Wednesday, January 22, 2014

Could Have Been Worse

When Low Thia Khiang asked Deputy Prime Minister and Home Affairs Minister Teo Chee Hean why the Special Operations Command (SOC) took one hour to arrive at the scene, Teo could only utter a lame "certain response time was required."  For 19 whole minutes, the SOC sat around and twiddled their thumbs while Little India burned. And when it was finally activated at 10.04 pm, the SOC clowns managed a snail's pace to reach the site at 10.42 pm - probably hoping that all the nasties would have disappeared into the night by then.

Mas Selamat must be ROTFL in his detention cell - he might just beat Chia Thye Poh's record for being detained without trial. But Selamat's Houdini-style evasion was easily outclassed by one female who really made mockery of the highly decorated Keystone Kops. The chronology of how she led the clownish cops on a merry-go-round went like this:

Jan 17, 1:58pm 
Right under the watchful noses of the Singapore Immigration and Checkpoints Authority (ICA) officers, the 27-year old simply drove past the Woodlands Checkpoint in a Malaysian-registered flaming red Perodua. Then, after two full minutes have lapsed, only did they decide to lock down the arrival zone. Exactly as the idiom goes, shut the stable door after the horse has bolted. Officially, an island wide alert was issued to the police and the Land Transport Authority (LTA) CCTV footage was reviewed.

Jan 20, 1.35pm
Three days later, an alert taxi driver reported to the police that a woman was tailgating him. He drove to the Police Cantonment Complex as instructed. There the idiots actually tried to engage in conversation with her, but she just drove off. The weird bit here is that, despite an "island wide alert was issued to the police" for three whole days, the numb skulls failed to register her face or her car.

Jan 20, 2.32pm
Same woman tailgated another car into the Sherwood Road premises of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MFA) and drove around the compound like she owned the place. She was stopped only after security officers cornered her. Note: the only alert people in the whole farce here is a taxi driver and security guards. Teo's elite Home Team must have been sleeping at home, waiting to be activated.

Teo's response was predictable: "the breach could have had more serious consequences". Obviously not serious enough to send the Commissioner of ICA and the Commissioner of Police to the woodshed. Russian security officials are now busy hunting down three black widows, and one of the potential suicide bombers has already entered Sochi, site of the Winter Olympics. Let's hope none of the other ladies are heading this way.

32 comments:

  1. Just only a woman mah.

    No big deal.

    Right?

    And a DPM had explained, what more can be expected?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. He can still make use of his favourite taichi question "What do you think?" if he can't find any more excuses to excuse himself and maybe another of their favorite remarks like "Let's move on" if they can't exonerate themselves any more.

      Sometimes it is sweet revenge when one think about the bullying manner when they try to push WP into one corner to answer some of their questions.

      Delete
    2. Notice there are more cameras than a photographers' convention at the thank you lunch for the home boys. In fact the home boys are outnumbered by the camera boys.

      Delete
    3. Let's only hope for the best and vote these taichi masters out of parliament.

      Delete
    4. What does it imply? The mental lady smarter than the commissioners? Jack Neo; a grand opportunity for you, starring Patricia Mok as that lady driver.

      Delete
  2. I am laughing my toes off. And to think that PM Lee says "what is important is to have a Home Team that can deal with the situation in a calibrated, measured and decisive way" after the Little India flare up. Perhaps the team need a bit of re-calibration. Truly the upper echelon of the Home Team have an iron rice bowl.

    BTW, didn't they mount an island wide alert and search for Mat Selamat, and later found out that he was hiding in his brother's home, one of the first places they should have searched? Lapses? Nah lah. All these are just one-off isolated incidents.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Calibration requires standards, appears that standards has fallen or there wasn't any standards in the first place

      Delete
    2. "Standards are maintained n kept in Sisir or now Spring. Are the standards themselves calibrated by NBS or CISRO

      Delete
  3. This is definitely not the Singapore Way.

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  4. There are more than 1.5 million foreigners and naturalised citizens among us. I will be shaking my head if we lose the peace and security of this country instead of scratching my head. What do you think?

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  5. Woodlands Checkpoint handles millions of arrivals and this is the only time this happens because she is a real mental talent. Move on... erh, you want COI?

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  6. Calibrated, measured, tweak are just political words used by the MIW on situation they don't have an answer.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Weasel words.

      Delete
    2. Calibrated
      Measured
      Targeted
      Progressive
      Ponding
      Disruption of service (not breakdown)
      Work stoppages (not strikes)

      Delete
  7. Never let a good crisis go to waste! First, quickly get someone to form a $2 company to sell more batman electronic barriers cameras, CCTVs etc to sell to the ICA. If this is not enough to boost GDP growth by at least 3%, ask the police chief to come up with a 10 year plan for a 3rd generation immigration plan with target to spend an extra $50b to boost GDP Then hire some million dollar consultants and do a study, organise a few overseas trips to Switzerland to see how they do it, then buy their most expensive gadgets. Oh, yes COI, must have that too because the crony lawyers need to be fed too, and anything else we can do for the overseas bankers? They need to buy new Lambos for 2014 too.

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  8. This incident has sparked off comments like yours and your commentators. The seriousness of the situation in its proper context is more than such observations, in my opinion. It exposes the mindset of those in charge of the security of the nation. They talk themselves into believing that everything is under control and that they are prepared for any eventual situation. The recent billion dollar decision to upgrade of the warplanes and expected purchase of the latest military toys give them this illusion. The quality of our uniformed personnel is not what they tell you. The result will be disastrous given the leaders' penchant for annoying our neighbours.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. They are fast becoming the paper tiger of SE Asia.

