Has LKY succeeded in restructuring to value-adding economy?

robertteh SG

What has he done during the whole of last two recessions. The economic restructuring committee has put up many recommendations including changing the education system to a broad-based knowledge applications system and promoting more pro-business environment.

Have you noticed all ministers are keeping mum about the progress of this economic restructuring headed by LHL for many years. Why the silence or reticence of this whole ERC. Too afraid to report problems or lack of success in promoting the value-adding knowledge-based goals we suppose.

It is clear that after years of trying to restructure the economy to a technology-driven value-adding model LKY still has not come up to GKS's standard in this area to produce the desired results.

The world recovery in 2004 allows him to catch the wind again by quickly playing with property and IR this time. Nothing fundamentally has changed as there is a lack of progress in restructuring the economy. The only policy LKY knows is still one of throwing monies at foreigners and promoting foreign investments at the expense of the domestic sector.

We need another heavy weight minister like Dr. Goh Keng Swee who understand how to go about promoting creativity and technology start-ups in a big way.

With such true talents we will go down again once the world goes into recessions.

It will be too early to say LKY has succeeded in creating a more competitive economy or motivating the people to produce a more united country.

alwaysdisturbed SG

i don't know is it him but the govt restructured the ministers pay system.

kramnave SG

If you spent more time to look around you'd have realised that our finance industry has grown. Banks had across the years built a larger presence in private banking and operations. Commodity merchants have increased their presence and commodity arms of banks are building their presence. We are building oil rigs like never before and firms supplying materials are profiting like never before. Im sorry if you are worse off than before. Maybe if you spent less time spamming the same topics and be more productive, things can turn for the better.

robertteh SG

Kramnave,

If you mean we have a government that is only interested in making monies through questionable and evil method like increasing GST even with the big surpluses of $6.5 bil in 2007 at people’s expense you are still prepared to call it a successful government.

If such a government has succeeded in building a country from such a evil method like taxing withholding spending, profiteering and hoarding monies at people’s expense causing them to struggle to bear with all sorts of burdens we the citizens are successful.

Do you know the majority of citizens are hardly surviving you are still claiming are increasing GDP, or making billions in some unaccountable doubtful overseas investments are good for the people. Where is your sense of citizenship and loyalty to Singapore as claimed by you in asking people to support WP. You ought to make up your mind whether you are fighters for the people or for the ruling party in the guise of working for oppositions.

kramnave SG

Kramnave,

What are you on about ? What have I said is wrong ? Tell me.

"Do you know the majority of citizens are hardly surviving"

No, I don't know that. Where are you living ? Zimbabwe ? Don't give me that shit right. Even bankrupt Chee and co are surviving. If you have the time and luxury to spam the same topics here, don't tell me you are hardly surviving. You just want a place in heaven with 7 virgins.

"Where is your sense of citizenship and loyalty to Singapore as claimed by you in asking people to support WP. You ought to make up your mind whether you are fighters for the people or for the ruling party in the guise of working for oppositions."

Sorry to disappoint you. I'm neither a fighter for WP,PAP nor the people. Fighter for my friends, family and ultimately myself. I'm highlighting WP because its weird that "opposition fighters" like you are supporting a lost cause. I say lost because come election time, SDP will be raped and WP will be winning seats. Get out of your hole guys.

And don't give me the crap that Majority of Singaporeans are hardly surviving again. As a matter of fact, majority of singporeans are poor, support sdp, PAP will definitely without GRCs etc. Integrate with the rest of the world Robert.

eagle SG

It's for the long term

robertteh SG

What are you on about ? What have I said is wrong ? Tell me.

"Do you know the majority of citizens are hardly surviving"

Obviously some are happy because they are some who benefitted from such type of governing as I have elaborated in my previous post e.g. ministers, MPs, elites blessed by government's jobs and positions and the rich. I have the luxury to post my views in forums, does that make me poor or rich. I don't know. But I have my views about wrong doings as pointed out by this kind of taxing and profiteering system of governing. It is immoral and uncaring.

kramnave SG

Which doesn't equate to:

"Do you know the majority of citizens are hardly surviving"

robertteh SG

Kramnave,

Just look at profiteering made by the government in low-cost public housing. How much is the average percentage of mortgage loan repayment over the disposable household income. In the old days any banker worth his salt will tell you it must not exceed 20% of one's disposable household income.

Today, many people are losing their homes or forced to downgrade to smaller flats being unable to pay for basic housing over-charged by the government which keeps pushing up housing prices even though lands were acquired at dirt cheap prices to provide for low-cost public housing. If this is not profiteering then what is

Don't forget the artificially pushed up costs of public transportation and utilities. According again to the expert bankers how much must such necessities form as percentage of disposable household income of say $800.00 - $1,200.00 pm.

