Dun Talk Cock Lah!: HDB

Showing posts with label HDB. Show all posts

Tuesday, July 3, 2018

With You, For You, For Singapore

While some bodoh idiotic people side with belligerent foreign powers acting against S’pore’s interests, and attempt to re-interpret history to their whims and fancies, the PAP Govt continues on with its work of preparing S’pore for future challenges and making life better for ALL S’poreans.

No one is saying that the PAP Govt is perfect, and yes, there will be times when there are cock-ups (eg: MRT breakdown woes). But at least they learn from their mistakes, fix the problem responsibly and transparently and carry on with the work of building up Singapore for all Singaporeans.

Just have a look at what the PAP Govt is doing for Singaporeans recently. These are not some airy-fairy motherhood statements or plans. These are concrete actions which will have a direct impact on improving the lives of S'poreans.

Sembawang Integrated Hub to be called Bukit Canberra (1 July 2018)

SINGAPORE: The upcoming Sembawang sport and community hub set to open progressively from 2020 will be called Bukit Canberra, announced Sport Singapore on Sunday (Jul 1) at the groundbreaking ceremony.

The 12 hectare space - first announced in 2016 - will provide amenities such as a hawker centre, indoor and outdoor sport facilities, a polyclinic, a senior care centre, green spaces for community farming and lifestyle related amenities for the community. It is located about five minutes from Sembawang MRT station.

Bukit Canberra will also see the largest ActiveSG gym with indoor and outdoor pools. There will also be 3km of running trails as well as a fruit orchard and healthcare options such as a polyclinic and senior care centre.

Bigger, better Ang Mo Kio Polyclinic officially opens (1 Jul 2018)

The new Ang Mo Kio Polyclinic was given its official opening yesterday, offering greater accessibility to elderly and disabled patients as well as an expanded team-based healthcare system.

The $44 million polyclinic began operations in January after moving from Ang Mo Kio Avenue 8 to a facility in Ang Mo Kio Central 2, which at 8,752 sq m is three times bigger. It sees a total of 1,500 patients every day - 200 more than at its previous site - and more than a third are over 65 years old.

The new polyclinic is designed to cater to this group, with more lifts, handrails, non-slip flooring and wider passageways. It is also fitted with a $70,000 wheelchair tilter, to eliminate the inconvenience of transferring patients who are wheelchair users to a dental chair.

The polyclinic has also expanded its team-based care model, which was introduced at National Healthcare Group polyclinics three years ago. In an effort to avoid disruption to treatment, each patient with a chronic ailment is assigned a specific healthcare team which will manage his or her case.

Each team is made up of two family physicians, a care manager and care coordinator.

Ang Mo Kio Polyclinic initially had four teams helping 20,000 patients but this has now been expanded to six teams looking after 30,000 patients.

The polyclinic is also the first to have a senior care centre located within its premises.

Childcare subsidies to be reviewed (1 Jul 2018)

SINGAPORE: The Early Childhood Development Agency (ECDA) will be reviewing its preschool subsidy framework, announced Social and Family Development Minister Desmond Lee on Sunday (Jul 1).

Currently, eligible households can receive up to S$740 in childcare subsidies per month. The amount a family receives depends on their household income. When last reviewed in 2013, the framework saw an increase of at least S$100 in childcare subsidies.

Speaking to reporters on the sidelines of a visit to a community health and developmental screening event at Boon Lay, Mr Lee said the review will help to ensure that quality preschools remain accessible and affordable to families with young children.

SkillsFuture course ratings to be displayed for all govt-funded courses by 2019 (30 Jun 2018)

SINGAPORE - Users of the MySkillsFuture platforms can now make more informed course selections, as both the web portal and phone app are displaying user ratings for selected courses for the first time.

These ratings are based on two surveys: one on the satisfaction of trainees at the end of each course, and another that measures, six months later, how much trainees have applied what they learned in their work.

The survey findings are translated into a ratings system, which all users can see, said SkillsFuture Singapore (SSG), which operates the portal and app. Qualitative comments by trainees will also be on display.

In his speech, Mr Chee noted that technology is impacting the way Singaporeans live. Resisting it is not an option and new jobs will require workers here to learn new skills and adopt new approaches at work, he said.

