WiFi service provided by Starhub

I have been a subscriber to Starhub broadband service for many years. They offer free WiFi services to their subscribers. I did not use it for a long time, as I was quite confused with many IDs used by Starhub for their services.

Recently, I learned that I had a Hub ID, which can be used to access the WiFi. I tried it at Changi Airport and found the surfing speed to be excellent. This is a good service, which many people may not realize, due to the complexity. Having overcome it (at last), I expect to use it quite often. It is much better than Wireless@SG.

Hike in taxi fares

I like the articles written by Lucky Tan. We both share the same philosophy about what is right and what is good. Here are his views about the hike in taxi fares. He said that it is better to allow taxi drivers to work for themselves, rather than to hire a taxi from a taxi company. What are your views?

http://singaporemind.blogspot.com/2011/12/taxi-fare-hikes-and-what-is-wrong-with.html

Balloting for priority

I sent this letter to the Straits Times but it was not published. What are your views?

Editor 

Forum Page

Straits Times

I read the news report about the long queue that was formed that was formed a few days earlier for new launch of Bedok Residences. 

This system is archaic and poses hygiene and social problems and could lead to disputes and disorder. We have also experienced long queues for registration in primary schools and for tickets to popular events. Even online queuing leads to breakdown of the computer systems, due to the heavy demand.

We need to have a more practical way of allocating priority through the balloting system. All interested party should be given sufficient time to register their interest before a closing date. The priority should be decided by ballotting or drawing lots through an electronic system that can be verified to be transparent and fair.

It should be possible for such an online system to be developed that can be shared by any organizer in place of the queuing system. The authority may have to step in to promote such an alternative arrangement, for the sake of transparency and orderliness. 

Tan Kin Lian

Wisdom book - special offer

http://tankinlian.com/admin/file.aspx?id=598

Words from a young mother

Just to say that I'm inspired by your drive and determination! With your positiveness, I'm sure at the end of the day, you are the true winner especially when you truly express your thoughts, statements, missions from your heart.
           
I hope things can really improve and you could help more people no matter which position you are holding on.  I think you are more real than most of them on the top.
        
I came to read more about your info and also scene in the Singapore politics during the GE and the PE. I'm saddened that Singapore is transforming to a money hungry machine, no more culture, values, substances, honesty, harmony and even sometimes integrity.
        
I'm worried for the next generation wat kind of society they are living in, where they tear down good old memories like national stadium, library, and the cement playground with sand now being replace with the sandless ones plastic ones where you can see foam tiles poking out for months.
      
I read about your articles and understand every single bit; there is no public service mentality any more in ALL government sector. they face no crisis and get bonus no matter how bad. But people  who work in private have not smell even AWS bonus for many years.

How can government sector doing better than private? Yes, you mention about wasteful  environment... I definitely agree. I have pick up so many furnitures around my estate and it's enough to have a complete set in my home, and out pathetic Resident Committee is just not doing much about educating this issue.... sigh....

Overall Singapore is not same any more... other monetary gains for some of them, I see the everyone living in fear for the future because they don't know how much they need in THEIR land.


Regards

Encourage the use of eNETS

I have been using Paypal to receive payments for two years. It was easy to set up and worked well. The cost was low.

Recently, I enquired about joining eNETS to receive payment through debit cards. The registration process was difficult. I had to provide a lot of information on their online form. I also had to print out 40 pages of information and sign several documents. I had to get supporting documents from ACRA, certification, etc.

No wonder so few merchants use eNETS. The paperwork is so tedious that most merchants would be discouraged from even trying it. There is really no need to make the process so difficult for a small merchant. I suspect that it is the requirement of the DBS bank and probably of MAS.

I wish that the process could be simplified so that more merchants are encouraged to join eNETS and receive payments through this channel, rather than making payment by cheque.  The burdensome requirements are hindering the process of change to more efficient ways of making payment. I hope that MAS and IDA read this blog and take the leadership to improve the situation in Singapore.

New regulations on financial products

A journalist ask me this question:
Hi Mr Tan,

Are you familiar with the Specified Investment Product rules that take effect from Jan 1 next year?

I would like your thoughts on the new rules as I can see a few potential problems such as raising the cost of selling investment products by forcing many people to go offline when purchasing unit trusts, ETFs etc?

Also, it does seem strange to group plain vanilla mutual funds with more complex hedge funds, structured warrants etc.

