Wang Kai Yuen
Singapore
“Sir, would MDA not, in monitoring these sites and when they have found such a content on its own, make it as tenable evidence and pass it to the Police rather than have the complaint from the public?”
“I would like to find out from the Minister of State when will the content of these blogs start becoming from being just mere offensive to tenable and verifiable evidence that could be tendered in court for an act committed in Singapore that is punishable under the Penal Code, such as homosexual act, oral sex and sex with underaged ladies.”
“Once they are disqualified, they might as well close shop. Sir, I am sympathetic to their plight and that it is unfair to apply the demerit points to a single company as a whole, regardless of the number of ongoing construction projects. This could act against big companies with multiple projects.”
“Individuals just make less money when they sell their flats. Hopefully, if they were to buy another flat, they could also pay proportionately less as well. However, when the market is on the way down, like in the last few years, or stagnate like now, the loss would be substantial, as many would be saddled with negative equity.”
“Sir, would the Minister agree that since the Singapore law is primarily based on the common law and since the UK Parliament has found it necessary to legislate that glorification of terrorism is a crime, would he agree that there might be a gap in our laws that our current law would not cover where the current UK law would now cover?”
“Thank you, Sir. The Minister indicated that he would monitor and would plug the hole when the need arises. Would he want to follow the UK example that they would only pass such a law after a terrorist attack in the tube? If a similar event happens in Singapore, would it be a bit too late to plug the gap? Assoc. Prof.”
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“But would it not be better if a stint as a Minister is considered a step upward so that career-minded Singaporeans will find it attractive to serve? Would it also be kinder to the men and women who had served the nation well? When I speak up, do I begrudge the Ministers for their pay? Absolutely not. As an old Member of Parliament, who has since retired, used to say, "Ministers are paid not just for what they do, but are also paid for what they can't do, don't do, and will not do.' Very simple words. Very wise words. 'Can't do, don't do, and will not do' but they succinctly capture the gist of the matter. I say our Ministers deserve every dollar they make. Why then am I taking the time of this House to delve into a topic so forcefully and eloquently dealt with by none other than the Senior Minister? Because of the various immediate ramifications. Let us stop for a minute and think one step beyond the immediate problem of getting talented and targeted people into the Cabinet. What are Cabinet Ministers? They are also political leaders. They have to win elections. Mr Dhanabalan said that they have to bring the Party through the next general election and future general elections. So let us stop and think about the problems these Ministers would face in mobilising the people when everyone in Singapore knows that when they look at the Ministers they are one of the top 100 earners in Singapore, come high or lo. As political leaders, besides GDP growth, price of our homes, employment, our Ministers have to sell unpopular policies to the people. To name a few, reduced medical benefits to civil servants, higher COEs, GST and, at times of crisis, we have to ask our people to make sacrifices.”
“Did they mention others and did the Cabinet look into those other negative factors? Have we tried to do something about those factors? Dr Ow chin Hock, in his speech, mentioned a few factors, such as relationship between fellow members in the Cabinet, teamwork, job satisfaction, and I would add another to this list, career path. I believe anyone of ministerial calibre in Singapore will definitely ask what is the career path for him if he were to join the Cabinet. What is life after being a Minister? Is joining the Cabinet a right career choice? Would a stint in Cabinet give his career a boost or is it, like the Senior Minister said, walking into the sunset after leaving the Cabinet? I think all he or she has to do is to take a look at the retired Ministers and he will come to the conclusion that the prospect is not that promising. The Senior Minister mentioned in his speech that a former Cabinet Minister has petitioned to the Prime Minister for an adjustment in his pension. We all know that Dr Goh Keng Swee left GIC and became a paid consultant. Even our immediate past Ministers, Dr Yeo Ning Hong and Mr Dhanabalan, still physically very healthy and strong, and very agile mentally, have already retired. The impression one gets is that for these very good men, the best years were taken out of their life and, once out of the Cabinet, they are left on their own. Is this impression not a major deterrent for anyone intending to join the Cabinet? So I would like to ask: can pay alone overcome this problem? The answer is yes, but to do so, just as the Senior Minister has recommended, the level has to be set very high, tying to the top income earners in this land.”
