PRESIDENT'S SPEECH Debate on the Address (Second Day)

Order read for Resumption of Debate on Question 114th February, 1977.

`That the following Address in reply to the Speech of the President be agreed to:-

"We, the Parliament of the Republic of Singapore, express our thanks to the President for the Speech which he delivered on behalf of the Government at the opening of the First Session of this Parliament"', - [Dr Chiang Hai Ding].

Question again proposed.

2.39 p.m.

Mr Teo Chong Tee (Changi): Mr Speaker, Sir, at the close of yesterday's sitting, I was speaking on drug abuses by unscrupulous elements. Their indulgence in such unlawful activities affect the good name of Singapore, and I would now like to continue. The public must be effectively urged and encouraged through the mass media and the cinemas to be vigilant and to give their fullest cooperation in this matter, without which success in the enforcement of severe punishment of offenders will be very minima). There is no doubt that there is a need to extend our sympathy to the innocent who for some reason has been associated with anti-social elements, thus exposing themselves to evil influences. Nevertheless, it is clearly essential to ensure that the penalty fits the crime of drug offences, be they traffickers, pushers or peddlers.

Sir, the Addendum on the Ministry of National Development in regard to resettlement has prompted me to highlight certain anomalies that need rectification. The rapid development and expansion of public amenities has made resettlement of the people inevitable. Today most of the people have accepted the Government's policy of mass resettlement for national development. However, such a massive movement of people from their familiar surroundings and mode of life as well as their means of livelihood has not been carried out with as little suffering as possible to the people affected. Many affected constituents have been greatly inconvenienced by unsympathetic bureaucratic Government officers who show little patience and concern to the people affected. The Resettlement Department has not actually taken into consideration the livelihood of the affected elderly farmers, in particular those who have been in this occupation for many years. It is conceivable that they cannot adapt themselves easily to the assembly lines of factories or building sites. It should be the policy of the Resettlement Department to show concern for the livelihood of these people. Admittedly, it is not possible to provide alternative sites for all farmers affected by resettlement. Perhaps the Primary Production Department can assist in alleviating their plight by teaching them the hydroponic method of growing vegetables and fruits, which requires less land.

Sir, being uprooted from the villages and kampongs is already a great sacrifice for national progress, but to be deprived of their means of livelihood is too high a price for them to pay.

The monetary compensation awards in lieu of alternative farm sites are not adequate. It is, however, difficult to establish the authenticity of their complaints. Nevertheless, true or false, they are dissatisfied and unhappy. The relevant authorities should look into the matter and rectify any anomaly that may exist, or make every effort to dispel any dissatisfaction in their minds. There seems to be no standard rates of compensation for the loss of fruit trees, pig sties, etc. There are complaints that the affected people are not compensated with the amount originally quoted in writing by the resettlement officers. When discussing resettlement terms, these unsympathetic officers show little patience with the affected people who are illiterate and who are often hurriedly made to sign statements or documents without first being given a clear explanation. They ~re also told in writing to report to the resettlement officers who do not indicate where they should go. When they call at Maxwell Road Office, they are redirected to Toa Payoh Office, without apology. This happens time and again. They should be specifically told where to go and what to do so that they need not be inconvenienced or waste unnecessary travelling expenses, valuable time and energy.

Sir, providing them with alternative accommodation at concessional rentals for a certain period will certainly help, but unfortunately these small-time farmers who pay only a few dollars a year for occupying land will definitely find it difficult to pay even the concessionary rent unless in addition they can be given priority of suitable employment. They should be given preference when they apply for a hawker licence. In Changi Village business is practically bad for all the shopkeepers. They are finding it difficult to pay their rent, even though they are given special concessions at the moment. Perhaps the Housing and Development Board can consider deferring the annual increase in their rent until their business improves with the operation of the new Changi International Airport.

Sir, the Housing and Development Board, on the other hand, must be complimented for its achievement in having completed about a quarter million housing units for 55% of our population. It is most gratifying to note that the HDB is doing a very fine job and will further accelerate the implementation of its fourth five-year Building Programme for another 150,000 units by 1980. This is absolutely encouraging as it reduces the waiting period for applicants wanting to buy or rent HDB flats.

However, at this pace of development, the quality aspect should not be sacrificed for quantity. More emphasis must be laid on the quality of construction. Presently, there have been numerous complaints from flat owners about the poor finish. Fixtures and fittings are haphazardly completed. This merely proves that there has been a lack of proper and vigilant supervision by HDB which takes over blocks of flats from contractors without first conducting a full inspection of the flats.

Sir, the problem does not end there. The HDB does not spell out its instructions clearly to tenants in regard to regulations governing the renovation of flats. Usually after a tenant has completed renovation works, the bureaucratic HDB officers will then come to give a notice to the tenant ordering him to reduce the thickness of the flooring because the thickness of the screed has exceeded the maximum allowed by the Board. But at the time when application for renovation of the flat is made to the Board, the tenant is not informed of certain restrictions. However, when tenants make complaints to the Board about the slipshod work done by the contractors, the HDB officers show no concern at all, except remarking that the defects are minimal. One wonders sometimes why slipshod work on the part of contractors is condoned by the Board.

Sir, some of the shortcomings of the HDB are causing concern among tenants as well as would-be tenants of H DB accommodation. All these shortcomings should not be thrusted down the throats of the tenants. Nevertheless, we are proud that the HDB's achievement is second to none in other parts of the world.

An hon. Member: Hear, hear!

Mr Teo Chong Tee: Mr Speaker, Sir, the Addendum on the Ministry of National Development further states the emphasis on planning and improving the social and recreational facilities, better infrastructure and public amenities in pleasant and gracious environment in the next five years. These are positive measures which go along with the building of HDB and HUDC flats. However, we must not forget that the rising cost of leisure is now borne by the general public.

As for the general public, the Government has established parks, swimming pools and lagoons, zoological gardens and other scenic spots like the Japanese and Chinese gardens and have, at most, levied a small fee far within the reach of the common citizen. The fee is to cover operating costs. There are some other places where no fees are levied at all. These exceptions should not be taken for granted without regard to the funds and effort put into realizing these facilities. Private enterprise establishments which provide entertainment for the general public, such as the cinemas, have kept their prices within the reach of the general public.

It is a fact that nothing is for free, and that all needs will have to compete with one another for resources to realise them. Leisure establishments set up by private enterprises are required by their owners to cover costs and eventually make a reasonable return on the capital invested. Citizens who wish to patronise these establishments, such as nightclubs, bowling alleys and golf clubs, must be prepared to pay for these facilities. In order to take a lead in the leisure business, the Government has invested in leisure enterprises such as the Sentosa Golf Club and the Jurong Golf Club - these enterprises are expected to cover not only costs but also to yield a reasonable return on capital invested.

The takeover of the chalets at Sentosa by a local hotel has invited comments from the general public. According to the plans of the hotel, the area will, be further developed involving a large capital outlay. Members of the public have anticipated that the present high rentals of these chalets will rise even further, beyond the reach of the common Singaporean who wishes to spend his vacation or weekend there.

Luxurious leisure will always be expensive and exclusive to those who can and wish to pay for them. Simple leisure has yet to be priced out of the reach of the common Singaporean.

It is true that the proliferation of unlicensed hawkers has been brought under control. Nevertheless, there are still hawkers who for some reason are not being issued with licences, As a result of this, they are constantly harassed by inspectors from the Hawkers Department. These inspectors swoop down on them in the most inhuman way, raiding them like a police party raiding a gangster hideout. Hawkers, young and old, have to leave behind their wares, and sometimes even their money is scattered all over the place, and to run for their lives. Conveniently, the goods are carted away as if they are contrabands.

An hon. Member: Shame!

Mr Teo Chong Tee: Mr Speaker, Sir, these people are not criminals in the true sense of the word. The hawker inspectors are over-zealous in discharging their duties in constituencies where MPs are not Ministers. [Laughter] Indeed it is not a pleasant sight to watch. One just wonders where the seized goods have gone to thereafter, and how are they accounted for and disposed of.

Mr Speaker, Sir, I am sure my colleagues in this House who face similar problems in their constituencies will fully agree with me that there are shortcomings in the Hawkers Department, which have caused some aberration and defects that need to be improved. The personnel concerned must be educated, particularly in improving their attitude in dealing with the public with respect to their work.

Sir, I support the Motion in the name of the Member for UIu Pandan.

2.54 p.m.

