Chew Heng Ching
Singapore
“Sir, in terms of sports facilities, we, as a nation, are certainly very well-endowed. We have many stadiums, swimming complexes, sports halls, multi-purpose fields, tennis courts, school fields and many, many more.”
“These jobs need not necessarily be limited to menial jobs like cleaners, sweepers and lift attendants, but could be extended to include the services of older professionals such as engineers, accountants, managers, and clerical officers.”
“For this reason, Sir, I am a bit disappointed with the Budget in that we could have done more for our SMEs, many of which have also made sacrifices in the past and are still struggling and not able to reap the benefits of economic recovery.”
“In so doing, we may have addressed the form of the issue at high cost to our charities, deterred some good people from coming forward to serve and to volunteer, but may miss out on the substance, which is the bigger picture, ie, what is the best means with reasonable level of disclosure and accountability to help meet the needs of the nee…”
“May I, therefore, suggest that the Government look into the plight of these wet market stall owners. Many wanted to give up their stalls but, with outstanding loans from the banks, they could not. Some wanted to sell their stalls but there were no buyers. And their children are not willing to take over the stalls.”
“May I therefore propose that the Ministry, in the light of this massive LUP project announced by the PM, review the adequacy and the use of town council sinking funds.”
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“Sir, being a reservist myself, I feel compelled to speak on the Bill but I must admit that I have no pecuniary interest. Our reservists have come a long way. It is about 17 years now since the first batch of our national servicemen graduated into the ranks of the reserve. While earlier batches of reservists underwent five annual in-camp training periods over a 10-year cycle, today's reservists perform no less than nine in-camp training over a 13-year cycle. From my personal experience, many reservists do come forward quite willingly to serve their in-camp training, for it is a good break away from their civilian work and an opportunity to meet with old friends from the same reserve unit. In practice, the 40-day limit, as stated in the Act, is seldom exceeded because most reserve units have at the very most three to four weeks of annual in-camp training per year and this includes two IPPTs. I must, however, inform the Minister that there are some reservists who express concern that the Bill before us today could be an attempt by Mindef to extend the normal in-camp training period beyond 40 days a year. Many wonder why the limit should be increased when the present 40-day limit is seldom exceeded. I am glad the Minister has now explained the purpose of this Bill, but nonetheless the Minister could allay the concern of these reservists that Mindef has no intention to extend the in-camp training period beyond 40 days limit and that there is no reason to do so at the moment. Sir, reservists who hold key appointments in the reserve are usually also those who are doing well in their civilian life. They are either holding managerial or supervisory positions. Their time spent in the reserve is the time lost by their employers.”
“My Ministry, therefore, does not propose to allow Medisave to be used to purchase general medical insurance. I recognize, however, that the Medisave Scheme may not be sufficient to cover the cost of major or prolonged illnesses. My Ministry is finalizing discussions with the Council of Health Insurers on a catastrophic illness insurance scheme for certain major, high-cost medical conditions. DEMPSEY ROAD CARPARKS (Free use for National Service registration) 13. Mr Heng Chiang Meng asked the Minister for National Development if he will provide free parking at the Dempsey Road carparks during National Service registration periods.”
“Sir, I think we should not measure investment per se. It is the quality of investment that we are after. I have a supplementary question for the Minister. He mentioned that last year there was an investment inflow of about $1.4 billion. Would the Minister tell us how many jobs are likely to be created by this investment inflow? BG Lee Hsien Loong: Mr Deputy Speaker, Sir, at a rough calculation, the capital investment per job is about $70,000. You need $70,000 worth of machinery, equipment, plant, buildings, in order to provide a job for one Singaporean worker, the equipment and the wherewithal for him to be productive to do a job well. On that basis, the total amount of investment will have created about 20,000 jobs. This is a gross total. We must also allow for job losses, ie other companies which have retrenched workers or other businesses which have not done well. I do not have a figure on net job creation for last year. MEDISAVE CONTRIBUTIONS (Use for medical insurance) 12. Dr S. Vasoo asked the Acting Minister for Health whether he will reconsider allowing the use of Medisave contributions to purchase medical insurance covering hospitalisation benefits up to class B1 for a start. The Acting Minister for Health (Mr Yeo Cheow Tong): Mr Deputy Speaker, Sir, the Medisave Scheme was introduced to avoid the pitfalls of a general medical insurance scheme. The experience of countries where a third party pays the hospital bill has been that it gives the consumer the delusion of free medical services. The result has been significant increases in the demand for such services. Our B1, B2 and C class wards are already heavily subsidized and highly affordable. Those with low Medisave balances are also allowed to overdraw on their account when they use C or B2 wards.”
“While I understand this is necessary to prevent abuse, my question is, why two years? Why not one year? Why not three years? Perhaps the Minister can enlighten us on this. My last observation concerns persons coming of age. These are people who turn 21. This exercise to allow people to opt out or to opt in is an on-going one. Presumably facilities for people to exercise their options will be made readily available at strategic locations in a constituency. For example, the community centres or the Neighbourhood Police Posts. My concern is how is the Ministry of Health going to inform the many Singaporeans who come of age every year that they have to exercise their option at the age of 21? We do not want donation by default, through ignorance or forgetfulness. Is there a procedure for this? Perhaps the Minister may wish to consider extending clause 12(2)(a) (iii), which relates to persons who obtain permanent residence and citizenship being be given a six months' grace period to exercise their option, to those who turn 21, ie, give them a grace period of six months after they turn 21 to exercise their option. Finally, Sir, I understand the Minister will be referring the Bill to a Select Committee. While there is a need to seek a wider audience on the Bill which affects many Singaporeans, I think it is equally important that the new law be implemented as soon as possible as there are lives to be saved. I therefore urge the Select Committee to carry out its task most diligently, most expeditiously and complete its findings as soon as possible. 2.50 pm”
“One relates to the question of priority, which is that when a kidney is available from a donor, who among the potential recipients will receive the highest priority? I suppose the choice of the recipient rests with the five-member committee to be appointed by the Director of Medical Services. I want to know whether the next -of-kin of the donor has a say as to whom the kidney should be donated. What if the next-of-kin wishes the kidney to be donated to a kidney victim who happens to be a relative. Will their wishes be accommodated? Next, I want to touch on the question of opting out card. Clause 9 of the Bill states that any person who has registered to opt out will be issued an acknowledgment in the form of a card to be carried by him to prove that his kidney should not be removed in the event of his death through accident . Well, people are careless, cards get lost, and not many people like to carry cards in their wallet. For practical reason, and perhaps as a better safeguard, it may be better to reflect a person's decision to opt out symbolically in his NRIC, in the same way as we have done for his blood group. My next point relates to clause 10 of the Bill which states that all objections will be maintained in a central Register. I presume this is stored in a central computer linked to various hospitals. I want to know whether removals or transplants will be allowed in the event of a failure of this central computer. Are there contingency measures in the event of a computer breakdown? The next point relates to clause 12(1)(b), which states that a person who has registered his objection and subsequently withdrawn his objection will enjoy the same priority as a person who has not registered any objection only after a lapse of two years.”
