MP Visit

We had a visit from an MP yesterday. Josephine Teo who's a P65 and the HR director for NTUC. Seems friendly and likable enough. Though of course that's part of her job description, even for someone who doesn't need to get voted into office.

When she asked if I had any problems, I really didn't know what to tell her. Should I mention the minor municipal problems? Should I talk about the dissatifactions that are systemic which nobody can change? Is this how political apathy among Singapore's youth look like? We have opinions but we don't say it to those who are in the system because we don't think anything will change?

Things I'll like to see changed:

• Abolish the Presidential Elections Committee. In my mind, their role should be played by the voters at large, not a group of three men whose decisions are final.
• Where does my MP live?? I donno. Make MPs live in their consitutency.
• Give the President the right to refuse assent to any bill, not just Money and Supply bills. Refusals should be accompanied by an open letter to Parliament outlining the President's conerns and reasons for refusing assent. Parliament can override with a overwhelming majority of course.
• Have a small Upper House. Maybe 12 to 20 members. As a sort of shadow cabinet, one person per ministry. They can also be like the House of Lords in the UK and be the court of final criminal appeal.
• Retain the GRCs but use Single Transferable Vote system instead. Keep the requirement for each bloc to have a candidate from the minority races and let the voters choose from between these two and then choose the rest of their MPs using the STV system.
• All these would require rewriting the Consitution. While at it, make the section about fundamental liberties clear and simple, without all the restrictions. See the Singapore Consitution.

Maybe I'll tackle each of these as seperate blog entries later.

Well, for the record, I would still like to see Singapore ran in an efficiently and incorrupt manner by the PAP. I'll like to see them have 51% of Parliament and I'll like to see them have to defend their actions more vigorously. I'll like a government that can laugh at itself and not see everything as a threat.

There are many things to like about Singapore and the Singapore Government as well as many things to dislike. The things that are dislikable are, I think, systemic and would require a change in the outlook of a larger part of the citizenry.

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Joey talked to me on MSN today. She's still in Hobart and she's still being a tease. I still miss Hobart.