Be balanced in criticism.

Mon, 2 May 2011
3 min read
Add Comment

Dear Madam/Sir,

I refer to “On Chen Show Mao, Mr Low’s motives and the WP’s missing plans” (May 01).

I reside in Aljunied GRC. As of yet, my allegiance lies with neither of the teams contesting the ward.

In fact, I salute both teams for working the ground tirelessly over the last five years. Their efforts have made it extremely difficult for me to choose whom I should allow to represent me in Parliament.

Nevertheless, I have some views that I would like to share with the writer:

  • On the issue of Mr Chen Show Mao’s commitment and connection to Singapore, we must first look to Singapore’s evolution in its short history as a nation.

    In 1997, then-Prime Minister (PM) Goh Chok Tong acknowledged in his National Day Rally speech that “we have encouraged [a] dispersal of Singaporeans by asking [them] to go regional and create Singapore’s external wing”.

    He went on to say that “the more able ones, in whom Singapore has invested the most, have a special obligation to society. We must all join hands to keep Singapore together”.

    Mr Chen is a child of the above-mentioned policy, and he has heeded the same call to return. That Mr Chen, like Dr Janil Puthucheary, is able and willing to serve the nation should be answer enough for the writer.

  • On the issue of Mr Low’s proposed budget, it would only be fair to require the Workers’ Party team (WP) to come up with a proposal if the People’s Action Party (PAP) team is expected to do likewise.

    If the counter-argument is that the PAP team is the incumbent, so it will reuse the same budget, then there is no reason why a WP-led Town Council might not do the same.

  • On the issue of Mr Low’s motives, this has been made sufficiently clear. In my opinion, I believe Mr Low wants a chance to:
    • improve the lives of Aljunied GRC residents in both material and non-material ways, and
    • be a stakeholder in Parliament so that the WP’s long-term vision of an alternative government can be realised.
  • On the issue of democracy and a First-World Parliament, the writer claims we “cannot afford to spend time debating…on every matter in the name of democracy”.

    Surprisingly, he seems to have afforded the time to categorically critique Mr Chen, Mr Low and the Workers’ Party, all in the spirit of democracy itself.

    Perhaps this is to demonstrate the WP’s vision of a First-World Parliament in action: besides the basic functions of voicing views and working together to resolve national issues, there is also “responsible opposition…to generate a culture of accountability”.

  • Finally, the writer’s concluding remark about fairness perplexes this reader.

    The writer states that Mr George Yeo responded ably to Mr Low’s queries by meeting his constituents more often over the course of five years – that is, one election cycle.

    If fairness is in question, then is the writer insinuating that Mr Low also be given the same opportunity and time frame to prove how he will manage Aljunied GRC?

Thank you.

Yours sincerely,
Laremy LEE (Mr)

(Published as “Letter from Laremy Lee” on 02 May 2011 in TODAYonline.)

Credibility that convinces, above anything else.

Mon, 25 Apr 2011
2 min read
Add Comment

Dear Madam/Sir,

I refer to the letter “Experience that counts, not looks” (April 23).

As a matter of full disclosure: I, too, will not be able to vote in Marine Parade GRC.

However, I would be offended if the writer is implying that most Singaporeans are unthinking when it comes to assessing the suitability of political candidates to represent them.

From my observations, the support that Ms Nicole Seah has received thus far has been mainly on her own merit.

Ms Seah has been successful in demonstrating her honesty and reliability in offline interactions with friends, colleagues and ordinary Singaporeans prior to her foray into politics. This is evident from the high regard which people hold Ms Seah in when they narrate anecdotes about her principled personal beliefs and professional work ethos.

Furthermore, recent videos of Ms Seah speaking in interviews have been circulating on social media networks. Her intelligence, clarity and persuasion in these videos have been critical in convincing Singaporeans that Ms Seah is a credible candidate.

In light of these two key factors, there is no logical reason why Ms Seah should not receive the support she has garnered. Likewise, there is no evidence to the contrary as to why Singaporeans should not look to Ms Seah for future political representation and leadership.

Thank you.

Yours sincerely,
Laremy LEE (Mr)

(Published as “She has earned the support” on 25 Apr 2011 in TODAYonline.)

How to compose an e-mail message.

Sat, 19 Mar 2011
3 min read
Add Comment

In the last few years, I've noticed a trend: most students don't know how to compose e-mail messages, even if their lives depend upon it. (PHOTO: MyLearningSolutions.org)

In the last few years, I’ve noticed a trend: Most students don’t know how to compose e-mail messages, even if their lives depend upon it.

That’s quite a pity, because this is actually a compulsory skill taught at the ‘O’ Level.

Perhaps it’s not made so explicit i.e. perhaps teachers don’t teach students how to write e-mail messages per se.

But I know for a fact that teachers do prepare their students to write formal letters – the structure of which can be used in e-mail messages.

So it’s either one of two things:

  • Most people need to be taught specific actions for each scenario in life; or
  • Most people have been taught to the test so much that the ability to transfer and/or apply knowledge learnt in class has been lost entirely on them.

In any case, I’ve also learnt that if people make mistakes and aren’t corrected at specific points in their lives, they go through the rest of their lives carrying said mistake(s) with them.

THEREFORE!

So that I don’t need to keep on repeating myself over and over again, this is the Mr Laremy guide to crafting an appropriate e-mail message!

(Round of applause, please.)

—

Dear student,

Thank you for your e-mail message. Please take note of the following:

  1. For future correspondence, you must include a salutation that addresses the recipient of your e-mail or letter e.g. Dear Sir, Dear Madam, Dear Mr Laremy, etc.

  2. You must also include a paragraph or two of text that explains the purpose of your message. A blank e-mail message literally does not say anything.

  3. Use a valediction or a sign-off appropriate to the content and tone of the message e.g. “Yours sincerely” or “Sincerely” since you are a student writing to a teacher, in this case.

  4. An example of how you can craft a simple but appropriate e-mail message:

    “Dear Mr Laremy,

    I have attached my assignment to this e-mail message.

    Thank you.

    Yours sincerely,
    A. Long-Suffering Student”

  5. Other things you will find useful:
    • If your work is late, it is courteous to provide an apology for not being able to meet the deadline. This would help your case if you need to request for an extension to the deadline.
    • The word you want to use is “deadline”, not “dateline”.
    • When writing to teachers, do not adopt a superior tone in your message; we are not your subordinates. This means that I have a bit more leeway in terms of using phrases like “Please take note” – but you don’t.
    • Neither should you adopt a familiar tone with teachers in your message – we may be friendly, but we are not friends.

  6. You can refer to this website for more info about this. There’s a little activity at the end which you can try too.

Thank you.

Best regards,
Mr Laremy