My reply

This is creating a lot of wasteful work without tackling the root of the problem. It is typical in Singapore to pass the buck to someone else, in this case the financial adviser or the relationship manager - but how on earth are they going to give the proper advice? Many relationship manager sold the toxic products to the consumers prior to the global financial crisis - because they are not suitable to give this type of advice. But (sigh), this is the Singapore way!

Asking for board resolution

Singapore continues to be quite backward, with ridiculous requirements that increases business cost and continues inefficient practices.

I wanted to send instructions by fax, instead of by mail. DBS Bank requires me to sign a form (which is all right) but they also require a board resolution and a letter of indemnity to the bank. I do not know why it is necessary to have this troublesome requirement. As the authorized signatory of the bank account, I can write a check to pay out all the money in the bank, but I am not allowed to give an authorization to the bank to make the transfer by fax!

This requirement is probably made on the advice of the lawyer and the security consultant. The bank does not realize that it is technically quite troublesome to pass a board resolution - and it has to and go through proper secretarial procedure and filed with ACRA. A bank with good customer service can receive the fax, and call back by telephone to verify the request (in case it is sent fraudulently), rather than insist on this indemnity.

Because of their impractical requirement, I will have to continue sending request by ordinary mail - continuing the outdated, inefficient practices. This is good news for Singapore Post but it adds to the cost of doing business and to the tons of wasteful paperwork in Singapore.

  

American politics and financial disaster

I do not understand how it is possible to extend the payroll tax cut and also extend the unemployment benefit at the same time. I understand that the payroll tax is used to fund the unemployment benefit and social security. If the payroll tax is cut, then the social security (i.e. old age pensions and unemployment benefit) has to be reduced - not extended. American politics has reach a ridiculous level. http://www.cnbc.com//id/45549974

NavFone - navigation on the iPhone/ iPad

I have installed the NavFone (from AGIS) on my iPad. I bought it for $2.99. It is excellent, and works better than the GPS navigation that I installed in my car (which cost nearly $300). It is easy to use and have map for Singapore and Malaysia. My challenge is to install a holder for my iPad in my car, so it can provide navigation guidance while I am driving. 

Singapore Immigration Form

This is the immigration form that Singapore requires visitors to complete before they are allowed to enter into Singapore.

A lot of information asked in this form is available in the passport which are scanned before they are allowed in. Why impose on the visitors the hassle of writing the information on the immigration form?

I hope that the immigration authorities of the Asean countries will discuss and remove this requirement, which is out of date. We have to reduce the inconvenience and stress that are given to travellers.

Panasonic Air conditioner

The air conditioner in my office was spoilt. The fault was identified to be a faulty condenser. It was installed recently and was still under warranty.

The Panasonic engineer came to fix the problem last Thursday. They were not able to solve it. They promised to come on Friday or Monday. We did not hear from them. We called their office and nobody knew who was responsible for it. My office did not have air con for 3 working days, excluding weekends.

I am worried about the poor standard of service, from a large reputable company. My air con contractor (a small SME) is helping me to chase them. But the big company seem to be not bothered about customer service or the inconvenience that they cause to their customers.

Putting things right

There are many things that are wrong in Singapore. They have accumulated over the years. These wrong things have increased costs and add stress to the public. They are imposed by government bureaucracy or by business organizations.

I want to raise these issues, so that they can be recognized and hopefully be put right. I do not wish to make complaints for the sake of being negative. But, if we really want to make improvements, we must point them out in a positive manner.

They are many people who said, "What is the point?". Things will never change. I do not agree with this negative approach. I think that if many people come forward and say, "We do not like things to get worse - we want things to be made better", then there is the chance for a change.

Difficulty to access website of DBS Bank

I log in to the DBS website to access my corporate banking account. I have to enter the organisation ID, user ID, user password and also a 8 digit number from the 2FA token. It was quite troublesome. to remember so many details - so I have to refer to a printed paper (which is really quite risky).  After this procedure, the website hang. I tried 3 times, and it kept getting hang.

I contacted DBS and told me about my problem. Why do they need a 8 digit token number, which was quite difficult to remember (on top of level of details to be entered). The answer - "security". Most banks use 6 digits, which is easier to remember. Eight digits is over-doing the security.

They are not able to explain why their website hang. They did not have the issue with other customers, so it must be my fault. However, I also log in to the website of another bank, and went through easily.

I suspected that the website hang because I was using the Chrome browser. I tried again with Internet Explorer and it went through.  It seemed that they have implemented some additional security that caused trouble with Chrome. (Actually, there are websites of several other large organizations with similar problems).

