Yeo Ning Hong
Singapore
“The SAF always reviews and enhances its training system to maximise the contributions of NSFs to national defence during their NSF stint. We will continue to ensure that the training syllabus is relevant to the defence needs of Singapore, and NSFs' time in the SAF used meaningfully and efficiently.”
“New recruits will find military training less onerous if they take on the personal responsibility of preparing themselves well physically before enlistment. AUCTION OF #03-06 PEK CHUAN BUILDING 6.”
“Sir, on a point of clarification. I believe Dr Ahmad Mattar had earlier on attributed some comments to me. I just want to clarify that I am not waiting for July to have my views on SBC made known to the Minister for Information and the Arts.”
“Sir, to encourage the new NSmen to maintain the same physical fitness that they have achieved while they were in full-time National Service, Mindef will increase the IPPT pass standards for new NSmen who ROD on or after 1st April to the same level that they attained when they were NSF.”
“Sir, I do not think Mr Chiam has any clue whatsoever about what is involved in basic military training. It is not fitness. It is the acquiring of basic military skills, to know how to fight, to know how to ensure that you do not get killed.”
“Sir, Mr Chiam would make a most popular Member of Parliament in Kuwait - if only they had a Parliament in Kuwait. That is exactly the sort of situation that had brought the Kuwaitis the disaster they had a year and a half ago, when people are only interested in having a better life and are not prepared to make the effort to ensure that th…”
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Every one of 853 lines we hold for Yeo Ning Hong, in date order, each linked to its source. Free to read, in full, without an account. Page 8 of 18.
“Thank you, Mr Deputy Speaker, Sir, for this opportunity to speak. I have no intention originally of joining in the debate but since the Member for Potong Pasir's favourite catchword is credibility, maybe we should also look at his credibility. Sir, the Member for Potong Pasir was quoting a particular newspaper report from Sunday Times this morning, and he gave us the impression that the response to a speech which I made in the National University of Singapore sometime back was that the people were all afraid of speaking up, and he gave us some quotations. My intention is really just to read some other quotations in the same report which the Member for Potong Pasir has very conveniently left out, and indeed, to read the quotation from one gentleman whom he has quoted but has quoted only one portion of the remarks that the gentleman has made. This gentleman referred to in the report is a top level banker in his early 40's who preferred not to be named, and these are the quotes which the Member for Potong Pasir has very conveniently left out. He says: 'The call is timely and necessary and is a sign of a new leadership showing that their style is open and receptive. More such calls will encourage more people to come out, speak up and serve.' And then he goes on: 'If you speak as an individual in a sensible manner and show them you are not trying to mobilise others, I think the leaders will be receptive. I give them my views privately. They know my sincerity. They know I have no axe to grind. So I dare to say many things.' Very conveniently, the Member for Potong Pasir has left that out.”
“Dr Ho Tat Kin asked the Acting Minister for Health (a) if newborn babies are tested for antibodies to human immunodeficiency virus, the cause of AIDS, and if not, why not; and (b) if such tests are made, how many newborn babies have been found to be anti-body positive and what follow-up action his Ministry takes in such cases.”
“In a survey of 246 transit passengers who have joined such tours, 89% of them responded that they would like to return to see Singapore and spend a longer period in Singapore. Besides these two programmes, CAAS also conducts other activities which give transit passengers a preview of life in Singapore, to give them a flavour of the local culture and what we do best in Singapore. Four times a night, a programme known as the "Singapore Experience", an audio-visual show on Singapore, is screened in a theatrette in the Transit Lounge. Promotional videos on Singapore such as the recent cleaning up of the Singapore River and our changing landscapes are also screened in the in-house theatre with a closed-circuit television system available for passengers to watch it while they are waiting for their planes. Since March last year, CAAS has also started demonstrations and sale of local handicrafts in the Transit Lounge. Sir, all these and other programmes have been mounted to help sell Singapore to the two million transit and transfer passengers who pass through Singapore each year. We want them to come back and visit us. We want them to come and fill our hotel rooms and buy from our shops. And after having visited Singapore, we want them to revisit Singapore yet again. Some of the results of these efforts can be measured in dollar terms. But much more importantly, we help to create a good, positive and lasting image of Singapore which will benefit all businesses in Singapore in the long run. AIDS TEST IN NEWBORN BABIES 16.”
“Sir, the Civil Aviation Authority of Singapore (CAAS) has a number of different programmes to help with the promotion of Singapore as a tourist destination in order to help our tourist industry. I will list some of them. In July last year, the CAAS launched what is termed the Changi Connection Incentive Scheme. The idea is to promote Singapore as a destination to passengers transitting or transferring in Singapore. The transit and transfer passengers who do not normally come into Singapore are given special booklets which contain vouchers. These vouchers entitle them to discounts in our hotels, shops and other local tourist attractions, should these passengers come back to Singapore. Over the last seven months, about half a million such booklets have been issued to the transit and transfer passengers. Of these, 25,000 discount vouchers have been redeemed - 4,200 for hotel accommodation, 18,900 for shopping and 1,900 for sightseeing. In dollar terms, the redemption of vouchers for hotel accommodation alone accounts for a quarter million dollars. This is extra business for our tourist industry. So far, the response to this scheme has been assessed to be very satisfactory. CAAS expects more vouchers to be redeemed over the coming months because the vouchers are valid for a period of one year. CAAS also conducts free city tours for transit passengers. This scheme was introduced in April last year. The coach tours take approximately two hours and they are aimed at giving visitors a glimpse of Singapore and getting them excited and eager to come back to visit Singapore again. Daily, there is an average of 33 passengers.”
