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17 Sep 2019
Ministry of Education
Suggestion View - 1
Training providers should apply to be part of PSEA-approved list

I was heartened to hear from the Ministry of Education that training providers can apply for their courses to be considered for inclusion in the list of Post-Secondary Education Account-approved courses (Post-Secondary Education Account can be used for selected SkillsFuture courses, July 8). Since then, I have e-mailed several training providers requesting that they apply for this inclusion, as I believe their courses could be useful for one's career and personal development. Howe......



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17 Sep 2019
Ministry of Manpower
Suggestion View - 1
Maids should have KPIs too

Few would disagree with Ms Jaya Anil Kumar, a case manager for the Humanitarian Organisation for Migration Economics, who said that live-in helpers are inherently vulnerable to exploitation and abuse (When family members abuse a maid together, Sept 9). But are employers not vulnerable too (Maid abuse? What about the reverse? Sept 16)? Having, out of necessity, to admit a stranger - not knowing her mental state, and cultural beliefs and practices - into one's home, a......



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17 Sep 2019
Central Provident Fund
Reply View - 1
Personal data released to counter misinformation

We agree with Mr Loh Kin Poh that the Central Provident Fund Board needs to ensure that CPF members' data is safeguarded (CPF Board needs to ensure secrecy of members' data, Sept 14). We uphold strictly the Government's data protection standards which are aligned with, if not more stringent than, the requirements of the Personal Data Protection Act (PDPA). For example, we have implemented measures such as Internet surfing separation which are not required in the PDP......



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17 Sep 2019
Ministry of Manpower
Reply View - 1
Most employers pay up salary claims in full

Transient Workers Count Too general manager Ethan Guo's letter does not provide a fair picture of what is happening on the ground (Bosses of foreign workers ignore court orders to pay up, Sept 5). Most salary claims by workers are settled by the Tripartite Alliance for Dispute Management (TADM) and in nine out of 10 cases, claimants receive full p......



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16 Sep 2019
Housing Development Board
Suggestion View - 7
Protect landlords and tenants from unscrupulous real estate agents

The Government has been encouraging the elderly to use their flat to finance their retirement. And my mother did precisely that by renting out her four-room Housing Board flat. Through an agent from a well-known real estate agency, we found six foreign workers as tenants. Months later, an HDB officer called and said neighbours had complained about many people going in and out of my mother's flat. The agent went with the HDB officer to do a spot check ......



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16 Sep 2019
National Environment Agency
Feedback View - 5
Update public on probe into giving of red packets at crematorium

It has been more than seven months since the National Environment Agency (NEA) gave an update on what was then an ongoing probe by the Corrupt Practices Investigation Bureau (CPIB) into the illegal practice of crematorium and funeral staff receiving red packets at Mandai Crematorium for services rendered (More than just a gift?, Feb 10). Can the CPIB and NEA update the public on the investigations that have been done since, and whether there have been any actions taken against the......



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16 Sep 2019
Land Transport Authority
Suggestion View - 3
Cap personal mobility aids at walking speed

Personal mobility aids that assist the immobile and the elderly to move around should not have top speeds that exceed walking speed. I recently saw an elderly man zipping around on his personal mobility aid, which resembled a motorised tricycle, at speeds similar to that of a person sprinting. Having such personal mobility aids operating at high speeds is unnecessary, in fact it may endanger the elderly who use them as their reflexes may not be quick enough to stop ......



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16 Sep 2019
Movement for change
Suggestion View - 300
Make it more attractive for employers to employ locals

Singapore has a dysfunctional employment system. The workforce is 3.6 million of which 36% or 1.3 million are foreign workers.  Many of the local workers have to work as taxi drivers and private car drivers or take up part time job because they are not able to get a full time job. Many employers prefer to employ foreign workers instead of local workers.  What is the problem and how can this be overcome? Here are the reasons why employer......



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14 Sep 2019
Central Provident Fund
Feedback View - 10
CPF Board needs to ensure secrecy of members' data

Yet again, another Central Provident Fund member has complained about the CPF Board. And once again, the CPF Board has responded on its Facebook page with details that read like the CPF member's financial history (CPF Board clarifies man's claim that he gets $15 in monthly payout, says unauthorised transfers to Medisave untrue, Sept 9, ST Online). Given the drive against fake news, the official reaction is understandable. Yet, whatever Mr Michael Toh Thiam Hock's mo......



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14 Sep 2019
National Environment Agency
Suggestion View - 5
Cut down waste at trade fairs

Every year, thousands of people flock to the Comex fair to check out or buy the latest electronic gadgets. Exhibitors slash prices and make generous promotional offers to attract consumers and boost their sales figures. But the joy of getting new gadgets comes at a cost to the environment as more electronic waste is produced. Exhibitors also spend huge sums of money to set up attractive booths, and print posters, fliers and brochures. A......



