Baey Yam Keng
Singapore
“Our next generation will have far greater opportunities to make their mark here. The Government will also guide them into the transport sector through scholarships, training and career development pathways, so that they can put their talents to good use and contribute to society.”
“I would say that the greening of bus stop roofs may not be something that is practical across all bus stops. I do not have the exact figures, but I am sure we must have tens of thousands of bus stops in Singapore. So, there is a cost element.”
“Based on earlier trials conducted by the Land Transport Authority (LTA), fans have a limited impact on the ambient temperature in an exposed bus stop environment. Commuter feedback from the trials was also unfavourable. Most bus stops are also shaded by surrounding buildings and trees, reducing the effectiveness of solar installations.”
“Certainly. Members would remember that over the years and decades, our bus stop designs have evolved. We have to take into consideration various factors, not just the comfort of commuters who are waiting there but also the practicality of sighting of buses coming ahead as well as maintenance, safety and different factors like that.”
“I thank Ms Gho for her concern for the arts and the artists. Indeed, it is part of our commitment to provide affordable, accessible spaces for artists and arts groups. We have announced last year that we are doing a study on how the arts spaces provision can be better improved and the study is ongoing.”
“Speaker, the median and maximum waiting time for pedestrians at signalised junctions are 120 seconds and 140 seconds respectively. Wait times for pedestrians depend on the nature of road, junction size and configuration, as well as prevailing traffic volume.”
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“I mentioned about the groups that we have given free admission to and it really has not resulted in a spike that we had hoped to see. It could be for a variety of reasons, some of which we have cited. But, again, going forward, I think if we do introduce free admission to all Singaporeans, we may well want to consider it in a segmentised basis, perhaps to the permanent exhibitions first before we see how it can be opened up further. This is something that we are prepared to look at seriously.”
“Sir, I would like to thank the Minister for agreeing to look into my suggestions to offer Singaporeans free admission to our national museums. I would like to ask the Minister if he could elaborate on the basis of the assessment. I hear with concern when the Minister shared that the take-up rate among the groups currently enjoying free admission is not high. Does that mean that the Ministry has set a certain target before it will extend free admission to the general public? I would argue that precisely because the take-up rate is not high, we should expand the groups enjoying free admission. But looking at the existing groups, it is not surprising that the response is not high, at both ends of the children and senior citizens, as they are typically not as independent and mobile. Hence, they are unlikely to visit the museum themselves even though it is free. As for National Servicemen, I think they will prefer to spend their precious book-out time maybe with friends and dating, unless the Ministry promotes the museum as great dating haunts. I hope the free admission review could be done promptly and a favourable outcome is impending. RAdm [NS] Lui Tuck Yew: Sir, as I mentioned earlier, this is something that we are prepared to look at seriously. I added the caveat that free admission may not be the solution that we are looking for and, indeed, it could well be a panacea. When we looked at the examples of other countries that have introduced free admission, what we found was that after the initial surge, it actually plateaued and stagnated. There was a certain interest, certain boost, as a result of this free admission and then it came back down and reached a steady state again.”
“The growing use of English in our homes has significantly reduced the chances for our children to be exposed to their mother tongues. Having more interesting programmes in mother tongues targeted for children will be useful in creating a more conducive environment for them to be exposed to the language beyond what they learn as a subject in the classroom.”
“I hope more PSB-funded programmes will be as successful and meaningful so that we do not always have to cite "The Little Nonya" as a good example of PSB programmes. However, the budget to produce a good television programme can be quite high. I would like the Ministry to also tap on, perhaps, an older but I think equally effective medium – the radio. For one, it is more accessible, in the car or on the iPhone. More importantly, it is much less resource-intensive. As a child, I used to be glued to the radio set, following episodes of radio drama. Currently, I find that we have too many airtime hours across various radio stations devoted to songs, music and talkshows. The Ministry has said that we need to promote more local content creation in Singapore. Besides print publications, we need to find more avenues for these works to reach out to more audiences. It would be great if some of these stories, whether scripts or novels, can be presented on television, film or the stage, but we should also look at radio as an easier and more cost-effective channel. Certainly, adapting a novel for the small screen, big screen or on air requires different specific skill sets, but I believe there is a common trait of compelling story-telling. Perhaps, the radio could be a good test-bed to assess the potential and viability of further investment into these local works to be presented on other platforms. Hopefully, this will lead to a few of our home-grown writers winning critical acclaim or gaining commercial success on the international scene. Finally, I would like to request for more programmes for children in our mother tongues on radio and television.”
“Mr Chairman, with the termination of the radio and TV licence fees, the Government will forgo about $120 million collected every year to fund about 3,000 hours of content on our free-to-air TV channels. I would like to ask the Minister how the amount to be spent on Public Service Broadcast be determined in the future. Presently, the amount is dependent on the licence fees collected. Going forward, as the Government funds the programmes directly, how does it decide whether to increase or reduce the amount? If our population and the number of households and the number of television or radio sets increases, does it mean that the amount will increase correspondingly, which it would have, if the licensing scheme had continued? In addition, would the Minister share with us how MICA decides on the proportion of the various types of programmes for the various platforms, including radio, television and the new media? The PSB programmes play an important role in informing and educating the public about important social and cultural issues, and national policies. They also promote social cohesion and harmony, and strengthen our national identity. Thus, I hope that the Minister would consider using this platform to promote more works by our local artistes and writers to promote local culture, heritage and Asian values. The likes of the Chinese drama, "The Little Nonya", are encouraging, given the profile of the Peranakan culture and it received high viewership ratings. I understand that PSB funding contributed part of the production costs and I also accept that, on its own, MediaCorp may not have the financial resources or want to take the risk and invest in the extensive research, sets and costumes and location shoots for this Chinese drama.”
“Its Ministry of Culture aims to enrich people's intellectual and cultural standards as well as "to promote social harmony and stability". Madam, it is obvious from the above examples that governments from the East and West perceive free access to museums very beneficial to their populations, fulfilling educational, cultural and social objectives. Hence, I hope that the Minister would consider allowing this in Singapore as well for the same reasons.”
