S. Vasoo
Singapore
“I would like to ask DPM whether the public as well as the Government-linked companies would be looking at some ways in which jobs could be created to absorb some of the older workers. In the longer term, I think job creation will become an issue, especially when many of the industries in the manufacturing sector are going to hollow out.”
“Our recruitment has been excellent over this past period and our attrition has been relatively low. But I am realistic enough to know that it is not just because of the Ministry of Education, the economy has helped a lot. I believe that I have answered most of the questions posed by Members.”
“Can I ask the Minister of State, when he claims that the LRT is of world-class standards, but the Member for Sembawang is complaining that there are so many frequent breakdowns, what world-class standard are we talking about?”
“May I ask the Minister whether the viewpoints of the commuters and the private bus operators will be solicited in his review? Mr Yeo Cheow Tong: Sir, we are in touch with the private bus operators and we would definitely take the views of the public into consideration in the context of the overall framework of the public transport system.”
“It would be the last resort, as the Minister has put it, to institutionalise persons because, by institutionalising them, one breaks them up from the family, and family dynamics are disrupted. Therefore, it is very important to ensure that we have other means of rehabilitating young persons and juveniles within a community setting.”
“All the time, we emphasise on marriage as a partnership. We also accept, as one of our core values, the family as a basic unit. It is, therefore, desirable that the wording, at the beginning of this Bill, should reinforce this value. Under clause 13, the Minister will have powers to exclude certain classes of persons.”
The complete record
Every one of 879 lines we hold for S. Vasoo, in date order, each linked to its source. Free to read, in full, without an account. Page 14 of 18.
“Mr Speaker, Sir, I rise to support the Bill because the Bill provides a fairly comprehensive approach to deal with the modern problems of beggary. The NCMP, Dr Lee, has said that there is still serious destitution in Singapore and destitutes are being criminalized. But I wonder whether he has, done any analysis and reviewed some of the problems relating to these people. I note that many of these people who are involved in beggary and other related activities are, in fact, people who have serious mental and other problems. They have been discharged from Woodbridge Hospital and subsequently sent to their homes. They somehow leave their homes and then get into a state of vagrancy. These are the people that we are dealing with. People who are partially mentally deranged and do not know where to operate. Some of these cases require rehabilitation. They require support. I see the Bill makes provisions to assist them. I feel that this problem needs to be addressed because Singapore is an open place. I note that recently beggary has increased in Singapore. So unless we look at a more constructive approach to deal with the problem, this problem will always remain. It may be impossible to totally eradicate this problem because if there are opportunities available to make money from beggary, there is likely to be people to be involved in this. Sir, what is important is to think of an effective rehabilitation scheme because many of them are very young adults who are less than 40 years old. And if that is the age range, I feel that more effective rehabilitation measures should be made available to the homes to help them to gain some form of skills and to be placed in gainful employment. We should try to place them on relevant gainful employment and motivate them to work.”
“I would, firstly, like to seek clarifications as to whether the Ministry has in fact undertaken some studies earlier to see that shorter periods of supervision have produced results, as such it has proposed this amendment. Secondly, I would like to know whether the implementation of this scheme will be closely monitored, to see whether such a scheme is useful to help the offender.”
“Mr Speaker, Sir, I rise to support the Bill. I see that the amendments are minor in nature but they are good steps undertaken to assist in the rehabilitation of offenders. The provisions provide the flexibility for the monitoring of the offenders. At the same time, it reduces the workload of the department and it provides opportunities for offenders to be motivated to bring about change. While all these are good in terms of rehabilitation, the success of the scheme will depend on whether there are effective criteria and monitoring system which could be established. I am wondering whether the Ministry has, in the course of its work been able to assess the effectivenss of shorter periods of supervision, and what does it propose in future in terms of evaluating the impact of such a scheme with regard to rehabilitation of offenders. I think these issues are crucial in the sense that unless we develop an effective mechanism to monitor the success of the scheme, we will not be able to assess its impact. So I would be obliged if the Minister of State will respond to these few queries.”
“Sir, could the Minister tell us the level of cooperation between Singa- pore and the neighbouring countries in the control of drug trafficking?”
“I mean those 1- and 2-room flats not affected by relocation.”
“Sir, could some attention be paid to giving a face-lift and improving these flats before the town council takes over?”
“Is the Minister aware that the incentives given to start up child care centre is meagre and would he propose a more attractive package to enable others to initiate the services?”
“Sir, in view of the increasing number of retirees, does the Ministry have plans to establish special services to assist retirees?”
