Daily Lessons from Life 27 March 2012 - Governance becoming more challenging in Singapore

"Governance becoming more challenging in Singapore - CNA 27 March 2012

SINGAPORE: Deputy Prime Minister Teo Chee Hean has said Singapore is entering an era where governance is becoming more challenging.

The government has to decide on the appropriate level of involvement, even as it faces increasing demands to do more in some instances and less in others.

Mr Teo said it may be more productive to focus on doing the right things and doing them right.

He brought up the issue of exclusive Singapore broadcast rights to the English Premier League a few years ago.

Some fans were upset about having to switch providers or get another set-top box when SingTel won the rights from StarHub.

"Should the government really get involved in how fans get their weekly dose of football? But there was a broader issue at stake. Left to themselves, the industry players would seek to maximise value for themselves, even though it may mean inconveniences to consumers. So it was right for the Media Development Authority to step in to compel them to cross-carry programmes, but again, taking care to do so in the right way," said Mr Teo.

"But it is often not possible to satisfy everyone. There will be competing interests and demands, some of which contradict one another. Often, there will have to be trade-offs and difficult decisions, which the government must not shy away from," said Mr Teo.

The deputy prime minister said the strength of the public service has been a key factor in building the Singapore of today, and the government remains committed to maintaining a capable public service that will serve the people effectively and honestly."

DPM Teo has taken a good example but only explained it half-way regarding the EPL screening right issue.

Lessons for me are:

1. the EPL screening right issue from a layman point of view is: WHY should the 2 telco which are majority owned by government linked companies COMPETING against each other to ENRICH the greedy FIFA and EPL folks? The price bidded by the 2 Singapore telcos SUPPOSEDLY made the FIFA and EPL marketing and business people blinked and bit themselves to make sure it is REAL!! They have OVER-bidded and wanted the CONSUMERS to pay for it! THAT was the main issue. YES?;

2. knowing what are the RIGHT things to do ARE NOT so easy IF the people affected, the majority anyway, understand the pros and cons rationally BUT cannot connect to them EMOTIONALLY! What is right may not be 'right' IF you ask the grassroots folks. Of course, we can rubbish them as 'they lack the strategic viewpoints to look at national issues properly'. Yet, if the people understood but not emotionally connected to any 'good-intention' national policies, the necessary supports will not be there and conflicts of the major scale can develop;

3. one of the perpetual RIGHT THINGS to do is to: educate the citizenry so that the MAJORITY of them will be able to exercise GOOD independent judgement on any rational national policies that must be done despite being painful in the short term. When they understand rationally and connect emotionally most of them on national policies that the GOVERNMENT believes are the RIGHT THINGS TO DO, then the government has done THIS right thing right!

May Singapore continue to progress no matter how challenging governance may become ...