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14 Sep 2019
Monetary Authority of Singapore
Reply View - 2
Range of measures taken as digital banks come into play

We thank Mr Ramamurthy Mahesh Kumar and Mr Phua Kok Hee for their views (MAS needs to educate public on digital banks, Sept 9; and How will digital banks handle customer problems?, Sept 12). We agree it is important that the public understands the differences between the new digital banks and existing banks in Singapore. Most banks here have enhanced their digital service offerings to customers, alongside physical branches and ATMs. The new digital ba......



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14 Sep 2019
Land Transport Authority
Feedback View - 4
Law-breaking taxi, private-hire drivers get off too lightly

I recently attended the Safe Driving Course (SDC) organised by the Traffic Police (TP) in order to get demerit points cancelled from my driving record, and was shocked to see so many taxi and private-hire car drivers attending the course. These professional transport providers have added responsibility on the road to be more careful than the rest of us. Something as basic as the SDC is unlikely to improve their possibly reckless driving behaviour. Due......



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13 Sep 2019
Out of the box
Suggestion View - 192
Referendum for independence of Hong Kong

I suggest that China should hold a referendum for the people of Hong Kong - do you want to be independent of China? There are two possible outcomes: a) The majority vote for independence.  b) The majority vote to remain part of China. I think that the majority will vote to remain part of China. It is difficult for Hong Kong to be independent of China. They need water and power to be provided by China.  Maybe, they can b......



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13 Sep 2019
Ministry of Education
Suggestion View - 6
Nurture a new generation of trilingual Singaporeans

I am happy to note that some schools are offering a third language to students, though only up to a conversational level. Trilingualism is important. Learning a third language up to a conversational level is practical and achievable. Knowing a language will open the door to knowing a culture and race. This is a perfect way to interracial tolerance and understanding. Think of the advantage to Singaporeans who can relate to......



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13 Sep 2019
Housing Development Board
Feedback View - 77
Chance at waterfront living for all

The mandate of the Housing Board is to create high-quality and affordable public housing for all Singaporeans. This mission does not entail arbitrary restrictions on location. Which is why I strongly disagree with Mr Soo Weng Keong's views on HDB flats within the Greater Southern Waterfront area (Govt subsidy should not go to luxury seafront homes, Aug 30) When applications for public housing exceed demand, a lottery is the fairest method of allocating scarce resour......



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13 Sep 2019
NTUC
Reply View - 60
'No plastic bag' trial a study of consumer sentiment

We refer to the letters commenting on FairPrice's "No Plastic Bag" trial initiative and thank readers for their feedback and suggestions as well as their encouragement on our ongoing sustainability efforts. We are heartened by the renewed awareness and robust discussion on addressing the perennial issue of plastic bag usage and waste. FairPrice has always adopted a proactive approach towards reducing our carbon footprint as well as in developing initiatives to ensure a sustainable......



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13 Sep 2019
Indonesia
Reply View - 1
Haze didn't cross from Sumatra to Peninsular Malaysia

We refer to the reports (KL to urge Jakarta to take swift action on haze amid spike in hot spots, Sept 7; Haze in Malaysia likely to stay till end of month, Sept 9) that could lead to Indonesia being blamed for transboundary haze. Between Sept 4 and 7, the Agency for Meteorology and Geophysics deputy head Mulyono R. Prabowo said that satellite images from the Citra Satellite Terra Aqua Modis, SNPP, Noaa0 and the Himawari-8 clearly show there was no transboundary haze pollution fro......



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12 Sep 2019
Out of the box
Suggestion View - 73
Disadvantage of blockchain technology

The proponents of blockchain are excited about its application. It remove the need for a trusted third party and allows all the participants to monitor the transactions and be assured that they are reliable.  This platform uses the concept of duplicating the database in many servers (called nodes) and comparing the results. If any of the database is hacked, the other database will be able to overrule that database using a voting and consensus system. I fin......



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12 Sep 2019
Monetary Authority of Singapore
Feedback View - 12
How will digital banks handle customer problems?

When we have a banking problem, what we want is to connect to a human and resolve the problem fast, but increasingly, banks are introducing more elaborate menus or, worse, chatbots to their helplines. There are ways, of course, to force the automated customer service eventually to connect you to a human. I expect customer service at digital banks to be worse. Problems that are within the parameters of their programmed menus or chatbots may likely be resolved. ......



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12 Sep 2019
Ministry of Health
Feedback View - 56
Let heartland doctors teleconsult with patients

Patients may now use their mobile phones to teleconsult a doctor for relatively minor illnesses (Telemedicine: Putting the 'app' in appointment, Sept 8). It makes perfect medical sense in some common situations: When the diagnosis is beyond doubt to the patient (for example, fever and runny nose caught from a family member, or a recurrent migraine), when time is limited (a gout attack just before closing time on a public holiday), when leaving home would make him feel worse (the d......



