P. Selvadurai
Singapore
“Why the limitation of the reliefs in each case to a maximum of $10,000 when the loss to revenue is only marginal? Further, why are the reliefs confined to married women only? Why not married men as well? There is no logic in the discrimination.”
“In a letter dated 30th September 1981 written by the Assistant Estates Officer (Sales), Estates and Lands Division of the HDB, it was stated as follows: 'Reinstatement of the former registration number for applicants who have transferred their applications to a bigger flat prior to the implementation of the policy for modified corner flat…”
“Sir, there is only one clarification which I seek from the Hon. Minister of State, and that is with regard to the first case which I cited, i.e. the Bras Basah Complex case.”
“Sir, any decision made by the Registrar under clause 6 must be an administrative decision, and any appeal to the Minister from the Registrar's decision and the consequent decision made by the Minister himself must also be an administrative decision. If the hon.”
“stood up, and addressing himseff to the Clerk of Parliament said: Mr Lopez, I support the proposal. There being no other proposal the Clerk then declared Dr Yeoh Ghim Seng to have been elected as Speaker of Parliament. Mr Speaker, standing at the Table, made an Affirmation of Allegiance. Mr Speaker went to the Chair and sat down.”
“Mr Speaker, Sir, this matter merely concerns a piece of open land next to the Philips factory in Lorong 1, Toa Payoh. I believe, Sir, that this lot was originally reserved for a school, in fact, the Convent of the Holy Infant Jesus. I have been informed (I may be wrong though) that the Convent has now turned it down.”
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“The law relating to caution statements made by the accused to the police and to the need for corroboration of the evidence of an accomplice has so got into such a morass of technicalities that a caution required to be administered by a police officer to an accused person before he was interrogated had become a piece of catechism and it failed wholly to achieve the purpose that it was meant to achieve. The voluntariness of the accused's statement was not enhanced and the prevention of police brutality during interrogation of witnesses was not thereby automatically guaranteed. We all know, Mr Speaker, Sir, that no crime would be solved and no criminal brought to book on the basis of purely voluntary statements made by accused persons or witnesses to the police over cups of tea. It is a hard fact of life that due to the power of terror and reprisal wielded by the secret societies in Singapore no witness to a violent crime would voluntarily come forward to give evidence against a miscreant. It is small wonder that in approximately 70% of the murder trials, convictions were obtained on the basis of caution statements that were promptly disavowed in court amidst allegations of police brutality. This must mean that despite such allegations our judges were satisfied that the offences against the accused had been proved probably true beyond reasonable doubt. In human affairs even when the subject of inquiry was susceptible of legal proof, certainty is usually unattainable. The substitute is probability and the tribunal of fact had to decide which case was probably true and in a criminal trial probably true beyond reasonable doubt.”
“Mr Speaker, Sir, these four Bills that we have before us in this House today relate to the administration of criminal justice in our courts. Whilst the provisions of the Criminal Justice (Temporary Provisions) (Amendment) Bill do not affect the substance and character of criminal trials, the provisions of the Criminal Procedure Code (Amendment) Bill, the Evidence (Amendment) Bill and the Criminal Law (Temporary Provisions) (Amendment) Bill do. They make substantial alterations, among other changes, to the law as it stands now relating to caution statements made to the police by an accused person before he is interrogated by the police, corroboration of the testimony of an accomplice, confession, and they also introduce further refinements to the rule against hearsay. One's first instinctive reaction to the proposed changes is one of suspicion born of the fact that this is an instance of an already powerful executive branch of the State seeking to increase its powers in its dealings with the citizens. But a closer reading of the provisions of these Bills would show that apart from removing some of the fetters, presumptions and inferences that hamper the prosecution in proving its case against an accused person, they also in the process augmented the judicial power and responsibility in ascertaining the truth or otherwise of evidence sought to be proved in court. This tendency to grant greater judicial flexibility to the judge is to be welcomed.”
“Mr Speaker, Sir, I beg to move, "That the Bill be now read a Second time." Sir, the reasons for the Bill are to be found in the recital in the Bill itself. The Bill seeks to incorporate the Titular Roman Catholic Archbishop of Singapore as a body corporate with perpetual succession and a corporate seal and with powers to acquire, hold and dispose of movable and immovable property, to sue and be sued and to perform all such acts and things as bodies corporate may by law perform. The Bill will vest in the corporation all the movable and immovable properties situate in Singapore which were conveyed or assigned to or vested in The Titular Roman Catholic Bishop of Malacca incorporated under the Roman Catholic Bishop Ordinance (Chapter 314 of the 1955 Edition). The Bill will repeal the said Roman Catholic Bishop Ordinance and also make provision for the transfer of the rights, obligations and liabilities of The Titular Roman Catholic Bishop of Malacca to the corporation. Sir, I beg to move. Question put, and agreed to. Bill accordingly read a Second time. Resolved, "That the Roman Catholic Archbishop Bill be committed to a Select Committee consisting of Mr Speaker as Chairman and the following Members: Mr J. F. Conceicao Mr Fong Sip Chee Mr P. Govindaswamy Mr Ho Kah Leong Haji Mohd. Ariff Bin Suradi Mr P. Selvadurai Dr Augustine Tan." -- [Mr P. Selvadurai]. RECLAMATION AT PULAU SEMAKAU 5.54 p.m.”