“On the other hand, how about Dr Tony Tan and Dr Yeo Ning Hong? What do they have to say about the new benchmark? I would be glad to listen to them. Mr Speaker, Sir, I would agree that if pay, and pay alone, is the way of getting successful Singaporeans into the Cabinet, we should remove that stumbling block once and for all. In fact, why stop at two-thirds? I say, pay the man his market rate or more to attract him into the Cabinet. On the other hand, without sounding disrespectful, may I ask the Senior Minister and the Prime Minister whether pay alone will solve the problem. This problem is not new. The Senior Minister himself admitted that he had been grappling with it for a long time. And yet, he always mentions increasing the Ministers' pay from time to time to tackle this problem. As such, I have gained the impression that the Cabinet seems to think this problem is purely one-dimensional. With my limited experience as a manager, what I have learned working for a multinational company like IBM and Xerox, recruiting and keeping the right people in the company, my understanding is that human resource management is a multi-faceted issue. These corporations' research shows that time and again, pay in itself is ultimately not a motivating factor. Pay increase that is tied to performance is a motivating factor, but absolute pay level itself is not. One does not throw money at the problem just to solve it, unless one is looking for a quick fix. Maybe more senior and more experienced managers in this House, including CEOs, will bear me out in this issue. Sir, I am not sure whether anyone has taken note of the various factors people have mentioned when they declined invitations to join the Cabinet. As Mr Dhanabalan said, those who declined rarely mentioned pay.”
“Mr Speaker, Sir, after the Senior Minister's speech on Tuesday, putting his prestige and life-long experience behind the concept of benchmarking Ministers' pay to the top income earners in Singapore, there is very little anyone can add to the debate. So I beg your indulgence to let me proceed. The concept of benchmarking civil servants and Ministers' compensation with the private sector is, I believe, readily acceptable by most Singaporeans. The question is: where to set the benchmark? In the case of the Ministers, as the Senior Minister has said, who else has the range of experience to judge? Definitely not the general public. I do not know about my colleagues in this House, but I would definitely disqualify myself to judge as well. Perhaps the persons to judge, besides himself, would include the Prime Minister, the serving Ministers and those retired Ministers. Since it would be inappropriate for serving Ministers to comment on their own compensation, this House could benefit from the input of our immediate past Ministers, namely, Mr Dhanabalan, Dr Tony Tan and Dr Yeo Ning Hong. Mr Dhanabalan has spoken. I have always respected Mr Dhanabalan. From the many discussions we had with him in the Members' Room, one can come to the conclusion that he is a righteous man, a religious man, a man of high moral principles. On Tuesday, when he disclosed that he did not even know how much he would be paid when he first entered politics, I applauded. My esteem for him has climbed up several notches. Mr Dhanabalan said that he is old-fashioned and belongs to the age of dinosaurs. He conceded that the new benchmark for Ministers will give the Prime Minister the tools to assemble his team. I believe we should listen to him very carefully.”
“Mr Speaker, may I respectfully ask the Minister to reverse the order of his experiment because, personally, I do not believe double transfers or the constraint on double transfers will help. But pay-as-you-bid may help.”
“Would the Minister comment on the reluctance of the Government in trying out the pay-as-you-bid? The public perceives that the Government is reluctant to do so because the Government would end up collecting less revenue. So would the Minister comment, please?”
“Sir, is the Minister implying that, with a more efficient public transportation system, the COE prices of private cars will come down, especially for luxury cars? Mr Mah Bow Tan: Sir, what I am saying is that there is no way that we are able to curb the demand for motor cars just by taking the measures that people have suggested. We should be looking at the problem as a transportation problem. And, in this respect, by providing a better and higher level of public transport service, we are able to take a little bit of the pressure off from the demand for cars. But having said that, I do recognise that there is another element in this desire to own a car and this other aspect, I am afraid, cannot be addressed so easily. That I admit.”
