Woah! I have been bombarded by news of a terrorist escape since morning and after browsing through the online forums and newspapers, I have more or less formed my own opinions regarding this issue.

Inefficient government - First, the huge difference in Budget Calculation and now, the escape of a high-profile terrorist in Singapore. Let me remind you that the government predicted a $0.7b Budget Deficit initially, which led to the increase in the GST-rate and consequently, the rise in our cost-of-living. If you have been following the news recently, inflation rate in Singapore has reached an all-time high since the 1980s, and who knows when it is going to start falling. At the end of FY2007, the government collected $6.25b Budget SURPLUS. And now, they are giving the citizens all kinds of rebates and benefits to pacify us, for their mistake? Pardon me for being bold and blunt here, but what good use are those rebates and tax-reliefs if the cost-of-living is rising with every passing month/quarter/year? Can anyone assure us that those benefits will last us through next year, the year after next and the many more years to come? The impact of rising costs is going to stay, but who can say that the same applies for the benefits that our government is providing for us now?

Escape of a high-profile terrorist in our dentention camp proves only one thing: That the people claiming their salaries from the tax pool aren't doing their jobs well enough. Million-dollar salaries paid out to individuals every year, yet they can't even keep a limp person under detain? What happened to our world-class security, world-class government? And they even have the cheek to peg their salaries against those highly-paid officials working in banks and investment firms? Is this a joke or what? It's not in me to add fuel to the flame but the government's incompetency lately is really worrying. We may be a small dot on the world map, but we need no less good governance than what other countries do. High-ranking officials working in banks are sacked when they made a wrong decision or caused the bank to suffer significant losses. They do not sack the secretaries, the accountants or the front-desk staffs. In contrast, whenever something goes wrong here (in this area particularly), it is always the people at the ground level who are blamed. I so want a job that gets me a high pay, is a solid rice bowl that won't be shattered easily, and the job-scope is to bullshit only. Talk about scapegoats. Double-standards, anyone?

Okay, so much for flaming. Readers, you have been informed. A terrorist is at large now. Take care of your own safety and take extra precautions. However, do not let this affect your life too much. The main objective of terrorists is to instill fear among all of us and if we allow that to happen, we will be falling into their traps.

Enjoy life.

Scandalous - Delvetures