Cynthia Phua
Singapore
“Sir, I am very glad that the Minister has elaborated on the diversification of our food sources. On the ground, our senior citizens are saying that the 10-cent increase in a cup of coffee is affecting their daily needs.”
“Where are the weak links that should be tightened? How does his Ministry intend to tackle the problem and whether it is engaging in any dialogue with different concerned groups in the community, for example, VWOs?”
“Mr Chairman, the Minister mentioned about the cross-agency effort on youth. He mentioned three Ministries – MOE, MHA and MCYS. I would like to ask for one more, ie, MINDEF, because for male youths, if they are delinquents, they would have left school and be enlisted earlier, and they could get help from MINDEF.”
“Many parents are working when the children are in secondary school. As a result, teenage students are left at home in the afternoon without proper guidance.”
“In the community, we came across many new cases where family could not manage to persuade the patient to have early treatment, resulting in nuisances being caused to the neighbourhood and the patient himself who suffers the mental illness.”
“What has been the outcome pertaining to our ongoing efforts to bring back our Singaporean medical students and some of the young doctors working overseas? What are the Minister's views on the newly introduced scholarship for medical students studying overseas?”
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“This could be the reason for this particular low birth rate of 1.27 per couple. I hope when the economy begins to go back to normal, higher birth rates could be restored. In many cases, giving birth is a very personal matter. Incentives could only work for someone who is hesitating whether or not to have more children in the family. All the measures talked about, like longer maternity leave, paternity leave, more subsidy for the child and baby, and so on, will have a certain effect in helping people in this particular category. I agree with many speakers who have said yesterday that changing the mindset of the people is the important aspect in addressing the population decline. Assoc. Prof. Koo Tsai Kee, Senior Parliamentary Secretary, informed the House on the first day of debate that the airmen detachment in the US, at the moment, is having a baby boom. In the 80s, I remember when I was in UK, at that time, New York City had an electricity blackout for a few days. A social chaotic situation developed. But, it registered a baby boom as a result of the blackout. In the past many years, a survey reported by a contraceptive manufacturer, Durex, repeatedly put Singapore in the limelight of the survey results. Singapore always scored the best in "the least sexual activity" in the world. Sir, this issue is a very sensitive one and I do not want to elaborate any further. I hope the committee tasked to deal with the birth rate would seriously look into the above in relation to the declining birth rate in Singapore. Looking back, and viewing the birth incentives, we will discover some of its very unique characteristics. The uniqueness of the incentives being packaged would explain why it does not work so well for us.”
“If, eventually, the Government is able to quantify the cost of running undergraduate education, I believe that figure will work out to be less than $17,000 per annum per student. So my question to the Government is: if 75% is the subsidised policy, does it mean that we are going to adjust future education fees for the undergraduate course downwards? If we try to compare the fee increase in the past versus the reward of the student, as an argument in the increase in the student's contribution to the fees, then we can try to look back to my time. In 1969, I paid $600 per annum and, at that time, the engineer's basic starting pay was $900 per month, which was 1.5 times the fees that I paid. Today, the student pays $5,000 in terms of fees. If they are lucky, they are paid $2,500, if not, only $2,000. So, therefore, what they can receive per month is only a fraction of the fees that they have paid. If we try to look at the fee structure, comparing the old days and today, presently, the students are paying a lot for it. If the 75% includes all activities and costs unrelated to undergraduate education, I think it would not be right and fair for the undergraduate students to pay for those fees, as a large proportion is for activities which are unrelated to the undergraduate course. Sir, I come to birth rates. The day before the Budget was announced, many have already coined the name for this Budget - "Baby Boosting Budget" - slanting towards the adjustment of the declining birth rate. In the past few years, our economy has not been performing well. People take specific actions to reduce and conserve their expenditure. Giving birth is certainly one of the matters people try to delay due to the gloomy economic outlook.”
“They register and manage the patent, hire lawyers and take prosecution action. These have nothing to do with undergraduate education. They do industrial collaboration and consultation, making money as a result. They do entrepreneurial development activities, university-to-university collaborations. Many of the expensive equipment in the laboratory have nothing to do with undergraduate education. The university runs courses with small classes, sometimes, for the purpose of national service. For any course with less than 10 students per class, the amount of fees collected is not even enough to pay for the salary of the lecturer who is directly teaching the class. The post-graduate education, one-to-one supervision of the Masters and PhD degrees, is a pure money losing business. Teaching staff too have also been assigned to do all sorts of work that has nothing to do with undergraduate education. I can continue to name the endless activities done by the university which are pegged directly to the operating cost of the university that have nothing to do with undergraduate education. The cost of undergraduate education is only part of the operating cost of the university. If the Government is going to pay 75% of the net cost in the running of undergraduate education, in my view, it is extremely generous and I support it. At present, each of the students in the university, depending on the course that he studies, is already paying about $5,000 per annum. This figure, compared with the unofficially announced figure of $17,000 per student per annum, is quite comparable to those in the Australian universities. If we look at the figure, in fact, the student is already paying for more than 25% of the operating cost of running the undergraduate course.”
“Perhaps with more money available in our market, the expenditure of those funds will also help the service sector. The Government too will benefit in terms of the taxation from the income derived from the investments. The question I would like to ask is: why is foreign derived income, which is distributed from the partnership company in Singapore, not qualified for exemption under this particular provision? In my view, the foreign income paid by the partnership is of very little difference as compared with the personal income derived from overseas. Sir, the Statement mentioned that university education will benefit the individual and that only about a quarter of our cohort will benefit from university education. It then said that in future, undergraduates will pay for 25% of the university's operating cost. Sir, for the people who are familiar with university education, they will know that the cost for running the undergraduate courses is very different from the university's operating cost. The announcement that the long-term university subsidy will be pegged to 75% of the university's operating costs is, in my view, an ambiguous and over-charged statement to the undergraduates. The university has many operations and many of them have nothing to do with undergraduate education which the students pay their school fees for. I will cite a few examples. The university may run a lot of research institutions. There are many research institutions that we can name, like IPS, East Asian Studies, Strategic and Defence Studies, the Environmental Science Centre, etc. All these institutions are run by the university and have nothing to do with undergraduate education. The university manages their intellectual property.”
