Ahmad Khalis Bin Abdul Ghani
Singapore
“Besides observing, may I ask the Minister whether there is a role for the non-Muslim public to support the efforts of the Muslim community? Sir, we have seen that events which have a religious dimension which may happen in one part of the globe can influence inter-community sentiments elsewhere.”
“Sir, I wish to seek clarifications on two points. Firstly, on the extent of the involvement of businesses during Exercise Northstar V, I reckon that their involvement was rather minimal because it was held on a very early Sunday morning.”
“Sir, statistics show that there were significant increases in the crimes of cheating, including offences related to it, and housebreaking and snatch theft in 2005 over 2004. Is this the trend for such cases over the last 10 years? May I also ask the Minister to what extent are the victims themselves to blame for these offences?”
“May I ask the Minister whether he can assure this House that such extra resources shall be funded by the revenue from the IR and not result in the net depletion of our resources elsewhere?”
“This information can be shared with other agencies and help them design schemes to make illegal moneylending irrelevant. Sir, I urge everyone to support the fight against illegal moneylending. As a character in Shakespeare said, "neither a borrower nor a lender be".”
“Sir, I wonder whether the Deputy Prime Minister can tell us whether or not there is at present a code or protocol which investigation officers can follow at investigation stage so as to enable them to be alert of the presence of low intelligence persons who are being suspected of criminal offences and how to deal with them and, if there i…”
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“Besides observing, may I ask the Minister whether there is a role for the non-Muslim public to support the efforts of the Muslim community? Sir, we have seen that events which have a religious dimension which may happen in one part of the globe can influence inter-community sentiments elsewhere. How religion is taught here affects the Singapore Muslim community's positioning on issues and conflicts from the Middle East to Maluku, and the very recent heated debate on freedom of expression vis-a-vis respect for religious sensitivities. May I ask the Minister for his comments on the Singapore Muslim community's responses to these events? Is the community indifferent or apathetic? Or is the community's response reflective of its maturity, always having an eye for the bigger picture, the longer term good of the various peoples in this country and the world? Majlis Ugama Islam Singapura”
“Sir, one of the most challenging issues faced by the Muslim community in Singapore is how to fully participate in the nation s secular-based growth and life while remaining true to its faith. This challenge is made more acute against the backdrop of terrorism made in the name of religion, one consequence of which is that any move towards religiosity is more often viewed as a move towards extremism or militancy. In addition, as stated by Mr Othman before me, globalisation means that Islamic religious education has to prepare its students to manage increasing diversity, increasing complexity, the need to take multiple perspectives of problems and the premium of moving across cultural boundaries. May I ask the Minister what efforts have been made by MUIS to review Islamic religious education and development, in view of the urgent need for inter-religious harmony, not only among Singaporeans but also among communities in the world, and the demands of globalisation? 3.00 pm Religion also plays a dominant role in the lives of Singapore Muslims. Yet, we see, as Mr Othman noted earlier, this community faces some serious social challenges, such as ill-prepared marriages. Can the Minister explain what is the role of religious education in managing these social challenges? Has the idea of this role been shared with the asatizah (religious teachers) and community leaders? How have they responded? While the Muslim community grapples with these issues, its approach and development must be closely observed by other Singaporeans. I think many non-Muslims appreciate the efforts by the Singapore Muslim community to be good citizens, friends and neighbours, whilst striking a meaningful balance with retaining their unique identity.”
“Sir, when the HDB introduced its policy on commercial loans a few years ago, members of the public and the House voiced concerns that this would signal an increase in foreclosures on HDB flats. May I ask the Minister on a more specific point about the number of cases of banks taking legal action in court to repossess HDB flats in 2004 and 2005 and, in how many of these cases were the flats actually foreclosed? The HDB, in showing some flexibility, did stipulate that only third-time direct purchasers are barred from HDB concessionary loans. This, in principle, allows citizens to benefit from HDB concessionary loans at some point in time. The problem is, as stated by my learned friend before me, at the time the policy was introduced, those who had already used their quota suddenly found themselves without a lifeline which they hitherto thought they had. In addition, a number of them who managed to get commercial loans were hit by the economic restructuring and crises. May I ask the Minister how many of the foreclosure cases were due to the economic crises and restructuring? May I also ask the Minister what happened to the owners of foreclosed flats, bearing in mind that they no longer could borrow from banks and possibly even from the HDB to buy another flat? Is it not true that such ex-owners also face problems paying rents at commercial rates due to the financial problems that they face? To what extent is this a challenge and does this not undermine our policy of home ownership for all Singaporeans? Reverse Mortgage”
“Sir, I wish to seek clarifications on two points. Firstly, on the extent of the involvement of businesses during Exercise Northstar V, I reckon that their involvement was rather minimal because it was held on a very early Sunday morning. If this is so, I would like to ask the Minister what other efforts would be made to increase their involvement in future exercises. The second clarification relates to serial house-breakers. I would like to ask the Minister what is his Ministry's definition of a serial house-breaker and how many of them actually commit repeat offences after serving sentence for a similar offence in the past.”
“Sir, on emergency preparedness, namely, fire, I note that no one else this year filed a cut on fire emergency. I believe the SCDF must be doing quite well. So, is it true, Sir, that the number of fire incidents has been showing a downward trend and, if so, can the Minister share with us the reasons for this trend? Sir, like many disasters, fire prevention is hugely better than cure. The SCDF has, in recent years, stepped up public education to prevent fire very considerably. More and more Civil Defence Executive Committees (CDEC) are being formed and I would like to encourage more citizens to participate in CDECs or form new CDECs. May I ask the Minister what more are being done to better educate the public to prevent fires and to better prepare them to react appropriately when there is one? I wish also to ask what is the SCDF's target in making Singapore emergency-trained. Is it one person for every 100 persons or one household per block or one household per floor, maybe? Perhaps the Minister could enlighten us on this and how the Ministry intends that the SCDF achieve this target. Drug Abuse”
“Sir, statistics show that there were significant increases in the crimes of cheating, including offences related to it, and housebreaking and snatch theft in 2005 over 2004. Is this the trend for such cases over the last 10 years? May I also ask the Minister to what extent are the victims themselves to blame for these offences? There has been a marked increase of thefts involving handphones in recent years and, in many cases, it seems that handphone owners tended to leave their handphones around or to use them to book seats at hawker centres. Can more be done to educate the public to be more security-conscious for their companies, shops, homes and personal belongings? On the other hand, is there a need for legislative changes to deter these crimes and arrest the rising trend? I also understand, Sir, that not an insignificant number of housebreaking offences were committed by serial housebreakers. I wish to ask the Minister what special efforts, if any, are being made in the rehabilitation of these serial housebreakers.”