“Through special exhibitions, we would bring world culture and history to Singaporeans, enabling us to understand ourselves and our place in the world. This is particularly beneficial to those Singaporeans who do not have the opportunity to travel and for lower-income groups who may find the entrance fee for a family outing to a museum daunting. The high number of visitors our museums attract during Open House Days proves that Singaporeans are interested but admission fees may be a deterrent. Madam, NHB has stated that profit-making is never the priority. In addition, the 2008 Heritage Development Plan, "Renaissance City Plan III", listed "museum visits" as one of the KPIs for Singapore to be "a distinctive global city for the arts". Nowhere on the list of KPIs was "ticket revenue". Nonetheless, I am sure if we allow free admission for Singaporeans, our museums can still have decent revenue from ticket sales to tourists, rental of museum spaces, gift shop sales, parking, special programmes and donations. The increased visitorship will certainly bring value to these ancillary facilities and tenants, and possibly higher than the foregone ticket revenue from Singaporeans. Many museums in the other cosmopolitan cities offer free admission. In the United States, museums such as the Smithsonian in Washington, DC, are free. In the United Kingdom, visitors to London enjoy free admission to over 200 galleries and museums. When I was living in London, my family spent many wonderful hours in the National History Museum, Science Museum, Tate Modern, all for free, even though we were not British citizens. In China, thousands of museums will provide free access to the public by the end of this year under a government proposal.”
“Madam, to fulfil our public museums’ mission as cultural and educational institutions, they must be opened and accessible to Singaporeans from all backgrounds and income levels. Admission fees may be the single biggest obstacle in preventing our public museums from fulfilling this mission. Currently, senior citizens, full-time National Servicemen, children and students up to tertiary level enjoy free admission to the permanent galleries of the seven museums under the National Heritage Board (NHB). I would like to request that the Minister consider extending the free admission policy to all Singaporeans. This will encourage more Singaporeans to visit our museums and deepen their understanding of Singapore’s and South-east Asia’s history, culture and art. It is only through a more intimate understanding of our multicultural roots and history that we can build national resilience and reinforce our national identity. Most visitors would want to maximise the value of their entry fee by spending at least half a day in a museum but they may not find time. And, hence, they do not even venture into the museum. With free admission, Singaporeans would feel free to pop in and out as and when they have time, allowing more people to include visits to museums in their busy lifestyles. Since our museums are located in the business and civic areas, many working adults would probably drop by during lunch time or after work. They would definitely not be able to take in all the interesting exhibits in that one visit but want to go back on another occasion with friends and family. They would also help to promote it by word of mouth. I would also like to request that the Minister consider including blockbuster and special exhibitions under the free admission policy.”
“By understanding the way that they have been getting an education and the way that they have progressed, knowing their needs, knowing their strengths, knowing the weaknesses of the child and we should know how to balance, and I know of many parents who have done so as well. I think Member Baey Yam Keng's wife has just written a wonderful article in Zaobao talking about how she has actually focused on other areas of bringing up, supporting the child, instead of spending the time in tuition. As I have said, I would just like to say that we cannot really penalise or we do not want to discourage parents from paying more attention to their children. Rather we would like to assure parents that we have a good system, our variability in schools is very, very small between the very good schools and the so-called neighbourhood schools who also get lots of support from MOE and if Members have visited our typical neighbourhood school, Members will agree that they get probably better facilities than many of us would imagine. They get investments like any other schools, both in terms of hardware and software and in teachers. This is the assurance that we will give parents that there are many more pathways now besides just the typical academic part of it, and that they should really give the opportunity to their children to explore their strengths in various areas and we would like to assure parents that there are many more pathways for their children to success.”
“Otherwise this practice drives a frenzy and parents are falling over themselves trying to make sure that they give the best to their children, and it certainly contributes to one of the stresses that married couples raise when we engage them in a discourse on why they will not have larger families. Ms Grace Fu Hai Yien: My Minister actually talked about how well Shanghai is doing in their recent PISA study. If you ask the parents in Shanghai if they are prepared to do away with tuition, I think we would probably be having a revolution quite soon. The point is: even in any systems whether it is in the US or anywhere else, we cannot take the education system in isolation and forget the overall expectations of the society. We do have a society where parents place great emphasis on education and that is a good thing. We want parents to be involved, to engage, to pay attention to the students. More importantly, I think it is ingrained in us that education is a pathway to success. It is a surer way, in most parents' view. Can we, in a way, outlaw tuition? We probably cannot do that. Can we ask the parents to pay less attention to their children's education? It is probably not a good idea to do so. But what we could do is to show parents that in school we do provide adequate support. In fact, if your child is not doing so well, we do have support programmes to help your children. There are parents who like to have a more balanced education would agree that to leave the academic side to the school and, perhaps, concentrate in other areas of bringing up their children such as bonding with them, reading with them and so forth.”
“Thank you, Madam. I would like to ask the Ministry if it would like to respond to my cut on Primary 1 registration.   ;Ms Grace Fu Hai Yien: Thank you for the opportunity. We used to have priority for parents with more children – with three children – in the past, but in 1992 we have decided to delink the number of children and admission. At the present moment, our current Primary 1 registration framework is actually arrived at after very careful balances of different stakeholders. We take into consideration factors such as the distance to the school, the presence of siblings – whether the sibling is studying in the same school and also whether the parents are, for example, involved in the community that is supporting the schools. The current framework actually is a result of a lot of discussions and a lot of evolution from past considerations. At the moment, we do not have any intention to change the way that we have been handling our Primary 1 registration but should there be a need to review the priority as well as chances given to parents with more children, we will definitely take Mr Baey's recommendation into consideration. Assoc. Prof. Paulin Tay Straughan: Thank you, Madam. I am glad to note that the marriage rates for teachers are a lot higher than earlier suspected. May I revisit the concerns that Members had on tuition? Given the perception we have that tuition is so widespread among our school kids, it may be important for the Ministry to have a better understanding of why so many Singaporean students feel the need to have a private tutor or to go for extra lessons. If there is an inadequacy in the way we teach at schools, we should know about it so that we can address it.”
“I would like to suggest that, in addition to this criterion, for each phase, except for phase 1 where a child with a sibling in the school will automatically get priority, a child be given chances based on the number of siblings he or she has. The more siblings, the more chances. May I emphasise not higher priority but more chances. Furthermore, in support of intact and healthy families, the child and his or her siblings must have the same parents. As Primary 1 registration takes place when a child is six years old, this will also encourage parents to have more children in quick succession in order to avail the child of more chances to enter a school of choice. With this in mind, perhaps such a change should also be effected giving six years' advance notice.”