“I have no doubt that the deterrent will be sufficiently effective in ensuring that there will be no abuse of this particular piece of legislation. Question put, and agreed to. Bill accordingly read a Second time and committed to a Committee of the whole House. The House immediately resolved itself into a Committee on the Bill. - [Dr Yeo Ning Hong]. Bill considered in Committee; reported without amendment; read a Third time and passed.”
“This is not the way we do things in Singapore. Sir, we examine carefully cause and effect and before we adopt anything that the West does, we look at it very closely. The Member talks about progress in science and technology and equates it with all this behaviour that the Western media practises. I do not think there is any evidence to support that. Science and technology is not the monopoly of the West. The Japanese are fast catching up and in many areas have overtaken the Western countries, and they do it with a totally different culture, with a totally different approach to life. Very unwise for the Member to believe that a "monkey see, monkey do" approach will solve all the problems of Singapore. Sir, the Member for Bukit Timah raised two points which I would like to touch upon briefly. He asked if the amendment is appropriate as far as the Copyright Act is concerned. Sir, yes, the amendment is in accordance with our Copyright Act which was passed late last year. Sir, this amendment, as I emphasised a moment ago, affects only gazetted publications those declared by the Minister to be engaging in the politics of Singapore. It does not - I emphasize, it does not - affect at all all other publications. It is within the spirit of the law and, as I said earlier on and I repeat, it does not in any way diminish or dilute our commitment to bilateral arrangements for copyright protection. The Member for Bukit Timah also asked about the enforcement of the Act. Sir, the enforcement of the Act will be as with the enforcement of all other Acts. In this particular case, the conditions will be laid down. They will be given to the applicant. They will know what the conditions are. There will be a very hefty penalty which will act as a deterrent.”
“You were expounding that particular point of view a moment ago. Sir, we are looking at societies that have, among their statistics, some of the highest incidence of murder, of mugging, of child abuse, of divorce, of family breakdowns, and the Member for Potong Pasir wants us - he may want to practise a "monkey see, monkey do" approach to doing things. But this is not the way we do things in Singapore.”
“Mr Deputy Speaker, Sir, there is no necessity because the law is clear. If the Member had been familiar with the laws of Singapore he would know that this is the standard phraseology used under a variety of circumstances. Sir, I now come to another point which the Member has raised. He talks about the need for us to follow the West. He believes that everything that the West does is good.”
“Mr Deputy Speaker, Sir, I have just given the Member my views and he has obviously not heard. I am treating the Member for Potong Pasir's exposition of draftsmanship with exactly the same amount of seriousness as I did his exposition on libel law.”
“I have attempted to make sense out of the speech that you are making and all I have is six to seven isolated points.”
“You are not a defendant of the FEER. You are not a defendant of any thing because you do not believe in anything at all. You have got no point of view other than being critical of the Government.”
“He does. Thank you. Does he or does he not support the allegations of the FEER? [ Mr Chiam See Tong interrupted.] Does he or does he not support the Asiaweek magazine when it tampered with the Government's letter without telling the writer and publishing it as if it were a letter from the Government official? Does he support that? [ Mr Chiam See Tong interrupted.] You support it. Sir, does he or does he not support the Asian Wall Street Journal refusing to publish a Government letter claiming falsely that the letter was defamatory? Does he support all this?”
“Sir, I ask the Member for Potong Pasir categorically: does he or does he not support the free flow of information?”
“Sir, the Member talks about foreign publications indulging in persuasion. Sir, we are not talking about persuasion. We are talking about a systematic undermining of key institutions in Singapore, undermining the credibility of the Government, undermining the credibillity of the Monetary Authority of Singapore, undermining the credibility of the Prime Minister. We are not talking about different points of view. Sir, the Member for Potong Pasir and Members of this House must surely know that if any Singaporean were to comment on the domestic politics of, say, for example, our Asean neighbours, they are not going to be lightly received. They do not even have to be reported in the local papers in these countries. If any Singaporean, including the Member for Potong Pasir, were to engage himself in the domestic politics of our Asean neighbours, there is going to be a mighty row. It is obvious that the domestic politics of a country remains the province of its citizens and its government. Sir, the Member talks about the phraseology in the Bill leading to the Minister not being accountable to anyone. I do not think he understands at all how the mechanism works. The Minister is accountable to Parliament. That is why we are here answering questions, debating. The Member for Potong Pasir can always ask questions anytime. The trouble is that when he asks a question, he does not even turn up for the answer. I am sure he must have left word with the Member for Chong Boon. It is a pity the Member for Chong Boon is not here, otherwise we will ask him whether there is some special arrangement to ask questions on his behalf. Sir, obviously, like Pontius Pilate, the Member for Potong Pasir asks questions without really wanting to hear the answers.”
“Mr Deputy Speaker, may I ask that you advise the Member for Potong Pasir not to interrupt.”