Mr Yeo Toon Chia (Ang Mo Kio): (In Mandarin): Mr Speaker, Sir, the President in his speech at the opening of this Parliament said that the People's Action Party has once more been returned to power, securing some 72.4% of the votes, the highest ever recorded. With this overwhelming support, the PAP Government has to exercise its power with circumspection and moderation. The President also said that all major policies and legislation will have to be closely scrutinised before implementation. This is quite to the point, and it expresses the desire of the people. In fact, other than some statutory boards, the legislation of most government departments has been brought up to Parliament for scrutiny and debate. But the problem arises after its debate in Parliament when it is put into practice. There will be certain aberrations and inconsistencies in the administrative process, where officers concerned usually shirk their duty, thinking that by doing less fewer mistakes will be made, and that if they did nothing they would not commit any mistakes at all. So in the end, the voters will get nowhere. They would have wasted their time and money in dealing with the Government departments. Officers in some Government departments are just nonchalant in their attitude and keep themselves away from their post. They make no attempt to try to understand the problems and the needs of the people. Instead they cause the people unnecessary inconvenience. Let me quote some examples. In October last year, the newspapers stated that one, Chou Tieng Shiang, living in a HDB flat was suffering from some chronic illness and could not work and therefore could not pay his rental. He was subsequently evicted by the HDB. When this appeared in the press, members of the public rallied round to help him. When the HDB heard about this, they finally allowed him to return to his flat. The HDB could have been more tolerant and liaised with the Social Welfare Department for help. This illustrates the unsympathetic attitude on the part of the HDB.

On another occasion, in September last year it was reported in the newspapers that the HDB issued notices to applicants of flats inquiring whether they would be carrying out renovation works to the kitchen and toilet with mosaic. The notice asked for a reply within 10 days failing which their right to apply for the flat would be cancelled. Sir, this is too harsh on them. Many applicants receive the notice late, as the date for a reply stamped on the notice has expired; if not, only a few days left to reply. Moreover, the notice `does not state how much more price they have to pay after such renovation works. In the end, the applicants are confounded over the whole thing and do not know what to do. So they blame the Government.

Sir, in our meet-the-people sessions in the various constituencies we find a great number of such complaints. The attitude of the HDB in dealing with such cases is really too harsh. It should be rectified and improved. All notices and administrative action formulated by the HDB should be considered by Government leaders before promulgation. We are told that by 1980 about 75% of the population of Singapore, namely two million people, will be housed in HDB flats. They will decide in future which Party should be returned to power, who will form the government. If we do not think about these matters, the consequences may be unsavoury.

Sir, perhaps we need not dwell too much on the efficiency and ability of Government officers. For instance, in January this year a family in Bukit Merah was hard-pressed financially. The householder, an elderly widow, was a hawker but she was not given a licence to hawk. Being unable to make ends meet, the mother and daughter shut themselves in the flat and burned themselves to death. This very pitiful incident calls for our attention, however rare it may be in our society. When the officers come across cases of extenuating circumstances, they should inquire into them and lend a helping hand in getting them a hawker's licence or liaising with Social Welfare Department. The people concerned should also get in touch with the MP or the CCC in that area so as to avail themselves of better means to help solve their problems. However, it is a pity that out of so many thousands of officers in the various Government departments such as the Hawkers Department, the HDB, and the PUB there was hardly any one who ever tried to come out to study the problems of the unfortunate people and to render help to such people who are in difficulties.

Sir, it is correct to stress in the Presidential Address that we must get from each his best and give to each according to his performance, since Singapore is a tiny island without any natural resources. Our only resource is manpower in spite of our excellent geographical position and rewarding entrepot trade. Even the footpath is formed by constant trodding. So everything has to depend on our human resources. As we have no other resources, our able political leadership has to mobilise the whole population and consolidate their boundless energy and strength into a concerted effort in nation building and economic progress of our country.

Sir, Singapore is a new country. Since her foundation, upon which strenuous efforts had been made, education has been spread quite widely and the general level of education of the people is also rising, hopefully to a high standard. But with a short history and a limited economy, we cannot produce a greater number of people with a high level of education. Differences in level of education make for differences in life-style and career expectations, resulting in the fortunate and the unfortunate. The few fortunate people can enjoy the benefits of higher education and reap greater wealth. They are the ones who are better able to give of their best with higher performance, and of course, they get higher rewards. The others, however, those unfortunate ones with poor education and who come from poorer families who have been toiling hard all their lives contributing their best, because of their circumstances and without the benefit of higher education, still cannot reach the higher bracket of reward according to their performance, however hard they exert themselves.

Sir, so far we have issued hundreds of thousands of work permits to foreign labourers to work in our industries. In the long run, are we sure whether foreign labour will serve our national interest, or will they not bring about more social problems and other burden to us? There is a saying that rather than depend on others, we should depend on our ownselves. For long term social security and in the interest of our nationals, we should look into the reasons why our own citizens do not want to join the labour force. Perhaps we should improve the working conditions of the workers. Why should certain workers be required to work 30 days a month, while others only 24 days? Why can we not allow certain categories of workers to be paid monthly and to let them enjoy the same working conditions as others? There should not be any discrimination in the labour force. Sir, each one of us must contribute our best in order to get the reward according to our worth. We should also try our best for rewards according to our labour, so that better recognition may be given to the importance of the labourers, who are the less fortunate lot, in our nation building. We should create an amiable environment and better working conditions for all workers so that they may enjoy a better livelihood and the good things in life, so that they can be proud of themselves. We should enable all our nationals who are contributing to the Central Provident Fund to utilise their contributions to buy their own flats and be contented with their lot, so that they could think of themselves as part-owners of Singapore and feel secure and happy living in Singapore. Perhaps, we should go a step further by making a survey of their monthly needs, how much they spend a month on a family of four or five members so as to determine their cost of living. On this basis we should formulate their monthly wages so that they may get the necessary means for their basic livelihood and survival, adapting themselves to the environment and be happy and contented in their career and their lot.

Finally, on behalf of my constituents, I thank the President for his Address.

3.07 p.m.

Encik Ahmad Haleem (Telok Blangah): Mr Speaker, Sir, I rise in support of the Motion moved by the Member for Ulu Pandan expressing our thanks to the President for the speech which he delivered on behalf of the Government at the opening of the First Session of this Parliament. The world is currently experiencing an energy crisis and governments are greatly concerned with energy resources and their management. Unfortunately, in Singapore, we have no coal, oil, timber or hydro-electrical energy; therefore, we have to be extremely careful not to waste these increasingly expensive resources. From time to time there have been campaigns over the press, radio and television urging the public to save power and electricity. We should look for as many ways as possible to reduce power consumption, whilst still meeting the needs of our citizens. I believe. Sir, that there is a way to do this. It is simple and the cost is minimal. I am, Sir, talking about Daylight Saving. This easy-to-implement device could be brought into effect by advancing the clock by one hour at midnight on a chosen day. It will cause the minimum of inconvenience as, apart from advancing the clock by one hour, there will be no other changes in our time schedule. Dawn will then be at six o'clock in the morning instead of at five o'clock and sunset at 7.30 in the evening instead of at 6.30. These are some of the areas where power consumption would be reduced by the introduction of Daylight Saving - in our homes, in public places, sports facilities, lighted advertisements, and in industries running a two-shift system. Side benefits from implementing this scheme are many. Our people, who are being encouraged to take part in all forms of sports and outdoor activities, would have an extra hour of daylight in the evenings, in which to better enjoy the many excellent facilities which are being set up for this purpose. One benefit that I foresee and which, to my mind, is very important is that parents and their children will have an additional hour of daylight in which they can enjoy family games and recreation out of doors, to kick a ball or like one Member of the House told me. "to fly a kite", and so do much to further good parent/child relationship.

Internationally, our advancing the clock by one hour should be just a minor adjustment for our trading partners to make. With the introduction of Daylight Saving, all school fields could be opened up after school, and football fields and all the games courts would be better used. Even if these spaces were made available to our people they would still be insufficient to meet our needs. I, therefore, welcome the Sports Council Master Plan for the building of squash and tennis courts, swimming pools, football pitches, fitness parks and the multi-purpose indoor stadia. Unfortunately, I feel that the Master Plan, for the most part, caters for the "have's" and neglects the "have-not's". You will notice most of the facilities are revenue-generating. This immediately eliminates our younger citizens who cannot pay but whose needs for open fields and games courts should be recognised. They need more facilities where team games can be played, spontaneously, and where easy mixing and integration of our people will be encouraged. I disagree with the Sports Council's rationale in their Sports for All policy where the emphasis is on mass participation and they do not feel the need to aim at producing champions.

It is human nature that the presence of a champion leader encourages others to follow. The case of badminton is a good example of this. In the 50's when the standard of our players then taking part in the Thomas Cup and the All England Championship was very high, badminton was extremely popular. The popularity of badminton has greatly waned, now that we are no longer producing champions. In the same way, if we wish to popularise other sports and get more participants, we must also produce champions in all fields. Every schoolboy wants to be a Pele or a Mark Spitz. Our constituency games also are not popular. For many constituencies the reasons they are unable to produce good teams are lack of money and facilities. I am not advocating paying participants to take part in sports. Far from it. I am entirely against this policy, but in order to produce a good side it is necessary to hold regular intra-constituency tournaments and to arrange many practice sessions. All these require facilities and money. It is unfair and undesirable for the constituency to go around asking their constituents for frequent donations. Therefore, I suggest that the constituency sports rules be amended to allow for sponsorship by business firms. Of course, when a company sponsors the sports in the constituency, they would like to see a return for their money. We should allow players to use the firm's logos on their jerseys. In this way, both parties will benefit. I would still expect the grant from the Sports Council to continue. because every cent that can be gathered will help immensely towards the promotion of sports. I should also like to see our champions and gold medal winners who represent Singapore and bring honour to our country, rewarded by giving them priority allocation for housing. Anyone who knows and sees the long hours of practice a winner must put in, will not begrudge him this privilege.