“Mr Chairman, in the past, the Government had used primary school registration as one of the tools to control population growth. Under the old population policy, "Stop at Two", between 1966 and 1983, priority for Primary 1 registration was given to children of parents who were sterilised after the first or second child. From 1984 to 1986, children of university-educated women who had three or more children received priority. Between 1987 and 1999, under a new policy, "Have Three Or More Children If You Can Afford It", priority in primary school registration was extended to the third child. Mr Chairman, I note MOE's response to a parliamentary question in 2008 to delink Primary 1 registration from population policies since 1992. However, there are good reasons to review this after almost 20 years given that parents naturally and should be interested in their children's education after giving birth to them. As the Minister mentioned, education brings about social mobility. Competition for places in certain primary schools is fierce. We all know of parents who move within one or two kilometres of desired schools or serve as school or grassroots volunteers to get priority. May I suggest then, to encourage procreation, that we consider giving more chances, not priority but chances, more chances to a child with more siblings? Of course, the child must be a Singapore citizen. Currently, should the number of applications exceed the number of vacancies in any phase, places will be balloted according to the proximity of the child's home to the school.”
“I would like to ask the Minister this – no employer would be interested to take on a higher burden by giving more leave, but when we mandated the extension of the maternity leave and childcare leave, I believe the Government is paying for the extra days and months of leave offered to employees. If the Government is interested in providing parental care leave in Singapore, could the Government also consider paying for this benefit which is an extra burden on the employers? May I also ask the Minister to clarify the role of PMO in coordinating elderly issues when many of the elderly issues need to be directed to MOM, MOF or MOH, I think we also need to give backbenchers clarity on how we can advance such discussion.”
“If he achieves work-life balance, he will be happier at work. Thus, his work efficiency will increase. Attrition rate will also drop. *Cols. 3419-3420. Assoc. Prof. Paulin Tay Straughan: Sir, as life expectancy continues to improve, Singaporeans now live longer but we also suffer more from chronic ailments that require regular medical attention. Demographic trends advise that family size is shrinking and about 50% of Singapore households are dual-income. These statistics warn that we can no longer depend on the services of a full-time domestic manager who can take on eldercare responsibilities. So, who will take care of the aged parents with limited mobility? Currently, for those who can afford it, they purchase help through the form of a foreign domestic worker. But for those who cannot, they have to rely on personal leave when they are needed to assist aged parents. Typically, it is the low-income worker who suffers more as they are in jobs with less benefits and more rigid reporting schedules. I appeal to the Government to legislate the provision of parental care leave to facilitate responsible caregiving and empower Singaporeans to embrace filial piety. To minimise cost to the State, I suggest that this leave can form part of the existing six days of unrecorded leave for childcare. This gesture will be much appreciated by all Singaporeans. Community Silver Trust fund”
“(In Mandarin ): [For vernacular speech, please refer to Appendix A*. ] Currently, other than statutory annual leave and maternity leave, companies also allow additional childcare leave. According to MOM's Employment Report 2010, many companies allow other leaves such as compassionate, marriage and paternity leave. However, only 11% of companies allow their employees to take leave to look after their sick parents. Fortunately, this percentage is doubled that of 2008, and this is a rising trend. Most employees have to use their annual leave to take their parents to see the doctor. If their parents are sickly and have to go to hospital often, their annual leave may not be enough. Our population is ageing and the proportion of elderly people is increasing fast. The family structure in Singapore has also undergone major changes. Families used to have three to four children so the children can take turns to look after the parents and share the responsibilities. Now the family size is smaller, with one or two children, and so, fewer siblings can share the duty of caring for the parents. Hence, I suggest the Government consider changing the current six-day childcare leave to family leave, so that employees can use it flexibly. Besides caring for children under seven, he can also use it to look after elderly parents, grandparents and parents-in-law above 70 years old. This will help the employee to achieve work-life balance. To prevent employees from abusing this benefit, the employer can ask the employee to show proof, such as receipts from clinics or hospitals. Employers may be concerned with the rising labour cost because of this flexible leave arrangement. However, I believe the benefits outweigh the cost increase.”
“Every month, there are birthday parties and one or two outings. Both ambulant and wheelchair-bound elderly get a chance to enjoy themselves during these outings. More than 40% of the elderly at this Centre can only afford subsidised fees. The community groups will continue to raise funds to charge affordable fees and also offer more subsidies. But there is so much more we can do. Based on means testing, some do not qualify for subsidy as these families are not exactly low-income. But some of the elderly and their children do not want to commit to a monthly expenditure of a few hundred dollars and, hence, the elderly end up staying at home. We need more centres and the Government can do more to make them more affordable and offer more subsidies to cater to the changing needs of our population, and prevent longer-term consequences and challenges of an ageing population. I look forward to the Minister's update on the progress we have made in this area and new plans for the future. Family caregivers”
“Such facilities and services will allow Singaporeans in their productive years to focus on their work as they can leave their parents in good hands. Not only will the elderly have people to look after them, they will also be in a familiar environment. I think it is also very important that we make a bigger effort to reduce our reliance on foreign domestic workers to take care of our elderly. I would like to propose subsidies for the use of such services and facilities, just like for childcare. There should be a basic subsidy for all parents, and tiered additional help, similar to the system we have for childcare subsidies. Households with lower incomes or working adults should benefit from higher subsidies. Allow me to share with the House some information about the Queenstown Multi-Service Centre in my constituency which has a substantial elderly population. Set up in 1998, it is currently supported by Queenstown CCC and Thye Hua Kwan Moral Society. The centre offers both rehabilitative and day-care services. A two-way transport service is provided daily for the elderly to and from the Centre. Rehabilitative treatments are performed for the elderly with acute health problems, such as stroke, paralysis, fracture and neurological defects. Without these treatments, their problems may become chronic, and the elderly might become weaker and eventually bed-ridden and would require institutional care. Day-care services are provided for the frail elderly whose family members are out for work during the day. The elderly enjoy the social interactions and recreational activities which meet their psychological needs. Sing-alongs, individual or group exercises and games, calligraphy, gardening, tea appreciation and, yes, even mahjong, keep the elderly active and mentally alert.”
“With our smaller family sizes, it is increasingly more challenging for Singaporeans to take good care of our elderly parents. In the past, with more children in the family, they can share the responsibility among siblings. With one or more children in a typical family today, and a substantial number of our women in the workforce, each child bears a much heavier responsibility. It is even more difficult for working adults with young children to care for elderly or sickly parents at the same time. Last year, the Government committed to set up 200 more childcare centres by 2015. The Budget this year has also provided enhanced subsidies to help parents with their childcare fees. Certainly, I hope that with these provisions, there will be more babies in Singapore, and the falling fertility rate would reverse. We should be optimistic. On the other hand, what we know for certain is that the number and proportion of senior citizens in Singapore will increase steadily in the coming years. While we are placing significant resources in caring for the young ones, and the Finance Minister just mentioned a 150% increase in spending for childcare, can we also allocate more resources to help with elderly care? Bringing up a child, while it can be stressful, is very rewarding when we see our child growing up and becoming more independent. However, caring for the elderly is the reverse, when we see our loved ones becoming weaker and more dependent over the years. It is physically, emotionally and financially draining. Hence, there is a pressing need for us to speed up the set up of more step-down medical facilities, short-term care, day-care and hourly-care centres, especially in all our housing estates.”
