P. Govindaswamy
Singapore
“Sir, the purchase of SBS shares should not be made compulsory. It should be voluntary. If a poor man were to use all his $5,000 CPF savings to buy SBS shares, he will not know what will happen to his shares in one or two years' time.”
“Sir, we know that Singapore Government Officers' Cooperative Housing Society has been in trouble for many years. But I fail to understand why when members write in for a refund, they do not even get a reply. Nobody seems to know exactly what is happening with this society.”
“In the past few years and even now, every Malaysia Cup soccer tie that is played at our Stadium, the tickets are sold out within hours and many fans are disappointed. Even ugly scenes have happened, to the extent that one soccer fan fell dead whilst trying to buy tickets.”
“If the Minister approaches the Finance Ministry for extra staff, he must press on with his request. Anyway, Sir, I beg leave to withdraw my amendment. Amendment by leave, withdrawn.”
“Mr Speaker, Sir, I have forgotten one point. Regarding the word "million". can the Minister please give instructions to the RTS staff not to use the English word "million" but to use the Tamil word for it? If they do not know the Tamil word for it, they can ask the people from the higher institutions.”
“The Minister must think it over. Mr Ng Yeow Chong: Sir, can the acting Minister give me an assurance that my request for the re-naming and for the re-location of the creche within the constituency's housing estate will be brought up when his Ministry starts negotiations with the NTUC for the taking over of the creches?”
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“Sir, I will try to bring up those points which they have not covered. There are many police stations in Singapore which are very old as they were built a long time ago, and they have not been renovated. In fact, the Central Police Station building is an ancient building. Since there is a trend to modernise the Police Force, why not start building a new Central Police Station? A new, central, modern, and up-to-date police station will not only create a better image but it will also provide better working conditions for the officers. The introduction of full-time national service for the Police Force is an excellent idea as it will meet the manpower shortage to some extent. May I ask how this is going to be implemented? Sir, I would also like to ask whether the Police Force is manned properly? In the last one week, more than a million dollars worth of goods were stolen in a few robberies. Something is wrong somewhere. Obviously, the criminals know that the Police is understaffed and, therefore, they can get away with crime. Their attitude seems to be that if they get caught it is just bad luck. But their chances of getting away are good. Probably the Police Force is very badly understaffed. It is no use increasing the punishment for the criminals because I believe the robberies will increase. We must try to reform the robbers. Sir, what is happening to the mobile squad of our Traffic Police? My colleague has already spoken on this subject. A few national servicemen have been recruited to this section. They were given a few ancient vehicles to go around on patrol, which broke down so often. They could not do their job properly.”
“Mr Speaker, Sir, my colleagues have raised so many points that most probably I will have to repeat what they have said.”
“Sir, I am not very satisfied with the Minister's reply. I suggested that times be taken to determine how many patients a doctor can see in a day. By taking these times we can calculate the average number of patients a doctor can see in a day so that the patient can be thoroughly examined. Anyway I do not want to prolong the debate, and I beg leave to withdraw my amendment. Amendment, by leave, withdrawn. The following amendment stood in the name of Mr Ng Kah Ting - (4) That the total sum to be allocated for Head T in respect of the Main Estimates be reduced by $100.”
“Mr Deputy Speaker, Sir, the Hon. Minister in reply said that tile doctors are not over worked. May I suggest that times taken to determine how long it take a doctor to see a patient. From these we can calculate and tell whether the doctor is overworked or not. A doctor usually takes only two or three minute to examine a patient. As a result, the patients are not properly examined.”
“In certain outpatient clinics the staff is so inadequate that the amahs are asked to carry out some of the minor duties of the nurses, like taking temperature. Surely an amah is not qualified in any way to attend to a patient. Such things would not occur if there is sufficient staff in the outpatient clinics. Sir, in these clinics the doctors may he overworked to such an extent that they become careless. There was the case of a girl who went to the OPD for treatment. Although she was suffering from severe pain she was told that there was nothing wrong with her and was told to go back to work. At the office tile head of department noticed her condition and wrote a note and asked her to go to the OPD once again. At the OPD the doctor just gave her a day's medical leave. It was 3.00 p.m, then but she was told to go off. The girl had no choice but to see a private doctor who examined her thoroughly and he finally managed to cure her. This carelessness would not have occurred if doctors at the OPD are not overworked. Sir, some doctors at the OPD just give a quick examination of the patients and ask them to buy Panadol. If a patient is charged a fee for the treatment, proper medicine must be given to them. If the treatment is not effective, they have to go to a private doctor. In this way, they will have to spend more money. Can the Minister look into the matter?”