“Thank you very much, Mr Speaker, Sir. We will accept that for the time being, and perhaps we will take it up in a different context if the problems were to arise on a scale to warrant it.”
“That is so, Mr Speaker, Sir, but if the client concerned is completely innocent then, of course, it is going to be very hard on him just because his professional adviser has mis-conducted himself. The whole question relates to the nature of the evidence that is going to be placed before the professional body.”
“This would really imply that the nature of complaints that the Comptroller may lay before the Disciplinary Committee will involve confidential tax matters. That is why he had a doubt in his own mind as to whether he could do it or not. This is where the problem is because once it goes before other professional men then, of course, a conflict between respective clients becomes relevant.”
“Mr Speaker, Sir, I was wondering whether we can really delete the whole of clause 2 for the time being and come back to it when Parliament sits at a future date if at all necessary, because if the information which the Comptroller would like to lay before the Disciplinary Committee does not involve a confidential type of matter then, of course, the secrecy provisions of the Act will not apply at all. He could just as well lay the complaint before the Committee. So I do not see how clause 2 is really going to make any difference to the present situation.”
“Mr Speaker, Sir, I merely would like to say a few words on clause 2 of this Bill, which provision may have quite unforeseen consequences in its implementation. One could foresee a situation in which a professional man may have committed professional misconduct, justifying the Comptroller laying a complaint before the appropriate professional body authorised to take disciplinary action but whose client may be entirely innocent. In such a situation any complaint laid by the Comptroller would result in the confidential tax problem of the client being discussed by other professional men who sit in the appropriate disciplinary committee and who may well represent other clients with conflicting vested interests in the same matter. Such a situation would nullify the protection afforded to a taxpayer by the secrecy provision of the Income Tax Act. Whilst I agree that clause 2 is desirable for preventing a particular form of professional abuse, the machinery for its implementation, as it now stands, is wholly inappropriate in the context of a taxpayer's rights. This particular problem should be looked into in greater depth, in fact, Sir, on second thought, I really wonder what prevents the Comptroller from laying such a complaint before the appropriate disciplinary body in a given case regardless of the provision of the proposed clause 2. Apart from these comments, Sir, I support the Bill.”
“On the next available sitting of Parliament, Sir. MAIN AND DEVELOPMENT ESTIMATES OF SINGAPORE FOR THE FINANCIAL YEAR 1ST APRIL, 1975 TO 31ST MARCH, 1976 Order read for resumed consideration in Committee of Supply [6th Allotted Day) 2.33 pm [Mr Speaker in the Chair] Head U -”
“I am, Sir, I beg to introduce a Bill intituled "An Act to incorporate the Titular Roman Catholic Archbishop of Singapore." Bill read the First time. Mr Speaker: Second Reading, what day?”
“Mr Speaker, Sir, I beg to move, That leave be given to introduce a Bill to incorporate the Titular Roman Catholic Archbishop of Singapore. Question put, and agreed to. Resolved, That leave be given to introduce a Bill to incorporate the Titular Roman Catholic Archbishop of Singapore.”
“Mr Speaker, Sir, I beg to move, "That the Bill be now read a Second time." Sir, the reasons for the Bill are to be found in the recital in the Bill itself. The Bill seeks to incorporate the Titular Roman Catholic Archbishop of Singapore as a body corporate with perpetual succession and a corporate seal and with powers to acquire, hold and dispose of movable and immovable property, to sue and be sued and to perform all such acts and things as bodies corporate may by law perform. The Bill will vest in the corporation all the movable and immovable properties situate in Singapore which were conveyed or assigned to or vested in The Titular Roman Catholic Bishop of Malacca incorporated under the Roman Catholic Bishop Ordinance (Chapter 314 of the 1955 Edition). The Bill will repeal the said Roman Catholic Bishop Ordinance and also make provision for the transfer of the rights, obligations and liabilities of The Titular Roman Catholic Bishop of Malacca to the corporation. Sir, I beg to move. Question put, and agreed to. Bill accordingly read a Second time. Resolved, "That the Roman Catholic Archbishop Bill be committed to a Select Committee consisting of Mr Speaker as Chairman and seven Members to be nominated by the Committee of Selection."-[Mr P. Selvadurai]. RECLAMATION AT PULAU ULAR, PULAU BUKOM KECHIL AND PULAU BUKOM BESAR 5.42 p.m.”
