Sunday 15 June 2008

Talking Point: Sunday 15 June, 10.20pm on CNA

CNA is starting a new segment as part of its Singapore Tonight news bulletin on Sunday nights. Every fortnight, there will be a 10-minute segment featuring Debra Soon and P.N. Balji with a guest.

I'm honoured to be the guest for the inaugural show. It will be broadcast tomorrow (Sunday) night on CNA, as part of Singapore Tonight at 10pm (so the segment itself will be around 10.20pm). The CNA blurb is below. Do tune in and let me know what you think (of what I said, the segment, the concept and execution, whatever).

Talking Point

Nominated MP Siew Kum Hong joins Debra Soon, Chief Editor of MediaCorp News, and PN Balji, Editorial Director of MediaCorp Press, in a discussion about the hot issues of security lapses at the SubCourts and the SAF's unprecedented three-day stop of all physical training. Sun, Jun 15, 2200hrs (Singapore time).

2 comments:

simple said...
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simple said...

What struck me was the poor standard of professional journalism demonstrated by the 2 hosts, particularly the lady. In legal parlance, they were literally asking you leading questions to answers they obviously were striving for, ie., that the authorities were on the ball in action and feedback this time vs the Mas Selamat escape case. I'm sure you will have something to say about this as I saw you trying to give your take as objectively as you can in your own words and not theirs. But it looked like your answers were not a match to what they were looking for. It is pathetic to see such things on public tv and it is an insult to audience intelligence. I agree with you that the authorities have no choice but to react quickly this time. But I think the details given out to the the public this time was more forthcoming in part due to the fact that the 2 guys were caught. Wonder if it would have been de javu had they been still at large. As an aside, it is telling that the minister in charge, WKS, did not come out with a statement but left it to his colleague in the Ministry of Law to do so. Is it a case of guts or rather a lack of guts. Human error is hardly an excuse for matters involving national or public security where the personnel who are supposedly highly trained and managers who are well repaid. As you had emphasised, a robust system must factor this in the management and prevention of such risks occurring and this is the responsibility from top down starting with at least the minister in charge, if not the prime minister.