Jek Yeun Thong
Singapore
“Would the Minister now consider it wrong to allow CPF members to use their CPF money to buy shares in the stock exchange, people whom the Howe Yoon Chong Report not so long ago would like us to believe that they could not be trusted to look after their own savings and yet they are now allowed to participate in the stock exchange casino, s…”
“Mr Speaker, Sir, could I ask a supplementary question which either Minister can reply? Is the Minister surprised that the Voice of America, an organ created by the US government to counter Communist propaganda world wide, has been used to cast critical views on a non-Communist government such as the Singapore Government which is, in fact,…”
“Mr Chairman, Sir, the Minister has not touched on my point regarding the tuition fees of University students. I do not know whether he would like to take this opportunity to answer or he would want to leave it to others to answer it.”
“Also, there is no danger that the students having taken the loans would abscond or not come back since at the moment all the male students going overseas are providing bonds because of national service. And as for female students, if we are still having too many of them, we can easily arrange bonds for those who intend to take the loan.”
“Yes, of course. I think the trouble with the press is that they missed my point on Education. The style they happened to like is what the Chinese call - wan shi bu gong (playful and not taking things seriously). So they really do not know what to do with me - I mean the press, not the Government.”
“Sir, since the Government is encouraging the people to have more babies now, the likelihood of these 3-room flats being unsold will be greater. Is it not a good point for the Ministry of National Development to try to convert these 3-room flats into, say, 6-room flats so that more babies could be accommodated?”
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“Now that they have broken away from the Russians, I presume they are equally busy in condemning Russian dances as revisionist and decadent. This is how the Communists treated culture: with changing values all the time and always dictated by their current political thinking. Ten or twelve years ago, when the Communist agitation was at its peak in Singapore, "Down with yellow culture" was one of the favourite slogans used by the Communists to rally the people against the British colonialists. Since Communism was publicly banned, very soon the term "anti-yellow campaign" became synonymous with the "Communist movement". When your friends talked about anti-yellow campaigns, you knew exactly what they meant. And very significantly, the anti-yellow campaign was initiated by a pro-Communist Women's Association which the colonial Government had to deregister later. In carrying out the anti-yellow campaign, the Communists were trying to get the people to reject all forms of culture and art from the Western world and accept the cultural values and ideology imposed by them. These were all very expertly carried out without the innocent people knowing that they were being indoctrinated for the Communist cause. Many talented artistes and writers were drawn into their camp. I know their techniques very well and if I were to tell you in detail how they sought to convert people to Communism under the disguise of the anti-yellow campaign, the short time available to me in this House would not be enough, for I was one of them and I know their methods and techniques inside out. I know all the double meanings in their phrases and terminology and all their double talk. In fact, at one time I was helping them to direct the so-called cultural campaign.”
“The arts created or promoted by Communists or Communist sympathisers in the non-Communist world, those whom the Communists term as "democratic elements"- min shu ren sheh - can be accepted by the Communist critics as good and healthy. Thus a song sung by Paul Robeson is good and healthy, but the same song sung by, say, Sidney Poitier or Nat King Cole, may be condemned as yellow culture. (But that was years ago when Paul Robeson used to perform in Moscow and when Peking and Moscow were on good terms. Now that Peking has fallen out with Moscow, I am not sure whether he still gets the same favourable treatment.) I remember years ago, when I was still very young, I was very fond of the Cantonese Opera and my Communist friends used to advise me not to waste my time in this form of feudalistic and decadent culture. But when the Chinese Communists took over China in 1949 and after they had produced one or two films of Cantonese Opera, with the same actors and actresses who had crossed over from Hong Kong, we were all exhorted to see these films which were praised as the best form of culture ever produced by China. Now, with the Red Guards and the cultural revolution sweeping all over China, I am told that these films have been committed to the public bonfires. At one time, Russian dances and folk songs used to be very popular among the so-called "progressive elements" in Singapore. If you visited any of the premises of the Old Boys' Associations in those days, you would find young boys and girls sweating away rehearsing Russian or East European folk dances. Those who did not appreciate these dances were branded as "backward elements" or "reactionary forces".”
“For the same reason, our cultural policy is not characterised by bans on low-brow literature or entertainment; ours is a creative way of cultural nation-building, since the solution lies not in negatively banning this or that, but in positively providing channels for creative activity so that the general public can develop critical awareness of what is good and what is bad, and in the process spontaneously reject what has no social or other values and, worse still, that which is degrading and detrimental to human dignity. When it comes to talking about culture, it always occurs to me that there are some Members in this House who cherish distorted ideas about culture. They seem to think that the more and the louder they condemn the so-called "yellow culture", the more cultured they become in the eyes of the public. So, not infrequently in this House the Ministry of Culture was accused of knowingly or unknowingly promoting "yellow culture". The trouble with these Members is that they do not know what "yellow culture" really means. As far as I can understand and remember, the term "yellow culture" was coined by the Chinese Communists in the early days to describe all forms of art and cultures which did not toe the line of Communist political propaganda. If you look up any common English dictionary, you will never find the term "yellow culture" in it. According to the Communist argument, the democratic society of the non-Communist world is a dying, decadent society and all forms of art and cultures coming from that society must necessarily be yellow culture. Only the Communist society is capable of producing healthy and good culture for the people. But there are some exceptions.”