      Delete
    2. Agreed. But the incentive system is not geared to having the fat cats confront the real threat.

      It has taken years for the civil servants to rig the bonus and promotion system until they arrived at this "GDP growth" model. Politicians and civil servants in the same bed is always recipe for disaster and that is the root cause of all of todays' incompetence at all levels we are witnessing.

      Delete
  9. Under this PM, Singapore is fast becoming an even tighter police state, with more laws and regulations after every lapse of the Administration. There is more legislation on internet and social media now. After the Little India riot, a new legislation: "The proposed law has been crafted to give police more specific and targeted powers than current legislation, which provides very wide-ranging powers—including the imposition of curfews....."

    My god, curfews! Is there an emergency? Putting the blame on lack of regulations for any mishap is throwing the spotlight away from the government's own failures; perhaps also giving an excuse to tighten their control of the population. Suffice to say after the checkpoint fiasco, and wild goose chase, more legislation will be forthcoming. The glaring issues are not lack of laws or powers, but lack of competencies and leadership.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Knee-jerk reaction and regulation after harm has been done. ie closing the barn door after the horses have bolted.
      The Selamat escape -Big jam at Woodlands and Tuas checkpoints for many days after.
      Ditto at both checkpoints after this case

      Delete
    2. Teo Soh Lung: "If the Public Order (Additional Temporary Measures) Bill 2014 ever becomes law, it will truly make a mockery of the Constitution of the Republic of Singapore."

      http://www.tremeritus.com/2014/01/26/sporeans-should-take-note-of-public-order-bill-2014/

      http://www.parliament.gov.sg/sites/default/files/Public%20Order%20(Additional%20Temporary%20Measures)%20Bill%201-2014.pdf

      Delete
    3. Yes, there is an "emergency" - within the PAP, which is feeling the heat of it's fast eroding popularity, and knows it will have a hard task to win back it's votes. The PAP has already started campaigning. Note the declaration by Kee Chiu at it's Party Convention to do battle on all fronts, further restrictions on the Internet, it's attacks against the WP and fixing the Opposition at every opportunity, and more legislations to curb the already limited freedoms under various pretexts, and more.

      By the time of the next General Election, the field will be skewed heavily against all the Alternative Parties. There may be an early election when the PAP feels it has sweetened and softened the ground enough.

      Delete
  10. PAP Chicken Joke
    -----------------------------
    Why did the chicken cross the road?

    Mad Malaysian woman answers:
    - Because I can.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Who'd the mad one now, but nothing a good spin doctor can't fix.

      Delete
  11. Ostrich mentality. It's a jungle out there.

    ReplyDelete
  12. I believe it was not the first case that foreigners walking across from Malaysia without a proper clearance. However, we must not put the blame on ICA if an incident of this sort takes place at our checkpoint for two reasons-short of officers yet human traffic has increased over the years.

    This incident, unfortunstely, has touched the nerve of our leaders, and someone out there his or her head has to roll....

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Short of manpower is no excuse for oversight in matters concerning national and border security.
      Can you use the same reason the next time you get
      a summon for some infringement from the govt regulators?
      besides the Govt has all the money to set things right iso blowing them away on things like the Youth Olympics

      Delete
  13. Someone should ask ICA to account for the number and frequency of breaches that have occurred in the past. The only reason you find out about this particular breach is due to the reported incident at MFA.

    They can't hide this forever.

    ReplyDelete
  14. This is kind of scary...

    Do the leedership understand if any of them offended someone enuf overseas...they can just hired some thugs and such like..to enter singapore and create mischief or worse in Singapore?

    Scary.

    ReplyDelete
  15. "Cowardice asks the question, 'Is it safe?' Expediency asks the question, 'Is it politic?' Vanity asks the question, 'Is it popular?' But, conscience asks the question, 'Is it right?'

    And there comes a time when one must take a position that is neither safe, nor politic, nor popular, but one must take it because one's conscience tells one that it is right."
    -- Martin Luther King Jr.


    (01 - Socrates on Self-Confidence)
    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S24FxdvfOko&feature=gv
    -
    (philosopher.org/Socratic_Method.html)
    http://www.philosopher.org/Socratic_Method.html
    -
    (04 - Montaigne on Self-Esteem)
    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BOjDttEtfGI&feature=gv
    -
    (Machiavelli’s Tiger: Lee Kuan Yew and Singapore’s authoritarian regime)
    http://www.singapore-window.org/sw00/000614ug.htm
    -
    (Hegelian Dialectic – The No_ 1 Tool of the Illuminati -with examples)
    http://alittletruth.hubpages.com/hub/Hegelian-Dialectic-Illuminati-New-World-Order
    -
    (They Call it Television Programming For a Reason _ Collective-Evolution)
    http://www.collective-evolution.com/2012/12/20/they-call-it-television-programming-for-a-reason/
    -
    Low Thia Kiang trashed by MM LKY and PM LHL
    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wwGF8MV4nSo
    -
    Ps, UNIQUELY SINGAPORE, pls Search This Blog on Joshua Chiang for my other comments. Thank You,

    Joshua Chiang

    ReplyDelete
  16. After all this been settled, believe me, it will be the small fries, the rank and file, who will face the music and be punished.
    The top brasses will continue to enjoy their fat salaries and bonuses just like the Mas Selamat and the IDA over compensation to Singtel cases.
    In Singapore Civil Service culture, the buck only stops at the bottom.
    It always has been and always will be

    ReplyDelete