“Mr Deputy Speaker, Sir, we are seeing a classic example of the pot calling the kettle black. A moment ago the Member for Potong Pasir complained about the Prime Minister not addressing the Deputy Speaker to seek permission, and here we have the Member for Potong Pasir doing exactly the same thing. I think next time before he becomes critical of others, he should take a look at himself. Maybe we should arrange for him to have a mirror in this House. Sir, let us get back to basics. If the Member's Party, the SDP, wishes to apply for a permit to reproduce the FEER, the Asian Wall Street Journal, and all the other gazetted publications, I assure him he will get it. Does he want to do that? My assurance is, he can have it. In fact, I have given the assurance that if the Asian Wall Street Journal and FEER want to print their magazines in Singapore and circulate freely without charge, but without advertisements, I shall arrange for them to be given the approval.”
“He does not understand how this Bill will make it possible for all Singa- poreans to have easy access to even the gazetted publications. Where is the muzzling of the foreign press? Because they are going to be able to read it. Everybody in Singapore who wants to read the FEER after the Bill has been passed will be able to read it. The Member is obviously trying to give us what he thinks should be a correct form of words or the drafting of the legislation. Sir, the Member during the budget debate gave us an exposition on the law of libel. I am sure he must have thought that it was a brilliant exposition. However, two days later he came back to this House to apologize to the Speaker and Members of the House. We will have to treat his exposition of legal draftsmanship with the same degree of seriousness. Sir, if the Member is familiar with the law of Singapore, he will know that in the drafting of laws this sort of phraseology is used routinely. The purpose is to ensure flexibility so that every time there is a minor change we do not have to come back to this House in order to accommodate that change. Mr Chiam See Tong rose - Dr Yeo Ning Hong remained standing.”
“Sir, I want to thank the two Members of Parliament for their support of the Bill. The Member for Fengshan raised two points that require a reply. First, he asked about the difficulty expressed by the foreign journalists themselves, the difficulty in gaining easy access to civil servants and Ministers and therefore they had greater difficulty in doing their jobs. Sir, Ministers and civil servants are not paid to do the job of foreign journalists. They have to go around and sniff out the information, the news, that they want. Notwithstanding that, I think it must be obvious that the Prime Minister does give interviews to foreign correspondents fairly regularly. One can remember the article in Newsweek sometime back, and very recently that in another Japanese newspaper, Ministers have often, whenever appropriate, spoken to foreign correspondents. They have even gone to the extent of addressing the Foreign Correspondents' Association in Singapore. But I emphasise again, it is not the job of civil servants to be the assistants of foreign correspondents to help them in their job, to make it easy to get information. The Member for Fengshan also touched upon the question of values. Sir, this is not the appropriate forum to go into the question of values. The nub of the problem that the NPPA Amendment seeks to address is really very simple. The foreign publications are concerned with increasing their circulation. It is money that they are talking about. We are concerned with our stability, with the future of Singapore. That is what the whole Bill is all about. Sir, the Member for Potong Pasir went round and round. I just wondered whether he supports the Bill, or he does not. Does he or does he not support the free flow ofinformation? Because he seems very confused.”
“And if Asian Wall Street Journal and FEER should wish to print copies without advertisements to distribute freely to Singaporean readers, I have no doubt that they also will be given approval. Sir, let me state once again that foreign publications are allowed by the Singapore Government, (I emphasise "allowed by the Singapore Government") to circulate freely in Singapore provided they do not engage in our domestic politics. There are some 3,700 of them in Singapore. We have no trouble whatsoever with them. Only three are restricted in their circulation and this Amendment will make even these three gazetted publications easily available to all Singaporeans. Question proposed.”
“The revised section 17(5) specifically states that such photocopies will not be an infringement of copyright. The amendment is in the spirit of the Copyright Act which allows photocopies to be made, not for profit, but for personal use and research. The amendment will give all readers in Singapore easy access to the gazetted publications. It applies only to publications declared by the Minister as engaging in domestic politics and are so gazetted. I want to emphasize that the amendment does not affect at all all other publications. Nor does it dilute in any way our commitment to bilateral arrangements with other countries on copyright protection. The gazetted publications had protested against the restriction in the name of free flow of information. Now, if they are genuine in their protestations, these self-acclaimed champions of the free flow of information should welcome this move, for it is a move that epitomizes the very principle that they preach. Sir, after this amendment is passed, Singaporean newsagents should subscribe to the FEER, for example, even though it has been gazetted. They can pop over easily to Johore Baru to collect their free copies from FEER. With approval, they can bring it back to Singapore and make reproductions, make photocopies, for sale. In the process, they will render their patrons a great service. Sir, I would encourage Asian Wall Street Journal to follow the example of FEER, its sister publication. They too can make similar free offers to their subscribers to pick up a free copy when they are on visits outside of Singapore. Then Asian Wall Street Journal can also help in the free flow of information. Other distributors can with approval also obtain copies for reproduction and sale.”
