National Harmony Or Racial Harmony Comes First?

Chairman of national racial harmony body OnePeople.sg Zainundin Nordin (Bishan-Toa Payoh GRC MP) had asked, "Why would you want to create friction and anger because of your prejudices? By the time your children and grandchildren inherit this country, it's mess, people will start running away."

Zainudin was explaining the rationale for dispatching "racial harmony diplomats" to junior colleges, and later to institutes of higher learning. The initiative, we are told, is a response to derogatory comments attributed to Sun Xu of NUS ("more dogs than humans in Singapore.") and Shimum Lai of Nanyang Poly ("trains need to have separate cabins for humans and fkn dogs"). Police reports were lodged against both parties, presumably by non-canine members of the population. Both are young, and foolishly ranted in what they erroneously assumed was their private domain of cyberspace. Lai's post had the taint of racism, but Sun Xu's case crouched on the realm of xenophobia, which the MP, intentionally or otherwise, missed out on.

Franziska Zimmerman, 37, is Manager, Public Affairs Asia-Pacific, at Syngenta Asia Pacific Pte. Ltd. Elouisa Dalli, 30, is Media & Community Relations Manager, for Syngenta. Both are classic examples of epic fails in respect of their day job requirements. Not exactly babes in the woods, these two are either horribly dense or plain bimbo hires. Any outsider should realise that remarks like "But no one owes anyone else a living; you cannot say you are entitled to jobs in your country" are downright insensitive and political dynamite. Think W.M.D. - Women. Moronically. Demented. The objectives and goals of the Syngenta Foundation are "to work with rural communities in the semiarid regions of the world and improve their livelihoods." Maybe they are more suited to work with farm animals.

One can understand if an employment pass is issued to a rocket scientist, we don't have too many of them here. Or experienced nuclear physicists, those could also justify the import of foreign talent. But our universities and polytechnics produce lots of graduates formally trained in public relations and mass communications. Qualified candidates who not only have the necessary degrees or diplomas but can also speak and appreciate the cultural nuances of languages. We may need the construction labour to work on the infrastructure, but do we need mindless talking heads to ratchet up the frenzy of xenophobia?

Where they come from, an employer has to first demonstrate that a job on offer could not be filled by a Swiss worker or an EU national. If Switzerland makes it difficult for outsiders seeking work, especially those from Third World countries, why should Singapore open the flood-gates for foreign trash like Zimmerman and Dalli?

Zainundin should recognise the presence of negative diplomats introduced into the country by a flawed immigration policy, which stir friction and anger. At the end of the day, when children and grandchildren inherit this country, it's a mess. Come to think of it, it's already a mess, and scores of people are voting with their feet.