Something I wrote to the Straits Times about, in response to this article.
$1? Use Common Sense, SLA.
I refer to the article titled “$1: That’s how much land big enough for 17 carparks is worth” (ST, June 18).
As someone unfamiliar with property valuation and the Singapore Land Authority’s (SLA) policies, I cannot say that $1 is, mathematically speaking, the wrong amount of compensation due to the Chuan Park residents. And I can’t say the dollar offer was an insult—I’m certain none was intended on the part of the SLA. But this debacle does point out something far more disturbing, namely the unsettling lack of common sense shown amidst the doubtless numerous rounds of assessments and calculations.
Even a teenager like me can spot the patent ridiculousness in offering $1 to 446 households as compensation. Unlike taking an exam, where all one does is to apply the appropriate formulae and write the answer in the space provided, I should hope real life is somewhat more complex. This is not a simple case of consulting current policies, crunching the numbers and, having arrived at the solution, offering the appropriate amount as compensation. Between the calculations and making the actual offer, did the SLA think about the practicalities involved? Didn’t the amount strike any SLA officer involved as absurd? Did any SLA officer stop to think “hang on, $1 as compensation? This sounds like headline-bait.”? Among other things, the SLA could have declined to give compensation (although this would, admittedly, still cause an uproar), or could have offered a more respectable token sum as compensation.
With all the recent talk of flexibility, of making the government apparatus less rigid and rule-bound, this fiasco is certainly a great leap backwards. I’m sorry to say this incident will probably be used as ammunition by government critics for some time to come, since they love to label the government and any associated bodies as too “bookish” and overly concerned with rules to the point of neglecting common sense. And I’m sorry to concede that in this case, they’re right.
$1? Use Common Sense, SLA.
I refer to the article titled “$1: That’s how much land big enough for 17 carparks is worth” (ST, June 18).
As someone unfamiliar with property valuation and the Singapore Land Authority’s (SLA) policies, I cannot say that $1 is, mathematically speaking, the wrong amount of compensation due to the Chuan Park residents. And I can’t say the dollar offer was an insult—I’m certain none was intended on the part of the SLA. But this debacle does point out something far more disturbing, namely the unsettling lack of common sense shown amidst the doubtless numerous rounds of assessments and calculations.
Even a teenager like me can spot the patent ridiculousness in offering $1 to 446 households as compensation. Unlike taking an exam, where all one does is to apply the appropriate formulae and write the answer in the space provided, I should hope real life is somewhat more complex. This is not a simple case of consulting current policies, crunching the numbers and, having arrived at the solution, offering the appropriate amount as compensation. Between the calculations and making the actual offer, did the SLA think about the practicalities involved? Didn’t the amount strike any SLA officer involved as absurd? Did any SLA officer stop to think “hang on, $1 as compensation? This sounds like headline-bait.”? Among other things, the SLA could have declined to give compensation (although this would, admittedly, still cause an uproar), or could have offered a more respectable token sum as compensation.
With all the recent talk of flexibility, of making the government apparatus less rigid and rule-bound, this fiasco is certainly a great leap backwards. I’m sorry to say this incident will probably be used as ammunition by government critics for some time to come, since they love to label the government and any associated bodies as too “bookish” and overly concerned with rules to the point of neglecting common sense. And I’m sorry to concede that in this case, they’re right.
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