“Question No. 7, Sir. Mr Lee Yock Suan: Mr Speaker, Sir, the possibility of amending the Employment Act to extend paid maternity benefits to the third child was considered during the formulation of the package of incentives to encourage procreation. Instead of paid maternity benefits, the Government decided that a tax incentive should be given to working mothers who have to take unpaid maternity leave for their third child. Such working mothers can claim additional tax rebate equivalent to 15% (or about two months) of their annual earned income. I will therefore not be introducing legislation to amend the Employment Act to provide for paid maternity benefits for the third child. The maternity benefit provisions in the Employment Act should be viewed in the context of the total package of incentives to support the new population policy. BILL INTRODUCED ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT BOARD (AMENDMENT) BILL "to amend the Economic Development Board Act (Chapter 85 of the 1985 Revised Edition)", presented by the Minister of State for Trade and Industry (Mr Mah Bow Tan) (on behalf of the Minister for Trade and Industry); read the First time; to be read a Second time on the next available sitting of Parliament, and to be printed. PRESIDENT'S ADDRESS Debate on the Address (Third Allotted Day) Order read for Resumption of Debate on Question [16th January, 1989], 'That the following Address in reply to the Speech of the President be agreed to:- "We, the Parliament of the Republic of Singapore, express our thanks to the President for the Speech which he delivered on behalf of the Government at the Opening of the First Session of this Parliament.".' - [Mr Abdullah Tarmugi].”
“Mr Speaker, Sir, I beg to second the proposal.”
“A Presidential Council comprising five to seven nominated persons with outstanding public service contributions could be formed to advise the President on matters of national concern where veto powers need to be exercised from time to time. With the group of nominated council members to advise him, the President would be in a better position to exercise his veto powers. He will probably have the best inputs from people who have the best experience as Chief Executives in various organizations or businesses. Sir, in conclusion, I support the concept of an elected President in so far as it would strengthen our system of government. This is unique to ourselves, and I think we should give careful consideration as to how this could be instituted. Sir, even if there are no signs of cracks in our building, we must take steps to examine the foundations to ensure that these foundations last for a long time more. With that note, I would like to thank you, Sir.”
“They see that if we have an elected President, he will be able to monitor the government because basically he represents the nation as a whole. Being voted on a popular mandate, he is expected to look after the common good of the community. He will be above politics and therefore he can ensure that the national reserves and funds are appropriately safeguard. Sir, I have several observations to make with regard to the White Paper that has been published. I suggest that both the Presidential and Vice-Presidential posts be elected. This will ensure the credibility of the respective offices. It will give these elected persons, i.e. both the President and Vice-President, the role of custodian of public interests and they will be able to provide whatever support required to safeguard public funds and our public institutions. Secondly, what will be essentially necessary, Sir, is that we need to have a clearer definition of the role and functions of the elected President. As presented in the White Paper, the ideas are there but there is no clear definition of the roles and functions. These should be specifically detailed. I hope this will be clarified in subsequent legislation. Thirdly, Sir, the Presidential role should be confined to the protection of reserves and appointments to some key institutions which have to deal with the assets of the country. If this is the major role and thrust of the elected President, then I think there will be adequate safeguards for him to monitor the use of the reserves. Fourthly, Sir, there is a need to institute some checks on the elected President.”
“Sir, the third popular viewpoint supports the need for implementing some form of Constitutional change for an elected President. Most of the people I have spoken to advocate this viewpoint. They are concerned about their CPF. They want to make sure that their money will be there for them to gain access to when they retire. Having worked hard for all these years, the ultimate analysis is that they need to be assured that when they retire their savings will be safe and accorded to them. Many of my constituents are Chinese and they speak to me in Hokkien. They say, "Eng kai poh wu lan hui kuan ai gong chay kim lui". The translation is that we must protect our sweat-and-blood CPF money for which we have saved so hard. We must protect it. I strongly agree with them because that is their life-line. They have worked hard and at the end of the day, they look forward to a happy retirement and have the money to spend in their twilight years to meet their welfare and other needs. They told me that there are a lot of loopholes in the current system. They say, "Chin chuay k'ang." There are a lot of holes. All these need to be plugged and one has to take serious action to see how CPF could be protected. They are very insistent. They are very vehement about this, and I agree with them because having worked so hard to save, they will indeed be in a dilemma if they were to find their savings misused. The best way in which their savings can be protected is through a Constitutional change through which we have an elected President with veto powers to ensure that any misuse of national reserves, particularly the CPF savings, will be curtailed or prevented. This is supported generally by many people and the ordinary working people in my community.”
“It is an issue which my colleagues and myself are not able to answer at this stage whether the reserves will be there for us to live on when we age or when we retire. The other second popular main viewpoint centres around the extension of the role of our present nominated President. It is argued that there is no need for an elected President. The veto power that is to be used for our reserves and key appointments to public institutions can be embedded into the role of the present President. The enlarged role of the present President will then enable us to achieve the same objective as that of having an elected Presidential System. So in this way we are not really bringing about a major Constitutional charge but strengthening the existing system. This argument seems to be realistic to some extent. But on the other hand, if you examine this suggestion and viewpoints closely, you will find that under the current system the President can be removed by the Cabinet and a new President appointed, and he does not have the right to veto if he wants to. Therefore, in a crisis he is not able to discharge his role. In this context, what else can be done to make a safer governmental system through which our national reserves can be safeguarded. Sir, under the extended role provided for in our current Presidential system, if the government needs to use the resources but is frustrated because it is unable to gain access to it, then I think it is possible for the government to remove the President in order to gain access to such resources. There is no fool-proof protection. Hence, there is some inherent weakness in the suggestion to extend or enlarge the role of the current Presidential system.”
