Lee Boon Yang
Singapore
“6 The other guidelines are that there must be a post office sited within 5 km of every private residential estate and within 1 km of any commercial or industrial estate. MAID LEVY CONCESSION (Applications by the disabled) 32.”
“Madam, can I quickly respond to the point on assistive technology? Certainly this is an area of interest. We cannot say that we have the capability at this juncture but we will certainly look into what is possible and work with our ICT sector.”
“Nevertheless, if the spouse of the homemaker is working, he will be eligible for WIS if he satisfies the criteria. Husbands of homemakers are further eligible for tax relief.”
“Sir, I do not think it is quite correct to say that we always expect our own artists to perform for free or do public service. There are, of course, occasions where we do seek Singapore artists and arts companies to contribute to the national causes. For instance, when we went international for Singapore Season in China.”
“Ms Sylvia Lim asked the Minister for National Development (a) what checks does the Ministry or the National Environment Agency have in place to prevent mistaken payments to hawkers who cease operations due to upgrading works at hawker centers; (b) how did the mistaken payment of $18,000 to Mdm Lee Ah Muey come about; and (c) what will the…”
“While it was also true that initially the reaction or the response of the licensing authority was that foreigners should not participate in such an event at the Speakers' Corner - because there is already an existing prohibition against any foreigners taking part in any activities at the Speakers' Corner - subsequent assessment resulted i…”
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“Mr Chin Harn Tong asked the Minister for Communications and Information whether, in the light of the budgetary constraint which caused the late news bulletin on channels 8 and 12 to be discontinued in January 1989, the Singapore Broadcasting Corporation would videotape an amplified version of the summary of news headlines at the end of the main TV news programme for broadcast later in the evening for the benefit of Singaporeans who miss the main TV news programme.”
“Mr Speaker, Sir, the delay in paying resettlement compensation has been caused by investigations into fraudulent claims. My Minister will be making a Ministerial Statement on this at the end of Question Time. Sir, my Ministry has tightened up the guidelines for processing compensation claims. New guidelines for classifying squatters as unlicensed farmers and compensating fruit trees, wells and farm structures were introduced in April 1988. A squatter must now satisfy the following conditions in order to qualify for compensation under the unlicensed farmer scheme: (1) He must be actively engaged in farming. The level of his farming activities must meet the criteria set by the Primary Production Department; and (2) He must possess an old farm licence which expired before 22nd March 1979, the effective date for the unlicensed farmer compensation policy. In the absence of an old farm licence, the claimant must have at least two adult members of his family who are engaged full-time in farming at the time of clearance and they have been staying at the clearance site since 22nd March 1979. Sir, there is no change in the compensation rate for unlicensed farmers. There are 1,343 resettlement cases under clearance in Chua Chu Kang constituency as at 1st May 1989. Payment to these cases will be made once Resettlement Department has checked and verified the claims using the revised procedures and guidelines. Most squatters will receive their compensation payment between now and June 1990. LATE NIGHT TV NEWS (Request for reinstatement) 19.”
“Mr Speaker, Sir, there are presently 32 conservancy con- tractors holding contracts for the cleaning of HDB housing estates. 18 of these contractors commenced their contract on 1 April 1989. In the first two weeks of April some contractors were short of manpower and equipment. This resulted in a temporary drop in standard of cleanliness in some HDB housing estates. To correct the situation, HDB mobilized its own workers and other conservancy contractors to spruce up the affected estates. HDB also increased daily site supervision to identify problem areas and to take immediate corrective action. As a result, Sir, the standard of cleanliness in HDB estates is now back to normal. HDB, however, will continue to monitor the performance of the contractors closely and will not hesitate to impose penalties against those who do not carry out their contracts properly. Besides these measures, I would also like to call on residents in the public housing estates to cooperate with HDB's efforts to maintain a clean environment. Residents should not litter the common areas. Bulky refuse should not be abandoned along common corridors or at lift landings. If necessary, residents should seek HDB's assistance in disposing of such bulky refuse. With more residents' cooperation, the task of keeping the housing estates clean would be achievable at a lower cost to everybody. NEW SECONDARY SCHOOL (Building schedule) 3. Mr Chng Hee Kok asked the Minister for Education if he will give the building schedule of the sixteen new secondary schools which was announced by the Government in August 1988.”
“Mr Speaker, Sir, the Building Control Division of my Ministry is in charge of enforcing the regulations governing any violation of these rules. CLEANLINESS IN HDB ESTATES (Effects of manpower shortage) The following Question stood in the name of Mr Chew Heng Ching --- 2. To ask the Minister for National Development if the standard of cleanliness in Housing and Development Board estates has suffered as a result of cleaning contractors facing manpower shortage; and, if so, what measures the HDB will take to overcome the problem.”
“Mr Speaker, Sir, in 1978, HDB embarked on a programme to provide barrier-free design in all its new developments to facilitate mobility of senior citizens and the physically disabled. The provisions have been mainly in the form of gentle ramps leading to carparks, lift lobbies, paths leading to other blocks or communal facilities. In the case of existing HDB estates, similar provisions are carried out under the 5-yearly Repairs and Redecoration Programme. Senior Citizens's corners have also been provided in almost all HDB estates for senior citizens to gather and interact during their leisure time. In addition, standard facilities provided in HDB estates such as void decks, bird-singing corners and neighbourhood parks can also serve the same purpose. CHILDREN OF LOWER-INCOME FAMILIES (Financial and Other assistance) The following Question stood in the name of Encik Othman bin Haron Eusofe - 5: To ask the Minister for Education (a) whether he will provide details of financial and other assistance schemes to children of families in the lower-income group to help them in their education at the primary and second level; and (b) whether his Ministry will consider providing free primary and secondary education to children of families with monthly take-home income of $600 and below.”
