Ho Tat Kin
Singapore
“The only other stadium with a retractable roof in Europe is the Amsterdam Arena, which has a capacity of 50,000. The stadium has an adjoining retail, leisure and pleasure development, including shops, restaurants, pubs and hotels. There is a full year-round programme of international and local activities.”
“For example, NAC did not fund the musical Rent as it presented homosexuality and alternative lifestyles as an accepted way of life. I would like to reiterate that MITA has clear guidelines and criteria for the support of art productions. They include artistic merits and track records of applicants.”
“Preparing for retirement with sufficient money is only one important aspect. There are many other variables to take care in ageing. Sir, the Ministry has over the years spawned a whole new industry in childcare centres. These childcare centres provide good care for children with working parents.”
“What is the Ministry's plan on this? To give our sports a boost and lift it to higher levels, foreign talents would have to be imported. While they can play a supporting and aspiring role with local athletes, challenging and motivating them to excel, they should not replace our local talents.”
“Sir, MCD reviews the public assistance given to the poor and needy once every two years. I believe, this year, public assistance will be up for review also. I would like to ask what adjustments will be made to increase the amount given out under the Public Assistance Scheme.”
“May I ask what progress has been made by this Inter-Ministry Committee? Sir, in dealing with juvenile crimes, we should focus on the child and to see how best to reintegrate the kids back into society.”
The complete record
Every one of 230 lines we hold for Ho Tat Kin, in date order, each linked to its source. Free to read, in full, without an account. Page 4 of 5.
“Sir, I support this Bill. The main points of the Bill before us today is really about road safety and how we can make the roads safer for both motorists and pedestrians. Sir, while the number of road accidents did not increase significantly after 1984, deaths due to accidents on the roads started to increase in 1988 after reaching a low figure of 205 in 1987. Our fatality rate per 100,000 population was 7.85% in 1987 compared to 7.7% in Japan and 6.0% in Hong Kong in 1986. So new measures to improve road safety are necessary, particularly where increasing numbers of cars on the road tend to drive up accident rates. Sir, the amendments introduce measures to evaluate the performance of vulnerable drivers, such as those who have just qualified. I believe the amend- ment in this Bill will help to reduce the number of fatal accidents. With the amendment, newly qualified drivers will now be subject to a probationary period of one year and he would not get a qualified driving licence unless after successful completion of that one year probation period. I would like to ask the Minister if the Ministry has done any study on the correlation between the age groups of the newly qualified drivers and the number of accidents. Are the younger drivers more reckless and are therefore at greater risk to themselves and to others? Sir, I understand in Australia they also impose similar probationary periods on newly qualified drivers. Newly qualified drivers are required to put on a 'P' plate on their car. I would like to ask the Minister if the Ministry intends to introduce a similar scheme to help newly qualified drivers. Sir, in 1989 accidents due to drunken driving was 75% more than in 1988 and 110% more than in 1987.”
“I would like to urge the Minister to review the public assistance rates according to the present standard and cost of living so that the recipients will be able to meet their daily expenses until the next review of the public assistance rates.”
“I would like to suggest MCD consider a scheme where they liaise with the Ministry of Education and hence the schools to ensure that these children get a decent breakfast or decent lunch while in school. This can come through a subsidy given directly to the school to administer, to provide for the children and this subsidy could include things like bus fares, school uniform, textbooks and stationery. Sir, another group of people who need some form of special public assistance is the single parent families. Not only do they need financial support, they may also need counselling and psychological assistance. Some of these single parent families also have young children to look after. To allow single parents to work, I would like to suggest to the MCD to provide some form of public assistance which could cover the cost of child care service. Mr Loh Meng See (Kampong Glam)( In Mandarin): Sir, in 1986, people who received public assistance came to about 3,874. Since then, the number of such recipients has been declining. This year, the projected number of public assistance recipients is only 3,380, compared to 3,390 last year. The difference is very negligible. This is a good sign. On the other hand, it also means that there are people who are in difficulty and need public assistance from the State. Last year, during the debate on the budget for MCD, in reply to my query the Minister said that public assistance rates would be reviewed in 1990. I hope the Minister will have some good news for this House and the recipients of public assistance.”
“Thank you, Sir. I support the views put forward by Dr Vasoo on the plans to assist destitute families. Currently, the Ministry of Community Development has a very stringent means test to qualify applicants for public assistance. When applicants for public assistance are found to be able to get help from relatives and friends, they are disqualified from public assistance. There is an estimate of about 22,140 very low income families belonging to the category which is living slightly above destitute standards. But when these families are faced with some severe setbacks such as the loss of the wage earner, they are likely to fall into destitution if left without support. Very often, these families have arrears in rental and PUB bills. When they cannot pay the HDB rentals, HDB will evict them. When they cannot pay PUB bills, PUB cuts off the water and electricity supply. And if the family has school-going children, the children cannot even study at home because there is no light. I would like to propose a scheme to help these families. Will the MCD consider a rent and utilities assistance scheme to help these destitute families to meet the basic needs for shelter and utilities? This could be just temporary assistance until one of the wage earners gets a job. But very often, the wage earners of these families tend to have no skills and hence have difficulties in getting a job. So arrangements could be made to send them for on-the-job training or skills training and the Skills Development Fund could be approached to provide full funding for the skills training. Children belonging to such families also need support.”
“Sir, I beg leave to withdraw the amendment. Amendment, by leave, withdrawn.”
