Arthur Fong
Singapore
“Mdm Speaker, I thank the Senior Minister of State for the response. A supplementary question. Would the Ministry of National Development (MND) or HDB consider putting double-glazed windows for bedrooms into the Home Improvement Programme (HIP) options in the future?”
“Mdm Chair, the Sports Master Plan of 2011 is bearing fruit. Since the inaugural Marathon Race in 1982, our sports calendar is now filled with several marathon runs, catering to a variety of running enthusiasts, from novices to Olympic champions.”
“Mdm Chair, in just under three months, we will be hosting the 28th SEA Games and, in nine months, we will have the honour of hosting some 1,300 to 1,500 para-athletes from ASEAN countries. We hosted the SEA Games some 12 years ago and we are hosting the ASEAN Para Games for the first time.”
“Mdm Speaker, I would like to thank Mr Chen for his clarification and I hope that Mr Cedric Foo would read it in the Hansard. But my point was on foreign workers, as he prevaricated from his answer to Mr Foo. But I hear him. It is good to have a peek into the Workers' Party's attempt on policy on foreign workers.”
“Sir, the Sports Facilities Masterplan costing $250 million was unveiled last year. The main objective would be to build facilities to cater for future sporting needs and sports development. Are there any updates in terms of new community-based sporting facilities to be built in the coming years, aside from a new stadium in Sembawang?”
“I hope this can be extended to other male national athletes as well. The Olympics is not the only prestigious sports event, even if it is indeed the most prestigious. Our athletes require more opportunities to participate in as many regional sporting events as possible.”
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“If these countries, which are richer and better endowed in terms of natural resources than us, are giving such a high priority to educational reforms, we too should look at how else we can build upon and improve our system. We cannot stand still. In resource-limited Singapore, we not only cannot afford to stand still, but we need to run doubly fast. I mentioned in one of my speeches during the Budget debate earlier this year that Singapore is like an airplane navigating in very turbulent and difficult airspace. I said that we needed to snap on new engines that will take us through. To do that, we need to look at our education system so that we have the innovative ability to conceptualise to make the tools that will help us build that kind of engine to take us through for years to come. In the US, the importance of education and educational reforms enjoys very high level support. In fact, almost every US President in the last 20 years had put their mark on improving education through legislation. We are no different in Singapore. In 1997, the idea of "Thinking Schools, Learning Nation" was introduced. In this regard, we have appended much of our resources to the PRIME initiative. From the completed PRIME schools that I have visited, I must say, even at this middle stage of the programme, it is a great success. Similarly, a lot of effort and resources had been put into getting honest and useful feedback, practical suggestions and to lay down these suggestions and recommendations in the form of the White Paper on education. This will certainly be one of the most important blueprints in the remaking of Singapore. Sir, we all know that having a good education is an important factor, not the only, but certainly a strong contributor towards economic success in life.”
“This gives students a broader knowledge base and, certainly, some competence in participating in a discourse that is outside their major field of study. I had a nagging thought that something needed fixing then, and again thought to myself, our system had met Singapore's national needs for the longest time. So, if it ain't broke, don't fix it or, rather, if it isn't broken, leave it, to emphasise support of RAdm Teo's point that we do have a good standard of English. Also, it was a system that let me stay well above others at a good university in the United States. However, then to now, a lot of water had gone under the bridge, to borrow the often-used phrase, "the world has changed". We are indeed in a very different world. Education reform has now become a global trend and is now discussed and has taken centre-stage at many international conferences. Part of the reason for this is the rapid and drastic socio-economic change that is taking place on a global scale. In an era of increased economic competition, it is critical to have a trained and qualified workforce to support, sustain and advance the scientific, technological and economic capabilities of our nation. Education reform, as an integral part of a nation's strategic policy, is not something new. The US and the UK have promoted improving the quality of education as a means to strengthen international competitiveness since the 1980s. France has integrated educational reform into its policies for the development of the country. China has been using the slogan "Invigorating China through Science and Education". In Japan, two years ago the government has pledged to make educational reform the foundation of all social systems in this century.”
“Sir, this motion to debate on the White Paper on education in the name of the Minister for Education, RAdm Teo Chee Hean, has caused two different reactions. On one level, that includes most, if not all of us in this House, the stated intentions of the recommendations of the education White Paper are so positively constructed that no one can find fault with. On the other level, some Singaporeans and some of our foreign friends overseas are befuddled with the White Paper. They wonder is it that when our students keep coming out tops at international mathematics and science tests, we are still not satisfied and have to try and change it. Sir, I initially had some thoughts along these lines too. I had the benefit of a local education in my formative years and a good overseas tertiary education. When I returned from the US in 1988, I compared and found our local curriculum too stacked up in terms of knowledge acquisition. My colleagues, who were local graduates, were extremely competent in the technical aspects of their work and found it interesting when I shared with them the US system where undergraduates must take courses other than classes that are required to satisfy the major that they are taking. Such classes include Holistic Medicine, Speech, Communication and Rhetoric. I was also required to take courses for both an Arts and Science cluster as a Business undergraduate. Without the completion of such university requirements of the clusters, a Business undergraduate may not even get a degree, if the Business classes are completed. The Arts cluster may include subjects like Social Psychology, German Language, Russian Literature, or Geography. Examples of Science clusters include Physics of Light, Astronomy or Fluid Dynamics.”
