L. P. Rodrigo
Singapore
“Mr Speaker, Sir, I would just ask the Minister whether in the implementation of this law there would arise a situation where a blood test is required but it is not available under the circumstances, and in such a situation should the person concerned be unable at the particular time to produce the required urine, would that constitute a j…”
“On the question of education policies and their implementation, teacher unions cannot afford to posturise or compromise to achieve administrative convenience at the risk of a deterioration in the content of education. Principals of primary schools had their post allowances withdrawn.”
“All our constituents need one badly, and although requests have been put forward by some of my colleagues, including the Minister of State for Labour, who is the MP for Upper Serangoon constituency, we have so far received no response.”
“Sir, I beg to move, That the sum to be allocated for Head R be reduced by $10 in respect of subhead AAA 1004*. (* The same amendment also stood in the names of Messrs Hwang Soo Jin and P.”
“Sir, one of the hazards of being on good terms with the Member for Katong is that in allowing him to speak ahead of you on a head of expenditure such as this, you find that there is not much else to say. I quite realise that in a debate, repetition is inevitable.”
“Mr Speaker, Sir, I beg to move, That the sum to be allocated for Head M be reduced by $10 in respect of subhead AAA 1003*. (* The same amendment also stood in the names of Messrs Ho See Beng and P.”
The complete record
Every one of 287 lines we hold for L. P. Rodrigo, in date order, each linked to its source. Free to read, in full, without an account. Page 6 of 6.
“Some Members of Parliament are not even known to the people. That is why more stress should be placed on the teaching of politics and current affairs.”
“I beg leave to withdraw my amendment. Amendment, by leave, withdrawn. Madam Chan Choy Siong(In Mandarin): Mr Speaker, Sir, I beg to move, That the sum to be allocated for Head 0401 be reduced by $10 in respect of subhead 1431. Mr Speaker, Sir, this subhead refers to the Political Study Centre for civil servants. It was set up when the People's Action Party came to power. I understand that the civil servants who receive training at this centre are mainly Divisions I and II officers. But Division III officers have not been asked to attend courses at this centre. Generally speaking, Divisions I and II officers have fewer opportunities than Division III officers to come into contact with members of the public. Division III officers are not only required to be courteous to members of the public but they should also be made to understand better the problems confronting the people. For instance, officers employed in the Land Office and Resettlement Office have to visit certain areas to make on-the-spot investigations. Some people who have different political ideologies and different levels of understanding even call such officers "running dogs -of the P.A.P.". As a result, these officers may be deterred from carrying out their duties. They find themselves in a dilemma when they are subjected to abuses and they cannot get any redress. As the Political Study Centre has been established to provide study ,courses for civil servants, why should not Division III officers who come into contact with the public be also given a chance to attend these courses? They -are not meant to brainwash the civil servants but to enable them to understand better the people and local conditions. I imagine that the Political Study Centre should teach politics.”
“" can be of utmost assistance. The stages of review of an assignment may be, for the information of Members, briefly stated as follows. The "O. and M." officer first establishes the objects of the organisation under review and then obtains agreement to terms of reference. He next collects the facts about the existing organisation and procedures. He records and analyses these facts. He draws conclusions from his study and tests these conclusions on the department. Finally he makes his recommendations on the remedies to be put into effect to overcome the shortcomings which his study has revealed. 4.45 p.m. The last major assignment in the Ministry of Education was a review of the organisation and procedures of the Accounts Branch of the Ministry. A report was submitted in August 1965. Follow-up visits have been made of this and other assignments previously completed for the Ministry of Education. The last recorded visit to assist the Minister in implementing the "O. and M." recommendations was in September 1966. Apart from the above major assignments, "O. and M." officers frequently visit the Ministry to advise on questions of office machines and equipment as well as on forms design. The latest visit made in this connection was on the 4th of December, 1968. An "O. and M." officer is at present engaged on an assignment to review the organisation, procedures and equipment of the Ministry of Education Registry. This assignment commenced on the 8th of November, 1968, and fact-finding is still in progress.”
