While Singapore is progressively reopening, Lee said the country was only at the beginning phase of the battle against COVID and that a long struggle lies ahead.
Lee and other PAP leaders have forecast that there would be more business closures, more retrenchments and a rise in unemployment in the coming months as economies around the world continue to reel from the COVIDled downturn. They stressed during campaigning that the government is determined to not only save as many jobs as possible, but also create new jobs.
At the same time, businesses and industries receive help to ride out the crisis and restructure themselves. Among the initiatives, the National Jobs Council, helmed by Senior Minister Tharman Shanmugaratnam, has pledged to create , jobs and training opportunities over the next year.
To see ourselves through safely, we need a capable and committed leadership team, working closely with a resolute and united people, enjoying full trust and confidence in one another Please vote for me and my PAP team. Most of the parties were unhappy at the decision to hold the election amid the COVID pandemic, as they felt it had put the more vulnerable citizens under undue risks of infection. Opposition parties argued that the scheme prevents the opposition from sinking roots in a constituency, and was a ploy used by the PAP to entice voters not to vote for opposition candidates.
For a brief period, media attention was diverted to Raeesah Khan, WP candidate for Sengkang GRC, who was embroiled in a police investigation over her social media posts. Raeesah had purportedly made remarks that attempted to sow racial enmity and cast aspersions on the integrity of the judiciary.
While the younger Lee did not contest in the GE, his presence at several PSP walkabouts, as well as his online speeches in support of the party, drew heavy media attention. While opposition parties have strongly criticised the controversial law, they have complied when issued the correction directions.
Live: GE polling draws to a close, Singaporeans await results. GE Opposition parties outraged by last-minute extension to voting hours to 10pm.
GE Voting hours extended to 10pm, first time ever; higher turnout vs GE Russian animal rescuers are fighting for the life of an Amur tiger cub who was found dying from exhaustion and frostbite in the country's far east. Iran has sent back to prison from house arrest French-Iranian academic Fariba Adelkhah, her Paris-based support group said Wednesday, a shock development in the midst of hugely delicate talks on the Iranian nuclear drive.
European Union ministers said Thursday that they would not negotiate with Russia over Ukraine's future while Moscow was massing troops at its neighbour's border. That was because at some point after glaucoma blinded my right eye, back pain became my regular companion, dripping urine soil my under pant and forgetting why I entered the kitchen, I realized that age has caught with me and I need to prioritize my remaining time on earth. Am I the kind of person who has the grit to achieve what I plan to do or traipse my life aimlessly?.
I think the latter is more likely as lack of motivation is one of my foible In Singapore, life expectancy is. Somehow, lately I felt the sense of life finality creeping deeper into my sense of reality especially with the recent passing of my two old friends, aged 75 and I am in the group of elderly people who is more vulnerable to the pandemic.
Today 9thOct , 11 more seniors, aged between 56 to 90, have died from complication linked to Covid The average age of the dead is 78 and are mainly seniors who had various underlying medical condition.
The media also tersely reminds us not to be alarmed with the current high infection rate of over 3, cases and 10 over death a day. They reiterate that death of seniors is an inevitable occurrence.
Elderly are going to die one way or the other, sooner or later, a collateral damage, nothing more. I know human is mortal and death is an eventuality. I am slowly learning to embrace it but the current Health Ministry's mixed messages are as in double bind. Confusing regulations like restricting my freedom of social interactions, safe distancing, home quarantine and in particular, banning me from having my beer at my favorite coffee shop with my six regular kakis max.
Why five overseas VIP can dine together at a table in a restaurant but not locals?. Whatever little "socializing freedom" I have is now gone as I have to confine myself inside my flat as much as possible to avoid getting myself and others infected.
Its for your own good they say especially if you are elderly.. The first time I appreciate and value freedom was when I was remanded for a week in a Johore prison for alleged immigration offenses un-chopped passport. The loss of freedom in a prison was intolerable and an awakening. I was at the mercy of the Malay sian authorities and freedom was uncertain. Strangely, I felt the current Covid restrictions inflicts the same loss of freedom on me like I was in that Johore prison 15 years ago.
In comparison, what was my life like before Covid, two years ago and now,.. Before Covid 19, travelling to regional countries was my first love, followed by socializing with old friends like chatting and having meals cum beer in coffee shops. It was then that we read of the raging Covid 19 virus in China, causing border lockdowns and death in the thousands there. Initially, like our PM, we casually dismissed the virus as a seasonal flu.