“What efforts are being made to roll out the Community Engagement Programme (CEP) and how well is the public responding to the current effort at CEP and what kind of projects can the public expect from it? Community Engagement”
“Sir, earlier this year, we had a very high profile emergency preparedness exercise involving five MRT stations, transport services, more than 20 agencies, thousands of individuals, including members of the public. It was Exercise NorthStar V (North 5). There was NorthStar I, II, III and IV which members of the public might have forgotten or not aware of. Indeed, there will be many similar exercises in the future, maybe on a smaller scale and in different settings. Sir, in the light of these exercises and lessons learned from incidents in London, Madrid, Bali and elsewhere, what is the state of readiness of our agencies in the event of such emergency, including terror attacks? In the event of a terrorist attack, besides injury to individuals and damage to property, we can also expect disruptions to businesses and jobs. Are our businesses prepared to react in the event of an attack? I understand that the Ministry has formulated a corporate First Response Scheme for this. How well has this scheme been taken up by our businesses and companies? In general, the public support the need for exercises such as NorthStar V. Some have suggested more exercises and even at peak hours. Is it because they feel that the public are not mentally prepared and are still not very sure of what to do in the event of an attack? Looking ahead, what exercises - a same question was asked earlier - does the Ministry intend to hold, to improve or expand on NorthStar V? Another adverse effect of a terrorist attack, perhaps one that is capable of the most harm, is to our inter-community relations. We cannot afford to wait for something to happen before deciding what to do. What is the role of community leaders in the aftermath of a terrorist attack?”
“Sir, first on bankruptcy. We saw bankruptcy figures increase some years ago and have remained relatively high since then. While bankruptcy may be the most practical legal resolution in many cases, where debtors are clearly unable to pay their debts, it has its downsides. It is certainly not something that we, as a society, encourage for all cases. I wish to ask the Minister whether bankruptcy figures are beginning to show signs of abating and, if so, what factors contribute to this. Like my colleague, Dr Maliki, I wish to ask the Minister for the progress on the pre-bankruptcy mechanism that was instituted a couple of years ago, how successful has it been and whether improvements can still be made to it. Intellectual Property Sir, on intellectual property, the Government has stated its commitment to position Singapore as a world-class knowledge research and design hub in several areas, including biomedical sciences, nano-technology, financial services and even lifestyles. In this regard, the Government has put in place a robust legal framework for intellectual property. Can the Minister give us an assessment of the growth of the IT industry in Singapore in the last five years? I understand that the World Intellectual Property Organisation Diplomatic Conference would be held here in Singapore later this month. Can the Minister inform us what is the significance of this conference being held here? How else can Singaporeans benefit from the IT industry? If there is much benefit, can the Ministry do more to encourage professionals such as lawyers, to include intellectual property in their practices? Next, how can the Government further encourage inventiveness among ordinary Singaporeans? Are our patent registration procedures too onerous or costly?”
“While leadership and creativity enable Singapore to fly, empathy and charity ensure that Singapore flies as one. Sir, I support the Budget Statement. ADJOURNMENT OF DEBATE”
“"Last time, they say we older workers too expensive. They say cut our pay, so we got pay-cut. Then, the Government say reduce CPF to keep our jobs, so we reduced employers' CPF. Then, employers say not good enough, must improve performance, must retrain, so, every night, we go home late because we go for upgrading and retraining. When we come back, now they say must have Mandarin." Sir, my last point, on helping the less fortunate is a value. Helping lower-wage workers is one of many efforts to ensure that, in our quest to make Singapore a global city, our best home, no one is left behind. Help to the less able is intended to bring them closer to the rest of society to sustain our social compact. In addition, for many people, helping the less fortunate is a moral or social good in itself. Either way, it is something that we must do. But while assistance schemes can help, we are unlikely to attain genuine socio-economic cohesion if the message of care and concern is not present. Our concern is to help the less able overcome current problems and to develop the capacity to overcome future problems they are likely to face. But we cannot force people nor can we programme into our systems these elements of care and concern. We cannot tell people, "Okay. You guys are doing very well so stop making so much money. Start doing some charity work, otherwise, we will increase your tax rates". But we can persuade, we can educate. May I ask the Prime Minister and his Government to include values, such as empathy and charity as values that we should place greater emphasis on, in the same vein as we seek to promote leadership and creativity. This can be done by working together with, for example, voluntary welfare organisations, schools and relevant service providers.”
“Or is it the case that job applicants cry Mandarin-foul every time they are rejected, because perhaps they do not wish to admit that they have other shortcomings? Sir, my staff made a cursory study of the Classifieds over the last few days. Out of about 100 job vacancies for "O" or "N"-level holders, about 30% stated they require Mandarin, 70% do not state Mandarin as a requirement. From this 70%, my staff called four of them. He declared himself to be a male Malay, aged 30. Out of the four, one replied to say that they actually require a Mandarin-literate person because of a Mandarin-client base. The other three confirmed that they do not require a Mandarin-literate person. He emailed to 15, but has yet to receive a reply from them. But it seems from this that there are reasonably sufficient jobs that do not require Mandarin relative to those that require Mandarin. So is this a case of cry foul or cry wolf? But what about jobs that do not require O-levels or N-levels at all, which are more likely to be closely related to low-wage workers? Sir, at present, we can only speculate, which we should not do, for an issue such as this. There should be a more honest and more verifiable study on the matter. May I ask the Prime Minister whether he would consider a study on this issue, just as there were studies on lower-wage workers and older workers? At stake are more than mere economic issues, but also highly sensitive issues involving language and race. There is, I believe, an urgent need to prevent the current angst from spreading. One grassroots leader, an Indian lady, I thought put this concern very well. I will try to quote here, although actually she spoke much better than me - her language with her colourful Indian accent. I will try.”
“After all, he is not asking for a fish. He is asking to be taught how to fish. Insisting on co-payment without flexibility is one example of a practice that hinders effective access to assistance. I urge the Government and its agencies to look out for an immediately remove such obstacles. Service providers ought to be less scheme-centric and more worker-centric. I fully agree with the report's recommendations on this point. There has to be more emphasis on managing the case rather than managing the disbursement. Sir, let me now move on to my next point, on language and job applications. There has been increasing comments that too many jobs require the applicant to be literate or at least be able to speak in Mandarin. Job applicants who are not Mandarin-literate say that they are often rejected by employers who claim that the available positions require Mandarin literacy. In difficult economic situations, such as the present, and it has been so for a number of years, the frustration of the rejected applicants has been growing stronger. It seems to have been expressed loud enough so as to cause the Ministry of Manpower to urge employers not to be so blase about including Mandarin as a job requirement in their advertisements, unless it is really necessary. A few Ministers also urged employers to ask themselves whether Mandarin literacy is really required for the jobs available and to be very mindful of language and race sensitivities. But, Sir, how real is this problem? What is the nature of this problem? If employers genuinely require only workers who are Mandarin-literate, to what extent is this true? Is it to such an extent that warrants Mandarin classes to be made very accessible to all non-Chinese job seekers, for example?”