“On the next available sitting of Parliament, Sir. ELECTRICAL WORKERS AND CONTRACTORS LICENSING BILL Order for Second Reading read. 3.35 p.m.”
“I am, Sir,I beg to introduce a Bill intituled "An Act to incorporate the Titular Roman Catholic Archbishop of Singapore." Bill read the First time.”
“Mr Speaker, Sir, I beg to move, That leave be given to introduce a Bill to incorporate the Titular Roman Catholic Archbishop of Singapore. Question put, and agreed to. Resolved, That leave be given to introduce a Bill to incorporate the Titular Roman Catholic Archbishop of Singapore.”
“The provision that management shares could only be held by Singapore citizens with the approval of the Minister appears to be too drastic, on the face of it. It would be preferable to leave the management shares in the hands of Singapore citizens regardless of Ministerial approval but with the negative stipulation that no management shares shall be refused to persons who have been approved by the Minister. The provisions of clause 10 are more than sufficient and adequate to deal with the problems posed by foreign financial control of national press. The experiment is an interesting one. Time only will tell if the aims and objectives of the Bill are achieved and also whether in the process we have stifled free, frank and fearless discussion of issues that vitally concern the nation. 3.50 p.m.”
“Mr Speaker, Sir, this is an important Bill, one that is bound to provoke controversy both within and outside Singapore. It brings to the fore once again the peculiar problems faced by small strategically located developing States that are endeavouring to transform their socio-economic structures without compromising their independence internationally on the basis of democratic institutions. Sad to say, the Bill also demonstrates the fragile base on which educated opinion in Singapore moves. It is a pity too that despite the phenomenal strides that we have made in education over the last 20 years, no newspaper has emerged in Singapore as a national institution serving the national interest. It was still possible only a few years ago for a combination of foreign interests to mount the Singapore Herald to confuse and divide educated opinion on issues that were vital to the social peace and security of Singapore. There were no in-built checks and balances to contain the operation. The State had to step in. Popular political thinking defines democratic politics in terms of a few fundamental freedoms, of which freedom of the press is one. But, unlike the other fundamental freedoms, the freedom of the press has become over the last hundred years or so the handmaiden of vast economic interests. In the context of Singapore these interests have always been international in character. In the final analysis the press in South-east Asian states has to-date been controlled by foreign rather than national interests. It is this situation that we have to meet in the course of our political development. Having said this, Sir, one wonders if the Bill has not gone too far than was necessary in regulating the problem.”
“That they have failed miserably is not surprising, for the people were able to see through the simple scheme of fallacies projected by the opposition parties, and we now know that the people have advanced in their consciousness far beyond the understanding of these opposition groups. The next decade will see us securing ourselves in the emergent Southeast Asian state system and, in the course of it, it may be necessary for us from time to time to swing Singapore gently from one course to the other depending upon the tide of the times. Mr Speaker, Sir, I support the Motion.”
“The astonishing phenomenon that emerges in any study of the history of Eastern societies is the vast stretches of time over which these societies have endured and developed without final dissolution and disappearance; and I believe that one of the reasons for this is the strength and integrity of the family system. We must quickly decide now if the social unit in Singapore is to remain the family, or if we are to go the way of the West with everything that that implies; for any perusal of the daily newspapers would indicate that our families are breaking-up and terms like the generation gap, fashionable in some exotic societies of the West, seem to be the current coin in discussions in Singapore as well. The causes and reasons for the break-up of our families should be properly studied before we start borrowing descriptive and quasi-scientific terms from foreign theorists wholely inapplicable to our situation; and in this context it may be useful to review the working of the Women's Charter to see if it has been an unmitigated success; if it has secured the woman, discipline the man and save the home. I am sure that any such investigation would reveal some interesting and unsuspected phenomena. Mr Speaker, Sir, over the past ten years we have moved and gently swung Singapore from stage to stage in her political, economic and social development, and the area and distance that we have traversed as a people in this decade has been little short of revolutionary. This passage has been achieved not through the barrel of the gun to the chagrin of one school of our opponents, but through the ballot-box to the chagrin again of a few other schools of our opponents; and we had the opportunity recently to test their relative strengths among the people.”
