Sturtles 6th Gear November 13, 2013 Share November 13, 2013 Haven't read through the thread, but this is the first reasonably sane comment in it. And, for the record, I am perfectly willing to pay more for public transport if it means that Singaporeans are going to be willing to take these jobs *and* they will be hired preferentially. However, I do question the sanity of running the "public" transport service as a "private" company - and then removing the most important public benefit of privatisation, which is free competition in an anti-monopolistic environment. Then there are other irregularities, like this "gift" of a billion dollars to a "private" company, which is perfectly content to act exactly as such (e.g. when it decommissions its assets, it doesn't give them back to the public, instead selling them overseas and pocketing the money - I'm talking about the old buses ending up in Thailand). The economics of running a privatized transport monopoly is not clear to me, but in all sense, it would be politically motivated to disengage the negativities of the rising fares and poor services with the government. However, when MPs are appointed to its BOD, it warps this logic. In the private sector, they are supposed to maximize income, disregarding their second MP hat, there lies the conflict of interest. Definitely, privatizing of essential services is a no-no. We will be at the mercy of whomever owns these monolopoly entities imo, be it MPs or foreigners. Our economic defence is Zero when the foreign owned power companies in Singapore decide to make a loss and stop producing power. ↡ Advertisement 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jman888 Moderator November 13, 2013 Share November 13, 2013 (edited) Just hoping the concession that they are considering, do give Poly/undergrad the same concession as the secondary school student. Also minimum flat fare (or free) to senior citizen. Edited November 13, 2013 by Jman888 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Carnoob Supercharged November 13, 2013 Share November 13, 2013 (edited) I applause for the salary increase for bus drivers, this is really needed boost for the employment. However, I frowned at the comments of service quality should not be linked with fare "adjustments". We paid more for better quality or better quantity? More buses = Better Service? How about the bus captains? Higher pay = Higher quality? No wonder they are so against nationalizing public transport. Give $1.1mil get back $2.2mil... From public funds to private savings... Edited November 13, 2013 by Carnoob 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mustank Hypersonic November 13, 2013 Share November 13, 2013 I applause for the salary increase for bus drivers, this is really needed boost for the employment. However, I frowned at the comments of service quality should not be linked with fare "adjustments". We paid more for better quality or better quantity? More buses = Better Service? How about the bus captains? Higher pay = Higher quality? No wonder they are so against nationalizing public transport. Give $1.1mil get back $2.2mil... From public funds to private savings... 1.1 is not million is billion Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
The_Bear Turbocharged November 13, 2013 Share November 13, 2013 The economics of running a privatized transport monopoly is not clear to me, but in all sense, it would be politically motivated to disengage the negativities of the rising fares and poor services with the government. However, when MPs are appointed to its BOD, it warps this logic. In the private sector, they are supposed to maximize income, disregarding their second MP hat, there lies the conflict of interest. Definitely, privatizing of essential services is a no-no. We will be at the mercy of whomever owns these monolopoly entities imo, be it MPs or foreigners. Our economic defence is Zero when the foreign owned power companies in Singapore decide to make a loss and stop producing power. I don't know if you noticed but a lot our essential services are already privatized. Public Transport - Checked Media - Checked Utilities - Checked Telecommunications - Checked Health care - Checked The list goes on and on and on. Even companies that provide background services. 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Coolad 5th Gear November 13, 2013 Share November 13, 2013 Ppl want Sinkies to be priority choice when it comes to hiring. If they dun pay bus captains $3.5k/mth no Sinkie will take the job. "Be careful what you wish for" sounds familiar? If dun want increase fare hire cheap foreigners lor. But it's too late to kao peh now. FW are necessary but not the so-called FT which more often than not are even more expensive than our local counterparts... locals PMET are being replaced at an increasing rate for the last 5-10years... this is worrying... Again the gahment has shown that they have lost touch with the ground... now cutting FW and barely touching those so-called FTs... or so its seems tat they are afraid to challenge MNCs on hiring policy and just do a witch hunt "show" on those weak SMEs (which do really need FW) Skewed implementations... target wrong group of foreigners... this is the report card of world most highly paid politicians... 