“Sir, the redevelopment of towns undertaken by the HDB is communicated to residents. What about for land that has been tendered out to private developers, which the HDB might know about its use? Should the information not be communicated to the residents who will be affected?”
“I want to know whether the Minister is aware that when families go out to work and pay $750 a month for employing a maid, the $350 or more per month for the family means a lot to them, rather than get $250 or $350 from the CDC. This is the self-reliance that we are talking about. Would that not promote self-reliance that we have been talking about? And also with this policy, it actually shows that every Singaporean matters, if you think about it.”
“Sir, every Singaporean matters. When families employ maids, they pay $750 per month which includes the levy. They go out and work in a factory for $1,100. $350 per month counts for their family. If the maid levy is raised ---”
“May I ask the Minister, in view of the recent revelations that the Jemaah Islamiyah is actually playing on the sentiments of both countries and amongst them, the water issues and all that, with these constant flip-flops on the Malaysian Government side and the newspaper reports from time to time in Malaysia playing on this, is that not still playing into the hands of the larger Jemaah Islamiyah plans? Can the Government impress on the media to be more responsible?”
“The engagement or perhaps the social contract with them will thus be stronger. Mr Speaker, Sir, it is interesting that my hon. colleague, Mr Chandra Mohan, mentioned that our Ministers and top civil servants went overseas to study and had to fulfil their bond and come home. I was not good enough to have that Government scholarship. I went overseas too, and I came home and my bond was with Singapore. Few of us students got together to put on a Singapore Night for our foreign students. By default, because of skin tone, I played the role of Raffles. There was a Mr Farquhar, and we found three gentlemen - two of them very tall with very pronounced foreheads - to play SM Lee and Dr Goh Keng Swee. And the other, we found a person with very thick-rimmed glasses to play Dr Toh Chin Chye. What happened was that the fire played by these three characters made our American friends very, very interested and impressed. Back stage, I asked myself, "After this play, what's my role for Singapore?" My bond was to come home and to be engaged. Mr Speaker, Sir, the journey and the task before us are long and arduous, but not insurmountable as long as Singaporeans have a heart to commit their time and their passion for Singapore. With that, Sir, I support the motion.”
“Like my other 3G Singaporean parliamentary colleagues here, the 3Gs are used to almost instant responses, like e-mails, the SMS and, in time, MMS. The work environment mostly functions on a "you are as good as your last deal" framework. We can be and are often irked by some responses from Government departments to our questions and, on occasions, by Ministerial responses in this House to our questions. Speaking to many 3G and some 2G, they feel that they have no voice, no space to express their viewpoint, and when told that they can join the many feedback channels, they feel that it is hopeless and they express disbelief that it is of any efficacy. The Government must work at changing this perspective of the 3Gs. One way to do that is maybe through engagement and the participation of young Singaporeans in the policy-making process. That way, an insight into the constraints that policy makers are faced with, will let the 3Gs understand what are the larger and other stakes that are involved and the concerns that are to be considered. Perhaps we can consider forming a youth Parliament. Whilst the 1Gs and some 2G Singaporeans would probably say that we trust the Government to do their best as they have done for the last 37 years, going forward, I do not realistically think that the 3Gs will feel that same way. I think that if more Singaporeans, particularly younger Singaporeans, or what we call the 3Gs, are made more acutely aware of the concerns of our country, we may have more constructive participation and people will not feel that policies are dished out, and you just follow them, because, as a matter of fact, you do not know any better. That way, the connectivity with these younger drivers of the Singapore cause will be enhanced.”
“Let the child be comfortable in conversing in the language so that he is not overwhelmed. Many of the parents citing this problem are probably English educated and find that they are unable to teach their children but to employ a tutor. This adds to the stress level of both parent and child. As my hon. colleague, Mr Gan Kim Yong, mentioned in his speech when he moved the motion yesterday, that through stories, strong values and character building can be taught to our children. Interest in the Chinese language would not be killed off in the process to master a higher standard of Chinese. This can perhaps be later developed and achieved through the child taking on the subject as an elective perhaps in upper primary or secondary school. In the area of creating an emotional bond to Singapore, I hope that the Government can continue to play a part in promoting family and community events that bind all with a common experience. Many of us will remember outings with our family along Elizabeth Walk in the 1960s. Our children will probably remember the surrounds of the Esplanade or the sound of the shutters in the concert hall adjusting to suit the next piece of music to be played by world-class musicians performing on our shores. The experiences, the senses, the images of an ever changing Singapore must find a way into the hearts of our people. This is the kind of connection and engagement that my hon. colleagues have all talked about. I believe this will play a part in instilling some sense of belonging in our people. I am told that the 3G Singaporeans are born after 1965. I was born a few months before 1965 and I would classify myself as one.”
“For that, we are proud that they are representing Singapore in a foreign land and hope that they too will return one day and contribute their wealth of experience they have gained while being overseas. However, I am also consoled by the fact that many who had considered migrating for these reasons have stayed as they felt that some of the difficulties they faced at a point in time can be overcome and the emotional aspects and familial ties that bind them existed. And they are strong enough to keep them home. They make adjustments and indeed work on reducing stress on both themselves and that of their children. They ponder about how life would be like, as many of their friends and family are here if they had emigrated. As Senior Minister of State, Mr Matthias Yao, had said in 1997, it is actually a good thing that these Singaporeans go through the mental process in deciding whether to emigrate or not. They would have become more aware of the benefits of life in Singapore than those whom the thought of leaving is furthest from even their wildest dreams. Some may even realise that the preparedness of their children for the future can be best achieved here. They realise that their children are not just competing with their fellow classmates in Singapore, or for that matter in Australia. But the time will come when they may be competing for a job, say, in Shanghai, with his peers named Nguyen from Vietnam, Minh from Myanmar or Zhang from Beijing. On stress faced by children, many have expressed the uphill task of tackling Chinese in school. I wonder if the Education Ministry can entertain the possibility that the Chinese language education in lower primary be more focused on conversational than anything deeper.”