We proceeded with purchase of our air-tickets but eventually got a refund three months later when air travel was banned within a week after our ticket purchase. Another affinity of mine before Covid19, was drinking beer and exchanging banality in coffeeshop on weekends with old friends. It gives me a reason to stay alive. Usually, before we got tipsy, we talk about travelling, eating, horse racing, football, kampong days, driving, children and grandchildren, rising cost of living and Covid but never on politics and religion.
These two topics are taboo as we are former urchins in modern Singapore. However, sometimes a bomb or gem is dropped. The table would fall silent for a minute in antipathy and then a smart Alex would pique the group and start to talks about why our crowded MRT trains and buses has no safe distancing enforcement. In retrospect, living the past two years in Singapore with a severe pandemic somewhat changed my perspective of life.
I am no longer anxious or fearful of what lies ahead. My responsibilities to place food on the table and a roof over my family are taken care through a fully paid HDB mortgage, CPF Life, saving and my adult children support.
My wants are plenty but my needs are few. My friends are becoming fewer and I embrace solitude. Stressed, senile or depressed for staying more at home alone?. No, not for me. I prefer airy cool home than hot humid weather outside. I had enough of "running" all over Singapore as a cabby for the last decade.
Home is relaxing. Netflix, football streaming, browsing Facebook and other social media platforms takes up most of my wakening hours. Siesta is mandatory and beer drinking is an occasional bonus. Exercising is something I must do but I kept procrastinating. Cooking and gardening are my new hobbies.
I sleep whenever I am bored or sleepy and by the Grace of God, I have no problem sleeping easily at night. Sadly, I wake up periodically in the middle of the night to urinate due to enlarged prostate, a normal old age ailment.
I enjoy simple pleasures of life like smelling the fragrant of blooming flowers in my corridor garden and playing games with my grandchildren. Generally, I am contented and happy with whatever little I have. On reflection of my working life as a taxi driver in Singapore for the last 10 years, I think I have been on many roads that are never travelled by most drivers. I notice the landscape of Singapore has changed dramatically in the last decade. She looks different by each passing day as new roads are paved and widen, large forested areas are cleared for new housing estates and condominiums, new MRT stations and business hubs are built.
She is undoubtedly becoming a concrete city soon. If I drive a cab today, I will probably miss my routes. Some locations look strange as familiar landmarks are gone. Old folks depend on familiarity to get around comfortably and seldom like to venture into unknown areas. I come from a family selling bicycles and I love cycling since young.
But at my present age, cycling can be dangerous although I am a skillful rider and has the energy to paddle the wheels for short distances. They could maul and kill you if you slake in your attention as they are stronger and merciless. Sadly, walking on our narrow sidewalks is like cycling on the busy roads. Danger is everywhere. Alas, living my twilight years in the world most expensive city state of Singapore, with few open space, packed MTR trains and buses, and an authoritarian regime with rigid controls and draconian laws, gets me thinking every day of wanting to fly out like a bird in a cage.
I dream of living in an wooden house with electricity and clean water along a sandy beach in a Malaysian, Thailand or Philippine village.
The cool sea breeze would invigorates me. This weekend 4D lottery is my only hope to make my dream comes true. In looking through my journal recently, I came across a summary of a passenger's rhetoric on Singapore Government under PAP.
Here is one story in my journal that stands out from the rest. January 31, -- I picked up a sixty-something Chinese man in Jurong and drove him to the airport, a thirty-minute ride, at 4 a. He told me he worked for many years as an accountant in various MNC and was leaving Singapore for good.
He was joining his son in New Zealand and planned to work part-time or retire there. I was shocked beyond words and almost fell off my driving seat. Before I could interrupt him in his sudden and long rhetoric that lasted the whole trip, he fished out his cellphone and asked me for my phone number. I kept his interesting abomination of PAP till today and would like to share it with you now in the spirit of an imminent Singapore general election.
In his speech, he urged Singaporeans to vote for a government that will protect their health, jobs and future. For Mr Tan Jee Say, it is a return to both party and constituency, something he said is "happy" with. We know it's a hassle to switch browsers but we want your experience with CNA to be fast, secure and the best it can possibly be. To continue, upgrade to a supported browser or, for the finest experience, download the mobile app.
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