“I am pleased that the PMO is now tackling the issue, and I am confident that they will take a comprehensive approach to nip the problem in the bud. Assoc. Prof. Low Seow Chay (Chua Chu Kang): Mr Speaker, Sir, I support the motion. In this Budget, there are some goodies and practically no negative measures that would burden our taxpayers, except for some additional taxes on tobacco, which are implemented for a very special social purpose. I would like to congratulate the Finance Minister for putting up such a healthy budget despite all the revenue cuts. In terms of job prospects, the Budget Statement has confirmed that the new high value-added manufacturing sector will not create many jobs. The area where more jobs would be created will be in the service sector. We know that although high-tech and high value-added industry creates few jobs, they are more rewarding jobs. This sends an alarm to the people that in future there will be less high-paid jobs available and that people should lower their expectation and accept the lower-paid jobs offered by the service sector. Sir, on another aspect in the Budget Statement, to allow the repatriation of foreign income is a very sensible measure. Under the old regulation, people prefer to keep their foreign income outside Singapore, just to avoid taxation. Today, with the flow of funds and the easy movement of people, the location of the funds is not really an issue. The old rule which prevented the funds from being repatriated to Singapore, we tend to lose in all aspects, including the revenue tax that the Government may likely gain from the investment of these funds. With the new rule, funds will return to Singapore and will help to boost our financial industry.”
“Many parents also need financial assistance beyond the childcare years, and many require support for their children in the before-and-after school care in the primary schools. The Inter-Ministry Committee may wish to add this incentive. We need to reduce the stress of bringing up children. Many of the young adults who have gone through our education system are fearful of subjecting their children through the same stressful education system that they have gone through. They are afraid of their children being labelled EM1, EM2, Express and Normal. Are our current policies able to provide them the time and space for our young to enjoy learning? Are we not grouping and labelling them at a young age? Is our system pressing them too hard to excel and acquire the skills we deem they should acquire? Mr Speaker, Sir, I feel that our education system is still too elitist in approach. I am pleased that the Ministry of Education has stopped making public the ranking of schools and releasing the names of schools with the best 'O' or 'A' level passes. Competition is good, but not when the stress in the competition is passed on to those who have to carry the burden, that is, the students and their parents. In conclusion, we need not just have an inter-Ministry approach, but a multi-disciplinary review of the issue before drawing up the highway, the avenues and arterial roads to map out the roadmap to Baby Boom. We have to look at the ageing population and its impact, promote extended family values, encourage shared responsibilities in bringing up children, encourage early marriage, promote quality family lifestyle, minimise the stress in bringing up children and their education, and throw in whatever incentives we can give, so as to take a pincer approach when addressing this issue.”
“I have always valued my mother-in-law because, after work, there is always that steaming hot cup of coffee waiting for us, no matter what time it is. All the incentives for childbirth may not work, if the people do not see the benefits they can enjoy from having bigger families. We may recall those early days in the 1960s/1970s when someone would remark to another, "Oh! You are so lucky to have so many children!" Today, the tone of that remark is one of dismay when they hear you have children, "Oh! My goodness! How are you going to cope with so many children? Must be very stressful and very tiring!" Coping with bringing up children is what we have to address. In fact, the issue of six months' maternity leave debate was a hot topic among the grassroots leaders of Paya Lebar. Many, including women employers, stated that the women are getting themselves out of job, as small and medium enterprises would not be able to provide women with such long leave nor afford the additional cost. Is this incentive appropriate, in view of the volatile terms of employment in Singapore's global economy? Many of us have to double our efforts, as most companies have cut back on recruitment, with intense competition, in view of our global economy. Recent employment challenges, no iron rice bowl, retrenchment, the call for flexible wages, skills upgrading and retraining, all these compete with the effort of family procreation. Many people say unless they shut their eyes and do it blindly, then maybe they will have one or more children. So, indeed, we definitely need more than just economics when looking at procreation. On the basic costs, many parents are asking for assistance for the 3rd and 4th child. It is only this year that the 4th child has the Edusave account.”
“In this way, we encourage three-generation family outings. Even round-the-island tours or any outings organised by the grassroots organisations can be done on this basis. This journey to finding a solution to promote bigger families begins now. This is the mindset that Madam Yu-Foo has said that it has to be a societal movement. Children are our future. If we can succeed in selling the merits of having larger families, we can then move to the young people to persuade them to marry and marry early. The carrots that the Government will introduce will be an added incentive. Because these young people grow up in an environment of the extended family, they do not need much persuasion to have more children. We have to remember that today's child will some day become the father of a child. So we have to start this cycle going. Now comes the question of bringing up children. The responsibility to bring up children must involve not only the married couple but also their parents, in-laws and other relatives like aunties, uncles, etc, as the case may be. Sharing childcare responsibilities If grandparents are able to lend a helping hand, even if it is just to fetch the child from the day-care centre to home, the parents of these children can then concentrate on building up their careers. The focus should be about sharing responsibilities, not transferring responsibilities, or worse, dumping responsibilities on grandparents. Then, the young Singaporeans, given the opportunity to pursue their careers, will also be able to enjoy parenthood, and the joys and benefits of an extended family. Nothing can be more heartwarming than to go home and be received by your children and parents at the dinner table.”
“Has the Ministry of National Development done any survey to find out the needs of the people, for their alternative choices of homes for the families to have extended families and support each other? We understand that, in the case of studio apartments for the elderly, the residents are not finding them attractive. What measures and motivations have we taken to encourage our middle-age population to stay healthy and alert and financially-able, as many couples of our generation have now one or two children to depend on in view of the population policies then? We should marshall the grassroots organisations, voluntary organisations and other interested bodies to train their volunteers, set up the infrastructure now to take on their role as caregivers or guardian angels to the lonely and elderly. They can visit them at home, attend to their basic needs, or even make regular phone calls to keep in touch with them. This way, the incidence of our old people dying at home and undiscovered until days later, can be minimised. We must reach out to these people before it is too late. Singaporeans are people who can do their sums and do them well. If they can see the benefits of bigger families, they do not need the carrots to lure them. We should promote stronger family ties, filial piety and family togetherness which can then resolve at least partially, if not wholly, the cases of old people having to be home alone. Mr Speaker, Sir, here I have a few suggestions. For example, National Day tickets, concert tickets or SAF open houses can be on an extended family basis, ie, tickets for 6-8 persons, to cover the parents, children and grandparents. This can also apply to sale of extended family tickets to the Zoological Garden, Bird Park, Chinese Garden and holiday chalets.”