“He said that he became a Singaporean because our Government spent the last 37 years thinking of such a scene and thinking of such scenarios so that our citizens do not have to think about it every day for the last 37 years. The use of labels, while I will not classify Singaporeans broadly into quitters or stayers, I cannot ignore the phenomenon revealed by PM's use of these two labels. This is the crux of this motion today. These are real concerns. The reality is that some Singaporeans are stressed either by the pace of life or stressed by worrying for their children whom they feel are unnecessarily stressed. Hence, for this group of Singaporeans, they feel that migrating to another country will resolve and take care of these problems. They are merely making choices and deciding that they may not want to keep the kind of frenetic pace at work. They may decide to earn less or they are at a point, where they have enough savings and earning capacity, for them to make the move. It may even be all right for them to pay a little bit more tax but have their children learn at a more relaxed pace. They are not quitters, but merely Singaporeans who ironically have benefited from the political and social stability that afforded an economic growth and an education system that helped give the same people that global mobility that they now wield. They may become Australians or Canadians but they will still be Singaporeans at heart. Our best wishes to them and hope that they can afford to come back often enough to keep the links. Of course, there are those who have left due to attractive job offers.”
“Mr Speaker, Sir, I rise in support of the motion. Our Prime Minister's National Day Rally Speech was a call to our people to huddle, to understand and to find ways to tackle the challenges that we have identified. It was a call to be on guard and to expect new challenges that will crop up as a result of situations that we have no control over. It was meant as the occasion was for, to rally our people at a time when racial and religious tensions could make a tear at our social fabric that we have so painstakingly built over the last 30 years. The speech was a call to have people come on board and for those who are already on board to stay on board for the Singapore cause, and that is the continued survival and success of our young nation. Along the way, the social contract between the Government and the people will ensure that we continue to create new opportunities for our people. The use of labels of quitters and stayers sparked off fiery debates in the press and touched on reasons why some Singaporeans think of emigrating. We read of many testimonies of stressed Singaporeans, the cry for a lack of space for individual expression, and the demanding education system all thrown in for good measure. I asked a friend, a foreigner, who has since become a Singaporean, what did he think about the labels - quitters and stayers. He said that during a recent crisis in this country, he had to push his cupboard to block the window so that people could not break in and loot. Then, he went to a bedroom and an adjoining wall with the house next door and used a metal mallet to hack a hole in the wall to go into the other house. A family member peeped out and saw his neighbours kneeling in front of the house being whipped, spray painted and taunted.”
“Mr Speaker, Sir, I hope not just the PTC but the respective Government bodies responsible for the slew of charges in fee increases will explain the rationale in a way that people can understand and, most importantly, explain the timing for such increases, and consider the economic plight of its users. I hope that Singaporeans can unite during these difficult times and to move on and brace themselves for the greater challenges on the horizon.”
“Perhaps, in the future, I am sure that the reasons for increases in the bus fares, as Ms Braema pointed out, would even include the cost of providing buses that can accommodate the increasing number of people going around in wheelchairs. The Government is not caring? Clearly not! Perhaps a poor way of showing it - that it is listening. But not caring and not listening? I do not think so. Mr Speaker, Sir, the PAP Government had garnered support from our people, and we have together built Singapore to what it is today. Our people face difficult times, and the decisions made by the Government then had great implications on whether we survived as a nation or not. This will not change. The PAP Government had never succumbed to pressures and never went the way of populist policies, however difficult politically it was. The resolve to carry the nation and to implement unpopular policies in order that we make it, despite political costs, shows what kind of Government this is. Globalisation has set in motion a shake-out not only global businesses have to deal with, but governments of the day would have to address. What we do during this shake-out, and the kind of resolve we have to change and put on new armour for a different kind of fight, has bearings for our social and economic structures down the road. I am comforted by Minister Mah's and Minister Khaw's acknowledgement that the Government needs to respond to the calls by the people and to see their plight. I hope that the Government will do a better job of showing that it has listened.”
“Sir, we are seeing many companies buttoning down their hatches and booking their profits early, employing their profits to secure cheaper capital, restructuring their balance sheets, and making changes to position themselves, so that they can operate profitably in the face of lower revenues down the road. I think the transport companies are no different here. The PAP Government's idea of seamless transportation goes beyond what the transport companies tell us, and I have some additional comments to add to the point made by Ms Braema. What do I mean? Let me relate this to Members. When I was going to school in a university town at Eugene, Oregon, I signed out a wheelchair for half a day. With a clipboard in hand, I went to various parts of the university and to the town, and one of them was the local library. Although the objective of the exercise was to understand how a wheelchair-bound person would feel accessing buildings, I was amazed by the bus ride that I took. The bus platform lowered for me for the wheelchair to be on, a single bus driver de-bused, helped me strap in and went on its way. So, going down the road, this seamless transport would come into play. The PAP Government has led the HDB upgrading programme and, as we can see, there is a ramping up of the construction of access ramps from bus stops to HDB precincts, and from carparks to linkways to HDB blocks. The objective of Barrier Free Access (BFA) for HDB dwellers is a long-range idea. It is a long-range plan to give our aging population BFA all the way to the buses. This is the PAP Government's idea of long-range planning of caring. Not caring for the people? I do not think so.”