“Mr Speaker, Sir, senior citizens who are owner-occupiers of private property can apply to purchase HDB flats upon selling their properties provided they satisfy the following criteria: (i) they have retired and are unemployed. (ii) they sold their only properties in order to use the proceeds to support themselves. Such senior citizens need not wait for 2(r) years to buy flats except that they are only allowed to purchase a HUDC flat or a resale flat in the open market or a new HDB flat in the outer sub-urban estates and new towns. If they wish to rent rather than buy a HDB flat, their request can also be considered by the Board. SPECIAL FACILITIES FOR SENIOR CITIZENS 4. Mr Chin Harn Tong asked the Minister for National Development whether special facilities are developed for senior citizens in or around public housing estates.”
“Mr Speaker, Sir, although there is an absence of void decks, it does not mean that there is a total absence of communal space for various activities to be held. In fact, I have been informed by HDB that communal gatherings are often held at the turf area between the blocks. MAIN AND DEVELOPMENT ESTIMATES OF EXPENDITURE FOR THE FINANCIAL YEAR 1ST APRIL, 1989 TO 31ST MARCH, 1990 Order read for consideration in Committee of Supply [10th Allotted Day]. [Mr Speaker in the Chair] 12.45 pm Head P (cont.) - Resumption of Debate on Question [28th March 1989], "That the total sum to be allocated for Head P of the Main Estimates be reduced by $100." - [Dr Aline K. Wong]. Question again proposed.”
“Mr Speaker, Sir, in mid-1987, HDB converted the ground floor at Block 104, Commonwealth Crescent, into a void deck when all the ground floor rental units became vacant. HDB will only proceed to convert the ground floor of old blocks of flats into void decks if they will not be affected by redevelopment plans within the next five years. This is to ensure that any money spent on conversion work does not go to waste when the blocks are demolished shortly after. HDB is presently studying the redevelopment plan for the Commonwealth Cres- cent area. There are no immediate plans to convert any vacated ground floor flats at Commonwealth Crescent into void decks. Void decks will, however, be provided in any new blocks built in place of the old blocks as part of the redevelopment programme.”
“Mr Speaker, Sir, 500 lifts in HDB estates throughout the island were installed with urine detectors under a pilot project in January 1988. A recent survey shows that since then the number of HDB lifts affected by the urine problem has dropped by 25%. HDB will install detectors in another 1,500 selected lifts in the latter part of this year. Feedback from HDB area offices indicate that 60% of lifts in HDB estates are not affected by the problem. As such, there is no need to install urine detectors in all lifts. The installation of urine detectors will only be a deterrent against anti-social behaviour. HDB will continue its effort in educating lift users to be civic conscious. COMMONWEALTH CRESCENT (Conversion of old ground floor rental units into void decks) 10. Mr Chay Wai Chuen asked the Minister for National Development whether the Housing and Development Board will build void decks in some of the vacated ground-floor flats at Commonwealth Crescent.”
“Mr Speaker, Sir, as I have noted in the main answer itself, development of the Town Centre already started in 1984 at the same time as the blocks were completed. In fact, most of the facilities for the Town Centre have already been completed. For the rest of the facilities - the completion of the Phase II of the Bukit Batok Bus Interchange and the Area Office - work will be in progress soon and we expect to have these completed by the end of 1990. ADVERTISEMENTS ON TAXIS 3. Mr Lew Syn Pau asked the Minister for Communications and Information if he will consider allowing taxis to carry advertisements on the exterior of the taxis, just like buses and other public vehicles.”
“Mr Speaker, Sir, the development of the Bukit Batok Town Centre started in late 1984. To-date, the following facilities have been completed: (i) Phase I of the Bukit Batok Bus Interchange; (ii) Two multi-storey carparks; (iii) 96 dwelling units and 57 commercial units. Included in the commercial units are 43 retail shops and six eating establishments. These numbers are already close to the current standards approved for a New Town with a similar population density as Bukit Batok. As regards marketing facilities, there are six market-produce shops in Bukit Batok Town Centre. Sites have been earmarked for commercial units to be set up by the private sector to meet the needs of the residents. In addition, Sir, construction is currently under way for Phase II of the Bukit Batok Bus Interchange and Area Office. Tender for a town garden is expected to be called by the middle of 1990. Dr Ong Chit Chung (Bukit Batok): Sir, I would like to ask whether the Minister is aware that the first apartment block in Bukit Batok was completed in 1984. There are now about 300-plus blocks in Bukit Batok Town. However, there is no real centre of focus or town centre. So I would like to ask whether the Minister would expedite the plan because we do not have a heart or nerve centre to draw the people together in Bukit Batok Town.”
“I will ask my Ministry's planners to look into the provision of parks in the area. If there is insufficient parkland and if the development schedule on the vacant land is such that a temporary park can be provided, we can look into it. BUKIT BATOK TOWN CENTRE (Development plans) 2. Dr Ong Chit Chung asked the Minister for National Development what are the plans and schedules for the development of the Bukit Batok Town Centre at Bukit Batok Central.”
“Mr Speaker, Sir, the section of Yishun Avenue 1 from Yishun Avenue 4 to Sembawang Road is currently under construction and is expected to be open to traffic by July 1989. Tender for the extension of Yishun Avenue 1 from Sembawang Road to Mandai Road will be invited in May 1989. The extension is expected to be completed by the end of 1990. MOBILE TELEPHONES FOR TAXIS 10. Mr Lew Syn Pau asked the Minister for Communications and Information if he will consider allowing taxis to install mobile telephones for use by commuters.”
