Sunday, October 4, 2009

Restructure of taxi service

For commuters who wish to have a more efficient and less costly taxi service, you can read my suggestions on the restructure of the taxi service here.

Give your views in this survey.

Survey: Free Market

Read my articles on the Free Market by clicking on the Label in the right panel or here.

Give your views in this survey. Thank you.

Saturday, October 3, 2009

Sudoku Challenge, 7 and 14 Nov 2009

The Sudoku Challenge is held on 7 november (preliminary) and 14 November (finals) at Thomson Community Club. Registration through internet, www.one.pa.gov.sg or at Thomson CC Tel: 6251 6344 closing date: 23 october 2009.

National Service for citizens

I hope that the injustice done to Singapore born male citizens should be addressed soon. Read the views here and in The Online Citizen.

Here is another worrisome story. Read this article written by Seah Cheang Nee.

Here is my previous blog suggesting a review of National Service. This is a letter sent to the Straits Times that was long delayed and finally, rejected for publication.

Difficulty of forming class action for Pinnacle investors

Dear Mr Tan,
I have been advised by few people to approach you for advice with regards to the Early Redemption of the Pinnacle Notes Series 1 (S1) by Morgan Stanley on 21 Aug 09.

Briefly, sometime in Aug 2006, my financial advisor approached me and recommended the Pinnacle Notes. Trusting the security firm and my financial advisor's assurance that this was a low risk product, we proceeded to purchase the Pinnacle Notes.

After the collapse of Lehman Brothers, we started receiving adhoc updates from the security firm in relation to the Pinnacle Notes. The update on the Early Redemption on 21 Aug 09 showed a meager 0.57388% payout.

I heard that there is an action group engaging lawyers to file a civil suit. I will like to seek your advice, as well as to find out more in order to assess what is a better option for me in pursuit of a settlement.

REPLY
To my knowledge, the investors of the Pinnacle Notes are not able to organise a class action. Many investors are in the same situation as you, and they are also at a loss. Some have lodged complaint at FIDREC and in nearly all cases, their complaint has been rejected by FIDREC.

Honestly, I do not know what you can do now. I tried to get the Government to help the same investors who were misled, but they also refused.

Chee Soon Juan

I met Chee Soon Juan two years ago at a barbeque organised by The Online Citizen in East Coast Park. He brought his wife and three daughters with him. I had a friendly chat with him.

I met him on a few subsequent occasions. I gave some puzzles, quizzes and my books to him to give to his daughters. I have always wondered about how difficult life must be for his daughers in school.

I have spoken to Chee Soon Juan spoke on a few occasions and heard him speak at public meetings. He came across as being a sensible person and has some views about what is good for Singapore. I agree with his views on the need to have to promote democracy and to have a government that reflects the aspirations of the people and is accountable to the people.

The mainstream media has painted a negative picture of Chee Soon Juan. Many Singaporeans perceive him in a negative light, which I believe is a wrong perception. I hope that they will have the chance to meet him and listen to him, or read his views in this blog.

I met a friend at a coffee shop this morning. I told him about my views of Chee Soon Juan and his family. He agreed with me. He had heard a story that Soon Juan's daughter had to speak up in class and tell her classmates, "My father did not commit any crime". He was emotional; tears came down from his eyes when he said, "I wonder how any parent would feel if our own daughter had to face this kind of difficulty in the class".

I like to wish Chee Soon Juan, his wife and three daughters all the best as they face the difficulty of life in Singapore. I hope that more Singaporeans will come forward to express their support to him and his family.

Tan Kin Lian

Target Marketing

If you are setting up a new business, such as a restaurant or service business, you will need to market to target customers living within a certain distance from your shop. We can give you particulars of the customers based on your selected profile. More details here.