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 Amendment by leave, withdrawn.”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?”
The complete record
Every one of 1,199 lines we hold for P. Govindaswamy, in date order, each linked to its source. Free to read, in full, without an account. Page 21 of 24.
“Mr Speaker, Sir, congratulations to the Minister for Finance on his highly satisfactory Budget statement. During the last ten years, despite the many unexpected setbacks, such as Indonesian confrontation and the accelerated British military withdrawal, and despite the apparently insurmountable problems such as the unemployment situation, our economic strength has continued to improve. Credit must therefore be given to the Government and, in particular, the Minister for Finance for having successfully steered our country through one of the most difficult periods in our history. However, while the Minister reported considerable improvement in our standard of living and in our economic position, I wish to draw his attention to some important matters which affect the livelihood of our farmers in particular, and the cost of living of the general public in general. No one will disagree that our industrialisation programme, which has been a great success, has broken the back of our unemployment problem, but while we concentrate on industrialisation, we must not forget that we should try to be self-sufficient as far as possible in food production. Through the efforts of the Primary Production Department in the past few years, we are now able to produce all the eggs and pork needed for our home consumption. I understand that the prices of eggs and pork sold by farmers to wholesalers are very much lower than the prices paid by householders in the market. Our farmers are complaining that, because of the low prices of eggs and pigs sold to the wholesalers, their income is hardly sufficient to pay for the feed-stuff for their hens and pigs. Yet housewives have to pay high prices for pork bought from the market.”
“Mr Speaker, Sir, the cost of living allowances on pensions are still worked out according to the old system. Most of the civil servants variable allowances are now consolidated into their basic salaries. Can the Minister say whether a pensioner's allowance can be consolidated into his pension? It this consolidation is agreed to, I hope pensioners do not get less than what they are getting now.”
“Furthermore, it appears to me that the need to increase water charges has not been properly explained to the people in general. I would urge the Minister to take steps to explain clearly to the mass the reason behind the need to increase water charges. 6.10 p.m.”
“Mr Speaker, Sir, I appreciate that with a growing population resulting in an increase in the number of houses, flats and factories, the consumption of water in Singapore will increase. When the water supply is low, there is need to conserve water. For this purpose, I agree that as an inducement to conserve water it is necessary to increase the water charges. But the reason given by the Minister is that, because of the development of modern sanitation, it is necessary to recover the increased expenditure. Hence, for this purpose, the Minister has proposed an increase of 20 cents per 1,000 gallons of water for domestic use. I wish to point out that even with the further development of modern sanitation, not everyone in Singapore will be served with modern sanitation. The people in the rural districts will still not be served with it for some time. It would seem that by paying increased water charges, these people are in fact paying for modern sanitation for urban dwellers. I am afraid this does not seem fair to the rural dwellers. The Minister may argue that the people enjoying modern sanitation will be using more water because of the use of water closets and will, therefore, be paying more for their water supply. But the average amount of water used per day in the water closets in a home is negligible and so the burden of the increased water charges is still equally borne by those without modern sanitation and those with modern sanitation. In order to satisfy both purposes - conserving water and developing modern sanitation - I propose that part of the increased expenditure be recovered by an increase in water charges and the rest of the increased expenditure be recovered by increasing charges for water closets.”
“Under the Pensions Ordinance, 1956, a serving officer may be pensioned off in the public interest. May I ask whether there is any difference between retirement under that Ordinance and the present amendment Bill? If there is no difference, then what purpose does this Bill serve to amend the Pensions Ordinance?”
“Mr Speaker, Sir, can the Parliamentary Secretary enlighten me on this point? I wish to know whether a serving officer with 15 years' service can retire under this Bill in order to secure a better job?”
“Point of order, Mr Speaker, Sir. We are talking about Singapore and not about India.”