“Their desire for profits is far greater than their wish toengage in Singapore politics or their desire, their so-called desire, to promote the free flow of information. For them, money talks; not principles, not ideologies. Indeed, the editor who is unable to increase his circulation may find himself put in circulation, looking for a job. That is why restricting their circulation and advertising revenue has proved effective. Sir, the gazetted publications know that how soon the gazetting is lifted depends on how soon they stop engaging in Singapore's domestic politics. See for example, the prompt publication of disputed letters in Time magazine and Asiaweek -almost immediately after they were gazetted. FEER also published Mr James Fu's letter as an advertisement, after they have claimed that the letter was sub-judice and after refusing to publish it in their Letters page. Asian Wall Street Journal, only, has yet to learn to report Singapore objectively and without distortion. They are still slanting their stories on Singapore. They are still tampering with Singapore Government letters. They too will learn, in due course, that each time they do this, they are effectively extending their period of gazetting in Singapore. Sir, let me now go into the details of the Bill. The revised section 17(2) empowers the Minister to grant approval for persons to reproduce a gazetted foreign newspaper, subject to such conditions as he may impose. One of these conditions will obviously be that advertisements will have to be blanked out in the photocopies. The revised section 17(3) stipulates an additional condition; namely, that persons reproducing copies for sale or distribution shall not make any profit, but they may recover their costs of production and services.”
“It is even cheaper than the Asian Wall Street Journal's offer of free copies to all Singaporean subscribers. The Government is prepared and ready to make FEER the same offer as it did to Asian Wall Street Journal - circulate in Singapore freely, for free but without advertisement. Now, if FEER is genuine in wanting "to serve all its readers" (to use their words), then it should accept the offer. Sir, these gazetted publications allege that restriction is a ban, that the Government is fearful of their criticisms, that we are fearful of their different points of view. This amendment will nail these lies, once and for all. The Government has stated categorically that we are not against the free flow of information. But, why should we allow the foreign publications which engage in our domestic politics to enjoy the privilege of sales and advertising revenue from their circulation in Singapore, at our expense, at the expense of our stability? Circulation of foreign publications in Singapore is a privilege accorded them, granted to them, by the Government on terms. To give an extreme illustration, Pravda and Renmin Ribao: they are still banned in Singapore. We make no apology for it. But mark this, the Western media with their double standards have not protested this particular ban. They are totally silent. Sir, for Communist publications, gazetting would be totally inadequate. These publications and their supporters and their backers - they are willing even to pay people to read their publications because they promote the Communist cause, regardless of cost. But most Western newspapers and journals which meddle in our domestic affairs - they are subversives of a lesser breed. For them, gazetting is more than adequate. Why? It hurts their profits.”
“Mr Deputy Speaker, Sir, I beg to move, "That the Bill be now read a Second time." Sir, the amendment in this Bill is a simple one. Its objective is to provide for the reproduction of gazetted publications for sale or distribution in Singapore. The amendment demonstrates the Government's positive support for the free flow of information. The Newspaper and Printing Presses Act was amended in 1986 to gazette foreign publications engaging in Singapore's domestic politics. Since then, four such publications had their circulation in Singapore restricted. The gazetted publications claim to be champions of the free flow of information. They allege that by restricting their sale in Singapore, we prevent the free flow of information. Asian Wall Street Journal, for example, offered to distribute the newspaper free of charge to its subscribers. The Government agreed, subject to the exclusion of advertisements. Asian Wall Street Journal turned tail. They pleaded "added cost". The Government went further. We offered to meet part of this marginal cost. Asian Wall Street Journal declined. The truth prevailed. Without advertising revenue, the highfaluting principle of free flow of information turned out to be just empty words, full of sound and fury, signifying nothing. Sir, FEER (Far Eastern Economic Review) claims that it wants to serve all its readers in Singapore; mark the words "to serve all its readers in Singapore". In practice, what did they do? First, they obtained approval for its appointed distributor to distribute the restricted number of copies. Then they refused to circulate in Singapore at all. And as an afterthought, they offered free copies to Singaporeans on visits overseas. This is a cheap proposal, made in the secure knowledge that few people will take it up.”
“They have no difficulty getting a taxi any time of the day. The taxi drivers are better off. They earn a lot more. Other road users are also better off. The number of taxis has stopped increasing so they do not contribute to increasing congestion on our roads. Sir, Singaporeans in general realize that the policies have worked and have worked well. That is why over the last two years, since May 1985 another 13,000 Singaporeans have taken up taxi driving lessons with NTUC Comfort and Singapore Com- muter Ltd and have qualified for taxi vocational licences. The ROV is the examining body certifying that the holder of a taxi vocational licence is fit to drive a taxi. ROV should not interfere with market forces and arbitrarily control the number of licences. As long as there are Singaporeans wanting to be taxi drivers and willing to take the course available, ROV will continue to conduct the test and issue the licences. SINGAPOREANS MARRYING WORK PERMIT HOLDERS (Policy) 7. Dr Wong Kwei Cheong asked the Minister for Labour if he will (i) explain the policy on the marriage of Singaporeans to work permit holders and (ii) give the number, from 1978 to 1987, of work permit holders who were banned from entering Singapore because they had breached the marriage policy. SINGAPOREANS MARRYING WORK PERMIT HOLDERS (Applications) 8. Mr Teo Chong Tee asked the Minister for Labour how many applications for marriage between work permit holders and Singapore citizens were received by his Ministry for the years 1985 to 1987; how many of them were approved and how many were rejected; what were the reasons for the rejections; and whether he will be more liberal in considering rejected cases which have been submitted on appeal.”