I wish to share this feedback, so that our large business organizations and government agencies are aware about the problems that their online processes are causing to their customers, and how the over-reliance on "security" (usually made at the suggestion of their security consultants) are making the websites quite impractical and difficult to use.

Waste of resources

I observe that many students spend a few years in polytechnic and university to take up an engineering, IT or other courses, but work in other occupations after graduating. It is a big waste of resources. Why can't they enrol for the course that they will finally work in?

Our economy needs people in transport, so they should learn how to drive and where the roads are, for example. The other occupations in demand are in the service and food industry. These can be meaningful occupations - provided that they get adequate pay (and are not depressed by the use of foreign workers).

Share your views.

Taxation and public spending

The US Government has fairly generous welfare payouts and large spending to run their country and maintain a strong military. But they refused to raise the taxes to pay for their expenses. They even want to cut the payroll tax (which is used to fund social security, old age pension and medical care), when these funds are in big deficit.
http://www.cnbc.com//id/45542292

Good mobile apps on smart phone and tablets

Share your experience on good mobile apps that run on various smart phone and tablets. You can post here or at www.facebook.com/kinlian.

Kudos to Nanyang Polytechnic

Nanyang Polytechnic sent to me, by e-mail, two PDFs containing details of their student internship programme for 2012 and another PDF containing an application form. I printed the application form, completed it neatly within 10 minutes (as they only asked for essential information) and faxed it to them. I was not required to log into a website and fill up an online form - thank goodness!

This is the easiest form that I have to complete to a government agency, in this case a polytechnic. To reciprocate their kindness, I completed the form neatly in block letters. If I miss out any essential information, they can always reply to me by e-mail.

I wish to thank the management of Nanyang Polytechnic for being considerate to the public.

Live a happy life

Here are some tips to live a happy life, while you are still alive.
http://exposingthetruth.info/top-five-regrets-of-the-dying/

Wireless@SG and 3G

The IDA wishes to encourage more people to use the free WiFi service called Wireless@SG, so as to reduce the data load on the 3G network.  Why are people using the chargeable 3G instead of the free WiFi service? There are many WiFi hotspots, and users can save on the data charge and also get faster access.

I hardly use Wireless@SG because it is quite troublesome to login to many hotspots, especially on a mobile hone. What is your experience?

Hard for the PAP to change

Read this analysis by Alex Au
http://yawningbread.wordpress.com/2011/12/03/four-barriers-to-remaking-the-pap/

Wasteful procedure (2)

This letter was not published by the Straits Times

27 November 2011

Editor, Forum Page

Straits Times

I support the suggestion by Mr. Tan Kin Lian asking to review the outdated procedure for getting the replacement of a lost title deed.

I find that advertising the loss of the title deed is unnecessary and a waste of time and money, as I had a similar experience sometime ago. After all, how many people bother to read the classified advertisements in the papers? 

The reply given by the Director of the Land Title Registry shows that this government is inflexible in their policy, and is still clinging to outdated procedures, or does not care about the unnecessary cost and expenses that they are imposing on the citizens.

William Tay

 

Wasteful procedure

This letters was not published by the Straits Times.

26 November 2011 

Editor

Forum Page

Straits Times

I refer to the reply "Why notice on property cert is crucial" from the Director, Land Titles Registry.

The Director justified the requirement for an advertisement in the Straits Times on the following grounds:

• to alert the public of the lost certificate and to prevent is improper use
• a similar requirement applies to Australia and Canada

I wish to ask the Director to clarify the following:

• how could the certificate be used improperly, when there is a requirement for any interest in the property to be lodged through a caveat with the Registry
• how many cases of advertisements were made in recent years and how many instances were the public notified through the advertisements 
• whether Australia and Canada has a system of registry of land titles that is similar to Singapore that could prevent improper use?
• if other countries, e.g. UK and the USA, have done away with this archaic requirement?
• if the advertisement in a website could have served the purpose, without the need to advertise in the newspaper?

I wish to encourage our government agencies to update our requirements and procedures to reduce cost to the public, without increasing the risk of fraud and abuse.

Tan Kin Lian

Singapore is quite backward

In spite of our banks spending hundreds of million dollars on their I.T. systems, Singapore is actually quite backward. Many people write checks and mail them to their payees.

I have just written a check to pay my subscription to a professional body in Singapore. I have to mail the check to the organization.

In a more advanced society, I could pay by credit card or by bank transfer. The professional body in Singapore does not allow this form of payment because the process is quite a hassle. It is a hassle to make a one time payment in Singapore and also a hassle for the receiving party to identify who has made the payment.