“And still others might require special care because of the state of their health, physically and mentally. We have been talking about these issues. However, so far, a more holistic approach has not been taken. For example, a resident requested for a lift at the Kovan Station. I was surprised by the request, as I know that there was a long debate in this House on the provision of public facilities for our elderly and there was assurance that the North-East Line would have the necessary lifts. I went for an inspection to see for myself, and I realised that there is only one lift at one side of the station. I then made an appeal. The reply came back asking for my understanding, as there was insufficient fund to provide additional lifts. So where is the priority? We know that LTA has spent a lot of money installing various art pieces in the station to create the renaissance ambience. But what about the basic needs of our elderly, to enable them to be independent and move around? Is this being sacrificed for the artistic development? Which has a higher order in the hierarchy of needs for the population? Till to-date, our buses are still not fitted to give easy mobility to our elderly. When is this going to happen? Leave it to the transport companies? They will tell you that they have no money. We have put ourselves in a bind and they need to answer to their shareholders and not the stakeholders. Many of the efforts in providing elder homes are left to the voluntary welfare organisations. What is the role of the Government? Where are their estimation and projections of the requirement of these homes in the long-term and in the short-term?”
“Mr Speaker, Sir, for DPM and Finance Minister to present this year's Budget, especially against the backdrop of the current economic and social climate, it is a very difficult task. On the one hand, there was the need to generate economic activities to get our economy out of the woods. Yet, on the other hand, there is a need to temper these efforts such that they do not create a hole in our reserves. Underlying this is the pressing issue of how to motivate young Singaporeans to have babies to replace the ageing population and the challenges faced by the ageing population. These issues have to be addressed against the backdrop of the uncertainties, not only from the economic perspective, but also the danger of an outbreak of diseases and omnipresent threat of terrorism and religious fanaticism. I would thus say that the 2004 Budget is as best as we can expect in the circumstances. It will require every Ministry to stretch the dollar to the limit, as they roll out the various policies. Issue of Ageing One of the policies that I wish to address is that of our rapidly ageing population. Today, about 7% of our population are aged 65 and above. By year 2030, this figure will rise to 19%, and will have a vast impact on productivity, healthcare and family support needs. We need to address this issue now, failing which, it will not only impact on our economic growth, but also our defence needs and the very existence of our nationhood. I know that the ageing problem is not a particularly interesting subject. Everyone will get old. All you have to do is to live long enough. But we need to do more to prepare our society to cope, as older people are living alone. Some may have no one to care for them, and others may have no means to care for themselves.”
“Mr Speaker, Sir, it is a daily affair that many parents send their children to school. They need to alight their children at the school. So why is there no such guideline and provision by either the Ministry of Education, or Ministry of Transport, for such a provision as basic as this facility to ensure that the safety of the children is taken care of?”
“Mr Speaker, Sir, can the Minister of State explain why is there no such guideline by MOT about alighting and boarding points for school students, whether it is within the school or outside the school on the public road. Does the Minister of State agree that it is very dangerous for young children to board and alight school buses on a public road, especially when the young ones are fighting with each other while going up or down the buses?”
“Can the Minister of State explain how he works with MOE on the alighting and boarding points for schools? Is it only after an accident or after the school is built? Is it only feasible for alighting and boarding points at the planning stage? Since there is no requirement for schools to submit plans to the Ministry of Transport for the alighting and boarding points for school students, how does MOT work with MOE on such provision?”
“Can the Minister of State confirm that currently there is no requirement for schools to provide alighting or boarding points for students within the school compound and outside on the public road? Why is that so? Because most buildings are required to submit plans to the Ministry of Transport for any of the access points and also even the requirement for car park lots.”
“Can the Minister consider reviewing this requirement because MOT is regulating the bus transport system?”
“I think school transport is under the jurisdiction of the Ministry of Transport (MOT). Most schools would comply with the requirement of MOT. They would not on their own establish a new requirement and especially so if the parents ---”
“Mr Speaker, Sir, the Minister of State has said that the determination of 30 children is based on affordability. When was this determined? The affordability has changed over time, and for enhanced safety of the children, I would like to appeal again that the Ministry review this requirement.”
“Mr Speaker, Sir, the Minister of State has not answered the question. What is the basis that LTA works on in the determination of 30 children for a bus attendant? I would still like to ask the Minister to explain that. The second question is: if the basis is based on affordability of the children, when was this requirement set down? And can a review be made again?”
“Sir, what is the basis that LTA works on in the determination of 30 children for a bus attendant? And does the Minister agree that the agility of children aged 6 and aged 12 differs differently? A child psychologist has once said that a child has no self-restraint before age 10. After an accident in Ang Mo Kio Avenue 3 where a child dashed off from the hands of the parent crossing the road, if he does agree, for enhanced safety, can he review again the appeal for the segregation of children as well as the guideline for an attendant for young school children?”
“Can the Act recognise this spirit of altruistic act of organ donation and recognise the individual choice, since the end result is the same? Can the Ministry clarify the benefits and penalties accorded to a person who chooses to opt out for a cornea transplant and remain in HOTA for the other three organs, and subsequently by fate requires a cornea transplant? Will he be penalised and denied of the organs? These are examples of the many questions asked by the public which the Ministry needs to elaborate. Public education It is important that the Government should go back to the people and get everyone to understand what the new law covers when this Bill is passed. It is important that everyone understands what are the organs that can be donated in the event of death. This is an important information that should be carefully explained to the people and we should make sure that it is filtered down with the correct messages. No one would want to see their loved ones lying in this condition with the thought at the back of their minds that the body they see is, in fact, devoid of the cornea, liver, heart and kidney, unless they strongly believe in the merits of the removal of the body organs to save lives. Hospitals should provide sufficient qualified counsellors to handle this highly charged state of emotive condition of the family members, especially when the donors are young. The Government should also muster the support of grassroots organisations, welfare bodies, religious bodies to help in this process. Here is the process in which once a decision is taken, the outcome is irreversible. The consequences can be very painful and traumatic as they haunt the conscience of the living for the rest of his or her life. With these comments, I support the Bill.”