“Mr Deputy Speaker, Sir, the issue of elected President has attracted much of the community's attention. The various people that I have spoken to are interested in this matter and I feel that we should generate more discussion on a topic of such importance. Some people have asked why we are bringing up this issue of an elected President at this stage. Why not earlier? Some others have suggested that perhaps there may be doubts amongst the older generation leaders that the succeeding younger generation leaders are not capable of managing the assets. These issues together with other viewpoints seem to concentrate around three main areas. One group of people that I have spoken to think there is no need to change the present Constitution. They argue that things are doing well. "Why should we tinker with the Constitution when things are going on fine? We have an honest and capable government to look after the assets and to plan for the nation as a whole." Given the context, they say that it is predicted that an honest government will continue because we have instituted a good democratic system. They have doubts that the system that has been emplaced will be eroded. This is the notion of one sector of Singaporeans but this notion seems true so long as we continue to get honest people to run the government. It is based on the assumption that things are still carried out efficiently through government service and government programmes. This assumption need not hold true in the years ahead. It depends on the type of leadership. It depends on the of mettle and character of the people who will be entrusted to run the government. It is difficult to predict whether future governments will safeguard the reserves.”
“One supplementary question, Sir. Would a separate register be set up to monitor the future employment needs of retirees?”
“I am wondering whether the Government will be deploying an efficient and conscientious cadre of staff who are now available to the pilot Town Councils. Will these staff be redeployed to the various Town Councils that are going to be set up? I note that there is also a general concern amongst the staff that the establishment of the Town Council would have implications on their future tenure in terms of work. It has also created anxiety about their future career in HDB. I wish to clarify whether there are plans to ensure that there is minimal disruption in the livelihood of some of the staff who have been working with Housing Board. 11.22 am”
“They belong to the community and the spirit of voluntarism needs to be ensured so that the Town Councillors themselves feel that they have a role to play effectively in terms of the improvement of their neighbourhood. I trust that the Government will provide more social incentives, like recognizing the efforts of the Town Councillors in terms of other means than monetary rewards and incentives. My Town Councillors have expressed this concern. What is the basis and yardstick that one would decide on the appropriation of monetary incentives to different Town Councillors? There may be a situation where one might create more dissension amongst Town Councils because of the varied amounts of monetary rewards that are going to be accorded. The other important area of concern is that in the event of the mismanagement of Town Council through no fault of the residents, would such Town Council be helped by the Government so that the service and maintenance that are accorded would still be carried out. There may be circumstances that are beyond the control of the residents. Residents may be cooperative and supportive of the Town Council but somehow there may be errant Town Councillors and managers of Town Councils who mismanage the funds of the Town Council for which residents have no control. I am wondering whether Town Councils facing this setback or crisis, which is unanticipated, could be helped by the Housing Board in the event that there is a need to do so. The final concern is that there is a need for a good cadre of staff to manage Town Council. Volunteers, the best will that they have in volunteering their services to Town Council, we cannot do away with a good cadre of staff.”
“There is concern among Town Councillors that there will be a burden and a financial stress on the Town Council if they are to manage a lot of properties, both rental and 3-room flats. This is an area where I feel we need assurance from the Government that grants and subsidies which are provided, as it has been given, will continue to be given in the interest of the efficient management of these estates. Otherwise I see that most of the Town Councils in the older housing estates will face the burden of managing efficiently. The other aspect which I would like to raise concerns the monitoring of the work of the Town Council. To what extent would the work of the Town Council be monitored? Is the Town Council going to be answerable to a supervisory body? If this is the case, to what extent would the supervisory body be controlling the Town Council? I realize that in setting up the Town Council the end objective is to enable the Town Council to function independently I hope that the Town Council will be allowed to function as independently as possible and they should be made accountable to the residents who support the Town Council. The other area of concern is to ensure the voluntary spirit in terms of the work in the Town Council. We have to carefully examine the implementation of monetary incentives for those who are involved in the work of the Town Council. I am afraid if there are disparities in terms of the provision of monetary incentives between and amongst Town Councils, it may cause problems and pressures amongst different Town Councils. I hope the voluntary participation of Town Councillors can be maintained at its best and they should be encouraged to be involved on the basis of voluntary effort.”
