"I had made comments which had been misunderstood and had upset some Singaporeans. I sincerely apologise for causing any grievances and any stress."
- Lee Bee Wah
“I’m quite puzzled as to how a decision like that can be made by the Singapore Table Tennis Association (STTA) president, who has been in office for just over a month.”
- Mr Ng Ser Miang
So now our IOC representative Ng Ser Miang misunderstood her too? This is simply ridiculous.
Instead of apologizing for the incident, Lee Bee Wah has continuously attempted to explain herself in a manner that insults the intelligence of all Singaporeans. This time, she has implied that Singaporeans are at fault for having "misunderstood" her, a blatant attempt to direct the blame away from herself. The fact that she is a member of the PAP only serves to highlight the ingrained mindset of self-righteousness that we so often see in the government.
To be certain, Lee Bee Wah's comments were pretty direct, and I do not see how anyone has misconstrued them.
In response to Gao Ning's 4-0 loss in the Olympics, Lee Bee Wah said that action would be taken against those who “neglected their duties”, clearly referring to the team manager Anthony Lee. Instead of informing Anthony Lee of her displeasure and her decision to "take action" against him, Lee Bee Wah rode roughshod over his feelings and over any concept of professionalism, going directly to the media instead.
It was pretty clear from the outset that Lee Bee Wah had intended to sack Anthony Lee, and there is plenty of evidence to support this. Not only were her initial statements quite clear about her intentions, but the fact that Gao Ning himself blamed the coach too does attest to the possibility that Lee Bee Wah acted on his claims.
On top of that, Lee Bee Wah's subsequent explanations have been insufficient. She claims that "I have a new team, and will have a new CEO and technical director. It is best that the manager is chosen by them. Antony is welcome to apply for the position when we ask for applications.” insinuating that Antony was chosen by an old CEO and technical director who could have make a wrong decision. Ultimately, the decision to ask for new applicants is the same as saying that the current team manager Anthony Lee is not good enough since why bother if Anthony Lee is good enough? Especially if we consider that these applications would have to be based on factors such as rapport with the team, and credentials of which Singapore's silver medal should provide enough for.
Lee Bee Wah's statement that we have misunderstood her despite her obvious intentions to sack Anthony Lee portrays her blatant lack of remorse and does not just insult Singaporeans like you and me and our respected Ng Ser Miang, it also trivalises the issue as a misunderstanding and fails to do justice for the trauma Anthony Lee had to face.
This is treason.
21 comments:
I agree with these sentiments. Not only is she trying to deflect blame from herself and insult the intelligence of Singaporeans, she has the cheek to implicate the STTA, the coaches and the management by giving an apology 'on behalf' of them...the nerve of it all!!! It comes across as self-serving, narcisstic and typical CYA speak. A SINCERE apology comes from one's heart and a honest admission that one has been wrong. By claiming to be 'misunderstood' by others, she does not only show insincerity but is lying through her teeth - feigning genuine regret and putting the responsibility squarely on the shoulders of Singaporeans and apportioning blame on the association, coaches and management. Isn't this a classic case of avoiding the bullet, rather than swallowing the bitter medicine?? While the media has now been told in no uncertain terms ('crisis is over'...) to lay off further coverage of this, and the BENEVOLENT AUTHORITIES are hoping that this furore will die out soon, I feel it has been dismissed too easily - this is a case of glossing over the issue, putting a positive spin on the episode and covering incompetence at high levels!
There are many Singaporeans who can do the STTA more .The perceived ah-lian image will not help our search for an olympic medal. Yes ...there are many Singaporeans who are willing to lead STTA. They are different. If the blogs represent the support for the incumbent STTA leader..then it is clear..STTA needs a new leader.
I totally agree with the sentiment in the article. One can see that not only from her words but also her body language. Her facial expression clearly shown that she is asked to give the apology hoping that the matter be closed. But the words and expression betrayed her.
Good luck to PM Lee and his GLC team and my condolences to AMK residents.
which is why she got a pair of oversized shoes from Mr. Ng...to shut her big mouth and let her know she's too petty for a big job!..and the irony? such an "intelligent" charbo like her..she doesn't get it...she was laughing out loud..without knowing the joke was on her!
Have been close contact with Lee Bee Wah cause she's my MP.
