Wake Up! Stand Up! Sign Up!
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Finally, a member from the Alternative Political Party that dare to speak the truth to debunk the LKY propaganda that is listened with silent awe .
"In 2006 the PAP were able to gain 37 seats on Nomination Day without having to contest them, because candidates could not be found to stand in these constituencies.
This is a travesty of how the democratic process is supposed to work… So not only do we need you to vote, we also need those among you with the necessary abilities and determination and, that share our vision and beliefs to come forward and join the Party…"
Written by Administrator
Thursday, 29 October 2009 04:37 Mr J B Jeyaretnam, in his inaugural speech of the Reform Party said,
“Cast off the slumber into which you have been led for the last 50 years, wake up to your rights as a human being, to your proper role as citizens of this country.”
Philip Jeyaretnam - Walkabout
Recently we were given a history lesson in Parliament, by our Minister Mentor Mr Lee Kuan Yew, no less. We were told that in the US, despite the phrase from the Declaration of Independence that “all men were created equal”, it took till 1964 for the Voting Rights Act to be passed. This Act prevented the former slave-owning states in the US using a number of subterfuges to prevent black Americans from voting. It was then remarked that it took nearly another fifty years for America to elect its first Black President.
I suppose that this was to illustrate that Singaporeans could not expect dramatic changes to the way they were governed when after all such reforms had taken 200 odd years in the US. The Analogy is in the first place bogus. If the lesson is that we are not to be impatient, that we are to be content with the system we have, that it is not unreasonable to wait another 50 years for change then that analogy must be followed to its logical conclusion. Our senior ministers should at this very time be saying to us “don’t worry that you are still travelling by Bullock Cart. Progress takes time. Even in America it took 150 years to invent the car.”
But of course No-one in Parliament says any such thing. As any smart young nation would, we leapfrogged the technology bypassing the Penny Farthing and went straight to the MRT and LRT stages. We can make the same leaps with democratic processes.
In any case, don’t be fooled. The lesson to be learnt from America is not the length of time it took for this to happen (even in 2007 who would have thought that a Black man with a Muslim name would become the next occupant of the White House) The lesson to be learnt is that this momentous event did not happen by magic. Instead there was a rising trend of registering Black voters resulting in increased Black participation in American political society and an increasing number of Blacks elected to both Federal and State legislatures and as Governors and Mayors. This culminated in record numbers of Black voters turning out in the presidential election of 2008, so that southern states that since at least the 1960s had always voted for a Republican candidate, suddenly turning Democrat and voted for Obama.
So, Singaporeans, it won’t happen by magic. There is a process involved. If you desire a government that has at its heart a commitment to improve the lives of ordinary Singaporeans then you are the only people who can bring about those changes that put in place a chain of events that culminated in 2008 in the US with the election of Obama or this year in Japan with the victory of the Democratic Party, ending a virtually unbroken 55 year rule of the LDP. And it starts with Waking up! And then Signing up!
As in America that process will begin with one person, then 10 then 100. Communism in Eastern Europe was finally put to rest when that first person climbed on the Berlin wall and started chipping away at it. I‘m not advocating mass disobedience, I’m reminding you that ultimately power resides in the people but if you are not prepared to climb on the wall in your mind and start chipping away at it then you will remain powerless.
But it will not be easy. From every avenue The Government will tell you that there is no need to vote for the Opposition. In fact the Opposition is just a distraction. They have generously given us the NCMP and NMP schemes. Well let me tell you -The NMP scheme is a fundamental subversion of democratic principles that would be laughed at in any properly democratic country. Let me hear no more of NMP’s and their so called voices.
Secondly it is ludicrous to equate NCMPs with NMPs when under our current GRC system 33% of those able to vote in the 2006 elections voted for Opposition candidates and yet the Opposition only won 2 out of the 84 seats in Parliament, which equates to 2.4% of the total. Let’s get that right- 33% of the votes resulting in 2.4 % of the seats. Enough of waiting 50 years! We need a government that will abolish the GRC system and go back to SMCs or move to a system of proportional representation where NCMPs would have the same powers as directly elected MPs.
