for some of us, it is not in our control as we are not in their GRC while for the others, you have voted and you did your best. No more regrets and let us move on.

My message here is that remember because of this 2011 General Elections, someone made a promise to start listening/engaging the citizens, our voices. What shall we do then? Make it count. Be vocal. Let us speak. STOP being apathetic to things happening around you and let us see if Democracy really exist. Let us be heard as we progress and improve together, for the best is yet to be. Majulah Singapura.

"A battle won , A battle lost.
Who will know our future cost.
They said our voices will be heard,
Let it be true and not be hurt." - 万孔明

The Best Is Yet To Be.
(cool pic huh?)

In Pokemon the cartoon series, Pikachu is the strongest pokemon!

Well, some areas are definitely no fight for the ruling party. If only we were allowed to mix and match our MPs for a GRC or something.

Then we can be able to vote for those that we really like and support! Making an All-Star team but too bad reality isn't as such...

Hopefully everyone does not have any regrets when you vote. I made my choice very carefully. Have you?

Have you voted yet?

First time voting at this General Election. Hotly contested with 82 out of 87 seats. Which also explains the super hot weather on this exciting Saturday.

My voting area is at Temasek Junior College and upon reaching there, the whole process just doesn't look cool or awesome at all.. It is more like Q-ing and registering for membership or something. People use paper and pen to mark on the large A4/A5 register. Come on! In this modern era still use paper and pen?

Then once you collected the slip, you move on to a partition that looks like "X" but the partition is only the top half thats covered and blocked. At anytime 4 people can vote but you're standing up.

I always thought when they say voting booths would be like those individual photo booths whereby you can go in have some privacy and take a minute or so to compose yourself and vote accordingly. Totally uncool and reminded me of going to Singapore Pools to shade 4D, Toto or soccer while standing up and the pen/pencils are also attached by a string. Uncanny resemblance man...

Oh well.. All is done and wonder how will the results be tonight! :)

If you read Xiaxue's blog, this was my comment for her GE 2 posts!

Could have commented more at Xiaxue's blog but I think I have touched quite a bit and it was very late in the wee hours and I hope it brings a fresh perspective to you Pro-PAP and Pro-Oppo people. Let's get back to basics alright. (At last check, got 30+ people liking it! So I hope that I made some sense)

"Hello! I came upon your blog by people sharing on fb. I would like to say you have made some good points weighing out the credentials of the parties and being realistic in your political views in your last 2 posts. Very straightforward and shows enough of who you are rooting for.

However, do not write off all the Singaporeans whom some of you here claim as whiny, complaining and not doing anything about their situation and that they expect the government to do something for them. Pretty much those of you who are saying this about Singaporeans are either 1) living a comfortable life by fate 2) Pro-PAP 3) if not you are mature enough to man-up the hardship, figure out the goals in your life and working towards it (i have respect for the 3rd category of people but some of you would thus probably despise others who aren't following in your footsteps "since you can do it, why can't they?")

I know people who are complaining and wants a change and don't worry, they still respect MM LKY for his past contributions but they are more concerned about the future. What they want is for the governement to listen and start putting themselves in their shoes to start having policies that will help the people. Afterall, a Democratic society and progress for the nation is only possible when the Government and the people are aligned. The things that are being complained are not within our (the people) control.

- GST (could go up to 10%) and many of you who "are not complaining" would probably think "meehh.. 3% only.. small sum.." but how about calculating in the long run and sparing a thought for lower income individuals? if our economy has been doing well and our Temasek/GIC investment funds are pretty much back to pre-crisis level, would the reserves not be sufficient enough to cut us some slack and reduce the GST to maybe 5%?

- Foreign Talent. who are the ones who control the access to citizenship, etc? The People or the Government? Would it not be better if the government had walked the ground and see what the situation is like (people's willingness to do odd jobs, etc) before allowing the sudden influx of foreigners which has led to other problems like housing shortages, "loss of jobs" and crowded transportation. -point to ponder, transportation has been filled to the brim with record number of passengers and so SMRT/SBS how to lose money or operate at a loss? why would they still want to increase fares?-

- Housing. HDB was initially created to ensure all of us can own a flat at affordable prices and land is afterall state owned which is again controlled by the government. Wouldn't prices be within their control especially if the above influx of foreigners have been controlled? I think there are a number of us who would not be able to own a HDB anytime soon and I know some of you are probably laughing behind your monitor screens saying "AH HA! LOSER!"