“Mr Deputy Speaker, Sir, I beg to move, That the sum to be allocated for Head T be reduced by $10 in respect of subhead CBA 1107. Sir, in the Outpatient Clinic at the General Hospital can something be done to ensure that appointments with patients if made are promptly kept? Quite often, patients for whom appointments are made to see the specialist are kept for hours at a time through no fault of the specialist. This is the result of poor coordination between those who do tile paper work and those who do the practical work. Recently, there was a case where a patient whose appointment was at 9.45 am, was kept waiting for more than two hours before he could see the specialist in the Orthopaedic Unit. This is simply because tile specialist had either gone out to conduct certain lectures or had to attend to some other business. The patient, together with many others, had to wait for two whole hours. If only those who made the appointment could foresee the doctor's timetable, then this unnecessary waiting could have been avoided. Those patients could have spent the two hours usefully. Doctors at the OPD are overworked. They sometimes have to attend to as many as 100 patients per day so much so that they sometimes prescribe the wrong medicine. The doctors are not to be blamed. They can only work to a certain level with efficiency. Beyond that, efficiency drops. One cannot he at his peak of efficiency at all times, especially when a doctor has to treat more than 100 patients per day. Certainly something could be done to alleviate the work of the doctors at tile OPDs, they are human too. They too require a certain amount of rest. They can work with optimum efficiency for a certain period. Furthermore, if these doctors are overworked, we are just encouraging more resignations.”
“Sir, 1 beg leave to withdraw my amendment. Amendment, by leave, withdrawn. 5.45 p.m.”
“Sir, the Minister himself must see what happens in the hospital. To do that, he must pay a surprise visit to the hospital. He must not let the staff know in advance of his visit, otherwise everything will appear efficient and properly run.”
“I mentioned that the husband was transferred to another ward. When the wife could not find her husband, she asked the staff. The hospital staff told her that he was already discharged. On the way back home she met her mother-in-law who was also going to see her son. She told her mother-in-law that he was already discharged and, therefore, both went home. However, when they went home they were surprised that he was not there. They therefore telephoned the hospital, but the staff told them that they had to go back to the hospital. Later they found out that he had been transferred to another ward. The question is why cause such inconvenience to people? The hospital must have a record of the transfer of patients.”
“Point of clarification, Sir. Mr Chua Sian Chin resumed his seat.”
“At the bus stop she met her mother-in-law who was also on her way to see him. She told her mother-in-law that her husband had already been discharged. But her mother-in-law said that she came from home and had not seen him. So they decided to go home. When they reached home he was not to be found. Subsequently, they were worried and telephoned the hospital. The hospital staff failed to assist them and requested them to go to the hospital. Later, at the hospital, they finally learnt that the patient had been transferred to another ward. Sir, I want to know why these two women had to be inconvenienced. I hope the hospital staff could give proper information and not cause people to panic. I also understand that patients in third class wards of Kandang Kerbau Hospital are not treated properly. I have received complaints that they are treated very badly by some of the staff.”
“Next, may .I ask what is the procedure for treatment of children at outpatient clinics? In some cases school children who go to these clinics are not required to pay, and in other cases tile same children are required to pay. Payment seems to he at tile discretion o, the clerk in charge at the counter Treatment at the Alexandra Hospital requires particular attention, especially after midnight. There was an occasion when the clerk in the Emergency Unit was in deep slumber and it took quite an effort to wake him up. Then the doctor had to be awakened to attend to the patient. This might have taken as much as half an hour. Surely, in the Emergency Unit, half an hour is a very very long time in which to save a person's life which sometimes can be decided in a matter of minutes. Furthermore, in the same hospital as far as medicine is concerned, the patient was not given any medicine. He had to go back the next morning for his medicine because the dispensary was closed. This caused further inconvenience. Something should be done to alleviate the suffering of the sick. They should not be forced to go back to the hospital again and again just to take a bottle of medicine or some pills. Finally, there have been cases in some hospitals where wrong medicine had been given. As a result, I know of a patient who has developed an allergy even to panadol. Such mistakes would not have occurred if the doctors had not been overworked. Sir, there was a case of a person who was warded in the Singapore General Hospital. A few days later he was transferred to another ward. On the day he was transferred, his wife went to visit him. At the ward she was told that he had been discharged and had gone home. This lady was happy that her husband had been discharged and went on her way home.”
“This subject may be very stale, but in fact, it is repeated so often that no wonder there is an exodus of medical personnel to countries like Canada and Australia. We must try our best to retain these people as we need them so badly here. We should not close an eye to their problems for it will result in dissatisfaction and emigration to other countries by our doctors and nurses whom we need so badly in our own country. Something must definitely be done for them. Otherwise, if nothing is done we will have this problem year in and year out. The result will be a chronic congestion in the hospitals, overworked doctors and dissatisfied medical staff. Sir, though a certain amount of publicity has been given to the zoning of hospitals, it is insufficient. My contention is that greater publicity should be given to this matter so that it will ease the confusion in the minds of the public. I hope the new General Hospital that is being built in the grounds of the Out-ram Road General Hospital would he built in such a way that it will not in- convenience the sick, the aged and the disabled. In the present layout, patients have to walk long distances from one section to another for treatment. Take the example of a person who has a dislocation. He has to report at the Emergency Unit, then to the X-ray unit, then to the Orthopaedic Unit, then to X-ray Unit again, and back again 10 the Orthopaedic Unit. Making patients walk to and fro for long distances is not going tor had to be awakened to attend to the hospital or a well-run hospital, especially to those who are already in agony. No doubt at this point I may also mention one fact which has been taxing our minds. Let us hope that the extension of the hospital will be well planned so that it will not inconvenience the sick.”