“Mr Deputy Speaker, Sir, the success of any family planning campaign depends largely on the acceptability of the contraceptive methods offered. However safe and effective these contraceptives may be, one often hears of reports of side effects with some of the oral pills. However founded or unfounded these reports may be, the use of contraceptives is, in the least, an inconvenience, and for those who already have the number of children they want, such inconvenience would be eliminated by sterilization. The introduction of the Voluntary Sterilization Bill is, therefore, a sensible approach to the problem of family planning and population control, and I will not only support the Bill, but hope that the Minister will give it the widest publicity so that the need to use contraceptives will be reduced to a shorter period. Mr Deputy Speaker, Sir, I wholeheartedly support the Bill. [Mr Speaker in the Chair] 5.59 p.m.”
“Yet it should be pointed out that for every abortion done to reduce the number of births by one, its effect is cancelled by the many unwanted births to others who already have several children. Therefore, the answer seems to lie not in abortion, but in compulsory birth control for people with more than, say, two or three children. Mr Speaker, Sir, with due respect to the Minister, I cannot accept the Bill. In conclusion, I would leave this thought with the House - if this Bill had been introduced, say, 50 years ago, would we be so fortunate as to have all our 11 Ministers with us today?”
“Mr Speaker, Sir, many people believe that the primary object of the Abortion Bill is to provide an additional check on the population growth of Singapore, particularly when contraceptives fail. If this is truly the primary intention of the Bill, then I cannot accept it. Family planning in Singapore has been a great success and our crude birth rate has fallen dramatically in recent years to 2.3 per cent. For this, I must congratulate the former and present Ministers for Health, and I am sure with the continued efforts by the present Minister on family planning, the expected target of two per cent by 1970 will be within our reach. I therefore cannot see the need to introduce this Bill. My contention is that despite the great advances made in science, now that man is able to travel to the moon, man is still unable to create human life in a science laboratory. Since we cannot create human life, we have no right to destroy human life. Except for medical emergencies when both the lives of the mother and the unborn baby are at stake, and unless the resort to abortion can save at least the mother, I cannot agree to abortion under any other circumstances. I am aware that population control is absolutely necessary for the preservation and even survival of the community, but is it necessary at this stage of great success in family planning that we should resort to killing of the foetus in order to control population growth? The Minister has not proposed that it be made illegal for anyone to have five, 10 or even 12 children, though the father may be deprived of income tax relief, free primary education, etc, in respect of the fourth and subsequent children.”
“Mr Speaker, Sir, I would like to know what happened to the old uniforms?”
“Mr Speaker, Sir, may I know which particular group of officers' uniforms will be changed?”
“The retention of the jury system is, in my opinion, the best guarantee for the present and for the future, for it is less likely that all seven jurymen can make the same wrong judgment at the same time and it is not likely that any future government could apply pressure to all the seven jurymen who are selected from all walks of life. Mr Speaker, Sir, with due respect to the Minister, I cannot support the Bill.”
“Mr Speaker, Sir, one of the basic principles of democracy is that "justice must not only be done but must be seen to be done". While I agree that doing away with the jury system might save the court some precious time, because a jury consisting of laymen may sometimes be slow in grasping the complicated points of law, I would maintain that it is better to waste some precious time of the court than to stop the clock unjustly and perpetually for the accused. Whether our actions are considered wrong or seriously wrong depend on the yardstick used to measure them. And when a man's life is at stake for some offence that he has been charged with, such as murder, then the yardstick used to measure him should be the yardstick that he and other common people of society use to measure themselves. Whilst I hold our Judges in high respect, I maintain that trial by jury under the guidance of the judge is the least we can give to a fellow man before he is condemned to the gallows, and I am sure that it is the rule rather than the exception that the Judge agrees with the verdict of the jurymen. For every case in which the jurymen had unanimously given a wrong verdict, therefore, there must be a case where an experienced Judge could also have given a wrong verdict. In such a case, it is not so much a failure of the system as a human failure. We are indeed fortunate that we have a panel of Judges who are strong enough to pass judgment without fear or favour. But with the best of intentions, we cannot say this for all time in the future, perhaps 20, 50 or 100 years to come. While we are sure that our Judges are not subject to any Government pressure, we cannot be sure about future Judges.”