“With his more take-home pay, not only does he have to feed five people, he has also to pay arrears and debts accumulated as a result of a lengthy period of unemployment. His current income is not sufficient to meet current needs. On the other hand, assistance scheme managers usually insist on co-payment. But the reality is such that low-wage workers typically do not have the financial capacity to co-pay, thus, effectively have no access to job-upgrading assistance schemes. Sir, another obstacle to job-upgrading schemes is educational qualification. There are still many workers who have only Primary Six qualification. They are unable to enrol in many upgrading courses which require applicants to have higher qualifications, eg, Secondary Two or Secondary Three. They would have to attend preparatory courses, such as BEST or WISE, even before being able to apply for the actual vocational courses. This means that they will have to spend more money and time. Not many among the lower-wage workers, especially those still struggling to recover from retrenchments, have such resources when they also have to meet current needs and pay outstanding debts. For such people, it is not always three that their unwillingness to co-pay reflects a lack of commitment or that they are not hungry enough. Many, if not all of us, believe in the virtues of co-payment. But it is not an absolute rule that must be applied regardless of circumstances. The principle underlying co-payment is that the applicant must show a commitment. Co-payment is only a means of verifying this but, surely, there are other means as well. If this commitment can be ascertained, or even developed. With or without co-payment, I think the applicant should have access to the opportunity to improve himself.”
“Sir, I thank the Prime Minister and Minister for Finance for a Budget that shows that the Government appreciates the efforts put in by the people and that it cares much for those with less income. The fact that the Government is able to propose such a Budget shows that measures taken over the last few years have borne fruit. It shows that our fiscal policies are correct and that our economic strategies are very sound. We should build on those, and Budget 2006 reflects this. May I now, Mr Deputy Speaker, touch on three points, mainly dealing with lower-wage workers. The first, on better access to health. I thank the Ministerial Committee on Low-wage Workers for its report. It is comprehensive and leaves no stone unturned. It recognises that the challenges faced by lower-wage workers are multi-faceted and interlinked. I am pleased that the Prime Minister endorses the main strategic thrust of the report and that the Government will study the proposals. I urge the Government to implement the recommendations in the report, especially its recommendations on social supports to enable work and higher skills for better jobs. Sir, there are many assistance schemes, but I find that many lower-wage workers do not have full access to these schemes. Let us take the example of a man who was unemployed, say, for 12 months, recently found a job for $800 a month, three young children, his wife looks after them, not an untypical case we find at MPS sessions. We encouraged this man to take upgrading courses so that he can increase his income. But he does not have enough money to pay for the transport to attend these courses, let alone co-pay a portion of the course fees.”
“May I ask the Minister whether he can assure this House that such extra resources shall be funded by the revenue from the IR and not result in the net depletion of our resources elsewhere? Can the Minister also assure this House that he will keep a close watch and not allow a situation where the State has to sustain the casino control operations to the detriment of its other obligations elsewhere? 4.26 pm”
“So I think this is an area which we all should look at. We should start to set up treatment facilities and train counsellors to treat problem and pathological gamblers, as such counsellors require much time to be trained. Sir, the Bill is silent on these issues. Clause 155 which is supposed to spell out the functions of the Council does not actually spell it out. Instead it says that the function of the Council is to do all things as required in that part of the Bill which deals mainly, if not solely, with family exclusion orders. I urge the Minister to widen the scope of the Council to include research, preventive education and treatment. If this can be done immediately without legislative amendment, let it be done as such for it should not wait. We owe it to Singaporeans to ensure that the ill effects of having a casino in our midst stay at the very minimum, and we must also clearly state our resolve to do so. Sir, may I also take this opportunity to ask the Minister on the casino tax? May I ask the Minister to confirm that the casino tax is above and beyond the usual corporate tax imposed on all businesses? I believe that many Singaporeans will want to know to what extent the Government allows or gives incentives, if at all, to casino operators. To ensure its success, Sir, much resources will have to be allocated to the CRA including its Committee, inspectors, staff, auditors, assets and operations. Similar resources are also needed for the National Council and even more if it is to include the expanded scope that I have proposed, and this does not include additional resources such as extra law enforcement officers to patrol the casino vicinity and to enforce the provisions of the Bill.”
“It shows concern and foresight. Unfortunately, the Bill provides for a Council with very limited scope. Only to hear applications for and issue family exclusion orders, to the extent that the other parts of the Bill are very comprehensive, this is somewhat of a let-down. I believe the Council should also have funding and, amongst its functions, to conduct educational programmes to prevent problem gambling and treatment programmes for problem gambling cases. Research done in Indiana, USA, shows that "young children, adolescents and senior citizens are especially vulnerable to the glamourising of gambling and should be educated about potential problem gambling." It also noted that Indiana was not confronting the early stages of problem gambling behaviour development among its citizens. It also noted that as gambling activities have become more available, the number of people developing a problem gambling behaviour has increased. Sir, I believe that the Government has done at least some research on problem gambling before deciding to go on with the IR project. The nature of problem gambling has to be well understood, how best to prevent it and how best to treat those afflicted with it. We have already debated at length on the possible havoc that problem gambling can cause to individuals and their families. Sir, I do not think we should wait for the first victim before we start preventive education or establish treatment facilities. The research on problem gambling should continue and intensify. Suitable educational campaigns aimed at vulnerable sectors of society, as identified by our research, can begin. In other words, while the Bill says a lot about keeping vulnerable persons such as adolescents out, not much is said about how not to lure them in.”
“Clause 121 provides that the CRA may issue exclusion orders. Clause 122 provides that the Commissioner of Police may make an exclusion order. Under clauses 157 to 168, the proposed National Council on Problem Gambling can issue family exclusion orders via its Committee of Assessors. The concept of the family exclusion order is to enable a family member who is affected by a person's gambling to apply to the Council for an exclusion order against that person. Sir, the idea underlying exclusion orders seems to be either to protect the casino operator or to minimise worsening of a problem gambling situation on the affected person or to reduce adverse effects on his family members, or a combination of any of them. This is laudable and, where possible, should be enhanced. In this light, may I suggest that the courts too be given powers to issue exclusion orders. It is quite possible that in family or maintenance cases, the courts are furnished with sufficient evidence to suggest that certain persons, usually an income provider, ought to be issued with an exclusion order. Further, the court in criminal cases too may be furnished with such evidence to suggest that an exclusion order is appropriate for rehabilitative purposes as part of a sentence package. Such powers, if given to the courts, would save the need for a separate inquiry to be taken either by the Commissioner of Police, the CRA or the Council. Sir, I understand this proposal may call for a fairly substantial amount of review of the current powers of our courts, but I believe it is worth the effort and if we need more time to do it, so be it. Sir, may I now touch on the National Council of Problem Gambling (NCPG) and the provision on the Bill relating to the NCPG. The idea of having this council is good.”