“Sir, I beg to move, That the sum to be allocated for Head Q be reduced by $10 in respect of Code QC 1500 of the Main Estimates. Sir, illegal parking has been a constant problem on Singapore roads and in some housing estates. In January this year, the Traffic Police did a very good job in clearing many illegal parking. I want to find out from the Minister what progress has been made to solve illegal parking problems since then? Illegal parking poses a hazard to other road users. Drivers who park illegally or double park or some even triple park, block off the free access to roads. Currently, the police issues summons and tow away vehicles. From 392 cars towed away in 1986, there is a nearly three-fold increase to 1,555 cars in 1988. But towing away illegally parked cars is very labour-intensive and is very unproductive work. Towing charges at present are also no deterrent. For example, towing charge for motorcycle is $40, while towing charge for cars which exceed 3,000 cc is only $110. People who can afford to drive a 3,000 cc car will consider a towing fee of $110 as tips. If you look at the storage charges for tow-away vehicles, it is $10 for motorcycle but for a 3,000 cc car it is only $20. These charges are definitely out of proportion. What I would like to suggest is that towing fees and storage charges be made proportional to the size of vehicles and the offenders be charged the two costs involved. Can the Ministry also seriously consider using the lock-wheel system to immobilise illegally parked cars? I think this has been used at some multi-storey car parks with some success.”
“Sir, I would also like to ask the Minister for an update of the Singapore Joint Civil Defence Force. Since last year, have there been any operational difficulties encountered? And if so, what are they? Have the operational difficulties been resolved since? And if not, what measures will be taken to ensure that the Singapore Joint Civil Defence Force will operate smoothly? Sir, in all uniformed services, there is always some elite group to set the pace and eventually the performance of such an elite unit will trickle down to the rest of the Force, for example, the Guards and the Commandos in the SAF and the Tactical Task Force in the Police. I understand the SJCDF is now in the process of forming such an elite group called DART which will undertake special rescue work. I would like to ask the Minister for the progress made in the formation of DART and the difficulties encountered. Sir, in late February this year, the Minister opened the new Police HQ at Pearl's Hill. This new Police HQ brings together for the first time many key departments of the Police which previously were dispersed in several places. Obviously, command and coordination will be improved. It will make sense to have the SJCDF located in one operational HQ in a similar manner. I would like to ask the Minister what progress has been made in this direction.”
“Last year, at the Committee of Supply, the Minister informed this House of plans to have a new Police Academy with new training curriculum by 1994. I would like to ask the Minister for an update of the progress made since then. I would also like to ask the Minister in particular what aspects of special training to solve murder crimes will be included as murder cases have risen sharply in 1989 to 71 cases compared to 54 cases in 1988 and 50 cases in 1987.”
“Sir, in mid-February this year the Minister announced a very good revised salary scheme for the Singapore Police Force and officers of the uniformed service of the Ministry of Home Affairs. Sir, I support this salary revision scheme. This scheme is necessary and timely. It is necessary because the Singapore Police Force is suffering a shortage of about 23% in senior manpower and not only must their salary scale and career path be attractive enough to encourage young people to join but, most important of all, encourage good people to join the Police as crime prevention and crime detection are difficult jobs. Sir, the salary revision is timely because there is a lot of competition at present for the 'O' level and the 'A' level students. If the salary revision was announced just before the 'O' and 'A' levels results, I believe the Police Force will be able to attract many good school leavers. In order to attract more people to try out the service of the Police Force, the Minister also announced the 6-year contract scheme. While I support this scheme, I believe a 6-year contract may not attract too many young people. As I understand, young people today do not want to tie themselves down to one organisation for too long. I understand some brilliant young people today do not want to apply for scholarships or bursaries because they do not want to sign the bonds. I would therefore like to suggest to the Minister to consider contracts of 3 years to attract more people to join the Force. A 3-year contract scheme will allow both sides to evaluate each other and if both sides are happy at the end of three years, they can always extend the contract for another three years. Having got the better applicants to join now, obviously the training programme must do justice to them.”
“Use of inaccurate computer data arising from manipulation and erasure of personal data by unauthorised persons do not constitute an offence, unless it affects the economic interests of the holder of that information. But this will only attract civil remedies. We have no law at present against eavesdropping into computer system by acoustic tapping or tapping of electromagnetic waves emitted by transmission lines. We have no statutory provision which deals with computer virus. Sir, we should have laws to deter people from spreading computer virus. We should have laws to compensate those who suffer loss due to computer crime and we should have laws to punish those who exploit computer systems for criminal purposes. Today, computer crimes in various forms are already a serious problem in the West, and they have taken steps to introduce legal deterrents. In California, Switzerland, West Germany, Denmark, France and Sweden, there are examples of legislation to deal with some aspects of criminal law. In October 1989, the Law Commission for England and Wales recommended a hierarchy of offences. The first level, a summary offence, is for mere unauthorised access, and is seen as indicating the new legal environment. Higher level offences, including fraud and damages would carry substantial prison sentences. This is difficult to frame, and there are international implications with the world-wide use of networks and cross-boundary network systems. Sir, although different countries differ in their approach as to how the issue of computer crime can best be dealt with, and some are at best rudimentary, yet these are models which we should study with a view to determine the best approach for our legal system to deal with computer crime.”
“The recent and devastating virus attacks on computer systems all over the world, which caused great financial loss to many organizations, have received widespread publicity in the international media. One can imagine what could have happened to Singapore had the "Friday, the 13th" virus infected our Government networks, the banks and the financial institutions, corrupting all the information. Since any computer security system designed by computer professionals can be broken by other unscrupulous professionals, and as the number of computer fraud cases grows, with more high value funds illegally transferred, some legal measures to deter or stop computer crimes are necessary. The interim measure taken by more and more financial institutions is to obtain insurance coverage to protect against substantial losses from computer crime. But there is no legal deterrent. In fact, other than provisions dealing with the evidentiary aspects of computer-generated information, the written laws of Singapore do not at all deal with many issues which the widespread usage of computer technology has brought about. Currently in Singapore, theft of processing, storage and transmission services by data processing employees for their own purpose does not constitute an offence. Unauthorised access to computer systems or hacking does not constitute an offence. Our existing laws could only be used for traditional business offences assisted by computer, which include the misuse of computers by management of fraudulently operating companies to defraud customers, investors, Government agencies, etc. We have no laws relating to the protection of privacy of computer stored information.”