Now, you say Singaporeans need to help themselves but how? Local unis are not enough for everyone and private unis are not recognized enough. I know people who are good at everything except studying but because of the system, they are denied better jobs over better qualified and possibly cheaper alternatives from overseas. Then taking up courses for some is not viable as there are those who have jobs that does not allow them to upgrade themselves as it is not flexible enough for them to do so neither can they take a break to upgrade themselves as they need the job/income for their family. How?

If you guys reading this are those who are doing well and are for Singaporeans to start picking themselves up and improving, please step forward and help them. Change their mentality too. Afterall, we are all Singaporeans aren't we? Shouldn't we be helping our fellow brothers and sisters to get out of the pit of self-pity rather than criticizing them? Help them see the light or create opportunities for them if you cannot, don't criticize and start a war. No point fighting over it.

All I want is for people to understand that people complain for a reason. Opposition stirred the people and connected with the issues close to their hearts and now you see the government can feel the pressure which can be seen from PM Lee who has now apologized and wants to hear more about what people have to say. If the people did not come together to complain and show Opposition support, what do you think the outcome would be like in the next 5 years? Go figure.


FYI: At this point, I have not decided who to vote but I feel that policies can be improved and things can be done and PAP definitely has a good record but Opposition gives good outreach for the people.
Another thing is that I fall under "the process of category 3" the I know I need to improve myself to get out of "poverty" but it is very expensive for a private degree and I need to support my parents too. Thus it is very tough but I know one day I'll be okay. Thus I am looking at the party who is listening and able to help me reach that "day". "

East Coast GRC Rally - PAP and WP (Part 2)

01st May, Sunday, East Coast GRC, PAP's rally was held at Bedok Stadium. One day after Worker's Party's Rally. I managed to find a friend who had a friend with him to go down to the rally and no, they are not of age to vote. Just checking out the rally to embrace the GE atmosphere. Pictures below will show you what I saw, felt and heard.

This was where I was seated. Comparing to the WP's rally, I had no space to sit.

Just to show you the view of the spectator stands.

As I move to the front, you can see how was the crowd like and the turnout for the rally.

I wanted to go earlier but since my friend went with his other friend to the rally earlier than me, I asked him how was it, he told me it was pretty much expected and boring. Better to go slightly later to wait for the more prominent speakers. Reached there at about 845pm and Mr Jayakumar made a guest appearance to tell the supporters who had given him their support during his time and to continue to do so for the current party.

After Mr Jayakumar, Mr Raymond Lim (or was it Mr Lim Swee Say) also spoke and told people about everything from choosing the party with a good track record and see how East Coast has been maintained/improved over the years and about him having met at least 10,000+ residents during his walkabout, etc plus he repeated it in 2 other languages. Something that caught my attention Mr Lim kept thanking part of the turnout standing near the stage who were from Labour Movement and the people from Buona Vista (cannot remember Buona Vista what) and he emphasized that they had supported him the whole day and without having their meals. Was that really necessary?

One thing I like is that at the very least, he said he would not follow and be like the WP in their rally who talks down his party at their rally yesterday and I guess that deserves respect though I got to say that WP did not talk about Mr Lim as far as I was there from about 8+ till 10 during their rally.

You might think that from the turnout that many people are not supporting the PAP but the truth is, their rally, the gist of their message can be seen in the everyday news or Straits Time so I guess people did not bother to turn up as much as WP's rally. Will the people rise up to the occasion on voting day?

We will know the results this coming Saturday and this marks the cover of my own personal experience at my GRC's rallies. Let me know how was your participation in your GRC's rallies and such if you'd like to share. Very exciting as there has been alot of development over the past few days and PM Lee has done quite a feat. Will cover in the next post!

More Important First - Spoiling Your Vote

To all who are eligible for voting but unsure of which party to vote for and so you consider to do the coolest thing by voiding your vote a.k.a. spoiling your vote, please do it with care.

A single cross (X) in either box for the political party you support will do the trick if you have decided. If not, the best way to void your vote is to leave it completely blank and submit it. Any marks or you're trying to be funny and decide to spit on one box, leaving your green colour phlegm in either box, they might still count the vote as valid.