“Mr Speaker, Sir, most of the training of the Construction Brigade at the Jalan Bahar Civil Defence Training Centre is for para-military training. When it comes to learning about construction skills, they attend the courses conducted at the construction industry training centre which is a different training school. After the integration of the Civil Defence Force and the Fire Service, the Construction Brigade will continue to focus its attention on training a core of national servicemen who have some basic construction skills and experience in construction trade. MEDISAVE FOR KIDNEY DIALYSIS The following Question stood in the name of Mr Charles Chong - 8. To ask the Acting Minister for Health if he will consider allowing the use of Medisave for dialysis treatment.”
“Up to date, Sir, 8,888 Construction Brigade National Servicemen have been enlisted from the 1st to 30th intake under the Construction Brigade scheme. At present, 2,546 are active NS men under the Construction Brigade scheme while another 5,625 are in reservists and 700-odd of them have been transferred out of service or are already exempted under the scheme. As to the number who have actually remained in the construction industry, I do not have the figures with me at the moment but it is somewhere in the region of around 30% who have remained in the industry. There is also a certain percentage of them who have remained in allied industry to the construction trade, ie, not directly working on the site but in some way the work is linked to the construction industry.”
“At the present moment I think the powers available to the Ministry are sufficient to deal with the situation. But, of course, we will monitor the situation closely. If it looks as if additional powers or more effective deterrents are necessary, then we will not hesitate to introduce these deterrent measures.”
“Cult leaders and members will be prosecuted if they violate our laws, including organizing or participating in illegal societies. Foreigners who are involved in such cult groups, once they are detected, are invariably deported and barred from entry into Singapore. Subsequently, if they still make attempts to return to Singapore, they will be charged in court under the appropriate Immigration sections. We will continue to monitor all this situation and whenever there is any evidence of illegal activities, the perpetrators will be taken to court. With regard to this particular group known as the New World Vision or Children of God, this group attempted to register themselves in Singapore in 1978 under the name "Family of Love". Because of its known cult practices and activities, the application was disapproved. Now and again, we have come across reports that it is trying to re-establish itself and, as I said in my general remarks, the Police will investigate every such complaint and deal with those people according to what I have said. I hope that has clarified the issue.”
“Mr Chairman, Sir, I thank the Member for Tiong Bahru GRC for raising this issue of cult groups appearing in Singapore. My Ministry is concerned with the appearance of such groups. But just so that we are not misunderstood, I think we should put what the Member for Tiong Bahru GRC has referred to as "cult groups" in context. I take it that by "cult groups" he means the groups that are outside the mainstream religious activities, and these are the groups whose activities can lead to social disorder, religious discord and some activities are outright unlawful. Now and again my Ministry does receive complaints about such groups. Complaints have come from parents and other religious leaders on the proselytization and deviant activities of these groups. Whenever a complaint is received, my Ministry and the Police will carry out a thorough investigation. And if the groups are involved in activities which are unlawful or detrimental to our racial and religious harmony, then the Police will take the necessary action to put a stop to such activities. Some of the groups have in the past attempted to register themselves with our Registry of Societies. Such groups did put in applications and we conducted investigations on their background, and invariably their applications were disapproved. Where a cult group, as a result of historic accident, has been registered, and then it became involved in some of these activities which are likely to cause a problem in our multi-religious society, we will take action to de-register it. There have been examples of such societies or groups that have been de-registered, for instance, the Jehovah's Witnesses which was de-registered in 1972 and the Moonies which was de-registered in 1982.”
“Sir, as part of the integration, my Ministry is looking into setting up a combined training school. The location for this training school will be at the Jalan Bahar Civil Defence Camp. It will be a training school for both Fire officers and Civil Defence officers. It will provide both skills training and also management and command training for all the officers.”
“Secondly, the Singapore Fire Service imposes life-saving fire safety requirements to ensure that all buildings are properly planned, designed and built to be fire-safe. The requirements are periodically reviewed to ensure that they are consistent with changes in the building trends and remain relevant to our local environment. Thirdly, the Singapore Fire Service has contingency plans to deal with disasters in any industrial or high-rise complexes. These plans are regularly exercised together with the occupants of the buildings or the industrial complexes. The example mentioned by the Chairman of the GPC, the recent oil tank fire on Pulau Merlimau, demonstrated the Fire Service's ability to deal with large scale industrial fires. The fire was kept under control and the rest of the refinery was at no time threatened by the fire burning in the tanks. Sir, I believe I have responded to the points raised by Members.”
“My Ministry will be amending the Fire Service Act to provide for powers to deal with the problem. The amended Act will, amongst other things, empower the Singapore Fire Service to take errant build- ing owners and occupiers to court, compound an offence and/or charge the errant building owners or occupiers for the cost of removing the obstructions. Penalties will also be introduced to deter building owners or occupiers from committing such offences. Sir, I think I have covered most of the points except for this point raised by the Chairman of the GPC on whether the Singapore Fire Service is geared to fight fires in sophisticated industrial complexes and high-rise buildings. The rapid increase in number and type of industries in Singapore and the changes in our building trend towards larger and higher buildings pose new challenges to the Fire Service. These new industrial complexes and high-rise buildings require a comprehensive approach towards fire prevention, fire detection and fire-fighting. The Singapore Fire Service is prepared to deal with these emergencies. It has adopted a three-prong strategy to face the new threats and challenges. Firstly, it has on ongoing programme to upgrade its infrastructures and to improve its effectiveness. The number of fire stations will be increased to 15. When the building programme is completed in about six years' time, the Fire Service will be able to respond more quickly to any call for help. Within the stations themselves, old equipment is being replaced and new state-of-the-art equipment purchased. The officers and men of the Singapore Fire Service are also upgrading their skills in the fighting of industrial and high-rise fires.”
