Wednesday, October 20, 2004
Kill The Planet

This morning as I was sitting in the bus on my way to work and minding my own lousy business,I saw something and thought this was possibly(?) the first time this had happened to me.I saw a relatively dark skin-toned Indian girl board the bus and thought that this particular lass was actually really lovely.She isn't the North Indian style fair type like I said but neither does she possess the Psylocke/Dazzler type of skin tone(that is quite dark).This girl was very slim and well was dressed in normal executive clothes.Those sleeveless types.Her hair was straight...unless most Indians who usually have wavy tresses and well,her eyes are quite magnificent.Large and pretty.Weird why I want to mention.Maybe I'm trying to prove a point that skin colour doesn't matter to me.

The TNP yesterday had reported on Cameroonian club Planet FC and the various lies and half-truths they had told to try to get into the S-League.Today's edition of the Today tabloid further added fuel to the controversy that Planet is generating.Let me list the various fabrications and half-truths that the club had told.

First off,when they came to Singapore,they had stated that they were from the second division.I think any tom,dick or harry would assume they mean the second divison of the Cameroonian natioanl league or something right?No,after some probing,they confessed that they are in fact a third division team.And not just any third division team.They are a team playing in some unkown amateur league in some province in Cameroon.Translated into Singapore terms,I think they probably play in void decks.

Second thing,they had used some formal authorisation letter from the Cameroonian FA authorising them to play here.But a check with the CFA by a journalist reviewed that the letter was a fake.Written in Englsih,the CFA said that one of the officials who "endorsed" the letter did not even understand English.Hahahah.Planet,in their defence,said that it was an issue of money(are they implying corruption,which is a serious charge?)and that the CFA was trying to get them to go back there.That there was jealousy against them and that if they had not gotten papers,how could they get out of Cameroon to play?Oh really?let's get to the next point.

Planet had based their credentials on the fact that they won the Thai Queen's Cup,a quite prestigious tournament,earlier this year.Problem is...the tournamnet has not even started yet.Planet then clarfied that they had in fact won the PRINCESS CUP(from Queen to Princess,what a demotion!),an amateur tournamnet and blamed the tournamnet officials for not giving them the right name.My question is,as a professional outfit,you don't even know the name of a competition you're participating in?Do they know that it's very laughable.Connecting it to the previous point,taking part in foreign amateur tournaments does not require a team to obtain permission to travekl abroad.Because it's merely amateur,does one think maateur officials would take the trouble to research on the credentials of a participating team?

Frankly,I won't even talk about the financial vaibility or stability of such a dubious outfit but it seems that despite all these loopholes,the FAS still went on to host this "team" for two weeks,covering all their expenses and is thinking of allowing them to join the S-League.Can someone seriously tell me if this organisation isn't run by morons or what?And it's a national body!Says a lot that a bunch of idiots are presiding over a body that holds millions in their coffers and produces national teams that lose 0-7 to small Arab nations.In fact,they can't even market their own league right after pumping millions into it.How terrible.And imagine how the sponsors must feel.It's like throwing money away...or burning it to start a campfire.That's not even my main grouse though.

I don't understand this fascination with getting mediocre foreign teams to participate in our league so as to "increase public interest" and "improve the standard of the league".For the former,one is assuming that they are trying to attract expatriates.Problem is,one must assume that these expatriates are blindly loyal to some form of nationalism and support teams from their country through thick and thin,with NO regards to what crap the team is.Are theyr taking spectators for fools?People can see for themselves.You see a lousy team,why would you want to support it?in fact,they'd probably stay away because they might feel it's not a fair representation of the standards their teams are capabale of producing.That it's a disgrace.

As for "improving the competition",how do you improve a competition by introducing foreign teams that lose consistently to local teams?Improve what,may I ask?The looks department is it?Because the Japanese,with their platinum bleached blond hair,look more like fashion models.None of the foreign teams so far have done anything to improve the league one bit.They only reinforce the fact that the local league has no identity to speak of.And by the way,one really shouldn't call it the S-League then,it should be called the UN-League.

I just get the idea that it's a local malady that we are always so fascinated with foreign talent and think that they are extremely good and all that when in truth,they are hardly,if no better,than local talent.In fcat,sometimes,they are worse than local workers.But no,we insist on paying them good wages to come here to work and deny similarly good local workers of their chance.I can't understand why.

And this fascination with foreign talent will ultimately cost us.I am not being xenophobic to suggest this but think about it,why should foreign talents pledge any special or particular allegiance to Singapore?Because they have lived here for a long time and feel at home here.Don't kid me.In their hearts,they still feel more a part of where they came from than they are Singaporeans or local PRs.They may be here,some of their friends and their immeidate family.But eveything else is back home elsewhere.And that'd be closer to their hearts.

As for Singaporeans...why would we want to be second-class citizens in our own backyard when we can be second-class citizens in other much bigger countries?At least there'd be space for us to move around.