The Housing and Development Board should build more sports facilities in their estates. When the Government was first considering how to tackle the problem of' resettling large numbers of our citizens, their primary concern, and rightly so, was to build housing units as fast as possible. We have now reached a stage where quantity alone is not sufficient to meet the total needs of our people. Their physical needs are well catered for in spacious and sanitary housing, shops and markets, clinics and other services. Now is the time to consider how best to meet their emotional needs to bring about a healthy sense of integration in their new environment, Open spaces in the estates should be converted into children's playgrounds, games and family recreation areas. It is insufficient to provide new parks in selected areas because parents would much prefer their children to play nearer their homes, to kick a ball around, scream and shout and allow healthy daily outlets for their natural drives. If immediate provision is not found for expressing these drives, they will be suppressed, and we will be facing a generation of maladjusted young citizens in the near future. Drug problems and other unhealthy manifestations of this repression will most certainly increase by leaps and bounds. Apart from providing play areas, all housing estates should have a community centre built at the same time as the housing units. Citizens should not have to wait until sufficient money has been accumulated through donations and fund raising. Of course, improvement to community centres should be borne by the constituents but the basic structure of a community centre which would cost in the region of $400,000 should be borne by the Government, and this should be given top priority.

By 1980 the estimated number of people who will live in HDB flats will be two million. We do have a Zoo where our children can see animals, both wild and domesticated, but because of the HDB rule that no pets are allowed and together with the high cost of going to the Zoo, we will very soon have a generation of children who will think that a chicken comes in a plastic bag. Therefore, I strongly suggest that an area, perhaps near the community centre, be set aside where a small menagerie of domesticated animals could be kept. People moving into flats for the first time often have to abandon pets because they can no longer keep them. This is hard on both pets and their owners. How much better if they could bring their pets to a centre where they could be adopted and looked after by the children of the estate, thereby instilling in the young a respect and understanding of animals. Valuable lessons and attitudes will be inculcated and will influence the kind of environment which our children will produce in time to come. This would be complementary to our design for a clean, green and healthy Singapore.

As we build new estates, immediate consideration should be given to the provision of bus services. In the past, bus services to housing estates only begin after the majority of people have moved in. This means that the early occupants may have to wait months, perhaps years, before adequate bus services are provided. This situation should be remedied.

The implementation of the Area Licensing Scheme has done much to reduce road congestion but a further measure which should be looked into concerns the maintenance of lane discipline. One only needs to take an hour's drive on Singapore roads to be able to pick out more than 50 offenders against the rules of lane discipline.

I believe our highway code rule does state that all motorists should keep left unless overtaking. At the moment, slow moving traffic is seen keeping to the right-hand lane, forcing faster moving traffic to overtake on the left. No doubt our system of road traffic management has met with considerable praise internationally, but I feel that tighter control of lane discipline would bring about even more improvement and fast, safer traffic flow.

Whilst the situation on our roads is steadily improving a problem has arisen in another area of communications because of the transfer of lighter operations from Telok Ayer Basin to Pasir Panjang. At certain times of the year when the sea there is very rough, our lightermen experience great difficulties in loading and unloading. It would be desirable and less hazardous to have a bigger breakwater at Pasir Panjang wharves to allow our lighters to load and unload in calmer waters.

The need for security in our ports is unquestioned but the very strict ruling applied by the Port of Singapore Authority for the issue of passes is causing hardship to a number of people. These are people whose livelihood depends upon going into the port area and who have suddenly found their passes cancelled because of some minor offence committed many years earlier for which they have already been punished. They should not be punished again. I would therefore urge the Port of Singapore Authority to review their ruling and to reinstate the passes of these people if they have committed only one minor offence, not less than five years prior to their application. In this way our petty offender who has been going straight will not feel persecuted.

My next point was touched upon by the Member for Kallang but I feel that we do have a situation in Singapore where there are many stateless persons who are blue identity card holders. In the final analysis, the Singapore Government is responsible for these people; so our objective must surely be to integrate and educate them and to eventually grant them citizenship. When this happens, our dependence upon guest workers would be less. At the moment, however, in order to obtain work, our permanent residents have to obtain a work permit. This creates a situation where small employers find it inconvenient to employ them and larger firms often cannot be bothered. There are also unscrupulous employers who exploit the situation. I strongly suggest that the Ministry look into the feasibility of abolishing work permit requirements for our permanent residents who are stateless persons.

Our citizens have now grown to accept the desirability of National Service and I know of many young people who are looking forward to doing their duty for their country. There are, however, many who are frustrated because they are not selected to do either full-time or part-time National Service. They feel doubly frustrated because not only are they not able to discharge their duty, but employers also are reluctant to employ them. It is unlikely that youths not selected within one year of attaining their 18th birthday will be selected at a later date because there will be a new batch of eligible young men each subsequent year. I therefore urge the Government to look into this question and to consider either calling them up for some other form of service or, if they are not called up by their 19th birthday, to grant them deferment, subject to recall.

Sir, I support the Motion moved by the Member for Ulu Pandan.

3.24 p.m.

Mr Ho Kah Leong (Jurong): (In Mandarin): Mr Speaker, Sir, I rise in support of the Motion moved by the Member for Ulu Pandan expressing our thanks to the President for his Speech delivered at the opening of this Fourth Parliament.

The President, in his speech, enunciated the policies which will be carried out in the next five years. The people are enabled to understand the various programmes for action and reforms, the most important being the new measures contained in the various Addenda of the various ministries, which are for the benefit of the people and the nation, meant to inspire the people to contribute their efforts towards nation building.

In the general elections last year the people elected all the 69 PAP candidates into this House. This is a massive support and trust given by the people to the People's Action Party and they know that although we have a one-party Parliament, the Members of Parliament will not do things recklessly. This has also enhanced our responsibility as Backbenchers. As Backbenchers, although we are part of the governing Party, we have to play the role of the opposition and exercise our right to criticise and supervise the work of the Government and to reflect the views of our constituents so as to serve the people and the nation with dedication.

Mr Speaker, Sir, the main feature of the policy speech is that in the next five years the Government will give priority to looking after and developing the less privileged areas as they need more attention. Such policy is both correct and laudable, because to help the well to-do is well and good but to do some good to the poor and needy is more significant of good government and will be appreciated by the people. Sir, it is gratifying to note that more money will be provided for the developmental needs of the rural areas. This means that more laterite roads will be metalled, more wooden bridges will be replaced by concrete bridges and more country tracks and roads will be lighted. Although the rural area has shrunk it is still extensive in area and so it needs more money for the amelioration of the living environment of the country folk.

But what the people in the rural areas find most distressing is the question of resettlement, as touched upon by the Member for Changi. We all know that because of the scarcity of land and the need for industrialisation, housing etc, we have to requisition more land from the rural areas. There is nothing wrong with this. Generally, the people in the rural areas understand this and they are prepared to sacrifice for the long-term interest of the nation. Those who are affected by the resettlement scheme would have to suffer inconvenience as their homes built over the decades have to be abandoned and they will have to move to new surroundings. Everything will have to start from scratch and afresh. Those departments and officers involved in resettlement. whether it be the Resettlement Department or the Primary Production Department, must understand the plight of the people and try, on the one hand, to minimise the hardship and inconvenience caused to the people and, on the other hand, by all means give adequate compensation to the affected people.

Mr Speaker, Sir, in the past few years, at my meet-the-people sessions I received various complaints from the villagers and I have found that there is a lack of sympathy on the part of those who are involved with resettlement affairs. In most cases, the question centres on whether a person who is engaged in farming activity is a bona fide farmer or not. Those who are adjudged bona fide farmers are entitled to the allocation of land or alternatively a free three-room flat and their compensation rate is much higher. Those similarly engaged in farming activities who are not adjudged bona fide farmers will have to blame their bad luck and look for their MP for help. The officers who wield such peremptory power are not from the Resettlement Department but from the Primary Production Department which has no direct connection with the resettlement scheme.

According to my understanding, the Primary Production Department goes about adjudging those who are affected, whether they are bona tide farmers or not, not according to their actual rural situation but superficially on a certain formula and certain figures. If the data provided by a person, be he a farmer or not, do not fit into the formula, then he is not considered a bona fide farmer. It is quite common to see people in the rural areas engaging in farming activities. Some of them are small scale farmers and whatever they get is sufficient to support their family. Other families, because of insufficient income will have to engage in certain farming activity to supplement family income. But many of the younger generation of such families when they grow up do not intend to remain farmers but would like to go outside to work or join the national service. Whatever they earn outside is seldom brought back to support the family. However, their income is also taken as a factor in determining whether a family is a farming family or not. Thus, through such circumstances, certain village farmers have lost their status as farmers, thereby losing their right as farmers to such compensation.