“Sir, I beg to move, That the sum to be allocated for Head T be reduced by $10 in respect of subhead AAA 1105*. (*The same amendment also stood in the names of Dr. Tan Eng Liang and Mr Ho Kah Leong). There has been a hint that medical charges may be further increased. This is not the first time that the charges have been increased ; in fact the medical charges have been increased too often. There is no doubt that cost in hospitals, clinics, etc., have gone up. But in this particular matter, we have to think very carefully before we increase the charges. If the increases are too great, it will affect those in the lower income group very badly. A person suffering from a cold or some disease may have to visit the Outpatients Department two or three times. The lower income group will suffer a great deal if they have to go to private clinics for treatment. I am afraid that tile people in this particular group have a tendency to go to tile quacks or to those Who call themselves doctors though they are not medically qualified in any way. The net result is that we may have people deformed or worse after the treatment received from these quacks. Therefore, these people have no choice but to go to Government clinics or hospitals for treatment, causing greater headaches to the doctors and staff in the hospitals. I would request the Minister to reconsider this question of the proposed increase in medical charges. On this particular subject, I would again like to raise the problem of our nurses and doctors who are being worked to the bone in the hospitals, giving the public and perhaps even foreigners a very poor impression of tile Government medical service.”
“Sir, what the Minister said was right. However, I too buy fish and vegetables, and that was why I brought it up. I beg leave to withdraw my amendment. Amendment, by leave, withdrawn.”
“I think we must decide to negotiate with the exporting countries for a better deal.”
“Sir, I am not so interested in that. What I am more interested is why a historic building such as Raffles Institution had to be demolished? Anyway, I beg leave to withdraw my amendment. Amendment, by leave, withdrawn. Mr P. Govindaswamy: Sir, I beg to move, That the sum to be allocated for Head S be reduced by $10 in respect of subhead CFA 1107*. (*The same amendment also stood in the name of Mr Ho Kah Leong). Sir, can the Minister elaborate on what is being done to improve market gardening facilities and pig and poultry rearing in the State? Would it be feasible to at least provide market gardening facilities on roof-tops of 11DB flats which are lying idle and which receive the beneficial rays of the sun constantly? No damage could arise where residents are concerned. This is one of the solutions as Singapore is short of land. Alternatively, it would be advisable if the Government could acquire certain pieces of land and give them to the farmers to cultivate for our daily needs. On the other hand, if we cannot depend much on agriculture, what about fishing? I would like to know what is being done to encourage our fishermen to engage themselves in deep sea fishing for our daily supplies of sea food. I suggest that the Primary Production Department should take steps to see that farmers and fishermen are well taken care of, and ensure that ample encouragement and facilities are given to them so that they can enjoy the fruits of their labour. Sir, can the Department look into the price of mutton which does not seem to come down during the last few years? Prices of mutton are causing hardship to our people. Something must be done to import more sheep in order to cut down the cost. We cannot all the time blame the exporting countries for not exporting enough to us.”
“Sir, I would like to know what is really happening to the former Raffles Institution site. I believe the former historic building had to be demolished to make way for urban renewal, and that a tall building will be built at the site so as to keep up with other tall buildings in the city area. But instead of the tall building as expected, the site has been converted into a car park. Just imagine, a historic Raffles Institution building demolished for a mere car park! May I know why the Planning Department had second thoughts on the project in this important area? Again, another precious piece of land, the former Gemini Chit Fund site at Bras Basah Road, has been converted into the best plot for growing lalang. While there is acute shortage of land in the city area for development, we find this place lying idle for growing lalang. I hope the Planning Department will not be so fickle in its functions. Either we develop according to schedule or leave the place to our citizens who are occupying the land. Sir, can the Minister give an explanation for these anomalies? Sir, I have received many complaints about development in my constituency. Building approvals have been granted for some areas in Wallich Street, which is indeed very good for the uplift of Anson constituency. However, I would like to know why there is some discrimination in the Tras Street area where building approvals have been granted for a certain section but not granted for another section. Can the Minister explain the policy of granting building approvals?”