When you draw a big big cross on the entire slip, becareful of where the center of the cross lies as where it lends, the vote will still be given to the other party. If you plan to draw a stick man, a house, flowers and rainbows, make sure it appears identically on both boxes. Any one with an additional drawing or if the stickman has longer limbs than the other, it might insinuate that you would like to vote for the other party. (this is a joke, you wouldn't want to hog the voting booth for an hour would you?)

Besides leaving it blank, you can put a cross in both boxes or as mentioned above, draw the same pictures in both boxes. As long as it does not have a chance to insinuate your choice for a particular party (just to play it safe)

Anyway, why would you want to spoil your vote? Your vote when void, will increase the % of the total votes remaining. E.g. 100 people but 97 people void it, left 3, each vote now carries 33.33% so if 2 vote for Ban Party and the other 1 vote for Max Party, the results are pretty straightforward.

Everyone who can vote is an adult. All of us are 21 and above. Be responsible, take this time to decide and vote for a particular party instead of leaving it in the hands of the others to select the outcome for you. Would you be happy when that happens? Your next 5 years of your life are at stake here. Go think about it! ;)

East Coast GRC Rally - PAP and WP (Part 1)

On 30th April, Saturday, the GE rallies for East Coast GRC were held at Bedok Stadium. What other better ways to immerse yourself but to go down to the scene of it all and listen to what the parties have to say. I got to admit that it was pretty hard to find friends who are interested about the GE to join me to check out the rallies. Worker's Party Rally was held first on Saturday and I went alone.

As blogger refuses to upload my 30MB video, I have no choice but to use pictures to let you see what I saw and felt and heard on that day.

This was what I saw as I entered the middle entrance of Bedok Stadium. You'll wonder if this was a New Year's Eve Countdown Party in May...

I looked around me and all I saw was 人山人海 (a sea of people) covering the entire stadium and no way have you ever seen a neighbourhood stadium like Bedok being so packed like tuna or sardines. No epic S League match (SAF vs Tamp) nor events (YOG, etc) has filled the stadium beyond sitting capacity.

If you notice, you can even notice people standing outside their houses along the corridor to see how the Opposition's rally is going and what they have to say.

The arrival of "Thor's (a.k.a. Low's) Hammer" making its way through the crowd and you can hear the people clap clap and "rah rah" over it. Got to say that it is quite an innovative mascot and pretty easy to recognise.

Moving on, the message which WP was touching on (from the time I was there at about 830pm) was mainly about the key issues we all know and hold close to heart. Influx of foreigners, jobs, cost of living, ministerial pay, co-driver analogy, how come WP do not have outreach programmes, etc. There were no concrete plans about how they will develop our neighbourhood nor national policies to improve our lives but just promises to improve on the whole.

However, being able to talk about and grind on topics that you and I feel closely to, they should definitely be able to connect to the average crowd like us as it will seem like WP knows our everyday troubles/worries. At the same time, they also had the opportunity to clear up about how they were unable to do their outreach during the 5-year hiatus after every election. They say that whenever they propose, it gets rejected so now you are likely to think twice that when PAP uses this point to say the Opposition are not there for the people. Wouldn't know if it is true but it does make you think whether Singapore Politics is a fair game or not.

They used an analogy, (as accurate as I can) "it is like a soccer game where PAP's goal post is smaller than the ball."

WP also talked about voting secrecy, one of the fear mongering rumours that talks about our votes are being tracked and watched and should we vote wrongly, we will suffer based on what we voted. This was what they said (as accurate as I can and not word for word) "Being there for a few elections, we know the voting process. Votes are kept confidential. Until the last voter casts his/her vote, the box is sealed in front of all the involved parties then brought to another place to be counted in front of them. When it is done, the votes are all put together back into the box, sealed infront of all the involved parties and brought to be incinerated together with all your other rubbish." I do not know how true is that but at least we now know how out votes are processed and what happens to them.

Basically, this was a summary of what I have seen, heard and felt. Just my couple of cents worth and hope you had a good read. The WP rally had a pretty good rally atmosphere and I have to say if crowd numbers were an indicator for votes, WP stands a pretty good chance this 7th May.