“However, I urge that in future cases, the Minister would so designate a casino site or decide on the period of licence only after consultation with the CRA. Sir, under clause 51(2), the CRA may redefine the boundaries of the casino premises within the casino site from time to time. I appreciate that this empowerment to the CRA is necessary for operational expediency. However, I wish to urge the Minister to ensure that the redefined premises do conform to the guidelines laid down by this Parliament. In the case of the Integrated Resort, to the best of my recollection, the floor area of the casino shall not exceed 5% of the total floor area of the IR - I stand corrected on this. Another consideration was that the location of the casino shall not make it overwhelm the whole character of the IR. I recall these assurances were made in Parliament and therefore should be reminded to the CRA. Sir, clause 116(1) provides that for any Singapore citizen or permanent resident to enter into the casino, he or she shall pay a $100 levy for every period of 24 hours or $2,000 for a valid annual membership. $2,000 annual fee translates into less than $7 a day. While we do not expect more than a very rare few to stay at the casino for every day of the year, the annual membership may be abused if it is transferable, because it would be so cheap and thus undermines the purpose of this provision. May I ask the Minister whether the annual membership is transferable? If it is intended to be transferable, then I suggest that it is a loophole to be plugged. If it is not transferable, then may I ask the Minister to have this clearly stated so as to remove all doubts? Sir, on exclusion orders, clause 120 provides that the casino operator may issue an exclusion order.”
“Mr Speaker, Sir, I agree with the hon. Member who spoke before me that the Casino Control Bill is a very comprehensive one. Singaporeans would appreciate the effort put into drafting this Bill but there are still some points worth reconsidering. Sir, clause 2(2) of the Bill empowers the Minister to designate a parcel of land as a casino site for a specified period. In clause 4(1), the Minister may revoke the order for the designated site or cancel the casino licence in the public interest but only after consultation with the CRA. I suggest that to be consistent, the Minister ought to exercise his power under clause 2(2), ie, when designating the casino site and determining the licence period, he should do so after consultation with the CRA. The Bill does not spell out the qualifications of the CRA's Chairman and members. However, looking at its functions and responsibilities, one would expect them to be highly respected members of society with special knowledge, experience and concern for matters relating to casino operations. Members of similar authorities in other jurisdictions are highly eminent persons, such as senior lawyers, ex-senior police officers and senior public servants. There is no doubt that their counsel will help the Minister decide to revoke the order for the designated site or cancel a casino licence, and all the more their counsel will assist the Minister to decide on designating a casino site and the period of licence. I understand that the CRA cannot now be consulted for the first proposed casino site since the site has already been designated, although there is no CRA as yet. As such, we cannot have a clause in the Bill which compels the Minister to do something which is impossible to do.”
“This information can be shared with other agencies and help them design schemes to make illegal moneylending irrelevant. Sir, I urge everyone to support the fight against illegal moneylending. As a character in Shakespeare said, "neither a borrower nor a lender be". Let us rephrase that, "neither an illegal borrowernor an illegal moneylender be." In supporting this combat against illegal moneylending, we would gather more support if the Government also acts, besides enhancing prosecution and punishment, to reduce the need for illegal moneylenders. The new section 33 clearly makes the offence more serious than the three that I had mentioned earlier. This is a clear and important signal that the Government wishes to treat illegal moneylending harassment very seriously and I therefore again reiterate my support for the Bill.”
“The operation covered 14 locations and this syndicate was believed to be responsible for more than 40 cases of harassment in the last 12 months. They are believed to have at least 800 debtors, estimated to have more than $300,000 worth of live loans and they are believed to give out $300,000 worth of loans per month, with profits estimated at about $50,000 per month. While I applaud the successes of the police and the authorities in smashing these syndicates,the figures tell us that illegal moneylending is an organised crime. Organised crimes, Sir, if not checked early, can subvert our economy and the rule of law. Sir, this is not empty talk. We really have real examples in third world countries where illegal moneylending and crimes similar to it actually subvert the country's economy and the rule of law. We have to check it early. Secondly, Sir, organised crimes at the present timeare usually transnational in nature, bearing in mind our more globalised world. The SeniorMinister of State mentioned just now about higher-tier illegal moneylending which operates from overseas. This is exactly the point that I am trying to say. The question is: what are the other steps that are being taken by the Minister to combat illegal moneylending, bearing in mind that it is an organised crime with likely transnational network support? Is there a comprehensive approach or framework to tackle this issue? The next question, Sir, is whether the Government should also not look at curbing the demand side. This may be beyond the purview of the MoneylendersAct or even the Ministry of Home Affairs, but then the Ministry has better access to figures and information on why people resort to illegal moneylending.”
“So clearly, if we make a comparison, we will find the new proposed section 33 will mete out more severe punishment than the other offences that I have mentioned earlier. And this indeed is a welcome move, Sir. But there are also questions that we need to address ourselves. Are the police better equipped to fight illegal moneylending? The Senior Minister of State alluded to some of these aspects just now. What efforts have been made to address this particular issue? Are there more and better trained officers assigned to deal with this issue? The Senior Minister of State mentionedjust now aboutsetting up a taskforce. What kind of better trainingis provided to these officers? Are there better systems, intelligence and resources allocated to fight illegal moneylending? Sir, illegal moneylending is not a private transaction between a moneylender and a borrower and we will be naive to think that it is a petty crime of lending or borrowing money not according to the law. Let me explain why. In June 2005, the police crippled an illegal moneylending syndicate believed to have an estimated pool of 2,000 debtors. This operation of raiding the illegal moneylending syndicate covered 22 locations simultaneously. Thirty people were arrested and I understand that this number is larger than most branches of banks. More than $200,000 worth of loans were given out monthly by this syndicate, generating profits of at least $100,000 per month. The majority of the monetary transactions between the syndicate and the borrowers was done through ATM transfers.In the second raid in November 2005, the police smashed another syndicate. Twelve men were arrested.”