“r Speaker, Sir, the new targets so concisely enunciated by the President will undoubtedly exert much impact on the Ministry of Culture. Nevertheless, the basic objectives and policies of the Ministry will not be radically altered. It is still the cornerstone of our policy to preserve the values of our various cultural streams in the context of striking a balance between the need for homogeneity against the need for heterogeneity. The result of this process during the last nine years is that ours is already a cohesive society. This is not the end of the road. The need to socialise our people into modern and better ways of life still remains. It is a continuous process, particularly vis-a-vis the problems in the crucial years ahead. In a democratic society like ours, it has not been and will not be our intention to attempt a cultural dictatorship, which means imposing on the people criteria of what the ruling elite considers to be the norms. Instead, culture should evolve from the ground. It is worth while to remember that certain countries in which culture became part of the state mechanism have now decided to liberalise this activity which properly should be a non-state area of human endeavour. For this reason the Ministry of Culture is only in a position to provide the catalyst for, and not dictate a set of arbitrary pattern on the people.”
“Mr Speaker, Sir, I now move, In page 8, after line 35, to insert - "(3) No prosecution shall be instituted under subsection (2) of this section except by, or with the written consent of, the Attorney-General.". The new subsection is added to clause 15 as an additional safeguard so that there will be no indiscriminate prosecutions under the Bill. All prosecutions under this law will have to be sanctioned by the Attorney-General. Amendment agreed to. Clause 15, as amended, ordered to stand part of the Bill. Clauses 16 and 17 ordered to stand part of the Bill. Bill reported with amendments; read a Third time and passed. HIGHWAY CODE 4.36 p.m.”
“Sir, I beg to move, In page 8, line 15, to leave out "If any person" and insert "Any person who". This is an oversight and the error is regretted. Amendment agreed to.”
“Mr Speaker, Sir, before I go any further in moving amendments to this clause, may I seek your permission under Standing Order 32 to move a minor drafting amendment in page 8, line 15?”
“Mr Speaker, Sir, I beg to move, In page 6, after line 24, to insert - "(4) When a member of the Fund who is a citizen of Singapore attains the age of fifty-five years he may, notwithstanding anything contained in this Act, apply in writing to the Director to withdraw the amount standing to his credit in the Fund and the Director, upon being satisfied as to the age of that member, shall thereupon pay out of the Fund the total amount standing to his credit in the Fund.". If this amendment is accepted, a member of the Fund who is a citizen of Singapore may draw the whole of his redundancy payment and any interest thereupon on reaching the age of 55 years. This concession only applies to members of the Fund who are Singapore citizens. This amendment is to meet one of the N.T.U.C.'s recommendations. Amendment agreed to. Clause 10, as amended, ordered to stand part of the Bill. Clauses 11 to 14 inclusive ordered to stand part of the Bill. Clause 15 -”
“Mr Speaker, Sir, I beg to move, In page 6, lines 15 and 16, to leave out ", (b) or (c) of this subsection" and insert "of this subsection or to alleviate any hardship under paragraph (b) of this subsection". This amendment is consequential to the previous amendment. Amendment agreed to. 4.30 p.m.”
“Mr Speaker, Sir, I beg to move, In page 6, to leave out lines 5 to 11 inclusive and insert - "be prescribed - (a) that he has the intention - (i) of purchasing immovable property, whether for his own use or occupation or otherwise; (ii) of entering into any trade, business, profession or vocation; or (iii) of entering into such other feasible activity as the Director may approve; or (b) that he is in need of money to meet any circumstances of hardship affecting him, his spouse, his children or parents,". The intention of this amendment is, in the light of the recommendation of the N.T.U.C., to make provision for a member of the Fund, who is a Singapore citizen and in need of money to meet any circumstances of hardship affecting him, his wife, children or parents, to draw such amount of money as the Director considers adequate to relieve such hardship. Clause 10 (1) (b) has been drafted in as wide a manner as possible to take in the sort of contingencies that the N.T.U.C. have listed in their statement. Amendment agreed to.”
“Mr Speaker, Sir, I beg to move, In page 5, lines 29 and 30, to leave out "under subsection (1) of this section". This is also another formal amendment to remove any ambiguity that might arise. Amendment agreed to. Clause 8, as amended, ordered to stand part of the Bill. Clause 9 ordered to stand part of the Bill. Clause 10 -”
“Mr Speaker, Sir, I beg to move, In page 4, line 27, after "(1) ", to insert "or (5) ". This is a formal amendment to remove any ambiguity that might arise. Amendment agreed to. Clause 7, as amended, ordered to stand part of the Bill. Clause 8 -”
“Bill considered in Committee. [Mr Speaker in the Chair] 4.23 p.m.”
“If such a case arises, and if the member is a citizen, I think he can apply under clause 10 of this Bill to withdraw his money in order to pay these debts. If he is a non-citizen, when he leaves the country there is still one-third of his money left in the Fund. I presume this money will be sufficient to pay for his passage as well as any arrears owing to the Housing Board and the Public Utilities Board. The Member for Anson wants to know whether gratuities paid to Government employees would also enjoy this privilege of exemption from income tax. I say that this is not the case because we have no intention to extend this privilege to Government employees. The Member also wants to set up a board to consider withdrawals. This can be done by administrative action. It is not necessary to include this provision in the Bill. There is already provision that the Minister has the power to regulate the nature of the withdrawals. The Member also wants 20 per cent of the redundancy payment to be withdrawn unconditionally so that the worker can have a little enjoyment. He has not said what this enjoyment is, but it may be a trip round the world or something like that. That is exactly why this Bill has been introduced, to guard against such injudicious spending. The worker has already lost his job, and it is important that he should be careful in spending his money. He should not spend more than he can afford. The point raised by the Member for Bukit Panjang deserves consideration. If it is necessary, we will introduce amendments on a subsequent occasion. Question put, and agreed to. Bill accordingly read a Second time and committed to a Committee of the whole House. The House immediately resolved itself into a Committee on the Bill.-[Mr Jek Yeun Thong].”