“One definition is when a person experiences an irreversible cessation of spontaneous respiratory and circulatory functions. Another definition says there is an absence of spontaneous respiratory and cardiac functions, and because of the disease or condition which causes directly or indirectly these functions to cease, or because of the passage of time since these functions have ceased, attempts at resuscitation are considered hopeless and, in this event, death would have occurred at the time these functions have ceased. We should make it clear in the Act so that there is no ambiguity in the determination of death. The next-of-kin, as you will well imagine, will be under a lot of trauma and distress when such a decision is to be taken. If the Act spells out the definition in a clear manner that a layman can understand, then the process will be less painful for the families of the deceased persons. And I agree with Mrs Lim Hwee Hua's comment that the concern here is not solely on principle nor legality, but the added dimension or sufficiency of safeguards. And we have also been recently reminded of the accidents resulting in the training of commandos. Additional external checks should be done on a periodic basis so that comprehensive safeguards on the process of the certification of death are constantly present. Recognition of benefits and penalties of the Act There are many people who do see the merits of organ donation as an act of saving lives. However, they also believe that organ donation is an altruistic act and not to be carried out through an act of law. In this view, some may choose to opt out and then opt in through MTERA, or some are already in MTERA for many years. I would like to stay that way.”
“It is expanded to include anyone who dies from any cause of death. There is also the expansion to the Act to include three other organs besides the kidney - liver, heart and cornea. It is relevant at this point for the Minister to explain how the Ministry ensures that the organ removed from a person is a healthy organ, in the sense that the deceased is not, for example, a sufferer or a carrier of HIV. With the increasing incidence of HIV, there is the likelihood that the deceased may not be on medical record as an HIV sufferer but is, in fact, a carrier. How does the Ministry address this problem as the impact to the recipients will be greater in view of the multi-organ donations? What is the due diligence that the medical practitioner will have to observe before the organ is transplanted to a recipient? Is there a guideline from the Ministry for hospitals to comply with? Definition of death Since the scope of the Bill is broadened to include any cause of death and not due to any accident or otherwise, it is important that a new definition of when is a person considered to be dead be spelt out. Currently, two senior medical practitioners who possess appropriate post-graduate medical qualifications can certify the death of a person. This is provided: (i) they do not belong to the medical team that is involved in the organ removal; (ii) they are not involved in the care and treatment of the organ recipient; and (iii) their medical qualifications are recognised by the Ministry. As the Bill now stands, everything is left to the opinion of the two medical practitioners. The families of the deceased would surely want to know, as a matter of fact, how is death determined. In the US, the definition apparently varies between some states.”
“Mr Speaker, Sir, broadening the scope of the Human Organ Transplant Act is a right move, given that this would mean more people who are ill will be able to get a second chance to lead a normal life. However, there are a few issues which should be addressed under the proposed amendment to the Act. Ethics Committee The new section 15B spells out the need for an Ethics Committee to oversee the removal of any organ at the hospitals. At the same time, the Bill proposes that the medical practitioner who is appointed to this Committee should not be employed or otherwise connected with the hospital. I feel that the Bill should stipulate the maximum term each member of the Committee can serve. If the same member serves on the Committee for too long a period of time, this will circumvent the spirit of the provision requiring that the doctor who sits on the Committee should not be connected to the hospital. One would assume that the guiding principle of having this Committee is to have people who are independent-minded, making decisions to the best interest of the public. Therefore, there should be a time limitation for the service with the hospital to avoid a situation where they become too familiar with the hospital. Further, the Bill does not specify the case of a lay person. Who are these people who can be invited to sit on the Ethics Committee, whether or not he or she should be an employee of the hospital? I propose that the Bill should stipulate that this lay person should also be someone not connected to the hospital. The lay person should be someone with some level of maturity and standing in the community. Healthy organs In clause 4, amending section 5(2), the organs may be removed not just from someone who died in an accident.”
“Singapore has an edge in terms of technology and advances in sports medicine and sports science, which have greatly helped our athletes prepare for high level competitions. We should continue to improve our sports science capabilities and ensure that NSAs, coaches and athletes are well appraised of technological and sports science developments.”
“This showed that the enhanced support schemes had enabled the athletes to train full time and be exposed to higher standard of competitions, both locally and internationally. In addition to funding support, athletes also received support in the form of greater use of sports science, exposure to more overseas training and competitions, and team building and motivational programmes. The National Sports Associations (NSAs) have also been given much higher financial support than in previous years. Emerging sports like fencing and gymnastics, which received a two-fold increase in funding, put up commendable performances and won a combined total of three silver and five bronze medals. In addition to financial support, the Singapore Sports Council helped the NSAs to develop multi-year high performance programmes, hire Technical Directors and coaches. Assistance was also provided in terms of athlete selection, preparation, training methodology as well as logistics support during the Games. All these have paid off as the NSAs have shown that they were better organised and prepared for the SEA Games last year. As to what we can learn from Vietnam, we will need to concentrate on a few selected sports and not spread ourselves too thinly. Many of the Vietnam's teams and athletes train full-time. In Singapore, there will be fewer athletes who would willingly give up their careers or studies to train full-time for long periods of time. Hence, it is important that we have schemes to support and encourage such athletes. It is also important that we work with all parties, whether schools or employers, so that the athletes are able to spend more time at training.”