“Mr Speaker, Sir, I would like to say that I also support the new scheme. But, however, if I were an HDB applicant today, and after listening to the Minister, I would have two questions in my mind. Firstly, what will happen to my priority that I have applied in the past? Secondly, how long do I have to wait? I understand that the Minister has said that HDB will announce the details in the next couple of weeks. But, as Mr Chng has said, this is causing a lot of anxiety among these 90,000 families. I am also confident that the Minister and his Ministry have thought through the rationale and the principle of how to switch from the current system to the new system. Perhaps, he will take time to outline that principle to us. Also, I would like the Minister to give an estimate of how long, under the new allocation system, a first-timer and an upgrader have to wait for their flats.”
“Is the Minister aware that some of these couples have been classified as upgraders for the purpose of balloting priorities.”
“May I find out from the Minister whether a couple, who has never bought a flat from HDB but from the open market, and has never enjoyed a subsidy from HDB, would be classified as a first-timer or upgrader?”
“Sir, may I ask the Minister to give a formal definition of what is a first-timer and what is an upgrader?”
“Could I ask the Minister whether the reverse will happen? In other words, had we not pursued this policy, will the price drop further? Mr Lim Hng Kiang: If it is minimal for upside, it is also minimal downside.”
“Could I ask the Minister whether that means "yes"?”
“Since the Minister accepts the principle of demand-based car park charges, in places like multi-storey car parks where there is very minimum demand, would he consider reducing the car park charges?”
“Sir, actually my question to the Minister is about "bids above the strike price", not the successful bids. In other words, everything that is above the strike price.”
“May I ask the Minister whether the Committee of Inquiry's proceedings and report are kept confidential or made available to the public, or at least made known to the next-of-kin?”
“Sir, may I get clarification from the Senior Parliamentary Secretary as to how long an upgrader will have to wait before he gets his flat? From the figure given yesterday, I understand that HDB is building 30,000 flats a year and every year, 26,000 new families are being formed. If we were to give priority to the new families, then every year there is only a surplus of 4,000 flats available. And in his reply this afternoon, he said that there are 50,000 upgraders. So if you take 50,000 and divide by four, you are talking about 12 years. Maybe some of those upgraders would have died before the flats are allotted to them.”
“Sir, how many years will have to pass before the current surge of demand can be satisfied? Mr Matthias Yao Chih: Sir, about 60,000 applicants on the list already have an HDB flat of their own, or some housing of their own, not rented premises, but actually owned premises. Therefore, what we should look at is the issue of how best to cater to the needs of new households, and we are talking about 26,000 a year. Everybody else who has already owned his flat and wants to upgrade, downgrade or move sideways to other estates, will have to be looked at separately.”
“When was the limit of $3 million set and why was it not adjusted from time to time?”
“Sir, may I ask the Minister when was the $3 million limit set? Would he tie it with a real property? Let us say someone owns a $3 million property at that period of time. He was classified as not very rich. But today the same family living in that property has been classified very rich. How would he rationalise this? Would it not be more reasonable to adjust the limit from time to time in line with the escalation of property prices?”
“I will do so. HDB PURCHASE FLATS (Changes to allocation policy) 4. Dr S. Vasoo asked the Acting Minister for National Development whether the Housing and Development Board will be making further changes to the allocation policy for purchase flats. The Acting Minister for National Development (Mr Lim Hng Kiang): Mr Speaker, Sir, the Housing and Development Board is currently reviewing the allocation policy and mechanism for HDB flats. It aims to reduce the uncertainties caused by the present balloting system, and give applicants more certainty as to when they can expect to be allocated their flats. HDB will ensure the scheme strikes a fair balance between new household applicants and upgraders. The details of the revised allocation system will be announced once they are finalised. Dr S. Vasoo (Tanjong Pagar GRC): Sir, when will this revised allocation system be implemented? Are we going to wait for a long time?”
“But I understand that they are required to continue to contribute to their Medisave accounts. Any surplus would then be transferred from the Medisave accounts into their Ordinary accounts. What is the rationale of doing so? BG George Yong-Boon Yeo: The same rationale applies as it would to CPF contributions. In other words, if your monthly income exceeds $6,000 then you do not have to contribute CPF beyond $6,000. In the same way, the Medisave contributions will be capped. There are some minor variations depending on the age group you fall in. But the same principle applies. Perhaps if the Member has got specific details to raise, he can send them to me and I will give him a specific reply.”