“Sir, the MRT system has only been in partial operation for less than three months. So it is very premature to try to draw conclusions on the impact of the MRT on the earnings of taxi drivers. But data show that for the months of November and December 1987, the collections by taxi drivers have been much higher than that for the corresponding period last year in 1986. Sir, we are, however, constantly monitoring the situation closely, as new stages of the MRT system are being introduced for public service. Let me take this opportunity, Sir, to give some figures to enable Members of this House to develop a sense of perspective of the overall taxi situation. Over the past two years, average monthly collections for taxi drivers have been showing an upward trend. For single-shift drivers, collection has increased from the base figure of $2,439 per month before April 1985 to $2,656 per month in 1986 and then sharply upwards to $3,007 per month in 1987. This represents an increase of about $217 per month and $568 per month respectively for 1986 and 1987. Similarly, the average monthly collection for taxi drivers operating two shifts increased from the base figure of $3,482 per month before April 1985 to $3,894 per month in 1986 and again another sharp increase to $4,352 per month in 1987. The figures represent an increase of $412 per month for 1986 and $870 per month for 1987. Sir, these increases quite obviously are well in excess of the $91 per onth that taxi drivers pay for the diesel tax. Sir, it is clear that the fare and tax adjustments in April 1985 had achieved the expected results even though the initial implementation was made difficult because of the coincidence with the onset of the worst recession that we ever had in 20 years. Today, the commuters are better off.”
“Sir, the Hougang New Town is one of the areas where plans for extension of the MRT is actively under consideration. PEDESTRIAN OVERHEAD BRIDGE AT ANG MO KIO AVENUE 6 (Provision of shelter) 5. Mr Lau Ping Sum asked the Minister for National Development whether the pedestrian overhead bridge under construction at Ang Mo Kio Avenue 6 near the Yio Chu Kang Mass Rapid Transit station will be provided with shelter; and what will be the cost of providing such a shelter.”
“Sir, my Ministry is currently studying possible extensions of the MRT system. This study is carried out with the assistance of the Ministry of National Development and, in particular, takes into account the long-term plans of the HDB. No decision has been taken to extend the MRT line to Hougang New Town yet. Mr Ng Kah Ting: Mr Speaker, Sir, can I ask the Hon. Minister concerned whether he will ask MRTC to consider such a suggestion?”
“Mr Speaker, Sir, I see the Member for Potong Pasir has got into the habit of having his questions asked by a PAP MP. Sir, I am not aware of any news blackout because there was none. Whether the news about the Workers' Party's quarrels, dissensions and resignations are included in the very limited air time available for TV and radio news are matters for the editors to decide. Sir, the editors base their decisions on the judgment of what is newsworthy and of interest to their viewers and listeners. TV News enjoys one of the highest viewership of all programmes on SBC. This indicates the widespread support for the editor's balance of international, regional and local news items. EXTENSION OF MRT TO HOUGANG NEW TOWN 4. Mr Ng Kah Ting asked the Minister for Communications and Information whether the Mass Rapid Transit Corporation has taken a decision to extend the MRT line to Hougang New Town.”
“Screening programmes for the detection of developmental abnormalities, problems of growth, hearing and vision in children are being provided to all primary school children and to infants attending our Maternal and Child Health Clinics. A programme for screening of cancers of the breast and womb and high blood pressure will be introduced in our polyclinics. Although much has been done in health education and preventive health care, my Ministry will continue to give high priority to these activities and to further expand them in the future. 12.00 noon”
“Sir, lots of journalists are knocking their doors wanting to come into Singapore. To come into Singapore they require our approval. Any journalist who wants to leave Singapore is free to do so. HEALTH CARE (Measures to reduce demand) 18. Mr Chew Heng Ching asked the Acting Minister for Health if he is satisfied with the measures taken by his Ministry to reduce the demand for health care through health education and preventive health services. The Acting Minister for Health (Mr Yeo Cheow Tong): Sir, promotion of health and prevention of disease is the main emphasis of my Ministry's policy for achieving better health for all Singaporeans. The policy recognizes that prevention is better than cure. It includes a comprehensive programme of health education, screening and preventive health care. My Ministry's health education programme is structured to reach all sectors of society. It encourages Singaporeans to lead a healthy lifestyle through the inculcation of healthy habits, good nutrition, adequate exercise and relaxation. As heart disease and cancers cause the largest number of premature deaths, mass media and individual programmes to reduce the risk of these diseases have been introduced in recent years. For example, in 1986 my Ministry launched the national Smoking Control Programme to reinforce the ongoing message that smoking is very harmful to health. Over the years my Ministry has provided an increasing range of preventive health services for Singaporeans. The national immunization programme which includes vaccination against tuberculosis, diphtheria, whooping cough, polio, measles, German measles and Hepatitis B will be maintained at a high level.”
“Sir, I am not aware of the Economist moving its headquarters from Singapore because its headquarters has never been in Singapore. It has moved its bureau which probably consists of one journalist plus one or two clerks. I do not know the details.”
“Sir, the gazetting of the three foreign publications has no effect on the printing industry in Singapore. The domestic export of the printing industry in the first 10 months of 1987 is $206 million, ie, about 36% more than the corresponding period for 1986. Sir, only the gullible will believe the propaganda of the editors of the gazetted publications, that such gazetting will damage us as a regional communications centre. Sir, even the management of the gazetted publications themselves do not believe it. That is why Time magazine, Asian Wall Street Journal, Asia Wall Street Journal, and FEER, continue to be printed in Singapore does not give the paper the right to circulate in Singapore. Publishers of publications do not come to Singapore because they want to do us a favour. They come to Singapore because of the higher profits that Singapore offer them by way of lower printing and transportation cost, more efficient telecommunications, comprehensive sea and air services and a good total business environment. As long as these major factors prevail, we will continue to be a major regional communications centre.”