“Mr Speaker, Sir, I beg to move, That the sum to be allocated for Head 0401 be reduced by $10 in respect of subhead 1401. Sir, the point of this amendment is to seek information from the Parliamentary Secretary on the schedule of operation of this Training and Organisation Division. What is the nature of its operation? Does it provide its services to a Ministry on an application by the Ministry? Or has it got a schedule of movements whereby it visits the various Ministries in rotation? When did Organisation and Methods last visit the Ministry of Education? Mr Tang See Chim: Mr Speaker, Sir, the Organisation and Methods Branch is responsible for providing the following services: (1) conduct general reviews of all government machinery and departmental organisations; (2) undertake detailed studies of specific problems of organisation and methods in Ministries and departments; (3) review the designs and use of all forms in the civil service; (4) advise on all questions involving office machines and equipment; (5) undertake the drafting of administrative instructions. The Branch operates on the basis that its services are available to all Permanent Secretaries and heads of departments on request. It offers advice and assistance and makes recommendations, not directions, for improving office efficiency. In practice, this means that if the head of any office wants advice from the Organisation and Methods Branch, he must ask for it. The Organisation and Methods Branch will not interfere with internal administration unless it is asked to help. The Organisation and Methods - I shall call it "O. and M." in short - recognises that the problems of a small office are often as difficult as those of the larger ones. Priorities are given to an assignment where it is felt that "O. and M.”
“Mr Speaker, Sir, if the Parliamentary Secretary will make a survey, he will certainly find that there is a shortage of the Instruction Manual In view of his explanation, I beg leave to withdraw the amendment. Amendment, by leave, withdrawn. The following amendment stood in the name of Madam Chan Choy Siong - (5) That the sum to be allocated for Head 0401 be reduced by $10 in respect of subhead 1301.”
“I think there should be sufficient delegation of duties so that, to resort to a colloquialism, "the buck is not passed upstairs", which then makes it difficult for the public to get their problems solved. Lastly, I think it is also opportune for me to mention at this stage the unavailability of the Instruction Manual in the civil service today. This book is becoming as rare as the dodo nowadays. Perhaps the Parliamentary Secretary will say something about it.”
“Mr Speaker, Sir, I beg to move, That the sum to be allocated for Head 0401 be reduced by $10 in respect of subhead 1251. Sir, our civil service is always, by comparison, one feature in our country of which we can take pride, but I think there is always some need for vigilance over a possible relapse into inertia which could arise when the civil servant begins to restrict his ability and interest to the immediate activity of his post. I think that you begin to get this situation where the civil servant says to a member of the public who approaches him with a problem, that he is sorry, it cannot be done, and it is said with the finality that brooks no further question. It is certainly not a desirable situation, Sir. What we need is the civil servant who, when approached by a member of the public for a problem to be resolved and finding that he is unable to resolve it, is able to suggest how it can be resolved perhaps in another department. In order to achieve that situation, I feel that, first of all, the civil servant needs to inject some professionalism into his duties and also to extend his knowledge of the establishment beyond his immediate activity. I think there is also a need for an inter-departmental communication whereby civil servants in the respective departments could be as knowledgeable of the definition of duties in the other departments in respect of the other civil servants. Sir, I wonder to what extent this inter departmental communication exists in the service today. I think it is also necessary to see that powers do not continue to be vested with the particular individual at the top in the department so that you will begin to get the civil service becoming authoritarian.”
“Mr Speaker, Sir, I take it that these specialist teachers will be undertaking the teaching of special subjects and that, apart from them, there will be the category of general teachers who will be expected to undertake the teaching of any subject assigned to them by the principal of the school.”
“Mr Speaker, Sir, is the Parliamentary Secretary referring to Educational Television Service or the ordinary television broadcasts of T.V. Singapura?”
“Sir, can the Parliamentary Secretary inform the House how many of those rejected were in possession of the minimal required qualifications?”