Sir, another general situation is this. When certain farmers are given the notice of acquisition of land, they are also advised to gradually reduce their farming activity. Sometimes the census is taken months afterwards, while actual resettlement may take place one to two years later. During this transition period, in order to minimise their loss, the farmers naturally reduce their farming activity gradually. Other farmers, having failed in agricultural career, now because of lack of capital, have to stop their farming activity for the time being. However, after a long wait the notice to quit has still not arrived, and so because of family livelihood they are forced to go outside to work in order to make ends meet. Such unlucky farmers will certainly be adjudged by the Primary Production Department as non-bona fide farmers, the compensation for whom will of course be very little

Sir, our society should be a rational and a caring society. We should be sympathetic to the plight of a section of the population when they have to make sacrifices and are inconvenienced for the sake of the nation We should help them to restore their capacity to earn and make a living. High officials sitting in air-conditioned rooms of the Primary Production Department make decisions affecting the farmers' fate mainly on the report of their subordinate officers This causes a slur to the truth and clouds the issue. Therefore, to adjudge whether a farmer is bona fide or not, the Primary Production Department should base its consideration on detailed investigation of the actual circumstances. Also the views of the MP of the particular constituency and the Citizens' Consultative Committee should be observed before any decision is made. Only then, will it be in keeping with the fundamental spirit of the policy of the present Government.

3.30 p.m.

Mr Ho See Beng (Khe Bong): Mr Speaker, Sir, I would like to express the gratitude of the Khe Bong electorate to the President for his policy speech on the 8th February this year After reading the speech again and again, I strongly feel that the policy outlined therein is a "universally acceptable" policy that provides 100% safeguard and security for the livelihood of the two million people of Singapore. In this context, Mr Speaker, Sir, when the Singapore electorate returned our party to power, what they want is, in short, security and safeguard for their livelihood. This is the only thing they expect of us.

Just as the President has stated in his policy speech, there are numerous important problems facing our country, such as those concerning the economy, education, communications, finance, the judiciary and so on and so forth, but none more important than internal security. This is because our present situation is at a very critical juncture, and if we do not handle it properly, this ship of ours will capsize immediately with all of us swallowed by the huge waves when it will be too late to talk about anything, and all of us will not be here,

The ship I refer to is the present Government of the party-in-power; the huge waves are the Malayan Communists and their fellow travellers. They are our archenemies. They jeopardize the peace and security of Singapore and attempt to seize power by armed force. They are the public enemies of the people of Singapore -elements who must not be allowed to exist for internal security's sake.

We, the party-in-power, are not unaware of this internal danger. For this reason, we have been paying particular attention to the question of internal security However, to be honest about ourselves. I think what we have done is inadequate and not thorough enough either.

The communists are like the all-permeating mercury. For instance, now only we have found that G. Raman, a lawyer, is an out-and-out communist; now only do we know that he has colluded with European and Malayan communists in their attempt to overthrow the elected Government of Singapore. He became a communist long. long ago when he was studying at the University of Singapore. At that time he harped on the same string as the Malayan communists, but why did he not come to the notice of our security authorities then? Why has our institution of higher learning cultivated such a high level communist intellectual? I wonder if there is anything wrong with our education system.

I also have friends who teach in the secondary schools, They told me that today, there are communist elements even in the government secondary schools. Such a phenomenon did not exist in the past. Formerly, communist elements were found mostly in private secondary schools. They invariably did not study well. However, the communist students today are good in their studies. They sport long hair and pretend to be hippies. They are, in fact, members of the so-called branch committees of the underground Malayan communists.

My friend told me two true stories. One happened in Shanghai in 1949, when the Nationalist Party, that is, the Kuo Mm Tang, was about to withdraw from Shanghai. Lo Lung Chi, an important member of the Democratic League, was arrested by the KMT agent for sympathising with the communists. However, as soon as Shanghai was liberated, the agent who interrogated Lo immediately invited him out of the prison. Lo was so frightened that his face turned pale. But the man said, "Comrade Lo, you have been invited to go to Peking." Only then did the agent disclose that he was, in fact, a communist underground agent. Do you think we also have such dangerous elements in our security set-ups?

The second story tells about the pre-liberation Saigon where the Income Tax Department was already infiltrated by a Vietcong agent. At that time, the Nguyen Van Thieu Government did not know about him. This Vietcong agent, who managed to infiltrate into the government department, made use of his official position to make secret attacks on the rightists so as to weaken the anti-communist force of the Saigon Government. As soon as Saigon was liberated, except for those who escaped, those who remained behind were arrested one by one on information supplied by this Vietcong agent. Do you think we have any Communist infiltrators in our tax department, postal service or the churches, particularly the choirs?

Such is the important work of internal security on the lives and properties of the people of Singapore. We must, therefore, make sure that the work is done well and thoroughly and that there is no loophole in it. Any loophole will mean that all previous efforts will have been wasted. I do not mean to praise the communists. Any communist regime, be it the Soviet Union or China, will carry out a purge every now and then. They eliminate undesirable elements and strengthen their regime through purges. If we want to seek permanent security and safeguard for the people of Singapore, if we wish to ensure that the people enjoy their rights and happiness, to seek peace and progress for society and stability and prosperity for the country, it is necessary, I think, for the Ministry of Home Affairs to introduce measures whereby information can be gathered from various Government departments.

The people of Singapore have once again elected us to form the government. As has been said by the Prime Minister, and I quote, "The people are anti-communist; they do not want communists." One danger facing Singapore today is internal communist subversion against the government. It is in response to the request of the electorate that such a measure is introduced.

During the "Spring and Autumn" period in China (period of feudal warlords), there was a great statesman by the name of Kuan Chung who once said, "Expelling foreign invasion should be preceded by the maintenance of internal security." In other words, there must be internal security before foreign invasion can be checked. Without security what other things can we talk about, even saving daylight?

Mr Speaker, Sir, I wish to support the Motion moved by the Member for Ulu Pandan.

3.43 p.m.

Mr Phey Yew Kok (Boon Teck): Mr Speaker, Sir, I rise to support the Motion of Thanks moved by the Member for Ulu Pandan.

The President's speech clearly outlines the prospects and problems facing us today and the framework of the general policies and measures the Government intends to pursue during the five-year term of the Fourth Parliament which has the solid support of the people of Singapore. All of us know that "soft-options" must go overboard and that realism must be the cornerstone of the Government's policy.

There are, however, three areas on which I would like to comment. Firstly, I would like to point out that the last 1 2 years have not been easy ones. In 1 965 the economic and labour climate was extremely distressing. But Labour realised that the only road to economic salvation and national prosperity was joint endeavour by the three major partners - Government, Labour and Management - for the common interest of the country; and that none could progress unless everyone progressed. By and large, this has come to pass, thanks to the Government's initiatives and Labour's positive response.

The last few years were decidedly difficult years, particularly on the economic front, with global inflation accompanied by a slowdown of the economy. The labour movement and the workers responded well to the call of the country and contributed, in no small measure, to cushion the deleterious effects of the times, unlike trade unions elsewhere, particularly a few of those in the developed countries where they ignored national interests and pursued destructive policies which generated economic disarray and heavy unemployment. Our realism averted such a situation.

Mr Speaker, Sir, may I, at this stage, be permitted, to quote Dr Goh Keng Swee, the Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of defence, who states in his article "A Socialist Economy that Works" published in the book Socialism that Works: The Singapore Way, at page 837 thus:

"Collectively, workers formed the most important organised social group. This must be so in any free society in which every citizen enjoys voting rights. Organised labour is important simply because it represents the majority of the electorate. The response of organised labour to the challenges and opportunities in the newly independent Republic are described in detail elsewhere ... Here it suffices to say that the labour movement took an enlightened long-term view of their group interests. They were willing to give the growth policy a chance to succeed."

And so we will, Mr Speaker, Sir. What I would like to stress here is that the contributions of organised labour, in the past, and in the coming years must not be forgotten.

The second area I would like to comment upon, Mr Speaker, Sir, is the Addendum to the Presidential Address on the Ministry of Labour, In the matter of industrial relations. I am glad to note that the Ministry will take steps to further improve its industrial relations services and set up a departmental service to build up a corps of experienced labour and industrial relations officers. Prevention and settlement of industrial disputes are not just matters of law and forms. It requires a deeper insight of the philosophy of industrial relations, of winning the confidence of the parties involved and producing eventually, acceptable and reasonable settlements. Not only experience but an attitude of equanimity must be developed. I would like to cite an example to underscore what I have said. The recent NWC recommendations gave rise to a welter of interpretations, counter-interpretations and misinterpretations and confusion ran galore, so much so that a call had to be made to reconvene the National Wages Council. It is true, Sir, Labour representatives were signatories to the recommendations which, in any case, could only spell out broad guidelines. But the rub was that implementing them became a problem because the present officials, most of whom had, as I would put it, no previous "labour background", could not differentiate between the wood and the tree, or more precisely were and still are unable to reconcile practice with policy and to translate policy into practice justly and equitably.