“While legislation in the shape of the Industrial Relations Act has provided the essential machinery for conciliation and arbitration o industrial disputes, it has failed, as it must, to provide the self-adjusting social mechanism that would minimise, if not, eradicate differences. What is needed is the evolution in industrial practice in Singapore of a new value of, if need be, non-political mutualism that would enable management and labour to work as partners, as opposed to antagonistic factors in industry. Different experiments to achieve this end are being conducted, with varying degrees of success and failure, the world over. But it may be useful for us in Singapore to have a closer look at the principles and values that govern the organisation and functioning of industry in Japan. If paternalistic, Japanese industry appears to fulfil the duties and responsibilities of that paternalism by securing the welfare of its employees over and above the monetary income earned by them. It has in this way taken over some of the functions performed in other countries by the state. If I may say so, we may have reached the right stage in our political and economic development to work some of the rudimentary values of the Japanese system into our industrial organisation. If the social unit of modern Western society is the individual, the social unit of Eastern society has always been the family. These two basic premises produce entirely different types of social systems and duties.”
“The phenomenon of rising expectations is an unruly horse in any system of democratic politics. There would be measured wage increases and vexed questions relating to the criteria to be employed in establishing wage differentials. The procedure of achieving mathematical parities in wages for different types of work in industry need not detain us if it is recognised that "in some small degree the standard of life of the great mass of the nation depends not merely on the remuneration which they are paid for their labour, but on the social income which they receive as citizens". In this context the prospect of massive investment in the education and health of the nation is welcome indeed. If then it is also assumed that a clear principle of demarcation should divide the needs which may properly be supplied by collective action from those which humans should be required to meet by their personal exertions, the aim of policy should be to create the pre-conditions and the environment that would provide the incentives for the citizen to maximise his personal exertions in providing for his needs. What is really implied in this, Mr Speaker, Sir, is a social system where work and remuneration is based not on status but on contract, with the state stepping in from time to time to correct injustices that fail to be solved by the two sides of industry - management and labour. In this way the work-ethic, so necessary for the regeneration of a developing nation, would remain unimpaired. The call has already been made recently outside this Chamber for the inspired creation of a profound ethic in industry that would obliterate the differences and distinctions between management and labour and provide the solvent for wasteful periodic industrial strife and discord.”
“Mr Speaker, Sir, bold and tough policies firmly implemented since 1965, and the intelligent response of the people in terms of collective disciplined work, have enabled us to overcome the stark question of survival as an independent nation, so much so that we should now be able to have a closer look at the fundamentals of the social doctrine that is shaping the nation. The President's Speech has very properly raised the question of these fundamentals in terms principally of the work-ethic and remuneration for such work that should be instilled into the people. While the Speech has suggested the broad generalisations of the emergent doctrine, it will be for this House over the ensuing years to help in analysing the more difficult and recondite elements of the new doctrine in terms, in particular, of the social consequences that it generates. It has been our supreme virtue in the past not to be dogmatic and doctrinaire in social and political matters. This has enabled us, in holding fast to the central objectives of building a rational and just social order, to experiment with different methods designed both to create wealth and to generate a credible defence capability within the short time-span available to us. So, while other countries have moved backwards into the future by playing around with emotive and immaterial questions relating to language, neo-colonialism and the like, we have taken small but steady steps forward into the same future. In a fast changing turbulent area, we would, for the next five years at least, constitute a stable anchor. Having wiped out unemployment, we now move on to the next phase of our development in which the provision of a higher standard and quality of life for all would assume increasing importance.”
“We have the beginnings of military jurisprudence, and it is essential that we build up expertise in this field from among the ranks of the officers of the Armed Forces within the shortest possible time. 4.40 p.m.”
“Mr Speaker, Sir, everybody knows that the Singapore Army Act and the People's Defence Force Act passed soon after independence in 1965 were temporary measures designed to meet an emergency situation. It was inevitable that a comprehensive code relating to a legal organisation, administration and discipline of the Armed Forces would see the light of day sooner or later. We should pay tribute to the Ministry of Defence for having completed the work of reorganisation of the Armed Forces and the drafting of its basic law within the shortest time of the Ministry's existence, particularly in the context of a society which did not have sound or organised martial traditions. Sir, I am concerned with Part IV of the Bill. While Part IV of the Bill lays clown an attractive procedure for the summary trial of offences by disciplinary officers, clause 65 of the Bill typifies the basic human problem that we face in Singapore, whether in civilian or military life and the problem of trained human beings fighting shy of making unpleasant decisions. It would be interesting to see if the Armed Forces would set new standards which would not fail to be humane for their civilian counterparts to emulate. Sir, the performance of the judicial function is not an easy one. It calls for qualities of total human breeding and responsibility which few humans are blessed with at the best of times. We are now calling for these very qualities from the men of the Armed Forces, and we must hope that the traditions that they do establish would help to mould the Armed Forces into a civilised force worthy of the fair name of Singapore.”
