Racism has no place in Singapore; concerns about SIA-Air India deal ‘purely commercial’, says MP Kenneth Tiong

The Workers' Party MP was responding to comments by Senior Minister K Shanmugam on Saturday (Sep 5), in which he addressed racist online comments about the Nepal-Tibet disaster and SIA’s investment in Air India.

Workers' Party Member of Parliament Kenneth Tiong.

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SINGAPORE: Workers' Party Member of Parliament Kenneth Tiong on Saturday (Sep 5) said there is "no place for racism in our society" as he defended his criticism of Singapore Airlines' (SIA) investment in Air India, saying his concerns were "purely commercial".

Mr Tiong was responding to comments by Senior Minister K Shanmugam to reporters earlier on Saturday, when he condemned "shameful" racist and xenophobic online comments about the Nepal-Tibet disaster and SIA’s investment in Air India.

Mr Shanmugam, who is also home affairs minister and coordinating minister for national security, said decisions on whether to invest further in Air India rest with SIA, while Temasek, as a shareholder, expects the airline to make its investment decisions responsibly.

He added that while Mr Tiong is entitled to his views on the deal, they should not substitute for the commercial judgement of SIA’s management and board of directors.

CNA Games Guess Word Crack the word, one row at a time Buzzword Create words using the given letters Mini Sudoku Tiny puzzle, mighty brain teaser Mini Crossword Small grid, big challenge Word Search Spot as many words as you can Show More Show Less Mr Tiong raised concerns about SIA’s investment in Air India after Reuters reported last month that Air India had sought a further US$1.5 billion in support from owners Tata Sons and SIA, just months after it had posted a record annual loss. On Saturday, Mr Tiong said in a Facebook post he agreed with Mr Shanmugam that racism has no place in Singapore, and that he condemned any attacks on someone’s motives because of their ethnicity. He said the debate over SIA's investment in Air India had become entangled with racist comments, which he condemned without reservation. “My concerns were, and are, purely commercial,” he said. In his Facebook post, Mr Tiong again raised concerns about SIA’s stake in Air India, questioning how many more times Air India might be asking shareholders for additional funding, and who would foot the bill when SIA is unable to.

Mr Tiong raised concerns about SIA’s investment in Air India after Reuters reported last month that Air India had sought a further US$1.5 billion in support from owners Tata Sons and SIA, just months after it had posted a record annual loss.

On Saturday, Mr Tiong said in a Facebook post he agreed with Mr Shanmugam that racism has no place in Singapore, and that he condemned any attacks on someone’s motives because of their ethnicity.

He said the debate over SIA's investment in Air India had become entangled with racist comments, which he condemned without reservation.

“My concerns were, and are, purely commercial,” he said.

In his Facebook post, Mr Tiong again raised concerns about SIA’s stake in Air India, questioning how many more times Air India might be asking shareholders for additional funding, and who would foot the bill when SIA is unable to.

Earlier on Saturday, Mr Shanmugam said reports that Air India was seeking fresh equity had triggered a new wave of "anti-Indian, racist ranting" online.

He also said Temasek chief executive Dilhan Pillay Sandrasegara had been targeted because of his ethnicity.

Regarding SIA’s investment in Air India, he said it is SIA's responsibility to assess its investments in Air India against the resources it has for its "long-term growth and profitability".

"Any decision to invest in Air India lies with SIA, and Temasek as a shareholder in SIA, along with other shareholders, will expect SIA to make its investment decisions responsibly."

While Temasek is accountable to the government for its overall portfolio and long-term performance, it is not accountable for individual investment decisions of its portfolio companies, Mr Shanmugam said.

"Temasek and its subsidiaries decide how to invest across a wide portfolio with investments of varied risks and varied time horizons. Once governments or politicians start directing individual investment decisions, commercial discipline will be compromised," he added.

"Decisions will become politicised – shaped by political considerations, rather than commercial judgment. In the end, Singaporeans will bear the cost."

On Mr Tiong’s previous comments about SIA’s investment in Air India, Mr Shanmugam said: “Mr Tiong is entitled to his views. He is entitled, like any other Singaporean, to ask questions about SIA and Temasek.”

"But neither his views, nor that of any minister, or any other MP, should substitute for the commercial judgment of SIA's management and board of directors – boards which have knowledgeable and independent members, and management which has professionals whose primary responsibility is to consider and make these decisions."

Asked by a reporter whether Mr Tiong's post had crossed racial or xenophobic lines, he said: "As regards to Mr Tiong and whether he was being xenophobic or racist, I think you'd best ask him. You'd have to ask him what he intended and what he meant."

On Mr Tiong's previous statement that no one "owes Air India a living", Mr Shanmugam said: "I think he ought to do his homework and look at SIA's letter and the facts that I put out today, and ask if he is being responsible."

In his Facebook post on Saturday, Mr Tiong said that Singaporeans are best served when there is both zero tolerance for racism and hard questions about money.

“We should not let the two get mixed up. If we do, both causes suffer.”

