Chitchat Why Jamus Lim join Workers' Party ?

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Jamus invites you to a Sengkang conversation.

https://www.facebook.com/jamusjlim?__tn__=<<*F

Jamus Lim​

16 January at 10:01 ·

We will be organizing the first of our townhalls, entitled #SengkangConversations, next Sunday! Our three MPs, Chua Kheng Wee 蔡庆威, He Ting Ru 何廷儒, and myself, will cohost. We hope that such townhalls to be an open forum for #SengkangGRC residents to share their thoughts about a wide range of topics that affect their lives, from developments in national policy to key concerns of a more local nature.

For our inaugural session, #TeamSengkang will talk about municipal matters. Each MP will briefly discuss an important townwide issue that has repeatedly arisen in our tenure so far. We will then open the floor to all residents to share their thoughts—whether on the topics we raised or others that they feel are worthy of consideration—before we break out for division-specific feedback. While this session will be virtual, we hope that future sessions, conditional on the ability to host larger gatherings, will (finally) be in person.

Please sign up here: https://rebrand.ly/SKConv

 

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Jamus explores the topic of exchange rates.

Jamus Lim​

Yesterday at 09:14 ·
For most of us, exchange rates are an exotic topic, something we only willingly confront when we travel (remember those days?), and are forced to make mental math calculations of multiples up and down. On my first trip to a faraway place (our pre-enlistment last hurrah), a few of us close friends went to England and France. It was my first time on a plane. And it was the first time I had to work with a holiday budget that my parents had set aside as a graduation present. That’s where the constant conversions came in. At the time, the pound was super-strong (like 2.4 Sing to a quid), and to be safe, I recall multiplying everything by 3, and subtracting just a tiny amount. To stretch the budget, we would load up during breakfast (since it was included in our budget B&Bs), and went for buffets that would make up lunch and dinner. The bottom line was, currency was often a killer.
Of course, that was at a time when Singapore was still less developed. Our exchange rate was weak, because our economic fundamentals could only support an exchange rate at a relatively lower rate. A deliberately undervalued exchange rate can also be a viable development strategy. While controversial, Harvard economist Dani Rodrik has argued (convincingly, in my view) that doing so could promote export-oriented development.
We are, however, no longer a developing country. While we still export, we import a great deal of intermediates (used to produce our final goods), which are more expensive with a weak exchange rate. These days, we also compete more on quality, rather than cost. Perhaps more fundamentally, a weak exchange rate makes the stuff we buy that’s produced elsewhere—the Nike shoes, Samsung TVs, L’Oréal makeup—more pricey than otherwise. This indirectly impoverishes our consumers. This is even more relevant today, because inflation is higher than it’s been for the past 8 years. Weak exchange rates allow elevated prices on imports—especially food and fuel—to translate into higher sticker prices that we all face.
If it isn’t already clear, exchange rate undervaluation isn’t some abstract policy with little relevance for our daily lives. The question of whether the Sing dollar is appropriately valued should concern you and me. That’s why, in the recent debate on a bill that would allow the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) to transfer its excess foreign exchange reserves to the Government Investment Corporation (GIC) to manage, I brought up this matter.
You see, such reserves only build up when there’s a lot of demand by foreigners for our currency, than locals’ demand for foreign currency. Normally, this excess demand would cause our exchange rate to strengthen. But if the MAS wants to keep the exchange rate undervalued, it’ll supply more Sing dollars to the market. The upshot is that these are exchanged for foreign currency, which leads to a buildup of reserves. So we only end up with too much reserves—which makes the transfers to GIC necessary—when our exchange rate is routinely weaker than it needs to be. And since 1970, this rate—adjusted for inflation and our trade—has remained roughly the same. But does it need to be? I don’t think so, and I think that MAS can allow the Sing dollar to get stronger. While this does mean that GIC ends up with less reserves to manage, it also means that we keep more purchasing power in the hands of the Singaporean consumer. #makingyourvotecount

 

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Jamus goes on house visits.