“Sir, I beg to move, That the sum to be allocated for Head S be reduced by $10 in respect of subhead CEA 1107. The Planning Department, which is the nerve centre for all planning matters in Singapore and a very important section in the Ministry of National Development, was split into two in April last year. One section of the Planning Department was to deal with the Master Plan and long-term planning, and the other section known as the Development Control Division is to operate under the PWD. As a result of the split, the position of the professional planners is not clear. The morale of the officers is low. They even fear to talk to members of the public, who from time to time seek preliminary advice prior to submission of formal applications to the Development Control Division. In overseas countries development control is always part of the Planning Department for the efficient operation of planning control. What was the reason behind the split? Is the separation going to be permanent? I would like to know how many resignations have taken place since the separation? Are the planners who are in the profession happy with this separation? I would also like to know whether officers of both divisions are eligible to apply for a senior post when a vacancy arises. At the moment, I believe that promotion to a senior post is confined to officers of the particular division where the vacancy exists. This has caused great dissatisfaction among the planners because of frustration and lack of promotion prospects and incentives. This was what I was given to understand from a disappointed planner who has since resigned, and as you know, Sir, it is difficult to recruit planners. I would request the Minister to make a review of this important division.”
“Sir, I am satisfied with the Minister's reply, and I beg leave to withdraw. Amendment, by leave, withdrawn.”
“Sir, I beg to move, That the sum to be allocated for Head S be reduced by $10 in respect of subhead CDE 1107*. (*The same amendment stood in the name of Haji Mohd. Ariff Bin Suradi). Sir, I believe that several trees in parks and along roads are slanting dangerously and appear to fall at any time. Can the department concerned plan a programme to cut them down so as to avoid unnecessary damage to property and lives? It is also believed that a major park is to be opened in Marine Parade and in various parts of the country. Can the Minister elaborate these programmes? Again, lighting and parking facilities in some of our present parks are inadequate. Can the department concerned kindly look into this matter in order to improve the situation?”
“Thirdly, I also would like to enquire of the Minister what the Sports Council is doing in the field of physical education, which is another objective of the Council described in the Sports Council Act. I am aware that there are two other sources that are concerned with physical education. One is the Institute of Edu- cation that is worried over it. The other is the Physical Education department in the Ministry of Education. Has the Sports Council involved itself in physical education and undertaken efforts to promote physical education? Has it coordinated a plan among the two other institutions in order to promote physical education in the State?”
“Sir, I beg leave to withdraw my amendment. Amendment, by leave, withdrawn. Mr Rodrigo: Sir, I beg to move, That the sum to be allocated for Head R be reduced by $10 in respect of item (m) of subhead AAA 3020*. (*The same amendment alos stood in the names of Messrs N. Govindasamy and Ivan Baptist). Sir, this subhead gives me the opportunity to ask the Minister what the financial standing of the Singapore Sports Council is at the moment, and also to make some observations on the objectives of the Council which is formulated in Part III of the Singapore Sports Council Act. One of the main objectives of the Council is to plan for sports development and promotion. To-date I am not aware of any comprehensive plan on sports development and promotion being produced by the Sports Council. I hope the Council is working towards the production of such a plan, a plan which is to some extent a total plan on sports development and promotion, taking into consideration our population movement, population concentration, age groups, residential status, occupational patterns of residents in various ages in the State and also the physical development of sports facilities that are being undertaken by statutory boards like the HDB, Ministry of Education, maybe the Urban Redevelopment Authority and so on. Secondly, is the Council also working towards the planning of sports at the management level? Here, it may be a little complicated, but if the efforts are directed towards coordinating the management of sports that are being undertaken by bodies like the SNOC, the sports organisations, and Ministry of Education, then a kind of effective plan of sports management might be achieved.”
“It would be wise to introduce a helicopter service to fight fires in high-rise buildings, i wonder how this service is going to help in fighting a fire. Can the Minister explain?”
“Sir, I beg to move, That the sum to be allocated for Head R be reduced by $10 in respect of subhead BFA 1109. Sir, after the major fire at Robinson's a few years ago, it has been compulsory for all organisations, government departments, factories, departmental stores, etc, to eradicate all fire hazards and to provide greater fire safety measures in order to avoid a recurrence of such a disaster. But it is sad to note that although a large sum of money was spent on this item of expenditure, we still hear of numerous major and minor cases of fire in the last few years with losses amounting to millions of dollars. What measures are being taken to prevent fires in big departmental stores? After the Robinson fire, many departmental stores have introduced side-staircases. But unfortunately all these exits are securely locked. What happens if there is a fire? If the officer in charge of the keys were to panic or was not around, then a lot of people would be trapped and roasted alive. How often are checks and drills carried out to ensure that departmental stores do not display their goods in such a manner as to become a hazard in a fire emergency? I want to know whether the use of fire-fighting equipment and the methods of combating fire are being taught to workers in offices, factories, departmental store staff and school officials. Because if these people are ignorant of the correct use of this equipment, then it is pointless to have them. Sir, how often are fire-fighting equipment checked to see that they really work, because quite often when they are tested, some of them are found to be out of order. I hope that fire-fighting equipment, such as fire extinguishers, in all buildings, be it departmental stores, theatres, offices, etc., are checked regularly.”