“Nonetheless, I have no doubt we can be hearing – and I hope we will be hearing – lots of interesting, inspiring stories of men and women who emerge successful from rental flats and low-income families. We need not aim for the lowest score for our Gini coefficient but we should aim for the best score in social mobility. Sir, with that, I support the Budget. ADJOURNMENT OF DEBATE”
“Looking at their family profile, which is mostly large family size squeezing in a small rental flat, I realised that the root of the problem could be that they lack a conducive environment at home to study, prepare for examinations or even do their homework. At the same time, their parents are likely to be busy at work and are not able to supervise them. Hence, last year, we started a programme, Project STOMP (Student-Tutor Open Mentoring Programme), that involves youth volunteers to help these children in their studies. The volunteers do not play the part of a tutor but just as an elder brother or sister who will encourage and motivate them. Held twice weekly at Queenstown Community Centre, it usually starts with the students doing their homework or assessments. After that, the volunteers will organise some classroom games like hangman or play board games. During the school holidays, activities or outings are usually planned for the children. Besides getting better grades, we observed that the children have now become more outgoing. The quieter ones now dare to ask questions and join in the games and activities with the other children. One of the students who have graduated from the programme has now even come back to help as a mentor. While programmes like these can still be run by volunteers, and we should encourage more of them, there is a limit to how much or how much more they can do. I would like to call for more resources to give our children from disadvantaged families a leg up. I accept that even with the most aggressive measures, not all cases will succeed, for you can bring the horse to the river, but you cannot force it to drink.”
“One suggestion is that within a single estate, while different agencies may hold separate budgets to maintain respective drains or parts of drains, perhaps they can employ the same one contractor to provide an end-to-end solution and ensure a smooth flow of water. Like the drains, most of the problems faced by these dysfunctional families are all interlinked. Various agencies can specialise to help them in different ways but, in many cases, these families themselves cannot be the integrator. They either do not have the ability or they are just overwhelmed by their circumstances. If we help families like these tide over the critical, traumatic periods, stay with them as we monitor and work out the different aspects of their new lives, we will minimise the disruption and damage to the lives of their children. Then, just ensuring that the kids have a decent place to study will lead to improved results. The kids will enjoy better esteem. They will have a fighting chance. In Queenstown, we give out annual bursaries to students from low-income families. We notice that about one-tenth of the primary school applicants managed to achieve only 10%-20% improvement in their school grades. While academic excellence is not required for bursaries, I felt that giving them just money will not help them much if they continue to do so miserably in their studies. So I invited the parents for a dialogue and discovered that most of their children already attend free or heavily subsidised tuition in the school, community or with the self-help groups.”
“This person can be someone from MCYS, a Family Service Centre or a different set-up, but we need to recognise the importance of having this resource and investing in professionals who can help these families. I would like now to use an analogy to illustrate this. A few times when I visit my residents in Mei Ling Street, some residents will complain about blocked drains. Naturally, I will turn to the Town Council. If Members could now refer to the map that they have in their hands now. I was told by my Town Council that these drains in question, marked in red on the map, are maintained by the NEA. As Members can see here [indicating ], the parts marked in red are maintained by NEA while the rest are maintained by the Town Council. To my layman eye, I cannot see any difference between those in red and those managed by the Town Council. I am sure there is a rationale to make sure that one particular agency is held accountable, otherwise why is it that along a particular stretch of road, one section comes under the care of an agency while the other comes under another agency. But this appears to create a problem on the ground. Apparently, the different agencies give the maintenance contracts to different companies whose workers do the cleaning job at different frequencies or different times of the day. What it means is that when the drain may be cleaned in the upstream, the downstream may be choked and the water will not flow. The waterway network is all linked and forms part of our natural catchment for water. Hence, it has to be seamless.”
“Without doing this, the vicious cycle of low academic achievement, poor work performance and poverty will perpetuate itself. Currently, we have a "Many Helping Hands" approach to help the needy in our community, including children from broken or dysfunctional families. While we should welcome more groups and people to join the movement, it is much better, in my opinion, to also have Government-appointed full-time professionally-trained case managers to take the lead and manage the cases of these children and their families. These families need more than financial assistance. They need financial counsellors. They need professional advice on which Government agency or private charity to approach to apply to for various assistance schemes. They need to know what papers to submit and how to do this efficiently. They need to know which aspects of their family culture and behaviour they have to change to bring about improvement in their lives. They need someone who understands their particular difficulties and strengths so that the help they receive will be holistic. We are dealing with rental flats, CDC, school, childcare, after-school care, medical assistance, upgrading and job applications. When a family has problems, all these can be very overwhelming. Take a typical divorce case – a woman has to deal with the heartbreak, sell the flat, look for alternative accommodation, move out and transfer the kids to other schools, chase maintenance, try to get money for school fees, meals, bus fare, utilities, medical bills, and so on, all on top of facing the social pressure of a broken marriage and single parenthood. So you can imagine how helpful and reassuring having a dedicated case manager can be.”
“The majority came from the low and middle income families and they shared the same challenges in life. Those who were capable, diligent and were able to maximise their opportunities, improved the lives of their families and themselves, especially that of the next generation. This created a virtuous cycle, where each generation was better than the last. On the other hand, we see some families stuck in a vicious cycle. During my MPS, many of the residents who came to seek help have shattered marriages; they have low income or no income; their children suffer from poor grades or do not finish their studies; they are unwed or single mothers; they are drug addicts or have been jailed. It is not that they do not want to improve themselves; they just do not know where to start. They cannot lift themselves out of the cycle. As such, their children grow up, imitate the mistakes and fall back into the trap. These are complex cases; it is not enough to let grassroots organisations or voluntary and welfare groups handle them. I hope that the Government can provide the resources to enable full-time professionals to take up these cases. This will help lift many out of the vicious cycles, especially their next generation. I will now continue in English. *Cols. 3031-3032. (In English): It has been said that we should not let children be punished for the mistakes of their parents. Are children the primary responsibility of their parents? Yes, absolutely. However, what happens when parents do not or are not able to do what they are supposed to, ie, to take care of them, feed them, keep them in school and out of trouble? On a case-by-case basis, the Government has to take the lead and step in.”