The third area I would like to touch on is productivity. There are disparate views on what productivity is, how productivity measurements are to be worked out and who should carry the productivity "baby". A clear indication of lopsided concepts is the editorial in The Manufacturer, of January 1977, a publication of the Singapore Manufacturer's Association. This editorial illustrates the inadequate perception of Singapore's economic intricacies and the complexities surrounding the productivity issue. The basic premise of the editorial is that "there appears to be a basic assumption that manufacturing productivity in Singapore has already reached optimum levels". Mr Speaker, Sir, as far as the trade unions are concerned, no such assumption has ever been made by them, On the contrary, Labour leaders consistently emphasise the need to help our industries reach full production capacity. They know that it is only when industries are strong the workers will benefit. The SMA editorial was, therefore, an assumption of the existence of another assumption which in fact was not there at all.

Mr Speaker, Sir, the National Productivity Board should not just continue, as in the past, to promote the concept of productivity. The Board should concentrate more on working out productivity measurement techniques for industries and show, plainly to those faltering minds in our midst, that tangible results are achievable.

3.51 p.m.

Haji Rahmat Bin Kenap (Geylang Serai): (In Malay): Mr Speaker, Sir, I wish to associate myself with my colleagues in supporting the Motion of Thanks to the President for his speech delivered at the opening of the First Session of the Fourth Parliament.

On the policy speech, I wish to dwell on the subject of redevelopment projects carried out by the Government which affect many kampongs. I am convinced that the Government's intention is extremely good because it affords an opportunity to a great majority of people in Singapore to own their own homes.

However, there is a minority group of people in Singapore who are deprived of this opportunity on the ground that they hold Singapore blue identity cards. Although they claim birth in Singapore, as stated on their identity cards, however, they are unable to produce documentary evidence as they have lost their birth certificates and neither can they remember their birth dates. This is one of the reasons why they have failed to obtain extracts from the Registry of Births. Subsequently, they were advised to apply for citizenship. Unfortunately, amongst them there are people who have waited three to four years for approval and yet their applications have not been approved, even until the time when their dwelling houses are affected by Government redevelopment projects. They have inherited these houses from their parents, and they have been in physical occupation from time immemorial. Upon acquisition by Government for redevelopment they were paid ex gratia compensation only but they were not offered alternative accommodation. May I ask: where are these families going to stay? Can we just sit tight and see these people made homeless? They were born in Singapore and they have no other country to go to where they can take up permanent residence. Can the Government not give special consideration to clearance families that I have cited? Although the number of families is small, we must nevertheless show justice to these people whose living conditions have been adversely affected in consequence of Government policies.

Sir, I support the Motion of Thanks moved by the Member for Ulu Pandan.

3.54 p.m.

The Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister for Education (Mr Ahmad Mattar): Mr Speaker, Sir, I rise in support of the Motion moved by the hon. Member for Ulu Pandan, expressing our thanks to the President for the speech he delivered on behalf of the Government at the opening of the First Session of this Parliament last week.

The much-awaited 1976 General Elections have come and gone. The PAP's overwhelming victory in all the 69 constituencies has proved beyond any doubt the sophistication and growing political awareness of our people. The fantasy-peddling tactics of the opposition parties just did not work. Present-day Singaporeans are not easily beguiled by the false pretences and empty promises of the opposition parties. The disclosures of pro-communist activities in Singapore underline the need for a political leadership that is vigilant and discriminating when dealing with communist subversion. This, the people know, can be found only in the PAP Government.

Now that the General Elections are over, the opposition parties have gone into hibernation once again - only to be awakened, perhaps, in 1981 by the fanfare of the next General Elections. No one hears from the rather pitiful Harbans Singh anymore! Perhaps his inglorious defeat in Tanjong Pagar by Mr Lee Kuan Yew has rendered him speechless - a defeat which was not unexpected even to his own daughter. Where is J.B. Jeyaretnam now! Silenced too, perhaps by: `Rat-catcher Fong Sip Chee Whose "good catch" on Dec 23 Led PAP to victory In the fight at Kampong Chai Chee.' Mr Speaker, Sir, it has been 22 years since the People's Action Party was founded and 17 years since the PAP was first voted into office as the Government. A great deal has happened, both inside and outside Singapore, since then.

Perhaps it is still too early in the year to talk of 1977. But certainly the world of 1976 was a vastly different place from what it was 22 years ago. The leaders in the PAP were right in believing that a non-Communist democratic socialist party could win the hearts and minds of the masses. History has proved them right. The results of the last five General Elections in Singapore since 1959 bear testimony to this belief. They were equally right in their belief that there could be no long-term social cohesion in a multi-racial society except by building a national identity based on non-communal nationalism.

Since our independence in 1965, we have all strived to ensure that Singapore survives and prospers. Our past 12 years and indeed our future prospects confirm that what makes a nation thrive is more than just the total sum of natural resources. What makes a people into a nation is a sense of common purpose and shared destiny.

While much has been achieved by Singapore in the last 12 years, much more still remains to be done. We must continue to strive with enormous capacity, pragmatism, and energy to bring further improvements into the quality of human life in the Republic.

Recent events in the region and in Singapore have indicated that the Communists were insidiously working for a possible take-over of Peninsular Malaysia and Singapore. These incidents show the extent of the danger we face from subversive activities of the Communists, We glimpsed the spread of their network, here and abroad, the machinations of their strategies, and the depth of their penetrations into every sector and racial group of our society. This chilling evidence of their presence and activity must strengthen our resolve to fight the Communist threat with every means in our power.

The Communists would resort to whatever means available to further their ends. The change of regime in Indo-China has undoubtedly inspired them further, At the Non-Aligned Summit Conference in Sri Lanka last year, Laos backed by Vietnam openly declared its support for communist insurgency in Southeast Asia. Prince Souphanouvong, in his public attack on ASEAN at this Conference, reiterated the Laotian determination to work in solidarity with Vietnam and Cambodia " .., to contribute to the struggles to make the countries of Southeast Asia truly independent, peaceful, and non-aligned" - implying, therefore, that only those countries in Southeast Asia under Communist rule are "truly" independent or peaceful; the others are not! One has only to look around, at the escalation of Thailand's border problems with Laos and Cambodia and the recent intrusions by Khmer Rouge into Thailand in which 30 Thai civilians, including women and children, were massacred by the Cambodians, to see Souphanouvong's words dissolve in a pool of blood.

In Singapore, because of our political stability, social development, and economic progress, the Communists have found it exceedingly difficult to manoeuvre. But it would be naive to believe that the Communists would not resort to other means in their efforts to grab power.

Hon. Members may still recall that some time in 1976, the Government exposed a Communist plot to infiltrate and exploit top intellectuals of the upper-middle echelon. And indeed as the President pointed out, the Communists would continue to manipulate our misguided student leaders, like Tan Wah Plow, and equally misguided professionals like "Euro-red link man" G. Raman who, as hon. Members know, was responsible for supplying distorted information on the political and social conditions in Singapore to justify the expulsion of the People's Action Party from the Socialist International.

Sir, here I would like to correct, if I may, the hon. Member for Khe Bong G. Raman received his communist indoctrination when he was reading law in one of the Inns in London. There he met Malcolm Caldwell, Amir Dastan and Utrecht. He did not receive his university education from the University of Singapore.

In another attempt which came to light last year, the Communists embarked on a scheme designed to create discontentment and despair among the Malays and to influence them towards Communism as an acceptable solution to the so-called "Malay" problems. To achieve this, the Communists adopted a strategy which included the softening of the Malay ground for Communist ideas and the diminishing of their faith in Islam.

Mr Speaker, Sir, to protect the Singapore that we have built for ourselves, our children, and our children's children founded on justice and equality for all irrespective of race and religion, we must by resolute action, safeguard the interests of the nation, people, and society. Let us, as all loyal Singaporeans should do, rally behind and extend our full cooperation to the Government.

4.03 p.m.

Mr Tan Cheng San (Paya Lebar): (In Mandarin): Mr Speaker, Sir, I support the Motion thanking the President for his speech delivered on 8th February, 1977.

The Presidential address points out that the Government holds firm the simple truth that to get from each his best, rewards and recognition must go to those who consistently excel in high performance. This will encourage the workers to work more diligently and to lead better lives. On the other hand, it will also stimulate our economic growth so that our products can be more competitive on international market. The Government will allocate more funds for the setting up of training centres to train our workers in higher skills so as to prepare them for precision work. This will directly improve the skills and standard of our workers so that the quality of our products will be better and more sophisticated. In the end, our products will be more competitive in the international market. The training of our workers should ensure that it will achieve the objects envisaged. That is, the workers should acquire higher skill to enable them to do precision work. On the other hand we should look out for employers who abuse the name of training by not actually giving adequate training to the workers.