“Mr Speaker, Sir, I am in support of this Human Organ Transplant Bill. It ushers in a new era in our fight against kidney disease. It brings a sparkle of hope to the many victims of the disease. I hope the Ministry of Health and the Kidney Foundation will continue their task of persuading more and more people to opt in. I am sure my fellow Members of Parliament and the community leaders will play our part to encourage more people to opt in. In fact, the concept is so well thought out, so flexible, so humanitarian, that I am tempted to ask the Minister to consider extending the scheme perhaps at a later date, to other organs, such as the human eyes. Sir, this Bill alone, though by far the most effective, is not enough to tackle the kidney problem which has robbed the lives of some 3,000 Singaporeans since 1970. We should continue to adopt a total approach in tackling the problem. This means making dialysis treatment more readily available and more affordable to kidney victims. We should continue with fund-raising efforts from charitable institutions and well-to-do Singaporeans to provide the necessary financial assistance to these victims. More importantly, we should also tackle the prevention side of the problem. The public at large is generally ignorant of what kidney failure is about, what causes the disease, how to minimize contracting the disease. May I urge the Ministry of Health and the Kidney Foundation to continue to place emphasis on educating the public on healthy living habits, basic health care measures, and other preventive measures in order to minimize contracting the disease. Sir, coming back to the Bill, I have the following clarifications or suggestions to make to the Minister.”
“I am not proposing that we introduce stringent qualification criteria for officials to be appointed as company directors. I think this will be against our objective of promoting entrepreneurship. What I am suggesting is that perhaps the Minister could look into introducing minimum qualification criteria for officers to be appointed as company directors. I am concerned because under the present law office peons, company drivers and such like people are appointed as company directors as a matter of convenience, even though we are fully aware that there are more suitably qualified people in the company to assume the posts of company director. I agree with the Members of the House that, since there are many amendments in the Bill Act and that they affect a wide cross-section of the business community, the Bill should best be referred to a Select Committee.”
“Sir, I rise in support of the Bill in general. Except for one or two reservations, I think the proposed amendments to the Companies Act are steps in the right direction. Most laudable of all the amendments is the introduction of section 227 on the appointment of a judicial manager to help save the company in a financial bind from liquidation. Sir, the move will not only give the ailing company some recourse but I believe it will, in general, bring about greater communication between the company and its creditors, an area which is much lacking now. Sir, I would just like to make two observations or suggestions, one in respect of section 149 and the other in relation to section 171. Section 149 has been debated by Members. I share their surprise and concern that the section has not been repealed, as popularly demanded. The provisions in the section specify that companies on venture capital business will be exempted. I share the concern of the Member for Thomson that venture capital business should be clearly defined and the definition should be as flexible as possible. To the businessman and the layman, venture capital business is something high-tech, high-risk, high-investment manufac- turing business. I think we should also consider high value -added services industry, an area which we have identified as a growth area for us in the 80s. These services industries could also be classified as venture capital business. Coming to section 171, this section emphasizes the need for corporate company secretaries to be professionally qualified in order that they could be appointed to the post. Sir, I think the move is a praiseworthy one. The Act is, however, silent on the appointment of company directors.”
“May I therefore propose that the Minister considers, after legislation is passed, granting a grace period of six months to a year for these businessmen to adjust. This is necessary because, in this period of recession, businessmen find it even more difficult to raise capital to invest in new activities. Finally, an area which I think is of importance is the need for communication. This copyright legislation will have a large impact on a large cross section of our society, from school children to businessmen. May I propose that the Minister consider launching a comprehensive educational programme through the mass media and the various grassroots organizations to explain the various aspects of the copyright legislation and its implications so as to clear any confusion and to allay the fears of the public before legislation is passed.”
“Sir, like the other Members of the House, I rise in support of the Bill. What surprised me is that today we have the two Opposition Members supporting the Bill, in general. I am glad that they rose in support of the Bill. Just a point of clarification before I proceed further. I think it is not true, as what the Member for Potong Pasir has said, that all those who turned up at the rally on May Day were given umbrellas. Umbrellas were offered to supporters by some of the unions. I think it is an insult to Singaporeans to say that they need an umbrella as an incentive for them to turn up at the rally. Sir, I agree with the other Members in the House that the new copyright legislation is necessary in the long term interest of Singapore if we are to develop ourselves as an international brain services centre and a publishing centre and, most important of all, if we are to encourage creativity among Singaporeans. I have, however, three points of clarification to seek from the Minister. One area of concern, as already expressed by the Member for Chong Boon, is that the consumers are wary that copyright owners may take undue advantage of the new law to profiteer. Besides the suggestion raised by the Member for Chong Boon, may I propose that the Minister considers setting up a body to regulate prices of copyright materials. Perhaps the Ministry of Trade and Industry Anti Profiteering Committee could take on this role. Another area of concern, as most commonly expressed by most local businessmen, is that the new law will put them out of business. By and large, I think the law is in the long term interest of Singapore but there is a need for the Government to allow some short term period for these businessmen to adjust.”