"We need to equip our workers with the knowledge to use technology effectively, like how a craftsman is able to use his tools skillfully to get the job done," he said.

This upskilling must be part of a "national culture" which encourages lifelong learning from young, with strong support from employers, unions, and educational institutions.

Tuas Desalination Plant opens, another milestone in Singapore’s water quest (28 Jun 2018)

SINGAPORE — Singapore's first desalination plant owned and operated by the Government officially opened on Thursday (June 28). The Tuas Desalination Plant is the Republic's third and has a capacity of 30 million gallons per day (mgd).

Singapore’s water sustainability came under the spotlight earlier this week when Malaysian Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad revived a dispute with Singapore over the terms agreed in a 1962 pact.

At the opening ceremony, Minister for the Environment and Water Resources Masagos Zulkifli reiterated that this latest milestone in Singapore's water story "did not come easy". He did not make any reference to Dr Mahathir’s latest remarks.

Mr Masagos said: "Gradually but surely, we will continue to build up the capacity of our desalination and NEWater capacities, so that by 2060, NEWater and desalination can supply a combined 85 per cent of our water needs then."

1.6 million Singaporeans to receive S$1 billion GST Vouchers, Medisave top-ups (28 Jun 2018)

SINGAPORE — By next Friday (July 6), 1.6 million citizens will receive notifications about their 2018 Goods and Services Tax (GST) Vouchers and Medisave top-ups, the Ministry of Finance (MOF) said on Thursday (June 28).

Adult citizens who qualify for the one-off SG Bonus of up to S$300 for adult citizens, announced at Budget 2018,will also be notified about their SG Bonus benefits by October.

In total, lower-income Singaporeans will each receive up to S$600 in cash benefits this year, comprising S$300 in GST Voucher to be paid out into their bank accounts on Aug 1, and S$300 in SG Bonus to be paid out by year-end.

Apart from cash, Singaporeans will receive top-ups to their Medisave as well as U-Save rebates under the GST Voucher scheme.

Homeowners of a three-room flat can expect to receive a total U-Save rebate of S$350 per household this year.

On top of this, as announced at Budget 2018, eligible Housing and Development Board (HDB) households will also receive an additional rebate of S$20 a year from 2019 to 2021.

These quarterly rebates are aimed at helping lower- and middle-income HDB to offset their utilities bills.

To help elderly Singaporeans pay for their medical needs, Medisave top-ups will be given.

Some 485,000 Singaporeans aged 65 years and above in 2018 will receive up to S$450 in Medisave top-ups in August under the GST Voucher scheme.

Citizens who are aged 59 and above, who do not receive Pioneer Generation benefits, will also receive a Medisave top-up of up to S$200 between this year and the next.

Pioneers, on the other hand, will receive Medisave top-ups of between S$200 and S$800 in July.

Wednesday, July 26, 2017

The day that WP has been long dreading is here

Pic: Fabrications About The PAP

Despite the Worker's Party leadership's best efforts to deflect, delay, obstruct and remain unaccountable for the mess that is the AHPTEC/AHTC Accounts, the day of reckoning has arrived.

Here's a brief recap to how things have reached this stage.

4 Nov 2016: HDB asks Aljunied-Hougang Town Council (AHTC), to take steps to recover improper payments that it made.

17 Feb 2017: Aljunied-Hougang Town Council (AHTC) appoints an independent panel to review the findings of a KPMG report that said the towncouncil had "serious flaws" in governance and made improper payments amounting to millions of dollars to third parties. After consultation with HDB, the three people who were appointed are panel chairman Philip Jeyaretnam SC, and members Mr N Sreenivasan SC and Mr Ong Pang Thye (managing partner of KPMG LLP).

So what will happen next?

Will the implicated WP MPs do the honorable thing and resign? Thereby triggering off a By-Election?

Will there be criminal charges brought against those involved? And when that happens, will there be a By-Election since the person(s) may be disqualified as an MP upon conviction. (See Disqualifications for membership of Parliament).

Is this the beginning of the end for the Worker's Party? Will this end the Worker's Party dominance as Singapore's premier Opposition Party?

Will Chee Soon Juan jump in at this golden opportunity to sink WP to further his own (hopeless) ambition to be elected as an MP?