“The Member has also touched upon the possibility of investing this Fund in commercial concerns and industries in the country, so that it can draw higher returns and may also be used to set up corporations so as to create jobs for the workers. I think he has forgotten that the Fund is subject to withdrawals, and it is very difficult to say for certain how much money we will have in the Fund at any one time. So I think Members will agree that for a fluctuating fund of this nature, it is rather difficult to invest it in any fixed ventures. Furthermore, in any shares in any business concerns, whilst there is the probability of large profits, there is also the probability of great losses. It is unwise to put the workers' money in investments of a speculative nature. It is rather early to say how the Director of the Fund will invest the money in order to earn enough income to pay the 5¼ per cent interest guaranteed to the workers. But it is safe to say that he will only invest this money in Government bonds, Treasury Bills and other very safe bonds. The Member for Telok Blangah wants to know whether this Bill will cover executive personnel in the commercial sector, because he does not want them to enjoy this exemption from income tax. I can assure him that the intention of the Government is to offer this privilege only to workers in the British military bases, and we do not have any intention at the present moment to extend it to other sectors. The Member also wants to know what happens if a member of the Fund runs out of money to pay his rent to the Housing Board, or to pay his water and electricity bill to the Public Utilities Board. How is the Housing Board or the Public Utilities Board going to recover arrears?”
“Mr Speaker, Sir, first of all, I must thank Members of this House for expressing their support of this Bill. I would like to reply briefly to the points raised by them. The Member for Kampong Kernbangan and the Member for Bukit Panjang have raised the point about the different treatment accorded to citizens and non-citizens. But I must inform the House that this Bill is specially designed to protect the interest of the citizens and that we do not assume any responsibility for the non-citizens. I think it is very necessary to have the two types of withdrawal, because in the case of the non-citizen he can withdraw all his money from the Fund if and when he decides to leave the country forever. In fact, we are not interested in his money at all. He can take away all his money if he wants to. It will be better for us if he does so. I regret that we have to take this measure, but there is no other way in which we can deal with the matter. The Member for Kampong Kernbangan has also brought up the argument that 60 per cent of the redundant employee's wages may not be enough for him to live on. He may want more - 70 per cent, 90 per cent or even 100 per cent. It may be argued that 60 per cent may not be enough. But I think the worker who has lost his job should try his very best to live within his means. It is better that he should draw out less so that his money in the Fund can last longer. If he draws out more, his money will last him for a very short time and after that the Social Welfare Department will have to take over. That will be very unwise.”
“These recommendations have been considered carefully, and I am happy to say that most of them are acceptable to the Government. I shall be moving amendments at Committee stage to cover circumstances of proven hardship as well as withdrawals from the Fund by Singapore citizens on their reaching the age of 55 as recommended by the N.T.U.C. The other minor recommendations, such as setting up a Board to consider withdrawals and arranging for payments to be made at the nearest post office and so on, can be met by administrative action. Mr Speaker, Sir, this is the first time that Singapore is facing a problem of such unprecedented magnitude, and it is imperative, therefore, that in a crucial situation of this sort, urgent steps should be taken to protect the livelihood of so many of our citizens who will be affected. We have surmounted many obstacles before, and I can assure the House that the Government, with the co-operation of all concerned, will be able to overcome the difficulties that lie ahead by making plans to retain our workers for alternative gainful em ployment as speedily as possible. Mr Speaker, Sir, I beg to move. Question proposed. 3.35 p.m.”
“Employers are required to put all redundancy payments of their workers into this Fund. Out of this Fund the redundant worker may draw up to 60 per cent of his former wages every month. A citizen can keep on drawing until all his money in the Fund is exhausted. A non-Singapore citizen, however, can only draw up to two-thirds of his re dundancy payment, leaving a balance of one-third in the Fund. The purpose of retaining this one-third of his money is that if he is unable to obtain further employment in Singapore, he will have sufficient money in the Fund for his passage back to his home country. On the other hand, if he decides to leave Singapore permanently and has no intention of returning, he can straightaway draw out all the money standing to his credit in the Fund. For Singapore citizens there are provisions to withdraw lump sums from the Fund. If a citizen can prove that he is making use of the money for some useful projects, such as buying a house or entering into a business venture, he can have his money withdrawn for that purpose. I would like to assure the House that we will try to administer this Fund as flexibly as possible so as not to cause hardship to our citizens. From the above, hon. Members will see that eventually every single cent will be returned to the workers plus any interest that may accrue. In addition, the workers enjoy exemption from income tax and their money is kept out of reach of their creditors and moneylenders. Since the introduction of the Bill last month, the National Trades Union Congress and the Services' Unions have made lengthy studies of it. As a result of these studies, they have put up certain recommendations to the Government.”