“In the article "Immigrants Boost Indians' Salaries – Group overtakes Chinese for highest household income spot", which was published in the Straits Times on 17th February 2011, the writers reported on "the new wave of well-educated Indian immigrants whose earning power has helped boost the overall household incomes of the Indian community here". This is the challenge facing us today. It is tempting to focus on redistribution of income through taxation as a way to reduce the income gap. But if this is not handled well, we run the risk of discouraging and pushing away the good and excellent performers who would see the rewards of their efforts taxed away. These are the groups who are in high demand globally and they are very mobile. We need them in our team. On the other hand, how do we encourage Singaporeans at the lower levels and keep them motivated? The key is social mobility. Mr Deputy Speaker, Sir, I will now speak in Mandarin. (In Mandarin): [For vernacular speech, please refer to Appendix A*.] Zaobao carried an article on 6th February by Ms Han Yong Mei, titled "A tough social issue": "Lowly educated parents would spur their children to study hard so that they would have a better life. There are many such families before, and examples are all around us. In the previous two generations, we see many parents like my grandparents. Their children, who are our parents' generation, went to university; and their children, who are our generation, went to top schools and got scholarships. They came from ordinary background families. There are fewer such cases nowadays. " Indeed, Singaporeans who came from the previous two generations shared an almost similar social background.”
“And I know that many of these residents were also given red packets on other occasions too. Besides, the money and all the costs of the luncheon were raised by volunteers and supporters, and this was no mean feat. Just for the red packets alone, we are already looking at more than $30,000. We had held this event as an expression of our respect for and gratitude to the older generation. So I told this resident, "Many people had to work pretty hard to put all these together, so I really hope you do appreciate it." Likewise, I hope fellow Singaporeans can appreciate this Budget and its hamper of goodies. Very few countries in the world can do this, and we should appreciate what we have. This all-inclusive Budget offers something for everyone, with more help allocated to the middle and lower income groups and this is an approach which has the support of all Singaporeans. This is one of the ways we use to narrow our income inequality. As our economy develops, we have to move into niche areas and higher value-added sectors to survive and stay competitive. What happens after that? In the article, "The Inequality Wild Card" by Kenneth Rogoff for the Project Syndicate reproduced in the Straits Times on 17th February 2011, the writer observed that "we live in an era in which globalisation expands the market for ultra-talented individuals but competes away the income of ordinary employees." We see this happening around us – the income gap widens. Those with skills in demand will earn even more as other incomes may remain stagnant or even decrease. When we attract immigrants, who can contribute to Singapore, it is inevitable that the gap widens even more.”
“Mr Deputy Speaker, Sir, our economy performed exceptionally well last year, and this Budget provides the opportunity for the Government to share the benefits of growth with all Singaporeans. This all-inclusive Budget offers something for everyone, young and old. Many of my constituents tell me that they are happy with the benefits and rebates. I recently held a Chinese New Year luncheon for over 3,000 senior citizens in Queenstown. They had looked forward to it and some even skipped work that day to attend. Many of our grassroots leaders and volunteers turned up to attend to them. It was a joyous occasion for the elderly residents who caught up with old friends and neighbours and enjoyed a good meal with entertainment. And thanks to the generous support of our volunteers and kind donors, each guest received a souvenir coin with a rabbit engraved on it to mark the occasion and a $10 red packet as a gesture of our well wishes for them in the New Year. Most of the senior citizens were delighted and appreciative of the effort that we had put in. However, there was a guest who did not enjoy the event as much as we thought he would. He asked me about the red packet, "Why so little?" I must admit I was quite taken aback. I explained to him the red packet was not meant to be a handout. Every resident above 60 years old was invited to lunch and hence received a red packet. For the individuals and families who are financially strapped, we have other channels to help them. In fact, over the Chinese New Year period, I had distributed red packets at at least six other events to needy residents of Queenstown. These were organised by various community groups such as PCF and the various religious organisations.”
“Sir, I would like to ask the Minister about industries where there are non-conventional employer-employee arrangements, for example, freelancers who are quite prevalent in the performing and art industry. What are the options available for these people who want to seek work on a project basis and not with a single-employer arrangement?”
“Thank you, Sir. I would like to ask the Minister to clarify if the flat rate of 60 cents per trip for senior citizens is applicable only after 9.00 am. Therefore, does the same time condition apply for the new cap of 86 cents for a journey of two bus trips? If so, can that condition be removed or reviewed? I remember the Ministry's answer about that being a decision made by the commercial transport operators. Given the fact that PTC is now playing the role of balancing how the savings arising from the waiver of transport penalties are being distributed across the different commuter segments, can the PTC make a decision to extend concessionary travel for senior citizens at all times in order to promote a more elderly friendly society?”
“I thank the Minister for his answer. I agree with the Minister that pragmatism should prevail and that it is also not possible to be fully foolproof, in terms of security measures, whether it is for MRT depots or at the Airport. But I would like the PTSC or perhaps the Ministry to also consider the impact on the number of people, which I understand is about 1,600 passengers, coming on-board a MRT train versus an aeroplane which is about a few hundred passengers. I think the extent of lives at risk, should a threat occur, is very real. I do hope that the Ministry will consider benchmarking the security measures for the airport versus a MRT depot.”
“When some senior citizens apply for rental flats unsuccessfully, they are turned away because their children have flats which their parents can move into. I would like to ask the Parliamentary Secretary: does the Housing and Development Board use criteria like flat types and, hence, what is the reasonable number of occupants per flat-type? My second question is this. As we know, in our Asian society, a lot of parents, especially the older generations, do not see turning to their daughters as an option because they feel that their daughters are married out of the family. So when the HDB assesses such cases where the children have their own flats, does it make a distinction between whether it is a son or a daughter?”
“Thank you, Sir, I have three questions. I support the Minister in the need to review the teaching assessment of MTL due to the changing profile of student population. I would like the Minister to clarify if the objective of this review is to enable better learning of the Mother Tongue with the necessary relevance to the changing environment, and not to pander to the declining interest and willingness of certain segments of the student population to put in the effort to master respective Mother Tongue languages. The second point is I note the Minister's explanation that the review will take many years to implement. I would like the Minister to share when he expects the review to be completed and whether the plan would be made public. My last question, Sir. We note that the past two reviews were done in 1999 and 2004. Assuming that the changes of those reviews were implemented in those years, the students who had just completed the full primary and "O" level education affected by the first review and then under the second review, they would have just undergone may be six years of primary school education. So could the Minister share the achievements made under those reviews and whether our student proficiency in the Mother Tongue language has improved as a result of those reviews?”