3 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mustank Hypersonic November 13, 2013 Share November 13, 2013 I don't know if you noticed but a lot our essential services are already privatized. Public Transport - Checked Media - Checked Utilities - Checked Telecommunications - Checked Health care - Checked The list goes on and on and on. Even companies that provide background services. thats why people say Sg is not country but is SG Inc FW are necessary but not the so-called FT which more often than not are even more expensive than our local counterparts... locals PMET are being replaced at an increasing rate for the last 5-10years... this is worrying... Again the gahment has shown that they have lost touch with the ground... now cutting FW and barely touching those so-called FTs... or so its seems tat they are afraid to challenge MNCs on hiring policy and just do a witch hunt "show" on those weak SMEs (which do really need FW) Skewed implementations... target wrong group of foreigners... this is the report card of world most highly paid politicians... whoa!!! scary man!!! Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Coolad 5th Gear November 13, 2013 Share November 13, 2013 thats why people say Sg is not country but is SG Inc whoa!!! scary man!!! True, still possible coz supported by the last generations of free "defence" provided by the core Singaporeans doing NS after tat maybe can hire French foreign legion .... coz true Singaporeans that need to serve NS are no longer enuff... going extinct liao... but then again,,, maybe nobody wants to come here anymore.. no more "gold" to dig... empty liao Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Carnoob Supercharged November 13, 2013 Share November 13, 2013 1.1 is not million is billion Wah!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Apvman 2nd Gear November 13, 2013 Share November 13, 2013 Haven't read through the thread, but this is the first reasonably sane comment in it. And, for the record, I am perfectly willing to pay more for public transport if it means that Singaporeans are going to be willing to take these jobs *and* they will be hired preferentially. However, I do question the sanity of running the "public" transport service as a "private" company - and then removing the most important public benefit of privatisation, which is free competition in an anti-monopolistic environment. Then there are other irregularities, like this "gift" of a billion dollars to a "private" company, which is perfectly content to act exactly as such (e.g. when it decommissions its assets, it doesn't give them back to the public, instead selling them overseas and pocketing the money - I'm talking about the old buses ending up in Thailand). HAHAHA... u wait long long.. up till now, SMRT and SBS have not published the numbers to the number of locals n FT hired as drivers... And somemore, they have the shareholders to answer. So what do u think... will the fare increase? The answer is so obivious... Despite of the increase in the budget for transportation... knn.. our bus condition still like shit.. some bus aircon like no aircon.. hot like hell... some drivers attitude problems... taking their own sweet time to drive slowly... some f**king drivers.. u ask them if the bus passby a place.. THEY DONT KNOW.. And our government is so protective to the FT.. I wonder when they will wake up ..Maybe after 2016? Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lurpsexx 6th Gear November 13, 2013 Share November 13, 2013 $1.1b is taxpayers' monies..using taxpayers' monies for "free"..go check up who are the major shareholders of SBS Transit I'm just wondering how the govt is accounting for this $1.1B.. is it a loan to SBS or does the govt owns the buses that they buy with the 1.1b and then let SBS use???? There's a lot of money accounting implications on how this $1.1B is used, and it will affect SBS bottomline, which in turn affects the fares they want to charge us.... Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lurpsexx 6th Gear November 13, 2013 Share November 13, 2013 I don't know if you noticed but a lot our essential services are already privatized. Public Transport - Checked Media - Checked Utilities - Checked Telecommunications - Checked Health care - Checked The list goes on and on and on. Even companies that provide background services. Even though these services are "privatised", they all lead to the same directors and shareholders... who are also in power now... so wat "privatisation" is there? Govt say "jump!" & the pte cos also follow suit as their lapdogs are in charge of these so called "pte" cos. The govt shldn't have privatised the public essential services like transport, and focused on profits and so called competition in the pte sector (wat competition? SBS and SMRT serve totally unique routes and are monopolies with their own areas!).. MRT, Buses shld be managed by the govt, and I'd be OK if they engaged more people to run it well for the social good, instead of letting it privatise to benefit the shareholders at the expense of the commuter's comfort and pocket.... Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jman888 Moderator November 13, 2013 Share November 13, 2013 This is what our Transport Minister said: Mr Lui said: "Wages over the past few years have gone up at a much faster rate than fares, which means that fares have actually become more affordable for the average commuter. This is an important point that I like to emphasise: public transport fares for the average commuter have become more affordable, not less." the ministers should get together and do the 1+1+1+1+1............... before saying ONE thing is affordable although the increase transport alone is nothing to shout about (few cents). Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Knoobie Supercharged November 13, 2013 Share November 13, 2013 just one question : SBS, SMRT making a loss ???? I also don't mind the bus captains getting more pay if I were to just pay 20cents or a dollar more for each ride. But we see SBS, SMRT making more profit every year.. isn't it obvious that that they are cheating on the grounds of raising the fares? Honestly, they are no diff from NKF. Take money liao but go inside own pocket... They interpret it as $37 million + $12 million ("projected" 10% yoy increase in profit) = $49 million loss. LOL....... $83 million profits a year not enough??? Then, our SIA in relative terms how???? Considering they are operating much more expensive transportation equipment and mind you, pilots and air crews are paid much much more than bus drivers. Looking at the profits generated from our bus companies and airlines, if I am given a choice, I will run a bus company in Singapore. Bao tan one without external competition. So good business, why govt want to throw away sia.. Maybe easier to do editing on the accounts?? Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Knoobie Supercharged November 13, 2013 Share November 13, 2013 FW are necessary but not the so-called FT which more often than not are even more expensive than our local counterparts... locals PMET are being replaced at an increasing rate for the last 5-10years... this is worrying... Again the gahment has shown that they have lost touch with the ground... now cutting FW and barely touching those so-called FTs... or so its seems tat they are afraid to challenge MNCs on hiring policy and just do a witch hunt "show" on those weak SMEs (which do really need FW) Skewed implementations... target wrong group of foreigners... this is the report card of world most highly paid politicians... Instead of making the people feel more upper class, they make their people more like peasants.. sooner or later we will end up swipping the roads and clearing the trash for these FTs.. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Vid Hypersonic November 13, 2013 Share November 13, 2013 I don't know if you noticed but a lot our essential services are already privatized. Public Transport - Checked Media - Checked Utilities - Checked Telecommunications - Checked Health care - Checked The list goes on and on and on. Even companies that provide background services. Privatization is just a term or an excuse to earn more profit. The major shareholders remain unchanged. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Knoobie Supercharged November 13, 2013 Share November 13, 2013 I'm just wondering how the govt is accounting for this $1.1B.. is it a loan to SBS or does the govt owns the buses that they buy with the 1.1b and then let SBS use???? There's a lot of money accounting implications on how this $1.1B is used, and it will affect SBS bottomline, which in turn affects the fares they want to charge us.... written off as "donation to the public"? I don't know if you noticed but a lot our essential services are already privatized. Public Transport - Checked Media - Checked Utilities - Checked Telecommunications - Checked Health care - Checked The list goes on and on and on. Even companies that provide background services. When is SAF going to privatized so we can hire FT to serve for us!!! Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Philipkee Twincharged November 13, 2013 Share November 13, 2013 written off as "donation to the public"? When is SAF going to privatized so we can hire FT to serve for us!!! If i am not wrong SAF food/ rations has been privatised - SFI RT training has been privatised - Outside trainers from what I hear As for SAF in general, we already have a private army (Gurkha contingent). ↡ Advertisement Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
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