“An enterprising office boy sat himself in front of the terminal. Within one hour he withdrew $1.2 million from the bank. Sir, these are just examples. Cases of theft and cheating involving ATMs rose from 69 cases in 1986 to 90 cases in 1987 and to 125 cases in 1988. Today if a person robs a bank with a gun, he faces the death penalty. Without a gun he may get 10 years jail sentence, but robbing a bank using a computer he may get two to three years' imprisonment. On top of that, detection is more difficult. Currently there is no legal requirement for any computer crime to be reported to the police and it is generally suspected that many computer crimes are not reported so as not to harm the reputation of the organizations. According to the Electronic Data Processing Fraud Review Task Force of the USA, only about 5% of all computer crimes in their country are detected. Sir, money is not always the motive in computer-related crime. Industrial espionage, industrial sabotage, theft of important business information or the destruction of information are other motives. There were also cases of unscrupulous employees who placed a time-bomb in the programmes they created. For example, when the payroll is run, and his name is not found, ie, he has been sacked, the entire payroll system can be sabotaged. There are also hackers, people who think they are very smart, breaking into computer systems for various reasons - sometimes for fun, sometimes to show off their skills, sometimes to sabotage, and sometimes for blackmail. Some even plant virus that destroys data. Many computers are now linked by telecommunication net- works, and many network links are across international boundaries. This means computer virus can spread very fast and cause greater damage.”
“Sir, I move this amendment so as to share with the House some concern among the information technology industry and computer users of the lack of legislation to deter computer-related crime and hope to persuade the Minister to correct this deficiency. Sir, although at present the Trade Marks Act and Copyright Act are in use in information technology matters involving copyright issues, both the Trade Marks and Copyright offences are generally not considered computer-related crimes although they relate to computer hardware and software. The term "computer crime" generally involves illegal, unethical or unauthorised behaviour involving automatic data processing and/or transmission of data, cases such as computer fraud, computer espionage and computer sabotage offences. In the 80s, with the strong Government push, many organisations automated their operations with computers. Banks were one of the first to do so and bank customers could draw money through automated teller machines or ATMs. In 1982 we had the first of the computer-related crimes. A 21 year old woman, an ex-computer operator of POSB, was by virtue of her position entrusted with custody of keys to the cabinets where the keys to various ATMs and the safe combination numbers were kept. Using this information, she stole $83,600 from a POSB ATM. She was subsequently caught and charged with an offence of Theft in Dwelling, an offence under section 380 (Chapter 103). She was found guilty and sentenced to 15 months' imprisonment. In 1985, another bank lost $35,900 through fraudulent transactions using bank computer terminals. Yet in 1986 another bank employee stole $376,000 from the bank's ATMs within five days. In 1987, there was yet another case where a bank teller left a terminal unattended.”
“I would also like to find out from the Minister, in the meantime, while my suggestion is being considered, what measures can be taken to reduce air pollution from motor vehicles.”
“Sir, pollution to the environment takes place in many forms. We have heard of the effect of release of CFCs or chloroflurocarbons into the atmosphere and the need to control CFCs. Besides cutting down on CFCs, we need to cut down also emissions due to the burning of fuels, as the global warming brought about by the greenhouse effect becomes more and more imminent. Most drivers do not realise they have an important role to play in protecting the environment. In Singapore, as more and more people use cars, the emissions from the cars will add pollution to the air. All car engines burn fuels giving off carbon dioxide, unburned hydrocarbons and gas like carbon monoxide or nitrogen oxide. There is only one immediate way to reduce the pollution, and that is to burn less fuel. So to do that, control the number of cars. But that, Sir, is not desirable. In the longer term, much can be done by improving car engines and by better transport systems, for example, electrical transport system. Car users can help in controlling air pollution by fitting catalytic convertors (CATs) to the car emission system, especially for old cars. Experiments have shown that a car fitted with a CAT reduces carbon monoxide and hydrocarbons by as much as 90%. A car fitted with a CAT can reduce nitrous oxide by as much as 70%. In Switzerland, many drivers have installed CATs to second-hand cars. In the Netherlands, by the end of 1988, over 60% of new cars have been fitted. In Sweden, catalytic convertors have now become mandatory. Sir, I would like to ask the Minister to seriously consider the introduction of regulations to make it compulsory for all old cars in Singapore to be fitted with catalytic convertors and, in time, all cars should be so fitted.”
“This means that town councils do not have enough surplus from the S&C charges to do development works, such as more footpaths, more stone tables and chairs, playgrounds and so on. I would like to appeal again to the Minister to set up some form of development grants to which the town council could apply for assistance.”
“But I believe CATV is not a very critical item and if the CATV is still in good working condition, then we can have some savings if we only replace those that need replacement. What I want to know is when we have some savings from one aspect of work, can the town council keep this savings to use for other aspects of work, such as development projects or must we return the savings to the Ministry? The Ministry should really provide some flexibility for the town council in managing its grants. Sir, the grants, as calculated by the Ministry, as I understand, is based on a 15-year life of the flat. But in older towns there are many flats which are 20 years old or even older. Obviously, older flats have more maintenance problems than newer flats. For example, flats of age older than 15 years will need to replace the CATV; flats of 20 years will need rewiring; flats of 25 years will have to replace water pipes; and flats of 28 years will have to overhaul and upgrade the whole lift system. All these works are very expensive works. I would like to appeal again to the Minister to calculate the grants based on the actual life of the flats, and not based on an arbitrary figure of 15 years. Town councils also have the responsibility to look after development of the town. Currently, we have only one other source of income, ie, from the service and conservancy charges. These S&C charges are in fact very low. They have been held constant for the last eight years, while the wages of cleansing workers have in fact gone up since 1988 by at least another 33%. Of course, town councils can increase S&C charges but how much can we increase at one time.”