“Sir, is there any discrimination between lowly-paid and highly-paid Government officers in the consideration of housing loans?”
“Mr Speaker, Sir, I join the Member for Bras Basah in congratulating the Government and the Minister for Finance on introducing this Bill in order to help Members of Parliament. But my main concern is with the ten years' reckonable service. I would like to inform the House that as at present, even the Minister for Finance does not qualify for a pension. Only the Prime Minister does. The Minister for Finance will qualify only next July. Therefore, I would like to suggest to him to amend "ten years" to "nine years" because most of the Members of Parliament are young and there is no doubt that they can continue in Parliamentary service. I think nine years' reckonable service is more appropriate. As the Minister for Finance has said, even in New Zealand a Member of Parliament qualifies for a pension after nine years' service. 3.10 p.m.”
“Furthermore, Sir, I wish to add a point about the flood which occurred on 11th December, 1968. Places like Anson Circus, the New Bridge Road area and Bernam Street were flooded, thereby causing a lot of trouble to the people and traffic. I know that the Government is trying its best to beat the flood situation, but I hope it will increase its efforts in this respect.”
“Mr Speaker, Sir, I beg to move, That the total sum to be allocated for Head 92 be reduced by $100*. * The same amendment also stood in the name of Mr Ch'ng Jit Koon. Sir, in the planning of development by the Government, it appears that in areas where the buildings are shaky and about to collapse, nothing is done, but in areas where the houses are still strong and in good condition they are pulled down for development and rebuilding. Furthermore, in any development scheme, whether multi-storey flats or factories are to be built in place of existing buildings, I would like to know from the Minister whether preference could first be given to residents occupying existing buildings, and if the residents refuse to develop their land in accordance with the Government's plan, then the offer can be given to other local developers. If the other local developers are unable to accept this offer, then it can be given to foreign developers. I appreciate that a lot of money is needed for development, but an opportunity should first be given to local developers before foreign developers are invited. It will be futile to attract foreign capital into the country if our local capitalists develop projects in other countries. Can the Minister enlighten me on whether local capitalists could be given preference in development projects, both in buildings and industries? In the rural areas there are many old buildings which are about to collapse, but when occupiers apply for permission to develop and rebuild the area, permission is not given. These old houses are on Government land as well as on private land, but in either case, the Government does not allow occupiers to develop the land nor has it any plan to develop it.”
“I beg leave to withdraw. Amendment, by leave, withdrawn. The sum of $275,520 for Head 52 ordered to stand part of the Development Estimates. Head 61 - The following amendment stood in the name of Madam Chan Choy Siong --- That the sum to be allocated for Head 61 be reduced by $10 in respect of subhead 101.”
“Mr Speaker, Sir, I beg to move, That the sum to be allocated for Head 52 be reduced by $10 in respect of subhead 102. Sir, with your permission, I shall range over my next amendment No. (2)*. * Amendment No. (2) reads as follows: That the sum to be allocated for Head 52 be reduced by $10 in respect of subhead 902. Sir, the sum of $150,000 has been provided in 1968 for the construction of a new Newton Post Office. When is this post office expected to be ready for service? I think the sum of $150,000 will be revoted again in 1970. The present Newton Post Office is an old building but I am not objecting to its condition. I am sure that some Members of the House may have noticed that it looks as if it is sited in a fish pond after a heavy downpour. I am saying this from experience. There is difficulty in loading and unloading the mail bags and the staff and the public are inconvenienced. I hope the Minister will be able to confirm that the new Newton Post Office will be ready by this year. Mr Speaker, Sir, may I know where the "Mail Loading Pier" will be built and when is it expected to be completed?”