Or will the WP MPs simply deny, deflect, play the victim card and continue to disavow any responsibility for the mess that THEY created THEMSELVES?

And people say that Singapore politics is boring.

Straits Times: AHTC alleges that all payments totalling $33 million made to ex-managing agent are void (26 July 2017)

Tuesday, February 21, 2017

Comparisons between Singapore and Sweden

A Swedish man 'Angmolia' who moved to Singapore, made a series of YouTube videos comparing Sweden and Singapore.

The videos are worth watching to get a perspective of what the daily reality is in like in Sweden and Singapore.

I think the second video raises a most poignant situation - where an Swedish ambulance refuses to go into a neighbour without a police escort. And the result is that a life is lost. That is a unimaginable, and most people would find it unacceptable as well, situation in Singapore. We would be demanding the Govt's collective heads if such a situation were allowed to have set in here.

In any case, it is always good for us to gain a broader perspective of what daily life is like in other countries. This gives us a better appreciation for the things which Singapore is doing right by her people.

But it would be very naive and simplistic to say that Singapore is the perfect country. We are not.

For example, littering is still a chronic problem that has to be tackled. It is only because of the hard work by our army of cleaner that our streets and sidewalks are clean and pristine.

And we still have people who think nothing of tossing rubbish out of their windows on the Nth floor of their flat, not realising that that their trash could hurt or even potentially kill someone on the ground, nevermind the fact that they are dirtying our living environment.

There are many things that Singapore can, and should be doing better. But deciding how we go about improving Singapore has to be done with a broader perspective of what life is like abroad - both the benefits and tradeoffs of their choices , and an appreciation of what Singapore has that is good and what our constraints are.

Sweden and Singapore are often used as examples in the political debate, but no one has made a comparison of daily life there before. Since I have lived and worked in both countries I can give examples from real life.

In this part I focus on the market and its place in daily life. I cover housing, food, domestic chores, and other topics.

links and references:
https://bostad.stockholm.se/english/
http://www.reuters.com/article/us-sweden-uber-tech-idUSKCN0Y20WN

Published on Aug 26, 2016

Singapore and Sweden compared part 1: the market

One of the starkest contrasts between Sweden and Singapore is how much more clean, orderly, and safe Singapore is. This difference wasn't there just a few decades ago, but it continues to grow with the accelerating disintegration of Swedish society.

In this episode I take you on a tour around the cities and show you examples of what I mean.

Please be civil in the comment section. It's fine to disagree with both me and each other, but I remove all comments with derogatory words, regardless of other merits.

Published on Feb 12, 2017

Model Cities part 2: Public Order

Friday, November 11, 2016

Somebody's (A.S.S) gonna get hurt real bad

Screen-capture from Google Cache. (Note: Hoax text and Bull-shit logo added by us)

So in other news which is as fake as Trump University, we see All Singapore Stuff aka A.S.S posting a really sensationally fake article today (11 Nov) about the roof of Punggol Waterway Terraces collapsing.

In addition to the picture, this is what the article said.

According to Mothership, it seemed real enough that the authorities (police, SCDF) went to the building to investigate.

As it turns out, HDB has posted on its Facebook page, confirming that the article put up by A.S.S is a hoax., and that a police report will be made soon.

The article has since been taken down but you can still see it on Google Cache here.

What else is there to say?

Except perhaps....

Well, good luck A.S.S. Your ASS is gonna ~~get hurt soon~~ need it.

Read more here

Mothership: All Singapore Stuff posts hoax about collapsed roof at Punggol Waterway Terraces, made SPF/SCDF go down to investigate

Lianhe Zaobao: 水滨台组屋屋顶坍塌？原是虚惊一场 (Mandarin)

Google Cache of removed A.S.S Article: ROOF OF PUNGGOL WATERWAY TERRACES COLLAPSE

Tuesday, October 25, 2016

Workers Party demonstrate what it means to be "Transparent & Accountable"

So in the long running drama that is the AHPETC / AHTEC Town Council accounts, the Workers Party have decided that in the best interest of the public, as well as to demonstrate what it really means to be "Transparent & Accountable", WP are demanding that a Non-Disclosure clause be imposed BEFORE any Town Council Documents relating to Punggol East SMC (which Lee Li Lian lost in the 2015 General Elections to PAP's Charles Chong) is released to Pasir Ris-Punggol Town Council (PRPTC) to finish the handover of accounts.