“Sir, is the Minister aware that even if the Medisave account has reached its maximum, a person in this category is still required by the relevant Government authorities, like the Registry of Vehicles for taxi licence renewal, etc. to continue to contribute to his Medisave account? BG George Yong-Boon Yeo: If he has already reached the limit of his Medisave contribution, he can apply for it to be capped.”
“(3) To waive the requirement that an applicant must remain in the same choice of location for continuously eight times of balloting attempts. I believe the Minister and other MPs have faced many residents who approach them with the above problems. I hope the Minister will review the HDB flat allocation policy and consider my suggestions.”
“Mr Leong Horn Kee (Thomson GRC)( In Mandarin): Sir, I wish to give some views concerning the existing balloting system of HDB flat allocation. Previously, a first-come-first-served system was used. However, the experience was that this first-come-first-served system caused people to rush to register their names early. This led to an artificial inflation of the demand for HDB flats. The waiting list was therefore very long and insatiable. Later, the present booking and balloting method was adopted. Following the introduction of this new method, other problems arose. The first problem is that as balloting is a system of chance, there are several families who are unable to get balloted for flats, even after over 10 attempts of balloting. They could have waited for over two years and are still unsuccessful. On the contrary, there are the fortunate few who got balloted for flats at the first try. The system does not differentiate those who have waited for a long time and the first-timers. 2.45 pm Subsequently, the HDB modified the balloting rules such that those who attempted eight times for a flat at the same location will get some degree of preference. However, another problem arose. Many applicants, due to various reasons, did not stick to one location for as long as eight times. Hence, they ended up losing their preference status. Sir, I personally am of the view that there are many merits of the first-come-first-served system. One key merit is certainty of securing a flat. I would like to request the Minister to do a review of the HDB flat allocation policy. Some issues which can be considered are: (1) Whether the first-come-first-served system can be reintroduced. (2) To allow preference balloting after four attempts instead of eight.”
“I think it is fair to conclude that there is indeed a strong correlation between HDB flat prices and the private residential property prices. When one goes up, the other will follow, albeit after a time lag of maybe 12-18 months. This time lag is not surprising as the price movement will take time to percolate through the system. In retrospect, if the image of this pyramid asset structure, with HDB prices forming the floor, is correct, then it is not surprising why Singapore residential properties have appreciated rapidly over the last couple of years, bucking historical trends. In fact, a lot of Singaporeans were fooled in the 1991-1992 time-frame. Some sold their homes in anticipation of a downturn. Like a rising tide that raises all boats, their dream was drowned by the unexpected rise. Everything else being equal, it seems to me that the Ministry has a very handy mechanism to adjust the appreciation rate of all homes in Singapore at will. All Singaporeans could be made richer if the Minister just cranks up the floor by a few notches through posting higher prices for new HDB flats. I know there are good reasons for increasing HDB flat prices, but the end effect is what I have described. First, existing HDB flats will appreciate in prices, followed by private condominiums and then landed properties. This is indeed a very powerful lever, if it is true. While this is my conjecture, I do not think it is too far from the truth. Given its impact on the housing market in Singapore and the potential of making or losing millions of dollars, I believe future HDB pricing policy is indeed valuable information and should be treated as such. Would the Minister enlighten the House whether new HDB flat prices would have the impact that I have highlighted?”
“Sir, close to 90% of Singaporeans live in HDB flats. The balance live in private housing. There is a hierarchy of residential properties in Singapore, starting with HDB flats, private condominiums and landed properties like semi-detached houses and detached houses. This asset structure rests on the broad base of HDB flats with their values forming the floor. Is it true that, as the prices of HDB flats go up, this increase will bring up the whole asset structure of Singapore homes? If so, fortunes can be made if one can predict the appreciation of HDB flats, especially the prices of the new HDB flats. Let us look at historical data. Over the 5-year period from 1988 to 1992, the average selling price of HDB flats went up by 59%, 79% and 97% for 4-room, 5-room and Executive apartments respectively, using the prices of 1988 as a base. On the other hand, from 1981 to 1988, the price movement of HDB flats had been around 3%-4% a year for seven years. In other words, there was a long period of stable HDB prices, followed by five years of very rapid increase of 12%-15% a year. These figures were extracted from the Cost Review Committee Report. Interestingly enough, Sir, the prices of every other residential type of property in Singapore had gone up rapidly from 1990 to 1992. Over this same 4-year period, the increases were roughly 59% for condominiums, 91% for terrace houses, 120% for semi-detached houses and 123% for detached houses. These figures were extracted from the report of a reputable realtor company. These percentages are roughly in the same ballpark figure as the HDB figures. Could it be true that the adjustment of new HDB flat prices from 1988 to 1992 had taken its natural course and finally showed up in the private residential market?”