“I would like to thank the Parliamentary Secretary for his clarifications on the Ministry looking to filter undesirable content on the Internet. I would also like the Ministry to look into a more fundamental approach to help people, especially the young, to discern between desirable and undesirable content, facts and misinformation in the new media. Mr Sam Tan Chin Siong: Well, in my reply just now, I mentioned that the Inter-Ministry Committee on Cyber Wellness is studying various programmes and activities to help not just the young but also other members of the society not to be addicted to gaming and computer activities, and so on. This Committee is still in the progress of rolling out the activities. But as it is now, there are quite a number of educational programmes that are organised in the schools, the grassroots organisations, and so on, to actually impart the right mindset to the young people at the schools and at the community places about the proper usage of computer and the problem of computer addiction, and so on. So you will hear more about this when the Committee rolls out further plans.”
“The digital divide actually exists more among the adults than between adults and the young. From an e-governance point of view, adult literacy is even more important as the Government would like to engage our citizens through its e-facilities in a variety of ways. Likewise, the citizen too would like to make use of these e-facilities to maximise interaction with the State. Thus, there is mutual benefit in developing new media literacy in the whole population. Hence, I would like the Minister to elaborate on the plans to promote greater new media literacy among the population and how we can equip our people of today to prepare for new media for tomorrow. Addiction to computer gaming”
“We should not pretend that we can control it or give the signal to our citizens that the State can and is controlling it. New media critical literacy should become part of our school curriculum. In addition, parents should be guided on how to navigate through and negotiate with undesirable material. New media critical literacy is also not confined to coping with pornographic material. There are all kinds of undesirable materials including hate speech and subversive speech. There is also a huge amount of unreliable information, both misinformation and disinformation. A recent example of malicious disinformation was the blog post claiming that Minister Mentor Lee had suffered a serious heart attack. People of course knew immediately that was groundless when photos of the Minister Mentor in London were published in the papers a few days later. Examples of misinformation include emails circulating urban legends like how you can cook an egg by placing it between two cell phones and that ATM PIN numbers keyed in reverse notifies the Police. And then there are also financial scams, bank account phishing, sexual grooming of children and intrusion of privacy of personal information. An equally important aspect about new media is their interactivity – something that was virtually non-existent in the old media. This is what makes new media consumers "prosumers" – they produce as well as consume content. This interactivity takes place in all forms and it is from the judicious use of the interactivity that we can gain the full benefits of the new media. It requires new skill sets and a new approach to media use. New media literacy should not be aimed only at the children or youth but also at the adults.”
“Sir, the media landscape is undergoing a paradigm shift today. Traditional media like radio and television have been with us for decades while the newspaper has been around for centuries. We have a fairly good idea of what they are, what they do and how to react to the content. Even more importantly, in the case of Singapore, the Government has laid the foundation and is maintaining the system for a responsible and credible mainstream media scene. Today, the new media is vastly different. Their content spans an enormously wide spectrum from highly desirable to highly undesirable. No one, who wants to play the role as a custodian of morality and norms, be it parents, teachers, regulators or the Government, is able to control the content on new media to any significant extent. The media consumers today, who are used to the safe and calm waters of mainstream media, have only themselves to depend on when navigating and riding on the new media wave. As we look back on the way in which we rolled out ICT in Singapore, we can see that we have paid much more attention to spreading the use of the technology, that is, functional media literacy. There is relatively very little done on how to use the technology judiciously, that is, developing critical new media literacy. The first attempt to introduce new media critical literacy was made via the Parents Advisory Group for the Internet (PAGi), nearly 20 years after the first national plan was announced to harness information technology. PAGi was also focused on prevention. However, we need to move beyond prevention and prohibition to navigation and immunisation. We cannot escape the onslaught of undesirable material.”
“We should have our own voice and tell our own stories. Initiatives like the New Feature Film Fund launched by the Singapore Film Commission in 2008 are promising. I am particularly happy to note that the scheme also ensures that there is distribution for the finished products, as Golden Village Pictures has signed on to screen the movies. This year's Budget is providing a tax deduction of 250% on the first $300,000 of R&D expenditures, and 150% on the remaining R&D costs. Investment into creative content like films is like R&D into our national culture and identity. While some films do make commercial returns, so does R&D in technologies and products. So I would like to urge MICA to look into tax relief schemes to encourage private investors to finance our local films. We should also do more to expose Singaporeans to working opportunities with foreign production teams. A good example is the move "Host 2", the first Korean-Singaporean co-production. Some industry-insiders believe that the recent increase in co-productions has been due to these other countries' interest in the huge China market. They hope that a partnership with Singapore will make their products more acceptable for the Chinese domestic market, and we should leverage on this opportunity. Finally, I would like to ask the Minister to give us an update on the Singapore Media Fusion Plan with the focus on our film industry and what we can do to help our local filmmakers. 2.30 pm [Mr Deputy Speaker (Mr Matthias Yao Chih) in the Chair] Competition in the media industry”
“Sir, local films have an important role to play in our effort to build a strong national identity. Governments in other countries, some more subtly than others, have utilised films as highly visible vehicles to rouse feelings of patriotism and instill national pride. Therefore, I think it is timely for us, at this juncture, to pay more attention to how we can facilitate the creation of memorable, high quality, local films. Making movies is a highly risky, expensive business. And yet, the only way our film-makers can improve and make good movies is to start and continue making movies. The governments of China and South Korea know that it is necessary to give their local filmmakers exposure and time to gain experience before they can make an impact globally. Without the support of the state, local filmmakers have very little chance of facing off Hollywood blockbusters at the box office. Both governments enforce screen quota systems which reserve screen time for local films. I am not suggesting measures such drastic as that for Singapore. But I like to propose instead that we require our cinema operators to screen local short films before feature films. Such short films usually last only 10 minutes. Many filmmakers do start off with making short films. That is where they hold the scales. The exposure will be invaluable to our budding artistes. We will be bringing their works to audiences island-wide. Discussions, criticism and debates that ensue will help them to improve. Over time, a number of them will win supporters and fans and attract collaborators and investors. Foreign films dominate our screens. Our youths are fed a steady diet of foreign, particularly American, values and attitudes, and their visions for the future.”
