Thursday, March 31, 2011

Blog prompt 8


What are the qualities you look for in a potential MP/ Minister?
       An MP and a minister are both required to lead the nation, but not everyone can lead. A leader must fulfil certain qualities. As for me, there are some qualities I look for in a potential MP or minister. They are integrity, determination, method of thinking, ability to communicate, trust, level of education, passion and age.
          An MP or minister must have integrity. He or she must not be corrupted or the entire government would be affected and this indirectly affects the nation as a whole. A minister, at some point in time, has to handle money or funds. This sum of money usually is quite a huge sum. He or she must overcome the temptation of misusing the funds for personal gain.
          If one were an MP, he or she must have determination. To help govern a country is no easy task. During crisis like the economic downturn, measures must be taken to help the country overcome the problem. However, each action a government takes would bring about its own side effects. For example, PAP is fielding a new candidate who is of the young age of 27. This was an effort to win the support of the younger generation. However, some people, especially the opposition party, have many doubts and concerns that the candidate is too young and incapable of carrying out her tasks well as she is inexperience.
          An MP’s way of thinking is very important. Thus, the ability to think logically and rationally during difficult times is crucial. Failure to think logically would result in illogical decisions being made, and as such, would eventually bring the country down. As Atticus in ‘To kill a mocking bird’ said, “you never really understand a person until you consider things from his point of view”. In order to understand the people, a minister has to see things from their point of view. Then only would he be able to come up with suggestions or make decisions which are beneficial to the population.
          A minister also must have good communication skills. He or she must be effectively bilingual and be able to communicate in some dialects. This is so that he can reach out to the greater majority of the population, including the elderly and those who may not be able to speak English. Also, good communication skills are required in order to better bring forth an idea in parliament.
          No country would want an illiterate MP or minister. Although an MP is not required to have a Masters or a PhD, he or she should at least be educated and obtain decent grades. A country must be led by people who are intellectually capable. Singapore has no natural resources. Its people are its resources. It is important for Singapore to be led by people who are intellectually capable because it is her people who will eventually bring the country to greater heights. Imagine a country led by people who are illiterates. What would happen to the country in the long run? Singapore needs people who are able to make sound decisions and this is only possible if a minister is educated to a certain extent.
          A minister has to be passionate in what he or she does. Passion helps to keep one focused on the task ahead and motivated even when the going gets tough. Having a passion in what he or she does helps one perform better in the job. Passion also helps one to look beyond the job scope. With passion, the job is sustained and more will benefit in the long run.
          Age is the final factor I will look at. A young MP would, hopefully, inject more life and vibrancy to the ward that he or she is in charge of.  In addition, a young MP would be more in touch with the mindset of the younger generation and moving trends. This would hopefully lead to more updated and innovative ideas being contributed. With a young MP at the helm, the younger generation, hopefully, would be lured into politics, thereby, bringing in new blood to the party, and at the same time, generate new ideas to help the nation to prosper.

Tuesday, March 29, 2011

Blog prompt 7

        There was a thunderous boom. Pieces of the roof were flung into the air. Following that was a series of gunshots, like applause. The blast shook the building, like the tremor of an earthquake. It was mighty scary. The grenade missed me by few meters. It hit the other end of the roof.  The roof screeched in pain. I looked up and saw what was left of the roof. It was similar to paper after a printer jam, crumpled up with an obvious dent in the centre. The deafening explosion nearly burst my eardrums. I looked to the side. There were limbs, a hand, an arm and a leg to be precise. Now, what used look like a magnificent powerful military was reduced to run down looking buildings with dented roofs and smoke emitted from them. The ground had a makeover, it was now red. Bodies piled up along streets. Occasionally, a limb or two can be found on the roads. Tanks were blazing, the grasses were withering and dirt rained from the sky. There was no one in sight. Silence returned for a brief period. The sky darkened and a cold breeze blew by.

Thursday, March 24, 2011

Blog Prompt 6

Tell us whether or not you tend to pay attention to events in other parts of the world and why?
Why should we care about what happens in places far away from where we live in general?

                    Yes I tend to. Event happening in other parts of the world may affect us directly or indirectly. It can affect us in many ways – financially, economically, health and safety. We can also learn from these events such as what we should do when we encounter a similar situation. With this past knowledge, we can draw from it and come up with an even more efficient and effective solution than what the victims in the past have done. Take for example the recent earthquake in Japan. This natural disaster registered 8.9 on the Richter scale. From it, we can learn how to rebuild whatever has been destroyed and how to build better infrastructure to withstand natural disasters on a similar scale. In addition, I learnt that San Francisco is likely to be hit by an earthquake. Thus we know that San Francisco may not be a safe place to be in in the near future. From the Japan earthquake, the San Francisco authorities can start making preparations to brace itself for the predicted natural disaster that it cannot avoid. When this happens, we can then minimise the death toll. Knowing about these events helps us to make informed decisions. While others are fleeing Japan, we wouldn’t want to be visiting it due to the possible radiation emitted from the Fukushima nuclear power plant. We would also not want to visit the neighbouring countries if we can avoid it. Since we are aware of the natural disaster that has ravaged Japan, we can do our part and donate money as well as other essentials to assist our Japanese counterparts.  We would also exercise more caution when it comes to consuming food imported from Japan.