Haha pinabonds, are you sure? Go check your facts. ALL ministries answer to PMO. It simply adds another layer between MAS and PMO, that's all. MAS is under MOF's jurisdiction. The whole damn civil service answers to PMO. You are funny.

EDB and MAS wield as much power as YOUR pay scale and CEP allow you to see. You see that they wield so much super power from the perspective of your CEP and the level you are at.

Simply put, if any stat board no matter how prominent has as much clout of its parent ministry, they wouldn't be under the ministries. It is true that different stat boards have differing autonomy. It doesn't change the fact that even the freest of stat boards come under the purview of its ministry.

All the AOs and AO to be, high fliers fresh out of school are placed in ministries and not stat boards. That is a fact. Why don't they place their most talented people in the stat boards if stat boards are where highest levels of decisions are made? Don't kid yourself. Cos you are the only person you can fool.

I have scores of PSC-OMS friends who just attended the annual foundation course (a course only held once a year) that AOs attend. ALL are in ministries.

Even the stat board scholars who manage to make the cut to the course are instantly transferred to ministries to dabble in policy work at the highest level once they pass the interview. Out of the course, less than 2% are farmers. 90% are SAFOS, SPFOS and OMS who are emplaced there automatically, and the remaining 19% stat board overseas scholars.

That is the set up. If you can't stand it, take it up with Mr Teo Chee Hean, the head of PMO and Eddie Teo, the head of Civil Service, both are President's cum SAFOS or OMS scholars.