“Through this movie and novel, we can expose students to Peking Opera and help them understand this part of China’s history. Let us now come back to Singapore. We can teach our history through Liang Wenfu's song Singapore Pie (Xin Jia Po Pai): black and white Cantonese movies in the 1960s, development of Jurong Town and Junie Sng's gold medal in the 1970s, start of MRT in the 1980s. The last part of the lyrics reads "We can create a Singapore Pie. People move to Singapore from all over the world. Everybody loves the Singapore Brand." The lines were written in the 1990s, but still relevant today. Pop culture will of course not be 100% true to history, nor is it a record of history. Teachers can use the opportunity to explain to students the difference between reality and creativity. I believe that, to connect Chinese from all over the world, we should not just rely on tradition, we can also use pop culture. When young people are together, they are unlikely to talk about Confucius or Art of Sun Tzu, instead they will be talking about Wong Lee Hom (singer), Super Girls, Bodyguards and Assassins (movie) and Brother Sharp (famous Chinese vagabond from Ningbo). Through music, visuals and special effects, we can grab the attention of students studying Chinese. Through pop culture, we can teach them traditional Chinese values and ideas. I know many teachers are already taking steps to innovate Chinese teaching, including the use of pop culture to cultivate students' interest in Chinese. However, one teacher's strength and resources are limited. I hope MOE can take on this approach to benefit all students and achieve much greater efficiency. *Cols. 3693-3696. Mother tongue languages review”
“We can therefore conclude that it is not that Singaporeans are not interested in Chinese, it is just that our students find it difficult studying for it! How do we take advantage of these positive external forces to arouse their interest in Chinese? I noticed that MOE text books tend to inculcate social morals and traditional Chinese values. Classic literature is also taught sometimes. Although all these are very important, we can re-package them. I suggest MOE incorporate modern Chinese culture, including pop culture into our curriculum. This will help enliven our Chinese classes and keep them relevant. Take Zhang Yimou's movie, "Curse of the Golden Flower", as an example. This is a big production combining the elements of Shakespeare’s King Lear with Chinese culture and history. I believe the intriguing plot, the fighting scenes and pop idol Jay Chou will attract our students. If students want to recite Sung dynasty poet Su Dongpo's famous poem "Dan Yuan Ren Chang Jiu", we can ask the students to learn the song composed by Liang Hong Zhi and sung by Teresa Teng and Faye Wong. This gives new meaning to the old poem, and will help students to remember better the verses "ming yue ji shi you, ba jiu wen qing tian". "Farewell My Concubine" is a famous movie directed by Chen Kaige, adapted from Li Bihua's (Lilian Lee) novel. Featuring a stellar cast, this movie boasts strong emotions, an interesting plot and clashes between life and death. It is both commercially successful and possesses strong cultural content. The two main characters became famous actors of Peking opera but, in the end, they had to betray each other during the Cultural Revolution with a tragic ending.”
“[For vernacualr speech, please refer to Appendix A*.] China is playing an increasingly important role in the international arena with its rising economic and political power. This has led to a trend of learning Chinese all over the world. More and more people, adult or young, are now learning Chinese. In Singapore, with a majority Chinese population, it is ironical that we are facing many challenges in improving or even maintaining our students' Chinese standard. Sixty percent of Chinese Primary One students are now speaking English at home. In schools, all subjects are taught in English except Chinese. Even in SAP Schools, students converse in English mostly. Some people are pessimistic about Chinese language's position in Singapore. I am and, I believe, we can be positive. According to a Nielsen Media Study, Channel 8's viewership at 49%, is double that of Channel 5, which is only 28%. If we look at the local Chinese TV programmes, be it for senior citizens like Golden Age, current affairs programmes like Focus, or those popular among the young such as Campus Superstar, their popularity and standard are generally higher than the English programmes. I know even many Malays and Indians follow Chinese drama series. From xinyao songs to Stephanie Sun, who is well known in the global Chinese pop scene, our Chinese pop music is also much more developed than its English counterpart. I just checked Sistic website and noted that there would be eight concerts by overseas Chinese singers held here from now to end of this year, such as May Day, S.H.E , Sammi Cheng and Sam Hui. There are only four concerts by western singers in comparison. We can see from these examples that although English is the working language in Singapore, Chinese language still holds a strong position.”
“How are we going to make adjustments to the changing social landscape? "Life Transformer 2" suggests: Firstly, we must put the seniors’ views first when it comes to their needs. These people can be old fashioned. In po-po's case, it would be impractical to ask po-po to throw away one refrigerator. Secondly, it is quite common for old people to become disconnected with society. Things that are easy for us can be quite difficult for them. After some time, problems could arise. In po-po ’s case, her tumour was getting bigger. We must watch closely the needs of the seniors. Thirdly, social circles of the seniors will get smaller with the passing of their spouse and friends. They will feel very lonely. A senior citizen told me that she looked forward to Residents’ Committee's outings very much because this was the only opportunity for her to see the outside world. We should create more opportunities for the seniors to socialise and communicate with other age groups. On one hand, the young can learn from the old; on the other hand, the old can feel young people’s youthful energy. "Life Transformer 2" has ended. Singapore still has much to do to prepare it for the ageing population. Families, Government, VWOs and social groups must work together to build a better life for the elderly. *Cols. 3039-3040.”
“[For vernacular speech, please refer to Appendix A*.] A few weeks ago, I watched a programme on Channel 8 called "Life Transformer 2". The host interviewed a po-po in her 80s who has two mentally-challenged sons. Although her sons are in their 50s, they still need to be cared for by their mother. The family receives Public Assistance so there is no problem with daily expenses. Po-po is no longer young and the two children cannot be much of a help; their house is messy. The programme arranged volunteers to help with the cleaning and even got a sponsor to have their cabinets and floor changed. There are three things that impressed me. First, the programme looked after po-po's needs. We all have our little habits, especially old people who can be stubborn sometimes. The volunteers were very careful when they did the cleaning. After they cleaned the room, they put everything back in their original place so po-po could find it easily. Po-po has two very old refrigerators in the house. Although she does not need two as they waste electricity, she has a special attachment to the refrigerators as they were paid for with her CPF. Even though the hosts knew this was not economical, they still obliged. Second, po-po has a tumour on her face. Towards the end of the programme, the host found her a specialist hoping she would recover soon. Third, the two hosts, Li Mingshun and Quan Yifeng spent much time chatting with po-po to get an understanding of her life. They found that po-po read the newspaper everyday and she even looked up difficult words in the dictionary – a good example of never stopping learning. Many people care about po-po and po-po is obviously very happy. 5.15 pm Singapore's population is quickly ageing.”
