Han Fook Kwang

Singapore

Editor-at-Large at The Straits Times

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Articles

Opinion | In Singapore’s election, can the PAP stem a rising opposition tide?

1 month ago | scmp.com | Han Fook Kwang

In Singapore, at every general election, the most asked question is: how many seats will fall into the opposition’s hands? This election is no different. If anything, it has become even more keenly anticipated because the opposition, especially the Workers’ Party (WP), appears to have been able to field credible candidates – including lawyers, doctors and other professionals – in greater numbers than in previous elections. An air of expectation surrounds their chances.
In Singapore’s election, can the PAP stem a rising opposition tide? - Han Fook Kwang

1 month ago | qoshe.com | Han Fook Kwang
Commentary: Trump’s America brings more chaos, but not necessarily more danger

1 month ago | channelnewsasia.com | Han Fook Kwang

SINGAPORE: It is conventional wisdom now to view the world as being a more dangerous place because of how President Donald Trump wants to remake America and its place in the international order. His aggressive style, making outlandish demands of other countries and threatening retaliatory action otherwise, has made everyone nervous about where it will all lead to.
Commentary: 10 years after Lee Kuan Yew’s death, have Singaporeans abandoned his staunch belief of Singapore’s vulnerability?

2 months ago | channelnewsasia.com | Han Fook Kwang

SINGAPORE: If Lee Kuan Yew were alive today, would he jump out of his sick bed as he famously promised and try to stop the downward slide he feared Singapore could head towards? Or would he afford himself a satisfied smile that the island state was in good hands and doing as well as could be expected? Ten years after his death in 2015, contrary to the claims of some of his critics, Singapore has not followed him to his grave.
Commentary: Yes, Singapore is a price taker but it doesn't mean we can't do more to rein in living costs

Feb 15, 2025 | channelnewsasia.com | Han Fook Kwang

SINGAPORE: Whenever the issue of the rising cost of living is discussed in Singapore, it feels like flogging a dead horse. After all, what can be done? Singapore imports almost everything and has to accept the price of goods set by other countries. In other words, to use a technical term, it is a price taker. End of discussion? Except for one inconvenient truth - it is the number one issue that people say they are most concerned about, as almost every poll has shown.
Commentary: After a poor run in 2024, politics around the world needs to change fundamentally. Here's how

Jan 10, 2025 | channelnewsasia.com | Han Fook Kwang

SINGAPORE: Politics had a bad run in 2024. In many countries, it dominated the news headlines for the wrong reasons. In South Korea, impeached President Yoon Suk Yeol’s attempt to impose martial law to neutralise his political opponents backfired spectacularly and he is now facing arrest. In the United States, the unseemly spectacle of a presidential candidate being convicted of an offence related to a sexual abuse case and facing imprisonment seemed too surreal to be true.
Commentary: What the surprise decision on Income-Allianz deal says about the Singapore government’s priorities

Oct 15, 2024 | channelnewsasia.com | Han Fook Kwang

SINGAPORE: The Singapore government’s decision to block the Income-Allianz deal was both surprising and extraordinary, but most of all, it was the right call. When the matter was discussed in parliament in August, there wasn’t a hint that it would not approve the sale of Income Insurance’s shares to the German financial services company.
Commentary: Singapore’s MRT system is too big to fail but is enough done to improve reliability?

Oct 11, 2024 | channelnewsasia.com | Han Fook Kwang

SINGAPORE: Singapore’s Mass Rapid Transit (MRT) system is too big to fail. If there were any doubts about this truth, the incident on the East-West Line on Sep 25 should stop it in its tracks. Too big to fail does not mean it will not. No system is completely foolproof. What it means is that everything that needs to be done to prevent failure must be done. It also means that if there are too many failures, not enough has been done.
Commentary: To contain spiralling healthcare costs in Singapore, we must remove the original sin

Aug 24, 2024 | channelnewsasia.com | Han Fook Kwang

SINGAPORE: There is one sure way to reduce the ever-rising cost of healthcare in Singapore but no one wants to tackle it head-on. Instead, everyone is dancing around the problem and skirting the main issue. The sick elephant in the room: The health insurance plan called “as charged”. Depending on what your needs are, an “as charged” plan can either be the best thing you ever signed up for or a national financial disaster.
Commentary: Income-Allianz saga shows a lack of understanding of public sentiment and how to communicate major changes

Jul 31, 2024 | channelnewsasia.com | Han Fook Kwang

SINGAPORE: The public outcry over the sale of Income Insurance to the giant German financial service company Allianz holds useful insights on what concerns Singaporeans and lessons on how to address them. There are four issues worth examining. First is the angst that selling Income was a betrayal of the original idea by former Deputy Prime Minister Goh Keng Swee who started the insurance co-operative to serve the needs of low-income workers.

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