“Sir, grants provided by the Ministry to the town councils are calculated based on 1986 prices. But wages of skilled and technical workers have gone up since 1986 by about 40%. To provide for inflation, it is therefore natural for the town councils to put the grants in fixed deposits to earn interest. But the interest earned from investment of the grants is taxable. A town council is not a profit-making body, neither is it a revenue-generating body. It is a statutory board set up to provide a service to residents. I would like to appeal to the Minister to seriously giving tax exemption status for the interest we earn from investing the grant so that the interest can be used to offset the increase in maintenance cost. The range of preventive and cyclical maintenance work that the town councils need to do is still not very clear. Town councils were given to understand that the type of preventive and cyclical work consists of nine items and the type of preventive and cyclical maintenance work in general relates to common properties outside the flat. Recently, we were told that the main soil waste pipe system within the flat forms part of the common property to be maintained by the town council. When we refer to the table of preventive and cyclical maintenance work given to us earlier, this item of work was not included. Obviously, this additional item of maintenance work seems to be an after-thought. I would like to appeal again to the Minister to provide additional grants for the maintenance of the main soil waste pipe system. One of the items that needs cyclical maintenance is the replacement of the CATV once every 17 years.”
“Mr Speaker, Sir, this Bill which seeks Parliament's approval for an extension of the Act for another five years is concerned with crime in Singapore and how our law enforcement authority can take adequate measures to deal with crime. As a result of the Criminal Law (Temporary Provisions) Act which has been in operation since October 1955, secret society and gangster organizations have been suppressed, and Singapore's crime rate today is one of the lowest in the world. While secret society and gangster organizations are under control, we still need strong measures to ensure that they do not return to the scene. Sir, I agree with the Minister that drug traffickers are the worst type of criminals. Very stringent measures are therefore required to control or curb drug trafficking. At present even with the mandatory death penalty and the Criminal Law (Temporary Provisions) Act, drug trafficking still constitutes the majority of all criminal law detainees. One can imagine what will happen to the Singapore drug scene if Parliament does not extend the Act for a further period of five years. I therefore support this Bill, Sir. The Criminal Law (Temporary Provisions) Act has been brought before Parliament for extension every five years since 1955. Much has been debated on the pros and cons of this Act and I do not intend to repeat that again. I just want to seek some clarification. The Act itself includes built-in safeguards to prevent its abuse. I would like to find out from the Minister if the built-in safeguards are adequate in today's context. Are the built-in safeguards reviewed regularly to ensure they are effective?”
“Mr Chairman, Sir, currently the Civil Defence Force has more than 25,000 civilian volunteers in the 81 constituencies. I would like to know, as a result of the integration of the two services, what are the implications in relation to the role of the Civil Defence volunteers, what measures or re-training programmes will be mounted to ensure that the civilian CD volunteers will continue to play an effective role. Sir, I would like to go on to the Singapore Fire Service. It is very common to see escape routes and stairways in shopping complexes blocked by discarded boxes or used as additional storage space. It is also just as common to see blocked fire exits at shopping complexes. In the event of a fire, when lifts cannot be used, such fire escape routes, if blocked, will trap people in the building. Butenforcement action under the present Fire Service Act is very limited. When the Fire Service comes to know of such blocked or locked fire escape routes, all they can do at present is to remove the obstruction or break open the locks. Enforcement action against recalcitrant offenders is therefore very labour-intensive and unproductive. Sir, there are more than 350 high-rise commercial buildings and over 3,500 high-rise apartments in Singapore. It is not possible for the Fire Service Officers to go round checking all the fire escape routes. I would like to know what amendments will be made to the Fire Service Act to give the Fire Service better enforcing powerto tackle such problems.”
“As each of the departments, the Police, the CNB and the Prisons, are all embarking on computerization, I would like to suggest that the Ministry introduce an integrated intelligence sharing system using a very large computer database. Sir, the Marine Police has the responsibility of maintaining law and order within territorial waters, such as checking on smuggling. The Marine Police has also the important role of providing assistance to the Singapore Navy in protecting our territorial waters during an emergency. I would like to find out from the Minister what measures will be taken to upgrade the operational capabilities of the Marine Police.”
“Sir, I support the points raised by the Chairman of GPC for Law and Home Affairs regarding the upgrading of the Police Force. I feel that the upgrading of the Police Academy is overdue. But the upgrading of the Police Academy should not be limited to acquiring sophisticated training hardware only. I feel that training courses, training curriculum and syllabus will need to be constantly revised and updated to meet the needs of the officers in today's crime prevention scenario. Sir, some foreign universities offer a degree course on criminology. I would like to suggest that the new Police Academy, maybe in conjunction with NUS or NTI, offer a part-time degree course in criminology for the serving Police officers. Such course will provide the academic training to complement the field experience of the senior officers and will provide motivation for the officers to upgrade themselves. I would also like to suggest to the Minister that the new Police Academy include schools of training for the Prison Service as well as the Central Narcotics Bureau officers. Crime prevention and crime solving depend very much on good intelligence. To maintain a high level of preparedness to deal with public disorder, Police officers will need good intelligence information. I think much of the information gathered by the CID will also be of interest or are related to the other departments such as the Narcotics Bureau, Prison Service and maybe even the Immigration Service. It will therefore make sense to coordinate the intelligence system covering the Police and other related departments so as to cut down on unnecessary duplication and to facilitate intelligence information sharing.”