“Clarification, Sir. May I find out from the Minister whether HDB will continue to maintain the central antenna television system so that Singaporeans will continue to have a choice to decide whether they want to watch over-the-air transmission or cable television transmission?”
“As to whether his constituency, Hougang, will have a library, I would like to remind Mr Low that the Hougang area is in fact many times the size of his constituency. The Library Committee has said that Hougang is a large area and needs a community library. But whether or not it should be in Mr Low's Constituency, I think, depends on the Library Board. I cannot promise him in advance. Originally, we had intended a branch library there and then it came back that there were not enough people in Hougang to justify a branch library. In any case, they have decided that is a wrong type of library to have. All Singaporeans should be served by a network of libraries and the people of Hougang, including the people in Mr Low's constituency, will be served by that network. 5.15 pm Mr Peh Chin Hua( In Mandarin): Sir, I have two questions to raise. In the Minister's reply just now, he gave me the impression that the policy of MITA is quite different from that of the Ministry of Education. From what he said, he was advocating a laissez-faire approach. But the Ministry of Education seeks to promote the Confucianist idea. The Minister said that because information is coming from all over the world, there is nothing we could do to stop it. I am not convinced. Surely some preventive measures can be taken.”
“I just want to ask the Minister whether he would take time to answer my question about cable television and access of the HDB dwellers to all the channels currently available on the cable television network. BG George Yong-Boon Yeo: I want to apologise to Dr Wang and Mr Low Thia Khiang for not answering their questions. I have got it here, Sir. I overlooked the two points. We will require our cable company to carry Singapore stations free. Whether or not they should carry Malaysian stations, I think it is for them to negotiate because copyrights are involved. If you say tap Malaysian channels in through cable vision, we may have to pay copyrights to those who sold the programmes to Malaysian TV channels. Then the question arises as to who has the right to the commercial slots. These are practical problems of intellectual property rights which will have to be resolved when we have cable television. I do not have the answer for Dr Wang now. But we will continue to broadcast all SBC channels on the air. TV sets are getting smaller. They will be available in cars, on wrist watches, bars and on boats and so on. So we will have to continue to put them out over the air. On Mr Low Thia Khiang's points about Chinese books, these are the problems we have identified, which was why we highlighted them in the Library 2000 Report. It assumes great importance now as more and more Singaporeans develop a keen interest in Mandarin, especially to do business in China. The Committee has it in the Report and I will encourage the Library Board when it is formed to do much more for books in the non-English languages, particularly Chinese, in Malay, including Bahasa Indonesia, and in the Indian languages.”
“If the transmission over the air is terminated and all transmissions will now be available over the cable television network, would the user begin to pay for receiving SBC channels? Because currently transmitting over the air is free, but using the cable someone must pay for the usage. I would be grateful if the Minister could address these issues which, I believe, would be of great public interest. The Chairman: Order. I propose to take the break now. Thereupon Mr Speaker left the Chair of the Committee and took the Chair of the House.”
“Furthermore, in his speech, the Minister further said that the channel currently transmitted over the air will be piped through the new cable system. And he also said the central television antenna will become unnecessary. His comment has led to speculation that all existing SBC channels will be piped through the cable television system in future. I recall reading in the newspaper that transmission over the air by SBC might be terminated in future. If it is true, this will be a very unexpected development. This raises the following issues in my mind which I would like to seek the Minister's clarification. 3.45 pm Firstly, the broader perspective of audience outside Singapore. Since we are actually spending quite a large sum of money to transmit the Singapore programme via satellite, should we not retain the ability to move public opinion of those living closer to us by retaining the cheaper way of transmitting over the air? Secondly, the current central antenna television system in HDB flats is maintained by HDB. It also carries two Malaysian channels. This system is owned by HDB and HDB can determine what is transmitted and what is available on the antenna system and what is not. In a way, the information available to the HDB dwellers is determined by HDB. HDB has already excluded the third Malaysian channel from the central antenna television system. So in future, when all SBC channels and cable television channels are piped through cable network, would the two existing Malaysian channels be also available on our cable television network? Thirdly, the question of paying for cable television of standard SBC channels.”