“After we have gained some experience in building and maintaining shelters in public housing estates, we would be in a better position to extend the programme to the private housing areas. In the meantime, if there are any suitable community buildings planned in the private housing areas, we will certainly consider incorporating shelters in such buildings. Sir, to sum up on the shelter programme, in the current phase of the programme, various planning and design concepts are being tested out. We will make periodic reviews as we go along. As I said earlier, it is going to take us a long time to provide shelters for all our people. With the experience gained along the way, we will be able to provide better and better shelters for the long term. Sir, I now turn to the points raised by Members concerning upgrading of the Singapore Fire Service. The Member for Toa Payoh GRC, Dr Ho, has asked whether the Fire Service will be given additional powers or enhanced powers to deal with this problem of blocked fire escapes or fire exits in high-rise buildings. Under the existing Fire Service Act, the Singapore Fire Service is only empowered to remove the obstructions. The Fire Service regularly checks buildings, particularly shopping complexes and when they come across any obstructions or any locked fire exits, they will remove the obstructions or cut the lock. However, our experience is that existing power is insufficient to deal with the problem. Obstructions that are removed or locks that are cut invariably find their way back to the fire exit when the Fire officer leaves the premises. This cannot be tolerated because the risks are very great. In the event of a fire and if the fire escape is blocked, you could have an unnecessary loss of many lives.”
“In fact, through appropriate planning and design, these facilities can be made use of to provide additional shelter space for residents in their vicinity. And with this approach, fewer shelters need to be built in the HDB blocks. Having peace-time facilities such as schools, community centres and libraries double up as shelters will help to minimize the cost of shelters overall. We did this for the MRT stations. Nine MRT stations have been strengthened and they can serve as civil defence shelters. So why not do it with other public developments? Furthermore, if we place shelters in neighbourhood community buildings, we will also be able to ensure that these shelters are put to good peace-time use, as mentioned by the Member for Bukit Batok. This is an important consideration because we cannot afford to have a situation where thousands of shelters are built all over Singapore and just simply locked up and not put to any use at all. As for the existing estates, it will be very costly to retrofit shelters to existing development. Not only that, it will also cause tremendous disruption and inconvenience to the residents who are living there. What we intend to do is to provide shelters as and when there are redevelopment work or new facilities being built in the area. This will minimize the inconvenience and dislocation to those living in the neighbourhood. Will shelters be provided for people living in private residential estates? The objective of the national shelter programme is quite clear. It is designed to provide shelters for all Singaporeans. It will take time, but eventually Singaporeans, regardless of whether they are living in public housing estates or private housing estates, should have access to a shelter nearby.”
“Sir, the construction of civil defence shelters for the population is a long-term undertaking. It cannot be completed in a few years. Other countries have taken decades to carry out their shelter programme. For instance, Sweden and Switzerland started their programmes more than 20 years ago. In fact, the Swedish government started building shelters 40 years ago. Today, they have not completed their objectives of providing shelter for all their population. The programme is still ongoing. So we cannot expect to do faster than the Swedish or Swiss government. We must set our priorities right if we are to implement the programme successfully over such a long period of time. To begin with, we have given priority to the new developments so as not to lose the opportunity of incorporating shelters during the construction stage. This not only minimizes the cost of construction but also reduces the dislocation problem and the inconvenience caused to residents. It makes sense therefore that when we started the shelter programme in January 1987, we started with the new HDB blocks. And I would like to emphasize that this principle remains fundamental to our approach. We have carried out a review of the progress that has been made so far since 1987. The review has resulted in recommendations for refinements to be made. The refinements will improve the spread of shelters under the first phase. The idea is to expand the shelter programme to other new public developments in the vicinity of HDB estates, as suggested by Dr Ong. For example, new developments such as schools, community centres, libraries, can be included for shelter design.”
“Let me assure him and the members of the public that integration will not affect the present standard of service to the public in the event of an emergency. All public calls for fire and rescue services will be answered promptly by fire-fighting and rescue crews from the nearest fire station. In the long term, integration will enhance the quality of service. The Member for Kampong Glam and also the Member for Toa Payoh GRC have both asked about the role of the Civil Defence Coordinating Committee (CDCC) and the Civil Defence volunteers after the integration. With the integration of the Civil Defence Force and the Fire Service, both CDCC and the Civil Defence Volunteer scheme will remain unchanged. The Civil Defence Coordinating Committee will continue to play its role as a grassroots organization to highlight the need for civil defence education and training among our people in the community. The Civil Defence volunteers will continue to be recruited and trained in fire-fighting, first-aid, rescue and evacuation. And they will perform the first line of defence in the event of an emergency. For instance, in a fire, they can start to evacuate the people and fight the fire. Mr Speaker, Sir, Mr Zulkifli has asked about the progress of the civil defence shelter programme, whether an evaluation has been carried out since the programme was launched in January 1987. As at 1st March 1989, a total of 177 shelters have been contracted for construction as part of HDB blocks. The first two shelters constructed in Pasir Ris were completed last month. The rest are in various stages of construction. By the end of this year, about 100 shelters are expected to be completed throughout Singapore.”