“Sir, I beg leave to withdraw. Amendment, by leave, withdrawn. The following amendment stood in the name of Mr Yeoh Ghim Seng - (2) That the sum to be allocated for Head 1301 be reduced by $10 in respect of subhead 1002. Mr Yeoh Ghim Seng: I am not moving. The sum of $6,592,120 for Head 1301 ordered to stand part of the Estimates. Head 1302 - The following amendment stood in the name of Inche Mohd. Ariff bin Suradi - (1) That the sum to be allocated for Head 1302 be reduced by $10 in respect of subhead 1118.”
“Mr Speaker, Sir, I beg to move, That the sum to be allocated for Head 1301 be reduced by $10 in respect of subhead 1001. Judging from the large number of advertisements of medicines in newspapers and magazines, one would think that Singapore is either a very sick nation or a nation that thrives on medicines. I am not objecting to these advertisements, but I would like to know from the Minister whether all the medicines advertised have any effect, even harmful effect, on the sick. Can he enlighten me on the measures being taken to eliminate useless or harmful medicines from the market an-d what measures are taken to test these medicines before allowing them to be put on sale? Mr Yeoh Ghim Seng (Joo Chiat): Mr Speaker, Sir, I understand that it has always been our policy to pro mote local staff whenever there is a vacancy and a suitable local person is available. I take it that this policy has not changed in the Ministry of Health, although Ministers may change. I wonder whether the Minister is aware of the recent occurrence of a promotion exercise of the surgical staff in the Outram Road General Hospital when our local surgical registrars were ignored and the post of a Grade `G' Surgeon was given to a non-citizen. If the local surgical registrars measure up to the foreigner, it is possible that there has been a miscarriage of justice in this exercise. Perhaps the Minister can indicate the reasons for this occurrence.”
“There have been other circuses in Singapore which have also been eliminated.”
“She passes there every day and I am in sympathy with her. I pass along other roads which have been affected in the same way, and I am sure Members here pass some other roads, like the Member for Paya Lebar who appears to be against the widening of Paya Lebar Road. He says there are lots of vehicles in Singapore and we should meet this increase in our traffic problems by other processes, for instance, digging under the road or going overhead. He mentions London, which has an underground system, and Tokyo, which also has an underground system and a monorail system over the ground. We have considered these possibilities. A monorail is a very expensive mass transit system and, for the moment, it is out of the reach of our pockets. The underground system has been looked into and we have the reports of several experts. I will not bother Members with these reports, but for the benefit of the Member for Paya Lebar, the difference between Paya Lebar and London is this. In London, when you dig, there is no water; but in Paya Lebar, when you dig one foot, it is flooded. The Member for Paya Lebar also complains of the bottleneck at Paya Lebar Police Station. Last year he made representations on behalf of his constituents living along Paya Lebar Road who were very unhappy about having their houses or part of their houses demolished for the sake of road widening. This is natural, but I think I can deal with the Member in one sentence, by telling him that if all his representations were accepted, the whole of Paya Lebar Road would be like the junction at Paya Lebar Police Station. You will have a road which is in, out, narrow and wide from Paya Lebar Police Station to Geylang Serai. The Member for Anson is upset by the fact that roundabouts are going to be disturbed.”
“There has been co-operation, but, unfortunately, it has not met with one hundred per cent success and there have been instances where roads have been dug up immediately after resurfacing. This is highly undesirable. Only last week, I had occasion to call the heads of departments for a meeting to try once again to co-ordinate their efforts at road digging. I asked them whether they all could use one trench. They said, "No." It was dangerous to put gas pipes too close to electric cables. I am no expert. Some had to dig one foot under the road and some had to go six feet underneath. And they said that they could not dig together. Otherwise the public would be even more inconvenienced. To go back to the law, it provides for - statutory boards to dig a road as and when they please to lay a gas pipe or water main. I think the law is reasonable. Otherwise you and I will not have electricity, water or gas. So roads must be dug up. I think we must accept that. I can amend the law and take away these powers and only allow statutory boards to dig up a road when the Director of Public Works gives them permission. But what happens in the case of an emergency? What happens if there is a gas leak and the road is likely to explode? What happens when there is a water leak? Do we wait for a flood? There are cases of emergency which must be met at once. Hence this law. But the net result of this meeting was a decision that, when a road is newly surfaced, nobody can dig up that road without the permission of the Director of Public Works except in cases of emergency. 6.00 p.m. I have given this direction and we will see how it works. There is apparently a considerable measure of co-ordination but in a few cases there is not. The Member for Delta has mentioned Scotts Road.”