In other countries, the payer will use internet banking. The receiving party receives receives the payment with the necessary details to handle their processing. It would have been much more convenient for all parties.

I believe that the backward processes in Singapore is probably due to requirements by the Monetary Authority of Singapore. Some of these requirements, whether in the name of security or anti-money laundering measures, are implemented mindlessly, making the measures to be quite impractical. But, sadly, this is Singapore. I hope that MAS will get advice from practical people on some of their measures, and can make a judgement on security and practicality.

Read this blog from Mr. Brown. I share the same sentiment. http://www.mrbrown.com/blog/2011/12/now-you-can-e-bank-with-more-peace-of-mind-but-with-bigger-pain-of-ass.html?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+mrbrown+%28mrbrown%29

I made a payment of a subscription to a professional body in the UK. It was quite easy. I paid through my credit card.

My friend from the UK was surprised that people in Singapore are still signing cheques and authorisation to his bank. He said that in the UK, he only needed to give a personal PIN number for all his transaction with the bank, and has never use his signature with any of his transactions with his bank for years!

Middle Class Squeeze

Lucky Tan wrote this interesting article about the Middle Class Squeeze. He said that luzury cars, including Ferraris, now take up nearly 50% of the new car market in Singapore. http://singaporemind.blogspot.com/2011/12/middle-class-squeeze.html

A new 1 bed room condo at Lorong Chuan goes for upwards of $538K. A quick calculation shows the cheapest 1 bed room unit in the development is sold at a price that is 17 years of a median income worker's total income. If he uses his income fully to service his condo, he will take 17 years...nothing left for food, clothing, utilities etc. What is prudent for someone earning the median income is a small HDB flat which is shrinking over time[Shrinking HDB flats due to need to maximise land and to adapt] and public transport which is now so crowded it is like a cattle ferry. There is also the problem of healthcare which is rising at double digits and outstripping median income growth. If you look at the Singapore worker in the middle earning the median income wage, his quality of life is not equal to a middle income worker in a developed country. Its gets worse as we go down the wage scale. When we get close to the bottom which is quite far down since there is no minimum wage, we have 350,000 workers who work full time but cannot make ends meet and depend on workfare to survive[Older, low-wage workers get Workfare bonus ] - these workers will never accumulate enough savings to retire and have to work their whole lives.

Excellent app on iPad (Go There)

I downloaded an excellent app on iPad called GoThere. It is easy to use and provide transport options by car, train, bus and driving. The app cost $2.99 and is excellent value. It is especially helpful if I have to take a bus or train, instead of driving. There is another app called "Show Nearby" which is free, and is also very good.

40% discount on 5 book bundle

Enjoy a 40% discount on these 5 book bundle.
http://easyapps.sg/iShop2/ProductInfo.aspx?id=44

Order can be placed here: www.tankinlian.com/ishop

New Wisdom Book

New Wisdom Book

Wisdom on How to Live Life (Book 4): Transforming Earth into Heaven

Humans being the most intelligent species and having lived on Earth for thousands of years, we are yet nowhere near to a life of peace, love, joy and harmony. This book contains a hypothetical story of a young man, Tom, who had a fifth conversation with Guru Harry. This is a continuation of their first four conversations which are contained in the books “Wisdom on How to Live Life”, “Wisdom on How to Live Life (Book 2)”, and “Wisdom on How to Live Life (Book 3)”. Guru Harry epitomizes someone from a spiritual society who offers a way of living which can lead to peace, love, joy and harmony.

Through this fifth conversation, Tom learnt that (1) why we should not disrespect those who are at a lower level of development, (2) why we cannot hear things spiritually, (3) what is the pleasure that everybody can afford to enjoy, (4) what is the catch in evolving spiritually, (5) how to practice “To be in the world but not of it”, (6) why life should not be just about making a living, (7) why we should pay people for doing spiritual work, (8) how to become a master of life, (9) why societies set up all kinds of reward systems, and (10) how to create a heavenly society.

The book can be ordered here.

Defending your online reputation

Here is a service that can be used by small businesses:
http://www.cnbc.com//id/45526165

Stop! Full House

Here is a cartoon by Wing Lee
http://sg-quitters.blogspot.com/2011/12/stop-full-house.html

Market for expensive cars

My friend, who is a permanent resident, told me that Singapore is the largest market for expensive cars, such as the Lambourgini and the Ferrari. This is in spite of our small size. I asked me to send me the the statistics, as I do not recall seeing this report. Can anyone help to verify this?