“It is just changing its coat and then terming itself as a Town Council. I hope this does not happen because if it does, then it will probably stifle the creativity and innovation by residents themselves. I feel that the Town Council's role should be more than just undertaking maintenance functions. One should encourage Town Council to undertake improvements of the estate itself. In order that it can do this task, there is a necessity for Government to allocate funds to the Town Council or the Town Council can apply for grants set aside for the improvements of housing estates. This area of participation in the improvement of the housing estate, is a new role which should be emphasized. If the Town Council is allowed to undertake in this area of work, it will provide more visibility of its work and the achievements of the Town Council. This is what residents are looking forward too. In fact, they are asking: what is the difference betweeen the HDB Area Office and the Town Council? Is there going to be any visible difference in terms of their efforts? I feel that unless funds are made available to the Town Council, they would not be able to undertake this aspect of innovative task. The other concern basically relates to the management of older housing estates. In Ang Mo Kio South Town Council, we have been managing rental flats together with older 3-room flats. Likewise, in many other older housing estates, there will be both rental and 3-room properties. People are concerned whether the grants and subsidies provided for the management of these properties will be maintained by the Government ie, whether the same level of subsidies will continue to be given for the maintenance of these properties.”
“This is likely to impose a tremendous need to have a quick response to meet the needs of residents in various neighbourhoods of the housing estate. Hence I think the Town Council will provide a more personalized approach in the provision of services. This will in a way help residents to manage services and to respond quickly in terms of the support which we require. As I see it, the Housing and Development Board at the moment is unable to respond quickly to specific needs of the locality. Through the establishment of the Town Council, we hope that this aspect would be translated into reality. The other aspect in terms of contribution in the establishment of the Town Council is the creation of the ownership of people to external environment. As it is, the Housing and Development Board has provided the ownership of people for the internal environment of their homes. I see that the greatest concern is in the maintenance of the quality of the external environment of the various housing estates. In this respect the Town Council will be able to undertake various activities which will enrich the external environment. More often than not, the external environment is see as a public property and people need to be encouraged to take pride in terms of their external environment and this is possible with the establishment of the Town Council itself. Sir, there are a number of areas of concern as a result of the establishment of the Town Council. I hope the Minister will be able to provide clarifications. Town Council's work should not be confined mainly to the maintenance of the housing estates. I see the Bill itself provides a very strong emphasis on this. In confining Town Council to this area, it will make Town Council to be Area Office.”
“Mr Speaker, Sir, I rise in support of the Bill. This is not because I am the Chairman of Ang Mo Kio South Town Council, but because I see the merits in the establishment of the Town Council itself. After 20 months of experience together with my Town Councillors in the running of the Town Council, we are more convinced that there is a role for residents to be involved in the management of housing estates. This will bring about a new dimension in the participation of residents in the shaping of the future of the estates. The setting up of the Town Council will introduce a new chapter in the management of housing estates. Now that people will be more involved in the management of the housing estates, they will have an avenue through which they can elicit and solicit various viewpoints to enrich the quality of life in the neighbourhood itself. Sir, this aspect brings about a new dimension in terms of citizen participation which is essentially necessary because most of the decisions which have been made by the Housing and Development Board have been based on a top-down planning approach. Now I think through participation there is the involvement of people from a bottom-up approach in terms of planning. Through this opportunity, I see that we will be able to harness the creativity and the talents of both the professional and lay people in the management of the estate itself. I not that this is a very important aspect that we will bring about in terms of the establishment of Town Councils. With the growing problems of the management of housing estates, as I see it, there will be competing demands in terms of meeting housing services and the maintenance aspects, particularly in older housing estates.”
“Sir, would the proposed premium be within the reach of low income families, particularly those without CPF payments?”
“The quality of life there is poor, and yet they are alleging that our human rights situation is worse than theirs. In summary, Sir, Singaporeans must assess the human rights issues in terms of our perspective. What is it that we are talking about? To me, human rights is about the quality of life. In Singapore, every Singaporean is protected, without fear or favour. In Singapore he walks the street free and without being harassed. Every child has an opportunity for education. Every citizen who is eligible for public housing gets public housing. And there is no problem of shelter. Every able-bodied Singaporean who needs a job will get a job if he is hardworking enough. People are given protection under the law without fear or favour. This is the context in which we have built Singapore and the human rights situation certainly is much better than what has been printed and circulated by a few mischievous international organizations which have conspired with one another. So we must prevent any possibilities for any people outside to interfere in Singapore's politics. What is worse, I see, is to allow money politics to enter into Singapore. And when this happens, politicking in Singapore will take a turn for the worse. This, I think, we must presevere to prevent. We know, in the case of Francis Seow, to some extent, money politics is creeping in. One needs to assess what is the basis of this. To what extent has the involvement of money politics come in? I think that if we do not begin to take notice of this, then Singapore will be in grave danger if money politicking is allowed to enter the political arena. We must therefore take every step to prevent this from happening, so that Singapore can continue to be a robust and progressive place to live in.”