“Sir, in working towards this integration, the Commander of Singapore Civil Defence Force and the Director of Fire Service have been working closely with officers of my Ministry to develop a plan to integrate the two Forces. Since November 1988, three Divisions - Commmunity Relations, Logistics, and Training - have been integrated to serve both SCDF and SFS. These Divisions have been working smoothly since the integration. The Director (Fire Service) and the Commander (Civil Defence Force) will be over a period of time explaining to their officers and men the rationale and the need for these services. So the men will be all kept very well informed of the purpose and of the directions that will be taken. Details of the integration and how we will proceed in other areas, besides these three which I have mentioned, will be announced soon. The details will include the question of an appropriate name for the integrated force. A suitable name must be one that can capture the scope of responsibility of the integrated force and at the same time evoke the tradition and the dedication of the two component forces. On the question of service conditions, scheme of service for Fire Service officers and Civil Defence officers, I agree with the Chairman of the GPC that the integration should not lead to a disruption of their career development or their career prospects. I would like to assure the Member that these details are being carefully worked out and that the intergrated scheme of service will certainly take into consideration the length of services of the respective officers. The Chairman of the GPC has also asked whether the integration will affect the emergency services to members of the public.”
“Mr Chairman, Sir, first, I would like to thank Dr Arthur Beng, Chairman of the GPC for Home Affairs and Law, and the other Members who have spoken in support of this integration of the Singapore Civil Defence Force and the Singapore Fire Service. Sir, the Singapore Civil Defence Force and the Singapore Fire Service both share the common mission of protecting life and property in the event of any emergency or disaster. With the experience of the collapse of Hotel New World in March 1986, we can see how an integrated force would be able to play a greater role in such emergency situation. In fact, during that unhappy incident, Civil Defence officers and Fire Service officers worked side by side for many days to rescue victims trapped beneath the collapsed hotel. It demonstrated that the resources and the expertise of both the Fire Service and the Civil Defence Force are common in many areas, and this has led both forces over the last two years to hold joint planning and training to strengthen and improve their capability to deal with any emergency situation. And the cooperation which has been going on in the last two years has demonstrated that an integration of the Fire Service and the Civil Defence Force is both feasible and desirable in the long run, and in particular the pooling of expertise and resources will definitely go towards upgrading the capability of the two organizations to deal with emergencies. Sir, we will not be the first country to integrate fire and civil defence services. Both Sweden and South Korea are two countries with many years of experience in civil defence. Both these countries have successfully integrated their civil defence forces and fire services.”
“Sir, the streamlining of HDB's estate management functions has not affected the arrangements for the collection of rent, loan instalment and service and conservancy charges. Residents can still make payments for current month dues at any HDB branch or area office. Residents can, in fact, save time and transport cost if they opt to pay through inter-bank GIRO. I encourage all residents, in particular the elderly, to take advantage of the GIRO facility for making payments to the HDB. PRE-UNIVERSITY COURSES (Phasing out) 3. Dr Ong Chit Chung asked the Minister for Education whether the three-year pre-university courses in pre-university centres and schools are achieving their aims.”
“Sir, I will ask the Public Works Department to look into it and, if necessary, it will be installed. TAX INCENTIVES FOR BUILDING MODIFICATIONS FOR THE DISABLED (Extension to buildings providing social and recreational facilities) 3. Dr S. Vasoo asked the Minister for Finance whether he will consider extend- ing the incentives for building modifications to owners of buildings who propose to provide social recreational needs for the disabled.”
“Sir, in response to the request from the Member for Changi, the Public Works Department has investigated and confirmed that additional lights along the staircases and ramps of the two bridges will be useful. They will be installed by mid-May 1989.”
“Mr Speaker, Sir, HDB presently has a system of carrying out quality control checks on all the new flats before they are handed over by the contractors. In the case of wall tiling and floor tiling, the check is carried out by knocking on the tiles to listen for any hollow sound and whenever tiles with a hollow sound are detected they will be rejected and replaced. With this quality checks in place, it is not necessary for HDB to conduct a test on all occupied flats because owners of these occupied flats can always report to HDB if they encounter any building defect, including defective wall tiles or floor tiles. Defects arising from such poor workmanship will be rectified by HDB as and when reports are made. HDB will undertake to rectify such defects even beyond the normal one year defects liability period. Sir, as to the question of whether flat owners will be compensated or not, firstly, since HDB has undertaken to rectify any defects caused by poor workmanship for the lessees even beyond the one year defects liability period, it is not necessary for HDB to offer compensation. Secondly, if the owners have any desire to do it on their own, they should first consult HDB and perhaps HDB is in the best position in this case to rectify the defects. CRIME PREVENTION AND SECRET SOCIETY ACTIVITIES (Police talks to students) 2. Mr Teo Chong Tee asked the Minister for Home Affairs whether the police have conducted talks, particularly on criminal activities and their consequences, to students in secondary schools, junior colleges and institutes of the Voca- tional and Industrial Training Board, as part of their educational programme for the general public.”
“We are therefore thinking about a scheme to compensate town council chairmen for the time and effort that they will have to put in. Sir, the Member for Nee Soon Central also asked whether town councils will be taxed on the surpluses that they are able to accumulate. The Ministry of Finance has informed me that they are agreeable to not taxing town council surpluses resulting from the mandatory estate management and maintenance work. However, the present position is that interest derived from these surpluses and also investment return from such surpluses would be subjected to tax. Sir, in conclusion, the package of grants that I have just announced has been carefully worked out by the officials of the Ministry of National Development, and Ministry of Finance and HDB. They have taken much pain to ensure that what is being provided will meet town councils' requirements for the next few years. Eventually, each town council will have to decide for itself how much and when to spend the funds under its control. Mismanagement or a spendthrift approach by any town council will lead residents towards insolvency and disaster. This has been made very clear ever since the concept of town council was first publicly discussed. The Government cannot be expected to bail out town councils which blunder into financial difficulty and mismanagement. On the other hand, Sir, judicious and cautious policies will enable a town council to accumulate surplus which can then be used to cope with sudden demands or unexpected circumstances. Surpluses can also be used by a town council to provide improvements for the enjoyment of all their residents.”