“I must emphasise here that it is not the intention of the Government to take away the redundancy payments from the workers and use the money as revenue. I must assure the House that the Government will not and cannot make use of the money, for the redundancy payments will be paid into the Redundancy Payments Fund established by law. This Fund will be fully utilised for the full benefit of employees who become redundant to adapt and adjust themseves to a new situation. Indeed, the administration of the Fund will involve the Government in extra financial expenditure. An interest rate of 5¼ per cent per annum is guaranteed even if the returns derived from the Fund are insufficient to defray the in terest due to members of the Fund. In such a case, the deficiency is charged on and paid out of the Consolidated Fund. One important feature of the Bill is that money paid into and out of the Fund will be exempt from income tax. There are also provisions to protect the rights of the workers so that their money will not be taken away by creditors or moneylenders. I would like to illustrate here, by way of an example, how the income tax exemption will bring about savings to an employee. If an employee earning a salary of $500 per month, with a wife and three children, gets a lump sum payment of, say, $20,000, he will have to pay about $3,200 in income tax, but with the exemption from income tax as provided in this Bill, this sum will be saved by such an employee. The definition of "employer" in the Act covers practically all employers in Singapore. But it is not the intention of Government at present to apply this Act to the private and public sectors. Briefly, the Bill provides for the establishment of a Fund to be called the Redundancy Payments Fund.”
“Mr Speaker, Sir, I beg to move, "That the Bill be now read a Second time." Hon. Members are already aware that the withdrawal of British forces from Singapore will render a large number of workers unemployed. The House has just heard a statement by the Prime Minister that the British have again notified us that they will further cut short their stay and that they will be completely out by the end of 1971. This means, from the employment angle, that some 30,000 civilian employees in the British bases together with some 10,000 women and girls employed by Services families as domestic help will lose their jobs by 1971. The great majority of these Services employees are our citizens and the loss of their jobs will most certainly bring to them a fairly long period of uncertainty and confusion; and in the interest of the workers, it is necessary for them to be prudent and conserve their money to tide them for as long as possible over the period of unemployment pending re-training for new jobs. On becoming redundant, most of the employees will get a sizable sum of money as redundancy payments. Many of them are unaccustomed to handling substantial sums of money at any one time. The Government is primarily concerned with the citizen employees, and the basic aim of this legislation is to ensure that the money they receive is not used unwisely and injudiciously, which will make them destitutes in a short period and bring them and their families great distress. During the period of trial and tribulation, the Government is responsible for ensuring that its citizens are adequately fed, clothed and housed, and this is precisely what the Bill seeks to ensure for the workers.”
“I think the delay is not because of the system. It is because of the availability of persons as members on the panel. If we want to improve the system, we should get more persons on the panel. UNAUTHORISED STRUCTURES ON STATE LAND IN JURONG 7. Mr Ho Kah Leong asked the Minister for Law and National Development, between 1st January, 1963, and 31st December, 1967, (a) how many unauthorised structures were found on State land in the Jurong Constituency; (b) how many of them were demolished; and (c) in how many cases was the position regularised.”
“Mr Speaker, Sir, of course, we are trying to improve the system of arbitration. There is no question of making it worse.”
“Mr Speaker, Sir, it has always been known that owing to the complexities of many cases, the Industrial Arbitration Courts may be unable to hand down decisions in two weeks after completion of its hearing as generally provided for in section 66 (3) of the Industrial Relations Ordinance, 1960. I have to point out to the hon. Member that it was for this reason that when the Ordinance was first enacted, a further provision was added to the same subsection giving the court discretion to hand down decisions within such extended time as in special circumstances the Court considers to be required for the proper consideration of the dispute or matter. At the appropriate time, I will introduce an amendment to the Industrial Relations Ordinance to do away with the two weeks' time limit so as to give the Court the discretion to hand down its award at any time it considers appropriate in the light of the circumstances of each particular case. Mr Ho See Beng (Bras Basah): Will the Minister indicate, when the time comes for him to introduce an amendment to the Industrial Relations Ordinance, whether it will improve the present system, or it will make the present system worse?”
“Mr Speaker, Sir, the number of arbitration cases pending award is 12. Of these, two are in relation to Government employees, namely, nurses and public health employees, and the rest have reference to employees in the private sector. It is expected that awards in respect of four of these cases will be handed down by the end of this month. One case is due to be withdrawn. The number of cases referred to the Courts under section 30 of the Industrial Relations Ordinance, 1960, which are still pending hearing, totals eleven in number. Three of these concern Government employees. Three affect employees of statutory boards and the University of Singapore, and the remaining five concern employees in the private commercial sector. INDUSTRIAL ARBITRATION COURTS (Delay in handing down decision on completion of hearing) 6. Mr Ho See Beng asked the Minister for Labour whether he is aware that the Industrial Arbitration Courts are often unable to hand down decisions within two weeks after the completion of the hearing as provided under section 66 (3) of the Industrial Relations Ordinance; and what steps he proposes to take to remedy this situation.”