“The second is that the judgments of these people are not based on any specific evaluative criteria. The evaluative criteria which are used are baseless and are not acceptable in the practice of normal evaluations of country situations. A small group of people, basically undertaking interviews of a few disgruntled people and arriving at a distorted report, seems really startling. Sir, the other aspect that we should look at is the human rights practices in the countries of the people who have put up the reports. In many of the places where these representatives come from, they talk about rights against discrimination. Assessments have shown that discriminations exist in the countries of the people who advocate human rights - discrimination against blacks for jobs, discrimination against minorities exist. Where is the right for non-discrimination in these places? They talk about rights to employment, but there are no jobs available in these places. They talk about rights to shelter, but there is no shelter. Shelter provisions are inadequate. In many of these Western countries, people do not get adequate shelter. So what are they talking about rights to shelter? They talk about rights to education. Many of the children that we know of do not get access to education. They talk about rights to protection, but in many of these places people are not protected. If you walk along the streets in New York or Chicago, you are likely to be mugged. So what are they talking about rights for protection against crime or rights for protection against harassment by people? I think the picture shows that it is rather dismal. In many of these places, the very rights they are talking about are not really rights.”
“Sir, Amnesty International, as far back as 1980, has alleged that there was torture of detainees. In response to this, the Government set up a commission of inquiry which included three persons to investigate this allegation. The commission concluded that the Amnesty International's report of torture and assaults was unsubstantiated and based on misleading reports by certain detainees. Despite the establishment of a commission to assess this condition, Amnesty International has continued to go on the campaign that the human rights practices in Singapore are really poor. And they have continued to do so. What is more important, Sir, is to examine the background of the people who conduct the assessment of human rights practices. Many of the people in this group are people who are disgruntled, people who promote permissiveness, people who are involved in the promotion of homosexual practices and other related matters which are not really acceptable. With such groups and with these backgrounds putting up such reports, can we then accept their assessments? I think we should debunk any assessments undertaken by these people. Sir, I note that many of the allegations are unfounded. Let me support my arguments. First, the opinions are biased and are supported by disgruntled people. There are no Asians in this group that has been involved in the assessment of human rights practices in the Asian context. Asians are not in the team. The Europeans are involved in it. They are telling us what we should be. Should we not be best people to assess what is our social political condition and our own culture? They are, in short, passing value judgments, exporting very imperialistic attitudes towards Asian nations itself.”
“The recent report that I have an opportunity to look at is the Report on World Human Rights Guide published in 1986 in which they give ratings for human rights among Asian countries. And all the Asian countries, including Malaysia, Indonesia, the Philippines and other countries in ASEAN were rated below 60%. Singapore's rating was only 59%. When you turn to another page to look at the ratings of other countries, you can see how ridiculous it is. Panama's rating is 81%. You are surprised at the basis by which the ratings have been made. To a simple mind, and looking at this, Panama's rating of 81% as compared to Singapore, does say something, is it not? And as to whether this rating itself is jaundiced or the rating itself is accurate, Singaporeans can judge for themselves. Ratings are biased because they are rated by people who are disgruntled. All they need do is to ask a few disgruntled people about what it is like to be detained, what it means to live in Singapore, and the answer is obviously biased. If you ask people who are biased, you are going to get a biased response. If five people they interviewed are disgruntled, I am sure they will get a 100% negative response. And this will be used as a basis to say that 100% of the people are disgruntled. Such is the irony of these reports. Singaporeans must read between the lines of these reports. Many of these human groups have gone to a great extent to denigrate Singapore, to paint the picture that Singapore is a state where people cannot really pursue what they want to pursue in terms of their life's aspirations. The answer, I think the Singaporeans will be able to assess. If comprehensive assessments had been conducted based on a wide representative Singapore sample, then I think the answer will be different.”
“Mr Deputy Speaker, Sir, I rise in support of the motion standing in the name of the Member for Braddell Heights. Sir, my constituents register their disgust at the US interference in our local and domestic affairs. They call on the Government to act more firmly on future interferences in our domestic political affairs. We should not take this lying down. I feel that we should take up a very firm stand against all foreign groups that interfere in issues relating to our domestic affairs. One of the underlying themes related to the motion is the question of human rights. This issue of human rights has been played up by many international groups such as the Amnesty International and the Asia Watch Committee. If you make a survey of the literature that has been published, they have painted a very negative picture of Singapore. They are out to do Singapore in. They have said in various ways that Singapore is a police state, people walk in fear, people are unable to discuss things openly, people are afraid even to talk and give opinions. I think there baseless opinions, reports and assessments of Singapore's social and political situation must be debunked. They must be countered. They have continued to do so, Sir, and Singaporeans themselves will have to ask: whether Singapore is a police state, whether they are able to walk freely, to discuss about the things that they want to discuss. Are Singaporeans being muffled? Is this the true picture of the Singapore situation? If the situation is not true, then I urge that steps must be taken to defuse such efforts which have been undertaken by these international groups which have, in fact, conspired with one another to discredit Singapore. Sir, one has to look at their recent report which is rather ridiculous.”
“Sir, in response to the Member for Potong Pasir, I mean free market politics with people who are sensible, people who have a good sense of direction. I do not mean that Singaporeans are not sensible, but I mean sensible politicians who enter the political arena. This is the basic thing. If you have people who are not sensible and who enter politics to drum up racial issues, who talk about rights, who are not sensitive to the communal texture of Singapore, this will lead to a lot of disruptions. I think the Member for Potong Pasir would like to see that there will be this arena for communal politics.”