“Town councils may wish to carry out improvement works such as constructing linkways between the block or providing additional, better quality playground equipment in the neighbourbood parks and playground. In order to assist town councils, the Government will provide a dollar-for-dollar grant up to a specified amount for approved improvement works. Town councils are invited to apply to the Urban and Rural Services Committee for such grants. Finally, an additional grant to assist town councils during the start-up phase will also be provided. This is a once-off grant to cover expenses which will be incurred by the town council the moment it has been gazetted during the first 180 days. Such expenses include advertisements for shortlisting or prequalification of managing agents and other tenders. Each town council will receive $5,000 to pay for these final expenses. In addition, a sum based on $1 per property unit managed is provided to cover expenses such as printing and distributing of passbooks and information pamphlets to residents. Phase I town councils have already received the grant. Other town councils will be given theirs within a month of formation. The amount to be received by each town council will vary from $10,000 to $35,000. The total amount payable for all town councils is about $850,000. Sir, we are also aware of the heavy burdens which Members will now have to shoulder when town councils come into operation in their wards. The experience of the Ang Mo Kio pilot project shows that every town council chairman will have to devote about one or two half-days each week to town council matters. This is in addition to the time spent on discussions and meetings with town councillors which are normally held in the evenings or in the weekends.”
“The total of all these sums for the 1- to 4-room flats within the town will constitute the cyclical work grant to the council. Sir, the cyclical work grant will thus meet fully the cyclical work requirement of 1 to 4-room flats for the seven-year period. During this period, each town council will also be setting aside 25% of its service and conservancy collection from residents and Government service and conservancy grant into a sinking fund. With careful management, town councils will not have to use the sinking fund throughout the first seven years. At the end of seven years, town councils would have accumulated a sizeable sinking fund balance for their future cyclical works. Sir, the cyclical work grant will cost the Government a total sum of about $340 million. The grant will be disbursed in two instalments; an amount to cover the needs of the first town council term on take-over of the estate, and the remaining sum upon the commencement of the second term. The cyclical work grant will not cover five-room, executive and HUDC Phases III and IV flats. HDB has succeeded in keeping the routine maintenance costs of these flats below their respective service and conservancy charge. Taking this group of flats together, there should be savings from the monthly service and conservancy contribution to defray the cost of immediate cyclical works and sinking fund contribution. The Government will provide bridging loans to town councils which experience cash flow problems when carrying out such cyclical works for these flats, if necessary. Sir, as part of the total grant package, Government will also provide additional assistance to town councils which wish to embark on certain improvement projects for the common properties under their management.”
“table - SCHEDULE OF SC/CC GRANT RATES, Reconstructed Income and Expenditure Statement for the Ang Mo Kio Pilot Town Councils (Cols. 285 - 286) My officials have presented the latest income and expenditure statement of the pilot town councils using the new grant rates and taking into account items of expenditure not charged by HDB during the pilot project. The results show that income of the pilot town councils exceeds expenditure by 2-6%. Members may refer to Table 1 for the results. These results should dispel any doubt Members may have about the adequacy of the grant amount. The SC&CC grant scheme will cost the Government an estimated $56 million annually. This is $7 million higher than HDB's average annual subsidy on estate management and maintenance expendi- ture for the period FY85 to FY88. The grant will be disbursed yearly in advance to each town council from the day it assumes the estate management function. Sir, I will now turn to the cyclical work grant. This is a special grant for 1, 2, 3 and 4-room flats to cover the first seven years' cyclical works while the sinking funds are being built up to meet expenditure after this period. The HDB's standard schedule for major cyclical works will be used for computing the grant amounts. This schedule is based on HDB's actual experience and factors such as materials used, extent of the use and environmental conditions. What we will do is this. For every block of flats in the town council, HDB will determine the next replacement date of the various cyclical work items according to its standard schedule. If the date of replacement for any item falls within seven years from the handing over of the estate to the town council, the council concerned will receive a standard sum for the item.”
“The grants-in-aid to be provided have been worked out based on HDB's rate of conservancy and maintenance expenditure for 1986. We have taken the 1986 figure, which is the higher figure instead of the FY87 lower figure, because we wanted to provide town councils with a margin of safety in the initial years. In distributing Government subsidy to various town councils, we have taken into consideration two factors. These are the types of flats and the age of flats within each town council. The existing service and conservancy charges for 1-room and 2-room flats cover barely 50% to 60% of the total maintenance cost. This policy of giving special assistance to the lower income group will continue. There will be higher subsidies for the smaller flats to reflect Government's special concern for the lower income group. The Member for Nee Soon Central has expressed concern over the possibly higher cost of maintaining older flats. I agree with him. Older flats cost more to maintain because they are more susceptible to wear and tear, and if older flats are not properly maintained then they will deteriorate much more rapidly than new flats. We have taken this factor into account in working out the grant. New flats are those less than eight years old. The grant rates for medium-aged flats, defined as those between eight and 12 years, will be 22% more than the new flats. Old flats, defined as those 12 or more years old, will be given a grant which is 40% more than the new flats. The full schedule of service and conservancy grant rates is given in a table (Cols. 285 - 286) which I shall ask the Clerk of Parliament to circulate now. [Copies of table circulated to hon. Members].”