“Sir, while I welcome the purport of this Bill, I must express my uneasiness at what appears to be and could be an unbridled enthusiasm with which the provisions of this Bill may be implemented by the officials of the Ministry once it becomes law. I note that this is a Bill of 29 clauses. One-third or nine of the provisions are penal. In the nine penal clauses which impose various penalties for various offences, one clause - clause 6 - does not specifically describe the offence for which a penalty is imposed. There is another clause which encroaches upon the universal rule that a person's body is inviolate and should not be medically examined unless he gives his permission. There is also one clause which disallows compensation for expenses incurred by a person for damages. I hope, therefore, that the rigour expressed in this Bill does not herald other Bills that will be issuing forth from the Ministry of Health, since the Minister himself has said recently that this is only the beginning. 7.03 p.m.”
“Mr Speaker, Sir, at the moment Domestic Science teachers trained abroad and Physical Education Inspectors trained abroad are placed on various assorted scales. However, the Commission has made some recommendations on this. Will the Government accept the Commission's recommendation that these two categories of teachers be entered into the basic Timescale as recommended at the point of $385?”
“Mr Speaker, Sir, will the Minister say whether the Government accepts the Commission's recommendation that all trained teachers, graduates and honours graduates, be emplaced on the Division I salary scale?”
“Mr Speaker, Sir, do I understand that the intended expansion of television is going to displace radio broadcasting to schools? Also, what is the future of radio broadcasting to schools?”
“Mr Speaker, Sir, from what the Parliamentary Secretary has said, do I understand that he will advise his Ministry to seek certain amendments to the Education Ordinance of 1957 so that a more effective body can be set up? Dr Lee Chiaw Meng: The question of amending the Education Ordinance of 1957 is, in fact, under consideration.”
“That being the case, I do not see why we should subscribe to this Convention in the first place. Apart from the question that it derogates from our sovereignty, the Convention also provides for the utilisation of a substantial part of the procedure of our courts and, therefore, our courts. I think, would be sufficiently equipped to accommodate any dispute. 4.05 p.m.”
“Mr Speaker, Sir, this Bill seeks to implement the International Convention on the Settlement of Investment Disputes between States and Nationals of Other States. By the Convention, the contracting parties may voluntarily submit to the jurisdiction of the tribunal. Sir, my approach to this is simply that submitting to the jurisdiction of an international tribunal means a derogation of our sovereignty. This Convention goes further. It provides for the settlement of disputes between a contracting state party like Singapore and a national of a foreign state. This, one may even say, derogates still further from the sovereignty of Singapore. 4.03 p.m. [Mr Deputy Speaker in the Chair] The Convention also provides for agreement between the parties involved in the disputes as to the laws which may be applicable in the adjudication of this dispute. In the absence of any agreement as to what laws should apply to a dispute before the tribunal, the laws of the contracting state party would apply. As I understand it, the purpose of this Bill, it appears, is to accord confidence to foreign states which hope to invest in Singapore. That being so, whatever disputes arise with a foreign state would normally have to be adjudicated in Singapore and, therefore, the laws of Singapore would apply. That being so, why subscribe to this Convention at all, because our courts, I think, are certainly credible enough and capable enough of settling such disputes? As the Parliamentary Secretary has stated, the procedure that is intended to be adopted with regard to the registration of awards would be the procedure that is at the moment being carried out in our High Court. There again the procedure of our courts is being adopted.”
“In conclusion, Sir, there is a period in the history of a nation when the people begin to be a nation. For ourselves, this is it. 5.15 p.m.”
