Nobody has any issue with the rule of law. But we do have a bone to pick when we see that the rule of law just isn't working anymore, is unjust or just plain skewed.
Take the rule of law of intellectual property rights. We respect that because it gives due credit to the inventor, the creator and the innovator. But what if food crops, herbs and spices are not indigenous products of a First World country. Nevertheless they go right out to manufacture and export them as if they were their own?
So much for the regard of intellectual property rights.
What of the rule of law with regard to homosexuality or littering or of an undischarged bankrupt? Are these crimes? Are they criminals?
There Are More Pressing Public Health Concerns Especially Infectious Diseases Kind - Bed Bugs For One? Sexually Transmitted Diseases Perpetrated By The Sheer Numbers Of Sex Workers Here As Another?
It was an early Friday morning that I woke up with a splitting headache, grogginess and complete dazedness. I knew I had to attend court to answer to a charge of a littering offence.
But with all the stressors of the past couple of months, I was beginning to dread this and of what else is to come.
The nature of the offence in this case is littering and littering of a cigarette butt that is deemed a public health concern.Take note that it wasn't a public health concern with the ill-effects of smoking and that of second-hand smoking.
True, public health warning labels on ciggy packs do play a small part but would it not have been more persuasive with the "enforcers" (both environmental officers and security guards alike, the latter whose primary duty is the safeguarding of the secuirty of the building premises he is supposed to take care of) detailing the hazards of nicotine for instance.
And the ridiculity of placing smoking and non-smoking zones right next to each other especially at a cafe if passive or second-hand smoking is such a public health concern too.
I have mentioned that other than punishment, there are more persuasive ways to turn around a smoker. Apparently it isn't health concerns associated with smoking that our authorities are pre-occupied with but with littering. Otherwise they would have banned smoking and stopped its sales altogether?
If there were proper disposal bins with the ashtrays provided like before, I think there would have been no issue of littering the stubs in drains or on the floor. Unless they want us to start a fire or to stub out the ciggies on top of the bin which is gonna be filthy with ashes and dirt.
So much for public health!
Notice To Attend Court
I dragged myself out of bed even though it was only half past seven and the court session wasn't due till about a hour and a half later.
I put on my most conservative black short-sleeved shirt and a pair of jeans. No tight tees! No hot pants and no ear-studs! Boy was I to regret this! Because there were young people dressed scantily and inconservatively too!
God ! I didn't know I had lost so much weight that the jeans actually needed a belt to hold it up. And my old pair of sports shoes is killing me - it is hurting my big toe so much so that I had a swollen big toe at the end of the day.
I had to chuck it away and a new pair of Nike too! The latter had its whole undersole torn off and it was like brand new! So much for manufacturing quality.
I was out of the house by eight, ate a hearty breakfast to kill the intervening time and by half past eight, I was at the Subordinate Courts.
What A Drag And An Ordeal!
The crowd started streaming in and what a crowd it was. It wasn't till 15 minutes past nine that the law officers turned up carting their luggages with them. And I thought I was supposed to be punctual and dressed conservatively for a court attendance!
I was told there were like about a hundred cases to be heard at this court. Assuming they were all environmental cases (there were cases of HDB summonses and CPF non-contribution for employers) and their first offence was a composition fine of $200, that would mean a whopping $20K income on a day like this.
The crowd was so big, it had to be split into two sessions, one in the morning and the other in the afternoon. I noticed that FatBloke was also there but I chose to ignore him and didn't acknowledge his presence. I don't particularly like him, remember! All his lies! Just like my ex-roomie!
In the meantime, I made a couple of friends and among one was a HOT young BENG! There was another HOT YOUNG DUDE and my regret was not making my acquaintance with him as he was constantly surrounded by a "girl-friend"!
It was a full five and a half hours later that my case was heard, a CWO sentence of 3 hours was meted out and I was out of court by 2pm. It wasn't the shame of a CWO or of a court attendance or of anything else. I was primarily concerned with the score-keeping which would have dampened my future employment prospects!
A Sheer Waste Of Resources
You should listen to some of the littering cases sob stories. One dirty old man was caught for littering a rotten water melon. If he were a shop employee and had disposed this inappropriately, it would have been the doing of his employer. What cow sense to nab someone like him!
I think that with regard to non-payment of composition fines like traffic summonses, URA and HDB parking offences and littering charges or of repeated offences (this is only a second time and no composition is offered and why isn't there a second or third chance) and if money is the sole issue here, there must be better and more productive ways to deal with it than to drag someone through the due process of the law.
The kinda number of law officers employed at this court and their talent which could be more usefully deployed in pressing cases (crime for example unless of course there just aren't other avenues to employ them because of the sheer suppy overwhelming appropraite demand).
The administrative work, the case files opened, the time spent and so on just make it a sheer waste of manpower resources, time and energy expended for nothing!
In fact someone someone in my group mentioned that if a CWO was to be issued for the second offence anyway, then just send an email or letter. No need to go through the hassle of a court attendance!
These Are Real Crimes That Merit Court Attendance And The Due Process Of The Law
At the other courts, there were cases of computer misuse (possibly for the commission of fraud), illegal employment of foreign manpower (some Chinese nationals were involved here) and prevention of corruption.
I am not casting any slur here but the disproportionately ethnic representation in the cases are just revealing.
Arhhhhh....nobody has any quarrels that these are real crimes.
Another One Of Your "Alien And Anti-Culture"
This would be a fine example of an alien culture we have imposed upon ourselves.
We have lapped up the ways of the West lock, stock and barrel. Is this the Asian or the Chinese way of handling disputes? Needless courts of law to police non-criminal cases of community issues?
I would think that first and foremost the community acts as the police and enforcer and at the outset it is PERSUASION before more drastic actions like punishment or enforcement kicks in.
Somehow his has eluded the bananas at our top.
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