“In contrast, at the KL SEA Games, only 17 out of 30 sports won medals, and this was notwithstanding a bigger contingent of athletes compared to the numbers we sent to Vietnam. So, Sir, it is clear that Singapore's performance has improved significantly at the 22nd SEA Games in Vietnam. The traditionally performing sports continued to do well, eg, table tennis won six gold medals, swimming brought us nine golds, eight silvers and six bronzes, and silat brought us three golds, two silvers and 10 bronzes. Sports which have not done so well in the past have shown much improvement in the recent games. Athletics brought us four golds, four silvers and one bronze; bodybuilding, three golds, one silver and three bronzes; badminton, one gold and five bronzes. In addition, there were a few emerging sports. Gymnastics brought us three silvers and one bronze, and fencing brought us four bronzes. Sir, there is a greater breadth and depth in our sports scene today. More athletes in more disciplines are able to win medals. It is also encouraging to note that out of the 165 athletes who won medals, 30% or 47 athletes were below the age of 18 years. All these augur well for sports in Singapore. Dr Maliki also asked whether the schemes that have been put in place to promote sporting excellence in Singapore are producing the desired results. Currently, various support schemes are available for our athletes and National Sports Associations. Athletes under the Athlete Career and Training Programme and spexGLOW, which basically help to make up for loss of wages of athletes whilst training full-time, contributed to about 70% of the gold medals won at last year's SEA Games. In particular, Joscelin Yeo, Christel Bouvron and Li Jia Wei displayed outstanding performances at the Games.”
“Sorry. It is stated in the booklet that it admits students from Normal (Academic), Express Stream and Normal (Technical). So, can the Sports School not put that requirement as a minimum requirement? Assoc. Prof. Dr Yaacob Ibrahim: Sir, all secondary schools have cut-off criteria. So, there is no difference for a Sports School in setting a criterion. And we have chosen to set that criterion as a starting point. I am not saying that this is cast in stone, but I think we should give the Sports School a chance to evolve and learn from this experience. Already, we have exercised flexibility, and I think that it is good for us to learn as we go along and then review it after a sufficient time. SOUTH EAST ASIAN GAMES IN VIETNAM (Assessment of Team Singapore's performance) 8. Dr Mohamad Maliki Bin Osman asked the Minister for Community Development and Sports (a) what is his assessment of Team Singapore's performance at the recent Vietnam SEA Games; (b) whether the schemes that have been put in place to promote sporting excellence in Singapore are producing the desired results; and (c) how can Singapore learn from countries like Vietnam who are able to produce numerous gold medallists within a short period of time. Assoc. Prof. Dr Yaacob Ibrahim: Sir, Singapore won a total of 113 medals, comprising 30 Golds, 33 Silvers and 50 Bronzes, and finished in the sixth position at the recent SEA Games in Vietnam. At the last SEA Games in Kuala Lumpur in 2001, Singapore won a total of 95 medals which comprised 22 Golds, 32 Silvers and 41 Bronzes. Singapore participated in 23 out of the total of 32 sports, and won medals in 19 of these sports.”
“Sir, I still want to appeal on this basis. If the Minister is saying that the Sports School is a normal secondary school, in the admission criteria booklet of the school itself ---”
“Sir, I have seen some photographs of the cases that have been detected in estates in Kovan and Hillside Drive. I would like to request the Minister to get NEA to work with BCA, as well as the landowners, for a more permanent solution. Presently, what is being done is basically temporary. That means, they only clear the breeding ground. But the third-storey gullies are still there. So, these would be choked again after one week or a month. I think a permanent solution should be discussed with the landowners to see how they could redesign or redirect the water drainage system.”
“Between 2000 and 2002, we have seen a slight increase in the number of students taking up a loan to finance their higher education. The number of students taking up tuition fee loans increased from 8,903 to 9,000 at the university level, and from 2,356 to 2,650 at polytechnic level during the period, ie, from 2000 to 2002. The number of students taking up an additional study loan increased from 860 to 1,376 at the university level, and from 32 to 51 at the polytechnic level. As at 30th June 2003, the number of university graduates with outstanding loans was 15,854. About 1% of them, ie, about 150 graduates, have had difficulties in paying back their loans. Amongst polytechnic graduates with outstanding loans, who number 4,674, about 3%, ie, about 135 graduates, have difficulty repaying their loans. Other schemes available to help needy students include the University and Polytechnic Bursaries granted by the CCCs, Mendaki Tertiary Tuition Fee Subsidy, as well as the bursary schemes and loan schemes that are administered by the universities and polytechnics themselves.”
“As at October 2003, $3.8 million has been committed by the fund. The annual operating grants given to VWOs are adjusted each year, based on the projected GDP growth. Under this principle, for FY 2003, funding to VWOs would have been reduced by 1.6%. However, my Ministry recognised the difficulties VWOs may face in these uncertain times, and did not reduce funding. This is notwithstanding the reduction of 3% in the CPF contribution. Sir, VWOs are key partners in delivering social services, and my Ministry is committed to review funding quantums regularly to take into account the changed circumstances facing our VWOs. UNIVERSITIES AND POLYTECHNICS (Percentage of students taking tuition fee loans) 15. Mdm Halimah Yacob asked the Acting Minister for Education (a) what is the percentage of Singaporean students studying in the local universities and polytechnics who have taken up loans to finance their education; (b) whether this number is increasing or decreasing; (c) how many have difficulties paying back the loans after graduation; and (d) what other schemes are available to help needy students. The Acting Minister for Education (Mr Tharman Shanmugaratnam): Mr Speaker, Sir, for Academic Year 2002/2003, about 32% of Singaporean students studying in our local universities took up a tuition fee loan to finance up to 80% of their cost of university education. 5% of them also took up an additional study loan to finance the remaining 20% of the cost of university education and living allowance. The additional study loan is available to students whose family income is within the MCDS' means-tested income limit for public assistance. For polytechnic students, about 6% took up the tuition fee loan, and 0.1% took up the additional study loan in Academic Year 2002/2003.”
“Mr Ong Ah Heng asked the Minister for Community Development and Sports in view of the difficulties faced by Voluntary Welfare Organisations (VWOs) running old age homes in raising funds in the current economic downturn, (a) what schemes are in place to assist VWOs facing shortfalls in funds; (b) what is the amount of disbursements given, if any; and (c) whether there are any plans to increase such disbursements. Assoc. Prof. Dr Yaacob Ibrahim: Sir, homes for the aged run by Voluntary Welfare Organisations (VWOs) comprise nursing homes and sheltered homes. The latter, ie, sheltered homes, are licensed by MCDS. Of the 19 sheltered homes currently run by VWOs, three are being financially assisted by MCDS. Each resident is funded at 50% or 75% of the norm costs, depending on their household income. My Ministry has set aside over $404,000 grants last year for these homes. The remaining 16 sheltered homes have for many years chosen to raise their own funds, and I commend and respect their self-reliance. My Ministry stands ready to consider funding these homes, should they need it and apply for assistance. Some of these homes have also been receiving Community Chest funding under the National Council of Social Service (NCSS). In addition, my Ministry also facilitates VWOs to source for funds from various private corporations and donors, as well as through fund-raising initiatives, such as the recent President's Challenge. Apart from funding VWOs for running costs, my Ministry has also set up the VWO Capability Fund (VCF) in July 2002 to help VWOs upgrade the professional standards and capability of their staff, fund pilot programmes and support info-communications technology initiatives. This fund is managed by the NCSS, and it will provide $30 million over five years.”