“Sir, I beg to withdraw the amendment. Amendment, by leave, withdrawn. The sum of $36,679,600 for Head S ordered to stand part of the Main Estimates. The sum of $17,624,400 for Head S ordered to stand part of the Development Estimates. Head Q -”
“Sir, I hope the Minister will consider the suggestions.”
“An investor turning up in Singapore wanting to do business in the region needs only do a one-stop trip. The advantage of having a base in Singapore which will be the source of advice which will be appli- cable on a regional basis will be considerate in promoting Singapore as a regional centre for such service. Sir, a merger between a Singapore firm and a foreign firm resulting in foreign expertise being available within the umbrella of a Singapore law firm can only be forward looking in terms of realizing and taking advantage of regional opportunities here. Singapore will eventually emerge as a legal centre for the region. As a consequence, the support to the financial community, the trading and commercial community, will require in cross-border transactions will be found within our country. Sir, the scope is considerable. We are in the region of healthy growth. We must be able to take advantage of that growth. The spinoff of basing such a source of service in Singapore can only be to improve Singapore's position as a regional centre for such service. We are already wellknown as a country with a high level of expertise in some areas of professional service. In medicine, telecommunications, information technology, we are acquiring recognition as a regional centre of competence and we should be doing everything possible to encourage the enhancement of that expertise within the financial and legal services. The degree of sophistication worldwide that is being developed in this area is such that we will be increasingly left behind if we do not take the necessary steps now to ensure a globalization of the service within the legal framework of Singapore. There are legislative changes to be made but what will be achieved thereby can only be beneficial to us.”
“In order to do that, the subsidiary companies and associated companies in the region which receive the service from the Singapore company will have to consider not only from the point of view of Singapore the legal tax consequences, but also from the point of view of the legal and fiscal systems of the region within which they operate. Sir, this is not possible, as the level of expertise now stands within the legal community in Singapore, for the investor to obtain all the necessary legal and financial services here. The Singapore lawyer having to cope with this problem should be able to respond to the overall needs of the regional investor. And in so doing, he should be able to provide the level of services that will be commensurate with the requirements of making Singapore a service centre of excellence for the region. There are two ways this can be done. One is to expect the Singapore lawyer to go out and obtain the requisite legal expertise and return to Singapore from where he can then provide the advice for a regional-based client from Singapore. If this happens, there will eventually be a source of legal expertise available which can provide a compendious service to the client. This process will require time and expense and is unattractive to the foreign investors. It is an alternative which is not attractive and is only second best. There is another alternative and I think this alternative could be better. It is for the Singapore legal profession to be encouraged to get into merger situations in Singapore with regional law firms with the appropriate expertise, so that there can be based in Singapore people with the expertise from the region. The law firm will then be able to generate an all-round information service covering the region.”
“Mr Speaker, Sir, the Government aims to develop Singapore into a regional financial centre. In order to do that, Singapore will require, amongst other things, a ready availability of legal expertise to support the growth of Singapore to function as a financial centre. International cross-border transactions are becoming more and more common. In the area of finance, funds are being set up in our country and being managed in another country. The changing world of finance requires that in order to keep up, Singapore has to internationalize its service and to upgrade its financial, legal and all related services to meet the demands of a financial community which is growing more and more sophisticated. Trade and industry also depends more and more on international contracts. With the growth of information technology and sophisticated telecommunications, the world has shrunk and there is an increasing tendency for regional and global perspective being placed upon the way business is carried out. In order that Singapore will not be left lagging behind in these international developments, we must establish within the country the infrastructure support to enable it to grow as a financial centre for the region. The present position is that such legal services serving a regional function are not available in Singapore. As an example, the establishment of the operational headquarters in Singapore by a foreign company will result in various economic and fiscal incentives being made available, provided that the company in Singapore is a corporate entity established here by having administrative, technical support, fund management, research and development in the region.”
“The point has been covered. I am not moving. The sum of $176,603,600 for Head M ordered to stand part of the Main Estimates. The sum of $174,300,000 for Head M ordered to stand part of the Development Estimates.”
“I feel that if the offender needs to be caned, then he should be caned only for subsequent offences. While caning may serve as a very strong deterrent to those who intend to enter Singapore illegally, so long as there is demand for this, the smuggling syndi- cates will try to bring in the illegal immigrants. As my GPC Chairman has said, it is organized crime. So there is therefore a very urgent need to stop the demand itself. Currently, those caught and convicted of harbouring or using illegal immigrant workers get a jail sentence and a fine. But I would like to suggest, in addition, they should also be made to pay for the cost of keeping the illegal immigrants caught, pay for the cost of keeping them in prison, and also for the cost of sending them home. Sir, finally, what about the punishment for those involved in the human smuggling syndicates which brought in the illegal immigrants? I would like to find out from the Senior Minister of State how this group of people would be punished when they are caught and convicted.”