“Sir, to begin with, I like to applaud the Minister for initiating the effort to beam the one-hour Singapore programme via satellite to the region. Although the recipients are mostly non-Singaporeans, I believe that this is in line with the dynamic economy of Singapore. Like all societies that have become successful, it is, of course, natural that we, as a society, would like to project our lifestyle and our culture. But in this day and age where Singaporeans are getting so finicky about cost, I would like to find out from the Minister where the money for the broadcasting comes from. And as radio and television licence fees were just increased recently, many of my constituents have asked whether satellite broadcasting is one of the causes of this increase. They feel that since the Government thinks it is important to do so, perhaps the Government should pay for it from the general fund and not from the radio and television licence fees. They pay radio and TV licence fees grudgingly because they understand it to be necessary for the public service broadcast which is for the social good. But they do not feel the same for satellite broadcasting. Further, I like to find out from the Minister what is the effectiveness of the satellite broadcast so far. Sir, Mr Peter Sung has already touched on our cable television system in the future. Indeed, according to the Minister's speech on 23rd December 1993, all HDB flats will be wired up in five years. This is a massive exercise and would definitely cost quite a bit of money. Again, the question is: who pays? Would this be a Government investment in infrastructure like the MRT which is a gift from the Government to the people? Or would the user in future bear the usual cost?”
“I am still not satisfied with the Minister's reply and I do not intend to withdraw my amendment. Question on the amendment put, and negatived.”
“Obviously, I am aware that Lake Tahoe is in California. But not only Lake Tahoe is in California, it is also part of Nevada.”
“Sir, I beg to differ from the Minister's reply to my question. In fact, I disagree with him. His objection is based on the practicality of testing the drivers. May I ask him whether he knows that in the State of California there are 10 million people and California is well known as a car-owning state. Presumably, the number of drivers in that state is about 5 million. In comparison, Singapore has about a million drivers. I think practicality is one thing but he should take into perspective the need for re-testing the drivers. May I also ask him what is the value of renewing a driving licence? When a person approaches the Traffic Police to renew a licence after every three years, is that a revenue-collecting exercise or a re-certification exercise? And I would like to quote what he mentioned earlier in his speech, "One unnecessary traffic death is one death too many". I wish the Minister will bear this in mind.”
“I find it odd that to ensure road safety, the law requires the vehicle to be inspected and certified fit for the road every so often, whereas there is no requirement to ensure that the driver is fit to drive on a continuing basis. So even not considering the issue of people who have lost their skills due to disuse, the authority should also consider the case of people losing their ability to drive, like weakening eyesight and poor response time through the aging process. We should ensure that drivers on the road are continuously updated with the new traffic regulations that are promulgated from time to time. Requiring drivers to undergo periodic written and driving tests is not a new idea. In the state of California, a place where personal freedom is highly valued, drivers are required to go through periodic tests when they renew their driving licence. For instance, for every other renewal, the driver must pass the vision test. A written test would then follow and after a certain period, a mandatory driving test. Sir, in the interest of preventing a recurrence of similar tragic accidents, I would urge the Minister to review the need of revalidating a driver's licence from time to time, although I know this is going to be a very unpopular request.”