“When the new generation cinemas began operating, the price of movie tickets was double what people were used to paying. Cinema-goers were crying foul. Double the price? I will stay home and watch the videos. Today, with DVDs and VCDs in most homes, going to the movies is still a treat. People have come to enjoy the state-of-the-art sound system, the comfortable seats, the screens and the picture quality that the extra $4 get them. Making movies today is also much more expensive. I do not think the people will go to the cinema for $4 now for a movie in the old cinemas, even if one can be found today. A trip to a movie now will cost us $8, and that is without the popcorn and soft drinks. Let us learn to explain things so that people can make sense of. The bus companies have set a benchmark that Singaporeans have become used to. Service standards can and should get better. It does not make sense to say now that we can wait and we do not mind waiting for 30 minutes instead of 15 minutes, like we used to, because I cannot take the 3-cent increase. Mr Speaker, Sir, this Parliament opened with a cautionary Address from the President and, since the Budget, Singaporeans have been advised to be austere with an uncertain economic backdrop. As the economy seems to be headed for some recovery, the longer term outlook will still see companies making less revenues and not at rates of increases as before. This is a global phenomenon for most companies, whether or not it is in a regulated transport environment.”
“But when we put a slew of increases, affordability for each in totality means I cannot afford for most of these essential services. Mr Speaker, Sir, on the points raised that the Government is uncaring and not listening to the people, I do not think so. What I think the Government did not do well enough is perhaps that it might have painted a clearer enough picture of why the increases have to be made now. If this had been done, there might not have been so much nitpicking, irritation and anger over the increases. Yes, I do feel that some of these increases, especially the bus fare increase, are ill timed. With a little less profit, I am sure the company can make it through another year or so. Transport companies have to realise that revenue gains will probably not increase at the rates like before. Commuters will have to realise that capital equipment, such as buses and systems, needs to be replaced, and these investments cost money. Without such replacements and upgrades, the benchmark service levels that Singaporeans think nothing of, will not be maintained, let alone improve. Why this unhappiness? I think the PTC, the transport companies and the Government bodies did a poor job in enlisting our people in seeing the rationale behind the slew of increases and the timing of it. Only when an uproar occurred did "justifications" come out. Yes, let me tell you that a Member doing explanations of justifications at block visits and grassroots events is quite a sight. How else could we have explained to the commuters? As I sat here looking at these wonderful plasma screens, probably the first in the world, I remember the times going to a movie at Lido Cinema where a seat at a stall cost us $2.50, and a circle seat $4.”
“Mr Speaker, Sir, I rise in support of the Motion. Sir, many of the speakers before me have already expressed the unhappiness of the public transport users and their plight. They have also pointed out correctly that many are upset because of a slew of increases that will take place over the next six months. This unhappiness is exacerbated by the uncertainties that workers face as retrenchments by companies will surely continue for the rest of the year and even up to early next year. As the Government warns us that more jobs will be lost - and the 5% unemployment rate is hanging over us - a call to be austere by the Government further ignites the anger of our people as a slew of charges comes on stream. Mr Speaker, Sir, the PTC is entrusted with the important and, as we have seen, a difficult task of striking a balance between safeguarding public interest and ensuring the financial viability of operators, and we have heard the comment on viability by our hon. Member, Mr Tan Soo Khoon, yesterday. I join in the call by my hon. colleagues who spoke before me to urge the PTC to consider in its fare increases to tip the scale towards safeguarding the public interest to achieve the balance it first set out to do. Whether in reality or not, people are not convinced that the PTC has represented their interest. Together with the stream of increases from other bodies, the unhappiness is understandable. We hope that the PTC will communicate the plight of the commuters to the transport companies. My hon. colleague, Mr Ravindran, pointed out just now that affordability may not be cheap. If we look at affordability - this is my perspective - at any single increase, we can say whether it is affordable or not.”
“Sir, Mdm Phua mentioned about the goodwill repairs during the IUP. I have flats which have gone through the IUP and they have the accelerated programme. After the IUP, the spalling concrete persists. Maybe the HDB can consider the goodwill repairs to start for these flats. Assoc. Prof. Koo Tsai Kee: I believe that if spalling concrete did occur after IUP, it could be a case of ceiling leakage, in which case, the Member could advise his residents to appeal to him, and he could then write in to the Ministry. It could be a case of ceiling leakage. The early stage of spalling concrete makes it difficult for contractors to decide whether it is pure spalling concrete or a case of ceiling leakage. But in any case, as I said earlier on, during the MUP period, we will do a major goodwill repair. After IUP, there is MUP.”
“I am finishing. Assuming that the learning curve and the reputation of the Esplanade as the performing Arts Centre is on the world stage in, say, five years, I would like to ask the Minister the estimated yearly Government grant for the next five years and beyond which is needed to keep the curtains up.”
“Meanwhile, large Government grants will be necessary to keep the curtains up for these two honeycomb architectural icons, or for the average Singaporeans it is nan sat du lian, the glass skin. Sir, for the year 2001, the Esplanade company ran a deficit of $3.8 million. A Government grant of $4 1/2 million was necessary.”