Don't know why the heck they appointed her in the 1st place! She totally have no compassion more so like an android and passion for table tennis? Zero!!
But she plays golf though.
Anyway its typically her style to want to look clean and will not think twice about putting down anyone that can effect her personally.
Boo to her and its just embarrassing having her as my MP.
'Lee Bee Wah remains defiant'
When have we ever seen her kind acting humble? Remember Irene? They are, after all, already lording over all and sundry.
Wee shu min was miss understood too.
Remember the father official reply?
Perhaps Er. Lee Bee Wah miss manage?
What to do? Wayang happen let's pretend nothing ever happen and just move on, yeah right.
Anyway, I also cannot stand the slant in the ST articles...
"With that (her 'apology'), she brought to a close one chapter of an episode that sparked unhappiness from all quarters."
Who is the ST or she to say that she has brought to the episode to a close?
At best, the reporter should say "she hopes to bring to a close"...
It is up to her to apologise (unsincerely at that) but it is up to us to forgive or forget about it!
For those who hv worked with/for her n knew her problems, pls put up a petition n direct to her boss LHL that u fellows don't need her in your constituency. better get rid of her now or u regret later.
Look at her character,always want to show off in the road show.She thought, she is the one who take credit for having a silver medal.Pui, I say, you are the worse MP I have ever seen.The pangsai MP should learn from Dr Lily Neo.
Since she is so new, she barely had a hand in developing this team. Why is Ms Lee posing with the team and standing in the middle? Did she win something the rest of us don't know about?
[ Why is Ms Lee posing with the team and standing in the middle? ] It's called 'chiong heng tao' in Cantonese. English: steal/borrow credit for other achievements. Shameless woman! A hundred LBWs won't even be able to measure up to one Lily Neo, who, unlike LBM, don't have to angkat people to make a living.
Still dare to talk about want to pangsai then look for toilet. This LBW lau-sai through her mouth in another country. Bloody embarassing for the country.
Yes , I think LBW ought to resign from STTA gracefully and let someone more capable to handle STTA .. I think it will be for her own good .She had sincerely apologised but the taint would not be gone forever ....many still will put a foot in to give her hellish time whenever she blunders.. anyway it is up to her to decide..time will tell but it may impede our goals for 2014 and beyond...hope someone higher acts on it fast .
Cantonese say "sek see, or fun" - eat shit, shit rice.
To confirm that this is the wrong way to go, I hope the 3 players and head coach will migrate to USA immediately and seek greener pasture there. We can then focus more on local kids and local talent. Close the sports school is majority of the students are foreign import. Seriously, do we expect Tian Wei to bring her own mom to singapore to stay here? I sincerely hope so, but I think I am setting myself for a big disappointment!
Not just LBW but the cast of political colleagues who were with her at the SORRY PODIUM insulted OUR intelligence with the "politically correct apology" script.Apologise without accepting personal liability..she was "apologising on behalf of..."
Not only was LBW but the cast of political colleagues who were with her at the SORRY PODIUM insulted us with their politically vetted script, apologising yet without assuming any liability..."she was apologising on behalf of..."
Oh my, Lee Bee Wah, did I get this correctly?
You will go down in history as the pang sai MP....
as the joker of the 2008 Team Singapore......
....(drum roll) as the running mate of Lee hsien loong in AMK!!
I heard Li Jiawei can't stand your haughty smirkness! hahahaha
Lee Bee Wah is also a foreign talent. She is the in my opinion the most gifted in her field. Like so many others who has decided to take on the chaleenge to explore and exploit greener pastures, has proven that she has only the capacity to excel in her field of expertise. She should stick to engineering instead of meddling in other fields. She should just resign from STTA. Such persons of lessor qualifications and status would have to face the wrath of other lessor persona. Thus are we still in a meritocratis society in Singapore or are we moving towards a society where some are more EQUAL than the rest.
to the association’s honorary secretary Soon Min Sin who is in support of Ms Lee ..... we also assess STTA leadership by different set of criteria...
just getting everyone gelled together(national team probably less the coach haha not a complete gel) is not good enough deliver results and the process to achieve the result is equally important.
the former is delivered by the coach
LBW failed to meet the latter citeria
the outcome should be obvious to all...
LBH should be the President of FAS too!
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