“I remember hearing, after the answer given a moment ago, it is a self-imposed ban. SALES CURB ON FOREIGN PUBLICATIONS 17. Mr Chiam See Tong asked the Minister for Communications and Information whether the drastic curbing on the sale in Singapore of the Far Eastern Economic Review and three other international foreign publications has hurt Singapore's effort to promote it as a regional communications centre.”
“Sir, if the Member for Potong Pasir has read the newspapers, he would have got the answer. It is not true. The publication is free to circulate its magazine to any of its subscribers, subject to its providing subscribers from libraries who are already subscribing to the magazine. The objective is to enable the general public to have easy access to the magazine.”
“Sir, yes, if there is a need for revocation of the approval, the Ministry will do it if there are other applicants for approval to circulate the magazine. Sir, regarding the self-imposed ban of the FEER, the gazetted publications claimed to be champions of the free flow of information in Singapore. For example, the Asian Wall Street Journal, if you recall, offered to distribute its newspaper free of charge. The Government agreed provided it does not carry any advertisement. The Asian Wall Street Journal beat a hasty retreat and withdrew its offer. Now the Feer claims that it wants to serve all its readers in Singapore, yet they have imposed this self-inflicted ban of circulation of the magazine in Singapore. Sir, the Government has stated categorically that it is not against the free flow of information. I shall be introducing a Bill later to facilitate the free flow of information in Singapore with regard to the gazetted publications. The Bill will make it possible for photocopies to be made more essily available to readers in Singapore. The Bill will put the gazetted publications' claim to the test. We shall see if they will change their tune.”
“Sir, the law allows for more than one distributor for gazetted publications. The FEER has nominated its distributor and we have given it approval to distribute out 500 copies per issue. Since the FEER has indicated that it will not distribute the magazine in Singapore, applications from interested parties for importing and distributing the magazine up to a total of 500 copies per issue will be considered.”
“Sir, I thank the Member for Toa Payoh for his suggestions. As requested by the Member, I have directed the two suggestions to the SMRT for consideration. BRAIN DRAIN PROBLEM 7. Dr Wong Kwei Cheong asked the Minister for Home Affairs (a) how serious is the brain drain problem for Singapore in terms of the number of Singaporeans who have emigrated and renounced their Singapore citizenship over the last ten years; and (b) under what conditions the Government will allow such ex-Singaporeans to return and work in Singapore.”
“Sir, a lot of consideration has gone into it and the decisions have already been taken. MRT OPERATIONAL HOURS (Extension) 6. Mr Eric Cheong Yuen Chee asked the Minister for Communications and Information whether he will request the Singapore Mass Rapid Transit Limited to consider (i) extending the MRT services beyond 11.30 pm on weekends, eve of public holidays and during festive seasons, and (ii) extending the validity period of stored value tickets.”
“6%. Sir, MRTC and SMRT have been working very closely with the engineers of the contractors to resolve all these problems. I expect the equipment problems to be also resolved within the near future. I expect also with more commuters buying stored value tickets that the queues that we saw prior to Christmas will be things of the past. As passengers become more familiar with the system, the queues will eventually disappear. Indeed, reports recently indicate that there are no more queues practically throughout the entire day. Sir, I would like to urge members of the public to continue to give SMRT their full cooperation and understanding and to take these teething problems in their stride. MRTC and SMRT value their feedback. With the support and understanding of the public, we have built a system that I believe all Singaporeans are proud of. Let us help operate it well, so that we can be proud of the system for a long time to come.”
“Mr Speaker, Sir, the Member for Punggol has raised a question which is topical and of great interest to Singaporeans. Coincident with the Member's submission of that question in late December 1987, the SMRT put out a press release which answered the question in detail. Let me answer the question very briefly and I will ask the Clerk to circulate the press release which contains all the details. Some of the details have already been carried in the press. Sir, the MRT is a totally new transport system for us in Singapore. The public has embraced it enthusiastically. Because we are able to bring forward the start-up into the school holidays and in time for the festive season, the response from Singaporeans has been overwhelming. To date, a total of about eight million passenger trips have already been made on the MRT. This averages about three passenger trips for every Singaporean. Currently, the MRT makes about 140,000 passenger trips per working day and averages about 200,000 on a week-end. Sir, as I indicated some months ago before the start-up of the system, we expect some teething problems for such a complex system. Indeed, there have been some teething problems. Most of the problems are related to equipment failure because of extremely heavy or improper use. Others are due to the general public being unfamiliar with the ticketing machines, the automatic gates, the escalators and the operation of the trains. These teething problems led to some congestion in the more popular stations, particularly during peak hours. Overall, the teething problems have been relatively minor. For example, the problem with stored value tickets is approximately 0.2% of all tickets issued; misalignment of train doors, approximately 0.1%; train delays exceeding two minutes, approximately 2.”