“May I propose that the MTI review this subscription policy with a view to removing the subscription and sell such reports at $2, $3, $4, or $5 per copy and make them more readily available to members of the public. Finally, these quarterly survey reports come to the market eight to 10 weeks after the end of the last quarter. It is perhaps far too long. Maybe the Minister would like to consider shortening this period to something like six weeks after the end of the quarter.”
“Sir, the Economic Survey Report produced by the Ministry of Trade and Industry has come a long way. I find the latest edition most readable, well illustrated with beautiful graphs and the analyses more in-depth and perceptive. I am aware that the MTI officials have spent much time and effort to improve the report every year. While the report has become more readable, I still find the use of economic jargons too common in the report. We see the use of the terms GNP, GDP, GDP Deflator, Gross Domestic Fixed Capital Formation, Current Account Balance, Labour Force Participation Rate and so on. I think these terms, to the layman, sound foreign to them. I am not proposing that the MTI officials replace these words with much simpler words. What I am proposing is that perhaps in the beginning of the report the MTI officials could incorporate a list of definitions of these economic terms. The other point is that I am aware that together with the annual Economic Survey Report, there is a quarterly report which is released once every three months, but only to subscribers. I understand that subscribers pay something like $200 per year to subscribe to four issues of this quarterly report. Given that the Annual Economic Survey Report costs $14 per copy in most bookshops in town these quarterly reports work out to something like $62 per copy. I think the Economic Survey Report is most useful and I am aware that members of the public, viz people in the banks and other companies do make use of such reports. Because of its restricted circulation, many companies have resorted to photostating sections of this report and circulate them among sister companies and associate companies.”
“Sir, on behalf of the Members in the House, I would like to thank the Minister for his most thorough and enlightening replies. The same applies to his Senior Parliamentary Secretary, though I think his replies were less enlightening. Sir, I beg leave to withdraw my amendment. Amendment, by leave, withdrawn. The sum of $187,353,810 for Head M ordered to stand part of the Main Estimates. The sum of $287,400,000 for Head M ordered to stand part of the Development Estimates. COMMITTEE OF SUPPLY REPORTING PROGRESS”
“Would the Minister consider allowing on a very selective basis this form of modernized street hawking in Singapore? Sir, related to this concept of street hawking is pasar malam. Would the Minister consider reviving pasar malam in housing estates, as it serves a useful role when properly run? Finally, Sir, the question of daily-rated employees in the Ministry of the Environment. I notice that the Ministry proposes to delete some 348 DRE posts in FY 86 and the majority of these posts to be deleted are those in the Environmental Health and the Sewerage Departments. While I understand that this is part of the Ministry's long-term move towards greater automation and mechanization of its services, we must not forget the long service and dedication rendered by these daily-rated employees in the past. Most of these workers have been on the jobs for many years and are relatively senior in age, in their 40s and 50s. They have families to support and some may be too old to be retrained. May I ask the Minister if he has any plan to help those workers to be retrenched take on other meaningful jobs in order that they can continue to earn a living to support their families.”
“Surely something must be done to improve them, especially toilets in hawker centres, shopping centres and even some restaurants. Imagine how annoying it would be to have to discover on paying 10 cents that the toilet is either filthy or that you have to wade through pools of water in order to answer nature's call. Besides the users, I think our toilet cleaners and our toilet caretakers should share the blame. Most of our toilet cleaners and caretakers were perhaps brought up in a wet toilet regime. They believe that the only way to keep the toilet clean is to wet it, the more the merrier because they have to justify the collection of the 10 cents. Sir, may I know whether the Minister has any plan to improve the conditions in our public toilets? The third matter, Sir, is on the subject of street hawkers. I understand that by the end of this year all traditional street hawkers would have been resettled. Sir, while we stamp out street hawking in Singapore, hawkers appear to be a common scene in the streets of the more advanced countries like the US, Canada, Australia and even Japan. These street hawkers are unlike our hawkers, however. They are less mobile. They operate their businesses at pre-determined locations along the street. Their standard of food hygiene is very high. Most sell take-away fast food and very little cooking is actually done at the stall. Sir, I am not advocating that we bring back street hawking in a great way. I believe this relatively modernized form of street hawking has its own merits. It serves a useful purpose as it caters to the needs of pedestrians, office workers (especially those working in the City area) and even tourists walking along Orchard Road.”
“Sir, I beg to move, That the sum to be allocated for Head M be reduced by $10 in respect of Subhead MA-01 Object Group 1100 of the Main Estimates. Sir, I would like to raise four matters with the Minister. Firstly, sometime in December last year the Minister announced a plan to alleviate the flooding problem in the Bukit Timah area. I understand that as part of the plan the Bukit Timah Canal will be widened and a diversion canal will be constructed from Swiss Cottage to allow flood water to flow from Bukit Timah Canal into Kallang River. The construction is scheduled to take place sometime this year. Sir, my concern is whether the widening of the Bukit Timah Canal is necessary? Would construction of the diversion canal from the Swiss Cottage alone solve the flood problem? The widening of Bukit Timah Canal will necessitate resettling the various nurseries, whose presence adds to the greenery and beauty of the place. Are there plans to encourage these nurseries to come back when the project is completed? Will widening of the Bukit Timah Canal result in the narrowing of the roads on both sides of the Canal, thus creating traffic problems? The construction of the diversion canal from Swiss Cottage cuts through various busy roads, such as Dunearn Road, Whitley Road, Thomson Road and the Toa Payoh flyover. Will construction of this diversion canal pose traffic problems to these roads as well? Are there plans to minimize these problems? I shall be grateful if the Minister will enlighten the House on these questions. Sir, the next matter I wish to raise with the Minister is the issue of public toilets. This is not new in the House. I wish to revive it again. I feel the majority of our public toilets are still in a disgraceful state.”