“Sir, the Member for Joo Chiat is wondering why we call a woman a workman. I really cannot satisfy his curiosity why we should call a female labourer a workman instead of a workwoman. I think this is the word in the original Labour Ordinance where it is stated that a workman means a worker whether it is of the female or male sex. I think this is only for the sake of convenience. Maybe the Member for Delta has already answered the question when she said that we must never emphasise the sex when we speak of a workman. A worker is a worker whether it is a male worker or a male worker. I think it is rather old-fashioned of the Member for Kampong Kembangan to insist that the female worker should be allowed to work only in the day-time and not at night. He is also worried that, with the passage of this Bill, telephone operators and workers in other establishments will be subject to this 24-hour work shift. I have said just now that this law does not necessarily apply to all the establishments. Once this law is passed, it will still be necessary for a factory or an establishment to apply for the right to work female workers on a 24-hour shift. It is not automatically the case that they will come in. Initially we will only allow factories which are export-orientated to put their female workers on a 24-hour shift. So the Member need not have any worry that operators in the Telephone Board will be put immediately on this 24-hour shift. The Member for Telok Blangah and the Member for Delta touched upon the low pay of female workers especially in the factories at Jurong.”
“It must also be mentioned that our female population today is more progressive and sophisticated than they were before, and that the well-developed social services in the country serve their needs most satisfactorily, both from the health and security points of view. The present amendment does not do away with the existing restrictions, but only gives powers to the Minister to grant exemptions where it is desirable in the public interest to do so for the purpose of maintaining or increasing the efficiency of industry. It will not in any way affect the protection that female employees now enjoy, because before an exemption is granted their interest will be very carefully considered and in most cases we will consult the union before we agree to exempt. But this is only applicable to those unions which are willing to work with the law. To the Communist-controlled unions which have every intention to break the law, I say it is a waste of time to consult them. Mr Speaker, Sir, I beg to move. Question proposed.”
“The structure of our economy has changed and will continue to change more speedily with the progress of industrialisation, and it will be necessary, in the interest of the economy, for some factories, especially those which are export-orientated, to work on a 24-hour shift system which will involve the employment of female workmen at night in certain kinds of labour. It is, therefore, necessary to take account of the situation to ensure that existing legislation does not stifle industrial progress and expansion and deprive the creation of employment opportunities to our people. The logic of the situation demands that the present legal restriction on the employment of female workers during a night shift should be relaxed so that certain industries or undertakings can introduce a night shift and increase their productive capacity to meet the demands of our export market. What is even more important to us is that by allowing female workers to work in the third shift, we are able not only to utilise the expensive equipment and factory space more profitably, but also to create more employment opportunities for our workers. A number of countries have provided for the relaxation of night work in respect of female employees. These countries include the United Kingdom and Japan. It is pertinent to point out that highly industrialised countries have thought it necessary to relax the restriction in the interest of their economy and, therefore, a relaxation of this nature would be of even greater benefit to a developing economy such as ours. Mr Speaker, Sir, there are certain categories of female employees who even now work in shifts round the clock, tor example, nurses and airline workers in consonance with the social and economic demands of these vocations.”
“Mr Speaker, Sir, I beg to move, "That the Bill be now read a Second time." This is a short Bill. Its purpose is to seek discretionary powers for the Minister to grant exemptions from the prohibition of female workmen working at night. "night" in the context of the present provisions of the law means a period of not less than 11 consecutive hours including the interval between ten o'clock in the evening and five o'clock in the morning or such other interval of seven hours as the Minister may by notification in the Gazette prescribe for any particular industrial undertaking or branch thereof or kind of labour. The restriction on the employment at night of female workmen is in accordance with the requirements of the International Labour Convention and was introduced into the Labour Ordinance in 1955. The situation then existing did not warrant the employment in Singapore of female labour at night. However, with the increasing impetus of industrialisation in Singapore, certain export-orientated industries find it increasingly difficult to meet production targets without introducing a night shift in which female employees may have to be employed in certain kinds of labour. The law as it stands, however, will not permit the employment of female workers beyond twelve midnight in view of the very restrictive interval period of seven hours contained in the law. Apart from allowing for the variation of this prohibited interval, there is no provision for the lifting of the restriction entirely in certain cases.”
“I think, in short, the Member for Bras Basah has suggested that we do away with the panel members. I am not sure whether this is feasible because the panel members, whether they are employers or employees, are there to assist the President of the Industrial Arbitration Court to weigh the pros and cons in a given case and together they form the court. If we were to do away with the panel members, then the President would be left alone to make the decision, and since the decisions on the awards of the courts are not subject to appeal to any higher court, it may appear that the burden of the President in making his decision is too heavy as to be unbearable and at times he may be accused of bias or being arbitrary. Regarding the suggestion on the setting up of permanent panel members, I do not think it is possible because, firstly, it is not possible to get enough suitable persons from the trade unions and the employers' side to serve as permanent members in the panel, and, secondly, the cost of maintaining such a permanent panel would be quite prohibitive and, in some cases, it may not be economical to do so because for some periods of the year there may not be any case for the members to hear at all. The third suggestion put forward by the Member is that the Minister should appoint only panel members who cart afford to spare the time. If that is the case, I do not think this would be workable because nobody actually worth appointing as a panel member can actually spare the time, and in that case we would not have any panel members at all.”