“On 2nd and 4th June, he left the apartment after midnight. On 3rd June, he stayed overnight at the apartment and left only at 8.15 the next morning. The couple also travelled abroad together on a number of occasions in October and December 1986 and February 1987. Sir, Father Edgar D'Souza's amorous activities and his relationship with women are not offences against the criminal law and as such do not concern the Government. Whether they are offences against Canon law, I cannot say. We have left it to the Church to control and discipline its own errant priests. But when Father Edgar D'Souza embarks on a campaign against the Government in Australia and in New Zealand instigating foreigners to interfere in our internal affairs, his standing and credibility is a matter of importance to us. He has projected himself as a pious and devout priest, a man of God, ever obedient to the Church - thereby winning a certain respectability which is accorded to priests by the media and the unsuspecting public in New Zealand and Australia. It is therefore necessary to expose his moral duplicity so that people everywhere, including Australia and New Zealand, can judge his worth as a witness and a protagonist. The question is: is he a pious and devout priest or a renegade who dishonours his holy orders and is a disgrace to his Church? QUESTIONS FOR ORAL ANSWER (Exemption from Standing Orders) 11.52 am”
“He enclosed copies of his correspondence with the Chairman, Senate of Priests of the Catholic Church, expressing his outrage over what he called the "questionable", "unhealthy" and "scandalous" behaviour of Edgar D'Souza. He enclosed his letter dated three years ago, 19th January 1984, to the Chairman, Senate of Priests, in which he had set out the facts that Edgar D'Souza had been going out together very often with his sister and had gone on an overseas trip to Europe together. He complained that their relationship had been the talk of the town and the subject of considerable gossip,particularly among the parishioners. He also wrote that another priest, whom he named, had told him that Edgar D'Souza had involved other women in this way. He argued that since Edgar D'Souza had taken a vow of celibacy, he should either end the relationship or renounce his priesthood and marry his sister. The writer pleaded with the Chairman, Senate of Priests, to solve the problem. He wrote a second letter to the Chairman, Senate of Priests, in February 1984. The Church acknowledged receipt of the complaint and promised to take steps to solve this problem. But the problem was not resolved. Edgar D'Souza continued his affair with this woman. In the course of investigations into Edgar D'Souza's connection with Vincent Cheng and the other Marxist conspirators, the ISD discovered that Edgar D'Souza was having such an affair with a woman lawyer. Whilst he was under surveillance, as recently as June 1987, he was observed often to be in the company of this woman, visiting her on four consecutive occasions at an apartment where she stayed alone. On 1st June, Edgar D'Souza was still in the woman's apartment when the surveillance terminated at midnight.”
“This issue was withdrawn from circulation by his superior in the Church. Edgar D'Souza resigned from the Catholic News on 4th June 1987 and was, one day later, suspended by the Archbishop from preaching and from having anything to do with the Catholic News. Three other priests were also suspended from preaching and the Archbishop ordered all his priests not to mix religion and politics in their sermons. He left for Australia on 5th June 1987, the day he was suspended. So far as the Government can ascertain, he left without the permission of the Archbishop or any of his superiors in the Church. He was subsequently granted leave. But he failed to return upon the expiry of his leave on 31st October 1987. In Australia and in New Zealand, he has made wild accusations against the Government and derogatory statements running down his Archbishop. He presented the activities of the Marxist conspirators as innocuous on the basis that he himself was closely associated with some of the conspirators and personally involved in some of their activities. As to the conduct of Edgar D'Souza, my Ministry did receive a complaint. Soon after the arrests of the Marxist group and suspension of Edgar D'Souza and three other priests from preaching, my Ministry received a letter from a Catholic who signed his name and gave his address. In the letter dated 5th June 1987, the writer supported the Government's action and he referred to the four priests who had resigned and disclosed that since 1984 he had questioned the integrity of Edgar D'Souza because of his illicit relationship with his youngest sister, a lawyer.”
“Edgar D'Souza has been trying to turn Church groups into a political pressure group. Evidence of this appeared after 1985. When he was the Associate Editor of the Catholic News, a fortnightly church publication, he had manipulated it to radicalize Catholics and embroil the Church in political issues which would put the Church on a collision course with the Government. He had published articles criticizing multi-national corporations, the amendments to the citizenship laws and the Newspaper and Printing Presses Act, and Government policies on TV3, foreign workers and several other issues which did not concern the Catholic faith or any other religion. He was also a member of the Church and Society Study Group which published political booklets attacking the Government on various secular issues. Though a priest, Edgar D'Souza had involved himself in partisan politics. He had conducted a three-day course on news writing in November 1985 for Kenneth Tsang, Tan Tee Seng and a few others, knowing full well that the purpose was to improve their writings in the Workers' Party organ, the "Hammer". When Vincent Cheng and his group of conspirators were arrested on 21st May 1987, Edgar D'Souza immediately mounted a campaign to stir up local and international opposition against the arrests. Without authority of the the Archbishop or any superior of the Church, he made statements to the local and foreign media to discredit ISD's investigations. He assisted radicals from the Singapore Polytechnic Students' Union to edit an open letter demanding unconditional release or open trial of the 16 Marxist conspirators. He published articles in the 14th June 1987 issue of the Catholic News claiming that those arrested were not involved in subversive activities.”