“It is often very well fenced and outsiders, if you are not students of the school, are often prevented access to the school field on weekends. Where then do our young Singaporeans go to have fun during the weekends? Most of them convert void decks of HDB blocks into soccer fields. Some fly kites from their verandahs, and this can be quite dangerous. There is a price to pay for all these. We see not only unsightly football marks on the walls of newly painted void decks but also damaged RC notice boards, public telephones, and the like. This also endangers the safety of passers-by and young children playing in the vicinity. Sir, our youths today need more open space near their homes to pursue healthy activities during weekends and school holidays. Singapore is small with scarce land resources. Given the limited open space available in any housing estate, may I propose that the Minister look into making school fields more freely available for use by the public on weekends and during school holidays.”
“Sir, I have two matters to raise. One concerns greater teacher-parent interaction in schools, and the other is a policy matter regarding the use of school fields in housing estates. We all know that teachers as educators of our younger Singaporeans have a very responsible role. The expectation placed on them is indeed very high. They are not only expected to educate our students but also to develop their talents. Such a high expectation of them also includes the question of moral education, as teachers very often serve as a model for students to follow. Their job as educators would not be easy, if not impossible, to perform without the support of parents. In fact, most parents themselves shoulder the same responsibilites as they are playing the role of teachers at home. Sir, I feel there is presently not enough communication in our schools, especially those at primary level, between parents and teachers on the child's educational progress in school. There is often a lack of mutual sharing of knowledge between parents and teachers on the child's mental and physical development, his strength and weaknesses. I understand that the only occasions when the parents get invited to the school are the school annual sports meet and speech day. This is certainly not enough. Sir, may I propose that the Minister consider organizing more meet-the-parents sessions throughout the year to foster better understanding between teachers and parents and to facilitate the mutual exchange of knowledge on the child's educational progress. The second matter, Sir, is on the use of school fields. We are all aware that today the school field in housing estates has become a much valued and protected place.”
“Sir, in view of the satisfactory answers given by the Minister and his Senior Parliamentary Secretary and the assurance that they will take up some of the suggestions separately, I beg leave to withdraw my amendment. Amendment, by leave, withdrawn. The sum of $762,998,570 for Head T ordered to stand part of the Main Estimates. The sum of $10,073,806,000 for Head T ordered to stand part of the Development Estimates. Head 0 - Ministry of Foreign Affairs -”
“Mr Deputy Speaker, Sir, as usual the Minister is very quick and witty with his replies. He seems to have an answer for every question. But before I withdraw my amendment, may I ask the Minister to answer two of my queries which he has yet to answer. One is HDB's plan to combat lift vandalism, and the other is whether HDB would consider extending the hours of activation of the booster pump.”
“Would the Minister not agree that the level of URA car park charges, especially in the city, tend to influence the charges in private car parks? Mr Teh Cheang Wan: Mr Speaker, Sir, as I have said earlier, we let the market forces decide. For example, if the URA car parking charges are much higher, then very few people will park in the URA car parks. So URA parking charges have to follow market forces.”
“Sir, would the Minister consider relaxing the language criterion for the older group of retrenched workers?”
“Sir, may I ask the Minister: who is responsible for replacing the pipes that supply water from the ground floor to each individual flat on the fifth floor, fourth floor, the third and second floor? Is it the PUB or is it the HDB? Residents have accepted the fact that replacing any water pipes inside their home will be their responsibility and many have indeed changed their internal pipes on their own. May I ask the HDB and the PUB to look into this matter seriously and come out with a satisfactory solution to replace these external pipes with a minimum of inconvenience to residents. Finally, Sir, I would like to raise another matter related to water supply. When one lives on an upper floor of an HDB block, the water pressure is naturally low. The HDB has therefore recently embarked on a programme to instal booster pumps to increase water pressure on the upper floors. However, one setback of the system is that the pump is only activated during certain hours of the day. I think it is from 6.00 to 7.00 in the morning, 10.00 to 11.00 in the late morning and 5.00 to 7.00 in the evening. On my rounds of visit to residents, many of them complained that these hours are not enough. May I suggest that the HDB study the water usage habits of the residents more closely and extend the hours of activation of these booster pumps. Alternatively, the HDB should consider installing some sort of booster pump device that self-activates, without the need to place any restriction on the hours of operation of these pumps.”
“Lift vandalism is indeed a serious problem. It appears that no amount of corrective action would improve the situation. After the HDB has repaired or changed a lift, the culprits strike again. Once again we see urine on the floor, chewing gum stuck on to lift buttons and graffiti on the wall. In fact, Sir, it is said that the best time to take the lift is early in the morning on our way to work or to the market immediately after the HDB cleaner has finished her work. Those anti-social acts of vandalism not only inconvenience residents but frequently lead to lift breakdowns. Sir, some 20 years ago I remember as a resident in an HDB estate the HDB installed lift doors with glass windows. More recently, there were reports that HDB was trying out a closed- circuit TV system in lifts. How successful has this scheme been? What are HDB's plans to tackle lift vandalism in housing estates? Is mounting a national campaign against lift vandalism enough? Next, Sir, I would like to touch on water supply in housing estates. We must first thank the HDB for taking action to change the downfeed water pipes in older HDB blocks to solve the problem of rusty tap water. I am sure many residents in Singapore are very grateful to them. For once, they are seeing and drinking clear water after having lived on rusty water in the last two to three years. But the problem of rusty water has not been entirely resolved. HDB changed only the downfeed external pipes for those flats above the fifth floor. Residents who live on the lower floors continue to receive rusty tap water. I learn that the PUB is responsible for water supply to the lower floors but according to the PUB they have changed most of the main pipes and their responsibility stops at the ground floor.”
