Income's Orange Revolution

Minister Lim Swee Say (LSS) has come out to defend the position of my former employer, NTUC Income, in the wake of revelations as to why my former boss and presidential hopeful, Tan Kin Lian (TKL), left NTUC Income. He has shared he wanted NTUC Income to be run more professionally, not that it implies that TKL ran it unprofessionally.

LSS has a very different style from that of his predecessors, Lim Boon Heng and Ong Teng Cheong. In his tenure, he has been shameless in his pursuit of preparing NTUC and its cooperatives for a future, where it sheds it straight-jacketed, stingy image. That image may have appealed to a generation of past; it will not to a generation that is more questioning and image conscious.

To achieve this vision, LSS has had to get rid of NTUC's old guard, albeit in a respectful and sensitive manner. Unfortunately, as is the case with such changes, no matter how well one manages it, feathers get ruffled. What LSS did with NTUC Income is a microcosm of his unwavering pursuit to reposition NTUC.

I had decided the year before TKL's retirement that 2007 would be my last year as a full-time employee in NTUC Income. I was taking a sabbatical to complete my qualification process as an advocate and solicitor of Singapore. I informed NTUC Income of this.

I was in my last months of full-time service in NTUC Income when TKL was succeeded by Tan Suee Chieh (TSC). I worked part-time for NTUC Income until December that year. It was my intention to return to NTUC Income after my sabbatical ended two years later. However, the policies of the law firm I joined in order to complete the applicable regulatory obligations required me to resign from NTUC Income. Nevertheless, during that limited period, I was in a position to experience first-hand the transition of leadership.

In all fairness, TSC did not have an easy time. He had to dismember the entrenched association of NTUC Income to TKL. This required turning upside down a lot of the practices of NTUC Income. He had to divest a lot of non-core assets. He also had to pull the plug on several unprofitable product lines, among other things. He went on a massive spending spree to improve the office environment, including his own office, and to bring in top-tier consultants to revamp the image of NTUC Income.

It also meant, in carrying out this task, he would have to bring in new people he could trust. To attract talent, salaries were increased across the board with employees taking home bigger bonuses. Several employees were re-designated or shipped out.

However, one thing that annoyed me at a fundamental level was when I found out much later that head-hunters had been appointed to find a replacement for or to bypass NTUC Income's independent and competent general counsel. TKL tried to do something similar before in devolving the responsibilities of the general counsel; TSC was just following TKL's example. To the credit of the unity of the Singapore bar, no lawyer worth his or her salt accepted the job. Any general counsel, who asks tough questions and is a true guardian of an organisation's interests, should be prepared for such surprises from time to time.

TSC continues to run NTUC Income like a very tight ship, as did TKL. Given the interests and importance of NTUC Income to the Singapore landscape - for example, in holding key stakes in Singapore assets like the Singapore Press Holdings - there can be no other way.

I initially had reservations about LSS's plans for NTUC Income.

While many things have changed, including the CEO becoming perceivedly less accessible, I still sense NTUC Income remains committed to its social charter of delivering better value to its policyholders. With innovations like its annual kite festival and city running event, it also remains true to its cooperative roots of giving back to society.

If the saffron revolution has defined the freedom fighters of Burma and Tibet, the orange revolution has been the hallmark of the leadership of Tan Suee Chieh. He must be credited for beating the odds and changing the course of NTUC Income to appeal to a more active, image-driven Singapore citizenry, as much as his predecessor may disagree with the way things have panned out.

Happiness,
Dharmendra Yadav

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Negaraku Singapuraku

In 2005, on the occasion of Singapore's 40th year of independence from colonialism and Malaysian rule, a newspaper asked me about my wish for Singapore.

I replied, "I wish Singapore will be a nation of persons that seek happiness, love happiness and share happiness. As we continue to progress as a country and personally, we must continue to embrace changes (including accepting people with different views) and, above all, not forget the helpless, the needy, the minorities, the victims of unjust deeds or any other person requiring some form of assistance."

I didn't realise at that time how evergreen the wish was.

All Singaporeans must continue to stand up for Singapore, and be counted. Fly the flag proudly, wherever you may be.

*****

If you have a wish for Singapore, share it on the Think Happiness Facebook page from 9 August 2011 to 27 August 2011.

The top six wishes that get the most number of likes and comments, as at 31 August 2011, will each be entitled to a cash or voucher prize worth at least $46!

Happiness,
Dharmendra Yadav

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Presidential Economic & Financial Views Redundant

[Note: This is a third party perspective.]

The Presidential Election is heating up. Candidates have started “soft campaigns” to bring their message out and to let voters get to know them.

One in particular caught my interest. Dr Tony Tan has voiced that the president must be someone in a position to share expertise with the government and aid, guide or advise the government where needed.

More specifically, he argues that Singapore’s economic stability will be hurt by a global downturn and that his understanding of the financial markets and role in GIC (Government Investment Corporation of Singapore) make him a suitable candidate. He goes on to say that “GIC is not a government agency, it is a private sector company owned by the Ministry of Finance” (quoted at the sidelines of an event) and because of this, he would be in a better position to share his expertise with the government if he was a president, as opposed to being part of the GIC.

I find this line of argument somewhat strange.

Wouldn’t he have had significant influence and timber for the government to listen to him as the Deputy Chairman of the GIC? After all, the GIC is owned by the Ministry of Finance (MOF), so wouldn’t the MOF take the feedback of the Deputy Chairman of a company they owned seriously? I would think so.