“Sir, I beg to move, That the sum to be allocated for Head Q of the Main Estimates be reduced by $10 in respect of Code QC 1500. Sir, in a one car accident on 1st February this year, a seventeen-year old student of NJC was killed and another seriously injured. This was the same accident referred to by Dr Arthur Beng earlier. The cause of the accident - an inexperienced driver. [Mr Deputy Speaker in the Chair] 5.19 pm The driver involved had only driven on the road three times in the past five years since he passed his driving test. And since our driving licence validity period is only three years, he was re-certified and re-issued a new driver's licence somewhere during this period. So he was certified fit to drive by the State. However, somewhere along these five years, he has lost the ability to drive. So when I read the news in the newspapers the following morning, I felt deep anguish partly because I am a father myself and I truly felt the pain endured by the dead girl's parents, partly because this issue of ensuring the driving skills of a person who has passed the driving test but somewhere along the line he has lost the skills was brought up by me in this House as early as 1990. During the debate on the Second Reading of the Road Traffic (Amendment) Bill, I asked the then Minister, Prof. Jayakumar, whether he would consider introducing a measure which will require drivers to undergo an eye test (basically vision test), a written test and a driving test periodically. And these tests were to tackle the problem of non-driving drivers who possess a valid driving licence but have not been driving for many years. The danger posed by such a driver when he gets behind the wheel is self-evident.”
“In Japan, they have a system of honouring master craftsmen in the trades. These craftsmen are known as "National Treasures". They are accorded great respect. In America, the emphasis is on sports. Every young man there has his idol in sports; sportsmen that young men and women can look up to and emulate. Perhaps Singaporeans need heroes and role models who are ordinary people too. For instance, the best worker, the best taxi driver, maybe one day the best actor, the best tennis player, the best swimmer, and so on. Mr Speaker, Sir, I hope the Government will take heed of Mr Wee Kim Wee's concern and find a way to mould a Singapore society that is less materialistic than the one that we are evolving towards at this moment. ADJOURNMENT OF DEBATE”
“I believe it would be a more ideal situation if every person is respected for his contribution to society. Respect for the individual. That is the guideline for personnel management in multi-national companies like IBM, Shell and HP. An employee would command respect if he carries out his job well, regardless of what the job is and what the job pays. A janitor who does his job in a quality way would deserve no less respect than a manager. He shall be respected not for how much he earns but how he carries out his work. Mr Speaker, Sir, for instance, in Singapore, it is hard to get people to become school teachers. Not only does the job not pay well, it also no longer commands the respect the profession once received. Perhaps our teachers should be accorded the kind of respect the Japanese do for their teachers. Teachers there have high status and that is one of the reasons why the Japanese system continues to attract teachers of high calibre even though the job does not pay well. Sir, in the Government's drive to motivate Singaporeans to strive for greater economic growth, are we overdoing it by pushing money as the primary measure of success? Would our young men and women wake up one day and find that, after all, money is not the path to happiness? In fact, it is already happening to a certain extent currently. In 1993, if you look around, you will notice that the assets of all Singaporeans have gone up. Their HDB flats are worth more. Their cars are worth more. Whatever they own in assets have gone up in price. Indeed, everyone seems to be richer, but not everyone is happier. If anything, if we ask around, more people are unhappy. Sir, other societies have actually travelled down this path before. Perhaps we can learn from them.”
“If Singaporeans emulate these young individuals and take after them, how are we going to motivate them to take up professions in production, in engineering and R&D which do not pay as much, but which is where the wealth of the nation is generated? Mr Speaker, Sir, there is also another worrying development, ie, the widening income discrepancy in Singapore, and Mr Chin Harn Tong has touched on this. With our drive towards globalisation and regionalisation, the income discrepancy between the high-income group and the low-income group is widening. Business Times reported recently that the Singapore CEOs are the 15th highest paid in the world. If we take the after-tax figures, these CEOs are even further ahead, ranking 6th, ahead of CEOs in Germany, Japan and Switzerland. Whereas if we look at our workers, I do not think we are comparing them with workers in the same league of nations. The recent civil servants' pay adjustments only further highlight this trend. While the overall increase is 7.1%, those in the higher echelons received much higher pay increases. In his Address to the House, the President mentioned that social cohesion is fundamental to the continued progress of our nation building. The Prime Minister in one of his speeches identified four strategies and one advantage of Singapore that would transform our nation into a developed country in the 21st century. And that advantage is social cohesion. The question here is: what is the effect of widening income discrepancy on our social cohesion? Everything being equal, the social cohesion in a nation where there is great income discrepancy must be weaker than one where there is a smaller discrepancy. Matters can only become worse if people flaunt their wealth openly.”