“Sir, I beg to move, That the sum to be allocated for Head T be reduced by $10 in respect of Subhead TA-01 Object Group 1100 of the Main Estimates. Sir, every year, in the Budget debate, the Ministry of National Development is the most popular one. I have no doubt that it will again be so this year, going by the number of amendments tabled by various Members in the House. For this reason, Sir, I shall touch only briefly on the cost of HDB flats and some policy matters regarding lift vandalism and water supply in housing estates. Sir, it is a common sight in new HDB estates to see plenty of new and unused HDB-supplied interior timber doors being discarded at garbage dumps. Most flat owners consider the HDB doors to be of inferior quality. In most cases, flat owners replace them with new ones when they renovate their homes. Most owners do not mind paying a little bit more to get good-quality doors of their choice. There is also the kitchen and bathroom tiles and flooring which are all done up by the HDB. Some flat owners do not like the quality or the colour of the tiles but they have to put up with these tiles for three years as HDB presently disallows them to hack the tiles in order to avoid wastage of materials. Then there are the wash-basins and other hardware. They too have been discarded as garbage. Sir, though the prices of HDB flats are within affordable range to Singaporeans, the HDB should not be contented. The Board should review its policy on construction of new flats to see how to reduce further wastage of materials and pass on whatever savings to the flat owners in the form of lower prices of flats. Sir, on lift vandalism, every year the HDB spends a large sum of money replacing and repairing lifts in many housing estates.”
“Sir, would the Acting Minister consider, in the interest of the public, publishing regularly some of these letters with the Government's replies in some newsletters like the Mirror?”
“They should answer the call by their fellow Singaporeans to lower their prices and bus fares. Sir, I support the motion standing in the name of the Minister for Finance.”
“Sir, whilst on the subject of manpower, it is high time that the Government considered taking in experienced personnel from the private sector into selected senior positions in the civil service. The flow of manpower should be two ways, not just from public to the private sector. This is healthy as it generates new ideas and injects greateer professionalism into the civil service, which is a necessary move if the service is to perform its role well to support the private sector in generating wealth in years to come. Sir, we talk about restoring confidence to the economy. One way to see this happen is through the property market. The property sector is indeed an important sector of our economy. Its collapse has been a major cause of our recession in recent months. We must therefore stimulate demand for property. Business confidence will pick up if property values begin to rise again. The Budget does not appear to address this problem of a lack of demand for property. The 50% rebate on property tax and the three additional measures announced by the Minister on the property tax system do not help stimulate the demand for property. I therefore urge the Government to study the numerous recommendations put up by the Property Market Consultative Committee seriously and waste no time in implementing the necessary measures to stimulate our property market. Finally, Sir, I believe the various tax concessions will lighten the burden of all Singaporeans, employers or employees, in this period of recession. The Government has done its part. I think it is now up to the private sector, the hawkers, the public transport operators, etc, who have benefited from falling prices of commodities and oil and the various tax concessions, to do their part.”
“Sir, whilst the Government reduces direct taxes to stimulate economic activities, it has no choice but to increase other forms of tax and to look for other sources of revenue in order to finance public sector activities. The Minister has announced steps to prepare the machinery for consumption tax. May I suggest that the Minister consider making this machinery as simple as possible, or else we may end up raising consumption tax just to finance this machinery, which defeats its purpose. To minimize consumption taxes when they are implemented, the Government shouldd also consider channelling surpluses of statutory boards into our consolidated revenue account. In any case, the Government should defer implementing this consumption tax on a large scale for as long as we are in a recession. Sir, the Government has announced plans to trim the public sector manpower by some 10% over the next five years. This move cannot be more timely. This will release talented manpower into the private sector, which is now the engine of growth. To achieve the objective of a 10% reduction in workforce, I urge the Government to consider, besides the various measures already announced like privatisation of some of its activities, cutting down red tape to reduce unnecessary workload and perhaps even reviewing existing public sector perrsonnel policies to enable more public sector employees to resign and seek jobs in the private sector without incurring financial loss. The recent move to convert the pensions scheme to the CPF scheme for new civil servants is a good one. May I suggest that the scheme be also extended to as many of our existing civil servants as possible.”
“Sir, the Budget as presented by the Minister for Finance is a realistic one. It addresses the problems of overcoming the current recession as well as sets the direction for long term growth of the economy. It is reassuring that the Government will continue to take measures to overcome the recession. Besides a reduction in Government revenue arising from the various tax concessions and the recession itself, the Minister has decided to increase development expenditure by some 50% in the next financial year. This is indeed a bold move in the face of the current recession. This will speed up infrastructural development and help to stimulate our economy. Sir, to ensure that the objective of boosting the economy is achieved, the Government should consider awarding contracts for these development projects to local companies or to joint venture companies with long term vested interest in Singapore. This is necessary to ensure that moneys spent on these projects are channelled back into the domestic economy to stimulate other economic activities, via what the economists call the "multiplier" effect. A budget deficit of $3.22 billion is forecasted for the next FY, more than double the anticipated deficit for the current FY. Sir, while a budget deficit in the second year runnung may be necessary to fight the current recession, may I caution the Government against getting into a permanent budget deficit. Unlike most other countries, ours is an open economy with no natural resources. We have no oil. We have no gold. We are vulnerable. We cannot afford to experience the massive problems faced by other countries which suffer from huge and chronic budget deficits. Prudent financial management is therefore very essential to protect the State's overall financial position and reserves.”
“Two supplementary questions. Would the Minister not consider the scheme as part of our overall policy to encourage more Singaporeans to take up jobs and appointments overseas? Second question: would the Minister consider liaising with multi-national corporations which are present in Singapore for job openings in their other branches overseas?”