“But whatever may be said against the Government for introducing this Bill, I think even the devil would blush at the allegation that this leadership is helping the capitalists to get rich at the expense of the workers. This leadership has gone down in our political history of the last decade as a government that has sought the survival of the country and the realisation of the common good. I do not think any serious minded quarter would question the truth of this. This Bill has been introduced at this stage for no other reason than that it would help the survival of the country and the realisation of the common good. Amendments to some of the controversial clauses will be moved by the Minister for Foreign Affairs and Minister for Labour himself. Amendments to five clauses will be moved by the Member for Bukit Ho Swee. The alleged severity of the Bill would be reduced as a result. In addition, the Central Provident Fund (Amendment) Bill offers a worthy compensatory privilege. However, it has been disturbing to hear of the cases of two employers already attempting to abuse the provisions of the Bill. I am heartened to have been told that the Minister would wield his stick if the need arose. Let the Minister not find that the stick has been misplaced when the time comes, for I am sure that our workers will respond favourably and management is not all that angelic. Enthusiastic and earnest labour alone will not suffice. There must be progressive innovations at the managerial and technological levels by capital if the hopes and intentions of this Bill are to be realised. Productivity promotion itself needs, in my view, an infrastructure for care, control and research. The Government is urged to consider this aspect of our reorganisation for survival and development.”
“Sir, we can expect to succeed in inducing at least half this amount if, in addition to the political stability of our country and the industrial peace which we have achieved, we can offer investors an enthusiastic labour force conditioned to secure high industrial productivity and an assurance of a reasonable freedom to manage, and generally an industrial climate which is favourable to industrial expansion and confidence in the future. Both these offers are spelt out in the Employment Bill and the Industrial Relations (Amendment) Bill. But high industrial productivity is the cumulative result of a number of basic industrial needs and processes like buildings, factories, equipment, power and transport, skilled labour, managerial and technical know-how and efficient services. These are all immediate objectives in our overall reorganisation for survival and development through our urban renewal, industrialisation, technical orientation in education, markets discovery, quality control and so on. As I have indicated earlier, we are reorganising now to remain a nation in the future. Though the problems before us are vast, they are not beyond solution. But woe betide us if we fail, for we shall fall into an economic stagnation from which we can hope to recover only after many years and much grief. What is urgently required is a national mood for productive work at all levels motivated by a realisation of the full consequences of failure. If this Bill and the debate on it inside and outside this Chamber can stir in our workers the beginnings of this mood, it will already have begun to achieve results before its operation. Sir, there will be criticisms on this Employment Bill.”
“In the public sector, it had to-contend with an arrogant, unyielding colonial government, in the private sector, it was engaged in a relentless struggle against forces of exploitation. Responses assumed a pattern and became set. Labour's response to capital was largely governed by the principle of work for fair wages and as soon as the employer showed profits, labour said, "Share." Labour conducted its role of protecting the workers' welfare without a national context. In the pre-Malaysia and Malaysia periods, this may have been a valid role because, if the chips had been down then, at least one could still have opted for a new life elsewhere. Today we are sovereign and, simply put, it means that we together are on our own for better or for worse. And if the worst happens, we will have to take it. Mass option for a new life elsewhere is out of the question. In such a situation, labour's agitations, however legitimate, must be tempered by the exigencies of the nation. These exigencies result from the impending British withdrawal by 1971. As detailed by the Minister for Finance, we need to spend the sum of $900 million in the course of the coming four years to counter the recession that will be caused by the progressive reduction. In British military expenditure over this period. This expenditure of $900 million will have to be above the normal public expenditure for the same period. $200 million of this $900 million represents the total of private investment we would have to induce in the course of the coming four years. This figure is in addition to the prevailing scale of $250 million per annum.”
“Mr Speaker, Sir, I support the. Bill. I do not intend to make another analysis of the Bill. I have been preceded in this respect by competent hon. Members. The controversial provisions of the Bill have been extensively illustrated and, when set against the magnitude of our economic problems, I think they become reduced to sacrifices which our workers can afford to make. For myself, the merits of the Bill are simply that it seeks to achieve a situation which is the logic of the present limitations of our economy. And that it is a facet of a vast definite programme for national consolidation, if not national construction, made necessary by our assumption of sovereignty on the 9th of August, 1965, and rendered imperative by the impending British withdrawal. A trading and servicing centre and on the way towards being a manufacturing nation, Singapore depends on the saleability of its goods and services for a living. Productivity, therefore, is a basic concern of our economy. Labour must be adjusted accordingly. Labour's role of merely producing the goods for wages must, in my opinion, at this-phase of our economic development, be refashioned in order to produce more goods at a lower cost per unit of output and, at the same time, maintaining quality. The structure of our economy is such that if our country is to continue to bustle and thrive and our living standards to remain as high as they are today or 50 years later or 100 years later, our chief productive resource, i.e. labour, must be consistent with capital and their co-ordination must result in-high industrial productivity. Sir, this Bill has been dictated by sheer necessity. For years, our labour force has operated under conditions of strife.”