“Therefore, this passes a message that if a victim does not pay up, collectors are willing to do more than just to vandalise, ie, to cause more damage to property and also to the person of purported borrowers. Therefore, this early vandalism amounts to an assault,a threat, nothing less. Spraying words, such as "owe money, pay money" is a precursor to the more damaging acts and is therefore part of the threat process. We need laws and punishments to reflect the real nature of such harassment. Sir, perhaps it is helpful for us to compare the proposed section 33 of this Bill with present laws on related crimes. If we take a look at the section on assault, ie, section 352 of the Penal Code, an assault, Sir, if I may just remind everyone here, is defined as making any gesture or any preparation intending or knowing it to be likely that such gesture or preparation will cause any person present to apprehend that he who makes that gesture or preparation is about to use criminal force to that person and that person committing the offence is said to commit assault. Assault carries punishment of imprisonment of up to three months or a fine of up to $500or both. Another offence of causing hurt,section 323 of the Penal Code, is punishable with imprisonment of up to one year or a fine of up $1,000 or both, ie, actual causing hurt is involved. The third offence of criminal intimidation, section 506 of the Penal Code, is punishable up to two years or with fine orboth. We compare this with the proposed section 33. For the first offence, the person who is involved can be fined between $4,000 and $40,000 or imprisonment of up to three years or both. For second offenders, it is the same fine but imprisonment of up to six years.”
“Sir, I support the Bill. The two main technical thrusts of the Bill are, firstly, to enhance punishment for illegal moneylenders and those who assist them, including runners and collectors, and secondly, to enhance the powers of the court in dealing with illegal moneylending cases. But what is more important, Sir, is for us to note the socio-political aspects of the Bill. In the last few years, as the Senior Minister of State has acknowledged in his speech earlier, illegal moneylending cases have increased and indeed have become more visible. This probably coincided with the economic downturn in the last few years. We see more cases of vandalism related to illegal moneylending. All of us are now quite familiar with this conspicuous "owe $, P $" graffiti sprayed at our HDB flats, which means owe money, pay money. Translated, it means youowe illegal moneylender money, you better pay them back. And this is normally followed by the person's address, sometimes, name and telephone number. There is a need to stem this discernible rising trend. Sir, such vandalism causes much embarrassment to the victims, especially if the victims are innocent. And as the Senior Minister of State has acknowledged just now, there are cases where non-borrowers have been made victims. These could be tenants who have moved into the house of the previous borrower or persons whose identity cards have been used. Sir, the victims, whether innocent or otherwise, feel threatened by this graffiti or acts of vandalism. Why is this so? Because all of us have heard stories of debt collectors using their runners to break flower pots, to spray paint or splash paint on front doors ofalleged borrowers, even to start small fires outside or sometimes, even inside the homes of purported borrowers.”
“Sir, I wonder whether the Deputy Prime Minister can tell us whether or not there is at present a code or protocol which investigation officers can follow at investigation stage so as to enable them to be alert of the presence of low intelligence persons who are being suspected of criminal offences and how to deal with them and, if there is no such code or protocol, whether the Ministry is thinking of formulating such a code.”
“I am of the view that, in the event of the demise of a purchaser, we will let the normal operation of law take its course, ie, the estate carries on with the purchaser's obligations and rights. If there is reason to force the parties to reconsider their positions upon such a demise, then it is better to let the deceased purchaser's estate and the co-purchaser, if any, have the option whether to continue with the purchase. Under the proposed section 65S, this option seems to lie with the Minister, and not with the estate of the purchaser or with the co-purchaser. I hope the Minister would address these issues and, subject to these, Sir, I support the Bill.”
“And, indeed, in the current scheme of things, it is very likely that purchasers apply to purchase jointly. Under this clause, upon the demise of one purchaser, the joint purchaser will have his or her rights of application cancelled. This may not be fair to the joint purchasers who have shared the dream of buying the property, invested funds into the purchase and may even have the capacity to fulfil the obligations under the sale and purchase agreement, notwithstanding the demise of his or her partner. To the surviving partner, there might not be any reason why his or her rights should be terminated in the event of the demise of his co-purchaser. The third issue is that this clause may even cause hardship to the dependants and other persons who are intended to be occupiers of the property. One could envisage a situation where a married couple have purchased jointly. They have school-going children and aged parents staying with them. The parents may have agreed to help the purchase to finance furnishings, for example. Then one of the purchasers passed away. This clause says that the developer shall cancel the sale and purchase agreement. Not only does the family suffer bereavement, we also see their plan to stay together dashed. Of course, they can re-apply elsewhere, but there will be much time wasted and loss of the opportunity to stay at the location of their choice. It may be argued that the concerns I raised are addressed by the phrase "unless the Minister otherwise directs" found in section 65S. But the question is: why do we need to have the Minister to direct the developer not to cancel the sale and purchase agreement, when the developer should not cancel the agreement in the first place even without the direction of the Minister?”
“Sir, I wish to raise some points regarding new section 65S of the Bill. Section 65S deals with the events on the death of a purchaser before the relevant date. When that happens, under this section, the approved developer shall, unless the Minister otherwise directs, cancel the deceased purchaser's application and terminate the sale and purchase agreement and refund moneys paid, less administrative and legal costs. This clause raises several issues. First, it seems to run against the general operation of law that a person's contractual obligations and rights continue even after his death to be borne by his estate. There are exceptions to this general rule, such as in contracts of service or employment and other similar agreements which are personal to the individual. The Minister has stated that the effect of section 65S is similar or exists in the Executive Condominium Scheme. I wish to ask him whether there is a rethink of that position and whether a similar rationale exists in this case. This is because, besides these few exceptions, in almost all property transactions, these are carried over by the person's estate upon his demise, and there are good reasons for this. It lends certainty to the agreement, especially from the viewpoint of the developer. Under section 65S, the developer may also be able to mitigate the uncertainty by buying suitable insurance. But this means additional cost which, I presume, will ultimately be borne by the purchaser. This is not a totally satisfactory solution. I would like to ask the Minister whether there is any special reason why there is a departure from the general rule in this case. The second point is that this clause may cause severe hardship to the purchaser's joint applicant, if any.”
“Mr Speaker, Sir, on a quite different point, I wonder whether the Deputy Prime Minister can let us have his views on comments made, both locally and internationally, that London paid the price of Britain's involvement in the war in Iraq, bearing in mind that Singapore also supported the military operations in Iraq and there are fears that by doing so we have made ourselves more vulnerable to terrorist attacks.”