“Sir, in view of the explanation given by the Minister, .1 beg leave to withdraw my amendment. Amendment, by leave, withdrawn. The following amendment stood in the names of Messrs Ng Kah Ting and Teong Eng Siong - (5) That the sum to be allocated for Head R be reduced by $10 in respect of subhead BEA 1107.”
“Sir, I beg to move, That the sum to be allocated for Head R be reduced by $10 in respect of subhead BDA 1107. Sir, whenever the subject of Legal Aid Bureau comes up for discussion, the only question that is brought up is the delay in the handling of cases that have been referred to the Bureau. Sometimes it takes about one to two years to deal with a simple case. Why is there such a delay? Probably the Bureau is understaffed and overworked. It is useless to discuss year in and year out the same complaint, without any action being taken. Can something be done to improve the situation, such as increasing the number of staff? It is also observed that the staff at the counters are unable to assist the public in any way if there is no written information to trace the case, even if the person, who had previously been there, was able to recall the nature of the case. This is evidence to show that so many cases have been referred to the Bureau that the staff are unable to recollect and trace any case even after a short duration. Sir, it is believed that the Registry Section of the Bureau is unable to cope with the demand for attention. Unless a numbered card is produced, thus leading to inconvenience to the public, one is not able to get any attention thereby causing the case to be delayed. Can something be done also to improve the function of the Registry and to instruct the staff to be polite, courteous and helpful to the poor and also the illiterate people who are forced to come to this Bureau .for legal assistance? 3.30 p.m.”
“Sir, in view of the Minister's explanation, I beg leave to withdraw. Amendment, by leave, withdrawn. 3.15 p.m.”
“Sir, I beg to move, That the sum to allocated for Head R be reduced by $10 in respect of subhead ACA 1111*. (*The same amendment also stood in the names of Messrs Cheong Yuen Chee and Ho Kah Leong). It is believed that the Registry of Cooperative Societies is being reorganised into the Cooperative Development Department. This is indeed a good move. Can the Minister elaborate on the functions of this new proposed Cooperative Development Department? Sir, recently two International Labour Organisation experts have made recommendations to strengthen the cooperative movement in Singapore. May I know what are the recommendations they have made, and how would they affect the state of our present societies? I wonder whether non-citizens are allowed to hold office in these recommendations. I would also like to know how many societies are in existence at the moment, and how many are really active. In the past, there were proposals by some societies to engage in multi-purpose cooperative societies in order to fight inflation. How far has this programme been successful, and how many societies have been converted into multi-purpose cooperative societies?”
“Sir, the Minister for Social Affairs said that I was not present at the finals of the inter-constituency badminton tournament. It is not possible for me to be present at every sports event to see what is happening. It is only when I receive a complaint that I bring up the matter in this House. This is the proper place for me to bring up these matters. If the Minister wants me to be present at every sports event to see what is happening, then I would not have time for other work.”
“May I ask how do these people get into the stadium without tickets? In any major sports game at the National Stadium the crowds go there early, sometimes two or three hours before the game starts. Surely the Singapore Sports Council can think of something to entertain the crowd, perhaps a display of bands, some track events or some minor games to entertain the crowd. Sir, last year I mentioned that the grounds of the National Stadium were like a fish pond. And this year I noticed that there is a signboard outside the Stadium at the east side saying "No fishing or swimming allowed". I presume someone had been found fishing or swimming there. I also notice that the Stadium authorities used a primitive method of drain-fling water from the field. To quote an instance, during the football game between Singapore and China, where more than 50,000 spectators were present, the authorities used towels and blankets to drain off water before a very large crowd. I would also like to know why there were only 40 spectators as against 65 officials during the finals of the Inter-constituency Badminton Tournament at the Badminton hail last year. I hope the Singapore Sports Council could generate more interest in sports instead of providing only service. The Farrer Park field is used practically everyday for football games. Many of our soccer stars were discovered from games played at this field. Unfortunately, the ground at this place is badly maintained. Even with a light rain, the ground becomes sodden with pools of water here and there, thereby spoiling the games played there. The field is situated in an ideal place, but unfortunately the maintenance is poor. Toto could help here to remedy the condition.”
“There are insufficient footpaths, and even then these are criss-crossed with so many drains of various sizes that they become a hazard and accidents are likely to occur. In fact, many accidents have occurred when people cross these drains. When a large crowd moves, people are not aware of obstacles in their path. Even the doctors in the hospitals are aware that accidents occurring on the grounds around the National Stadium are very common. There was a very recent case in which a person, after watching a football game, had an accident and dislocated his arm. It was not easy to summon an ambulance. Even the police who were on duty controlling the traffic did not have a walkie talkie to summon an ambulance. Fortunately, this person was with his manager who later drove him to the hospital. Such is the state of affairs at the stadium. Something must be done to remedy this situation. The Minister may reply that this matter does not come under his jurisdiction. But I would suggest to him that he should liaise with the Minister for the Environment to cover up these dangerous drains and to install adequate lighting outside the stadium. Sir, some of the security officials of the National Stadium should undergo a course on human relations so that they can be polite and helpful to the people who go to the National Stadium. I have received complaints of rudeness and discourtesy on the part of some officials towards members of the public. Furthermore, those ticket collectors at the gate do not issue counterfoils. As a result, many people enter the stadium without tickets, particularly during interesting matches, and there are no means of detecting them, because a counterfoil has not been given to a person who has bought a ticket.”