“Mr Speaker, Sir, I will just elaborate on a few points brought up by my GPC Chairman. Sir, the presence of illegal immigrant workers is actually due to the strong demand created by employers, particularly the irresponsible employers who are willing to take on anyone so long as the workers are willing to work for long hours and low salaries. But the presence of this cheap labour in Singapore will make it difficult for our own unskilled Singaporeans to earn a decent living. These illegal immigrants also bring us social and security problems. Illegal workers before they are caught may knowingly or unknowingly break our rules and regulations. They may not be sensitive to our multi-racial and multi-religious society. The Senior Minister of State has reminded us of the health problems. But I thought it is worthwhile repeating them. The regular work permit holders are subject to medical examinations and only those whose health conditions are good are admitted. But illegal immigrants are not medically screened and therefore they may bring along diseases which could be dangerous and infectious, such as Aids or others. Sir, currently the country is spending near $10 million to imprison illegal immigrants, and this will increase if the problem is not solved. It is therefore in the interest of our people that illegal immigrants be curbed. I therefore support this Bill. But I feel our citizens should also support the Government policy and assist by informing the relevant authorities of illegal immigrants and those who offer them shelter. Sir, while I agree that we need stronger deterrence for those intending to enter the country illegally, I am concerned with the need to cane the offender, especially when the offender was the first time.”
“But what I am concerned with, like so many of our citizens are, is what appeal system do we have to replace the Privy Council when we break away from it? Sir, at present we have an honest PAP Government and the people trust the Government. But what about the future when there may not be an honest PAP Government around? What checks will there be in place to prevent a corrupt Minister in the future from abusing his powers? Sir, the questions I would like to ask the Minister are therefore: Do we have an alternative check system to replace that provided by the Privy Council? Are we ready to set up our own Court of Appeal? Do we have the necessary manpower in sufficient numbers to start our own Court of Appeal? Will the Government be able to set up our own Court of Appeal immediately to take over the work currently handled by the Privy Council? Finally, Sir, I think the public sees this amendment as an immediate reaction of the Government to the recent Privy Council decisions. In fact, some friends of mine in the legal profession told me that the Government is fire-fighting and is in such a hurry that even the wording of the Bill is not as well written as it should and improvements ought to be made. I hope the Minister could clarify these points, Sir.”
“Sir, if it is a question of national sovereignty that we are now an independent nation that has come of age and that we should have the final say on our own matters and therefore we should cut our links with the Privy Council, then we should all agree with this Bill. In fact, many sovereign nations in the Commonwealth have already done so. But, if issues need to be decided and judged locally, should it not apply to all matters, and not just internal security matters. Sir, our people accept the fact that the Government elected by them to run the country is responsible for our national security. The people also accepts the fact that only the Government could have all the resources, information and the experience to know when our national security is threatened and what actions must be taken immediately. But, Sir, the people also wants checks and balances to ensure that the Government do not abuse its power and to ensure that the power of detention under the ISA is invoked only when absolutely necessary. Up to the present, the Privy Council has been providing that check. Removing the appeal to the Privy Council for all judicial review cases under the ISA is removing the checks and people are obviously concerned. Sir, I am not against breaking away from the Privy Council. After Britain joined the European Community in 1973, the European influence on British Law had taken effect. Community law has become an integral part of British law and even the UK House of Lords are now subject to the final decisions of the Europrean Court of Justice. Sir, if we continue to tie ourselves to the Privy Council, then we are subjecting our way of life to the influence of the European mode of life which may not be entirely suitable.”
“This allowed the other races to watch the original Mandarin serials. Maybe SBC should in a similar way dub the other Tamil or Malay serials in English so that other races could also enjoy them. Finally, Sir, I believe the HDB will prevent the trend of separate communal enclaves from worsening through administrative restrictions. Sir, I urge the Government to handle this issue with extreme care. The Minister has assured the public that these policies will not disadvantage nor benefit any single community. Already those who are intending to sell their HDB flats are trying to do so as soon as possible in case the new restrictive measures from HDB make things difficult for them. Sir, I hope the HDB could operate any new administrative restrictions fairly so that HDB flat sellers will not be the ones who would lose out in the end.”
“Sir, I would like to suggest HDB spells out the desired mix of communal groups in the housing estates. In fact, getting the people to agree to an acceptable ratio in the racial balance in HDB estates and agreeing to the restrictive measures to be taken can itself be a good exercise in building consensus. But apart from ensuring a balanced mix of communal groups in HDB estates, the Government would still need to work harder towards moulding a multi-racial environment. Community centres can certainly help to break down more racial barriers by organizing additional activities in which all races could take part. Martial arts such as judo, karate, which have originated from Japan and Korea, are now practised in Singapore by all races. Yet some form of activities like Qi Gong, Wushu, Tai Chi, have been looked upon as health exercise and martial arts of the Chinese while Silat has been practised mainly by the Malays. Many different races in Singapore could practise judo and karate mainly because the instructions were given in English, thus cutting down the racial barrier. The People's Association, Sir, could train some instructors who could also teach Qi Gong, Tai Chi, or Silat, in English. Sir, another way could be through Karaoke which is now picking up very fast in community centres. But currently Mandarin songs seem to be dominating Karaoke sessions. This may be due to the easy availability of background music tapes from Taiwan. Sir, I would suggest the Ministry of Community Development or the People's Association help by commissioning more music tapes with a local flavour so that all races could join in in the Karaoke sessions. SBC recently dubbed some of the locally produced Mandarin serials in English.”
“They told me that those who could afford to buy 4-room flats or 5-room flats have a wider choice of the new housing estates. But for those who cannot afford this range, they have to go for 3-room resale flats as the HDB had closed the register for new 3-room flats since 1983. And we must also not forget that the price differential between new flats and resale flats is substantial. We are comparing $80,000 or more for 4-room improved flats with about $35,000-40,000 for 3-room resale flats. Sir, as a result, the number of choice available is limited. If they have to buy 3-room resale flats, it means that their family income is not high. So when they go off to work they will need friends or relatives who are also staying nearby to help look after their children. However, Sir, in spite of these valid reasons, if people of one race tend to concentrate on certain estates again, our national effort to get a proper racial mix in the housing estates will be frustrated. Therefore, introducing fair and clear policies to overcome this type of formation is then necessary. But the reasons for the drift towards racial enclaves need to be studied thoroughly so that we have a clearer understanding of this problem. Why, for example, Sir, do traditional areas which were formed along racial lines long ago, such as Serangoon Road and China Town, still have the psychological pull to the different races? Could urban redevelopment not help to remove such racial bias? Each year the Tourist Promotion Board lights up certain areas for different festivals. Could such demarcation have indirectly help to remind people that HDB estates in these areas have certain predominant racial groups? Should we not go by turn to light up different parts of Singapore instead?”
