Engaging Singaporeans for the future of our nation

Madam Speaker, I rise in support of the motion to thank the President for his Address.

Engaging citizens to shape a common future

1. In his address, President highlighted the need for the Government to partner citizens to shape our common future. He also urged all MPs to work closely with the people to write the next chapter together. We must, and we shall. As a more diverse society emerges, and with a more complex global environment to navigate, we should put our heads together, to take things forward as one people.
   

From Our Singapore Conversation to the SGfuture dialogues

2. Madam, in 2012, we held Our Singapore Conversation, to listen to what mattered most to Singaporeans. We heard from some 47,000 Singaporeans, expressing views on matters concerning our livelihood, such as job opportunities and housing. We also heard calls for a more fulfilling pace of life, where we can pursue other aspirations outside of work. There was also interest among many to forge a stronger sense of a national identity. And these are all important, and have guided the Government's work in the last few years. This is still work-in-progress.

3. But we need to adapt how we, as Singaporeans, want Singapore to be run, with the new challenges we face. And as it is evolving quicker than ever, we need everyone to chip in, to make it work for all of us. As Minister Grace Fu said last week, we need all hands on deck to face the challenges ahead. It's time to take action. We want to build a democracy of deeds, where Singaporeans have a greater sense of ownership, responsibility and a greater connection to what it means to be Singaporeans.

4. That is the premise behind the SGfuture engagements launched last November. It is an opportunity for Singaporeans to come forward to share their views and suggestions on how to build a better future for Singapore. These are focussed engagement sessions, aimed at looking into specific topics, including arts, sports, volunteerism, environment and even hawker food culture. These are not just discussions, but brainstorm sessions to establish the next steps on matters that concern us. I attended one of the sessions last Thursday with over 70 youth. Their enthusiasm was infectious. Ideas came fast and furious, on ways to help other segments of society. For instance, one participant had the idea of building public gyms for people with special needs. Another suggested having retro disco parties for the elderly in the void decks of housing blocks. These are all ideas worth pursuing, so I encouraged them to take it further. And if necessary, consider how they can partner the relevant government agencies and other organisations to turn these ideas into reality.

5. Madam, I believe we have all seen on reality TV shows, how it is not just the celebrities, but also ordinary people who shape the plot and attract viewership. Not everyone can be on the show. But there is a role for the audience to play, in deciding who gets to go, who gets to stay and who finally wins the contest. Hence, we should not sit passively to watch the Singapore Story unfold. Take part in one of the SGfuture sessions, or get involved in other forums that exist. We should take an interest in following the developments and better still, playing a part in shaping the Singapore we want for future generations.
   

Collective wisdom for a better Singapore

6. We have all seen the power and effectiveness of collective wisdom. Crowd-sourcing and crowd-funding for instance are concepts that have fuelled opportunities for many people and businesses. The runaway success of Kickstarter, Uber and AirBnB for instance are not solely because of the technology or the products they offer. They manage to effectively match demand with supply and vice versa. Their “apps” bring people together for a mutually-beneficial outcome and their apps make it easy for people to see what's out there, seize it, and achieve a better outcome for themselves. In the same way, SGfuture harnesses the wisdom of crowds.

7. This idea of co-creating with the people is not entirely new. But SG50 has given us a renewed sense that Singaporeans want to be involved. This democracy of deeds will therefore be an integral part of this term of Government. This also means within the Government, public agencies will need to reorganise ourselves, in order to effectively involve and engage Singaporeans. The SGfuture engagements give a glimpse into how we are intending to do so, by matching ideas with action, and people with projects.

8. As Members of the House, we also need to do more engagement with our residents, whether it is to decide on what to build and where to build in estate upgrading projects.
   

Engaging the youth, the future of our nation

9. Madam, one of the groups I hope to involve more closely is our youth. They are vocal, energetic and teeming with ideas. I know many of them want to be involved in the Singapore they hope to live in. I have been hearing from more of them since taking up my appointment at the Ministry of Culture, Community and Youth and recently, I spent a day at Outward Bound Singapore on Pulau Ubin kayaking and abseiling with students from Bartley Secondary School and Tanjong Katong Girls' School. As I think about the time we spent together that day, I was encouraged by the display of teamwork and resilience in our youth.

10. I hope to be able to catch up with more young Singaporeans in the coming months. I want to hear what moves them, and what they want for Singapore. I hope to share with more of them that they are in a good position to make a difference for Singapore and that the future is theirs to own. I hope to do so through more informal ways, including more kayaking or abseiling if necessary.