According to a TODAY news article, there are two reasons given by AHTC vice-chairman Sylvia Lim to explain why there has been a delay in handing over the Accounts.

(1) There are "... confidentiality concerns that “need to be worked out”. Information relating to the town council’s vendors, contracting rates, and staff must not fall into the hands of a third party."

and

(2) that it would be "... physically challenging for AHTC staff to sieve through files and extract documents pertaining only to Punggol East."

First reason given - The Docs are "confidential" and must not fall into the hands of a "third party".

Can we say that this reason is rubbish to the nth degree? Why should the documents of the Town Council be "confidential"? Who are the "third parties" that you are afraid of?

You are managing and operating a public entity. You are dealing with pretty mundane municipal matters like maintenance, area cleaning, facilities management etc. You are NOT a company with confidential Intellectual Property or designs that could be stolen by a competitor.

And what third parties? The Govt? What bullshit! The AGO just audited you. The PAP? Come on lah, you lost the SMC to the PAP. And they (PAP & PRPTC) are taking over Punggol East SMC from you. They have every right to any and all documents relating to PE SMC.

Unless, of course, you have something to hide which is either horribly embarrassing or will be politically very damaging to the Workers party (like showing how incompetent the Town Council was managed and where all the TC surplus was spent on).

Second reason - "Physically challenging"???

What kind of a rubbish, bull-shit, primary school level type of excuse is this?

Hello! Didn't you invest in a new accounting/Town Council Mangt system when you took over in 2011? (See here, here and here)

Are you now suggesting that that this accounting/TC mangt IT system never materialised and/or is the system so badly built that the Town Council accounts are all hard-copy based?? (which in itself is a real cause for concern too. You spent the resident's money on the system but it fails to do the job it was designed for??)

Come on lah.. who are you trying to bluff?

The last few times AHPETC / AHTC tried to put obstacles in the way of the AGO / HDB in trying to sort out the TC accounting mess that WP created, it turned out that WP was simply trying to hide their incompetence from the public.

For example, back in Jan 2016, WP refused to use a "Big-Four" Audit firm to audit the TC accounts. Instead, WP wanted to appoint their own Auditors. It would later turn out that WP's choice of Auditors would be poorly qualified and simply not up to the task.

And what's even more interesting is that in the end, all of the WP nominated audit firms Business Assurance and MRI Moores, withdrew from being considered as AHTC's nominated accountants, without providing for any substantial reasons to explain their withdrawal.

What is interesting is that WP then applied to the Court for ACRA’s PMP documents (relating to WP's choice of Auditors) to not be released to the public. (CNA, 22 Jan 2016)

Isn't this all very suspiciously convenient? WP (intentionally?) chooses an ~~incompetent~~ unqualified audit firm. When this rejected by the Courts , WP applies to for the relevant documents to be kept secret.

Why does WP want to seal the documents?

And here's another fine example of WP's Transparency & Accountability moto in action. When the Court decided that a Big-Four Audit firm would be appointed, WP then tried to put a limit on what the Audit firm could check!

In MND's Reply to Media Queries on the Court of Appeal Hearing of 7 Jan 2016, it stated that:

2(ii) Accountants’ Terms of Reference – AHTC’s Statement refers to the Court’s “helpful clarification that the accountants… were not being given a carte blanche to look into the TC’s affairs”.

However: the Statement fails to disclose that AHTC had tried, unsuccessfully, to limit the accountants’ terms of reference, to:

(a) Only the non-compliances identified by the Auditor-General’s Report (the “AGO Report”) of Feb 2015, and

(b) Only any improper past payments involving its former managing agent, FM Solutions & Services (“FMSS”) and FM Solutions and Integrated Services (“FMSI”).

In other words, when WP failed to appoint an unqualified Auditor (perhaps in hopes that using an unqualified Auditor would mean less Audit findings.), WP had attempted to restrict what the Independent Auditor could do in its Audit.

And since the appointment of KPMG as the Independent Auditors, the public has since come to known that there are so many problems with the AHPTEC / AHTC accounts, that it really simply unbelievable.