“I do not think that Singaporeans will want this to happen. Therefore, I see that the GRC would allow for the representation of the minority groups and I support the Bill, Sir.”
“The new section 8A apportions the number of GRCs for each minority group, ie, three-fifths for Malays, two-fifths for Indians and Others in terms of the GRC provision. This proportion appears to be adequate for the time being. But what I am trying to foresee is: would such a provision change over time? We note that there will be dramatic changes in terms of the population demography. Will this therefore affect the provision of GRCs in the future? Will the GRC also spread wide into the various new towns with small concentrations of minority groups? The other issue that I would also like to bring up is: who will decide on the final allocation of GRCs itself, which is currently being spelt out in the Bill? But in terms of future allocation for Malays and other minorities, who will ultimately decide on the allocation? Sir, in the final analysis, we have to ask ourselves whether the GRC Bill would ensure Singapore's social and political stability. This is a fundamental question that we will have to ask ourselves. Critics will say that the GRC Bill is directed at bringing about racial polarization. It will bring about racial politics. It is not feasible in the context of Singapore. Many of these have been alluded. I think many criticisms have been put forward, for example, the viewpoints of the Member for Potong Pasir. What is most important is to ensure that there are adequate channels for minority groups to be represented, and the GRC Bill provides for this. We cannot allow for free market to enter in the realms of the political scene. If we allow it to chance, then the danger will be that minority groups may not be represented in our Parliament. Is this what we want in the long run - the minority groups to live by chance and ultimately have no representation at all?”
“I must say that it is the reflections of the sentiments of various Singaporeans to this crucial issue which relates to the representation of minority groups in Parliament. Sir, I would like to make a few observations on the recommendations of the Select Committee on the GRC Bill. First, the deliberation of the Select Committee was exhaustive and it took into consideration the various definitions and the parameters for participation in the political arena under the GRC. The sentiments of the various community groups were considered and their viewpoints noted. These were reflected in the various aspects of the Report. I do not see that many of the useful viewpoints were neglected in terms of the Bill. Secondly, I would like to point out that the GRC concept, as proposed, seems to be more feasible than other ideas put forward by individuals and groups who appeared before the Select Committee. Many ideas were floated but these somehow did not provide the basis for clear directions or a clear formulation in terms of the operation of the GRC itself. Thirdly, the concern of the Indian community was considered by the Select Committee. Indians are now explicitly mentioned when referring to "other minorities". This is indeed a positive decision and certainly welcomed by the Indians as they are now assured that they are a recognized group in the context of Singapore. I am sure fellow Singaporean Indians who have made representations for such a recognition will be happy to note that their views have been considered. Sir, I would like to draw attention specifically to the new section 8A which has been incorporated in the Bill.”
“Mr Deputy Speaker, Sir, I rise to support the Bill. The GRC Bill attracted many representations from individuals and organizations representing the minority groups. I must say that the Malays and Indians were well represented, more so the Indian community. This is understandable because the Bill relates to the future participation of minority groups in the political arena. Sir, having no opportunity to participate in the political arena can be very dangerous. The Member for Potong Pasir suggested, "Why not allow a free market in terms of political participation?" Free market participation in politics can generate a host of problems. There is no guarantee that minority groups will be represented in Parliament. I think it is crucial that the GRC Bill, which will be passed, should allow minority groups to represent their own groups interests. This does not mean that we will enter into the realm of racial politics. But it is in our interests, particularly our social and political interests, to ensure various community groups be represented in the political arena. Hence, I see that the GRC ensures that minority groups, Malays, Indians and Others, will be able to be heard, their viewpoints considered in parliamentary processes. If we do not allow this opportunity or channel for minority groups to be represented, I think the consequences can be very grave, and it could be very serious in terms of the social, political climate of Singapore. It is interesting to note that 19% of those who made submissions were against the GRC concept. This is a very small minority. However, Sir, we must note that the majority of the submissions supported the GRC concept itself and this suggests that there is strong support for ensuring multi-racial Parliament in Singapore.”
“Sir, in the light of land shortage in Singapore, would there be any serious review in terms of building of housing itself in Singapore?”
“Sir, I rise in support of the Bill. I share the viewpoints expressed by the GPC Chairman for Housing and my other colleagues. The Bill enhances building safety and ensures a high standard of our buildings in future. I have several questions that I would like to seek clarification of the Minister. Firstly, what are the likely problems that the Ministry is expected to face in the implementation of this Act? Secondly, what would be the estimated cost in trying to get the full works of the Building Authority implemented? Thirdly, when would the Building Authority activities likely to take off the ground? There is a need to get these activities implemented off as quickly as possible. I am wondering what would be the time lag between the passing of the Bill and the implementation of the work of the building authority. Finally, clause 35 relates to the recovery of expenses incurred by the Building Authority in the execution of work undertaken by the Building Authority. This clause does not seem to be very clear. Does it include professional fees as a result of professional services rendered by the Ministry's Building Authority and fees incurred by securing professional services outside the Ministry? This does not seem to be clear and there is a need to clarify whether the Ministry would be charging fees as a result of its professional services rendered.”