And what of the argument, often used by the Government in past elections and too often repeated unquestioningly by Singaporeans, that any constituency which votes for the Opposition will find itself moved to the back of the queue for HDB upgrading and other goodies. Firstly, the money does not belong to the Government; it belongs to you, the taxpayers. You earned it, you gave it to them for safekeeping and you should determine how it’s spent. I would stand the argument on its head and say to you, the people of Singapore, if you don’t vote for the Opposition then you will remain powerless to get the changes you desire, need and deserve - not just for your HDB estates but for your country and your lives.
But how can you vote for a representative if there isn’t one to be found? It is compulsory to vote in Singapore, unlike in the US and yet for too many of you voting is a meaningless exercise. You are effectively disenfranchised because the Opposition has been unable to find sufficient candidates and financial resources to contest more than half of the constituencies. In 2006 the PAP were able to gain 37 seats on Nomination Day without having to contest them, because candidates could not be found to stand in these constituencies. This is a travesty of how the democratic process is supposed to work and for those of you living in those constituencies you might as well be living in North Korea or China, for all the ability you have to choose your representative.
So not only do we need you to vote, we also need those among you with the necessary abilities and determination to come forward and become candidates. 
So I am upping the ante. And adding Stand Up! to Wake Up! and Sign up!
Finally, getting back to that History lesson and The US election campaign, I’d like to remind you of something Obama said frequently during his campaign taking a quote from the poet June Jordan by way of Alice Walker:
“Change will not happen if we wait for some other person or some other time. We are the ones we’ve been waiting for.”
If you want to see policies that put the welfare of ordinary Singaporeans first, then come out and support us The Reform Party, or another Opposition party.
Because I will say this to all of you today: “You are the ones I am waiting for.”
So Wake Up! Sign Up! Stand Up! ... or at the very least buy a T-shirt!
Thank you again for supporting us here and we look forward to growing numbers of you coming forward to join us as we contest our first elections.
(This is an extract of the speech made by Kenneth Jeyaretnam in Reform Party first anniversary dinner) -
hope more people become more immune and less indulge to leisure like shopping spree, travelling and disco.
cheers to all.
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Originally posted by whycannot:
hope more people become more immune and less indulge to leisure like shopping spree, travelling and disco.
cheers to all.
How does your opinion relate to the thread ?
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Another article from the Reform Party that debunks the PAP propaganda:-
Building A New National Consensus
Thursday, 29 October 2009 04:37
Forty-four years ago, we achieved independence by circumstances. We were then at a crossroad - to be swallowed up by a bigger nation, or to trail blaze and succeed. The latter happened. We were blessed with many passionate and dedicated leaders who wanted to make a difference to this country.
After 44 years, do we still have these successful ingredients in place to ride out the impact of globalisation and increasing competition from regional countries? Do the people and the leaders still share a vision? The vision appears to be developing Singapore to be a world-class city with Swiss standard of living. And the yardstick with which this “standard of living” is to be measured by seems to be the GDP. Singapore has become a GDP-focused nation. I remember reading an article by Professor Tommy Koh who said recently: “I have always heeded my mentor S. Rajaratnam’s warning that we should not become a people who know the price of everything and the value of nothing. I think we are in such danger.” Some Singaporeans have started questioning the quality of living standard despite the high GDP growth we have attained.
Income disparity is widening and may become a divisive point. I know of many responsible Singaporeans working hard just to put food on their table. According to Ministry of Manpower website and Singapore Statistics 2009, more than 50% of the labour force earned S$2,000 or less monthly in 2006. Rising cost of living diminishes their quality of life substantially. The vision of a world-class city with Swiss standard of living finds no resonance in this half of the population.
We need a new vision that will rally all of us. A vision where Singaporeans will look out for each other, defend what we have built and fight for what we believe in;
where schools are places that help our children grow stronger and more confident of leading meaningful lives; where universities are places where creativity, entrepreneurship and research triumph over grades; where the aged and destitute are looked after and volunteers abound; where Singaporeans participate actively in politics, contribute to policy making and help determine the country’s direction where parents are confident about the future of their children and education is free; the Reform Party advocates free compulsory education from preschool to secondary school;
We should also re-examine the idea of GDP growth as the only yardstick for the performance of this country. The Reform Party would like to suggest two more factors.
First factor. How happy are Singaporeans – Gross National Happiness?
We should make an effort to develop a means of measuring the happiness level of Singaporeans.
When millions of dollars of taxpayers’ money are spent on a certain project, we should see the happiness level of Singaporeans rising. The iconic Esplanade, which was developed with a cost of about S$600m, is one such example. The decision has hopefully made local artists and Singaporeans happy. If it costs so much , we owe it to ourselves to actively quantify whether the people are happy about it.