The TC Accounts are under WP's direct control and oversight. How can WP have let things get into such a mess?

Why is WP constantly blocking access to documents?

Why did WP attempt to appoint unqualified Auditors?

Why did WP attempt to limit the scope of the Independent Auditors?

Is this an attempt at hiding something that would be disastrous for WP?

What ever happened to WP's promise of Transparency and Accountability?

What happened to WP's "over 25 years of experience managing Town Councils" ?

This are pertinent questions that remained unanswered by WP.

And yet, Low's response to the whole mess is simply this.

Wednesday, September 21, 2016

Brookings Institute: Housing, inclusion, and social equity: A global perspective:

Housing, inclusion, and social equity: A global perspective

By Brookings Institute, 30 Nov 2015

Keynote address by DPM Tharman Shanmugaratnam (from 23:18 min)

Housing Inclusion and Social Equity – Singapore’s Experience

Many nations face the challenge of promoting social inclusion and economic opportunity. Patterns of housing development impact the distribution of life chances and prospects for greater social equity. Are there lessons from around the world for public policy that can be learned from each other? Which countries have put in place policies that are improving mobility? What can be done better?

On November 30, the Center on Children and Families at Brookings, Washington University in St. Louis, Duke University, and the National University of Singapore hosted an event featuring a keynote address from the deputy prime minister of Singapore, and contributions from scholars and policymakers from the U.S., Singapore, the United Kingdom, and India.
Download the uncorrected Transcript here (DPM Tharman, from page 11)

See the event website here

Wednesday, December 2, 2015

Shanmugam: AHPETC Shortfall Could Affect Residents’ Pockets

Don’t play a game of smoke and mirrors, says Minister for Law and Home Affairs K Shanmugam about the Aljunied-Hougang Punggol East Town Council (AHPETC) saga.

PUBLISHED 01 DECEMBER 2015 6:00PM SGT

By Simon Vincent

The Aljunied-Hougang Punggol East Town Council (AHPETC) saga is back in the spotlight after the Court of Appeal ordered the town council to appoint an accountant to manage its funds.

"... the conduct was terrible and unlawful. Money was going out through the front door. They were giving money to their friends without proper checks and balances — millions of dollars. "

In an exclusive interview with SIX-SIX.COM, Minister for Law and Home Affairs K Shanmugam weighs in on the matter, not sparing sharp words.

“What I would say is this, in February — in the debates in Parliament — I said the conduct was terrible and unlawful. Money was going out through the front door. They were giving money to their friends without proper checks and balances — millions of dollars.

“These are public funds.

“It should never have happened, and they were refusing to be transparent about it or honest about it, refusing to account to the public for their actions and that is why MND (Ministry of National Development) and HDB (Housing Development Board) had to take out the application.”

The MND had first requested the High Court to appoint an accountant to manage AHPETC’s funds. This was rejected, but the Court of Appeal has now granted it.

On this reversal, Mr Shanmugam says, “The High Court found the conduct atrocious, but thought that it didn't have the power to appoint accountants. The Court of Appeal has disagreed with that...and has directed that an accountant goes in, writes a report every month (and the) copy is given to HDB, which can make it public.

“The Court of Appeal said ‘you top up the sinking funds, and if you don't have the money, increase the S&CC (service and conservancy charges).’ This comes directly from the pockets of the residents.”

Will residents pay dearly for WP's mismanagement of Town Council Funds?

Pritam Singh, the chairman of AHPETC, said the town council " will comply with all the orders made by the Court". However, Mr Shanmugam questions the honesty of Singh and WP Chairperson Sylvia Lim.

“Ms Sylvia Lim gave a series of answers which the High Court said were highly misleading, in fact, false. So Parliament was misled.

“... they have no system of identifying the S&CC — who has paid and who hasn’t paid — as basic as that. It’s shambolic and it’s a serious state of affairs.”

“Mr Pritam Singh did his own act by saying he won’t answer to Parliament. He’s the champion of transparency, he’s the champion of democracy, but when it comes to his own conduct, he said, ‘I won’t answer to you, not in Parliament. If you are my resident I will answer to you.’ Then Sam Tan (Minister of State) stood up and said, ‘I am your resident, answer to me,’ and he (Singh) said nothing.