“Ngiam Tee Liang (Nominated Member): Sir, I would like to ask the Minister whether his Ministry is satisfied with the standard of training that service providers in Seniors Activity Centres are receiving, such that they could assist older persons living alone in 1-room flats, even with the improved housing conditions, in a more effective way. There was an incident publicised recently where a person with a Seniors Activity Centre at his block could still go unnoticed for so many days after his demise. Assoc. Prof. Dr Yaacob Ibrahim: Sir, we are quite satisfied with the training programmes that are being provided for the various centres catering to the elderly. With respect to the case that the hon. Member has mentioned, it was an unusual case where this particular elderly was actually registered with the activity centre but he chose not to attend any of the programmes and he was alone and aloof, and remained outside the community. So, I think the system which we have in place - we ask them for their permission as to whether we can go and visit them - is still valid. The question is whether or not we should make the effort on our own to go knocking door-to-door is something that we have to ask. This is currently being done by volunteers already through the Befrienders' scheme, but perhaps we could step up more such efforts, especially in areas where there are elderly living on their own. VOLUNTARY WELFARE ORGANISATIONS (Funding assistance) 14.”
“Nine Home Help Services are available for the elderly who need help in their day-to-day activities at home, including hot meals, personal care services, laundry, housekeeping and escort for medical appointments. Today, more that 1,100 elderly are being served island-wide. Since 1993, my Ministry has worked closely with the HDB on its "Project to Improve the Living Conditions of the Elderly" at 1-room rental flats. The project undertook physical upgrading to make the units elder-friendly and safe for the many elderly residents there. The HDB also installed an Alert Alarm System (AAS) that is manned by a suitable Seniors Activity Centre or Neighbourhood Link. The system allows the elderly to call for help simply by tugging a string, and is available at all units occupied by the elderly. For the less ambulant or non-ambulant and homebound elderly, the HDB may also issue a personal wireless alarm transmitter that can be worn, either as a necklace or on the wrist. It can be used to activate the same AAS, if the elderly cannot reach the pull cords. Sir, my Ministry will continue to work with other Government agencies and community organisations to better reach out to our elderly. However, the best efforts may still have gaps, if friends and neighbours do not also play their part in looking out for the isolated elderly in their midst. Community organisations, like Neighbourhood Links, will continue to engage the more ambulant elderly in their area to volunteer in community activities and provide a wider reach. Together, Sir, I am confident we can strengthen the community network for the support, assistance and monitoring of the well-being of the elderly living on their own. Assoc. Prof.”
“I share the Member's concern about elderly individuals living alone who may not get help in time should they need it. As more elderly come to live on their own, it is important for us to build stronger community support and involvement to safeguard their safety and well-being. Sir, my Ministry is setting up various services to help the elderly age in place in familiar surroundings. Currently, three different types of services supported by MCDS offer visitation and regular contacts with elderly living on their own. These are the Befriender Services, the outreach programmes conducted by local Seniors Activity Centres and Neighbourhood Links, and Home Help Services. Apart from these MCDS-supported services, there are Home Medical and Home Nursing services for the homebound elderly in need of medical care. While different services have their specific focus, each one provides the critical service of "keeping an eye" on the elderly at home. Volunteer befrienders of the Lions Befrienders Service Association pay regular visits to poor and lonely elderly in the community. There are 3,900 elderly in the programme today. Twenty Seniors Activity Centres and 10 Neighbourhood Links have been set up so far in various neighbourhoods, particularly those with more elderly residents. The centre staff and the volunteers help to engage the elderly living in their area. They maintain a register of frail elderly, especially those living alone within their vicinity. With their permission, the staff or volunteers visit these elderly regularly. My Ministry plans to increase the number of Neighbourhood Links to 20 by 2005 to reach out to more of our elderly.”
“Sir, would the Minister examine why there are so few infant care centres and review the various regulations that govern the setting up of these infant care centres? Assoc. Prof. Dr Yaacob Ibrahim: Sir, the basic problem with infant care centres is that we need a high degree of specialisation because these are young children between 0-18 months. So, the ratio is something that we have to think through carefully. More often than not, we just do not need a childcare specialist but someone with some nursing capabilities. Secondly, because of that, the cost would be high. At the moment, we have extended the childcare subsidy also to infant care, and it is a question of how do we balance this together with the development of the industry. It is new in Singapore. If my memory serves me right, about seven organisations are running infant care. We are looking into helping more VWOs and even private-sector companies to come into this industry and open up more infant care centres for our young families. ELDERLY PERSONS LIVING ALONE (Safeguarding well-being and safety) 13. Mr Ang Mong Seng asked the Minister for Community Development and Sports in view of the increasing number of aged persons living by themselves and the recent news of an elderly person whose death at home had gone unnoticed for days, (a) how many elderly persons are either living alone or with their elderly spouse in 2003; (b) what home visitation schemes are in place; and (c) what personal devices can be issued to monitor their safety and minimise the number of similar cases from recurring. Assoc. Prof. Dr Yaacob Ibrahim: Sir, the Census 2000 report indicates that 6.6% of Singapore residents who are aged 65 years and above, live on their own. Another 13.9% live with their elderly spouse.”
