If Singapore continues to fail spotting real talents, I won't be surprised if Joakim is the next Singapore Idol.

Don't misunderstand me. I'm not against Joakim. I think we're not getting the gravity of the situation here. Week after week, contestants with better vocals leave. It's becoming pretty obvious that votes are based on pretty faces. Well of course it projects a good image having a hip, cool, Joel Madden-lookalike like Paul Twohill or a sweet-looking boy like Joakim as our Singapore Idol. I still hold on to the notion that image is somewhat everything.

I'm not sure if the second Singapore Idol will be competing for the World Idol, but it is certainly necessary to keep up with the standard. We don't want the world to establish an opinion of "Oh, he's just another typical singer" and worse still, "He's a terrible singer" to our idol. Already, Singapore is a small country and this competition seeks people with incredible talent out of the 4 million of us, and that will mean amazing vocals and a genuine personality that can infuence many hearts out there. Sadly, the Singapore Idol is determined by Singaporeans.

So why are the good people leaving? Are Singaporeans to be blamed? If you're still not aware of what's been happening, let's see who have been voted out so far.

Norman Then - Seen as one of the weaker contestant out of the 12. Didn't show much potential to go far. Didn't show how much he wanted to win this. Wasn't surprised he was first to go.

Gayle Nerva - Definitely has the right image, has better vocals than a few others. I have no idea why she was voted off so soon. She has the potential to go further than this. Predicted to be in the Final 8 or 9 instead of Final 11.

Emilee Kang - I think one of the reasons why she had to go was because of her age(she's 28), plus she wasn't that good of a singer herself. Lacks a sense of uniqueness and determination. I'm not surprised she was out.

Jay Lim - I feel that he deserves to go further than this. Among the boys, him, together with Hady and Jonathan, should be the last three boys to go. Has a quality voice. Predicted to be in Top 7 instead of the Final 9.

Rahimah Rahim - Obviously she has an amazing, unique voice, but this rock chic has shown off too much that it becomes an eyesore. But then again, she's better than some of the other female contestants. Should have chosen the right songs and shouldn't be too angsty. Could have been Top 6 if she hadn't gone way off on her last performance.

Mathilda D'Silva - I honestly believe that she would be the Final 2. Has the strongest and the best voice among all, very energetic and very determined. I'm still shocked. The week she was out proves that Singaporeans haven't been voting wisely. PLEASE, Singaporeans, do you realise what you're doing? We've just lost a contestant that can represent Singapore.

Nurul Maideen - Sadly, last week's shock had to be prolonged. I'm surprised that Nurul's out when she seemed to be performing better than a couple of others. She deserves to stay while a few others don't(especially the ones who were guilty of being sent back to their seats, heaving sighs of relief for not being the one who had to go and knowing they hadn't performed well either).

Pardon me if I made a few comparisons. But isn't this what Singaporeans are supposed to be doing? We vote based on pure talent and those who DESERVE to stay. At this rate, it seems that we're still not getting it right. If any further changes in terms of voting aren't made anytime soon, we might have to prepare for the ultimate shock ever at the end of this competition.

And right now, only 2 out of 5 deserve to stay in the competition.

Sorry. I tried not to be subjective to this, but I see this going a little out of hand.

But then again, I'm just one person. I'm entitled to my own opinion that can't influence people who have been keeping themselves busy on Wednesday nights, pressing the keys of their cell phones, voting for their favourite contestants.