It is stated in the Presidential address that the Ministry of Labour:

`will continue to work with unions and employers to contribute to economic growth through the promotion of a stable and peaceful industrial climate, the fostering of a disciplined and productive workforce and the safeguarding of the welfare, safety and health of our workers.'

This is good news to our workers as it will enable our workers to have a better and more stable living and to enjoy their family life. This will lead to industrial peace thus encouraging our economic development and advancing us towards the target of tripartism. With tripartite co-operation of the Government, Employer and Labour, we shall be able to struggle for our economic development so as to realise our objectives of nation building. In addition to giving protection and safeguard to the well-being, security and health of our workers. I feel that if the facilities and measures could be extended to cover also the fields of recreation and sports, then our workers will be able to lead better lives and be more contented.

The Productivity Board will strengthen its work to promote the productivity of workers, and will formulate programmes for such purpose. Generally, employers always regard higher productivity as a duty on the part of the workers. They expect workers to work harder and still harder, but neglect to improve the method of work and the tools of production. The Productivity Board should therefore get the employers to improve the method of work and tools of production. The Board should also formulate incentive schemes for the workers to raise their productivity.

In the past few years bus transport has improved significantly. We must thank the Government for its effort. It is also the result of sincere cooperation between capital and labour. In the past few years the Singapore Industrial Labour Organisation has improved the working conditions of bus workers. As we all know, the bus workers have to get up very early for the morning shift duties. Usually they will have to get up at 4.00 or 5.00 am. They will have to retire, if on night shift, in the small hours of the day at one or two o'clock. Their duty is to provide commuters with safe and comfortable service. Until the mass rapid transit system is set up, the Singapore Bus Service Ltd, will continue to be the mainstay of our public transport system. In order to raise the standard of service, the Government should therefore consider setting up canteens and toilets at bus terminals for the convenience of bus workers. Also to facilitate industrial workers and to encourage more blue collar workers, the Government should consider asking the Company to provide more buses in industrial areas during peak hours for the convenience of the workers to travel to and from work.

In order to encourage more women to join the labour force, all private organisations and trade unions should not shirk the responsibility of building their own creches for the care of children to help working mothers. The NTUC has been negotiating to take over a creche in Toa Payoh, while SILO has already taken over a creche at Kallang Bahru for this purpose. The other organisations, whether private, industrial or employers, should also contribute to our social welfare undertakings. Therefore, the Government should encourage these organisations to respond actively in supporting, taking over or establishing creches.

4.07 p.m.

Mr Seah Mui Kok (Bukit Ho Swee): Mr Speaker, Sir, I would like to join my colleagues in this House to thank the President for his speech delivered at the opening of the First Session of the Tuesday, 8th February, 1977

Sir, the People's Action Party again won all the 69 seats in the recent General Elections held on 23rd December. 1976. This clearly shows that the people of Singapore will only vote for the party that cares for them and has the capability to solve all political, economic, industrial and employment problems. They know that the PAP's leadership is honest, dedicated, efficient, incorruptible, and has the experience and capacity to maintain political and economic stability. The PAP will ensure industrial peace with justice. It will do its best to attract foreign investors to build new factories and further expansion of their industries. It will create more jobs for the young people and to better the standard of living. So long as there is co-operation and understanding between Government, Labour and Management, we can achieve success and solve many problems.

Sir, may I touch on the Addendum to the Presidential Address on the Ministry of Labour. The NTUC, the Union leaders and the workers fully agree that future wage increases have to be orderly and related to higher productivity and economic growth. Also fringe benefits which are bizarre or not conducive to economic progress will have to be discontinued.

Sir, since 1968 the workers of Singapore have been very reasonable in their wage demand and they only improve some of the fringe benefits whenever necessary. The workers in Singapore have been under the good leadership of Mr. CV. Devan Nair, the Secretary-General of NTUC, and through his wise guidance, the workers fully appreciate the importance of national interest rather than individual or sectional interest.

Most of the negotiations for new collective agreements have been negotiated with the spirit of "give-and-take" with mutual understanding and co-operation. Industrial relations between employers and labour have been good. The number of strikes in Singapore for several years has been a few only. The workers in Singapore have gone through many sacrifices, such as wage restraint, reduction of fringe benefits, limitation of bonus payment or Annual Wage Supplement, etc. However, whenever employers manage to expand their business and increase production with better profits, they should not forget to give better bonus or reasonable incentive payment to the workers.

Sir, on December 30th, Mr Ong Pang Boon, the Minister for Labour, said that the next session of the National Wages Council would probably have to consider and deliberate that offsetting, now confined to salary increases, should cover all forms of remuneration.

Sir, the workers are quite concerned with the NWC's intention to offset to cover all forms of remuneration. In other words, the workers have to make a sacrifice again. Workers are asking themselves: how many times more have they got to sacrifice. There has to be a limit in asking the workers to sacrifice. In fact, the wages they get are just enough to feed their families. Married workers who earn less than $400 a month find difficulty in making both ends meet, and there is hardly anything left for them to save. I hope the NWC will take note of this important point when they come to the final decision on offsetting which may include all forms of remuneration.

Perhaps, Sir, instead of always looking to the direction of the workers who are in the middle and lower income brackets, the Government should also request the higher income bracket of workers who are in the Managerial, and Executive levels to make some sacrifice and follow the good examples of the workers who earn much less.

Sir, I think it is necessary that an amendment be made to the Employment (Amendment) Act, 1975, in respect of the payment of the annual wage supplement. The employers are paying the annual wage supplement allowable by law, but they have to apply to the Minister for Finance to pay an amount in excess of that allowed by law to make up the total amount of annual wage supplement. In other words, if the employers refuse to apply to the Minister for Finance to approve the payment of the annual wage supplement in excess of what is allowed by the law, although they have negotiated with the unions on the new quantum of the annual wage supplement, the Labour Ministry will be powerless to compel them to do so.

Sir, in order to prevent some employers from abusing the law, and some have already done so, may I suggest that the payment of the annual wage supplement should be based on the quantum agreed between the employers and the unions during the year 1976, subject to a maximum amount equivalent to three months' wages of the employees. This will also save the trouble and inconvenience to the Minister for Finance to approve so many cases of this nature.

Also in the event an employer finds that the trading results are lacking in a significant degree, he may invite the union to negotiate for a lower quantum of the annual wage supplement to be paid to the employees. May I suggest that an amendment be made so that if the trading results of the employers are good and show substantial profit, the union has the right to invite the employers to pay for a higher quantum of the annual wage supplement. This should be done in fairness to the workers. The employers should not be given the privilege to enjoy two pieces of cake, while the workers have no choice of picking except to keep on sacrificing. I believe sacrifice for the national interest should be a two-way traffic between the employers and the workers, and not just on the workers all the time.

Sir, I now refer to the Addendum on the Ministry of National Development. I am glad that it will plan and work towards better housing with improved social and recreational facilities, better infrastructure and public amenities in pleasant and gracious environment in the next five years.

I am happy that under the fourth Five-Year Building Programme another 150,000 units will be completed by 1980. An additional 10,000 flats will be built in the Central Area to help reverse the population drift to the new towns. Also applicants will not have to wait longer than 1 to 1 1/2 years to buy or rent HDB flats. I am sure applicants of HDB flats will be happy to know that they have to wait for 1 to 1 1/2 years instead of two to three years as at present.

Sir, the Addendum on the Prime Minister's Office truly stated that the people of Singapore have the will to succeed and they support the Government in a national effort to solve the apparently unsolvable. In the last General Elections in Singapore on 23rd December, 1976, the workers of Singapore fully supported the PAP Government. The workers have agreed to subordinate individual interest to national interest and to ensure that Singapore will not go down. The present industrial peace with only a few strikes a year and the tripartite cooperation of labour, management and government will definitely help Singapore to solve various problems and to succeed in everything we do.

Sir, with regard to the Addendum on the Ministry of Finance, I fully agree that we should make Singapore grow fast again, more manufacturing as well and no extravagance in public sector expenditure. However, it is necessary to spend more money in training the young workers to acquire higher skills for delicate, precision work. Also, I hope all the ASEAN countries will concentrate on rapid economic growth through mutual economic cooperation to implement all the agreed major industrial projects as soon as possible. These industrial projects for all the ASEAN countries will give more jobs to the people and better their standard of living and will bring political and economic stability in the ASEAN region which will convince the ASEAN people that the ASEAN democratic way of life is just as good as the communist countries or even better than theirs. We always believe and treasure the importance of freedom of speech; freedom to learn and use whatever language we like; freedom to enjoy the various cultural activities of several countries; freedom of worship; and the freedom to be a multi-millionaire if you have the capacity to do so. I can assure the people of Singapore that those who have been to various countries in Asia, Europe and America will say that life in Singapore is very good and just like a paradise. This is my personal opinion after visiting these countries.