“No amount of preparation can guarantee that you will win the match. Your opponent is formidable and his action unpredictable. However, with a supportive home crowd, a good team of players and a good battle plan, we have more than a fair chance of winning the match. Let us not waste any more time. Let us start the kick-off now! 3.09 pm”
“The data showed that net savings per account increased markedly in the last 12 months, a growth of nearly 100% after two consecutive years of drop. These data tend to support the argument that Singaporeans are by nature thrifty and tend to save more in difficult times. However, with the possibility of the recession worsening in the months ahead before we begin to see the results of the implementation of the measures recommended by the Economic Committee, there is a possibility that there will be a real drop in family disposaable income and some inflation if our Singapore dollar depreciates in line with a weakening economy in the months ahead. If this happens, I think it makes sense to allow for perhaps a 5% reduction in employee's CPF contribution. Sir, in the last 12 months much damage has been done to our reputation as an international business centre. As part of the measures to revive our economy, may I propose that the Government, the businessmen and the people make a concerted effort to boost our image overseas and restore confidence in our economy. We have spent a lot of time discussing our problems and proposing solutions to tackle them. Let us not waste any more time. Let us put behind our problems. Let us look ahead. Let us now quickly implement the various measures recommended by the Economic Committee to revive the economy. Sir, having done all this, there is still no guarantee that the economy will recover. We have only addressed one side of the equation, the supply side. We still need a pick-up in demand to balance the equation for economic recovery. And this is more difficult, as it is largely outside our control. This battle against the recession like playing a soccer match. The ball is round.”
“With wage restraint being introduced this year, a reduction in income tax in the Year of Assessment 1986 will be timely. Sir, I join my colleagues in this House in saying that the Economic Committee Report is not pro-businessmen. I think the thrust is to benefit employees at large. The underlying aim is economic recovery leading to job creation, the creation of wealth and an improvement in the standard of living. I do, however, have a reservation about the proposed 15% cut in employer's CPF contributions and its impact on those Singaporeans who are still servicing their mortgage loans. While it is inevitable that a cut has to be made to reduce cost of business operations, my concern is whether, as a result of the cut, the employees could continue to service their housing loans without a squeeze on their consumption expenditure. Is this a wise move? The effect could be a real drop in domestic demand which may hinder our efforts to recover the economy. I therefore propose that the Government consider, besides re-scheduling the loans, allowing Singaporeans with outstanding housing loans to tap their monthly CPF contribu- tions to their Medisave and Special Accounts. Effectively, this would mean putting a freeze on their contribution to these two accounts to help them service their housing loans. There were suggestions in this House that employee's CPF contribution should also be reduced to give something for the employees. If the objective is to make the employees happy, then I think it is wrong. It is a soft option! I am not sure if a cut in employee's CPF contribution will boost domestic demand as suggested by some Members in this House. I did a study on POSB savings statistics.”
“It should intensify its efforts to establish trade links and open up dialogues with more overseas governments and institutions and establish all necessary infrastructure to facilitate entry of our goods and services into markets overseas. Sir, one of the comments often mentioned for the Government's failure to foresee the current recession is the lack of statistical data. I do not agree with this entirely. I think we have a very good statistical base in Singapore, one of the best among developing countries and even comparable to those in some developed countries. What is needed, Sir, is perhaps more expertise to analyse the data and to detect the "signals". Equally important is to have regular dialogues and consultations with the business community. I propose that this be made a permanent feature of our economic planning process, especially now that the private sector is going to take the lead in the economy. Sir, the Economic Committee has recommended that we gradually move away from direct to indirect taxes. I think these recommendations require much detailed study, as the implications are far-reaching. Perhaps the long-term solution to our loss in revenue is not so much the move towards indirect tax but the move towards a trimmer civil service. I think our civil service is far too large. By trimming our Civil Service, we could channel more and more productive resources to the private sector where the generation of wealth takes place. The proposal to reduce corporate and income tax is appropriate and I suggest that the implementation be effected from Year of Assessment 1986. As many companies are facing difficulties, a reduction in corporate tax this year will help alleviate their cash flow problems.”
“The setting up of the Government Divestment Committee to privatize state-owned companies is indeed a step in the right direction. The task of this committee is by no means simple and I suggest that it deliberates carefully and not rushes through the exercise. As the thrust of our future economic growth will have to come more and more from external demand for our goods and services, may I suggest that the Government in its divestment exercise consider retaining a small but strategic stake in some of these companies, if by doing so this could give our companies a comparative advantage over competitors from other countries in their bid for businesses overseas. Sir, the success of the implementation of the Economic Committee's recommendations will depend not only on the businessmen and the people, but also on the Government's machinery. The Government can help achieve this on two fronts. On the domestic front, may I propose that Government review and gear its machinery accordingly to fight the recession. Red tape and obstacles should be quickly removed. Civil servants should change old habits and work-style, and be more considerate and show more empathy when attending to the needs of businessmen and members of the public. I support wholeheartedly the Government's recent formation of the Business Enterprise Committee. I think the Committee should waste no more time and quickly get down to reviewing and removing all irregularities and obstacles which would hinder our efforts to recover the economy. On the external front, the Government could play a greater role here. The Government should accelerate its machinery to set avenues and pre-conditions for businessmen to venture abroad.”
“Replacing the commanders with half-baked unqualified commanders who are totally unfamiliar with the battle ground would be disastrous. Sir, I think we should not waste any more time on the Opposition Members argument. We should get on with the debate and the implementation of the Economic Committee's Report. Sir, allow me to come to more serious matters. The flexible approach towards policy changes in the last 12 months reflects the open and consultative style of our present generation of leaders, in allowing the people a greater say in the events that shape their lives. The last 12 months have also seen the people coming forward, showing a greater interest and playing a greater role in the decision-making process of the Government. These are good signs and what are even better signs are that the Government is responding to this feedback and taking remedial measures, where appropriate, to correct policies and actions. This two-way flow of communication has become a unique way of governing Singapore and should continue. It has fostered a closer tie between the people and the Government and strengthened the link between the business community and the bureaucrats. In a way, this recession is a blessing in disguise. It makes all of us realize our vulnerability as a nation even more and forces us to work even closer together to strive for economic survival and prosperity. Sir, at the debate last year, I urged the Government to stay away from the mainstream of business and let the private sector be the prime mover of the economy. I am glad the Government has now taken measures to avoid competing unfairly with the private sector in business activities.”