“We even have a Theatre Management course study at the university. There is also a concerted effort to bring in ASEAN artists and also to entice the regional arts companies to take root here. The bottom-line is we want to be prominent on the international arts calendar. Before that happens, we ask ourselves, will the range of activities that the Esplanade will stage be able to sustain its momentum? Surely, performers and artistes want to play to audiences and not just to experience performing in the newest performing Arts Centre with the latest that acoustic and theatre design has to offer at this time. As I have asked earlier, is the regional pool of theatre goers enough? Is our own Singaporean pool of theatre goers developed? Well, maybe after 12th October this year, foreign talents will find Singapore the least stressed place in Asia to work and play will also say that there is the Theatre on the Bay and there is much at play! But as much as we would like, the foreign talent pool cannot help us too much in the area of filling the seats night after night. Many average Singaporeans will tell you, this is for the atas sikit, the artsy and even for the ang moh foreign talent that we are wooing, and not for the average Singaporean. Sir, I know that there are, today, in our heartlands, Singaporeans who have in the past few years developed an interest in the arts, but this group is small. Will the many programmes, as I have acknowledged earlier, to "culturise" our people, result in a short time, help build enough cultural ballast for all that the Esplanade has the potential and will to stage? I do not think so.”
“Sir, for many Singaporeans driving past or gazing out of the SBS bus as he passes the Esplanade, one wonders how much he would appreciate what goes on inside and much less what went on inside the Victoria Theatre these past years. Sir, I recognise that the Esplanade will truly be the pride and joy of Singaporeans in time. Like the arts circle in Singapore, I am anxiously awaiting for the opening of the Esplanade. It will play an important part in developing and encouraging a softer side and more holistic Singaporean through the appreciation of the arts. The mission of the Esplanade is simple - to entertain, engage, educate and inspire. To entertain who? To engage who? To educate who? To inspire what? The answer is simple. To entertain art lovers, engage and interact with people who can appreciate and even identify with the performances and performers, educate people who have yet to experience the various art forms and finally to inspire a quest for more artistic exposure once entertained, engaged and educated. Simple. But it is, however, not as simple when we ask who are these people that we want to entertain, engage, educate and inspire. Sir, how many affluent Asian art lovers will consistently fly in, cruise in, drive in to support the programmes that are obviously going to be of a wide spectrum. How many Singaporeans will take up all the other seats night after night? This must be difficult for a few years. So to increase a healthy mass of art lovers, MITA has instituted many initiatives. Some good examples are the Arts Central on our TV, Arts on the Move series, that is brought to the HDB heartlands, Cross Talk events in community centres, Music Box - performances by young talented musicians and many more.”
“Sir, my cut is on small and medium enterprises in the form of source of financing and business continuity. While the Budget has provided corporate tax decreases for businesses, the businessmen are saying, "Well, if I don't make money, I don't pay tax!" Many of these businesses are not making money and, despite restructuring their finances or cutting their costs, they are still facing a very difficult time. Being nimble as they are, even with a great product range or service, it does not mean that they will make it through. So when suppliers go bust and default, they have the creditors, and when the debtors default and do not pay them, they cannot pay others, they too will also close up. Also, with the consolidation of the banks, the SMEs have a tough time finding avenues of finances for their businesses. Banks that have been with the SMEs since start-up, who understand their businesses and have supported them, cannot support them anymore, because they have merged with other banks. Because of the constraints on risk classes, they cannot lend. Can the Ministry of Trade and Industry, in its myriad of assistance programmes that groomed businesses in the heydays when the economy was good, and helped start up initiation, also consider programmes to assist existing and promising SMEs in respect of business continuity during this difficult time? To explore this, maybe they could work with banks to do some form of business cycle financing, in the case of working capital financing. We can call it "BCS", or business continuity survival kit, and come out with some qualifications, good management, sound business policies, strategies, good market and having a conservative and sound financial structure in the company, and not being excessive in their leverage structures.”
“Sir, I beg leave to withdraw the amendment. Amendment, by leave, withdrawn.”
“Let me declare my interest as a banker. As a result of the consolidation of our local banks, many bank employees and some bank executives have lost their jobs. I do recognise the call to consolidate and to liberalise our banking industry, as I think it is important and I firmly believe this has to be done. But with liberalisation we have QFBs given to several institutions. For these bank employees who have lost their jobs, rather than having them seek other jobs in other industries, can we not train them in areas that are needed by these banks that would want to expand in Singapore? I understand that there is a tiny issue here as we have no control over those banks' development and marketing strategies. I note that MTI does not have a programme to bridge retrenched workers in the banks but I am filing this cut as I feel there may be organs in the Ministry that play a crucial part in bringing banking business to Singapore. And I hope that the banks, when they do decide to execute their expansion strategies, some of these employees can be absorbed back into the banking industry. And as far as the banks are concerned, there will be a pool of human resources who already have the technical ---”
“As many of these in the middle income group are mobile in their profession, and they could be our talents-to-be for our country, I would like the Minister to see if they could look into something they could do for this group of people, so that for them it would not seem that it is a hopeless end, as we see it, but endless hope for them in this country. I think I would like to use three phrases in Chinese: xiwang tamen bu hui cong "xin man qiwang" bian dao "jinzhang dexiwang", bian doa "daidai de huanxiang." [Hope that they will not turn from "heart full of hopes" to "nervously hoping" and then to "staring blankly in illusion."] Sir, may I move on to my second cut?”
