PAINTING IS A HOPEFUL START
It was interesting to read about Teng Kai Wei's painting of the Raffles statue in Boat Quay (Raffles does a 'disappearing' act in North Boat Quay for Singapore Bicentennial; Jan 3).
While some may cry "sacrilege", it's actually a meaningful and hopeful start leading to the bicentennial celebrations.
The role of Stamford Raffles will always be important to the Singapore history - even though more recent literature has given other players, like William Farquhar, important roles.
But from a branding perspective, the Singapore history is so much more than that - so it's impressive to see that a local artist has found a clever way to highlight Raffles' contribution while also showing that he's not the only player over several centuries of development.
Jorg Dietzel
PERSONAL DATA RISK
I would like to highlight that the Personal Data Protection Act should also regulate employers and recruiting companies (All eyes on steps to protect personal data; Dec 24, 2018).
Many of them currently require candidates to provide personal information such as NRIC number, date of birth and detailed address when they apply for jobs. They should not be allowed to do this until the candidate is offered the job.
Ng Sung Nang
PROMOTE GOOD ENGLISH
To promote good language skills, The Straits Times should create a daily "English Literature" section, which publishes carefully-curated works that demonstrate a strong command of the English language. These could include creative works such as plays and poetry.
This section would cultivate good language skills, especially among young readers.
Terence Teo Li Yang
MESS AT HDB BLOCK
Almost daily, there is a mess at Block 316 Jurong East Street 32. Residents dump their unwanted items illegally outside the rubbish chute in the lift lobby, in cartons or plastic bags. A scavenger then goes through the items, keeping those that can be sold and throwing out the rest.
Fortunately, the block has a responsible cleaner who cleans up the mess before the town council can be made aware of the littering and illegal dumping.
Something needs to be done.
Patricia Lai (Ms)