“Mr Speaker, Sir, I want to reply to the main complaint of the Member for Delta that female workers in Jurong get a very low pay. I think it is not quite true to say that female workers in factories in Jurong are getting a very low pay. According to the Sample Household Survey conducted in July 1966, the average monthly earnings of female workers of 18 years or above in all manufacturing industries were $100.80 cents a month. There may be workers who get more or less than this amount. But the problem is that the wages they earn are closely related to their skills. The higher the skill, the more they will earn. Take, for instance, a worker in a shirt and garment industry. If she is --- Madam Chan Choy Siong rose - 2.45 p.m.”
“The only solution for those born in Singapore who hold blue identity cards because they do not have birth certificates is to apply for citizenship in order to get pink identity cards. I do not see any other possible solution for them, because they must prove that they were really born in Singapore in order to qualify for citizenship. If such proof is not available, I do not think there is any other way by which we can issue them with pink identity cards. I regret to say that we cannot relax the regulations regarding the issue of work permits at the present moment. In view of the retrenchment of workers in the British Bases, the issue of work permits will be more strictly administered. I am afraid I have to say 'No' to the Member's plea, though very reluctantly. But this is something we have to do to ensure the survival of our citizens. The employment opportunities in Singapore are very limited, and if we do not confine them to our citizens, I am afraid Members will face more trouble during the elections.”
“Mr Speaker, Sir, I am more frustrated than the Members themselves because I have prepared a lot of notes which I have not been able to disclose to Members! Let me turn to the point made by the Member for Tiong Bahru. He suspects that the delay is due to the C.I.D. I do not think so. I do not think it is wise to let our Citizens' Consultative Committees handle all the citizenship investigations.”
“For that matter, many of us have sisters, brothers and friends all over the Federation of Malaysia and, in fact, all over South-east Asia. Are we able to give citizenship to all of them? We may have a relative or a friend in Johore Bahru. Must we immediately give them Singapore citizenship just because we are Singapore citizens'? The Member for Sembawang suspects that it may be due to the delaying tactics that we are adopting. But I can assure him that this is not the case, because the Citizenship Registry at present has a very small staff. In fact, the staff has not been increased for the last three or four years in spite of the increasing number of applicants. There are at present more than 159,000 noncitizens in Singapore holding blue identity cards, not counting those holding Federation identity cards. You cart just imagine how much tinie it will take for the staff to deal with all these people rushing in to get citizenship! As to the question of rudeness in the Citizenship Registry raised by the Member for Punggol, I do not think the rtaff of the Registry are unduly discourteous. But I suspect that it is because they have to say 'No' all the time and that when they do so, their faces may look somewhat unpleasant and this may evoke an emotionally adverse reaction from the applicant. I do not think we can avoid that. The Member for Tiong Bahru suggests that the delay was due to the C.I.D. - Madam Chan Choy Siong rose - Mr Jek Yeun Thong resumed his seat. Madam Chan Choy Siong: Mr Speaker, Sir, we still have many Members who want to speak on the other subheads. But we have only ten minutes left before we adjourn. I wonder whether we will have time to speak on the other suhheads.”
“Let me deal, first of all, with the complaint of the Member for Sembawang that he is plagued by non-citizens during his "Meet the people sessions". He has said that 50 per cent of the people coming to see him in these sessions are non-citizens asking for citizenship. I would have thought that Members elected by the citizens of Singapore are solely responsible to their electorate and that when they meet the people, they should spend most of their time with their electorate and not devote 20 per cent or 50 per cent of their time to non-citizens who do not have the vote. These people do not count at all when the ballot boxes are opened. So I just do not understand why Members are so excited over the non-citizens. Of course, we, as human beings, sympathise with them but we as elected Members also have our duties to our citizens who have elected us.”
“The Member for Bukit Panjang has raised this matter about citizenship. It is a rather delicate and complicated matter. The granting of citizenship to a person is a very important matter. Citizenship in any country is not freely given. It confers certain rights and privileges on a person. In our case, it gives him the right to work, to apply for a house, to get places for his children in our schools. It ako imposes certain obligations on him to the State. We do not want citizens of convenience. There are people who want Singapore citizenship for obtaining travel documents. They always rush to the office and say that they want to have a passport and that they want out citizenship. There are also others who want citizenship to obtain social benefits like housing, education, public assistance and jobs. The Registrar of Citizens has to process every application for citizenship very carefully to determine that the applicant not only possesses the necessary residential qualification, but also that he is of good character and is prepared to be loyal to the Republic, and is not just a citizen of convenience. It takes time to investigate thoroughly each and every application for citizenship. Therefore, the delay in many cases is unavoidable. It is also rather difficult to categorise, as the Member has suggested, because it is so difficult to determine the urgency of each case. So we would rather that they take their turn.”
“The Member for Delta has asked whether the money paid into the C.P.F. will earn any interest. The answer is yes. At the present moment, the interest in the C.P.F. is at the rate of 5� per cent per annum, and we are going to increase it to 5�, per cent for the account in 1967. As to the other question whether a man can withdraw his money if he is sick, the answer is again no. If he is sick and really destitute, I think our hospital facilities are so good that he can just get in and stay in a free ward. This is again another excuse to get the money out, and I do not think that should be allowed.”