“As our society evolves, we seem to gain the confidence and willingness to be more forgiving. This is partly attributable to strong law enforcement, transparent prosecutorial process, a very independent judiciary and a keen observance of the rule of law. The strength of our judicial and legal institutions rightfully should give us equal strength to be more flexible and more caring to ex-offenders after they complete their sentence - the strength to be a more gracious society. For all its shortcomings, this Bill demonstrates the Government's continuous search to balance the need to reintegrate ex-offenders into society on the one hand and the need to maintain records of offences for society's future protection and benefit on the other. Seen in a larger context, I agree that it is part of our quest to be a more gracious and caring society. I support the Bill. EXEMPTED BUSINESS (Motion) Resolved, That the proceedings on the business set down on the Order Paper for today be exempted at this day's sitting from the provisions of Standing Order No. 2. - [Mr Mah Bow Tan]. REGISTRATION OF CRIMINALS (AMENDMENT) BILL Debate resumed.”
“However, one was for a white-collar crime and the other for drug consumption. I believe that their previous convictions were given undue weightage by the LTA. I wish to add that they were not my residents. So I did not write in. I advised them to seek their own MPs and gave them general advice. The public sector and all employers should avoid applying blanket rulings. While we appreciate their need to be careful, let us not reject the whole basket just because of one rotten apple. Each case should be dealt with individually. Each application must be assessed on its merits. And I think, in our context, the public sector should take the lead. I wish to ask the Minister whether he agrees with this and, if so, what steps will the Government take in this respect. Sir, this Bill seeks to ameliorate, in some way, the ill effects of maintaining criminal records. I thank the Minister and his officials for putting their minds to do this. But this Bill does not and cannot resolve the issue of how our society should treat ex-offenders. If our society wishes to be harsh and it is not forgiving, even if all records are expunged, there will be ways and means for these convictions to be made known and used against ex-offenders. Conversely, if our society is overly forgiving, then whatever negative records available would not make much difference. As we go along, we need to strike a balance between a few conflicting principles: First, how much we want to forgive and accommodate our members' past misdeeds and be a caring society? Second, how much we want our ex-offenders to come back into our fold? Third, to what extent we want to protect our society from possible dangers? And fourth, to what extent should society have access to records of ex-offenders?”
“SCORE's partners include hundreds of employers who have shown willingness not only to employ ex-offenders but also to provide them with relevant training. I wish to thank them for their care and their help. But the number of such positive employers is too small. Even after getting jobs, many ex-offenders face class barriers in their workplaces. Many also carry the additional burden of being stigmatised by family and ex-friends for years. To help reduce these difficulties, the "Yellow Ribbon" project, which the Senior Minister of State made mention of just now, was launched last year. It was and still is a widely publicised campaign to raise public awareness of the challenges faced by ex-offenders and the issues involved. I understand that the Hon. Prime Minister had promised on television that he would attend the event this year because he missed the "Yellow Ribbon" event last year. I thank the Prime Minister for this. Now it is recorded in Hansard as well. The "Yellow Ribbon" project has to have a high profile and wide outreach because it is important that our society gives its wholehearted support. As I said earlier, it is not feasible to enforce support by legislation. We have to garner support by education and persuasion. I also think, Sir, that the public sector can do more to help. I stand corrected on this point. But my impression is that anyone with a conviction - registrable offences - will find immense difficulty in getting a job from the public sector. Recently, two persons approached me to appeal to the Land Transport Authority to obtain taxi driving licences. Their applications were turned down due to "regard for public safety". Both persons admitted to me that they had previous convictions.”
“To make things worse, this lie may be found out with even more devastating results. Once, a friend of mine, a manager of an organisation, employed a man with a previous conviction, but the fact of this conviction was not made known. After a year or so, the manager asked for details of the man's previous experience, as the manager wanted to consider the man for suitability for a course. The man was unable to furnish his full records. There was a gap of about 15 months unaccounted for. He was not able to come up with a convincing story to cover that long break. At last, he admitted to having spent time in jail. The manager was greatly disappointed, less by the fact that the man had a conviction but more by the fact that the said conviction was not made known. The manager felt that he could not fully trust the man that much after that. Their relationship strained greatly. After a few months from that incident, the man tendered his resignation. Sir, the point is Parliament cannot pass legislation to force employers not to ask certain questions such as, "Have you been convicted of an offence?" There is a limit as to what legislation can do. Indeed, the public, including employers, should have the right to know who they are dealing with. They have the right to know his or her history to see whether he or she is suitable for jobs available. But, nevertheless, this Parliament can and should urge society, especially employers - and I echo the sentiments of my colleague, Ms Indranee - to play its part in reintegrating ex-offenders. In this regard, there are segments of society that have done much. I wish to declare my interest, here, Sir, as a member of the Board of SCORE.”
“Sir, the big issue that arises here is what we, as a society, should do as regards ex-offenders. Our paramount concern is to reintegrate them back into the mainstream. We want them to quickly get back to their families, get back to work, get back to normal living. The RCA was not intended to deal with ex-offenders as such, but to deal with the records of their convictions. However, it is a fact that such records have significant effects on the lives of ex-offenders, sometimes even long after they had completed their full sentences, and this significance is usually in the negative - social stigma and a major minus point in job applications. Any effort to reduce this negative effect is welcome, bearing in mind our basic concern to reintegrate ex-convicts into mainstream society. So I think the Bill has its heart in the right place and I welcome it. Having said that, I think the treatment of ex-offenders is best managed by society through its own actions. Legislation can only do so much. The Minister and my colleague, Ms Indranee, had given examples of this. We cannot legislate against employers from asking the question to a potential employee, "Have you been convicted of an offence?". If asked such a question, the applicant has to answer yes. But, Sir, even if his criminal records were to be expunged, the fact that he has a criminal conviction remains. While records may not show any conviction on his part, the ex-offender if asked that question will still be placed in a moral dilemma whether to be honest and be on his way to redeeming his past misdeeds but risk not getting a job and therefore delaying his process of reintegration or to lie, ie, to commit another wrong so as to secure a living for himself and his family in his efforts to reintegrate back into society.”
“But, like the idea of the IR itself, we should not dismiss it outright. There is some merit. It reflects the desire of the community to uphold some values which it regards as important enough. It signifies a wish not to aggravate the many shortcomings that it already has to overcome. We can think of means to reduce the demerits of community self-exclusion. We may even consider community self-exclusion with an opt-out scheme. That would be quite interesting. But this idea needs refinement. The point is that I hope the Government would consider this suggestion and not dismiss it outright. Sir, we do this, we participate in dialogues, give ideas and debates because we care for our country. We love our home. We cannot completely separate or insulate ourselves from the IRs, unlike in the US, Switzerland, France, Australia, Thailand, even in Malaysia. They are big countries, points alluded to by my colleagues before me. From the top of UOB Building in five years' time, one can probably see both the IRs and the rest of our island. That is how closely we live together. So I do hope that the Government shall ensure that the character of our home remains one that all of us are happy to stay in.”