Jamus Lim​

12 hrs ·
Owing to way too many town council meetings this week, we brought forward our regular house visits by a couple of hours, and were able to complete 322A #Anchorvale. We had a number of meaningful conversations, about jobs for locals, rising costs of living, and—with Carole Ann (pictured here with her mother, Sandra, and dog, Angel)—living in a more compassionate Singapore.
Carole Ann is a reminder that none of us need be bound by the circumstances we happen to find ourselves in. With the right mindset and determination, we can overcome, and do things that we may have never thought possible (for example, she showed us how she has a special keyboard with oversized keys, which allows her to type quickly, after some practice).
Carole Ann is also a reminder that there are many among us would cherish being active, contributing members of society, so long as we afford them an opportunity to do so. This may mean accommodating the style of work that someone with special needs might require, which—importantly, in my view—need not mean accepting lower-quality performance (speaking to Carole Ann, I do not believe she would allow herself to offer anything less than excellence in her consultancy work). For others, it could mean a helping hand when they’ve been made redundant, so that they can retool and be productive again. And for yet others, it could mean providing ongoing financial support, so that even the least fortunate among us may continue to live a life of dignity and meaning. That is the sort of society that the #workersparty envisions, and one that we will continue working toward. #TeamSengkang #SengkangGRC
https://www.facebook.com/photo/?fbi...xleEz3Ovl_N3J5hgwCH0ZswzCGGF3ytg&__tn__=*bH-R

 

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Jamus wants to talk to cute doggie, but doggie ignores him.

 

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Jamus trying to persuade the resident to let him in.

 

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from msn.com:

Moving on after Raeesah Khan scandal, WP MPs to hold first Sengkang town hall on Jan 22​

Singapore — Workers’ Party Members of Parliament He Ting Ru, Jamus Lim, and Louis Chua will be holding the first town hall at Sengkang GRC on Jan 22 after the resignation of Raeesah Khan, who stepped down on Nov 30, 2021, upon admitting to having lied in Parliament several times last year.

The WP then announced that the Sengkang GRC map would be redrawn and her ward, Compassvale, was distributed among Ms He, Prof Lim, and Mr Chua.

In a Facebook post on Sunday (Jan 16), Prof Lim wrote that he and his fellow MPs hoped “that such townhalls to be an open forum for #SengkangGRC residents to share their thoughts about a wide range of topics that affect their lives, from developments in national policy to key concerns of a more local nature.”

The meeting will be a virtual one, with those who wish to join invited to sign up here.

The first session will concern municipal matters.

“Each MP will briefly discuss an important townwide issue that has repeatedly arisen in our tenure so far. We will then open the floor to all residents to share their thoughts—whether on the topics we raised or others that they feel are worthy of consideration—before we break out for division-specific feedback,” added Prof Lim, who also said he hopes that future sessions may be held in person.

Ms He, who chairs Sengkang’s Town Council, announced in a press conference on Dec 2 that the residents Ms Khan had represented would be taken care of.

“Enfolding Compassvale into the oversight of the three MPs ensures that all residents of Compassvale will continue to have a direct line of contact with an MP who will represent them.

Residents are welcome to reach out to any one of us, even if they reside in a different division, as they have always been able to do.”

Shortly afterwards, the three remaining MPs announced that alternative arrangements had been made, and posted a map of Sengkang GRC’s new divisions.

Netizens applauded the WP MP’s for organising the town hall.

© The Independent Singapore

© The Independent Singapore

© The Independent Singapore

© The Independent Singapore

Some even asked if non-Sengkang GRC residents may join.

© The Independent Singapore

© The Independent Singapore

 

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Hopefully there will be an update from WP soon.

 

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Jamus takes part in a symposium.