“Sir, does that represent the amount of monies that is with the Council today?”
“Mr Speaker, Sir, what amount of monies is there in the present funds of the Singapore Sports Council?”
“Mr Speaker, Sir, will the Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister for Education state that as and when this system of registration of data is set up, the number of returns that are sent out to the schools will be minimised?”
“Mr Speaker, Sir, I wish to say a few words in praise of the objects which this Bill is intended to achieve, in particular the promotion and publicity of voluntary welfare work. Many words of approbation have been uttered in this House in respect of various efforts and ventures, but not enough, in my opinion, has been uttered in respect of voluntary efforts. I take this opportunity to express my appreciation - and I can quite certainly say the appreciation of all Members of this House - of the efforts of all the voluntary workers in the Republic. Sir, the value of the effort, is not only in the function of its contribution, but more important still in its exemplariness of concern for the welfare of one's community and country. It is an effort generated by the altruism which I believe is a common human component of all our peoples, and the House should give more recognition to this altruism and accord it the commendation that it deserves. I am sure that the Council, as envisaged in this Bill, will succeed in co-ordinating voluntary efforts and improving standards of social activity and thereby I hope it will succeed in publicising its efforts and attracting more of the disinterested benevolence of our people. However, I notice that an unfortunate omission has been made in this Bill, that is the provision declaring that this is a council or institution of a public character for the purpose of exempting from income tax donations made to it. I would like to believe, Sir, that this Bill contemplates exempting donations to this institution from income tax. This has been omitted from this Bill. Perhaps when the Minister sums up he can enlighten us on this matter. 4.01 p.m. [Mr Yeoh Ghim Seng temporarily in the Chair]”
“Mr Speaker, Sir, much as I appreciate the establishment of an Institute of Southeast Asian Studies, my appreciation is imprecise. There has been an inadequate amount of publicity of the possibilities of this Institute. From the explanatory statement appended to the Bill and from the tenor of the whole Bill, I am supposed to be persuaded into believing that there is abundant research to be done on Southeast Asia and on all matters appertaining to Southeast Asia. I not only hope, but I can even believe that there is. But what I feel is important is that the research intended should be contemporary in nature. It should be research into fields of knowledge which are directly relevant and contributory to' the many facets of our national growth at this crucial stage of our history. I hope that the Institute will produce findings which can be translated into added verve and vitality for our society and not only findings which are meant for the academician and the pedagogue. 2.57 p.m.”
“Is the Minister able to state whether this evidently undesirable practice in which the accuser is never present will be discontinued in order to prevent a decline in morale in the teaching profession?”
“Mr Speaker, Sir, what has been the result of these 189 investigations? How many of them can be said to be warranted?”
“It is hoped that this activity may be undertaken unobtrusively, for I believe that the Sports Division, as it is constituted, is intended to function in co-ordination with the voluntary effort of sports bodies in the Republic. The National Stadium at Kallang when completed will, it is hoped, be a, pride to all sports enthusiasts in the Republic. And I am sure the Division has plans for an Asian or Southeast Asian Games at the Stadium to inaugurate its opening. With regard to physical education, if our school-leavers are intended to constitute the industrial human resource and a military potential with the physical stamina and ruggedness which these occupations demand, then the Physical Education Department would require to take more manpower in order to execute a programme of physical education in schools with the necessary stress, vigour and continuity. In conclusion, Sir, I only wish to say that I support the motion before the House. 6.37 p.m.”