“Lastly, to allow the members or consumers to minimise their loss with the ability to sell or transfer their investment or product at a reasonable transfer fee. To use the Small Claims Tribunal for these cases, MTI may have to work with the Ministry of Law on their set up and the ability to cope with the cases. I understand that recently the Subordinate Courts have put a limit to the number of cases each Town Council could submit for their arrears in service and conservancy charges. There should also be continuing public education programmes subsequent to the passing of the Bill. We hope the Government agency and CASE could work closely with the grassroots agency to inform the public of their rights under the new amendments, explain the avenues open to them to seek redress for unfair trade practices, make them aware what they need as evidence so that they do not unwittingly throw away important documents, and tell them how to avoid high-pressure sales tactics. The acid test for the public before they make any commitment is to ask: "Is this deal too good to be true and what is the catch?" Then, make the decision and do not regret.”
“Mr Speaker, Sir, I stand to support the Consumer Protection (Fair Trading) Bill. Responsible retailers who believe in the principles of fair trading should support the Bill. The umbrella body representing these retailers should also participate jointly with the Consumers Association of Singapore to encourage fair trading both for the retailers and consumers. Retailers should be encouraged, in particular, to accept a goods-returnable policy, of course, with sufficient safeguards for the retail operations. However, the specific unfair practices in the Second Schedule is a long list. It should also allow the retailers sufficient time to work out the operation details with the suppliers to safeguard their interest as well as to support the Bill. Recalcitrant offenders should be brought to book and publicly chastised. The recent media publicity on STB's action against some shops was commendable. MediaCorp Radio should also be commended for running the consumer watch programme. We should encourage more umbrella bodies to constantly continue to make the public aware of such recalcitrant cases. I share with Mr Sin Boon Ann's concern on time-share contracts. I would like to request that this Consumer Protection (Fair Trading) Bill also protects the consumer's interest in proprietary clubs and time-sharing facilities and resorts, to review the form of corporation, to hold the investment of its members or, if deemed as a consumer product, the ownership of the product held in trust for the members, the adequacy of the disclosure of information to members as regards the management of the investment or products, and allow the members a general meeting to question the proper management of the club, hence the protection of one's own investment.”
“Sir, I would like to ask the Minister whether he can consider additional financial assistance for children who are slightly handicapped and also have learning difficulty, especially those who are mildly dyslexic and autistic children. Assoc. Prof. Dr Yaacob Ibrahim: Sir, I do not have the exact figures now, but earlier this year we have extended some of the schemes to children with mild difficulties in learning. But I will be most happy to supply the information to the Member. PRIMARY ONE ENROLMENT (Minimum literacy and numeracy skills) 10. Ms Braema Mathiaparanam asked the Acting Minister for Education (a) what are the minimum literacy and numeracy skills needed for a child to be successfully enrolled into Primary 1; (b) what programmes are there to prepare the child, who has fallen short of these standards, for Primary 1; and (c) what is the rationale for such minimum requirements in Primary 1.”
“Sir, as I understand it, there is a safety officer on site at the training scene. Will the Minister reveal the scope of the role and responsibility of these safety officers and their effectiveness on the site itself? I would also like to reiterate the Member's request for an independent safety officer, ie, someone who is not within the command of the unit. RAdm Teo Chee Hean: I have already responded on the matter of the independent safety officer. The issue at hand is really whether the safety officer carries out his duties. In this case, I think the safety officer would be found wanting in his duties. If he had carried out his duties properly, many of these things would have been stopped.”
“Sir, do we have a breakdown of the statistics of those that are involved in the accidents, for example, the children, the various adult age groups or even the foreign workers - I see a lot of foreign workers cycling around the estates - so that education efforts could be targeted? Assoc. Prof. Ho Peng Kee: Sir, in terms of the accidents involving cyclists, the number has crept up slightly. In terms of fatalities that have come up this year, most of them did not involve children. Once in a while we may have a child being hurt, and that catches our attention. But the vast number of cyclists will be adult cyclists. I think it is better to really cover the ground, because we are also concerned about children. And, indeed, in terms of children's awareness of road dangers, we cannot take that for granted. Let us take this current approach where Traffic Police will cover the ground working with various agencies to bring home the important message of not only safe cycling but also safe use of the roads and safe driving.”
“Sir, I want to make a clarification. I think there has been a briefing conducted by the Singapore Sports Council to the grassroots leaders, as well as members of the Constituency Sports Club, regarding the increase in the entrance fees for the sports facilities. So I think the Singapore Sports Council has not briefed him properly.”
“As Mr Inderjit Singh said, they want more discretion on how to use their earnings. Sir, many young professionals feel this way and I think they deserve an explanation as to why the rules are the way they are. Otherwise, as one of them said to me, "Why stay in Singapore to work where nearly 40% of your salary is not within your control?" I hope that as we retune the CPF to be more responsive to business conditions worldwide, we will also tune in to be more responsive to members' concerns. Sir, I support the measures introduced to retune the CPF.”
“I also want to echo this call but for the purpose of encouraging Singaporeans to be more independent and responsible for their own future. Several of the young people I spoke to were, in fact, dismayed at the increase in the Minimum Sum and at the abolition of the right to withdraw 50% at 55. Many in fact said that they have no interest in what happens when they are over 70 or 80. They see the new rules as Government's kiasuism and some even suspect that the Government wants to keep their money longer for reasons unknown to them. They argued that if the Government wants to cultivate an attitude of financial independence, prudence and entrepreneurship amongst young Singaporeans, this is not the way to do it. Very simply, Sir, these young Singaporeans want a more flexible CPF system after the Minimum Sums have been accumulated. No one objects to the principle behind the CPF. As the Prime Minister says, it is our only social safety net. Everyone welcomes the DPM's speech on measures to help needy families tide over the problems caused by the cuts. But what the young Singaporean wants to see is whether he or she can be responsible for the use of his or her money after the Minimum Sums have been accumulated. It is suggested that once the Minimum Sums have been reached, an option should be given to the member to either reduce his contribution rate, withdraw the sums in excess of the Minimum Sums, whatever his age, or to choose not to continue with the CPF contributions altogether. Some already think that the current rule of withdrawing 50% at 55 is too restrictive. They see the current uses allowed as far too restrictive. For example, it cannot be used for starting a business or for retraining themselves or educating their children.”