Jamus Lim​

3 hrs ·
On Saturday, I had the pleasure of joining James Cheo (HSBC Wealth and Personal Banking), Vijai Krovvidi (UBS) and Suresh Tantia (Credit Suisse) on a panel for the SIM Global Education, Singapore Institute of Management’s Investment and Networking Club’s Youth Financial Symposium. The wide-ranging discussion—expertly facilitated by Valerie Law (DealStreetAsia)—touched on Chinese versus U.S. growth prospects, rethinking the Singaporean economic model (and position as a financial hub) for the future, and investment implications in a slower-globalizing, post-pandemic world. Thanks to Melvin Lee and the rest of the team at SIM-INC for organizing. It is always a pleasure to speak to students excited about learning more about the world.

 

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Jamus and his fellow symposium participants.

 

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There is one guy covering his face.

 

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Jamus likes meepok tah and chai tau kueh.

Jamus Lim​

14 hrs ·

There’s a small noodle place near where we live, which is my go-to for my weekly fix of meepok tah (when we have #SengkangGRC Town Council meetings, I grab it from the 266 Coffeeshop instead).

The lady that runs the store also sells chai tau kueh—which I purchase almost as often as her meepok—as well as prawn noodles and laksa. She runs the place mostly on her own (her husband helms a sister operation, in Hougang), although on weekends she may rope in her somewhat reluctant-looking kids to help. The pandemic has, of course, affected her business, but she kept it afloat—especially through the lean circuit breaker period—and recently even applied modest upgrades to the stall.

The business always strikes me as reflecting the best of our hardworking, owner-operated small enterprises. It diversifies into as many areas that it can comfortably succeed in, to keep the offerings attractive. It keeps running, day after day, with early starts (I used to see her setting up when I would run by at 6 am, in the pre-kid days when I could enjoy that luxury). And it continuously seeks to upgrade and improve. It is not only a celebration of hawker culture (a point Leon Perera has championed in Parliament), but is also a prime example of our many local small and medium enterprises (SMEs).

That’s why I believe that our SMEs are entirely capable of upgrading and improving productivity; it was never about our people being incapable or unwilling. Rather, I believe that the national business environment has to wean our firms off a low-wage, imported-worker model, toward one focused on increasing capital reinvestment and technology deployment, encouraging them to expand, and elevating them into regional and possibly global players.

Postscript: If anyone would like to support the business, they are located at 928 Restaurant at Upper Thomson (and in spite of the name, it’s a coffeeshop lah).

 

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Jamus is joined by LTK on his estate walk.

Jamus Lim​

6 hrs ·
This year’s pre-Lunar New Year all-estate walk—where I go about the entire estate with the property team to ensure that as many outstanding municipal issues as possible are resolved in advance of the holiday—was spread over a longer period (a full day and two half-days), owing to the additional areas I now have under my charge.
And for the second half-day, I had the honor of being joined by the pioneer of the practice himself: Mr Low Thia Khiang! During our walk, I was able to learn more tricks of the trade (along all dimensions). I was able to also stumble on some wonderful and quirky sights and sounds around the estate, and be reminded of the beauty of Sengkang in general (and #Anchorvale in particular, although I am, admittedly, biased). As stewards of the town, I see it as my job to help keep it that way.
Such endeavors would, however, be impossible without the diligence and expertise of the estate team: both the professional property officers, managers, and various support staff that ensure that things run as they should, along with the conservancy operators that make it all happen on a day-to-day basis. Having already treated the back-office staff over the year-end break, I took this opportunity to thank the frontline crew, who had been toiling away from dawn till dusk with spring cleaning duties over the past couple of months. Residents have noticed, and are appreciative. Kudos to everyone in #TeamSengkang for their hard work in making #SengkangGRC an even better place to live.
Postscript: My only qualm about walking with Mr Low is that—given his celebrity status—we get stopped all the time to chat with residents!

 

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Jamus greets an ah pek.

 

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Jamus and LTK examine a bird.

 

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Lots of badly camouflaged bicycles.