“They have enlisted special groups of members of the public and these tests have been reported in the mass media. All these procedures have been found to be effective. These exercises will continue to be conducted regularly during non-operational hours to ensure that the system works all the time. EDGAR D'SOUZA (Warrant of arrest) 6. Mr Heng Chiang Meng asked the Minister for Home Affairs (a) whether a warrant of arrest has been issued against Father Edgar D'Souza which is the impression had by many groups in Australia and New Zealand; (b) whether Father Edgar D'Souza was involved in the Marxist conspiracy; and (c) whether his Ministry has received any complaints concerning the conduct of Father Edgar D'Souza. The Minister for Home Affairs (Prof. S. Jayakumar): Mr Deputy Speaker, Sir, in respect of the first part of the question: no warrant of arrest has been issued against Father Edgar D'Souza. In respect of the second part of the question, he was under investigation for some time by the ISD for his role in the Marxist conspiracy. He was closely associated with Vincent Cheng, a central figure in the Marxist conspiracy, and several others were arrested, like Kevin De Souza, Tan Tee Seng and Ng Bee Leng. Edgar D'Souza was one of the members of the so-called Ad hoc Group formed in November 1986 to expand the influence of the "social- oriented" Catholic groups which would later form part of a political pressure group to mount agitation against the Government. Other members of the Ad hoc Group included Vincent Cheng and Kevin De Souza. Edgar D'Souza was one of those who undertook to edit papers on the rights and responsibility of Christians to participate in politics drafted by members of the Ad hoc Group for subsequent publication and distribution.”
“Mr Deputy Speaker, Sir, our MRT is the newest in in the world. As Members are aware, we are only in the process of phasing it in in stages. It is one of the most modern in the world and therefore incorporates the latest proven technology in fire safety. It is built in accordance with the US National Fire Protection Association Code 130. This is a comprehensive document adopted for the design of all rail transit systems in the United States since 1979. Very briefly, the fire safety measures incorporated in our MRT system include an extensive fire protection network of fire extinguishers and sprinkler systems, smoke and heat detectors, and the provision of adequate emergency escape routes. In addition, all our station staff have been trained in emergency fire fighting procedures. The Fire Brigade also has teams of fire fighters which have been specially trained to cope with any emergency in the MRT stations and tunnels. Smoking is strictly prohibited in MRT trains and stations. Sir, millions of people will be using the MRT trains. So it is not practical nor is it necessary to conduct regular fire drills with members of the public. What is important is that these fire drills be conducted for the members of the station staff regularly to ensure that the staff themselves are familiar with the procedures and hence are able to deal with all emergencies should they occur. It is also imperative that safety equipment should be properly serviced and maintained and tested, and kept in proper working condition at all times. Sir, the MRTC and the SMRT, the operators of the MRT system, have jointly conducted tests of the procedures to be used, prior to the opening of the system some months back.”
“As Members are aware, MRT fares are commercial matters decided by the operator SMRT subject to the approval of the Public Transport Council. I have referred the Member's suggestion to the SMRT for their consideration. Annex - LONG-TERM CPF RATES FOR PENSIONABLE PUBLIC SECTOR EMPLOYEES, LONG-TERM CPF RATES FOR PRIVATE SECTOR AND NON-PENSIONABLE PUBLIC SECTOR EMPLOYEES (Cols. 53 - 54)”
“Prior to the formation of the Singapore MRT Ltd (SMRT), MRTC and the bus companies, SBS and TIBS, collaborated in the integration of the MRT/bus systems, including the development of a common ticketing system which will allow commuters to use one ticket for travel on buses and trains. With its formation as the operator of the MRT system, SMRT replaced the MRTC in this project. As Members are aware, in September this year, the operators reported that progress on integration has been good. However, ticketing machines which have to be reliable and sufficiently robust to withstand the heavy wear and tear on buses are not available. It will probably take at least another two or three years for these machines to be developed and tested. It is the intention of SBS, TIBS and SMRT to implement a common or through ticket, as soon as possible, once reliable and proven equipment are available. YIO CHU KANG/JALAN KAYU/SELETAR ROAD JUNCTION (Accident Figures) 2. Mr Heng Chiang Meng asked the Minister for Home Affairs what was the number of traffic accidents at and around the Yio Chu Kang Road/Jalan Kayu/Seletar Road junction between 1984 and 1986, giving a breakdown into the seriousness of the accidents.”
“Chandra Das asked the Minister for Home Affairs what are the types and number of crimes frequently committed in Housing and Development Board new towns, especially in Ang Mo Kio; and what further measures will be introduced to reduce the crime levels.”
“Sir, since the National Lion Symbol was launched in July last year as an integral part of the National Day Celebrations, it has been well received by the public. This is evident by its wide usage by private corporations, community organizations as well as the public sector. You can see the Lion Symbol almost everywhere, on buses, taxis, banners, letterheads, and so forth. To illustrate how popular the Symbol has been: Members will recall that earlier this year my Ministry produced some collar pins with the Lion Symbol and distributed them at the last National Day Parade to participants and spectators. The pins proved to be so popular that private and public sector organizations have, on their own, ordered an additional 200,000 pins for the use of their members and staff. Nationwide, the response to the National Symbol has been very positive. So far, more than 150 organizations have used or are still using the Symbol in various ways in printed materials, advertisements, products and activities. I would like to thank all the organizations for taking pride in identifying themselves with our National Symbol and in their own way publicly declaring their loyalty to Singapore. I hope more organizations will follow their lead. Sir, with your permission, I would ask the Clerk of Parliament to circulate a list of items which have incorporated our National Lion Symbol. [Copies of document distributed to hon. Members.] These examples will make it easier for other organizations to use their ingenuity to develop new ways of using the National Symbol. CRIME IN HDB NEW TOWNS (Particulars) 9. Mr S.”