“Sir, I beg to move, That the sum to be allocated for Head M of the Main Estimates to be reduced by $10 in respect of Code MA 1500. Sir, I was inclined to withdraw my cut on middle income after listening to the Minister for Finance's responses to the House yesterday. However, there are those who by classifications as middle income would still fall between the cracks of the Budget, however fine the cracks may be. Some of these middle income earners, who do not benefit from the offset package, do face daunting challenges. I met the manager in an electronics manufacturing firm a few days ago. He earns a salary of about $4,000, with three young school-going children, a wife who is not working because she has to look after the two aged sickly parents at home. They live in a condominium that they bought after selling their 5-room HDB flat some years ago. They were very prudent last year. They sold their family car. They did not have this mindset that they have to continue having the car, they sold the car, in preparation that in case the breadwinner loses his job, he does not have a hefty car instalment payment to do. They lost money on that car. Still, they find it tough. Worse, for those who are in this middle income group who are not unemployed. They still have bills to pay, income tax to pay, and they are in a bind, hopefully they do not also have a credit card. We hear many grouses from this middle income group and some of them are not all that unreasonable. I am concerned that these fallen "angels", as I call them, lose heart, hope, and become resentful.”
“The changes to the economic, social and security aspects demand that we have to adapt on the fly, except that our race is for survival and to provide a better way of life for the four million of us. Mr Speaker, Sir, this Budget has been surgical in that it fixes the areas that need to be mended, reinforces areas that need to be stronger, and it reconstructs areas that need to be more flexible. And I hope that during the Committee of Supply, we will be touching more on SMEs and cost of business. In concert, Sir, this Budget is what I will call an ERS, not the Economic Restructuring Shares, but this Budget is expedient, it resuscitates or revitalises areas that needs it and, if I may borrow the expression, it is "right on the money" in its specificity. Sir, I support the motion.”
“The PAP Government had been building this fuselage, inspected it as it went through some stress testing as late as the 1998 Asian financial crisis and as recent as the global economic slowdown that began last year. This Budget will, in my opinion, contribute to strengthening that fuselage. We need our people and our businesses to understand that we need to adapt to new forces that are already upon us as we go about in our lives today. We have built and strengthened the fuselage, but it is only as good as the crew and passengers to take the physical stresses the fuselage can withstand. In this changed world, our economy, our country, has to be able to navigate the crowded airspace with new engines for this fuselage. We have to jettison the old engines and snap on new ones that will take us through. This Budget encourages the production and the ultimate promotion of those engines. As I have mentioned earlier, I liken these new engines to the areas of biotechnology, life sciences, the businesses of R&D and intellectual property. The budget also secures the fuel to drive these engines. It provides the technology to operate and, more importantly, the ability to tune these engines while we are in mid-flight. Sir, this is much like the Formula One car, where the suspension set up can be adjusted from the technical directors' computer via radio signals from the pit lane as the car races around the circuit. They do this to account for the changes in the race conditions brought on by variables, such as fuel load changes as the car gets lighter further along a race and changes in the track temperature as a result of the weather, and we know how controllable the weather is! Singapore has to adapt as we race along.”
“Mr Speaker, Sir, when Mr Mah had one minute left to answer some of the points that Mr Chiam brought up about promises that we have to keep, may I remind him that, ever since the elections, almost every other day, we have been keeping our promises. The ERC has been meeting almost every other day involving citizens and non-citizens to keep our economy and engine going. Sir, permit me to continue by using some aeronautical parlance. In the early 80s, as a result of our pragmatic approach to economic planning, we enjoyed economic growth, employment was not a problem, foreign investments were pouring in, so the economy accelerated and we went aerobatic. Then in the mid-80s, Singapore faced a difficult period. The economy went acrobatic. During that period, many of our businesses had to take the flips, the twists, the yaws and the pitch as the economy spun. Well, we went from aerobatic to acrobatic, and it certainly was not very aromatic when parts of the economy sputtered and many splattered towards earth. Mr Speaker, Sir, now, we are in a very different world, where economies are so intertwined that even with the control of the joysticks in our hands, the deliberate actions on those joysticks may not produce an exact response to the input. As our Leader of the House, Mr Wong Kan Seng, put it in his speech on a sitting on 31st August 1985, and I quote him, "economics is not an exact science". In the world of today, the aircraft must be built with a fuselage that can take the spins, the twists, the yaws, the pitch and the forces in the environment through which it has to navigate.”
“The extension of the Approved International Shipping Enterprise Scheme to enhance the attractiveness for international shipping companies is crucial at this time. We need to tackle the possible slide in contribution to our GDP from this area with some urgency. Sir, if necessary, I hope that the Minister for Finance can support an allocation of a supplementary budget to reinforce our position in the transport and logistics sector, as it is not only the threat of a reduced contribution to GDP from this sector but recent events have shown that a loss to another competitive party has impinged somewhat on our national morale. Mr Speaker, Sir, yes, I am kiasu. In this matter, we cannot lose. Not yet. Not when our other engines that we are building in R&D, biotech, life sciences, and so on, have not taken off yet. Mr Chiam See Tong mentioned that the Government's intention is always to have a strong surplus. Without a strong surplus, we would not have been able to dish out the package that we did last year to help our citizens. Kuwait has oil. Brunei has oil. They can extract their oil, send it overseas and invest, and when need to, they could call on those resources. We do not have oil. We do not have water. And I do not think it is possible to squeeze water or oil out of this sand that we are using to reclaim land around us. It is just like what Mr Lim Swee Say mentioned earlier on, this is the character of the PAP Government. Mr Lim mentioned that we have reserves of about 100 times our daily consumption of water in our reservoirs. Money is like water. In that sense, it can never be enough. But we are using it and directing it to help our citizens.”