As the Deputy Chairman of the GIC, he would have access to valuable insights into the financial markets given to him from very talented researchers, analysts and portfolio managers within the GIC. Giving up this access to vital information might limit him in his ability to give insights. I find it curious why he is seeking voter acceptance and support just because he claims he might be able to add value and advise the Government in the event of an economic downturn.

Frankly, I don’t think we need a president to give insights to the government on how best to protect Singapore’s economic interests. We are blessed with a very talented Finance Minister. He has steered our economy superbly through the 2008/9 economic slowdown. Over the years, he has put in place sound economic policies that aided many segments of the business community and society at large. In fact, I would think that it is the minister who is more qualified to give the in-coming president insights into the economic situation and what are the best courses of action to take.

I don’t agree with Dr Tony Tan (or any of the other presidential hopeful for that matter), that we should vote for a presidential candidate because of his ability to give insights to the government on economic matters.

Great Expectations

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NTUC President should have held tongue

NOTE SENT TO NTUC PRESIDENT JOHN DE PAYVA

I write to you as your union member.

You disclosed recently that you invited one of the presidential candidates to speak to fellow union members. The NTUC has always supported values of fair treatment and equal opportunities. It is therefore unfortunate that it has not invited others in similar situations to do the same.

I must also protest your expression of personal views on your preferred presidential candidate. It has never been in the tradition of trade union leadership in Singapore to have one's personal political views expressed in the face of a high likelihood of the NTUC making known its preference.

It is for this reason union leaders must be publicly supportive of the People's Action Party, even though personally they may hold a different view. Anyone who has dared express such a divergent personal view publicly has been swiftly removed from his position as a union leader.

In expressing your personal views, you may have prejudiced the process by which the NTUC
goes about deciding its preferred presidential candidate. In the interest of good governance, you may wish to now detach yourself from such a process.

You have also disturbed that fragile balance that exists between the public and private views of a union leader. You may have set the wrong precedent for union leaders to follow. It is not surprising that other union members have started to follow your example, and are expressing their own personal views on this issue.

Your exemplary act thus frees me to register my disagreement with your choice of presidential candidate. If your criteria is that you "want a person who has got that kind of stature and that kind of exposure, who understands the fundamental role of the President", there are many others within the NTUC, including yourself, who can meet your criteria.

With respect, a unionist does not need to support a person, who cut his links with the NTUC more than a decade ago.

Happiness,
Dharmendra Yadav

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Preaching from flawed perch

I really do not like it when public servants perched in their lofty crystal towers preach of values they don't seem to have. A case in point is this recent letter from the Ministry of Manpower, which was a response to this letter featured on The Online Citizen.

The ministry's letter states "it is critical to remain objective and ensure that employees' claims are valid". This value of objectivity surfaces again in another line: "We urge NGOs to assess each case objectively and comprehensively, rather than rushing to assign blame".

Yet, the letter in disclosing the work MOM did in this case, goes on to provide, "we reviewed documentary evidence of salary calculations and records of the company and established that Yang was not owed any salary".

How is that being objective when you rely on the documentary evidence of one party, and totally remain silent on the evidence of the other?

A lot of times the person representing the company in such manpower dispute resolution sessions at Ministry of Manpower has had some form of legal training. How does this stack up against the foreign worker who speaks little English and has peripheral knowledge of his legal rights?

The fact is the Ministry of Manpower in being the investigator and adjudicator of such claims is hardly in a position to be objective.

Many years ago, a body of corporate lawyers representing employers in Singapore recommended that the resolution of employment disputes should really be the remit of a properly equipped and independent tribunal, as is the case in jurisdictions of similar standing to Singapore. That paper is probably now gathering dust on some public servant's shelf.

Notwithstanding the lack of judicial training and legal qualifications, which would go towards determining ability, a public servant whose mandate is to protect the job market in Singapore and therefore the employer hardly has the will to work in the interests of workers.

It is an inherent trait in this role that such a public servant cannot be objective let alone preach to others about being objective.

Happiness,
Dharmendra Yadav

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ST Sponsored Stories Not News

NOTE SENT TO THE STRAITS TIMES EDITOR ON 1 AUGUST 2011

The Straits Times has spent the last three days promoting its new application for portable devices, which was launched today.

I am not sure how long this will continue but I will not be surprised if you run a story tomorrow to tell readers about the reception of this launch.

As a reader of The Straits Times, I cannot help but wonder if either The Straits Times has run out of stories to tell or, like some in dominant positions, it is trying its best to live in an illusion of its own creation.

It would hardly seem newsworthy since The Straits Times appears to be the only media in the world running such stories about its application and given there are many similar such applications launched on a daily basis.

Whatever the case may be, I request that these stories in praise of The Straits Times by The Straits Times be treated and labelled as "advertorials", which is the case for other sponsored content in your stable of publications.

I would rather The Straits Times focus on improving its content and perception of journalistic standards. For example, several readers have accused The Straits Times of having an editorial stance that disproportionately favours its former boss in its coverage of the presidential elections. There is also a sentiment that The Straits Times has been slow to criticise its former boss. These sentiments also reflect observations underscored by some other presidential candidates.

Of course, I am mindful and appreciative that, unlike some of its foreign counterparts, The Straits Times is not embroiled in controversies involving invasion of privacy, notwithstanding that several in its ranks have once been involved in sensitive intelligence gathering functions in government and this is a key skill inherent in these journalists at least.

In the hope that The Straits Times will continue to grow from strength to strength, I remain your loyal reader.

Happiness,
Dharmendra Yadav

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