Invest in an indexed fund

One in four active fund managers beat the index. It is better to invest in an indexed fund and pay low fees. http://www.cnbc.com//id/45524957

Property bubble in China

There are many empty apartments in China.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wm7rOKT151Y&feature=player_embedded

Action by Massachusetts Attorney General

I like to share this story about the legal action that is being taken by the Massachusetts attorney general against several large banks for deceptive banking practices. I applaud the action as it shows that there is accountability and that public officials are willing to take action to safeguard the interest of small consumers. Although American is the place where the bad financial practices originated, and spread around the world, there are still people there who have a sense of duty.

http://money.cnn.com/2011/12/01/news/economy/massachusetts_foreclosure_lawsuit/index.htm?section=money_topstories&utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+rss%2Fmoney_topstories+%28Top+Stories%29

Singapore has followed America in adopting some of the bad practices, such as the bad financial products that were created and sold to consumers. It is time for the Singapore authority to realize that they also have a duty to the public and to stop the bad financial products from being marketed to defraud the public.

Challenges from the global economic system

There is a general worry that slow growth in US and Europe will cause problem to Asia, and especially to China being the largest manufacturer in the world. This could lead to unemployment and unrest.

Think again. Why are we having an economic system where people have to work long hours, just to earn enough money to survive, and along the way, other people have to be unemployed? And we need to keep growing faster, so that they is enough work for people to work long hours just to be employed?

The simple answer is "the majority of people have to work long hours, as slaves, just to earn enough to get by, so that the 1% can be super rich. The worst countries are those with the largest disparity of income between the top 1% and the bottom 99%. Sad to say, Singapore fared among the worst in the world in this measure. This is why we have one of the lowest birth rate in the world and a high level of unhappiness among the people".

What is the solution? Minimum wage (to make sure that people can earn enough with 8 hours of work), control over immigration, better planning and allocation of resources. Singapore fared badly on all three measures, but the situation can be managed, if we pay attention to these matters now.

Be educated on financial matters

Hi Mr. Tan,


Its been a pleasure reading your blog this evening. I've been looking for some investment advice and found your explanation on dual currency investment, which I've admire its simplicity and transparency.

I've got some extra cash in US dollar 50K which are kept in a bank for several year with low yield. With the rate of the inflation nowadays, I feel that that value is depreciating and I'd like to invest on some banking products or instruments which will provide good yield with a medium risk to cover the inflation within 3-5 yrs.

Will you be able to advice me and pretend if its you're money. What will you do? What will be the best option of investment right now in Singapore and amidst this EU crisis?

REPLY
Read this
http://tankinlian.com/Redirect.aspx?PK=6e81acf4a41c102e93b20d62c2a6f8e8

Lack of consideration for the public

30 years ago, an immigration form was the only way to track and monitor the movement of people into and out of a country. There were fewer people travelling in those days. The traveler does not mind filling up the card - as it was the only inconvenience that they have to go through.

Travelling is different today. The traveler has to complete another form - for customer declaration. There is also security check several times before boarding the plane and after arrival. Laptops and metals have to be removed from the bags and put back. The passport and board pass have to be shown a few times during the journey.

While new requirements and hassles are added, the officials forget to remove the old requirements, that are not needed any more. The passports are now scanned electronically, and make the immigration card unnecessary. I believe that millions of cards are collected each year, but are not being used. But nobody cares.

Recently, I collected the immigration card that is being given to non-residents arriving into Singapore. The card is the same as many cards that I have to fill in when I visit other countries. Although Singapore is a more advanced country in the use of technology, and has spent tens of millions on technology, we are still implementing the backward and wasteful requirements on other people.

Give a reply

I find a common experience of sending an e-mail to a friend or to a business contact, and do not receive a reply. I know that they had received it, because they reply when a send a reminder or a follow up reminder. They do not reply because they do not know how to respond, or the request was not clear, or do not have the complete information. It is almost like talking to someone, who does not talk back - just kept silent. Is this the right way to respond? What is a better way?

Learning to use a tablet

We are accustomed to a keyboard and a mouse. The touchscreen on a tablet replaces both of these accessories. This is why the tablet (such as the iPad) is so popular for people on the move.

I used the iPad during my trip to Sri Lanka and Jakarta. I bought a local data card. I was able to serve the Internet and use Google maps. It is light and convenient. It was able to avoid the use of old accessories - that was troublesome to carry around.

I look forward to a system of wifi connection that allows the tablet to be used in many places, without the troublesome registration, login and payment. It should be as seemless as the use of the data card.