“It makes no difference to him whether it is because his parent is a gambler or unemployed. I do not agree with the IR that includes the casino on religious grounds. But I also consider it my religious and moral duty to do my best as an MP, which includes looking after the welfare of my residents and to make sure that they get jobs sooner rather than later. The distinction between right and wrong is not so clear cut. Do I subscribe to the view that noble ends justify ignoble means? No. Sir, where I disagree with the casino, I am willing to bear the consequences, if we decide to reject it. But the many people who expressed their objections to the IR with casino, I am not so sure whether they are willing to bear the consequences. Very few have said so in clear and unequivocal terms. Is the Government's decision something that I cannot live with? To borrow Minister Mentor Lee's reference, would I do a Cyrus Vance? No, and no. I think that within the constraints, I can still be true to my beliefs and serve the people, but via the Government. I believe the Malay/Muslim community, as a whole, feels the same way. Mdm Halimah said yesterday that there are more pressing issues that the community should address and we should not be distracted. I completely agree with her. There is disappointment. That is only to be expected. But the Malay/Muslim community and others who disagree should move on. We shall continue to express our views to persuade and to debate. Best decisions are derived that way. The Government supports the idea of personal self-exclusion, even family self-exclusion. There has been a suggestion that Muslims be excluded from the casino facility - community self-exclusion. Immediately one can think of problems with this idea - opening floodgates, not practical, etc.”
“I do hope, Sir, that we will not place too much reliance on the role or attraction of the gaming facility. It can alter our character. This means that we should put in even more efforts to improve the other aspects of our nation such as our reliable workforce, quality education, creative designers, efficient business services, vibrant cultural scene, and so on. Taking measures to curb the social ills of gambling is one side of the coin. On the other side, there must be measures to enhance our capacity to develop our economy using means other than having to resort to gaming facilities. I urge the Government to do this. I also urge the people of Singapore to help the Government do this. Sir, we have heard of wives being beaten, children dropping out of schools, and families going asunder due to gambling. But the same scenarios are now being played out where the family has no income for long periods. I know of a lady who has four children - the youngest is unable to go to the kindergarten, two of them in primary school but not attending it regularly as they do not have pocket money, the eldest who is 14 is not able to buy soccer boots and does not attend religious classes due to lack of funds and is now playing truant. The father does not gamble but he lost his job more than a year ago and had not been able to secure another one. He is depressed and his family is stressed. At this moment, if I see a glimmer of a job for him I would grab it first and think later. If we reject the casino and, with it the IR proposal, there will be some pain. We will not have as many jobs as we could have. The number of families and children who suffer as a result of their parent's unemployment would not be reduced at the same rate. Every child who drops out of school is one too many.”
“Sir, Singaporeans will closely monitor the effectiveness of these measures, given that many think, and thought, that had we not had the casino, these measures would not have been necessary in the first place. Members of this House have dealt with many aspects of the casino that are of grave concern. I intend to touch on only one or two of them. I understand that the big names would not invest in the IR if the gaming aspect was not totally forbidden. So they come here and the tourists will also come here, partly because the casino, though restricted, is not totally forbidden. I do hope, Sir, that when tourists, foreigners and investors come here, they will remember our gardens and our clean roads. They will remember that it is safe to have supper anywhere, even after midnight and the people are friendly, the food is sumptuous, varied and cheap. They will remember our recreational and cultural activities, that one can travel by bus, MRT, taxi, hassle-free, that children go to good schools and good clinics are within reach, and the working environment is conducive. Sir, I hope they will remember all these. My wish is that Singapore is known and remembered for the right things. Happenings, yes, but not unsavoury happenings. Recently, while in the Middle East, an MP there said that the term "Singapore" has become an adjective or verb. As an adjective it denotes a desirable situation for a community to strive forth. It carries characteristics such as "visionary leadership", "efficient administration", "effective service" and "placing a premium on people development". So when they want to develop a country, an estate or a province, instead of describing it in detail, they just say, "Let's Singaporise it." Singapore has developed not just a brand, but a character.”
“Sir, the decision on this issue was not unanimous, but it had to be made. Now, we have to move on. In moving on, we should consider the arguments raised prior to the decision and those raised in this debate. This helps us to conduct our moving on in a wiser way. Over the last 12 months, like many MPs, I sought the views of many people. I had also expressed my views in informal gatherings, dialogues and sessions with Ministers, though not always publicly. Among the residents in my constituency, my sense is that slightly more than half, but visibly so, approve of the IR. They are not pro-gambling. They think that if we have an IR with a small casino facility, with safeguards to minimise its social ills, with many more jobs for the people by having it than by not having it, it is all right. It is important that this be made known. But personally, I am not in favour of the Government allowing a casino facility, wherever place, in Singapore. I have religious grounds for this. However, I accept that my personal religious belief is not the sole factor in deciding this issue. Similarly, the standpoint of any one religious community cannot be the sole determinant. The views of all communities, religious or otherwise, have to be taken into account. The Malay/Muslim community acknowledges this reality. The fact that the Government approves of the IRs with gaming facilities is not a defeat for those who objected, nor is it a victory for those who supported. We must not allow ourselves to be divided on this account. Now that the Government has decided to go ahead, the objections and reservations raised earlier become even more relevant. Ministers have announced that measures to contain any negative spillovers and mechanisms to deal with the social ills of gambling will be enhanced.”
“Sir, I congratulate the Home Team for keeping crime rates downwards for most categories. How can we improve it? Drug abuse remains a problem, as we see a rise in abuse of synthetic drugs. The raw materials are harvested in one country, processed in another and then smuggled into Singapore, among other countries. Illegal immigrants underwent detailed preparations elsewhere before being conveyed into our country. Our intellectual protection laws are constantly challenged by pirates operating in other countries or supplying pirated materials from there. We can, to an extent, reduce such crimes by suppressing the demand side but the challenge is tackling the supply side. There is a common threat in crimes such as those I mentioned. They are transnational and organised. According to a PERC report dated 27th October 2004, it is arguable that organised crime is perhaps a bigger emerging threat to regional security than even terrorism. The report adds that the problem is worse in countries where there are a lot of restrictions in the flow of goods, money, people, etc. Organised crimes exist in order to help people overcome these restrictions. There are countries in the region which have this problem. They are large growing economies and organised crime is inadvertently exported along with their legitimate goods. What is the Ministry's response to this growing challenge? Are we stepping up cooperation with countries in the region? Do these countries share the same concerns? At home, Sir, crimes such as illegal lending, illegal prostitution and betting are also usually conducted by well-organised groups. What is the trend of organised crimes in Singapore? How do we ensure that this trend does not go upwards?”