“Mr Speaker, Sir, last year, I mentioned that the National Stadium was as good as a `white elephant'. But surprisingly it has made a tremendous improvement. Football has been responsible for attracting the big crowds. At this particular juncture I should mention that it is football alone that has brought in the crowd to fill the stadium, sometimes to full capacity. For this, I must compliment the Football Association of Singapore. The officials and coaches have done a very good job. The Singapore team has played great football against tremendous odds. But let me ask, is soccer the only game in Singapore? What is the Singapore Sports Council doing to promote the other sports? Surely they are not resting on the laurels they have attained through football alone in Singapore. To make matters worse, the SSC is trying to promote inter-constituency sports without proper liaison with the community centres. As a result, there is an overlapping of activities. Something is wrong somewhere. This overlapping of activities will cause further confusion. The SSC was granted a loan of $1,600,000, and I presume it will still continue to receive aid from Toto. What is being done to promote sports with these funds? It is high time the SSC became more realistic and help to promote the other sports. Singaporeans are keen sportsmen and sportswomen. The SSC can become a very useful organisation to promote sports in Singapore. Unfortunately, it appears that it is not doing a very good job in promoting sports in Singapore. Let me come back to the National Stadium. Although the stadium has become "alive", the grounds around the stadium require some attention. Sir, not only is the lighting very poor, but many places in the grounds are very uneven.”
“Sir, the Minister referred to the percentage of the Tamil population. If we are to take the percentage of the reading population as a basis for calculation, then the libraries must also carry the same percentage of books. However, even the 5% of the Tamil reading population can read 8% of the books that are available. So the Minister should not make a comparison on the basis of population. The books are needed in the library, so that people can go and read them and get some knowledge about Tamil. I think Tamil is one of the oldest languages. So the Minister must find out what books are not there and he must try to supply those books. If the Ministry has no funds, he should say, "We have no money." That is all. Mr Conceicao: Sir, I am very reassured by what the Minister has said regarding the matter I raised. May I take this opportunity to congratulate the Ministry of Culture for the very good work the National Library is doing and, with that, I take leave to withdraw this amendment. Amendment, by leave, withdrawn. 6.37 p.m. [Mr Deputy Speaker in the Chair]”
“Mr Speaker, Sir, it is indeed welcome to see branch libraries set up in many new housing estates. But it would appear that in all the libraries the provision of reading mystery, books and journals, especially those pertaining to work of the various Ministries, is most inadequate. Recently some soil test experts were looking in the Queenstown Branch Library for books like Soil Testing by William Lamb, and Soil Testing by Tezaki, in connection with their experiments, but none was available. Moreover, in the National Library a great number of Tamil books are not available. Can the Library take steps to supply adequate reading material? 6.30 p.m.”
“Sir, in view of the faulty microphone system 1 beg leave to withdraw my amendment. Amendment, by leave, withdrawn.”
“I would suggest that the afternoon programme, which is not listened in by many people, be taken off and put on the air at a later hour. I have to bring this matter up because many Tamil listeners have to switch to foreign broadcasts after 9.00 p.m., simply because RTS fails to provide the entertainment that it is supposed to provide. Listening in to foreign broadcasts does not promote loyalty among the local population in Singapore. Furthermore, we are losing a golden opportunity to educate the Tamil speaking population because those are the very hours that most people like to listen in to the radio.”
“It is high time that the Minister did something about improving the quality and increasing the frequency of colour TV programmes. Only then can the sale of colour TV sets be enhanced. Colour TV programmes in Tamil are non-existent. Why is there such a discrimination? Can the Minister do something to introduce colour films in Tamil? Besides, there is no Tamil programme at all on Sundays when everyone is resting at home. Surely something can be done about this. Sir, in the past, questions had been raised by me on the late screening of Tamil films, which went on till midnight, a time that was inconvenient for office workers and school children. We are glad that the Minister had done something to advance the screening times of these films. However, of late, the screening times have been gradually pushed back, and this is a return to the old system. I would request a timely check on this "relapse". Sometimes it would appear that films are not screened according to schedule. As a result, when one tunes in to a desired programme one finds that one has already missed some portion of the programme. 5.15 p.m. Sir, where Tamil `request' programmes on radio are concerned, the announcer indiscriminately mentions every name and address. This lasts about five minutes while one request song lasts only three minutes. In the end, listeners can only enjoy about five songs in a one-hour programme. Can something be done to remove this anomaly? Again Tamil programmes on radio end at 9.00 p.m. and after that it is well-nigh impossible to listen, in to some music or any other Tamil programme. Can the Minister look into this and ensure that Tamil programmes end at about 11.00 p.m.?”