“This gives investors a very clear signal that the Government is serious in promoting companies in this position. Secondly, the business community's and hon. Members' request for group relief for losses has been answered in Budget 2002. It is indeed a welcome news and all too timely. By allowing qualifying companies within a group to transfer their current year's unutilised capital allowances and losses, it helps businesses reduce some risks in doing business. It echoes the Government's call to businesses to be more entrepreneurial and to explore new ventures. By this one stroke, it also reduces the high effective tax rates in their consolidated accounts and cash flow problems due to tax settlements. Thirdly, on the GST increase. The GST increase will impact some businesses that are not registered for GST who incur the increase of 2% on their purchases from GST registered suppliers, and residential property developers and financial services industry that may not fully recover some input tax. With the specific tax changes for businesses coupled with the corporate tax decrease, it may mitigate some of these effects. For some SMEs, for example, if they have private cars that they use for their marketing force, the charges for the repairs on these cars may not be claimable by the company. For individuals, the offset package that will accompany the GST increase is not only comprehensive but is flexible. As the Minister has said that, should the need arise, a review to extend the package beyond the five-year time frame is possible, this package will benefit the lower income directly. The fourth highlight is in the area of transport and logistics. We are faced with extreme competition.”
“Sir, many people, when asked what they thought about the recent Budget 2002, had described it as a "balanced" Budget. I would like to use the word "surgical" to describe the Budget. Let me explain. As the Minister for Finance has said, we are in a very different world. As a result of all that has happened around us in the recent year or two, Singapore, like many other countries, faces many challenges that affect the economic and social conditions. The Budget addresses many of these challenges and concerns in a pragmatic approach. I would like to highlight four areas that I feel the pro-business Budget underscores the surgical aspect that I am referring to. Firstly, the reduction in corporate taxes. Business performance is key to our nation's survival. I am happy that the corporate tax is being reduced from 24.5% to 22% for the Year of Assessment 2003, and a plan to further reduce it to 20% by financial year 2004. This is good news. For companies with deferred tax liabilities, a reduction in corporate tax rates will result in an immediate reduction in their deferred tax liabilities. Companies with a big capital expenditure programme on their balance sheets will then have an improved net asset position and tax write-backs. Some of our bigger companies that fall into this category will have a direct benefit as a consequence of the reduction in corporate taxes. What many may not know is that the cut in the corporate tax by a 2 percentage point also means that the estimated market earnings per share (EPS) of a company may rise by about 2%. A combination of these two factors, ie, improved net asset position and a rise in EPS, makes these companies very attractive to investors.”
“Sir, with so many wild cards on the horizon, I hope that the remaking of Singapore will carry as many Singaporeans as possible in its efforts not just to those who can identify with it on a higher cerebral level. Mr Speaker, Sir, just as every Singaporean matters, Singapore should matter to every Singaporean. I think this is the essence of the remaking of Singapore. At this point I would like to make a few comments on the speech by the hon. Mr Low Thia Khiang. He mentioned that the talent pool in Singapore, our local talent, could have been the result of our policies. With this foreign talent that we have been talking about these many years, this supplements our local talent. And not only that, our local talent will learn and surpass these talents from overseas. Take, for example, in banking. Young men from overseas in the treasury rooms, who are dealing with derivatives, have been used to and have been dealing in, structuring, producing these derivative products at the age of 23 or 24, and they come to Singapore and they work with fairly older Singaporeans who are 27 to 30 and, very soon, the same Singaporeans are able to produce these products at the snap of a finger. Mr Low Thia Khiang comments that he supports the PAP Government's efforts in pulling our country together. It is admirable. However, I caution that Singaporeans must not be bought in on calls that could be divisive in times like this. The President's Address has stated succinctly what we will face and the urgent call to remake Singapore. Mr Speaker, Sir, I therefore support the Motion to thank the President.”
“Sir, we could hear, as recent as five years ago, the lament from the older generation that younger Singaporeans do not know what it means to be hungry, the uncertainty of not knowing whether there will be jobs tomorrow, or wonder if they would ever have decent homes or even a decent livelihood, as the older generations have had to experience. Although the idea, that young Singaporeans needed a crisis so that they could learn to appreciate and value what we had, bordered on idiocy, the Asian crisis in 1998, the economic downturn and the events of September 11, have presented this generation of Singaporeans some very sobering experiences. I hope that it does not take too long to ignite this passion and to find some common gut-wrenching sense of purpose to perpetuate the kind of life we are used to in Singapore. To ignite this passion and commitment to get all of us united to run this marathon, we better find a very short burning fuse very quickly. The President's Address has underscored that some fuses had already started burning. The explosive growth of the Chinese market is something the world is watching carefully, each economy assessing where, what and how it can capture a slice of it. A Taiwanese businessman told me not too long ago that the cost of running his business in Taiwan has come to such a state that he could no longer continue and had to move his manufacturing facilities to mainland China. But then again, Sir, he added that if he was doing very well in Taiwan, the more reason he should move his business to mainland China. We are seeing that happening on our shores. Then, some fuses have already been ignited since September 11, and the charges are continually being laid, and the uncertainty and when the next fuse would be lit is a spectre hanging over us.”