“I do not think I am evading the issue. The issue, as I see it, is very clear, whether we want to draw the money out or not. I would say they should not draw the money out, and they should leave it there until they reach the age of 55. Otherwise who will look after them? Whether you call it house ownership or you buy a house from the Housing Board, or you pay money to a man who is out of work at the age of 45, he is still drawing out the money. So the main issue here is whether we should allow that withdrawal before he reaches the age of 55. If we want, we must take the matter up quite differently. But somehow or other the line must be drawn somewhere. We have decided, and rightly decided, that the line should be drawn at the age of 55. That is it. Madam Chan Choy Siong(In Mandarin): I would like to ask the Minister only two questions on the Central Provident Fund. Will the deposit in the Central Provident Fund earn interest, as in the case of banks? if this money is put in the Central Provident Fund without the C.P.F. giving any interest, as the banks are giving, then the value of their deposits will, in actual fact, depreciate. We know that as society progresses, the prices of daily necessities increase. For instance, if you have put in $1,000, then by the time you withdraw it, it may be worth only $500. If a reasonable rate of interest is paid, then the money will not depreciate in value. Another question is this. When a person is sick, can he withdraw a certain amount of money from the fund in order to look after his illness and see him through? Suppose he has no other member of the family who can look after him, and he may not have reached the age limit, and suppose, unfortunately, he dies of the sickness, what will happen to him?”
“There may be other perfectly legitimate grounds on which people would want to draw their money out of the Central Provident Fund, such as unemployment, hardship, sickness, or a desire to finance a business venture. But I am afraid once the opening is allowed, the temptation to draw some more money from the C.P.F. is always there and in next to no time there will be no more money left. So the question is very simple. Do we or do we not want savings for old age security? If we want to save for old age security, we must not touch the money. If we touch the money, there will be no old age security. You cannot have your cake and eat it.”
“Mr Speaker, Sir, ever since the setting up of the Central Provident Fund in 1955, not a single year has gone by without someone asking for his money to be released for some reason or other. This year we have three. The answer to this is very simple. Human nature is such that so long as the money is there, the temptation or the urge to spend it is always there. We, as trustees of the people's money, will be failing in our duty if we do not do our best to resist this demand t get the money out and spend it. Thriftiness and the habit of saving are things which we must try to teach our people to accept. The Housing Board's introduction of the house ownership scheme has let loose a series of fresh demands to draw the money out, and this time on the grounds that they use tht; money as down-payments to purchase Housing Board flats. I am afraid they have got this all wrong. House ownership is something we are encouraging the people to achieve. But they must achieve this by some other worth while means and not by utilising the money which they have set aside for old age security. If they really want to have a house or a flat of their own, they should try to do this by working haider, by putting in extra effort in productivity, earn more and put in extra efforts to save that extra money to achieve the object of house ownership. This will make their achievement more precious to them at heart. In this way, they will not only have a house of their own, but when they reach the age of 55 they will also have a lump sum of money to see them through in their old age. I am sure this is more beneficial to the individual as well as to the economy of the country as a whole.”
“Mr Speaker, Sir, the hon. Member may not be aware that my Ministry operates at present three employment exchanges. The main one is at Havelock Road, a branch at Bukit Panjang, and another at the Jurong industrial estate. I do not consider it necessary to establish employment exchanges in all the 51 constituencies. It will be a waste of public money to do so. Singapore is a small island with excellent and cheap public transport to any part of the island. Any unemployed person can easily go to any one of the present three exchanges and register himself there. REDUCED ROAD TAX FOR GOODS-CARRYING TRICYCLES 3. Mr Tay Boon Too asked the Minister of State (Prime Minister's Department) whether Government will consider reducing the annual road tax for tricycles, used for carrying goods, from $43 to $20 the minimum annual tax for motor cycles.”
“For example, the developed areas at Toa Payoh, Jurong, Kallang Basin and other similar big new town developments where new projects are taking place have to be accorded top priority in order that these new towns are provided with facilities in time for occupation. Priority is also accorded to areas on the basis of economic returns, such as the Braddell Road/Serangoon Gardens Scheme. All these schemes have, therefore, been included in the Second Development Plan. I regret to say that the Upper Serangoon area has not been given priority for inclusion in the Second Development Plan. However, when the sewage scheme for the Serangoon area is completed by 1970, it will be further extended to the Upper Serangoon area. Therefore, the Upper Serangoon area will be considered together with some other areas such as Thomson, Choa Chu Kang and Bukit Timah under the next Development Plan. URBAN RENEWAL SCHEME (Progress of projects) 9. Mr Lim Soo Peng asked the Minister for Law and National Development what progress has been made in each of the fourteen projects under the Urban Renewal Scheme.”
“Mr Speaker, Sir, the hon. Member's suggestion has already been given consideration before by my Ministry. For his information, there are 325,433 out of a total of 442,351 members of the Central Provident Fund who have a balance of less than $1,000. This constitutes 74 per cent of the C.P.F. membership. Further, 254,880 members have a balance of less than $500 in the Fund and this constitutes 58 per cent of the C.P.F. membership. The C.P.F. records also show that about 63 per cent of the persons currently contributing to the Fund earn $200 a month or less. These persons have their contributions paid in only by their employers. In view of the low balances held by the great majority of the members of the Fund, it is considered that no useful purpose would be served at present to set up such a committee. WATER-BORNE SEWERAGE SYSTEM IN UPPER SERANGOON AREA 8. Mr R. A. Gonzales asked the Minister for Law and National Development if he will indicate when a water-borne sewerage system will be extended to the Upper Serangoon area, which is one of the most densely populated suburbs, so that the people of that area can enjoy the amenity. The Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister for National Development (Mr Ho Cheng Choon) (for the Minister for Law and National Development): Mr Speaker, Sir, before I answer the question, perhaps it is useful for me to explain briefly the Government policy on sewage schemes. The long-term objective of the Government is to provide services to the entire island Republic, including both developed and developing areas, but for practical purposes, having regard to the limitation of human and financial resources, it is necessary to plan out the development of sewage schemes in different phases according to the priority of the areas concerned.”