11. Over the last few years as MP, I have found it useful to create such relatively informal channels to reach out to Singaporeans, through face to face conversations, social media and even exercising.

12. Madam, since GE2011, I have been holding monthly KopiTalks in a food court and online chats through my Facebook account. It is a way to connect with my residents in Tampines and the public at large. During these informal sessions, my residents raise questions as well as give feedback on improvements for the constituency. We also talk about ways to manage issues, from noisy neighbours to national topics like whether there should be free parking at national parks, which SMS (National Development) talked about just now. It is all very casual and free-flowing. But from these regular check-ins with my residents, and even some non-residents, I get a good sense of what concerns them. What I have observed, over the last few years of such engagements is that Singaporeans are moving away from just giving feedback or complaints because increasingly, I see offers to get involved. For example, the Hope Centre's monthly bread distribution to rental flat units in Tampines North which started last year. And now Hope Centre and Tampines North grassroots organisations are discussing and planning for a new free tuition service for children of needy families. At the same time, I am also getting requests to help with their causes, for instance in promoting a giving culture, better road manners and even attending their baby shower parties. This is encouraging, and affirms too that the approach we are taking as a Government, starting with the SGfuture engagement, is timely and a step in the right direction.

13. Madam, another way I try to reach out to fellow Singaporeans, is through exercise. I run about twice a week and regularly, I would post an open invitation on social media, for anyone to join me on my runs. These sessions, which I call “Run with BYK”, allow me to meet more people. As we jog around places like Marina Bay or Tampines EcoGreen, we chat and learn more about one another. These groups are not large – in fact, often, there are just two of us or at most, six people. But what makes it different is that it is also very conducive to hear from one another, because every new person I speak with is a new opportunity to learn about them, to gather feedback, and to look at how we can improve the way that we do things in Singapore. I think this is the mentality we should adopt when we talk about engaging the public – there are no “right” platforms. We just need to recognise the many opportunities around us to engage with one another. To enlarge the common space, to collaborate, to co-exist and run with BYK is all the more meaningful too now that I am with MCCY, where together with Sport Singapore, we are promoting better living through sport. So during each small group run, we enjoy our conversations as well as the beautiful sights and green spaces of Singapore along the way. So if you are keen, you can look out for the next run through hashtag #runwithBYK. This is my personal exercise regime which I do anyway, I am just opening it up for others to join me. Likewise, public engagement should be and will be in the government's DNA.

14. These channels will augment the other established channels that the Government already has – from the REACH platforms, to the hotlines and FB pages that almost all agencies have. Our Singapore Conversation and the SGfuture engagements are the most recent efforts to reach out. These are not once-off efforts, but a continuum in the Government's plans to reach out to Singaporeans over the years. And with SGfuture, we also want Singaporeans to take up projects, to seed a change and to shape our future.

15. Many views will emerge, as well as ideas to take Singapore forward. Importantly, we want people to take these ideas and views further, to translate them into action. The Government cannot do it alone, or unilaterally. More so as our society becomes more diverse, and the demands become more diffused. But the Government can and will partner the people in making Singapore a better Home for all.

16. Madam, on this note, I would like to comment on several issues raised by Members Sylvia Lim and Leon Perera earlier this week.

17. Mr Perera spoke about an op-ed piece by Arts Engage on the Government's role in funding the arts. In Singapore, funding of the arts is a partnership between the state, corporates and individuals, which reflects the spirit of shared responsibility and co-creation that I talked about earlier on. This approach acknowledges the role that the Government plays in supporting the development of the arts sector. Over the last three years, with the Arts and Culture Strategic Review, we've not only seen increased funding but also more arts groups and talents in the arts community benefitting from this funding. This is because the Government sees the importance of the arts and culture in meeting the aspirations of the people, and in building a sense of national identity.

18. But as the custodian of public funds, the Government is also accountable to the public in the application of funds towards achieving our social objectives. The need to maintain a wide common space among communities and ensure social harmony in our multi-racial and multi-religious society has been expounded by many speakers before me. The public expects the Government and public agencies to uphold these values in our policies, including our funding guidelines for the arts.

19. At the same time, funding from the private sector - corporates and individuals – they do not necessarily carry the same social objectives, and are not bound by our arts funding guidelines. However, one can expect conditions to be similarly imposed by private donors and individuals. The conditions may vary from meeting brand attributes to audience size, but the point is that there will be conditions.

20. It is therefore not realistic to expect any public funds to be given out unconditionally. For example, the Productivity & Innovation Credit that helps companies raise productivity comes with conditions in employment. Sports scholarship for our athletes comes with conditions in training and in performance. The public expects us as custodian to discharge our responsibility with care and to good effect.

