The curious case of CASE.

No. I was not about to write "The curious case of Benjamin Button" - which I have seen and enjoyed, by the way. This case is an altogether different CASE. CASE stands for the Consumers Association of Singapore. However, does CASE really stand for the consumer?

Now, I ask this question for one reason. CASE is not free. This really, really surprised me, since CASE represents consumers' rights in Singapore. It is the only body that I know of to which a consumer can turn, to pursue their rights. It is the conduit through which rights are protected. Yet, in Singapore, a consumer's rights are not naturally protected, for free: they have to be paid for. This must be another "Uniquely Singapore" characteristic. In all other countries that I know of, the governments have provided public bodies, for free, through which consumers can pursue their rights. No money changes hands. There is no fee to secure your rights. However, in Singapore, things are different: no fee, no rights.

If you wish to pursue a case through the Consumers Association of Singapore (CASE), you first have to join as a member of the association. They won't represent non-members. Thus, in Singapore, only members seem to have rights. The fees for joining depend on your situation. The first fee they advertise is the 400 dollar fee for "Life membership". I suppose you would join that if you intend to uphold your consumer rights in many different cases, lifelong. Otherwise there are 30 dollar per annum charges for families and 25 dollar per annum charges for individuals.

So, before CASE will even hear your case, you must first join the association. (I give it a small letter because, in my opinion, any Association, which charges for consumer rights doesn't deserve a capital letter). Now, this is where it gets interesting. After you have joined CASE they will listen to your case. Only then will they decide whether or not to take your case up for you. In other words, it is quite possible to waste money joining, perhaps on a 400 dollar life membership - and have CASE refuse to take up your case. They are under no obligation to pursue your case when they hear it and they won't hear it until you have paid them.

The membership fee is not the only fee you have to pay. There is an "admin fee" for every complaint you make, depending on the amount of money involved, up to 50 dollars per complaint.

Thus, it could cost you 450 dollars just to join and initiate one complaint.

I think that CASE ought to reconsider how it funds itself. A public service such as upholding consumers' rights, should NOT come at a fee, only. CASE should be free to all. It is time that those who control Singapore's institutions thought of more than the dollars they can make out of the situation. Some things should be provided as a free public service - and the protection of consumer rights is one of them.

(If you would like to learn more of Ainan Celeste Cawley, a scientific child prodigy, aged eight years and seven months, or his gifted brothers, Fintan, five years exactly, and Tiarnan, twenty-eight months, please go to: http://scientific-child-prodigy.blogspot.com/2006/10/scientific-child-prodigy-guide.html I also write of gifted education, IQ, intelligence, the Irish, the Malays, Singapore, College, University, Chemistry, Science, genetics, left-handedness, precocity, child prodigy, child genius, baby genius, adult genius, savant, wunderkind, wonderkind, genio, гений ребенок prodigy, genie, μεγαλοφυία θαύμα παιδιών, bambino, kind.

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