What a colorful "leadership" and "talent" success story. We have
built a first world country within such a short span of 40
years.
It started with the leader's slogan to make sacrifice without
welfarism and necessity to hold back wage increases to build a
society for progress, justice and equality.
People were honest and trusting listening to every good slogan and
advice of leaders - self-sacrifice for the long-term good of the
country, paying more fee increases and tightening the belt with
wage cuts to meet all kinds of exigencies during the 1960s and
1970s for progress and justice. What they saw was good so they gave
the leaders more votes for talents and leadership in election after
election.
The leaders called their victory "mandate of the people". To show
their leadership they came out with more slogans to build the
country - law and order, "long term" good of the country,
"pragmatism", "pay peanut you get monkey", "honest and
corruption-free" government.
More voted them for leadership and talents. More choruses on
leadership and talents of world class standard grew louder. So
given such mandate where is the problem to change some GRCs and
defamation law suits to control the oppositions. Where is the
problem in increasing taxes and collect double on land charges and
triple on vehicles to prevent congestion. What they said the people
always believed and furthermore people have given them the manddate
and mandate is good.
So they claimed that they have the best system of leadership
government so in order to retain the best talents, people must pay
the leaders the highest salaries. This is common sense. The whole
government paid themselves from $100,000 pa to $2,000,000.00 pa.
Then all the senior civil lords too need to be paid proportionately
for they are all talents too. Some $80,000.00 pa in the junior
technical category, while others climb on promotional posts that
paid $200,000 - $600,000.00 pa as shown in HDB 2005 statement of
account. Losses of $650 million is no object as they are easily
covered by transfer from the consolidated account paid by HDB flat
purchasers and vehicle owners.
Recessions came in 1980s-1990s, the numerous talents, and promising
younger and olders ministers were tested for economic restructuring
to value-added technology-driven model. Came more recessions
1997-1999 and 2000-2002. Talents and ministers told the workers
they must retrain as the talents could not do anything much about
China and India and the so-called structural unemployment that
seems to be a world phenomenon.
Wages of common workers dropped to 3rd world and property prices
touched bottom. People suffered high costs and could not make ends
meet. Many business failures and bankruptcies.
Votes dropped from 75% average to 66.6%. The talented Ministers
oblivious of their helplessness in restructuring the economy
claimed another mandate and success following the first upturn of
world economy in many years. It is only natural as this is
generally known as following the wind direction or surfing the
tide.
This is the success story of Singapore from first world to the
third climbing up 3 places over the last 10 years.
How does this people's version of Singapore's success story compare
with the daily reports of the States Times for a change ?