“Sir, I rise in support of the motion moved by the hon. Member for Changkat. Sir, two and a half days of the debate have passed. We have put in about 10 hours of debating time. I have been sitting here patiently monitoring the time spent by the two Opposition Members and my record shows that they have taken up no less than two hours out of the 10 hours we have spent so far. And what have they come up with? The usual allegations against the Government, putting the blame on the Government for our present problems. Have they come out with any constructive criticisms on the Economic Committee's Report like what my fellow PAP colleagues are doing? These two hours including perhaps another two hours spent by the PAP Backbenchers and Ministers in refuting their arguments would mean a total of four out of the 10 hours spent unproductivity on the debate on the Economic Committee's Report. Sir, this is expensive time, if we took into consideration the salaries of Ministers, MPs, the two Opposition Members and the time spent by our friends in the Gallery. Sir, debating the Economic Committee's Report is a serious matter. To me, it is like a battle plan. It is a matter of life and death for us. The Economic Committee in the course of the last 10 months has put up a battle plan and, in my mind, it is one of the best plans we have seen for years. We are here this week to debate on the measures and recommendations for the battle plan. Instead, the two Opposition Members have been asking the commanders at the battle field to resign. Is this the right time to ask the commanders to leave the soldiers? This is the time when the soldiers need their leadership most.”
“May I suggest that the HDB intensify its community development programme and embark on an intensive education programme to help educate our residents, especially those in the lower income group, on the do's and don'ts with regard to their social responsibility and role in the upkeep of their own estate. Only by encouraging and getting them to look after their own estates will a good living environment prevail and maintenance and conservancy charges be kept low within their reach. The HDB has made a good start recently. Its recent Area Office Open House programme was a success. There were interactions between HDB staff and residents. Residents were shown how to be more considerate to their neighbours and even how to do simple plumbing work at home. I think we should have more of such activities for our residents. Mr Speaker, Sir, I may be exaggerating or am unnecessarily concerned about the ability of the lower income group, when they eventually own their own homes, to pay maintenance charges and help look after their own estates. Buying or renting a house is like buying or renting a car. When one rents a car, one tends to spend less care on it. But when one drives one's own car, one tends to be more careful. What is more, when a car owner is on a tight budget, he will soon find the shortest route to travel and perhaps even maintain and service his own car. I hope this will also apply to our lower income group residents when they eventually own their own homes through the help and encouragement of the HDB and the Government. I support the motion.”
“Mr Speaker, Sir, while we are debating ways and means on how the HDB and the Government could help the lower income group own their own homes, which I support wholeheartedly, we should also draw HDB's attention to the need to keep maintenance and conservancy charges low, within the reach of this group of people. How can HDB do this? Yes, automate and mechanize its services and operations to improve productivity and keep costs down; perhaps even design special HDB flats for this group of people where the maintenance cost is kept to a minimum. But I believe, Sir, in the long term the solution is to help educate these residents, these people in the lower income group, on what they themselves can do to help keep their own estates clean, green and safe. It is a well known fact that till today, we still hear of complaints by HDB residents about littering, lift vandalism, urinating in the lifts, damage to public telephones installed at the void decks, and so on. From my observations, as an MP for 10 months and as an HDB resident for the last 20 years, first staying in a 3-room rental flat, subsequently upgraded to a 3-room purchase flat, and presently a 5-room purchase flat, I find these undesirable anti-social acts of littering and vandalism to be more common in the 1-room and 2-room flats, and these are largely rental flats, and less so in the purchased 3-room, 4-room and 5-room flats. Perhaps it has got something to do with the socio-economic background of residents living in those flats. Perhaps, residents of rental flats are less responsible.”
“The small businessmen should not be left out, for they too are performing a useful role. They may be small businessmen today, but they could be big-time entrepreneurs tomorrow. Sir, the total setup of this Committee would therefore be bigger than anticipated. But this is inevitable since we have a diversified economy and there is a need to cast our net wide to ensure that good ideas are not left untapped. Finally, Sir, planning is a dynamic process. I therefore propose that the Committee should not be dissolved after the exercise to review the 10-year Economic Development Plan. The Committee should instead continue to monitor the progress in the implementation of the plan on a regular basis and recommend the necessary fine-tuning along the way. There appears now to be a lack of a formal dialogue mechanism between the Government and the private sector on general economic and business matters. As a follow-up of the planning process, the Committee's role could perhaps be expanded to assume this dialogue role, that is, to act as a formal body whereby ideas from the private sector could be channelled regularly to and discussed with the Government, and Government's thinking on economic and business matters disseminate downwards to the private sector. The Committee could perhaps meet regularly at quarterly or six-monthly intervals. But a word of caution, the Committee should not be allowed to degenerate into a complaint bureau by the private sector businessmen. Sir, these are some of my comments or suggestions. I hope the hon. Minister of State for Trade and Industry and Defence will find them useful when he gets on the business of reviewing our 10-year Economic Development Plan.”
“By getting the private sector and the union involved in the planning process, they will understand and appreciate the rationale for certain Government economic strategies and policies better, and will certainly be more committed in the implementation of the national economic plan since they have a hand in its preparation, and hopefully, in the years to come, the level of planning expertise in the private sector will improve. Sir, the proposal to set up a national economic committee comprising the Government, private sector and the union to review the 10-year Economic Development Plan for the 1980s is indeed timely and praiseworthy. The plan was prepared in 1979-1980, and, like all plans, it is based on certain assumptions. Some of these assumptions may no longer be valid today, as the external and internal factors and constraints affecting our economy have changed in the last five years. I believe the overall mission or goal as laid out in the plan is still valid. But the means towards achieving that goal should be reviewed and, if necessary, fine-tuned or modified. We all know that we are moving into high value-added, high-technology areas. Other countries, like Hong Kong, Korea and Taiwan, are all upgrading in the same direction. I hope the Committee will clearly identify those high value-added and high-technology areas that we should get into, bearing in mind our strengths and weaknesses, our competitors' strategies and the need for us to develop our own niches. The Committee, for it to be effective, should be kept small. But a lot of back-ground work will have to be done outside the Committee. The latter should therefore be supported by various sub-committees, representing the key sectors in our economy.”