“Both the Government and the people will still need to learn a lot more about mutual consultations and consensus building. With the higher educational and intellectual level of Singaporeans, Sir, consensus building shall not be difficult to achieve. To ensure the general well-being of the country, Singaporeans must live in harmony. Inter-racial unity is the basis for our nation's long-term welfare and stability. But on the 6th January this year the Minister for National Development warned of the dangerous trend of a drift towards separate racial enclaves in the housing estates. The President in his opening address reiterated that this unhealthy trend towards segregation must be arrested. Sir, the way the Minister for National Development analysed and brought this matter out for discussion is commendable. It was not directed at any particular race, but at all the races as the problem concerns everyone in the country. What was stressed was the principle behind the thinking and the Minister's quick assurance that no HDB resident will be required to move from his present flat was reassuring. Sir, basically every Singaporean subscribes to the idea that we cannot afford and should not return to the old days of separate racial enclaves as the trend now starts to show. But in buying a house, whether a new one or a resale unit, people certainly choose a housing estate for practical reasons such as convenience of location in regard to place of work, in the neighbourhood of relatives and friends and, most important of all, the price of the flat must be within the budget. Some of my Malay friends told me that while they do not quarrel with the statistics shown by the Minister, they feel that they have good reasons which the Minister did not consider.”
“Mr Speaker, Sir, I support the Motion standing in the name of the hon. Member for Siglap. Sir, when the President informed this House of his Government's policies last Monday, he also focused the nation's mission for the next five years. The task ahead will be to build on, to monitor, and to protect what has been achieved. As the goals are to bring us, the people, nearer to the Society of Excellence, the goals touch on the welfare of all Singaporeans. Sir, it is therefore not just the Government's responsibility to see that these goals are achieved. The people has a greater responsibility to cooperate and work closely with the Government to see that the goals are achieved. It is not just the business of the Government but the responsibility of all Singaporeans to develop everyone's potentials and see to it that Singaporeans enjoy material satisfaction and lead a meaningful and full life. Sir, the people and the Government must share the same vision and determination if we are to ensure more good years. In order to reach our goals, the people must fully understand all the problems and reach a consensus on them through deliberations and consultations. We must reach an understanding and consensus over major issues ahead of us, such as the National Ideology and the Elected President system. But, Sir, solving problems by consensus, although rather new to us, has been used by the Japanese in their everyday lives. It may be a bit time consuming but it has been able to produce peace and harmony and allow all parties concerned to emerge satisfied. We had some good experience of consensus building when the nation discussed the National Agenda and the flexible wage system.”
“Sir, I thank the Minister for his reply and I beg leave to withdraw the amendment. Amendment, by leave, withdrawn.”
“Sir, since the launching of the Medisave scheme, more and more medical expenses have been loaded on to this scheme. The original philosophy of Medisave is to set aside every month a small but regular savings to ensure that we will be able to pay for our hospitalization expenses, particularly for old age health care as we expect the major portion of a person's lifetime hospitalization expense to be incurred after age 55. The 6% CPF contribution for Medisave was designed to meet the basic hospitalization needs of the average Singapore worker and his immediate family. It will not be adequate if he thinks of better than Class C wards in a Government hospital. As at 30th September 1987, 43.5% of Medisave accounts have an average of only $287 in balance. This means that about half the account holders do not have enough money for old age medical expenses. There is therefore an urgent need to educate CPF members to be conservative in using their Medisave money. At the same time, I feel the Ministry should consider some form of national health insurance scheme which could be used to cover most hospital expenses and allow the premium of this health insurance scheme to be deducted from Medisave. Once the national health insurance scheme is implemented, all other Medisave deductions should be stopped. And to encourage people to maintain themselves in good health, this national health insurance scheme should also carry a good no-claim bonus.”
“Health screenings, therefore, help to give early warning of our health conditions. I would like to suggest to the Minister to promote health screening for the people either on an annual basis or bi-annual basis. Health screening should not be just tests taken for blood, blood pressure, ECG and chest X-rays. It should include the opportunity for the person and the doctor to discuss any medical, pyschological and other problems with a view to helping the person to improve his health by changing to a better and healthier life-style. And to encourage people to go for health screening, I would like to urge the Ministry to allow the Medisave scheme to be used. But to prevent abuse, the Ministry should set a ceiling equivalent to that charged at Government hospitals for similar screenings.”
“Sir, I beg to move, That the sum to be allocated for Head P be reduced by $10 in respect of Code PA 1000 of the Main Estimates. Sir, admission to Government hospitals and visits to Government outpatient clinics have risen steadily in the last 10 years. Between 1971 and 1980, the annual rate of admission to hospitals increased from 76 per thousand population to 110 per thousand. The rate of increase over the decade averaged 4.3% per annum. This will continue to increase as the population grows and age, becomes more affluent and health conscious. In fact, the Ministry of Health projected that by the year 2000 the admission to hospitals will increase to 135 per thousand population. Sir, here I share the same concern as the Member for Kaki Bukit on the increasing medical expenses needed. People are generally more interested in having good health and, when that fails, good health care. Promotion of better health will in the long run help to reduce the rate of hospital admissions. Good preventive medicine and health education are important for good health and the key to good health is to educate the people to change their bad lifestyles such as excessive smoking, excessive alcohol consump- tion and excessive food and undue stress. The Ministry of Health's Training and Health Education Service has been doing a good job in the past and I feel they can do more. Most of us only consult a doctor when we have some disturbing symptoms or feel physically or mentally below par. We seldom go for health checks or screening. It was found that in the United States of America, one out of 10 men is in need of treatment for high blood pressure and four women in every 1,000 have been found to have breast cancer where a quarter of these could have been detected by X-rays.”