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12 Sep 2019
Ministry of Health
Feedback View - 2
MOH must crack down on conveniently issued e-MCs

That a reporter was able to secure an electronic medical certificate (MC) by pretending to be sick is indicative of how obliging the doctors on the telemedicine app are (Consulting doctor without leaving home, and in less than 5 minutes, Sept 8). Such doctors easily and almost automatically churn out e-MCs out of convenience rather than medical justification. I am not alone in sensing the rot. The College of Family Physicians Singapore and the Singapore Medical Asso......



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12 Sep 2019
Out of the box
Suggestion View - 112
My views about bitcoin and cyptocurrencies

I wish to share my views about bitcoin and cyptocurrencies.  When I learned that bitcoin was built on the blockchain platform, I spent some time to learn about blockchain. I formed the opinion that it is an inefficient platform. I shall talk about it in a separate post. I met an expert in the blockchain platform. I asked him about the cost of processing a transaction using blockchain. He quoted a high figure that is not economically feasible. In defense, he sai......



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11 Sep 2019
Sing Post
Suggestion View - 109
Make it easy to use vPost

I visited vPost a few times in the past, but I never get to use it. I found it rather difficult to understand this service.  I tried again today and wish to share this feedback. I now know how vPost works. I am given a personal address in the country of purchase (e.g. China, USA, Japan) and asked to quote this address for the supplier to deliver this address.  When it is delivered, I get an notification from vPost. I can then arrange for vPo......



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11 Sep 2019
Ministry of Law
Suggestion View - 1
Legal tech should benefit both industry and public

Law Minister K. Shanmugam, at the recent TechLaw.Fest conference, showed his audience an example where five contracts were reviewed by artificial intelligence in a mere 26 seconds - versus 20 experienced human lawyers taking 92 minutes - and with greater accuracy. With local fees for top lawyers among the world's highest (On phone with lawyer? That will go into bill, Sept 8), technology has made it possible for routine legal work to be done in a much quicker and far less costly ma......



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11 Sep 2019
Consumers Association Of Singapore
Feedback View - 3
Protect consumers from unfair business practices

The authorities can do more to ensure that organisations conduct their business fairly, and inform the public if they do not do so. Here are some cases in point. Some telecom operators do not inform a consumer who is on, say, a 2GB monthly data plan when he has reached the limit. The consumer may not know he has used additional data until he gets his bill at the end of the month. One telco that makes sure customers are not caught unawar......



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11 Sep 2019
Out of the box
Suggestion View - 154
High quality of products from China

I am impressed with the high quality of many products from China and the low cost.  I bought many of these products from online website. I found the quality and reliability to be quite good, and the price to be rather low. Some people said that the China products sell cheaply because of low quality. This is not the case, from my experience.  I am not saying that all of the China products have good quality. I have come across some products wi......



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11 Sep 2019
Agency for Integrated Care
Reply View - 1
Connecting with seniors to support them in ageing well

We thank Mr Colin Tan for his suggestion (SG Ambassadors can promote other schemes for seniors, Sept 6). The Silver Generation Ambassadors engage seniors on various government policies and schemes, including the Pioneer and Merdeka generation packages. They also connect seniors to various programmes and services through the Community Networks for Seniors (CNS) to support them in living and ageing well at home and in the community. These include active......



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11 Sep 2019
Land Transport Authority
Suggestion View - 106
Maintain a high frequency for off peak train service

62% of the participants in a survey wanted the Land Transport Authority to maintain a high level of frequency for train service during the off-peak during hours.  They cited two reasons: a) The additional cost of running the trains is small b) There are other ways for the people in charge to reduce the cost of the operations. In another post, a few people gave the comment that a high frequency of train service during the off peak hours is ......



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10 Sep 2019
NTUC
Feedback View - 4
Can't FairPrice switch to biodegradable plastic bags?

I am aware of the need to reduce plastic waste, but I am one of the many in Singapore who depend on plastic bags for waste disposal. Charging 20 cents for the use of plastic bags will inevitably add to the already high cost of living here, especially burdening lower-income families. I notice that RedMart uses biodegradable plastic bags for grocery delivery. I have used these to bag my rubbish too. Instead of charging customers for using their plastic ......



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10 Sep 2019
Ministry of Health
Suggestion View - 2
F&B outlets can do more to improve food handling

Without a doubt, more can be done to improve food handling in the local food and beverage scene (Sick after eating delivered food, Sept 2). For example, at some of the outlets I frequent, I notice that when I order soft-boiled eggs, the cashier who takes my order would collect payment and crack the eggs with his bare hands. Given that the cashier is handling notes and coins, he should not be allowed to crack the eggs as it may result in contamination. ......



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