Sir, may I comment on the Addendum on the Ministry of Defence. There is no doubt that the people of Singapore fully endorse the policy of the Singapore Government to carry on national service for our young people. To preserve our independence, we must be prepared to defend our own country by our own people. The lesson the people of Singapore should understand is that even America could not defend South Vietnam. If the people of Singapore are well trained to defend their own country and have the courage and will to fight to win, should there be any foreign aggression, we will definitely win.

With the fall of South Vietnam, Cambodia and Laos to the communists, all ASEAN countries must strengthen their own defence and have full cooperation. I fully support the ASEAN philosophy to be friends to all countries in the world, including the communist countries and not to let any great power make use of ASEAN countries as a pawn and, if possible, to have no enemies at all.

Sir, I fully agree with the views expressed in the Addendum on the Ministry of Communications on road transport. I travel by bus daily and I wish to record my appreciation and satisfaction of the Singapore Bus Service Ltd, for their improved service during the last two years. Of course, there is room for further improvement.

May I suggest that more female bus drivers be trained and put into the service, I observe that the male bus drivers are more impatient than female drivers. Also, it is a fact that conductresses are doing just as good as the conductors. However, all the employees of the Singapore Bus Service are doing their best and my thanks and appreciation go to most of the bus workers.

Sir, with regard to the Addendum on the Ministry of Social Affairs, I am glad that priority will be given to the welfare of the young, the aged and the strengthening of the family unit. I would like to urge the Government to be more generous and to allot more money in the next Budget to this Ministry although it is not a money-making one, like the PUB or the Income Tax Department. Most of the young people become delinquents as a result of the negligence of their parents who simply do not care for them, The rich father is interested in business and making more money whereby he has to entertain business friends in night clubs, cabarets or having the maximum enjoyment. The rich mother plays mahjong, gambles and goes shopping. The poor father and mother who earn small wages and who have no means of enjoying any kind of entertainment, however, would maintain their capacity in human production by bringing in a new baby every year. For such irresponsible parents, they bring more suffering and misery to themselves and to their children. Rich and poor parents, therefore, must spare some time to guide their children to be good and useful citizens, and also to practise family planning.

Mr Speaker, Sir, I wish I could have more time to speak on the other Addenda to the Presidential Address, but in fairness to my colleagues in this House, they should be given an opportunity to express their views and opinions. I would like to end here by saying that the people of Singapore are fully satisfied with the programmes and policies of the PAP Government which are set out in the Addenda to the Presidential. Address to Parliament on Tuesday, 8th February, 1977. The Addenda spell out what the Government proposes to do in the fields of finance and economics, social and medical services, education and defence. I am sure we will be able to fulfil all the programmes and policies by 1981 or earlier which means that in the next General Elections in 1981, the so-called opposition parties will have no chance to win a seat in Parliament. They can come into Parliament provided they can do what the PAP Government has been doing or if they can do better than us. I believe it is not possible for them to do so and the people of Singapore have no confidence in them. So there will be no MP from the opposition parties again.

Mr Speaker: Order, I suspend the Sitting now and will take the Chair again at 5.00 p.m.

Sitting accordingly suspended at 4.28 p.m. until 5.00 p.m. Sitting resumed at 5.00 p.m.

[Mr Speaker in the Chair]

Debate resumed.

Question again proposed.

Mr Hwang Soo Jin (Jalan Kayu): Mr Speaker, Sir, as I sit and listen to my learned colleagues here these two days, I could not but feel and see the difference in the Backbenches as compared to my last two terms as a Backbencher. We have a number of new faces and we also have an unprecedented number of Ph.Ds. I counted and found there are altogether seven of them; a line up which I am sure compares most favourably with any other legislature in the world. However, it is perhaps pertinent to remind hon. Members that the reason all of us from the same party are here today is not because of the number of Ph.Ds, or doctors that we have been able to parade before our people but because for 1 7 long years the first generation of PAP leaders have dedicated the best part of their lives to working for the well-being of the people of Singapore, and they, the people of Singapore, have in turn shown their confidence, if not appreciation, in no uncertain manner by voting solidly for the PAP.

By entrusting the entire Parliament to us, our people have demonstrated once again their faith in our ability to continue to exercise self-control and self-discipline both as a political party and as a government. They have demonstrated that they believe in our ability to continue to work for a more just and equal society, to maintain law and order, and to ensure social, economic and political stability. What we say here, will, I feel sure, be followed with ever greater interest, as the constituents that we represent today are much better educated, informed and more sophisticated politically than say, five or 10 years ago. They are keenly conscious of their rights. At the slightest suggestion of unjust exploitation or unfair treatment, they expect us to come to their defence. As Backbenchers we shall be failing in our duty if we are insensitive to the feelings on the ground. Let us voice the opinions of the people without constraint or inhibition. Let us not treat this Chamber as a place for expounding academic theories which are best suited for scholarly seminars.

In the years ahead we have been reminded that it is our duty at the Backbench to ensure that no major policy or legislation be passed without the closest scrutiny and the most thorough debate at this House. It is, I submit, also our duty to watch out most carefully the manner in which our civil servants go about implementing Government policies. We should always make sure that all administrative measures taken are both just and humane and that quality of service is not sacrificed for expediency.

It is accepted that for the long-term benefit of our people, unpopular measures may have to be taken from time to time. It falls upon us, however, to question whether on all such occasions the most thorough consideration has been given to minimising the degree of hardship and inconvenience to those affected.

During the last Parliament, we often talked about the growing tendency towards bureaucracy, the rudeness and callousness of some of our civil servants, the lack of coordination between Government departments, the apparent changeability of Government policies and measures in certain areas and the unhealthy inclination towards commercialism of the civil service. There is sufficient evidence to indicate that much of what we complained of, remains with us today. As Backbenchers we may at times feel a little tedious or frustrated having to repeat ourselves, but we are duty bound to go on pointing out all such anomalies and shortcomings for as many times as may be necessary so long as they appear to us remain unrectified.

The President's speech, together with the Addenda, illustrate once again the practical and down-to-earth approach of our leadership. There are no empty and fanciful promises. The objectives that all Ministries have set for themselves are realistic enough and perhaps, typical of our traditional style of "deeds and not words", the descriptions of such objectives are generally brief in words. However, for the words to be translated into deeds, the continued good service of hon. Ministers is to my mind absolutely vital. In this connection, I am confident that all Members in the Backbenches will gladly take on the challenge of the Leader of the House, when on the first Sitting of Parliament, he urged Backbenchers to speak freely with open minds. I can assure hon. Ministers that if it is frankness they want, they will certainly not be disappointed. They can look forward to some exciting moments and may never have to complain of the lack of debate in this House. To do our job well, we may have to take to task without fear or favour any hon. Minister found to be wanting in his duties because he delegates or depends too much on civil servants, and in the process fails to exercise sufficient control and supervision upon the formulation and implementation of policies.

All too often. Backbenchers have been accused of using civil servants as convenient "whipping boys". There is perhaps some truth in the accusation as many of the sins, major as well as minor ones, of the civil service were allowed to be perpetrated because of the lack of timely intervention or wrongful intervention on the part of hon. Ministers. We also spoke of "buck-passing" in the past. Let us hope that we will have no cause for complaint in this regard in the coming months. Let us hope that all hon. Ministers will work collectively and conscientiously as a team and will lose none of the political awareness and sensitivity that are the hallmark of the PAP. It is, Sir, this exceptional quality of our entire Cabinet under the leadership of the Prime Minister that has enabled the party to continue to inspire confidence in our people.

The road ahead may not be as smooth as the distance that has been covered so far. The hazards that we are likely to face are numerous and have been clearly pointed out by the President. Suffice it here to add that our continued survival as a nation will depend on the collective determination, ingenuity and hard work of all parties concerned, namely, the political leadership, civil servants and the people of Singapore.

Finally, Sir, I join my colleagues in thanking the President for his gracious speech to the House.

5.07 p.m.

Mr Tan Soo Khoon (Alexandra): Mr Speaker, Sir, one of the great men of our times, Sir Winston Churchill, once said:

"Life is a test and this world a place of trial. Always the problems - or it may be the same problem - will be presented to every generation in different forms."

Nothing could be more appropriate to the Singapore context. Our test has been basically a question of survival first, then growth. And as we moved along the path of progress we have had to face seemingly insurmountable obstacles. But bold and tough policies of the PAP Government, coupled with the resilience and the strong will of a unified people determined to do their best helped us to prove wrong the pundits who wrote us off in 1965. But that is not to say our test is over for the problems are still here. Some similar to those in the past, some different, but no doubt our ability to solve them will be critical to our continued survival.

