Wednesday, December 2, 2009

Trees disallowed

Aminah - let me have your address by email and I'll send you the book :)

In other news, despite the fact that it seems some residents took it upon themselves to beautify their community by planting trees, these trees will be torn down because they were not authorised. The article doesn't mention anything about the trees causing a problem - just that they were not planted in the proper place and with the authority of the Resident's committee. So much for community bonding.

19 comments:

Anonymous said...

TCs go by the book. If someone complains, they act. Someone new moves into the neighbourhood.

MaryDrolma said...

Aminah, after you have read the book, please may i borrow :)

Anonymous said...

Amazing how these TC employees, like civil servants such as those in AVA and HDB, do not use their brains! and yet they are paid with our taxes!
Some attitude towards residents who care for community cats and all it takes is ONE complaint to "remove" all the cats!

Anonymous said...

Brainless TC mentality.
Same attitude towards residents who care for community cats but just ONE complaint and the TC will "remove" the cats!

Anonymous said...

Write to Sembawang Town Council

feedback@sbtc.org.sg

Anonymous said...

Yeah i saw this and i thought it was stupid. so what if their not authorized...whats wrong if the trees don't cause any harm

Aminah Bee said...

Jeepers! Surprise, surprise! I never thought my comments deserves the special book gift "Irreconcilable Differences". Gosh! Thank you Dawn, from the bottom of my heart! :-)

Mary Drolma, you can have the book after I read it. No need borrow. For your stray cats rescue and sterilisation efforts, you too deserve the valuable book.

On the subject of trees: I encountered same ignorance by my area TC. TC planted a row of trees (the kind that grows very tall and overgrown) at my HDB kitchen area where residents hang their laundry. It does not take a fool to figure out, those young trees will eventually grow tall causing problem to clothes hanging on laundry poles. In the initial stage when TC planted it, they boasted their landscape horticulist know better. Months later TC noticed the trees reaching residents laundry - they removed all the trees.
It's really stupid of TC and their so-called "professional" horticulist, when they cannot plan everything right.

To TC and horticulists : “There is nothing more frightful than ignorance in action.” - quote by German writer Johann Wolfgang von Goethe. :o

Aminah.

yskat said...

That's the problem with Singapore: every bit of land is controlled by the government or by large companies, many of which are owned by the government. So where's the "public" in "public space"?

Dawn said...

More importantly - how do you build a sense of community?

budak said...

it really helps when you have residents like this:

"However, Madam Hamisah Saaid, 46, who lives on the third floor, wants all the trees cut.

"They're all over the place - it's not a pretty sight," said the resident of six years. "It makes my flat dark. It's creepy at night, and my son is scared of the banana tree."

from: http://wildsingaporenews.blogspot.com/2009/12/marsilings-mature-trees-may-be-spared.html

Dawn said...

Thanks for sharing budak. It does make one wonder as well what the next generation of children are going to be like if some parents pander to their fears instead of being rational about them.

Anonymous said...

Someone (probably just moved in)complained about the trees.

Why is the kid scared of banana trees? Not mango tree? The FEAR of a specific type of tree is planted by the older family members (like fear of cats) and cld continue with future generations.
Is a banana tree is creepy to that kid, does it means banana trees are not allowed in hdb estates? Will there be more laws what trees are allowed in hdb estates?
Then if my kid is fearful of persons in trousers; will everyone around have to wear a skirt?

yskat said...

In this case, we don't know if the boy is in fact frightened of banana trees: parents often use their children as an excuse to get what they want.

Dawn said...

Good point yskat - sometimes just mentioning a child is involved has that effect.

Mary said...

Banana trees are always associated with ghosts :)

Anonymous said...

Banana trees go hand in hand with Pontianak.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pontianak_(folklore)

D said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
Dawn said...

I always thought they were associated with frangipane trees too!

Mary said...

Yes frangipani trees - but banana trees are more related to the hantu :)