“The Singapore Food Museum could tell us why Hong Kong noodles did not originate from Hong Kong, why we cannot find Sing Chew Bee Hoon in Singapore, why our Hainanese chicken rice is different from that found on Hainan Island, and why yusheng is popular here but not in China. We could also look at the different F&B infrastructures and how they are a reflection of the social life in Singapore, from roadside stalls to hawker centres to coffee shops to food courts to celebrity chef restaurants. Our tastes will change, our eating habits will evolve. How will the profile of the Singapore population be like in another generation? Will it be like an international buffet spread with each dish in its separate tray? Or will it be rojak with each ingredient retaining its texture and flavour but the taste blended by the prawn paste sauce? Or will it be like the Indian yusheng served with masala peanuts, dates, chutney, coriander and chilli-garlic flakes? Or will Singapore lose its favourite past-time in our appetite for hearty meals and social interaction? We will all play a part in shaping this outcome for our future generations. With that, I support the Budget. 4.08 pm”
“This is expected as both of them have a lot more in common with the same background in China. But if they settle down in Singapore, which I hope they will, I am sure their children will not be less Singaporean than any of our children. We must make a more conscientious effort to integrate immigrants and local-born Singaporeans. The National Integration Council and the Community Integration Fund can play an important role in this, but this effort has to be beyond Government Committees and financial resources. It requires a mindset shift, both on the part of existing citizens and new immigrants. We should strive to create more common memories for people living and growing up in Singapore. One area is the preservation of historical buildings and landmarks as most people still relate dearly to familiar physical forms and structures. My Chinese friend and her boyfriend may not find strolling in Toa Payoh Garden nostalgic, but I hope my children and her children will still be able to visit Chomp Chomp to hunt down their favourite Hokkien mee stall. Food is another important part of our rich cultural heritage that has been and will always be an attraction to locals and foreigners alike. We should consider setting up a Singapore Food Museum. There is much room to develop this. The history of our food variety will highlight our links to the world. Our taste buds connect us. Most Singaporeans coming home after a long trip will always say that the first thing they must do is to have their char kway teow or laksa fix. I am sure our second generation new citizens who grow up on hawker food will also find their own favourite foods. At the same time, we are also exposed to many interesting new cuisines and dishes from our new immigrants.”
“They are mostly descendents of immigrants. If Singapore had then closed its doors, not only do we not have Samsui women, the labourers to build our old Parliament House, the people of this Parliament sitting in this Chamber will be very different as well. Or we may not even need 84 Members as it would have been a much smaller population today. We will only realise the full benefits of today's immigration wave in one and, perhaps, two generations down the road. We may not live long enough to see it but we need to do this now for the survival of the country so that Singapore will still be a good place, if not a better place for our children and grandchildren. Diverse talents bring with them diverse cultures which can enrich our own – provided that it does not get overwhelmed or replaced. In a paper by John W Berry of Queen's University, Canada, he wrote about inter-cultural relations. Assimilation takes place when ethno-cultural groups do not wish to maintain their cultural identity and seek daily interaction with other cultures. But when there is an interest in maintaining one's original culture, coupled with daily interactions with other groups, integration happens. Cultures can differ even within the same ethnic groups from different countries. Most Singapore born Chinese and Indians have their ancestries in the southern parts of China and India respectively. On the other hand, new immigrants from China come from all parts of China and many immigrant Indians come from northern India. I have a female friend from China whose boyfriend is also from China, and both of them work in Singapore. So I asked her why she did not find a Singaporean boyfriend. She said she can connect better with someone from China.”
“Our flexibility and adaptability has served us well and enabled us to leapfrog from Third World to First World. But in an environment where change seems to be our only constant, do we have national characteristics which are truly Singaporean and not just a diluted cocktail derived from our ancestry countries? I would say that now is the time for us to focus on consolidating aspects of our national culture, recording, preserving and further developing it; supporting and attracting artistes to ensure that its evolution remains relevant and updated so that it will not be lost in the march of time. Our open economy, our need for new immigrants and the onslaught of globalisation means that there are many other external influences competing for the attention of Singaporeans. Countries with long histories and distinct cultures like China, India, Japan and Korea have deep cultural treasuries to draw upon. We, too, have our own cultural treasury. We must highlight and bring to the awareness of all Singaporeans, especially our young ones. Our capacity to welcome and embrace change is a key part of our identity, pretty much like the way Singapore welcomed foreign investments soon after our colonial past, when our neighbouring countries were resisting them. Today, many are following our model. We have the foresight and, in a sense, we have been the trend-setter. We see the results of foreign investments when the factories and labs start running and people start working there. The benefits of an immigrant society only manifest themselves when the immigrants are seen and perceived, as well as see and perceive themselves, as part of Singapore. Look at the leaders in our Government, corporate sector, academia, arts, sports, civic society and community.”
“Other first world countries seeking to attract more elite talent to remain competitive also face similar challenges regarding the loyalty of new immigrants. Various governments in the West are making more concerted attempts to instil a sense of shared identity. There was Prime Minister Gordon Brown's official statement of British values to "set down the values, founded in liberty, which define our citizenship and help to define our country", and the French Ministry of Immigration and National Identity. In Australia, the Howard government introduced a citizenship test for immigrants, incorporating questions about Australian history and national values. Fortunately, recent studies by Florida State University and University of Illinois found that differences between US-born citizens and new immigrants disappear among the US-born second generation. I would say the same applies to the Singapore-born second generation immigrants. We should look forward to the second generation immigrants being more patriotic and loyal to Singapore, through education, through a common growing up experience, eating the same hawker food, and not forgetting National Service for the boys. Singapore will be where their personal connections are. Their loyalty to Singapore will naturally be much stronger. As we seek to integrate new immigrants, we must have a discernible national identity and national values which capture the hearts and minds of all Singaporeans, new and natural. Due to our short and dynamic history, the Singapore identity is still very much work in progress. It is constantly evolving. With so many changes occurring within a relatively short space of time, establishing our national identity has been a challenge.”
“As time progresses, their loyalty remains quite unchanged even as they hold, initially a British and, subsequently, Singapore passports. Many of the Chinese immigrants continued their connection to their motherland by joining their respective clan associations in Singapore, whether organised by dialect group, hometown or by surname. But, today, many of the clan associations are facing a challenge in getting new members and making themselves relevant. This may be an indication of the second and of subsequent generations’ diminishing affinity towards China, the parent country of their forefathers, as a form of identity and allegiance. Today, many first generation immigrants become Singaporeans for the wealth of opportunities here and the convenience. There has been speculation that one of the main reasons some foreigners, including celebrities like Jet Li and Gong Li, become Singaporeans, for the visa-free access around the world. But these benefits do not flow one way. Jet Li's One Foundation has one of its two headquarters in Singapore. And if Gong Li ever wins an Oscar, she may well be the first Singaporean to do so! The ties between our new immigrants and their countries of birth can be beneficial to us as their country of adoption. These are personal bridges between countries – a form of soft but enduring diplomacy. As countries such as China and India, where many of immigrants come from, become stronger economically and grow more prominent on the world stage, it is only to be expected that immigrants will still maintain ties with their families, friends, colleagues and business associates in their land of birth. Such ties can create more opportunities and synergy for Singapore and we should view them positively.”