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Explanatory Note Following Recent Comments on Honour (Singapore)

  Dear Donors and Friends of Honour (Singapore), Yawning Bread, a social commentary website, published a blog on 1 April 2016 titled “Cup of honour runneth over.” The blog cast doubt on various aspects of Honour (Singapore), raising again presumed connections with FGB Singapore, and especially referencing our accounts which we recently published. I have been writing quarterly letters to you to keep you updated on what Honour (Singapore) has been doing, the latest letter having only just been sent on 1 April 2016. Nevertheless, I feel it necessary to write this special note to address the main issues raised…
Honour Singapore
April 7, 2016
Nation

Want to be Free?

Lessons on what happens to societies and nations when individual citizens do not honour the part they need to play to keep the country whole and healthy are lessons best derived by carefully learning from history.   Fernando del Pino Calvo-Sotelo offers deep insights in his essay, “The Five Experiments: a short essay”. Del Pino is one of the sons of the late Rafael del Pino y Moreno, founder of the Spanish construction company Ferrovial.  He has been involved in managing the family fortune since 1998. “The Five Experiments” is based on a speech by Del Pino in June 2015…
Honour Singapore
March 1, 2016
Family

Count your Blessings this Chinese New Year!

To all our Chinese readers and everyone else enjoying Chinese New Year, best wishes for the Year of the Monkey! May you prosper in the important things of life, and enjoy much happiness, good health, and fruitfulness in your many endeavours. Allow me to refer you to a link to a Chinese New Year video production by Petronas, Malaysia's fully integrated oil and gas multinational ranked among the largest corporations in the Fortune Global 500 listing of the world's largest corporations:  http://youtu.be/r9i08erqdpY. This video explores what makes a blessed life. Anyone not moved after watching the video would have missed…
Honour Singapore
February 7, 2016
Community

The Blind Man on a Tokyo Train

  A Singaporean who just came back from a trip to Japan described what he thought was a remarkable scene. He was taking a train from the airport to Tokyo city centre.  As he was very tired, he quickly settled himself into seat on the train. Just a few moments later, a whole lot of Japanese who had been seated stood up.  He himself did not stand up, as he did not know what the standing up was all about. Along came a blind man into the train. Obviously all the Japanese had stood up to give their seat to…
Honour Singapore
January 22, 2016
Leadership

Honouring the New Year!

  I was discussing with someone earlier this week who had observed that an organisation that once was enterprising and open to connecting up with foreign visitors appeared to be losing its confidence to do so. He said the organisation had just turned down a request to meet foreign visitors as “everyone is too busy”, and wondered why the organisation’s international relations department could not accommodate the meeting request. I ventured the view that it could be because the people in the department did not feel confident enough to speak and to address questions that might be raised. Perhaps the leaders in…
Honour Singapore
January 1, 2016
Family

Thinking of Our Father and Mother this Holiday Season

This is the holiday season of Christmas and the New Year.  It is a time for merriment – parties and presents. Christmas has gone beyond being a celebration just for Christians. It is a time for everyone, no matter our race, culture or religion, to think about peace and joy and love for other people.  It is a time to honour each other, to show we accept and care for each other.  It is especially a time where children are showered with gifts and love. But Christmas should be a time when we ought to think of all who are…
Honour Singapore
December 25, 2015
Nation

Honouring our Nation’s Brand

Brand Finance, the world's leading independent brand valuation and strategy consultancy headquartered in London, issued its annual report on the world's most valuable nation brands last month. You can read the full report here. As stated by the CEO of Brand Finance in his foreword: "In a global marketplace, a nation brand is one of the most important assets of any state, encouraging inward investment, adding value to exports and attracting tourists." The Executive Summary of the report on Brand Value opens with the following: "The US remains the world's most valuable nation brand. The USA is undoubtedly a powerful…
Honour Singapore
November 23, 2015
Family

Be a better DAD today… be a better MAN today

In the book "Be A Better Dad Today!" by Gregory W. Slayton, he quoted a conversation he had with President George W. Bush, previous president of the United States of America. It is a story of family members honouring each other - husbands honouring wives, wives honouring husbands, children honouring parents and parents honouring children through their love, instruction, care and comfort. Slayton wrote the story under the heading "A Story from the White House", as follows: "I have been privileged to know a number of U.S. Presidents personally - some better than others.  And no matter what you thought…
Honour Singapore
October 9, 2015
Education

Happy Teachers’ Day! Choose to see the best in others 🙂

Today is teacher's day in Singapore! Let us take some time on this special day to honour and express appreciation for our teachers (at school, at the workplace, in life, etc) who have sown into our lives, inspired us to change for the better, and taught us important life lessons. And if we are teachers, let us remind ourselves to honour our students by choosing to see the best in them, as this story illustrates: "Tommy simply cannot sit still in kindergarten. During storytelling time, he talks and walks about. He disturbs other children in their work. Instead of taking a…
Honour Singapore
September 4, 2015
Nation

Say SG!

The National Day Parade on 9 August 1965 was a grand celebration. Red and white dominated the whole Padang and the sense of pride was palpable.  While no one used the word, it was very much an occasion to Honour Singapore and take pride in what had been achieved over 50 years:  we have an armed forces that is respected for its capability and professionalism racial and religious harmony in a society that Pew Research just a few months back had found to be the most religiously diverse country in the world an economy based on a well-tested tripartism of workers, employers…
Honour Singapore
August 16, 2015
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