“Mr Speaker, Sir, I support the motion standing in the name of Mr Loh Meng See. The Address by the President reminds me of the speech made by the Prime Minister in this House in paying tribute to the former President, Mr Wee Kim Wee. In that speech, the Prime Minister mentioned that Mr Wee discerned a trend that worries him, ie, Singaporeans are beginning to judge the worth of a man by the car he drives and the house he lives in. Since the Prime Minister chose to bring this up, I was hoping that the President would touch on this issue in his Address to the House. It is indeed quite true that there is such a trend. In my discussions with young Singaporeans, I find that their respect for a person nowadays is measured by how much money that person makes. Furthermore, if two persons make the same amount of money, they would have higher respect for the one who is less intelligent or less capable. This is to say, respect seems to be tied to how street-smart that person is. To capture this, I would like to use a ratio which I would call the "street-smart quotient" or SQ in short, which is derived by taking the gross monthly salary divided by the IQ of the person. For a person who makes, say, $5,000 a month with an IQ of 125, which places him in the gifted category, his SQ is only 40. Whereas if his IQ is only 80, which is just below average, his SQ is now 62r, which means he would get more respect from young people than the gifted person. With the stock market boom in 1993, I would say remisiers and dealers certainly scored the highest SQs. Furthermore, the vibrant real estate market also means that the real estate brokers have very high SQ as well. They are the people who drive the fanciest cars on the road and buying up the most expensive homes in districts 10, 11 and so on.”
“Sir, what are the specific reasons for not allowing overseas medical students to do their national service during their vacations, a practice which was formerly permissible?”
“Clarification for the Minister. I would like to ask the Minister whether kidney dialysis is within the definition of all the diseases in that two volumes, and whether that is covered in the basic health care package.”
“Sir, would the Minister consider channelling some of the unused COEs, in particular, motorcycle COEs, to the category where there is greater demand?”
“Would the Minister review the need of having multiple or several categories of private vehicles in view of the fact that there is very little price difference in the premiums of these categories?”
“Sir, would the Minister give an assessment of the impact of COE of commercial vehicles on the cost of doing business in Singapore?”
“For people convicted for vandalism, it prescribes a fine not exceeding $2,000 or to imprisonment for a term not exceeding three years and shall also, subject to section 231 of the Criminal Procedure Code, be punished with caning of no less than three strokes and no more than eight strokes. I feel perhaps that the Minister can also, in his reply, indicate whether he supports my view and whether this view can be interpreted under the new Interpretation Act to be brought up in the case when they are prosecuted. Dr Ho has also asked how this Bill deals with a perpetrator who is a minor, because most popular literatures portray the computer hacker as a minor out for fun and adventure. I think the current law should also address this issue.”
“Mr Speaker, Sir, I support the Bill. As the Minister has said in his introduction, computers and network systems, be they banking system, import/export system, EDI network, stock exchange, CDS system, have become an essential and important part of our industry and commerce. Any misuse or breach of security could cause major disruption to our life. Fortunately in Singapore, such occurrences are rare but nonetheless they do exist. Often times, under our existing laws, companies would rather swallow their pride than prosecute the offenders, and keep silent about it. I am very glad to note that the Minister has introduced this Bill to make all these acts criminal offences prosecutable under the new law. Most of the computer professionals I consulted have supported this Bill. The consensus is that it addresses a real need and it is timely. However, like my colleague who has spoken, some of us feel that the punishment prescribed is on the low side, basically $2,000 or two years' imprisonment or both if the damage caused does not exceed $10,000. Like my colleague who has spoken, I feel that the damages normally caused in computer crimes are difficult to identify and track, and the cases are difficult to prosecute. Once identified, the damages are also very difficult to rectify. Furthermore, individuals who intentionally break into a computer system, especially Government computer system, for malicious mischief are no different from vandals, albeit these are the white-collar kind. What is worse, of course, is that the damages would take a long time to rectify. So I believe that the punishment prescribed for such cases should be no lower than those prescribed for vandalism under the Vandalism Act (Chapter 341).”
“I would like to find out from the Minister whether such rules that he has enunciated also apply to the developer of overseas properties which are marketed in Singapore.”