Next, will be my experience at PAP's rally. Coming soon later today.

The Pre-Election Story

I am sure most of you by now would hear some if not all of the promises and pitches by the various parties, from free health-care and free education to a voice for the youths to a party who is capable of improving our lives for the next 5 years.

Just a story to warn you in advance about campaigning. :)

Pre-Election Campaign Story

While walking down the street one day a MP is tragically hit by a truck driven by one of the many talents.

The MP's soul arrives in heaven and is met by St Peter at the gates of heaven.

"Welcome to heaven," says St. Peter. "However, we have a problem. Being few of you, we seldom receive such a high official around and so we're not sure of what to do with you."

"No problem, just let me in," says the practical MP.
St Peter says, "Well, I'd like to, but I have orders from higher up. What we'll do is have you spend one day in hell and one in heaven. Then you can choose where to spend eternity."
"Really? but I've made up my mind. I want to be in heaven," says the MP.
"I'm sorry, but we have our rules here", replies St Peter.

And with that, St Peter escorts him to the elevator and he goes down, down, down to hell. The doors open and he finds himself in the middle of a green golf course. In the distance is a clubhouse and standing in front of it are all his friends and other politicians who had worked with him before.

Everyone is very happy and dresses up in their Sunday's best. They gather to greet him, shake his hand, and reminisce about the good times they had when they were ruling the country.
They play a friendly game of golf and then for dinner, they dine on fresh seafood, crabs, lobster, caviar, oysters and champagne.
Also present at the table was the Devil, who really is a very friendly guy who had a good time dancing and telling jokes. They were having such a great time that before he realizes it, his 24 hours in hell was up.
Everyone gave him a hearty farewell and waved while the elevator rises up to the gates of Heaven.

The elevator goes up, up, up and the door reopens in heaven where St Peter was waiting for him.

"Now it's time to visit heaven," St Peter says.
So, 24 hours passed with the MP joining a group of contented peaceful souls moving from cloud to cloud, playing the harp and singing. They had a good time and the 24 hours in heaven passes by. St Peter meets the MP.
"Well, you've spent a day in hell and another in heaven. Now which will you choose for your eternity?" St Peter asks.

The MP reflects for a minute, then he answered, "Well, I never would have thought that I needed to think this through before, I mean heaven has been delightful, but I think I would be happier and better off... in hell."

So St. Peter escorts him to the elevator and he goes down, down, down to hell.

Now the doors of the elevator open and he's in the middle of a barren land covered with waste and garbage.

He sees all his friends, dressed in rags, picking up trash and putting it in black bags as more trash falls from above.

The Devil comes over to him and puts his arm around his shoulder.
"I don't understand," the MP stammers. "Yesterday I was here and there was a golf course and a beautiful clubhouse, and we ate crabs, lobster, caviar and oysters, drank expensive champagne, danced and had a great time. Now there's just a wasteland full of garbage and my friends look miserable. What happened?"

The Devil looks at him, smiles and says, "Yesterday we were campaigning..

Today .. you voted. :)"
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Make the right informed choice so you will not regret for the next 5 years of your life on earth in Singapore. Countdown, 5 more days to go.

General Elections - Your Life In 5 Years

This year's Labour Day falls along the stretch leading towards the General Elections.

It has given us time off to visit the various rallies to see which party has to say and offer to the people. One thing I know is that this is my first election and I can say that I feel very excited about it. What saddens me is that I got friends who are a pathetic towards the political happenings which will determine the next 5 years of our lives which in essence can be said as one of the best time of our lives. Most of us during this 5 years would have finished studying and started working already and the right political party could make our lives better or even worse. So to you reading it, is this General Election not an important process?

Take some time off and watch the rallies be it online or at one of those rallies held in your area. Read articles and feel it for yourself to know if any of the politicians has made a good point which you can understand and relate to. (yes, feel it though seeing is believing but you cannot see change till after the elected are in place and able to deliver their promises) Times are changing and I know more people are more involved in this round of elections. I am encouraged to see more people taking an active approach to find out more about various political parties which includes myself too.

Whether our next 5 years be a better one or a worse one, it is made up of all our choices. Do not regret when it happens as you are able to control the outcome.

Will be updating more tomorrow as it has 2+ years since I last blogged and I shall try to maintain it as much as I can.