“As the Court of Appeal pointed out,” says Mr Shanmugam, “they have no system of identifying the S&CC — who has paid and who hasn’t paid — as basic as that. It’s shambolic and it’s a serious state of affairs.”

Is AHPETC finally going to crash down due to WP's incompetence and mismanagement?

When asked what he would like the outcome of the whole AHPETC saga to be, he says, “Tell the truth. Where did the money go? How much? What was the money spent on? Don’t play a game of smoke and mirrors. Just come clean and apologise for what has happened.

“Don’t pretend that nothing has happened. And make good the losses. People's money has been lost through poor conduct. Yes, it is politically damaging to admit it, but better to admit it, put the money back, take the necessary action, disclose all of the data, face the consequences … that is the way to do things.”

The AHPETC is now the Aljunied-Hougang Town Council (AHTC) after the WP lost its Punggol East ward in GE2015. The ward will now merge with the People’s Action Party’s (PAP) Pasir Ris-Punggol ward.

The Pasir Ris-Punggol Town Council (PRPTC) will start operations from 22 December, after renovation works are completed.

Source:

Six-Six.com - AHPETC Shortfall Could Affect Residents’ Pockets: Shanmugam

http://six-six.com/article/ahpetc-shortfall-could-affect-residents-pockets-shanmugam

Thursday, October 15, 2015

Moody's gives HDB top Aaa credit rating

The credit rating agency cites the Housing and Development Board's strong fiscal oversight and financial support offered by the Singapore Government.

CNA, POSTED: 15 Oct 2015 09:45 UPDATED: 15 Oct 2015 09:52

SINGAPORE: Credit rating agency Moody's assigned its strongest rating to the Housing and Development Board (HDB), citing its close integration with national policies, as well as the strong fiscal oversight and financial support offered to the housing agency by the Singapore Government.

Apart from the Aaa rating for the HDB, which is on par with the rating assigned to the Singapore Government, Moody's also issued a provisional (P)Aaa rating to HDB's S$32 billion Multi-currency Medium Term Note (MTN) programme.

"The ratings reflect HDB's strong and close linkage with the government of Singapore (Aaa, stable) and our view that, if required, liquidity support would be forthcoming from the government," said the credit rating agency in a press release issued on Thursday (Oct 15).

"Given the key policy role that the HDB plays in the provision of housing and its related social objectives, and the close oversight and involvement of the government in its operations, we believe that the rating of HDB should be the same as the government of Singapore.

"HDB's function as a policy arm of the Singapore government and its status as a statutory board created by the government are clear indications of its integration with the government and therefore supports the link in their credit quality."

Moody's noted that the HDB's role extended beyond being just the primary public housing arm of the government of Singapore, but also to promoting the government's social objectives, "including encouraging married people to have children, caring for the elderly, fostering multi-generational households and ensuring social cohesion".

Also contributing to the top-level rating is the fiscal oversight applied by the Government, with control exercised through board members and Chief Executive Officer who are appointed by the Minister for National Development and with the President of Singapore's concurrence, and an audited budget.

DEBTS OFFSET

While HDB's deficits remain high - growing steadily from S$427 million in FY2011/12, or 6.6 per cent of revenues, to S$2 billion in FY2014/15, or 20.4% of revenues - Moody's noted that the deficit are "more than fully covered" by the Government.

"Strong financial support also ensures that HDB meets all of its financial and debt obligations. Most of HDB's activities are unprofitable and the size of its annual and growing losses reflect its social mission of providing affordable public housing," said Moody's.

The size of HDB's deficits are therefore in effect determined each year by the government, based on their decisions of how much and what type of public housing to construct and what level of subsidy to provide to the population.

"Any concerns regarding HDB's level of indebtedness are offset by the government's role in HDB's borrowing strategy, as well as its capacity and willingness to provide liquidity support, if required."

Due to the close links between Government policy and HDB finances, Moody's cautioned that any downgrade of the Singapore government's Aaa rating would result in the downgrade of HDB's rating. Similarly, any change in the institutional arrangements that would weaken the strong linkages with the government could lead to downward pressure on the rating, it added.

- CNA/es

Source: Channel News Asia
http://www.channelnewsasia.com/news/singapore/moody-s-gives-hdb-top-aaa/2193934.html