“Mr Speaker, Sir, I only wish to say a few words. The construction of roundabouts at cross-roads costs Government some money and also causes inconvenience to the public. The demolition of such roundabouts again costs Government some money and also causes inconvenience to the public. I would like to know from the Minister if care can be taken in planning the roundabouts. One example is the roundabout at the junction of Rochore Canal Road, Jalan Besar and Bencoolen Street. It was constructed only a few years ago and now it is to be demolished. Mr Barker: Mr Speaker, Sir, may I deal with each Member in turn? In the case of the Member for Delta, may I say that, in my view, there was much substance and common sense in what she said about the road digging that goes on in Singapore. When my pre decessor, Mr Lim Kim San, took over the Ministry of National Development, he was not satisfied with the combined efforts of the Public Works Department, the Public Utilities Board, the Singapore Telephone Board, the Traffic Department and the Registry of Vehicles at either digging up or defacing the road or drawing lines on the road. It was then common to see a road being resurfaced and then a week later another statutory department digs a trench either along the road or across it to lay pipes for water or cables for electricity, gas or telephones. The then Minister for National Development formed a committee called a Liaison Committee whereby the heads of various depart ments in the statutory boards would meet - in fact, they have since met every month - to co-ordinate their plans in an effort to cause less inconvenience to the public.”
“Sir, I agree with the Minister's statement. But he should insist on Treasury to provide funds for whitewashing post offices once in three years, because post offices are frequented by the public and should not be treated on the same basis as other Government buildings. The Postal Department is the dirtiest department. Therefore, we must clean it every now and then. Otherwise the people working in the department may get T.B. I urge the Minister to put up a strong case to Treasury for the whitewashing of post offices once in three years. I beg leave to withdraw. Amendment, by leave, withdrawn. The sum of $21,718,910 for Head 0805 ordered to stand part of the Estimates. Head 0806 -”
“Mr Speaker, Sir, I beg to move, That the sum to be allocated for Head 0805 be reduced by $10 in respect of subhead I 0{) 1. Sir, I wish to know from the Minister how many vacancies for clerks and postmen for 1968 have not been filled and the reasons for not filling all the vacancies. I also wish to know whether the recruitment of additional staff as provided in the Estimates for 1969 will be carried out next year; and, if so, around which part of the year does he intend to initiate the recruitment exercise? The Minister may be aware that the Postal Department have to deal with parcel bags and mail bags which have been stored in the holds of ships and which are usually very dusty. The post offices are also frequented by the public and tourists. I understand that the standard practice is to whitewash Government buildings once every five years. In the light of the above, may I know from the Minister whether he will consider whitewashing post office buildings once in three years instead?”
“Sir, I wanted to speak on many matters under this amendment but my colleagues have spoken on most of them. I wish, however, to draw the attention of the Minister to the large crowd of school children from afternoon schools waiting at bus stands as late as 7 p.m, in the evening. It is a pitiful sight to see young children, particularly young girls, from schools in the rural areas waiting for buses and having to walk in dark lonely streets after alighting from a bus, sometimes as late as 7.30 p.m. Will the Minister consider approaching the Minister for Communications and requesting him to arrange for an adequate number of buses for school children so that they do not have to wait so late at night for their buses?”
“I beg leave to withdraw. Amendment, by leave, withdrawn.”
“Mr Speaker, Sir, I beg to move, That the sum to be allocated for Head 0701 be reduced by $10 in respect of subhead 1401. Sir, I understand that the Kalaimagal Tamil School in Yio Chu Kang Road is to be converted into a technical school. I would like to know from the Minister if this is so and, if so, when is this conversion to be effected?”