When food and medical expenses are costed in how much are left for people's survival. No wonder in certain schools as much as 20-30 in a class are depending on school food vouchers to survive for lunch or breakfast.

You might be well but spare a thought for the less fortunate like the families of this type of kids in schools.

Do I need to say more?

If you claim you are here to fight for people's right you have got to understand people's needs and problems.

kramnave SG

Kramnave,

You might be well but spare a thought for the less fortunate like the families of this type of kids in schools.

Do I need to say more?

If you claim you are here to fight for people's right you have got to understand people's needs and problems.

"You might be well but spare a thought for the less fortunate like the families of this type of kids in schools."

Look, cut the crap. These people do not form the majority of citizens in Singapore. I'm not heartless but do not paint a gloomy picture about how the economy was not restructured since the last recession and majority of citizens in Singapore are hardly surviving ok.

"If you claim you are here to fight for people's right you have got to understand people's needs and problems."

If you can read, I did not say that I'm here to fight for people's rights ok ?

And if you can't read. Then don't complain about TOC removing your posts on the pretext of them being long and irrelevant because it is that case.

robertteh SG

"You might be well but spare a thought for the less fortunate like the families of this type of kids in schools."

"If you claim you are here to fight for people's right you have got to understand people's needs and problems."

If you can read, I did not say that I'm here to fight for people's rights ok ?

And if you can't read. Then don't complain about TOC removing your posts on the pretext of them being long and irrelevant because it is that case.

Kramnave,

What has this subject to do with Onlinecitizen where I once posted. If I objected to my posts being locked in TOC, what relevance has this objection to this post. Common don't be frivolous or get personal.

kramnave SG

Because your replies have no relevance thats why what im saying about your postings in TOC is relevant. Not getting personal.

kramnave SG

Because your replies have no relevance thats why what im saying about your postings in TOC is relevant. Not getting personal.

Fingolfin_Noldor SG

How does this qualify as "restructured"?

kramnave SG

How does this qualify as "restructured"?

How does it not ?

Fingolfin_Noldor SG

How does it not ?

This is called an expansion of a sector largely done by foreigners since our local banks are inept as hell. Restructuring, as it is in the dictionary, means changing the structure. Fundamentally speaking, what the government has done for the last few years is encourage expansion of certain sectors and restructured the manufacturing sector. In truth, the economy in some sectors has shrunk, like Manufacturing. Pharmaceutical output would never match the kind of employment and money that electronics once did. I think last year might well be the last good year for a while as the slowdown in the US economy becomes apparent towards the end of the year. We haven't even factored in the rise in food prices yet.

Also, our Gini coefficient, which is an important indicator, discarding any hand outs given by the government, hasn't improved substantially over the last decade either. That in many words say, the rich are getting richer, and the poor, either poorer, or stagnated. Whereas it is too far fetched to say "they are hardly surviving", I think it is fair to say a good portion of the population are just doing what they can to make ends meet, barely. Mind you, the income pyramid for this country has long bee a gentle one at the bottom, and steep at the top.

kramnave SG

"Fundamentally speaking, what the government has done for the last few years is encourage expansion of certain sectors and restructured the manufacturing sector. In truth, the economy in some sectors has shrunk, like Manufacturing."

So what would constitute restructuring. Perhaps you might want to show us how "changing the structure" works if it differs from what has happened the past couple of years.

Fingolfin_Noldor SG

So what would constitute restructuring. Perhaps you might want to show us how "changing the structure" works if it differs from what has happened the past couple of years.

The better word is diversified. Trouble with politicians is that they brandish catch phrases like nothing. Bottomline, we haven't changed much. Let's face it, this is a country where we have breadth and no depth. R&D chugs along slowly with huge infusions of cash but we don't do important product development here. Most money comes from the financial sector and the chemical manufacturing sector, where petrochemicals is raking in the cash.

The economy, hasn't changed much, a little in terms of sophistication, though we have many ways to go to even match say Hong Kong's financial sector. Let's not even kid ourselves with silly statistics that don't show the full picture.

kramnave SG

"this is a country where we have breadth and no depth."

I have to agree. To top it off, I'm getting increasingly pissed off with the people i see on the streets everyday. This country might just go to the drains. It is going to the drains because the government are pissing a large group of people off and Singaporeans are fucking idiots.

In terms of the restructuring of the economy, I think we have different gauges and since "Let's not even kid ourselves with silly statistics that don't show the full picture." I won't pretend to know it all as my experience is not that diversified.