“Sir, it is good in trying to have good buildings, sterile environment, but it will be no good if such buildings and services become not accessible to the ordinary people who need health care and attention. I hope that our health services will not run into that situation. The nagging concern among many people is that C class beds will be phased out and it will be eventually replaced by B2. Sir, one must not forget that the frontiers of medicine have no barriers. I urge that we do not create much financial burden so that health care becomes less affordable to those who need it. In conclusion, I have two pertinent questions for the Minister. Would the restructuring phase out the C class beds completely? Would charges of C class and B2 class beds be increased this year?”
“Sir, I shall be brief otherwise I know you will conduct a verbal surgery. The health services are at the moment undergoing restructuring. I am all for restructuring provided that at the end of the day, after restructuring, the health services will remain within the reach of many. If at the end of the day, after the health services have been restructured, it does not come within the reach of the ordinary people, then I say we have failed in our restructuring effort and exercises. I have a few pertinent questions in my mind. Firstly, is the restructuring going to improve the efficiency and the effectiveness of the health services? Secondly, is the restructuring going to incur a steep increase in terms of medical fees? Thirdly, as a result of this restructuring, would there be more emphasis on preventive and community health programmes? These are some of the pertinent concerns raised by many ordinary citizens who are and will be using the health services. I gather that in their mind, restructuring connotes basically an increase in fee structure at the end of the day and I feel that the Ministry has to take much effort to reassure them that restructuring means that there will be more efficient and effective services. The average citizen has no difficulty in using our health services when these are required. However, the situation is changing because the cost of health care is increasing. The hospital charges have so far increased steadily over the years and I hope that the hospital charges will remain within reach for the ordinary citizens who would become consumers of health services. It is hoped that the restructuring of the hospital will not push up hospital charges so steeply that those who really need health care would find it inaccessible.”
“Sir, on a point of clarification. I am not talking about older workers. I am talking about those who have applied when they were young. They have applied for such a long time that by the time they are given permits they are already old. I am talking about this group of people, and so I think that consideration should be given to them, especially when they reach 30 years old. When they pass 30, you may argue that they are of no more use. But I think it is important that some value or some consideration should be given to this criterion of age.”
“Sir, can I be allowed to join in because I have got a cut under this subject. So I will take this up. There is a real need to look at this matter as a while. Applications to contract a marriage should be organized and coordinated. This is because there is a lot of confusion and uncertainty, and other related problems have resulted from the application to contract marriages. I am concerned about the plight of the older workers who are applying permits to contract a marriage. Most of them are in their late 20s or near 30s, and this group of people cannot expect to wait indefintely and in a limbo for a long time because they generally want to get married. I see no reason why these older workers should not be considered for marriage permits and be eventually not allowed to settle down with a family. I am wondering whether this problem could be looked at more sympathetically by the Ministry, particularly the problems of those who are in the older age group.”
“Sir, in view of the clarifications by the Minister on various issues, I beg leave to withdraw the amendment. Amendment, by leave, withdrawn.”
“Would the Minister be able to make available the information on manpower needs from time to time to people who are their planning careers ahead? Would he expect this information to be made available this year, or when will be the nearest date possible for such information to be made available? BG Lee Hsien Loong: Yes, MTI is looking for ways to provide more information on the manpower needs of the economy, who disciplines need people, which faculties produce graduates who are in the greatest demand and are employed most quickly, so that students can know and make informed choices. We are working on it. We should be able to release something this year. The biggest misallocation in our tertiary education is the very low proportion of girls doing Engineering. 90% of the Engineering Faculty are boys. We are very short of able students to do Engineering. Yet the girls who, at 'A' levels do as well as the boys if not better, are simply not choosing that subject. They go into subjects like Accountancy, Business Administration. They have very good grades, much higher than the grades which would admit them into the Engineering Faculty. In fact, if we look at the job market the demand for Accountancy or Business Administration graduates is lower than the demand for Engineers. The starting salary of an electrical engineer is at $2,000, of an Accountant perhaps $1,000. But there is a strong cultural bias. Girls do not do Engineering because they think they may get your hands dirty. But in electrical engineering, you do not get your hands dirty. That has not sunk in. If we can shift that bias, we will have a more optimal allocation of University undergraduates.”
“Desalinization of sea-water is technically feasible but it has been said to be an extremely expensive process. For our long-term needs and in our long-term interests, are we re-studying this issue seriously? Are there plans to look into projects on water sufficiency in terms of our vision for the future? We are also close to some Indonesian islands and there could be water resources in these islands. I am wondering whether we have made attempts to explore the possibilities for tapping water sources from these areas.”
