ST Sep 28, 2007
Needless expenditure on English courses
I AM writing with regard to GeBIZ (http://www.gebiz.gov.sg/), which is the Singapore Government's one-stop e-procurement portal.
All the public sector's invitations for quotations and tenders are posted on GeBIZ. Suppliers can search for government procurement opportunities, download tender documents, and submit their bids online.
While surfing the website, I came upon a government school seeking private-sector companies to conduct English courses for its PRC scholars, paying at least $35,000 for 300 hours of instruction.
I was amazed at the huge expenditure. Aren't schools supposed to be educating our young? Aren't our teachers qualified to teach English?
If it were courses in leadership skills or public speaking, I would understand the need for external vendors to come into the picture as such courses require special knowledge and skill sets.
The Government should think twice before spending taxpayers' money unnecessarily.
Fok Kah Hon
This Fok Kah Hon person is not very clever. Doesn’t he know? This is Singapore. We must give foreigners more advantages than citizens.
Singaporeans can pay for their own private tuition lessons. And if they fail their O-level English exams, well, that is just too bad.
But as for the PRC students - ahh, we can't allow that to happen. We must make the taxpayers pay for their extra English lessons!