“Sir, while on this question of Legal Aid Bureau, I wonder if the Minister would consider extending legal aid to criminal cases as well, if not for crimes of violence, at least for many of these traffic offences and other forms of offences which are penal in nature. There is quite a large section of the population who just cannot afford to see lawyers.”
“A more expensive though exciting project that could be put in hand immediately is the nuclear de-salination of sea water. This process is becoming a commercial reality in other parts of the world with water scarcity problems. It also has the added advantage of providing us with a new source of electrical power for industrial and other purposes. The scheme would enable us to train our people in the uses of this new technology. De-salination has a great future. It could solve our water problem radically. De-salinated water would probably cost $3 to $4 per 1,000 gallons as against the $1 per 1,000 gallons now charged by the P.U.B. I would suggest that this differential is not prohibitive and a small plant to produce, say, five million gallons per day should be started. Posterity would commend the wisdom of the move. Lastly, we must once again thank the people of Singapore for having responded magnificently to the P.U.B.'s call to discipline their use of water. We now know that in any future emergency of whatever form or nature, the proper response would be forthcoming from our people. 4.00 p.m.”
“This method could be pursued with advantage with regard to the islands off Jurong. Industries should be encouraged to use industrial water in place of P.U.B, potable water for their processes. At present, we have two sewage plants, one at Jurong and another next to Paya Lebar Airport. Every gallon o industrial water used is a gallon of potable water saved and, on present calculations, it would appear that 40 million gallons of industrial water per day go to waste. The recent decision of the Minister for Finance to withdraw the 50 cents sewer tax on industrial water is a welcome move. This tax has been a needless burden on the woodworking and textile industries in Jurong. With the establishment of petro-chemical industries in Jurong, the water needs of the petro-chemical industries, together with the woodworking and textile industries alone, would be in the region of three to four million gallons per day. This demand should be met entirely out of our industrial water capacity. As a concomitant to the plan to use industrial water, a double distribution system for the distribution of industrial and even sea water should be experimented with, preferably in new housing and industrial estates that are being built near the sea. The Woodlands New Town and the East Coast Reclamation Scheme come to mind in this regard. We could try the double reticulation system and use coloured taps (red, green, etc.) to distinguish the potable water from the industrial or sea water. Sea water could he used to flush our toilets. There may be technical problems involved in conducting sea water. But modern technology should provide us with new materials so fabricated as to be able to withstand the corrosive effects of sea water.”
“The Public Utilities Board's call to the people to conserve water and the magnificent response from the people has once again highlighted the water problem. A cursory look at the figures reveal a curious but interesting picture. The average rainfall for the whole island is about 750 million gallons per day. As our maximum consumption is around 130 million gallons per day, we should have at our disposal about 620 million gallons per day provided that we are able to collect our total daily rainfall. There are a number of ways in which this could be done. The obvious thing to do would be to increase the capacity of the impounding reservoirs by building new reservoirs or expanding the capacities of the old ones. The capacity of Seletar Reservoir has been increased considerably. Extension works are being done at Pierce. The same thing should be done to MacRitchie. Two new reservoirs are being built at Bedok and at Ulu Pandan/Kranji. Side by side with this development, the water filtration capacity of the filtration plants should also be increased. There are two reservoirs in Sentosa. Pulau Tekong and Pulau Ubin have primitive water conservation schemes, and Pulau Brani receives water from Singapore. The total water resources of all our smaller islands should also be developed. There are other exciting possibilities. We could build breakwaters at the mouths of our many small rivers, drain out the sea-water, prevent its seepage and let in fresh river water into the reservoirs so constructed. Further, some of our islands could be joined to Singapore in such a way as to provide us with reservoirs fitted in between these small islands and Singapore. Once again the sea-water could be drained out and fresh water collected in its place.”
“We already have indications that the exigencies of power politics would militate against this regional peace and order that every power pays homage. Mr Speaker, Sir, from time immemorial, big powers have interfered in the internal affairs of small states; and being a small state ourselves, we must gird ourselves to meet this situation. In the name of building an anti-imperialist front, one great power would seek to penetrate our trade unions and, in the name of fundamental democratic freedoms, another great power would seek to influence our intelligentsia and religious organisations. The net result of these activities would be the erosion of the power of the government and state to stand up to the pressures and behests of these great powers. We can end up as puppets. In combating the effects of this game, we must, from time to time, take the people into our confidence in order that maximum vigilance and cohesion are maintained at all times. Human corruptibility would always be a weakening factor in any polity. The Herald and Nanyang affairs are reminders of unsolved problems within ourselves. Finally, Sir, a word must be said about the new Woodlands satellite town now being constructed, and about our water problem. In scope and dimension it is to be the biggest town yet, and we must expect that past errors in planning would not be repeated here. We understand that the new town would have the most up-to-date amenities for social and cultural life. We welcome this, as also the new compensation terms recently announced. The problem of compensating absentee owners, however, remains unsolved; but this is not something that cannot be solved by quiet diplomacy.”