“Sir, I beg to move, That the sum to be allocated for Head V be reduced by $10 in respect of Code VA 1000 of the Main Estimates. Sir, water is a non-issue in the minds of many people. We are sometimes not very conscious about the importance of water because it is plentiful in Singapore and hence we tend to think that it will always be there. Sir, over the last decade we have been having an adequate supply of water and we are fortunate that this supply has been continuous, without much disruption and water rationing. We hope that this will continue. But we can never say that this will be the case. Nature may work against us. We do not know. Therefore, I think we will have to look at this question of the adequacy of our water supply on a long-term. Sir, PUB has two water agreements with the Johor Government to enable us to draw water for our needs for the next 60 years. However, these sources of water from the reservoirs in Gunong Pulai, Pontian, Tebrau, Scudai and Johore Rivers are not inexhaustible. New water sources have to be found and harnessed. I understand that we have had discussions with the Johor Government in trying to develop the Johor River for new water resources. I am wondering whether the Minister could inform the House of the progress and development in terms of discussion to harness water resources from the Johor River. Sir, we seem to have exhausted all possibilities in the development of surface water sources in Singapore. It has been said that we have to look for water outside Singapore. Does it mean that we have no other alternatives to look for adequate supplies of water? What are our back-up plans in terms of water supply in the event of water shortage or crisis over the need for water itself.”
“Sir, can we have an idea when will the programme for conversion be initiated?”
“Sir, when will the building of new blocks be initiated?”
“Sir, there is certainly a need to review the policy on the provision of facilities for Residents' Committees. The Residents' Committees which have been established sometime ago, particularly those first generation RC centres, now find that their facilities have become a bit out of date. It does not meet their needs adequately since most of the Residents' Committees have expanded their programmes. I see that there is a need to provide better facilities for these neighbourhood organizations so that they will be able to mobilize more people around the neighbourhood to participate in their various programmes. Sir, I do not know what you can do with 120 sq m office - the size of a 4-room flat. It is not easy to organize various activities within the centre. You cannot even hold a pot-luck party comfortably within the setup. I feel that there is a serious need to look at the question of additional office spaces for the RC especially if we want to encourage community leaders to carry out their work more effectively.”
“As a result, many of the children of divorce cases undergo tremendous stress, of neglect and problems of care, and attention. I want to know whether the Ministry is carefully monitoring this increasing trend of divorce and seeing how its services can be planned more effectively to deal with the problems and the plights of children who have to face conflicts and other related problems arising from the squabbles of their parents.”
“Sir, I am sure the Minister is a compassionate person. He will do what he can for the cases that are brought before him. Sir, I would like to get on to the issues of the aged poor. With the move towards a cashless society, there is this danger that we may not be in contact with the number of aged poor who are on public assistance. Many of them live either on their own or in small groups in the 1-room flats in various housing estates. So I am wondering what are the programmes and policy direction that the Ministry is planning to ensure that this group of aged poor are well integrated into the community and the type of support they will be given to ensure that the little public assistance that they are getting would be sufficient to see them through. The other issue that I would like to bring up is this. I understand that the Ministry is moving towards rationalizing and promoting more services for the disabled. The most crucial problem which confronts the disabled is the problem of employment. A large proportion of them are unable to obtain employment because of the problems of accessibility, mobility, and transport. Since they all live in different housing estates, I wish to know whether the Ministry would be establishing more sheltered workshops and work places through the acquisition of premises in some new towns. Once these premises are made available, the disabled living in the various localities will have easier access to undertake sheltered employment within such setups. The third area which I have been looking at with much concern is the increased number of divorces that are on record. Since 1980 to date we have seen a slow but significant increase in the number of divorce cases. In 1980 there were 1,216 cases of divorce. In 1986 the figure rose to 1,822.”
“Sir, I am wondering what are the directions and the actions that the Ministry would be taking towards to help low-income families.”
“In the light that these families are vulnerable to problems, I urge that we can take various steps to help prevent them from getting into further problems. Sir, I feel that their problem warrants our attention because it is estimated that there are about 76,000 households living in the 1- and 2-room HDB rental flats. If we compute this and extrapolate, we can estimate that there are about 300,000 persons in these households. This accounts for about 10% of our population. Surely, Sir, this 10% of our population deserves some concrete attention in terms of their needs and their aspirations. Sir, more often than not, if we look around and make an assessment, many of the social service programmes do not reach these families because many of them are either ignorant, feel helpless and are unable to manage to use these services effectively. They are also less educated and, therefore, find it difficult to deal with our complicated bureaucracy. Hence, I think that there is a need to see how we can reach out to these families. I feel that there are several approaches that the Ministry could consider. First and foremost, the Ministry needs to set up a small task force to make an in-depth study of the problems faced by these low-income families. Through in-depth studies, I am sure we will be able to identify their difficulties and take concrete steps to help them. Secondly, we need to start a few pilot projects in housing estates where there are large numbers of low-income families. Through these pilot projects with comprehensive programmes directed at family education, parenting, counselling and other related help, we will be able to reach out to these families more effectively.”