“So there is an urgent need to develop a response to the ideological front. Otherwise, the effort to combat terrorism is not complete. I wish to ask the Minister what efforts are being made in this regard. Is it useful to garner the expertise of educationists, religious scholars and community leaders to do this? Terrorism threat calls for close coordination between our armed forces, the police, civil defence, public health sector, community and religious organisations and schools. So, in Singapore, we have the post of Coordinating Minister for Defence and Security currently held by a Deputy Prime Minister, which in part reflects this concern. The Deputy Prime Minister has visited several countries. May I ask the Minister for his observations as to whether there is a need to review our current security structure. May I ask the Minister also for an update on the local security situation as regards terrorism. Homeland Security 1.15 pm”
“Sir, in an article dated 31st December 2004, Dr Rohan Gunaratna, the person mentioned by Ms Indranee earlier, reported that in the last three years, nearly 100 medium to large-scale terrorist attacks against US, European and Australian targets were prevented. This is not to say that there were no planned attacks against targets of other countries. So while their operational capabilities might have suffered, the terrorist ideology, an intention to strike, has not diminished. Dr Rohan also reported that groups like Al-Qaeda had transformed itself from a group into a global movement and I agree with his observation, the point again mentioned by Ms Indranee earlier. So we have tactics devised in Iraq, copied in London, members trained in rebel controlled areas like the Philippines and Afghanistan. Financing may come from Europe and Canada, raw materials and recruits from South East Asia or the Middle East, but the theatre of operation could be anywhere in the world, including Singapore. To combat terrorism, international cooperation among governments must be enhanced. We can do only so much to harden Singapore as a target. Yet, this is insufficient if terrorist groups are free to recruit, plan, train and receive funds from elsewhere. I wish to ask the Minister what is the state of international cooperation to combat terrorism. Is it true that some countries are not being able to prevent seeds of terrorism from festering and are unable to check on terrorist groups conducting training? What are the factors that are holding them back and is there anything we can do to help them in this regard? We also see that disparate groups have begun the Al-Qaeda ideology although they are not linked organisationally.”
“Sir, I am pleased to note the Deputy Prime Minister's and Minister's reiteration that insolvency cases are dealt with according to principles, there is no one-size-fits-all policy, and there is such a thing as the red zone and the green zone. I think it is important that the public be continuously educated on this point. People who may be bankrupts one day should know what is in store for them, and that creditors would also know what their rights are.”
“This helps the creditor in that it secures the assets of the debtor company from being unfairly dissipated. At the same time, if done well, it saves the debtor company from being placed under liquidation. I would like to ask the Minister whether there are plans to introduce a similar half-way house for individuals. There are credit counselling services at the moment. However, here, the arrangement has to be forged mutually and voluntarily. One party may just refuse to agree as there is no legal obligation to do so. Perhaps this half-way house mechanism could bridge this gap. Bankruptcy Prevention”
“I believe that as we position ourselves as an international centre for arbitration and mediation, we should also enhance access to justice for our local citizens as well. Insolvency On insolvency, we know that since the onset of the economic crisis followed by a string of devastating events, the number of people made bankrupt has increased. How does the IPTO respond to the significant rise of bankruptcy cases in recent years? Are there extra measures taken to enable bankrupts to be discharged and to facilitate practical early settlements? Statistics show that in 2004, about 50% of those made bankrupt were discharged by the fifth year. About one-fifth of these were discharged by the third year. Some creditors have been heard complaining that debtors were abusing the bankruptcy mechanism. I would like to ask the Minister whether this complaint is valid. I would also like to ask whether the IPTO is able to identify such abuses, if any, from those who are genuinely unable to pay. And, if so, how does IPTO handle these abuses? Looked at from another point, how effective is our bankruptcy mechanism in helping to get debtors back on their feet again? There are those who burnt their fingers, hands, sometimes even their arms, due to the plummeting property prices or genuine business failures. Their debts may run into six or seven figures. Having no money now, they cannot reasonably be expected to repay much. Are they constrained by our insolvency regime from starting life afresh? Are the present criteria for discharge too stringent for them? Bankruptcy is a very severe form of legal enforcement. In the case of companies, either party can apply for judicial management. It is a stage before winding up. It allows the debtor company to be managed by a professional third party.”
“Sir, Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR) has been widely used in our courts as part of the legal process. It has developed in sophistication and many would say in importance for the last 10 years. It is a process whereby in the midst of a legal process in court, the matter is transferred to a parallel track where the court and the parties attempt to resolve the matter via mediation instead of litigation. If this process fails, then the matter is restored back to its original litigation track. The question is: how effective has the ADR been? Has the ADR actually increased cost of the parties, since mediation can sometimes be quite circuitous whereas litigation offers more certainty, especially in terms of time? Can the Minister enlighten us on the success rate of ADR? Based on its performance so far, what is the future of the ADR? If it has been proven successful, are there plans to expand in scope? For instance, in cases where parties have smaller claims size, the Small Claims Tribunal does not have jurisdiction to hear certain cases, eg, those that may involve complex legal issues such as those found in hire purchase or property disputes. Such disputes usually remain unresolved. If parties bring them to the Subordinate Courts, they will be subject to the usual legal costs, which are too costly compared to the amount of claim. Yet, the amount in dispute, say, $12,000 is not small when the average pay of the party concerned is about $2,000 per month. So, is the Ministry considering ways to plug this gap by introducing an ADR type of mechanism for small claims which are currently outside the purview of the Small Claims Tribunal?”
“Let us ensure that all Singaporeans are positioned to benefit from the opportunities.”
“The local grassroots organisations can render meaningful help, maybe to organise visits or block-level gatherings. But they need more budget to do so. Many among this needy group require a degree of hand-holding. I agree that we should not encourage a crutch mentality. However, quite often, these people who are in need are not able to articulate their problems clearly. Others have their priorities not quite right. So they need to be coaxed into changing their mindsets and adjust their lifestyles. To change mindsets and adjust lifestyles, agencies cannot achieve this in one meeting. Agencies also should not expect such people to attend sessions in their offices after sending out letters. Agencies need to be proactive, to reach out to them, and visit them. I am not referring to visits in order to verify facts stated in application forms which, I think, are quite religiously done. I refer to visits as an outreach effort, to introduce schemes, to convince people of the need to make changes and help them find solutions to their worries about change. It may take a few sessions before such people decide to follow advice. I echo the sentiments of my learned friend, Mr Matthias Yao, that a certain degree of hand-holding is useful. It is tedious work, Sir. But I understand that Mendaki has been doing this in some estates, and they found it worth the trouble. But the budget for such programmes is more than the usual over- the-counter schemes. Such intensive hand-holding approach, I agree, should be done sparingly, wisely and to specific clients, but it should not be done away with totally. Indeed, it should be given greater support. I believe, Sir, that we are, and we wish to be, a land of opportunity.”