“It may be pertinent for the Government to consider also the desirability of decentralising certain facets of school supervision and school administration, and to enhance the answerability of the school head and his staff for all affairs of the school. This suggested trend may succeed in achieving that total committal of the head of the school and his staff to the school, its prestige and its overall performance which, in the course of time, sets -the school tone and tradition. However, achievement in this direction is unlikely if the frequency of the transfer of school heads and teachers from school to school is not reduced to minimal. The business of qualitative improvement in matters educational is that of a research body, preferably an education research council. It is significant instruction for those interested in edu cation that at this stage of education development in our country the only research unit in the field, as I understand it, is in the Teachers' Training College, which is hardly satisfactory. I would suggest the initiation of thinking in the direction of an Education Act which would incorporate a national science and educational policy, the structure and administration of education in the country, and which would set up an independent educational research council along the lines of the research council in the English Education Act of 1943. The creation of the Sports Division has been timely. The numerous sports bodies in the Republic would expect the Sports Division or, in particular, the Sports Promotion Office in the Division to formulate and execute a comprehensive programme of sports promotion.”
“This would also be the necessary measure to take in conjunction with the reorganisation of the secondary schools towards an industrial re-orientation. It is hoped that the extent of the intended reform would include an examination of the basis of selection of student teachers for training with a view to formulating the basis which would in some measure ensure that student teachers selected thereby would manifest, or contain a potential to manifest, in some degree the natural teaching ability, selflessness and the dedication which the profession demands. I am given to understand that the selection of student teachers for training is done by the computations of a computer. While almost every student teacher with the necessary academic qualifications can instruct upon graduating from the Teachers' Training College, not every graduate can teach. Teaching is a personal or personalised activity motivated by considerations of concern, interest, professional pride and the desire to give of oneself. All these considerations may be absent in academic qualifications no matter how impressive they may be. In this regard, I am sure that I am also voicing the sentiments of my constituents. For some time now, I have been wont to regard a large number of our schools as hardly anything more than centres of instruction and teachers as instructors. Qualitative improvement in teacher-training and re-training, together with the other comprehensive reforms intended, would eventually restore the school and the teacher in place of centres of instruction and instructors.”
“For one thing, if we are to hope for the emergence of a responsible and effective Opposition as suggested by the Prime Minister in his speech offering sound alternatives to help work the machine of parliamentary democracy in this country, there must be opinion in our society, and the initial pre-requisite to opinion is the articulateness of the knowledgeable elite of the populace. In addition, there must be a climate which positively encourages the expression of opinion. The elite in this country is a rich human resource with considerable capacity to contribute to the nation but which unfortunately remains intellectually unagitated. Sir, as suggested, the Primary School Leaving Examination may be suitably modified or even abolished and in its place a system of annual assessment set up. Perhaps the School Certificate Examination may be broken up into two stages so that the secondary student offers a number of subjects at the first sitting in Secondary III and the other half in Secondary IV. Sir, I beg your indulgence if I descend into these details but I do so by way of commenting on the policy of the Government. This would, to a certain extent, dilute the examination urgency which tends to pervade the secondary school atmosphere and make room for additional subjects in the time-table also. The practical problem of examination-paper marking for the Primary School Leaving Examination is recognised. Change is urged, but change is urged without sacrificing the efficiency of the system or the teacher through sheer overloading. Reform in the field of teacher-training and re-training is a necessary undertaking in the effort to achieve qualitative improvement.”
“As long as this examination becomes the arbiter of the destiny of the Primary VI student, when its computations decide that he is either' academically fitted for secondary academic or technical education, which, as he understands it, holds promise of gainful employment at the end of it, or that he is an academic failure, a reject or a mere vocational probable, with, as he understands it, an uncertain future; and as long as this examination remains, the kind of examination it is, requiring of the student only abundant knowledge without the facilities of verbal and written expression which are its necessary concomitants, so long will primary school teaching be focused on success in the Primary School Leaving Examination, at the expense of the development of the skills in verbal and written expression which are the requisite mechanics of articulation. In the secondary schools, teaching becomes focused on the need to pass the School Certificate Examination. The urgency of this makes secondary school teaching impatient of the need to develop the skill to compose or to articulate orally or in writing other than the minimal ability which is required for examination purposes. Only the brighter student excels on his own effort. The non-retention policy by which the student of maximum age for that class is promoted to the next grade at the end of the year, despite his failure in the terminal examinations, progressively worsens his inarticulateness apart from his overall ability. Sir, this is a decline which must be arrested immediately.”