“The fundamental problem, however, would be to evolve a system of ethical and cultural values that would provide the solvent to dissolve the many contradictions that currently operate in society. While bilingualism and multi-cultural tolerance provide the lowest common denominators for cultural integration, there is much more that could be done in the way of providing the organisational and physical framework for the interaction of the highest classical traditions in art, literature, music and culture of the many traditions of civilisation that have moulded this nation. Human minds belonging to the different traditions must meet to discover one another's wealth and diversity. There has been a tendency of late on the part of some to define human beings and human society in mechanistic terms in an effort to categorise the human digit in purely physical, measurable terms. This type of quantitative analysis may or may not provide the ultimate answers, but it would be well to remember that the human being possesses within himself the factor of indeterminacy which provides the creative impulse for great works of art, literature and music. It is precisely this factor that is killed in totalitarian states and it is this factor that our social order should carefully nurture. As our society evolves into higher forms of endeavour, cohesion and excellence, we should consciously seek to transform force into law, fear into respect, coercion into consent, necessity into liberty and superstition into rational consciousness. If we are able to achieve the many things we have set ourselves, it is imperative that there be peace and order both internal and regional.”
“The indications are that we have achieved the enviable target of near full employment which, paradoxically, has created new problems relating to manpower which, unsolved, would stunt the further growth of our economy. The time is fast approaching for us also to initiate, side by side with policies designed to develop to the full the nature and quality of our economic forces of production, measures aimed at humanising society and state. Despite opportunities for employment, there are dark areas of human hardship and suffering that must he overcome if we are to retain our self-respect. The criteria used by the Ministry of Social Affairs should be carefully re-examined to see if the levels of public assistance allowances meted out are sufficient to enable a destitute to maintain body and soul together. This, however, is not to decry the hitherto good work done by the Social Welfare Department. The enormity of the problem was acute enough to entice an honourable Member, himself a noted economist, to suggest in this House a wealth tax to soak the rich, despite the stern imperatives of quick economic development and the industrial transformation of our society. If the only aim of soaking the rich is to display our socialist credentials, it would be an exercise in futility and bring in its wake growing frustration and disenchantment. If the objective is one of fairly and equitably distributing the new wealth produced, it cannot be beyond our wits to evolve a self-adjusting mechanism with proper legal sanctions through our collective bargaining machinery that would effectuate such distribution of wealth.”
“Mr Speaker, Sir, let me also add my voice to those of the honourable Members in thanking the President for his speech to Parliament made on the 21st July, 1971. We are once again approaching a critical point in the history of this nation and state when it becomes incumbent upon every thoughtful citizen to reflect and decide upon the character of the social order that we are consciously building for ourselves. In the 1940s and 1950s, the great question was the problem of colonialism. Thereafter until 1963, the principal enemy of the people were the local Communists and the question at issue was whether we established for ourselves a political system that ensured a periodically and freely elected government or succumbed to the Communist system of government by terror; whether we had a government that was centred in Singapore and ruled in the best interest of the people of Singapore, or one that took its orders from foreign centres of political power. From 1963 to 1965, the critical question was whether the character of our politics was to be a function of race and language. The birth of the nation in 1965 symbolised the rejection of racism and its attendant linguistic barbarities as the criteria of political policy and behaviour. The decisive question in the I 970s would be whether we are able to forge a secular political community in which economic and social questions determine our politics out of the disparate linguistic and cultural groups of human beings that form Singapore society. Rational policies formulated by Government and disciplined effort on the part of the people have resulted in the ostensible wealth that today glitters around us.”
“I must therefore assume that the point which the Member has raised has already been taken into account; but, as mentioned in my speech just now, the present provisions do make it necessary for the mortgagor, the person who owns the ship, to disclose in writing to the mortgagee the existence of any prior commitment. This, therefore, should be sufficient and clear enough for the second man who steps in that when he does lend extra money, there is someone who has priority and rights over his. I will say that the Member's point will be considered and perhaps he will be given a full answer after it has been cleared with the Solicitor-General's Office. Question put, and agreed to. Bill accordingly read a second time and committed to a committee of the whole House. The House immediately resolved itself into a Committee on the Bill. [Mr Yong Nyuk Lin]. Bill considered in Committee; reported without amendment; read a Third time and passed. NGEE ANN TECHNICAL COLLEGE (AMENDMENT NO. 2) BILL Order for Second Reading read. 6.15 p.m.”