“I am very glad that Minister Mah had informed the House that BCA is looking at improving the payment procedures to the contractors doing public sector works, including the progress payments, the variation orders and reviewing the withholding payments for liquidated damages. I have been told of this by two contractors consecutively. A contractor is required to prepare for at least three to four, and sometimes five, inspections in the course of handing over a completed HDB project. I understand that the cost to prepare each inspection is about $10,000 and hence five inspections would be $50,000. It was argued by one of the grassroots leaders that this is the latent cost which is not even an open Government administrative cost. Another example is that one minute scratch, which is not a crack, would require a change of the whole piece of glass, regardless of the size. This is how costs have escalated! We have to examine all these issues and address them. The success of our future lies in our hands today. The seeds we plant will germinate and grow, for us to harvest on a sunny day. [Mr Deputy Speaker (Mr Chew Heng Ching) in the Chair] 5.27 pm Assoc. Prof. Chin Tet Yung (Sembawang): Sir, thank you for allowing me to join in this debate. Hon. Members will be pleased to note that after so many of them have spoken and covered so many points, my speech is now reduced to a single point. Indeed, I cannot even claim credit for such a point for it is phased in a discussion with some young working Singaporeans about the CPF changes. Sir, Mr Inderjit Singh earlier spoke on the need to make the CPF more voluntary, both from the point of view of business and employees.”
“Take, for example, if SGH has an expensive specialist equipment, patients who are in NUH cannot benefit from it because of the cluster. So, NUH has to duplicate SGH and buy its own equipment. This is another area where the Cut Waste Panel could look into. Service in public health must not be allowed to suffer because of competition. This feedback is given by the medical profession. The second example is the running of the NEL line. Yes, we wanted competition for the operation of the MRT lines. Has the competition brought in lower cost and better transport service for the people? Where is the benefit of the integration of the bus and MRT lines? Is there no such thing as affordable fare after we have privatised our transport services? Do we need more transport companies for competition or should we revert to one company for the train and another company for the buses? If this review is not under the Cut Waste Panel, maybe another committee should be set up to review this basic infrastructure on competitiveness of our public services that are no longer considered as state provisions. I applaud the Government on the early release of infrastructure projects to boost the construction sector. However, on productivity, the construction sector must seriously look into how their productivity can be improved. Where are they lacking compared with developed countries? Why? How can these be improved? We have also seen some local construction companies going bust doing Government infrastructure projects. Why? Are we administering the contract effectively? Have our civil servants been too kiasu and added to the latent cost?”
“Do not look for easy solutions, for example, like closing down the swimming pool because you cannot cover overheads, especially during the SARS epidemic, or argue on the basis that there was no crowd, or intending to raise the entrance fees for use of sports facilities because of smaller Government grants. This intention to raise the entrance fees has been passionately argued by Mr Ong Ah Heng just now. The questions are: have you given enough publicity before you act? Did you carry out sufficiently good programmes to attract the crowd? Maybe, MCDS should adopt Mr Ong Ah Heng's suggestion to co-use the pool by fish and man. There may be no need for the change of use because it is a co-location. It does not mean that because the swimming pool has been in existence for a long time and the people are aware of the existence of the programmes that they are running. Passing on costs or making up for the shortfall in income by reducing the service and squeezing the public is not the way to deliver public service. I sincerely hope that the end result would not also be the ultimate Cut Waste Panel's review result too. Please do not give our people additional pills to swallow for the provision of public service, especially in this hard adjustment period. Competition is good in business and society. We all know that. It is meant to encourage efficiency and keep a check on prices. But sometimes competition can also have its bitter pill. Take the case of the healthcare services in Singapore. We have competing groups, each jealously guiding its own turf. The result is that each group has to invest heavily on infrastructure and equipment when, in fact, it would have been more cost-effective if these expensive high-tech equipment could be commonly shared.”
“Remember also there is a high depreciation cost for all this infrastructure which has to be paid annually. The important thing to remember is practicability. Does it make sense? Look at the Corrupt Practices Investigation Bureau. It is doing an effective public service but it is humbly housed in a recycled school building in Cantonment Road. Can these development costs be made more transparent for the public? I was searching through the HDB's annual reports for the current construction cost of HDB flats to ascertain a feedback given to me that the construction cost of a HDB flat has risen from about $40,000 in the 1990s to about $80,000 now. But I could not ascertain the cost from the annual reports. These are cost figures that the Cut Waste Panel should regularly monitor. HDB should also go back to the drawing board and ask what is its basic function. If its role is to provide good, quality public housing, then do so. Do not try to compete with the public sector and incorporate luxury into public housing. We have just recently debated in this House and spent time asking why the tempered glass shower screen cracks but we still have no answer. We cannot beat the private sector, because the prices are different and it is also for a different target market. Worse, we give luxury that is not luxurious, and the new flat owners hack out what we give and replace them. It is a waste of public funds. It only raises the cost of housing. Each Government department must look into how it has to manage its budget by cutting wastage, job enlargement or simplifying procedures.”
“I am particularly pleased to note that the Government is setting up a Cut Waste Panel. A lot of Members have said why not a No Waste Panel. I believe that the coverage extends to the civil service and statutory boards. Government Ministries and statutory boards should not lose sight of their basic objective, that is, what is their mission. Their task is to provide a very noble service, ie, to provide public service at an effective cost. One arena is the development cost of public offices, which includes the buildings, fixtures and fittings to house the Government offices and the other is the operating and running costs. "The Seven Wonders of Singapore" were stated by Mr Tan Soo Khoon in this House before and we have to ask: can an efficient public service be delivered without spending millions of dollars on buildings, fixtures and fittings in the offices? Looking at our Government offices now, many are in first-class buildings, with extensive glass curtain walling, granites and marbles, with high-grade fixtures and fittings. They cost millions of dollars to build, and they have to spend just as much to maintain these dazzling glasses, marbles and granites. It is not to say that Government and its related agencies must always be housed in run-down looking buildings. By all means, progress and advance by having modern Government buildings, but this should not be extravagant. Last Thursday, while waiting for DPM Lee to arrive at Dhoby Ghaut station in the NEL train, I was marvelling at a five-storey high glass atrium and was wondering if the atrium had been lowered, would it help lower the charges of the NEL fare? We can have brilliantly sculptured stations, but if they cause transport cost to go up, it would leave commuters with a painful souvenir.”