“, and who are over-aged. It operates on the inscrutable theory that the over-age rejects of this examination have an aptitude for vocational training. I would suggest that the Government consider making the diversion at the early secondary school stage. Mr Speaker, the creation of the Ministry of Science and Technology indeed announces the Government's recognition of the indispensability of science and technology in economic development and its intention to fashion our human resources to serve commerce and industry. Planning in this direction calls for increasing numbers of graduates, in science and engineering and the re-ordering of the priorities in learning at the secondary school level to provide the necessary mathematical and science teaching followed by technical college or university training. Initially, to harness the human resources for a sizable impact of science and technology on economic development, there must be a considerable option for science and technology on the part of the parents of the students. Effective persuasion to achieve this option would be the increasing demonstration and its advertisement of the prestige that, this Government and commerce and industry are prepared to accord to science and technology by reflecting the economic importance of scientists and technologists in their salary structures. Mr Speaker, Sir, I hope that the intended reform in examinations as stated in the Addendum to the President's Speech will modify or abolish in toto the Primary School Leaving Examination.”
“Secondary schools must place in the employment market instead that number of craftsmen and technicians or their potential. While crediting the Government for having made the proper evaluation of the human resources which our programme for economic viability and development require, I sense that the Government contemplates only a partial and, in my view, insufficient committal of education to commerce and industry. The reorganisation of the secondary schools to secure a larger output of vocational and technical skills without also the reorganisation of the primary schools to secure the appropriate bias towards commerce and industry is a half-hearted measure. With deference to the thinking that has produced these proposed changes, I see ourselves as a commercial and industrial society committed to an economic destiny whose course is charted by the successes or failures of commerce and industry in our country. The intended diversion of large numbers of students to technical education and vocational training should be a diversion of technical and vocational potential. This entails the reorganisation of the primary schools as suggested, so that at the point where diversion is intended, preferences and inclination for, and ability in, technical education and vocational training are reasonably definite and become evident by a process of assessment. Sir, diversion of academic potential, which is the end product of six years of primary education, to technical education and vocational training is short of what is ideally correct. Diversion of primary school students to vocational training as it is being done today must cease. It is a diversion of primary school students who have failed in the primary school leaving examination, notoriously abbreviated as P.S.L.E.”
“Mr Speaker, Sir, I would like, at the outset, to express my appreciation and gratitude to the President for delivering a policy speech laying out his Government's clear intention and dynamic plans to ensure the nation's defence and prosperity. On the eve of a decade of government by the People's Action Party, the people of Singapore find themselves politically consolidated, culturally integrated, socially cohering, economically sound, innovating for continued viability and further development, poised to withstand the economic impact of the British withdrawal and ready to surmount the problems that will arise therefrom. Problems of the coming decade will test our capacity to respond as a nation. Some of these problems, putting it briefly and simply, will require our people to sacrifice within their means today to ensure a better life for their children tomorrow. Mr Speaker, Sir, I am heartened by the President's call to hon. Members of this House to speak in forthright terms on the speech and the Addendum thereto, and without further preamble I shall now begin to avail myself of the opportunity. Sir, irrevocably committed as we are to industrialisation upon which our economic destiny will largely depend, the Addendum to the President's Speech, outlining the Government's intention to refashion the secondary school system so as to make it keep to manpower needs and employment opportunities, is indeed reassuring. The placing, by an education system, of about 21,000 Secondary IV students of 16 to 17 years, without the special skills or knowledge required by industry, must cease if we are to bring about the industrial acceleration which is required to help sustain our economy in the difficult years ahead.”