Without much warning, Minilee appeared on national TV last night, hijacking both Channel 5 of Mediacorpse and ChannelNewAsia at the same time. As the CGI title animation helpfully informed, this was A Conversation with the Prime Minister. Singapore’s Ambassador-at-large Dr Chan Heng Chee sat across Minilee for the next half hour, asking him questions on “population growth challenges”, a looming …

By Min Cheong Equal and fair citizenship is a concept which originated from the political doctrine of Aristotle, undergoing permutations in that it does not necessarily pertain to individuals possessing a direct involvement in governance; instead, it embodies an amalgamation of rights accorded to citizens within legislation which exists as the basis and framework for ensuring vibrant socio-political activity. As …

By Ariffin Sha As Potong Pasir SMC shapes up for a four-way battle in the next General Election, Reform Party (RP) chief, Kenneth Jeyaretnam, has chided fellow opposition parties which have shown interest in the ward. Mr Jeyaretnam singled out the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) and independent candidate, Tan Lam Siong, for not allowing Mrs Lina Chiam, who lost Potong …

Commuters will enjoy a reduction in train and bus fares of up to 1.9% at the end of the year, Transport Minister Lui Tuck Yew told reporters on Monday. Speaking to the press at a preview of new Circle Line trains, Lui said the specific reductions would be worked out by the Public Transport Council (PTC), but that “every commuter …

By Anyhow Hantam Speculation is rife that elections are on the way. I wrote about 3 things that must happen if this is to be an election year in this article at the start of the year. The 1st being the release of the electoral boundaries report, and true enough has been released with an increase in the total number of …

Civil society in Singapore should play a more active role in public debates and discussion so as to let Singapore advance, said Deputy Prime Minister and Finance Minister Tharman Shanmugaratnam on 3 August, Monday. Mr Tharman made these remarks at the launch of a book, Singapore 2065: Leading Insights on Economy and Environment from 50 Icons and Beyond, which attempts to address the future …

Sathiyaselan Sivalingam was surprised when he saw the Singapore flag sticking out of a trash bin, and he was quick to react. Not only did he remove the flag from the bin, he also took the opportunity to educate the cleaner on how to properly handle the flag. In Mr Siva’s own words, respect for the crescent and stars must always exist …

By Ghui With GE 2015 looming round the corner, new political parties being formed, fresh faces coming to the fore, the disquiet caused by the PA/ AHPETC scandal, the latest round of MRT failures, the CPF issues raised by Rog Ngerng and the treatment of Amos Yee that exploded into an international embarrassment, there will certainly be plenty to watch …

“Pampered, mediocre, expensive, timid”? That was how the Government-controlled local press once asked of the professionals, managers, executives and technicians – or PMETs. Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong, however, seems to now admit that the problems faced by this group of Singaporeans are in fact real. After insisting for years that “foreigners do not take jobs away from locals”, Prime …

By Low Siew Ching When our Founder Mr Lee Kwan Yew passed away, we witnessed the country’s unity as we mourned and shed tears together. When 10 Singaporeans were killed during the trekking expedition in Mount Kinabalu, we grieved regardless of the victims’ race and origins. Disasters and deaths happen everywhere but we feel close to the heart for one reason …