21. But rest assured, as an advocate of the arts, the NAC will continue to focus on arts excellence, and continue to make the case for enlarging the space for our artists and arts groups to grow.  We will get better in doing this. And when there are broader interests of society that may be at odds with this role, we will try to bridge the differences. At the very least, we seek to help all parties see the other points of view. After all, there should be better and deeper engagement.

22. Let me now talk about the National Sports Associations (NSAs) that Ms Sylvia Lim had spoken about. She questioned the need for MPs to take up leadership roles in the NSAs. I would like to clarify in the House that all leaders in the NSAs have to be elected in accordance with their constitutions. The Ministry does not appoint MPs to head the NSAs. They must be elected by their members.

23. The only exception today is the Football Association of Singapore (FAS) where the President of the FAS has been appointed by the Minister responsible for Sports. But this too, is changing. FAS is transiting to a system of election by members. By June, an AGM will be held during which members will elect the next President.

24. The MPs who are holding NSA leadership positions have to earn their stripes and gain the respect of the members of the associations. They bring along with them experience and expertise in their own right. At the same time, the vast majority of NSAs – in fact, 55 out of the 63 NSAs – do not have MPs as their leaders. For example, Singapore Swimming Association, Singapore Sailing Federation, Singapore Bowling Federation, Singapore Rugby Union, Fencing Singapore, Singapore Silat Federation, and many others. And these are very good NSAs. In fact, leaders of the NSAs have joined us in the Chambers as Nominated MPs. We have Jessie Phua, Nicholas Fang, and Benedict Tan. So Madam, I would like to clarify in the House again that leadership in NSAs is not dictated by the Government.

25. Madam, let me now touch on my last topic in today's speech: about long-time PRs. There is a group of Permanent Residents in Singapore who have been calling Singapore home for decades but they do not enjoy the privilege of having a red passport or our pink IC. Many of them live through the years when Singapore and Malaysia were both British colonies, when Singapore joined and subsequently separated from Malaysia.

26. Typically, they fall in such a profile: little or no education, about 60 years old and above, and have raised a family of children who are Singapore citizens. Usually, only they themselves or sometimes with their spouses, still hold Malaysian passports.

27. I have seen enough appeals for citizenships and permanent residency, to speculate that ICA look at the following key factors in assessing the application: applicants' educational level, income status, age and how well they have integrated into the Singapore community. This group I am speaking up for today most definitely would fail the first three criteria miserably. They would also fail the minimum English language standard for new citizens as proposed by Member Darryl David.  However, they would be able to strike a good conversation with many of our Pioneer Generation members in Mandarin, dialects, Malay, Tamil, and Mr Seah Kian Peng would be happy to note, probably Singlish too. After living in Singapore for the most part, or for some, all their life, they are as Singaporean as anyone can be in their experiences, lifestyles, attitudes and social habits.

28. Some of these PRs tried applying for citizenship in the past but did not succeed.  Others did not even try, for two reasons, either they did not think they stood a chance, or they did not see the need then. To be fair to them, Singapore only started to make a bigger distinction between citizens and PRs in the last 5-10 years. For a long time, PRs were treated no differently from citizens. Hence, for many of them, they did not bother with the hassle of going through the paperwork.

29. Now, there is a huge difference between subsidies for PRs and citizens especially in education and healthcare, for very good and valid reasons.  While education may not be the top priority for this group of residents at this phase of life, healthcare cost is.  Do we begrudge them that they are now seemingly only realigning their loyalty or allegiance for selfish interest?

30. Yes indeed, they may realise now that by not being citizens in Singapore, they face higher medical costs. But it is probably their Singaporean children who have to shoulder the heavier burden. So what matters to them too is that after all these years, they hope to able to travel with their children without having to apply for visas, they hope to queue in the same line at the Singapore immigration counters, or simply to rest in peace as Singaporeans. There is a Chinese saying, “没有功劳，有苦劳”. While these people may not be well-qualified in education, may not earn a high income, they have contributed to Singapore. Even as a housewife, taking care of children, raising a family of children, they have done their part as a good member of the Singapore society and the Singapore community.

31. Therefore, I hope the government can give this group of long-time PRs from Malaysia special consideration and concession in their citizenship application.Madam Speaker, let me conclude by reaffirming my support for the motion, and for President's call to partner citizens in writing the next chapter of the Singapore Story, as we progress towards a better, more inclusive nation in SG100. Thank you.