Singapore Round-up
Looking at recent headlines - from Goh's exit to red faces at tax office. The Economist
Aug 2, 2004

Goh-ing away
After much speculation, Goh Chok Tong, Singapore's prime minister, has said he will hand over power to his deputy, Lee Hsien Loong, on August 12th. Mr Lee, the eldest son of Singapore's founder, Lee Kuan Yew, has long been waiting in the wings; he will assume power just days after the country celebrates the 39th anniversary of its independence, declared on August 9th 1965. Mr Goh hinted that he would like a job in his successor's cabinet, but made no specific requests.

Mr Lee will name his governing team shortly before he takes office, and will deliver his first major policy address on August 22nd. Many suspect his big speech will concentrate on boosting the country's dismal birth rate. He may also have to burnish his public image:
unlike the easy-going Mr Goh, Mr Lee is brusque and often seems ill-at-ease. Finally, he may also need to rebut persistent suggestions that he owes his rise to family ties: something he and Mr Goh both deny, however improbably.

Bothering China
Singaporean diplomacy, fuelled by a desire to remain on good terms with nearly everyone, tends to be unspectacular stuff. That changed this month, when Mr Lee travelled to Taiwan one quiet weekend in July on a "private and unofficial" trip to see some friends. One such
friend, however, was Chen Shui-bian, the president, whose pro-independence stand angers China.

Beijing, predictably, was livid. After failing to stop Mr Lee's visit before he left, Chinese officials issued repeated verbal denunciations and claimed that the move threatened Sino-Singaporean ties. Mr Lee explained that he needed to better understand Taiwan, which he last visited in 1992, before he assumed power. Soon after, China cancelled a sprinkling of officials visits and vetoed plans for a few hundred civil servants to study in Singapore.

Smart remarks
Friends and foes alike regard Singapore's intelligence agencies - both domestic and foreign-as pretty efficient, having clamped down on assorted troublemakers for years. But Tony Tan, Singapore's deputy prime minister, believes they can do better, and toured the globe to assess other countries' intelligence services.

Perhaps mindful of intelligence debacles in America and Britain in the run-up to the war in Iraq, Mr Tan concluded that better coordination is essential. He has created a new agency, the National Security Coordination Secretariat (NSCS), which will collect information from
domestic and overseas intelligence agencies, iron out turf wars and set anti-terrorism priorities. To head the NSCS, Mr Tan appointed Peter Ho, who previously worked in the defence ministry for nine years, and is also the permanent secretary for foreign affairs. The NSCS will have a start-up budget of $50m, and Mr Ho will report directly to the prime minister.

High fliers
Trying to snare a growing slice of the booming no-frills airline industry, Singaporean aviation officials on July 20th showcased plans for the region's first terminal for budget carriers. The S$45m (US$26.4m) facility, built to complement Changi's other terminals, will be able to handle 2.7m passengers per year. Doors will open in 2006. A day later they welcomed the first plane to arrive for Tiger Airways' fleet. Tiger, the budget arm of Singapore Airlines (SIA), will begin operation by year's end.

Meanwhile, workers at SIA are once against being pressured to accept new contracts. Lim Boon Heng, a cabinet minister, led the charge, saying that "wage restructuring is absolutely necessary" for SIA to adapt to a changing market. Ng Eng Hen, Singapore's acting manpower
minister, called SIA employees' medical benefits "disproportionate and excessive". Talks between SIA management and unions continue.

A taxing problem
Given enough time, money and direction, Singapore's bureaucrats can handle pretty much anything. But tax-department employees have found one task particularly daunting: returning overpaid taxes, especially to foreigners. About 60,000 people-mostly foreigners who no longer live in Singapore-have paid about S$23m in excess taxes. Tracking down those owed a refund is tough, as most people left no forwarding address. Unless the claimants come forward (or the officials somehow manage to find them) the cash will remain dormant in the coffers.
(Jul 29, 2004 issue of Economist)