“Sir, I beg to move, That the sum to be allocated for Head Q be reduced by 10 in respect of subhead CAA 1107*. (*The same amendment also stood in the name of Mr Ivan Baptist). Sir, news reading over the radio, through the Broadcasting station, is done at various times. Some of the news broadcasts are outside the normal duty hours, and as such the Broadcasting staff cannot do the reading. Therefore, they are covered by part-time news readers. News readers need to have certain qualifications before they can be selected. Since stiff requirements are laid down, it is not easy to get part-time news readers. With the present set of part-time readers, however, the news section is doing extremely well. It would appear that these men and women are paid $15 and $10 per reading on TV and over the radio respectively. Considering the distance they have to travel from the bus stop at Thomson Road to the Broadcasting station, and the odd hours that these people are required to work, the money paid is not really commensurate with the job done. It is high time that these rates were revised. Otherwise, we will never get any more part-time news readers the next time vacancies arise. Sir, touching on colour TV, last year there was a difference of opinion in this House when this item was debated at Budget time. Now, I understand that since the introduction of colour TV only about 10,000 sets were sold, and out of this number about 9,000 sets were taken up by the hotels. What has happened to the general public towards the purchase of colour sets? Are they adopting a wait-and-see attitude because of the speculation that the licence fee may go up together with the cost? But then, a considerable amount of money and manpower is being allocated for this project.”
“Sir, when the journalists submit their reports to the management, they are usually rejected. The Minister cannot blame the journalists because they are doing their work properly. It is the management that should be blamed. But we are not discussing union matters here. We are discussing matters on culture now. Sir, I beg to withdraw. Amendment, by leave, withdrawn.”
“Sir, when people from other constituencies come and see me, I tell them this: "Go and see your MP." These people tell me in reply. "But I do not know my MP and where to find him." But these people are not from my constituency. I am talking about people from other constituencies. The Minister should not attack me and say that I do not know my constituents. I know them very well.”
“Point of clarification, Sir. The Minister said that an MP should know his constituents. I have no doubts about that. Every five years we go back to our constituents to be elected to this House. If we are elected and if they have any difficulty they will come and see us. Naturally they want to know the MPs. But there might be some constituents who do not know the MP for their constituency and they may have a reason to go and see him. Therefore, we must have posters of MPs in the community centres. But the Minister is attacking the MPs. Do not blame the MPs. I am asking the Minister for something, and instead he attacks me. This is not a proper thing to do.”
“Point of clarification, Sir. When I asked this question in the office of Parliament, they said it should be addressed to the Publicity Division of the Ministry of Culture. Now the Minister says it should be addressed to Parliament. Tomorrow if I go to Parliament Office, again they will say "It is the Publicity Division". This is very bad. The Culture Ministry must take action on this. They have the Publicity Division. They arc spending more money, and therefore they can do it. He should not blame it on Parliament House.”
“Mr Speaker, Sir, posters of Members of Parliament are normally issued after an election. But only a limited number of these posters are available. Why is there such a terrible shortage of these posters? Furthermore, there could be considerable changes of MPs between one election and the next. Could not more posters be printed and circulated more liberally to all departments and units as and when changes take place'? In this way, the people will get to know their MPs better and be informed of the position they are holding m the various ministries and departments. By the way, Sir, these posters should be issued to the community centres because there had been cases of people from the other constituencies coming to see me. When I asked them to see their own MPs, they said that they do not know who their MPs are. It is most probable that one poster costs $4, so if an extra 100 posters are printed, it will cost only $400. As the Ministry of Culture is spending millions and millions of dollars, I think it is proper for them to distribute such posters to the various departments, community centres and at other appropriate places. I am not asking for the posters to be put up by the roadside. That is very bad.”
“I personally feel that information by way of photograph should be kept confidential. Otherwise the aides of criminals may be hunting for the informers and harm them. But, conversely, cases where much publicity is needed have been neglected. This is because this daily paper has a monopoly and it can do whatever it likes. In terms of cost, even if the paper were to increase its price, as it had done previously because of the increased cost of newsprint, the public had no choice but to pay whatever price was fixed. Sir, I have received complaints from local soccer players that coverage of local soccer games seems to have been neglected. We seem to have more publicity on foreign teams in the newpaper than local teams. Why is this so? Without publicity in the press, I believe that there is nothing much that we can do to promote whatever we have in mind. Therefore, I urge the newspapers to give greater coverage of local events. I say this because, as everyone knows, there is a soccer fever now in town. We can see that our one-time `White Elephant National Stadium' has all of a sudden become a place of prominence. Why is this so? it is because of the publicity that has been given to the soccer games between our national team and the Malaysian team that attracted the crowd. Otherwise not many people would witness the games as was the case sometime ago. Furthermore, with publicity we find that our players are encouraged to perform their best, and that is why our national soccer team has an unbeaten record of the support of the home crowd at the National Stadium. Sir, I would urge that the soccer section of the Press should give more publicity to our local teams for the purpose of encouragement, so that our soccer players cannot comment that the coverage is biased.”