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工人党议员此番言论是对高级部长尚穆根周六（9月5日）的评论的回应。尚穆根在评论中谈到了网上关于尼泊尔-西藏空难和新加坡航空公司对印度航空投资的种族主义言论。

工人党国会议员张建宗。

这段音频由人工智能工具生成。

新加坡：工人党国会议员张建宗周六（9月5日）表示，“我们的社会容不下种族主义”，并为自己批评新加坡航空公司（新航）投资印度航空的言论辩护，称他的担忧“纯粹出于商业考量”。

蒂昂先生是在回应高级部长尚穆根周六早些时候对记者发表的评论。尚穆根当时谴责了网上关于尼泊尔-西藏空难和新加坡航空投资印度航空的“可耻的”种族主义和仇外言论。

尚穆根先生同时也是内政部长和国家安全统筹部长，他表示是否进一步投资印度航空的决定权在于新加坡航空，而淡马锡作为股东，则希望该航空公司能够负责任地做出投资决定。

他还补充说，虽然张先生有权对这笔交易发表意见，但他的意见不应取代新加坡航空公司管理层和董事会的商业判断。

CNA游戏 猜词游戏 逐行破解单词 流行词游戏 用给定的字母组成单词 迷你数独 小谜题，脑力挑战 迷你填字游戏 小方格，大挑战 单词搜索 尽可能多地找出单词 显示更多 显示更少 路透社上月报道称，印度航空在公布创纪录的年度亏损几个月后，向其所有者塔塔集团和新加坡航空寻求15亿美元的额外支持。此后，张先生对新加坡航空对印度航空的投资表示担忧。周六，张先生在Facebook上发帖称，他同意尚穆根先生的观点，即种族主义在新加坡没有立足之地，并谴责任何因种族而攻击他人动机的行为。他表示，关于新加坡航空投资印度航空的争论已经与种族主义言论纠缠在一起，他对此毫不保留地予以谴责。“我的担忧过去是，现在仍然是，纯粹出于商业考量，”他说。 Tiong 先生在 Facebook 帖子中再次对新加坡航空持有的印度航空股份表示担忧，质疑印度航空可能还会向股东寻求多少次额外资金，以及当新加坡航空无力支付时，谁来承担这笔费用。

路透社上个月报道称，印度航空在公布创纪录的年度亏损几个月后，向其所有者塔塔集团和新加坡航空寻求进一步 15 亿美元的支持。对此，张先生提出了对新加坡航空投资印度航空的担忧。

周六，张先生在脸书上发帖表示，他同意尚穆根先生的观点，即种族主义在新加坡没有立足之地，并谴责任何因种族而攻击他人动机的行为。

他表示，关于新加坡航空投资印度航空的争论已经与种族主义言论纠缠在一起，他对此毫不保留地予以谴责。

“我过去和现在都只关心商业问题，”他说。

Tiong 先生在 Facebook 帖子中再次对新加坡航空持有的印度航空股份表示担忧，质疑印度航空可能还会向股东寻求多少次额外资金，以及当新加坡航空无力支付时，谁来承担这笔费用。

周六早些时候，尚穆根先生表示，有关印度航空寻求新股权的报道在网上引发了新一轮“反印度、种族主义的咆哮”。

他还表示，淡马锡首席执行官迪尔汉·皮莱·桑德拉塞加拉因其种族而成为攻击目标。

关于新加坡航空对印度航空的投资，他表示，新加坡航空有责任根据自身资源，评估其对印度航空的投资是否符合其“长期增长和盈利能力”。

“是否投资印度航空的决定权在于新加坡航空，而淡马锡作为新加坡航空的股东，与其他股东一样，都希望新加坡航空能够负责任地做出投资决策。”

尚穆根先生表示，虽然淡马锡要对其整体投资组合和长期业绩向政府负责，但它不对其投资组合公司的具体投资决策负责。

“淡马锡及其子公司负责管理涵盖风险水平和投资期限各异的广泛投资组合，并自行决定如何进行投资。一旦政府或政客开始干预个别投资决策，商业纪律就会受到损害，”他补充道。

“决策将政治化——受政治考量而非商业判断左右。最终，新加坡人将承担后果。”

针对张先生此前对新加坡航空投资印度航空的评论，尚穆根先生表示：“张先生有权发表自己的观点。和其他新加坡人一样，他有权对新加坡航空和淡马锡提出疑问。”

“但是，无论是他的观点，还是任何部长或任何其他议员的观点，都不能取代新加坡航空公司管理层和董事会的商业判断——董事会成员知识渊博且独立，管理层由专业人士组成，他们的主要职责是考虑和做出这些决定。”

当记者问及Tiong先生的帖子是否带有种族歧视或仇外情绪时，他回答说：“至于Tiong先生是否带有仇外或种族歧视的倾向，我认为你最好去问他本人。你得问问他他的意图和意思。”

针对张先生之前声称“没有人欠印度航空一份生计”，尚穆根先生表示：“我认为他应该好好做做功课，看看新加坡航空的信函和我今天公布的事实，然后问问自己是否尽到了责任。”

张先生周六在脸书上发帖称，对种族主义零容忍，并对金钱问题提出尖锐问题，才能更好地服务新加坡人。

我们不应该让这两者混淆。如果混淆了，两项事业都会受到影响。

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