“Mr Speaker, Sir, although replies have been given by the Parliamentary Secretary arid the Minister, and many Backbenchers have spoken on this subject, no concrete decisions have been made. Either we keep the Singapore Citizenship Registry or we abolish it, if we want to have it, we must be able to get somewhere. Every week we are confronted with problems that give us a headache! The Parliamentary Secretary said that the cases of those persons born in Singapore will be considered. But their applications have already been rejected! Mr Speaker, Sir, I am not going to withdraw this amendment. I want a vote.”
“If citizenship is not given to the husband and the residential rights are withdrawn, the family will suffer hardship and perhaps the Social Welfare Department will have to look after the family when the husband is gone. In the light of the above, may I ask the Minister if he will reconsider the citizenship policy and grant citizenship rights to those who have been continuously living here before 1967 or for some reasonable period of time? 3.45 p.m.”
“Mr Speaker, Sir, I beg to move, That the sum to be allocated for Head 0601 be reduced by $10 in respect of subhead 1251*. * The same amendment also stood in the names of Mr Ch'ng Jit Koon, Inche Mohd. Ariff bin Suradi, Madam Chan Choy Siong and Mr Sim Boon Woo. I appreciate that, under present circumstances, careful consideration should be given to the granting of citizenship rights to aliens, but there are deserving cases which merit sympathetic consideration, May I know from the Minister if he will consider the following cases sympathetically: (1) children who were born in foreign countries but whose parents are both Singapore citizens; (2) orphans or unwanted children who were born in Singapore but whose births were not reported by their parents and who were subsequently brought up in welfare or private homes; (3) children who were born, especially of Chinese parents, during the Japanese Occupation and whose births were not reported. Some of our younger Members in this House may not know that, during the Japanese Occupation, many of our Chinese citizens were afraid to move about, leave alone to report the births of their children to the Japanese authorities This was particularly so during the early days of the Occupation when many innocent Chinese were arrested and executed. The people born during those days are now married and have children who were born in Singapore, and yet they are not issued with citizenship papers. And lastly: (4) Singapore girls who married aliens and who are residing in Singapore may have children born in Singapore, and the whole family roots are in Singapore.”
“Sir, I beg leave to withdraw. Amendment, by leave, withdrawn. 7.15 p.m. The sum of $6,519,690 for Head 0406 ordered to stand part of the Estimates. Head 0408 - The following amendment stood in the name of Madam Chan Choy Siong - (1) That the sum to be allocated for Head 0408 be reduced by $10 in respect of subhead 1041.”
“Mr Speaker, Sir, I beg to move, That the sum to be allocated for Head 0406 be reduced by $10 in respect of subhead 3042. May I ask the Minister why it is necessary to increase the expenditure in connection with the temporary staff in the Property Tax Division by about 200 per cent? Furthermore, what is the normal period of service of these temporary officers? Are they selected by the Public Service Commission or by the head of the department? If it is necessary, permanent officers ought to be recruited into the service.”
“Sir, I beg leave to withdraw. Amendment, by leave, withdrawn.”
“Mr Speaker, Sir, I beg to move, That the sum to be allocated for Head 0406 be reduced by $10 in respect of subhead 2030. Sir, may the Minister enlighten me on the kind of services being rendered or expected to be rendered by the Malaysian Government? 7.00 p.m.”
“Sir, I beg leave to withdraw. Amendment, by leave, withdrawn.”
“Mr Speaker, Sir, I beg to move, That the sum to be allocated for Head 0406 be reduced by $10 in respect of subhead 1045. There is an increase of 41 Assistant Examiners over the present establishment of 87. This is an increase of about 50 per cent. Why is there such a sudden increase in staff in one year? In the light of the Government's tightening up of expenditure, may 1 know from the Minister why it is necessary to increase the complement of Assistant Examiners by such a large number? Furthermore, is there an increase in the income proportionate to the increase in expenditure?”
