Personal thoughts : Dr Goh Keng Swee.

Dr Goh Keng Swee was a national hero . Even Senior Minister Goh Chok Tong has said that without the contributions of the late Dr Goh Keng Swee, there would not be the Singapore miracle of today.
Without him , the vast majority of the present singapore would not have existed.
For example he was the one who created an industry park (current jurong island), the need of education . He was the one who implemented the streaming systems.This streaming system have pave a large diversity of students receiving holistic education.

He was also the one who implemented the national service as the
The tranquillity of Singapore still remains undaunted due to the strong corner stone laid by Dr Goh in terms of defence.


In all, Dr goh had laid the basic foundation for Singapore. This eventually led to an uphill prosperity in Singapore which makes Singapore into such a thriving nation. I feel that we Singaporeans will always be indebted to Dr goh for his time and devotion he had rendered for the nation, and his selflessness towards creating a profound future for us.
We should now show our gratitude and dedication for the late Dr Goh by not only offering our respects to him but also to immulate his virtues and continue his legacy.

Pros and Cons about the NEWater.

Comments based on souce : http://news.asiaone.com/News/AsiaOne%2BNews/Singapore/Story/A1Story20100504-214037.html


PRO / Advantages of Newater.

• It reduces Singapore's dependence on imported water from other countries. (By having the NEWater , Singapore can be totally self-sufficient if there is no new water agreement We do not need to depend on Malaysia for water which costs alot since we have created our own source of drinking water.
  
• Cheaper than desalination
• Not weather dependent
• Sustainable and environmentally friendly
  
• Will not be in threat from Malaysia for water issues. Often, Malaysia will use the water agreement to threaten Singapore. With source : (On the importance of self-sufficiency in water, he said: "Whenever there were serious bilateral disagreements, some Malaysian politicians would use water as leverage to pressure us to compromise in their favour.")

CON / Disadvantages of Newater.

• Singaporeans may not be able to adapt to the fact that NEWater is made from recycled water. Many Singaporeans being 'kiasu' thinks that NEWater is dirty and finds that it is unacceptable to drink recycled water.
• The process is complicated.
• Machine is costly. Although it is cheaper than desalination , the machine is still costly, and hence high maintence cost.
  

Ionescu still has 'immunity'

This is puzzling, said Foreign Minister George Yeo, as 'it seems to imply that Romania is now claiming that Dr Ionescu was engaged in official duties at the time of the accident and we do not understand how this can possibly be the case'. -- ST PHOTO: SHIN MIN

ROMANIA sent Singapore a diplomatic note last Friday asserting that former charge d'affaires Silviu Ionescu continues to enjoy diplomatic immunity for the hit-and-run case of Dec 15.

This is puzzling, said Foreign Minister George Yeo, as 'it seems to imply that Romania is now claiming that Dr Ionescu was engaged in official duties at the time of the accident and we do not understand how this can possibly be the case'.

On the other hand, Romanian media reports suggest that the Romanian police may be preparing to arrest the suspended diplomat. The police there have told Interpol that they have the competence to prosecute him and they have started criminal proceedings against him.

'With these conflicting accounts, the sooner the Romanian legal experts visit us to clarify the situation, exchange views and review the evidence with our legal experts, the better,' said Mr Yeo.

He was speaking in Parliament on Monday in response to a question from MP Irene Ng (Tampines GRC) who asked for about the case.

A Coroner's Court had found that Ionescu was behind the wheel of a car that hit three pedestrians along Bukit Panjang Road on Dec 15. One of them later died. Following this, Singapore issued an arrest warrant for Ionescu, and Interpol issued a red notice against him. The notice requests all Interpol member states to look out for him and arrest him, with a view to his extradition.

The Government had also said that based on the Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Rights, Ionescu was not protected by diplomatic immunity for his deeds. Based on Article 39(2), a diplomat loses immunity for private acts once he leaves his post in the host country.

On Monday, Mr Yeo told Parliament that the red notice has been suspended because of the disagreement over the intepretation of the article. In his speech, Mr Yeo also noted that other diplomats in Singapore have told the Government that Dr Ionescu has disgraced the entire diplomatic corps.

'Romania is a member state of the European Union which prides itself on its reputation as a community of values. Bucharest understands that more than Romania's own reputation is at stake and that it must live up to the EU's high standards,' added Mr Yeo.

credits :http://www.straitstimes.com/BreakingNews/Singapore/Story/STIStory_519328.html


Regarding this incident,
I feel that Ionescu should take full responsbility of his actions , especially when the fact was that he was a diplomat.
Even though he is a representive from Romania , I think that he should be charged and in fact doubled up .
Being a representive for the country would show that he is someone who is responsible and have a limit of the wrong doings. However, he is not doing that.
He was the one who committed a mistake,he should have the courage to face up to it instead of weaseling out of it with weak lies like a child.