“What those people who have no birth certificates have to do is to apply for citizenship and then submit whatever documentary evidence they have for the consideration of the Registrar of Citizens. CENTRAL PROVIDENT FUND MEMBERS (Use of contributions as down payments for house purchases) 7. Mr Lim Cheng Lock asked the Minister for Labour if he will consider setting up a committee to examine the feasibility of allowing members of the Central Provident Fund to use their contributions as down payments for the purchase of houses in order to promote home ownership among the lower income group and to recommend such amendments as are necessary to the Central Provident Fund Ordinance, 1955.”
“Mr Speaker, Sir, there are no records kept of persons eligible to vote in the 1959 and 1963 elections who were refused registration for citizen identity cards. The Member for Ulu Pandan is aware that the previous electoral registers were compiled from the counterfoils of the old identity cards. So long as a person is 21 years of age and above, and his place of birth is shown as Singapore on the old identity card, his name is automatically put on the electoral register. With the re-registration of the population for the new plastic laminated identity cards under the National Registration Act, we have cleaned up our records and have determined who are citizens and who are non-citizens. All who are Singapore citizens are issued with the new pink Singapore laminated identity cards.”
“Mr Speaker, Sir, the C.P.F., as I have said earlier, is mainly for a person's old age. It is not meant for insurance of any kind. If it is for a loan to start a business or just to tide him over some difficult periods, a bank or a finance company is apparently the answer.”
“If a person leaves Singapore permanently and is not coming back, it is quite possible for him to withdraw his money from the Central Provident Fund provided that he can show proof that he is not coming back to stay in Singapore any more.”
“Mr Speaker, Sir, the Central Provident Fund Ordinance was introduced for the specific purpose of making provision for employees in their old age, and it was not originally intended that they should be allowed to withdraw before they reached the age of 55. However, provision has been made to permit withdrawals on death or where it appears unlikely that an employee will contribute to the Fund again. If the request made by the hon. Member to allow withdrawals for the purpose of starting their own business in the two specific cases mentioned by him is permitted, it would completely defeat the intention behind the Ordinance. Further, it is pertinent to point out that if withdrawals are permitted for the purpose, their is no guarantee that the sums received, which are generally not substantial, will not be lost or frittered away. If this were to happen, the workers concerned would not have anything to protect them in their old age and they would, in all probability, become a burden on the welfare services of the Republic. In the circumstances, it is considered desirable that no change should be made to the law at present.”
“The Honourable Member for Telok Blangah is fully aware that the policy of the Government is to encourage the development of a strong, healthy, democratic trade union movement and that collective bargaining is the corner-stone of our system of industrial relations. The Government would like every worker to be a member of a trade union. However, on the question of retrenchment, irrespective of whether the workers are members of a trade union or not, the Government's stand is clear: that is, the interests of our citizens should have priority over non-citizens and that the citizens should be the last to go. It is considered that there is no necessity just now to introduce legislation to this effect. However, if the need arises, the Government will not hesitate to do so to safeguard the interests of our citizens affected by retrenchment. SPORTS ORGANISATIONS 9. Mr Bernard Rodrigues asked the Minister for Culture and Social Affairs whether the Government will consider issuing a directive to all sports bodies, which are receiving a grant from the Government, to buy locally-manufactured equipment whenever possible.”
“The appointment of the General Manager of the Central Provident Fund Board is on a contract basis. This contract will expire on 30th April, 1971. RETRENCHMENT (Private firms) 8. Mr Bernard Rodrigues asked the Minister for Labour whether the Government will consider introducing legislation to ensure that Singapore Citizens shall be the last to be retrenched when private firms retrench employees who are not represented by a trade union.”
“These were babies found abandoned and referred to the Social Welfare Department as being in need of care and protection. Their parentage and origin are unknown. (ii) Unwanted legitimate babies. These were babies rejected by their parents and subsequently given to the Social Welfare Department or voluntary organisations for placement in adoption. (iii) Unwanted illegitimate babies. These were illegitimate babies handed over to the Social Welfare Department or voluntary organisations for placement in adoption. There are 10 in the first category, 12 in the second category and 68 in the third category. In addition, a total of 1,195 transferred children were registered with the Department during the period 1st August, 1966, to 31st July, 1967. These were not really cases of children un wanted or abandoned by their parents. They were, in fact, de facto adoptions privately arranged between the parents and the adoptors. Under the law, all such transferred children under the age of 14 have to be registered with the Social Welfare Department. FIRE AT RECORD LIBRARY OF RADIO SINGAPURA 36. Mr S. V. Lingam asked the Minister for Culture and Social Affairs (a) what was the cause of the recent fire at the Record Library of Radio Singapura; (b) what was the number and value of the records damaged or destroyed in the fire; (c) what was the cost of the damage to the building; (d) what is the number of records donated to Radio Singapura by the public, including firms, after the fire; and (e) what precautions had been taken against fire after the previous fire at the T.V. Studios.”