“Mr Speaker, Sir, in the beginning of my speech, I wondered if many Singaporeans felt the vulnerabilities before us and the sense of urgency to face up to and to tackle these problems. We need to reach down deep into their hearts for the passion that they have for our country, that we will have some sense of hope for the years ahead. Sir, we need to instill in Singaporeans the kind of gut-wrenching commitment and conviction that our first-generation leaders had in them that brought us from the brink to the kind of Singapore we have today. From time to time, we find our foot being stepped on. Then we are chided for deliberately keeping our toe nails long and hurt the sensitive souls of the stepper. Singaporeans must know that this will not change for quite a while yet. What can we do? Keep moving, keep shuffling, keep focused on our chosen path, and trim our nails from time to time and keep them sharp at other times. This situation is not helped by the constantly changing ground we are running on. We have little or no control of the direction in which the ground moves or the magnitude of the shift. We need to be nimble as a nation and to adapt and change directions quicker than the next guy in the same race. Singaporeans must know that each obstacle we face must add to the fire in the belly in all of us to press on. It is the fire in the belly that fuels our determination not to fail. That was true before, and it has to be true today and, especially, over the next few years.”
“If drivers could glance at their rear-view mirrors from time to time to notice that they could let someone pass, filtering aside, letting the quicker traffic along, we would all have less stress on the highway and, definitely, more smiles and less rude glares. In the pursuit of the five Cs, in driving for these, if we show some care and consideration for the community around us and initiate some sacrifice of time and effort, we will indeed have a more gracious society and a more balanced and meaningful life. In housing estates, I call on Singaporeans to flash the first smile to a resident passing by their flat, to offer the first handshake to the residents left, right, downstairs and upstairs of them. This would be the community that they can first be active in. Sir, I have noticed that, among Malay residents, the rapport between them, between units, between blocks, different zones, is very close and very warm. Perhaps, our Chinese residents could learn from that. Another "C" that can be added to make these 8 Cs is compassion, shown on the Government's part. I hope that in the remaking of Singapore, the process and the Government organisations can show some compassion to Singaporeans who are caught in between policy changes. We do understand that implementation of changes in policies will affect some people negatively. Nevertheless, some compassion and consideration must be shown to these citizens affected and not treat them just as a negligible statistic or collateral damage. By showing more compassion in situations like these, citizens find it easier to buy in on the Government's call for Singaporeans to be active citizens or to do a part in community work and some other form of social outreach requiring a draw-down on one's capacity for compassion.”
“It is the same dogged, hardworking, innovative, persistent and going-to-be-more-creative Singaporean who strives for better grades in schools, one who wants to secure a better job, one who works hard - mind you, efficiently and productively - he also wants to move up in his or her career and to upgrade to a flat with another one or more rooms. There is nothing wrong with aspiring for a better tomorrow and to have the better things in life. After all, we work hard for these things. What about the other side of the coin? As a competitive and street-savvy Singaporean took shape over the past 30 years to help steer our nation to where we are today, we did not count on the same Singaporean becoming very much focused on the five Cs. We need to temper and balance ourselves as we seek these five Cs. I think the addition of two other Cs - that of community and country - can and must be the only way forward. If Singaporeans can self-actualise and spend time serving the community and being an active citizen, I am sure, in time, we can have a more rounded, gracious Singaporean, and discard some of the stereotypes that we have been associated with. I believe that we can ignite that bit of altruism that I know exists in the heart of Singaporeans to serve their community. Yes, every Singaporean matters. Sir, permit me to use an analogy. I call it the rear-view mirror analogy. Many Singaporeans drive, or at least have been backseat drivers. I wonder how many and how often these drivers look at their rear-view mirrors from time to time, except when they want to filter lanes, when someone honks at them, when flashing lights or someone in uniform gestures for them to pull aside.”
“Mr Speaker, Sir, I rise in support of the motion thanking the President for his Address in Parliament. Sir, as I sat listening to the President's Address, I wondered how many in Singapore watched the telecast and listened to the President's Address. More so, how many Singaporeans felt the sense of vulnerability as we faced the many security, social and economic challenges before us. More importantly, I wondered how many had felt the overwhelming sense of urgency in facing up to and even to begin in an attempt to tackle these problems. The remaking of Singapore is our roadmap to survival in the coming years. I am sure that in the remaking of Singapore, the various committees set up will address many of the areas that require shoring up, many of the areas that require revamps and new areas that need to be looked at. As we course through the uncertain future ahead, I am comforted by the stance taken by the Remaking of Singapore team to leave no stone unturned. Sir, as we go about remaking, I urge the Government not to take lightly the understanding of the psyche of the Singaporean. As our honourable colleague, Mr Seng Han Thong, has interestingly pointed out yesterday in his speech, the uniqueness of the typical Singaporean qualities or, more specifically, the die-hard single-minded deployment of overseas shopping and travel survival techniques, can hopefully and plausibly turn around as an ingredient in our nation's survival. It is an example described by Mr Seng. It is evident that we must try to see what societal effects policies have on our people over a long term. Sir, a Singaporean that we have so conditioned for the past 36 years can be seen as two sides of the same coin. A cannot-lose Singaporean is seen as kiasu.”