“Sir, are those who donate contaminated blood notified by the Ministry for follow-up treatment?”
“Sir, I beg leave to withdraw the amendment. Amendment, by leave, withdrawn.”
“Sir, these volunteers can then supplement NPP manpower, particularly after normal office hours. Being residents in the same constituency, it will be easier for them to gather information on crime activities. It will also allow residents to play a more active role in crime prevention.”
“Sir, I understand the staffing of NPP was based on a management consultant's report and this management consultant has worked out the manpower requirement based on the number of police reports received per day. It seems that on the average the NPP receive only three to four reports a day, or one report on an 8-hour shift. So to reduce wastage in manpower, the consultant recommend a reduction in manpower. I think the role of Police officers is not just to receive reports. They are there to prevent crime. The fact that so few Police reports were received could mean that NPP has been successful in reducing crime. So reducing the manpower at the post may not be a correct move. I understand at present a team at the NPP consists of only four officers. If one officer takes sick leave, at the same time another is away on annual leave, there will be only two left. At night there is only one officer at the counter on duty. However, when in an emergency such as a robbery, the single officer on duty is alerted he cannot leave his post. He has to call the police station to inform his OC that he is responding. Then he has to lock up the post before he can leave to deal with the robbery. Sir, lately crime prevention work has also been passed on to the NPP, thus increasing their work load. I would like to seek the Minister's assurance that the reduction in NPP manpower coupled with the increased responsibility of the NPP will not lead to increased crime rates. I would also like to suggest to the Minister to consider using police volunteers to supplement NPP manpower. I am thinking of a different form of volunteers, volunteers who live within the constituency themselves and they can be recruited and trained inside the constituency.”
“Sir, I beg to move, That the sum to be allocated for Head Q be reduced by $10 in respect of Code QC 1000 of the Main Estimates. Sir, when the Neighbourhood Police Post, or NPP, as we call it now, was started, the Japanese consultants recommend that a Police officer should be standing in front of the post to watch the people and what is going on. In Japan this is a very prominent feature of the koban system. But this practice is not followed in Singapore. I believe a police officer standing in front of the police post has more significance than just watching people and see what is going on. He is a front line crime preventer. To the residents, a police officer standing in front of a post reminds them that the Police is on the scene. It gives the residents a greater sense of security. It is also easier for a police officer to reach out to the residents, make friends and maintain a closer friendly working relationship with the residents. I think the NPP should not just remove this feature of the koban system just to reduce manpower. I hope the Minister can review this aspect of NPP work. When NPP was started, police patrolling of blocks was very common. Residents get to know the Police officers in charge of the block and the Police officers get to know the residents well. This is a very good feature of the NPP work. But recently residents started complaining. They no longer see Police patrolling the blocks anymore. They have also noticed a reduction in NPP manpower. Sir, in my constituency, the NPP started with 28 officers. Today we can only count 16 of them. The number of officers at the counter on a shift has also been reduced from two men to one man. Now one OC has to be shared between two posts.”
“Sir, I would not be raising the other issue on the cleanliness of Singapore River since the Minister has answered yesterday. Sir, I beg leave to withdraw my amendment. Amendment, by leave, withdrawn. The sum of $162,758,500 for Head M ordered to stand part of the Main Estimates. The sum of $296,762,000 for Head M ordered to stand part of the Development Estimates. Head Q -”
“Currently, the Ministry of the Environment and the Traffic Police are jointly involved in handling this problem. Is it necessary for two Government organizations to handle such problems? Will it not be more productive if just either one department is handling it?”
“Sir, I beg to move, That the sum to be allocated for Head M be reduced by $10 in respect of Code MF 1000 of the Main Estimates. Sir, diesel-driven vehicles such as taxis, lorries, buses and goods vehicles with excessive smoke emission represent a source of air pollution. Smoky vehicles emit soot particles and unburned hydrocarbons which are hazardous to health. Early last year, there were more smoky vehicles seen on the roads. I would like to ask the Minister what measures are taken to check and control vehicles with excessive smoke emissions. I understand there are more than 473,000 diesel vehicles registered in Singapore. I would like to know what percentage of the number has been found to be emitting excessive smoke earlier last year and whether the situation has improved recently. I understand there are another 30,000 Malaysian diesel vehicles issued with entry permits to Singapore each year. As foreign vehicles are not subject to the same stringent inspection regulations we have for Singapore vehicles, I would like to know what percentage of Malaysian diesel vehicles coming into Singapore has been found to emit excessive smoke in Singapore roads. What action has been taken to reduce this number and is there any check done at the Causeway? I would also like to find out from the Minister if the present system of imposing fines is a sufficient deterrent. How high are the fines in comparison with the fines for littering? Since smoke from diesel vehicles can be avoided if diesel engines are properly maintained and serviced, will it not be more effective if the fleet operators, such as SBS or NTUC Comfort and others are encouraged to commit their fleet to a proper and periodic maintenance programme either by persuasion or by regulations?”
“Sir, I beg leave to withdraw my amendment. Amendment, by leave, withdrawn.”