“Mr Govindasamy, Sir, I must first congratulate the Minister on introducing this Bill which would certainly enable Singapore to advance its interests in the running of a registry of convenience. Having listened to the Minister's speech, I was concerned with his remarks about the registration of a mortgage against the provisional registration of a vessel. The problem, in fact, amounts to this. If you have a person making a loan against a new ship that is being built as security, the lender would, of course, want to be properly secured in law. I notice that it would be possible for a lender to register a mortgage against the provisional registration of a ship, but the question is, what would happen if the provisional registration did not go through and become a complete legal registration? Is the lender affected to his disadvantage? If he is, would it not be possible for him to step into the shoes of the purchaser himself and proceed with the provisional registration and convert it into legal registration? If this cannot be done, his interest is not secured as against other legal interests in the vessel. I wonder if the Minister would look into this question. Mr Yong Nyuk Lin: Sir, considering the fact that the Member for Bukit Panjang is legally trained and I am an ordinary layman, I do not think I should attempt to answer his technical question except to say that in drafting this Bill we have taken into account the legal aspects, consulted with various ship-owners in Singapore and international financial institutions.”
“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 1302 be reduced by $10 in respect of subhead 1001*. Mr Speaker, Sir, the time has now come for us to look into the efficiency of the ambulance services. I believe that to phone for the ambulance and get it is quite an experience now. The telephone call is received all right, but all kinds of questions are asked; for instance, who the patient is and what he is suffering from. All kinds of irrelevant questions are asked and quite often the person calling for the ambulance is not able to answer them. Is this really necessary? Because if the person asking for the ambulance knows what the patient is suffering from, then, of course, he may not have called the ambulance in the first instance. It can be quite embarrassing and it is also causing a fair amount of confusion in the minds of the public.”
“I am also not moving, The sum of $1,303,690 for Head 1210 ordered to stand part of the Estimates. Head 1212 -”
“It is very good news indeed, Mr Speaker, Sir. I beg leave to withdraw. Amendment, by leave, withdrawn. The following amendment stood in the names of Mr Sim Boon Woo and Mr P Selvadurai - (2) That the sum to be allocated for Head 1210 be reduced by $10 in respect of subhead 2003.”
“Mr Speaker, Sir, I beg to move, That the sum to be allocated for Head 1210 be reduced by $10 in respect of subhead 1001*. (* The same amendment also stood in the name of Mr. J. F. Conceicao.) Sir, this is really a small point. It concerns the activities of Building Inspectors in rural constituencies. Very rigid application of the law quite often stands in the way of house owners and hut owners from repairing or renovating their houses whenever there is a leakage after rain or whenever there is dilapidation or something like that. Perhaps directives could be given to these inspectors not to be too harsh on these residents. I would have thought that the main purpose of the law is to prevent people from actually building new structures or extending their structures without getting proper permits from the owners as well as the Chief Building Surveyor's Department. Quite often, house owners are pulled up by the Chief Building Surveyor's Department on very small and venal points. Sir, could something be done about this?”
“Sir, I beg leave to withdraw. Amendment, by leave, withdrawn. The sum of $21,022,300 for Head 1209 ordered to stand part of the Estimates. Head 1210 -”
“Mr Speaker, Sir I beg to move, That the sum to be allocated for Head 1209 be reduced by $10 in respect of subhead 2015. This subhead relates to drainage and it is also connected with floods. I know that we have statements in this House about flood alleviation measures, but I am really concerned with the silting up of rural drains. I will not be exaggerating when I say that the condition of many of these drains in my constituency is really shocking. Every time we have a heavy rain, the drains silt up and there does not seem to be any kind of recurrent maintenance to clear these and other water-ways so that there is a smooth flow of water. Could not some system be introduced to maintain these drains, not merely in my constituency but also in other rural constituencies as well? To a large extent, this does contribute towards easy flooding of residential areas. And this has become acute over the last few years. 5.45 p.m.”
“I am grateful to the Minister and I beg leave to withdrawn. Amendment, by leave, withdrawn.”
“Mr Speaker. Sir, I beg to move. That the sum to be allocated for Head 1200 be reduced by $10 in respect of subhead 2014. I am concerned with the policy relating to the building of rural roads and I hope that the Government will reassess it. The current policy, if I may say so is, by and large to build gravel roads and not metal roads in the rural areas. Our experience has been that these gravel roads, although they are cheaper to build about - one-third of the cost of metal roads - tend to deteriorate sooner, and with every heavy torrential downpour, we discover that they revert to their original state in a matter of 18 months. This means that we have to reapply all over again for the resurfacing of these roads, incurring the same amount of money once every 18 months. I wonder if we could instead metal these roads piecemeal without having to metal them wholesale. We could do half the road at a stretch so that in the long run we really save money.”