“Yes. There is only one English morning newspaper available in town. It has dominated the newspaper market so much so that advertisers have full confidence in this daily paper. I notice that more than half of the paper is covered with advertisements.' It has become more of an advertising paper than a newspaper. I firmly believe that this paper - we can, in fact, call it the "National Paper" -should carry more news than advertisements. And when I speak about news, I must emphasise that I mean news of local events. It is agreed that we must have advertisements to cover the rising cost of newsprint. But nevertheless, to be fair to the newsreaders, news items should have a proportionate space. 4.00 p.m. Sir, the Minister may reply that he has no control in the setup of the daily paper. But then he can put across his criticism. Sir, I am not a journalist, editor Or a newspaper writer. But I do not know how far you will agree with me. I am speaking from a layman's point of view. Sometimes we find that the newspaper carries news With pictures which I think may not be appropriate in that issue. For instance, Sir, if you can remember the robbery and shooting incident at the Diamond House in Tanglin, the newspaper coverage of the incident included the picture of a hidden camera in the shop which had recorded the robbery. But then to-date, if I am not mistaken, One or two people involved in that crime are still at large. Sir, the question is this: the next time a crime is being committed, the criminals will look for hidden cameras, and thus the secret is lost. Again, pictures of men and women who had given information to the police or foiled criminal activities had been published. This heroic gesture may appear good for publicity, but is it worth while?”
“Sir, I beg to move, That the sum to be allocated for Head Q be reduced by $10 in respect of subheadBAA 1109* (*The same amendment also stood in the name of Mr N. Govindasamy). Sir, is it proper to raise a matter about the newspapers in this House? I want a clarification about newspapers publishing photographs of incidents such as a robbery, and the names together with the photographs of certain people are printed. These people can then be identified, and later on they can get into trouble. I wish to know whether I can speak on that topic here, as 1 am in doubt about that. Anyway I am going to speak about it.”
“What is the profit that the National Theatre Trust has made in respect of the utilisation of its facilities during the last three years? 3.30 p.m. Sir, a few years back the Cultural Centre at Canning Rise was a popular centre for a number of variety shows. Now we do not hear anything about this Cultural Centre. What has happened? Is it still a hall for cultural activities, or is it being converted for some other use'? Or is it haunted that the people do not wish to use this place? Can the Minister explain? May I know how many of our local instructors of the cultural art have gone abroad to learn the tricks of the trade so that upon their return they can improve the standard of our local talent? I wonder whether the Minister will support this move to send such instructors abroad for further training.”
“Sir, as we have been talking so much about Singapore culture in the past, may I know how much has the promotion of this culture achieved? Often, we find that the cultural activities of certain groups have been given lesser importance or even neglected in the multi-cultural shows. Why is this so? We cannot permit such things to go on, otherwise we will be going back to square one where each group would be looking after its own interests. The integration of the various cultures was strongly emphasised by the Culture Ministry in the past. May I know what has happened to this policy? Some time ago, the Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister for Culture led a cultural troupe to foreign countries to exhibit a sample of our culture there. What has happened to this troupe? We do not seem to hear much of it now? Sir, when the PAP took office in 1959, there were cultural shows organised by the Culture Ministry under the name of Aneka Ragam at various places. These shows were well patronised. I have raised this matter at the last Budget sitting. Nowadays the different types of cultural shows that we have do not attract a big crowd. Why is this so? There must be something wrong somewhere. Probably the people are not keen to view the present types of performances. Now, what plans are being drawn up to promote Singapore culture among our people, and how are we going to get our people interested in local arts as much as the Aneka Ragam shows? Another question I would like to raise is this: how effective is the Singapore Arts Council? So far what has the Council done to promote arts in the Republic? May we get some information about the Singapore Arts Council? May I also know what is the National Theatre Trust doing to ensure that the National Theatre is fully utilised?”
“The Minister has no time. But everybody must go there. One day he must go there too, if he is free. According to Hindu custom, the Indians cremate their dead. But now, our Government has adopted the use of gas for cremation. The Buddhists and Christians usually bury their dead. Even among the Hindus too, a certain group does not cremate those who die young. They are buried. All these matters must be considered. The main thing is that I am telling this House that the problem of lalang is very important. Once the lalang is fully uprooted, everything will be all right, the soil will be very clean. Anyway, Sir, I beg leave to withdraw my amendment. Amendment, by leave, withdrawn.”