“Having spent a large part of my career doing economic planning in the public sector and now corporate planning in the private sector, and having mentioned the need for a tripartite body comprising the Government, the private sector and the Union to deliberate on national economic strategies and policies, I thought it is appropriate for me to pass some com- ments or suggestions on the proposal to set up a national economic committee to review the 10-year Economic Development Plan. Sir, sound economic planning has been a fundamental factor in our success in the last 25 years. In the preparation of our national economic plans so far, the public sector has played a major role in that though there were consultations with the private sector on an informal basis, a large part of the ideas on the plan actually came from the public sector, which includes the statutory boards and the Government companies. For this was inevitable as the public sector has been a prime mover in our economic development in the last two to three decades. The result of this is that we seem to have good planning expertise in the public sector while it appears that we do not have good planners in the private sector. Consequently, the private sector tends to look to the Government for long-term direction. Following the Government's intention to gradually withdraw from business and to let the private sector be the prime mover in our economic development, it is only appropriate that the private sector should now be more involved in our national economic planning process. I am sure there is no lack of good ideas from the private sector on how we should steer our economy from here.”
“Minister to review the new education system. I hope the Minister will bear in mind in the review exercise the need to come up with a better communication programme to effectively put across policies and ideas to the general public.”
“We have heard various Members of the House putting forward views and suggestions on various aspects of education and how to improve our education system. There is one aspect which has not been touched on and I would like to spend about three minutes on this. There is a need to communicate more effectively with the general public on the education system. The objective of our education system is to bring out the best in our children, and this is indeed a step in the right direction. It is in our long term interest but, sad to say, the merits and the rationale of the new system have not been effectively driven home to the general public. Till today, we still hear of comments from members of the public that the system is too complex and, at times, confusing. Others say that with the frequent announcements of changes in the system they have now lost touch with the education system. They will worry about it when the time comes for their children to go to school. Yet another category of the public, and this is largely the lower income group, find it hard to understand the new system which has been explained through the use of flow-charts drawn up by systems engineers. There is one other category of people whose comment on the new system is based on their own personal experience gained under the old system, not realizing that the school environment then was different and that the homes were mainly dialect-speaking. We could go on and on, but the message here is that if there had been greater and more effective communication with the public on the rationale and the merits of the education system, some of these comments, which tend to form negative impressions on the system, could have been avoided. 12.15 pm We welcome the announcement by the Hon.”
“Sir, can I speak on my amendment No. (9) on Subhead LC-01 now?”
“Sir, the Hon. Minister mentioned in the House last week that the HDB will draw up a schedule of programme to combat the rusty water problem existing in housing estates. May we know when will this schedule of programme be made known to the public?”
“Sir, the role of the Government in economic development and business could be summarised in the soccer field. In the past, the Government had taken on the centre-forward and goalkeeper roles. It even occupied certain strategic positions in mid-field. The other positions were taken up by the private sector players. This was inevitable for we had to quickly form a team when we were admitted into the Division 3 Business League. We had to engage a first-class foreign coach - Dr Winsemius. Fortunately, the team of Government and private sector players played well and is now promoted to Division 2. There are now enough private sector players waiting in the sideline. They have acquired the individual skills but they lack the exposure and experience because they were not given a chance to play. The Government players should now withdraw from the field and allow the private sector players form the team. We may no longer need the services of a first-class foreign coach. Our ex-government and ex-private sector players, together with perhaps the services of one or two foreign specialized coaches, could form the coaching team. From now on, the Government should play the weatherman's role and the referee's and linesmen's roles to ensure fair play, the ground conditions proper, the lightings conducive, the lines clearly drawn and the goal-posts intact. Only by allowing the private sector players to play together as a team could they mature to compete internationally and be promoted to Division 1 in the years to come. 4.27 p.m.”
“The Government's role in business and economic development should be to continue to provide the overall economic direction, devise guidelines and incentives to further broaden our economic base and upgrade our economic activities, and provide the necessary infrastructure to support our economic programmes. In line with the proposed change towards a more open style of government, there should also be greater consultation between the Government and the private sector on business and economic matters. Sir, my experience tells me that the Government has some of the best economists we can find in Singapore. It has a formidable team of economic planners. They have done a great job in the past. They will continue to do a good job if they keep their "eyes" and "ears" closer to the ground. I hope the Government will take the feedback from the private sector on the present business climate seriously, certainly much more seriously than it took the feedback from the public on certain social and educational policies last year. There has been a suggestion by the private sector for the formation of a National Economic Council which brings together the Government, Employers and the Union to deliberate on major economic strategies and policies. I think this proposal merits consideration by the Government. The Council could also take over the role of the National Wages Council. There are a host of economic measures and instruments, not just wages alone, which influence our economic development. The Council will enable the Government to feel the pulse of the economy and the business climate better. It provides a useful feedback to the Government when drawing up economic plans and policies to direct the economy in the future.”
“Let me relate a personal experience I encountered some time ago. I met a businessman who is a professional engineer and through his years of research and experiment has developed a product which I told him could qualify for Product Development Assistance. I asked him to see the EDB. His reply was, "No." He said the Government would steal away his idea. That would be the end of his business. This is the sort of impression created in the minds of some private sector businessmen about Government's involvement in business. I may be exaggerating but the Government must change this impression and change it fast. We are now entering a new economic era where most of our economic sectors have matured. It is perhaps timely now for Government to review its total involvement in business and to withdraw from those areas where it is no longer needed, and to let the private sector take the lead and play a more active role in our economic development. This will create opportunities for potential local entrepreneurs wanting to venture into business. We cannot continue to depend substantially on foreign investment for our growth. We have to rely more and more on our own resources. We have to develop a core of able local entrepreneurs who will help to create the necessary wealth. I propose that the Government looks into ways and means to encourage more people to come forward to become entrepreneurs. Mr Speaker, Sir, the President in his Opening Address has said: 'A better life for all requires the creation of wealth. Governments do not create wealth. They can only create the pre-conditions for fruitful efforts.' Sir, I think the President has hit the nail on the head. The creation of wealth should be left to the private sector.”