“Sir, the Member for Nee Soon Central has asked whether the Government will give town councils which are managing older housing estates a larger subsidy. He has also asked whether the Government subsidies for the cyclical work to be carried out by town councils are adequate. I will answer these questions. Sir, a town council's main source of income is the service and conservancy charges (SC&CC) which every resident must pay to the council. At today's rate of service and conservancy charges contribution, a town council will not be able to discharge its responsibility without incurring a deficit. In order to assist the town councils, my Ministry working together with the Ministry of Finance and the HDB has worked out a financial assistance plan which will provide town councils with grants to enable them to carry out their functions. The grant package will include a monthly service and conservancy grant and a seven-year cyclical work grant. I will now explain these grants in detail. Since its inception, HDB has had to spend more on service and conservancy than what it collected for these activities. In FY86, HDB incurred a deficit of $49 million for estate management and maintenance work. In subsequent years, HDB has been able to reduce this deficit despite the increase in the number of flats under its management. This was possible because HDB management and staff have been able to make good proudctivity gains over the years, eg, on a per flat basis, expenses fell by 7% between FY86 and FY87. Sir, the approach we took in working out Government grants for town councils is for the Government to provide town councils with the same level of financing for estate management and maintenance as that being currently provided to the HDB.”
“I do not have the figures of offenders who are foreigners arrested last year. Yes, there were foreigners who were arrested in Singapore for committing certain crimes but the figures are not with me at the moment. CPF MINIMUM SUM SCHEME (Particulars) 4. Mr Charles Chong asked the Minister for Labour (a) how many Central Provident Fund members have set aside the minimum sum on reaching the age of 55 years since the inception of the Minimum Sum Scheme in January 1987; and (b) what action will he take to safeguard the value of the minimum sum of $30,000 from erosion by inflation.”
“Mr Speaker, Sir, there are presently four lock-up shops serving the residents of Simei housing estate. More facilities are being constructed and will be completed by April 1989. These include 11 lock-up shops, 6 market produce lock-up shops, 1 eating house and a mini-market. These facilities when completed will be sufficient to meet the basic marketing and shopping needs of the residents. As Simei is a small housing estate, the full facilities normally provided in the new towns such as town centre, town parks, sports complex, will not be built. The full range of such facilities are already provided in the nearby Tampines New Town, whose town centre has been planned to cater to the requirements of both Tampines New Town and Simei Estate. Moreover, Simei has an MRT station which is within walking distance from all its dwelling units. Residents of Simei can easily take the MRT to other town centres for shopping and other needs.”
“Mr Speaker, Sir, the decision to sell the Anthony Garden flats en bloc does not amount to speculation on the part of HDB. As I have said before, and quoted by Dr Wong, HDB builds flats to meet the needs of the people. At the present moment, there is no waiting list for HUDC flats. HDB has, in fact, 580 vacant HUDC-type flats available for immediate allocation for those who wish to buy flats. As to whether the tenancies will be renewed, that will depend on how soon this plan to sell the flats, en masse, materialise. Yes, it will take some time. If there is sufficient time, the HDB will consider renewing the leases of the existing tenants for a short period. If existing tenants need time to find alternative accommodation, HDB will consider all such requests provided it is a reasonable extension. For those tenants who have spent money to renovate the flats they are living in, I think they spent the money knowing full well that they were occupying the flats on a short-term lease. They must therefore follow the terms and conditions of the lease that they have agreed to. SIMEI HOUSING ESTATE (Inadequate shopping/marketing facilities) 7. Mr Teo Chong Tee asked the Minister for National Development why is there an inadequate planning of shopping/ marketing facilities for Simei Housing Estate which has more than 6,000 Housing and Development dwelling units; and whether these facilities will be provided soon.”
“Mr Speaker, Sir, HDB is selling Anthony Garden en bloc with vacant possession on a 99-year lease by open public tender. The successful buyer is expected to upgrade the estate and apply for strata sub-division to sell the flats in the open market. The question of HDB allowing sitting tenants preference to purchase, therefore, does not arise.”
“Mr Speaker, Sir, the traffic congestion along East Coast Parkway during the evening peak hours and on Saturday afternoons is caused by the signalized traffic junction at ECP and Fort Road. Work is in progress to replace it with a flyover by the first quarter of 1990. The traffic lights at Fort Road junction are already adjusted to give maximum green time to the traffic along the East Coast Parkway. On the average, a motorist will take about 5 minutes to clear the traffic lights during the peak hours. The traffic congestion is still tolerable. There is no need to take the more drastic interim measure of removing the traffic signal and barring right turns to and from Fort Road at this junction. SALE OF HUDC FLATS AT ANTHONY ROAD 6. Dr Wong Kwei Cheong asked the Minister for National Development whether the HUDC apartments at Anthony Road will be sold to Singaporeans under the existing HUDC rules; and, if so, whether sitting tenants will be given preference to purchase them.”
“Mr Speaker, Sir, phase 1 of the programme to repair the ceiling of flats affected by spalling concrete commenced in June 1988 and will last till March 1989. This covers about 2,500 cases of spalling concrete reported to the Board before 31st December 1987. To-date, 1,451 cases have been attended to and repair of the other cases are in progress. Under phase 2 of the programme, from April 1989 to March 1990, HDB expects to rectify an additional 4,000 cases of spalling concrete. The details of the second phase repair programme are expected to be finished by mid-March 1989 when feedback from the affected lessees have been collected. Sir, the whole repair programme is expected to take five years to complete, commencing from June 1988. For cost effectiveness, repairs are carried out on a block-by-block basis and scheduled according to the age of the building. Priority of repair is also given to serious case of spalling concrete. FOREIGN WORKERS LEVY (Use for training of workers and managers) 3. Dr Wong Kwei Cheong asked the Minister for Finance if he will consider using the revenue collected under the foreign workers levy for the training of workers and managers.”