“Although the lighting of rural roads in Bukit Panjang Constituency has gone apace, there is a fairly large stretch along Woodlands Road which is still unlighted. It is dark. I remember that in the last Budget session there was an undertaking that this stretch would be lighted. I wonder if something could be done about this.”
“The proposal of the Singapore Council of Social Service to set aside one whole floor of the new building for the display and sale of Social Welfare products, both from the Social Welfare Department homes and voluntary organisations, will provide an additional sales outlet for Social Welfare Department products. Therefore, there is no necessity at this stage to form a cooperative or private company to push the sales of Social Welfare Department products and services.”
“Mr Speaker, Sir, that is heartening news! Mr Chan Chee Seng: As to the first question asked by the Member for Katong, I would like to give him the figures of the profits made by the Social Welfare Department. In 1969, we made a profit of $18,800. Of this sum, $5,000 was derived from the sale of noodles produced by the Gimson School for Boys to the other Social Welfare Department homes, and $5,000 from the laundry services undertaken by the Mount Emily Girls' Home. The balance of approximately $8,800 profit was earned from the sale of handicraft articles, carpentry products, embroidery and sewing work by the girls and the food catering service. From the above, it will be noted that the two main profit-making activities are noodle-making and laundry services. Both of these do not require the formation of a private company, or what the Member for Katong has suggested, a central marketing agency, to boost sales, as the production capacity is quite limited. As for the other products sold, it is unlikely that the Social Welfare Department homes will be in a position to mass produce such articles. This is partly because of the lack of machinery equipment and partly because a large percentage of the residents are delinquents and wayward children. Some of the residents in the girls' homes will help produce children's wear and woollen knit-wear on a piece rate basis for a commercial firm. The giris will not have much time left to engage in other activities. For the information of Members, I would like to say that the residents are paid for the work they do, and the profits are credited to the Social Welfare (Homes) Fund which is used for the benefit of the residents.”
“They are permanent residents but cannot prove that they are born in Singapore.”
“Mr Speaker, Sir, there is a particularly acute problem that keeps cropping up over and over again to which we do not seem to have found an answer. This, Sir, is the problem of the deserted wife who also holds a blue identity card. Inche Othman Bin Wok: Singapore? Mr Selvadurai: A Singapore blue identity card, yes. This means that she is a permanent resident in Singapore, and married to a Singapore citizen who holds a red Singapore identity card. Quite often, the husband belongs to the low income bracket. He deserts her, runs away with somebody else, does not maintain her, and saddles her invariably with three or four children. 6.15 p.m. She presents herself at the Social Welfare Department in the Ministry of Social Affairs and is told that as she is not a Singapore citizen, she is not entitled to public assistance. I have had occasion to refer cases like this to the officials of the Ministry of Social Affairs, but they do not seem to be able to get over the difficulties of her not being a Singapore citizen. I wonder if we could do something about this because this woman has children who are Singapore citizens. She herself is a resident of Singapore and there is no way whereby she is able to find a living.”
“Mr Speaker, Sir, we are all human and laws are made by man. Therefore, all these troubles created by man should be resolved by man. Arising from this case, we should be sympathetic to certain applicants in future. In this particular case, we should have tried our best to help him reunite with his wife before he died. That was his wish. But under the circumstances this was not fulfilled because he could not see her. This is an example of our Government not being in sympathy with the applicant. Everything must be done according to the law, it is said. I hope the Minister will be sympathetic to applications of this nature in future. 3.00 p.m.”
“It so happened that when this person applied for his wife to come to Singapore, she fell sick. As a result, she was not able to come here. So he was not successful in his application. He wanted to visit her in China but was not able to do so. Five years later - his wife had by then recovered from her sickness - he reapplied for her to come to Singapore. However, the Immigration Department rejected it on the grounds that she was not eligible for entry into Singapore because he had not met her for five years, and, according to the regulations, she could not come here. This person came to me for help, and I informed the Minister concerned about it. But he said, since there were so many women in Singapore, why did he not want to marry a local female citizen? I told him that this man was already past 60 years of age, so how could he marry another young girl locally? I also told him that, according to Chinese custom, a man is not allowed to take another wife if the present wife still lives. This man also said that he had married his wife out of love. It was not an arranged marriage. Their love for each other was very deep and they were willing to live together to the end of their lives. Therefore, how could we force them to separate? This person was in despair and he asked his son to apply for his mother to come to Singapore. As she was then 67 years of age, the Immigration Department said that at this age she was eligible to come to Singapore. However, when the son applied for an entry permit for his mother, it was not granted because another application had already been made on her behalf by his father. I then asked the son to try again. However, when he was about to send in his application to the Immigration Department, the father died.”