'Unfair that parents have to volunteer so much of their time without guarantee of a place for their children.'
MRS ELIZABETH NG, who signed up with her husband for parent volunteering at a primary school, said: 'To our shock, instead of the usual 40 hours a year that parents have to put in so that their child can qualify for registration for a place, this school increased the volunteering hours to a minimum of 60. Even then, there was no guarantee of a place in the school for our son. The school replied that its criterion was reasonable as other schools imposed a minimum of 80 or even 100 hours. The Education Ministry should stop schools from imposing higher than usual volunteering hours to suit their whims and fancies.'
CHOCK-A-BLOCK
'A chunk of the space is taken up by a retail outlet, leaving patients, many of whom were senior citizens, standing uncomfortably along the aisle, in between shelves of products, blocking the entrance or spilling out into the lobby.'
MR AZMI ADNAN on the patient-unfriendly pharmacy at the newly renovated Jurong Polyclinic: 'There were only 20 seats at the pharmacy, while patients waiting to collect their medication numbered more than 100. Is locating a retail outlet selling health products there really necessary, at the expense of patients? comfort?
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