“Sir, I beg leave to withdraw. Amendment, by leave, withdrawn.”
“Mr Speaker, Sir, I beg to move, That the sum to be allocated for Head 0406 be reduced by $10 in respect of subhead 1004. Sir, for the Inland Revenue Department to have four legal officers in addition to a senior legal officer makes it a branch of the Attorney-General's Chambers. May I be enlightened by the Minister on the duties of these four legal officers?”
“Mr Speaker, Sir, I beg to move, That the sum to be allocated for Head 0401 be reduced by $10 in respect of subhead 3003. Sir, I would like to know from the Parliamentary Secretary whether the sum of $375,000 is to be spent on trade fairs and exhibitions in Singapore or other countries, and what are the fairs he has in mind.”
“In view of the Parliamentary Secretary's reply, I beg leave to withdraw the amendment. Amendment, by leave, withdrawn.”
“Mr Speaker. Sir, I beg to move, That the sum to be allocated for Head 0401 be reduced by $10 in respect of subhead 2102. Sir, it is noted that the sum of $10,000 was estimated for the losses of public money and stores for 1968 and $12,500 is estimated for 1969. May I know from the Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister for Finance whether the sum of $10,000 allocated for this year was, in fact, lost and how the sum of $12,500 is going to be lost next year?”
“I beg leave to withdraw. Amendment, by leave, withdrawn.”
“Mr Speaker, Sir, I beg to move, That the sum to be allocated for Head 0401 be reduced by $10 in respect of subhead 1519. Sir, may I know the reason why it has been possible to abolish two posts of watchmen? The post carries a small salary. Can the Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister for Finance clarify?”
“The second point is that the Economic Development Board should pay equal attention to helping the large enterprises as well as the small and medium-sized industries with limited capital. These industries do not receive much encouragement or help from the E.D.B. I hope the Development Bank, which has taken over some of the functions of the E.D.B., will pay equal attention to large enterprises as well as small and medium-sized enterprises. It should give the small and medium-sized enterprises the same help that is extended to the big enterprises. In this way, the small and medium-sized enterprises will also assist in the industrialisation programme of our country. I hope that these two points will be carefully dealt with.”
“In view of the Minister's explanation, I beg leave to, withdraw the 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 1101. Sir, I wish to speak on the Economic Development Division. I have two points. The first is that the Economic Development Board has done a good job in the development of industries. However, I should like to point out that some of the products of these industries are not very good. In fact, their quality is rather poor. If we compare these goods with similar goods from advanced countries, the difference is quite marked. The Economic Development Board, in addition to developing industries, should also be engaged in the task of improving the quality of the products of our industries so that they can compare favourably with products from other countries. Or at least the difference in the quality should not be so great. Otherwise, our competitive position in international markets will be very poor. Our local textile merchants have told me some of their problems. They complain of the quota system and say that nowadays they can only sell a limited range of textiles. They say that the locally-produced textiles are of very poor quality. Even though they are cheap and are on display, most of their customers are not willing to buy them but prefer to buy goods from Hong Kong or the Philippines. Even textiles from the Philippines are being sold locally. Therefore, if the Economic Development Board is concentrating its efforts only on the establishment of industries and neglects the quality of their products, I feel that this is not a good sign for the future.”
“Mr Speaker, Sir, I beg to move, That the sum to be allocated for Head 0401 be reduced by $10 in respect of subhead 1004*. *The same amendment also stood in the name of Mr. Yeoh Ghim Seng. Sir, I am under the impression that if a Ministry has a legal problem, it will seek the advice of the Attorney-General or his legal officers and that there is no necessity for each Ministry to retain its own legal consultant. Under this subhead, the Ministry of Finance not only requires a legal consultant, but a very senior legal consultant. This is apparent from the relatively high salary allocated for this officer which is more than the Minister's salary. May I be enlightened by the Minister on the duties of this legal consultant, and why is it not possible to utilise the services of the Attorney-General?”