Quite apart from measuring subjective feelings, some objective measurements can serve as indicators of the level of happiness. For example, an objective measurement of the level of happiness – our population reproduction capability. Happy citizens should have a healthy birth rate. After all, in the world of biology, the success of a species is determined by its ability to reproduce and grow its population. If we are unable to even replace ourselves, can we really consider ourselves successful? Importing manpower treats merely the symptoms but not the cause.
Second factor. How engaged are Singaporeans as citizens?
Engaged citizens would be interested in issues of the society, and would want to contribute their ideas or time to make a difference. By doing so, many Singaporeans will feel included and want to play a part in improving the community vitality. Active involvement comes not only in the form of offering positive contribution, but also in raising the alarm on negative practice. Whistle blowers should not be seen as bad eggs, but part of the check and balance. Measures to support and protect whistle blowers should be in place. MPs and Ministers can encourage citizen engagement through online discussions and not brush aside the works of online journalists and bloggers. We should create conditions to encourage everyone to participate actively on development of national policies. Engaged National Service (NS) men would be the best force multiplier that our defence spending cannot buy. During call-ups, are NS men gainfully employed? Do they feel they have contributed? National Service is the best and the single largest platform to engage our citizens. We should make the most of this opportunity to make our citizens feel that they are making a meaningful contribution to the nation and be proud of it.
Other measurements of citizen engagement should include the followings:
number of suggestions per capita, level of volunteerism, turn out at dialogue sessions, etc.
It is time that we devote the same amount of vigour and time to increase the happiness and engagement levels of Singaporeans, as we had done in justifying the need for a high Ministerial pay, or bringing in the F1. By adding these two extra factors, it ensures we do not commit government budget and resources purely for the sake of GDP growth, but would have factored in the need to keep Singaporeans happy and engaged as we stay committed and rooted.The Secretary General of Reform Party, Kenneth Jeyaretnam said: “Our house was built. We have to make this into our home.” To make this place a home, we need more than world-class events being hosted or first class food or entertainment, we need a reason to fight, to stay united and to help each other. We must embrace and rally all Singaporeans to develop a shared vision for Singapore, a vision that is not purely based on materialistic needs, but one that reflects our values; to build a political landscape that brings in dedicated individuals who are attracted not by money but by the opportunity to serve the public.
Singapore is not short of such individuals - the late Mr JB Jeyaretnam, Mr Chiam See Tong, Mr Low Thia Khiang, Ms Sylvia Lim, Dr Chee Soon Juan, and many who have stood up for the political pluralism that Singapore needs. I am proud to be here amongst you. I know the road ahead will not be easy, but we need to shape our destiny the way we want it, with no fear nor apology.
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They got sell bra or not?? As for our PM, dun worry, it will also be black, or i should say dark, we keep our promise, Vivan Balakrishnan, handsome Indian Uncle
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I have maintained this as what the article says: dun coffeeshop talk, DO SOMETHING. If there is anyone who feels so strongly that the country needs an alternative, DO SOMETHING not just talk. I really think that having a STRONG alternative is important. And that will come only from people who are willing to sacrifice their time, money and probably alot of political pressures from the ruling party. People like Chiam, Jeyeratnam, Chee and Low Thia Khiang have shown that they are willing to put in even their lives for what they believe in, and they have results to varying degrees to show for. The issue now will there now be enough of those people who talked alot and will now come out to do something.
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show me the manifestos of each opposition parties, let see what is their ideal singapore
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Originally posted by angel7030:
They got sell bra or not?? As for our PM, dun worry, it will also be black, or i should say dark, we keep our promise, Vivan Balakrishnan, handsome Indian Uncle
Does a Taiwanese "hum" need a bra when you visit this Speaker's Corner to satisfy your needs as an "Attention Seeking Whore" ?
Originally posted by angel7030:show me the manifestos of each opposition parties, let see what is their ideal singapore
Can the "Attention Seeking Whore" keep your Taiwanese "hum" focus to any manifesto, or will you get distracted by the "man" that you hope will "infest" your "hum" ?
If you have nothing to offer except to hang out your clitoris to draw attention to meet your needs as an "Attention Seeking Whore" - it is best that you take it to the Bar Forum.