“Sir, "public place" as defined in this Bill is quite clearly stated. If Dr Lee has any doubts, he should read the definition. If his party branch or his party headquarters is open to free access to the members of the public at any time, then of course it is a public place. But if members of the public do not have free access to his party branch or his party HQ, then I would say it does not fall under the ambit of this definition.”
“Mr Speaker, Sir, if Dr Lee has any doubt as to the constitutionality of this Bill, he can always test it. If he wants a judge to judge it, he can always bring it to a test and he knows how to bring it to a test. As I said before, the existing Act is very clear. All the rules governing assemblies and processions are made by the Commissioner of Police with the approval of the Minister. And this, I hope Dr Lee will read this in the proper context, must mean that everything else has to meet with the approval of the Minister. Therefore, nothing is new in this Bill except for those areas where I have touched on creation of new offences, replacement of an entire section with a new section to create this offence of touting. 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. [Dr Lee Boon Yang]. Bill considered in Committee. [Mr Speaker in the Chair] Clauses 1 to 26 -”
“If Mr Chiam still has any doubts, he may want to consult Dr Richard Hu, the Minister for Finance. He also has had experience when some applications of his grassroots organizations were rejected. So there is nothing in the Bill which says that the police will only grant permits to Government MPs. They are all treated fairly. As for the rules that they have formulated, may I remind the Member that these rules were formulated since the 1960s. They will use these rules to assess the merits of the application. And if it complies with the police requirements, permits can be given. Sir, in summary, I would say that this Bill, despite what Dr Lee has said, is directed at this problem of touting. The other changes are updating changes and there are no new powers given to the Minister or to the Government.”
“Sir, I would like to take up this point made by both Dr Lee and Mr Chiam. Why do you want to regulate assemblies and processions? Mr Chiam says that there is no harm done. A spontaneous procession was organized to welcome him. A kompang group arrived from some distant place by a lorry spontaneously to welcome him and lead him in a procession of 40-50 metres. If it is a procession, it is a procession. Whether it is spontaneous or planned in advance is irrelevant. All the law requires is that if you want to have a procession, put in an application. The police will consider. If indeed your procession is going to be 50 metres into a stadium entrance and is not going to result in any inconvenience or annoyance to the public, the police can consider. All it requires is that you apply. Is that so onerous? Opposition political parties have held many processions, rallies and forums with the approval of the police. And at some of these forums and rallies, speakers have spoken up in strong criticism against the Government, sometimes using rather vitriolic language. This has not stopped the police from approving such applications. The Member says that this is a measure to suppress Opposition political activities. But let me remind Members of this House that these rules on assemblies and processions are applied equally to both Government MPs and also Opposition MPs. There have been cases in the past where organizations supported by the PAP MPs have applied for permits to hold processions and these applications have been rejected. If the Member for Potong Pasir doubts my word, he has only to consult Mr Chandra Das, the Member for Cheng San GRC. Mr Das can tell him his experience of having had some of his applications rejected.”
“Mr Speaker, Sir, I have given the House the number of illegal processions. There had been a lot of other processions or assemblies including rallies, some of which were organized by the Member for Potong Pasir's political party. All these would have been approved. What is the percentage, I do not have the figures on the number of approval in the last three years. But let me say, Sir, that it is not important what this percentage is today. What is important is that any illegal assembly or procession results in unnecessary congestion, annoyance and disruption to the life of the community. Is the Member for Potong Pasir suggesting that we do nothing about the penalties, We do nothing about these rules and wait until a situation where our roads are completely choked and the normal community life cannot proceed as a result of all these illegal assemblies and processions before we do anything? I do not subscribe to that idea. I think we have to act before the situation deteriorates.”
“So we have to revise these penalties. Penalties are fixed to deter offenders. You cannot just fix penalties on the basis of cost of living and adjust it accordingly.”
“Because if he reads the appropriate section of the existing Minor Offences Act, he would have seen very clearly that Part II governing general rules for assemblies and processions states very clearly, Sir, and I quote section 5(1): 'The Commissioner of Police may, subject to the approval of the Minister, make general rules ... [governing assemblies and processions]' The Commissioner of Police does not make rules in isolation, on his own. He does not have the absolute discretion that Dr Lee is talking about. All along, since this Act was enacted more than 30 years ago, the Minister has the power to make rules. It was only delegated to the Commissioner of Police to make the rules with the approval of the Minister. So there is no additional powers being given to the Minister and there are no additional powers being smuggled into our legal system under the guise of acting against touts. He gave another example of Singapore as a police state by saying that with the amendment, any police officer, including a junior police officer, can enter into premises to remove equipment causing noise nuisance. I would like to ask Dr Lee whether he has read the existing Minor Offences Act. Because this is nothing new. It has been all along in the Minor Offences Act that any police officer has this power; nothing new. We are not giving the police any more powers than they already have under the current Act. Both Dr Lee and Mr Chiam have said that the penalties are too harsh. Penalties have been arrived at with the idea of trying to deter would-be offenders. You must have penalties that are sufficiently severe to deter people. You look at the numbers of illegal processions that had been carried out in the last three years. Obviously, existing penalties are inadequate.”