Two important events have occurred during the past five years that have shaped and changed the destinies of nations, big and small. The sudden upset in the balance of political forces in Southeast Asia has lent encouragement to a vigorous resurgence of communist activities that threaten the security of our neighbouring countries. It has also given stimulus to communist forces to mount a new strategy of slow infiltration into various strata of our society. Secondly, the oil crisis which unleashed a new economic weapon that proved politically potent in undermining the great industrial nations of the West brought about the worst economic crisis in decades, and for us it brought about problems of trade, unemployment and inflation.

In spite of these, Singapore has weathered the storm. But bad weather and dark clouds are now gathering on the horizon again. The people of Singapore have once again expressed their confidence that the PAP Government can pull them through difficult waters. But although the PAP won all the seats in the general elections, it would be naive for us to believe that the people are 100% behind us. For, as we steer the ship of state and navigate the course for the next five years, let us not forget that people have become politically more mature, as shown by their rejection of the false pretences of the opposition parties, and at the same time this means that they will grow more critical of our policies and decisions. It is in this context of an increasingly more sophisticated electorate, more volatile in their reaction to the policies we make and implement, that we welcome the President's call for a more thorough debate in Parliament. There are the different "shades of opinions" that have to be "vigorously voiced". But not for us the vociferation of the opposition parties, or that minority of liberals who cloak their academic exposition in the name of democracy and human rights. For us it is a question of determining the bread and butter issues, the issues that affect the rice bowl, issues that concern our economic and industrial well-being, our jobs, better education for our children, improved social and health amenities - all of which are measures intended to better the quality of life in our country.

But in our efforts to seek a better life for our people we have to differentiate between those who genuinely want to improve themselves and those who have been given their inch but ask for that additional yard without putting in that necessary extra effort. The latter category is that group of people who believe the nation owes them a living, who do not believe that reward is equated to performance but subscribe to a premise that higher rewards must come with increasing haste and as a matter of right. Such an attitude, far from being latent in our society, is becoming evident and widespread with the younger generation and must be checked if we are not to go the way of many countries in Western Europe. The objective of improving and bettering one's life has been misconstrued as a desire to achieve immediate material gains, and this desire is in turn catalytic in generating an impatience with one's immobility up the organisational ladder or dissatisfaction with even the slightest quirk in the working environment. The resultant is the perennial situation of one type of intense labour mobility which in times of conducive economic circumstances rears its head under the synonym of "job-hopping". The announcement by the Minister for Labour that the National Wages Council will consider whether job-hoppers would be granted recommended full wage increases would to some extent discourage job-hopping. But it is hoped that the NWC will clearly define "job-hopping", and that nothing is done to discriminate against those who move not through mere fickleness, but who find it necessary to do so because of a genuine desire to upgrade one's skills or because he has incurred the displeasure of those to whom he is subordinate to. More often than not we have called upon employees to make sacrifices. It would not be untimely at this stage also to remind employers that they too have to make their contributions as a partner in the economy. When we talk of increasing productivity we tend to forget that employers must also make their contribution in terms of proper incentive schemes and the provision of more efficient plant and equipment. Lest we forget, ours is a system of tripartite partnership of labour, employer, and Government and no one partner subjugates the other and no one partner can shirk his responsibility.

Mr Speaker, Sir, the English press lamented on the lack of female representation in Parliament when the PAP announced its candidates for the elections. Perhaps that is why unwittingly to them the Minister of Defence has been thinking of drafting them. While it is not my intention to champion their cause and risk the wrath of those in this Chamber who would label me a `ladies' man', I would like to raise a point concerning working women who constitute half our work force. Women today want to be recognised in their own right, and have been, at least in Singapore. They want and have the right to pursue their careers, whether it is a job at the executive level or along the production line. But more often than not the pursuit of a career ends after marriage, that is to say, many are unable to reconcile the objective of carrying on working with that of raising and looking after a family. And we have therefore a situation where those who have acquired skills for years have to stop utilising what they have learned. And we also have a situation where foreign workers have to be employed when our married mothers could well have fitted into their places. But they are not to blame for no woman, not least any man, would like to face the trauma of a broken home, and of delinquent children as a result of neglect of the family all for the sake of a career. But the cost to society, in terms of wastage of learned skills, of having to rely on foreign labour, of not being able to make their contributions as citizens to our economy, of being unable to contribute to the family income, is high. It is not suffice to say that creches have been established where working mothers can leave their children and to carry on working, for it is obvious that these have not proved to be popular enough to encourage mothers to do so and concentrate on increasing their family income and to contribute to the economy. I call upon the Ministry of Labour and the Ministry of Social Affairs to work closely, perhaps in consultation with various women's organisations to scrutinise this problem.

Mr Speaker, Sir, I come now to the Addendum on the Ministry of Finance. It is encouraging to note that a special effort will be made to encourage industries, particularly those that supply parts to other manufacturers, We have to be blunt enough to admit, as the Member for Kallang has implied, that our present tax system has been a contributory factor in many investors shying away from Singapore. That there are many incentives given by the EDB is not good enough for such incentives have been aimed more at the giants' and the pioneers of industries. It is time for us now to give emphasis to small industries particularly those which are classified as supporting industries, that is, those which supply parts to others who put these parts together to constitute the finished product. And when there are adequate supporters' in a particular industry, this will encourage manufacturers of the finished goods requiring the parts made by these supporters', to set up their plants here, for easy access of supply of parts is a fundamental factor in determining plant location. The spiralling effect is obvious: more manufacturers of the finished product means more factories in the supporting industry. But which comes first? Supporting industries would not start here unless they are assured also of a ready market for their products. The chicken-and-egg' question then comes into play.

The call to encourage industries that seek wider and newer markets overseas is also a good one and the steps being taken by the Ministry of Communications to develop airfreighting facilities at our airport will be timely and will contribute vastly to the efforts of our export-oriented industries. For it is an undeniable fact of marketing that one's ability to move one's products to the market place at a fast pace and at the lowest possible cost determines whether one is successful or not. I do not doubt that we have enough airlines coming through Singapore to carry our products to all corners of the world. But what I doubt is the ability to do so at low cost. Singapore exporters do not enjoy the cheap rates of air charter cargo services going out of Singapore. Hong Kong offers such services to its industries for air charter cargo services can give rates that are as low as a quarter of rates offered by regular scheduled airlines, It is in this question of transportation cost that Singapore industries have often lost that competitive edge to their counterparts in Hong Kong. At the moment, consolidated air cargo services are allowed to bring in cargo to Singapore at low rates but are not allowed to operate similarly out of Singapore.

Mr Speaker, Sir, lastly I would like to dwell on a topic which has been raised on many occasions in this Chamber and no doubt would continue to do so. It concerns attitudes adopted by civil servants in dealing with members of the public. More often than not, civil servants, perhaps in their desire to show their efficiency and perhaps to show nice figures to their Ministers at the end of each financial year, follow every rule to the letter, even when unusual and unexpected circumstances do arise that merit special consideration. A story appeared in the Sunday Times last Sunday about the case of a family which was asked by the HDB to return the 13th month allowance already paid to an employee but who had the misfortune to die just a few days before 1976 ended. While it is not my intention to go into the legal aspects of the case, I cannot but agree with the person who wrote the article that there could not be a more glaring example than this of rigid unimaginative adherence to rules and regulations, and of an insensitive, inflexible and mindless bureaucracy.

Some hon. Members: Hear, hear!

Mr Tan Soo Khoon: It is this human element that is often sadly missing in our civil service and statutory boards. Abrupt replies to inquiries from members of the public, a straight `no' in the face instead of a proper explanation of the decision implemented, a deliberate display of high-handedness -these are all acts that give the impression, whether rightly or wrongly, that requests are sometimes turned down without a detailed scrutiny of the surrounding circumstances. Those who have forgotten could do well to remember that kindness begets kindness, courtesy imparted means courtesy returned, and a little smile goes a long way.

Sir, I support the motion.

5.26 p.m.

Mr P. Govindaswamy (Anson): Mr Speaker, Sir, I would like to add my support to the Motion moved by the Member for Ulu Pandan to thank the President for his speech. In his speech to the House on the 8th of this month, the President has charted the path of progress for the nation in the next few years. We owe our present well-being to hard work in the past, and we have to continue with it to maintain our progress for future prosperity. As we become more affluent, we shall have more to spend and to save.

Whilst spending is a relatively simple matter and although some people seem to have difficulty spending within their means, saving can pose quite a considerable problem.

The President in his speech has indicated that we have now to be prepared for slower growth rates, and therefore we have to adjust accordingly our spending habits both as a Government and as individuals. But then to maintain a low spending habit, the cost of living should be checked seriously.

The people living in flats face very high costs and their battle against inflation never ends. Since the home-ownership scheme was introduced, flat owners have to pay housing instalments, conservancy charges and many other indirect expenditure. Though the citizens are encouraged to purchase HDB flats, the maintenance of these flats is too high for the lower income group. For instance, a new flat may have two toilet bowls which would automatically cost the owner $6 in sewer fees. The bills for other appliances like the cooker, heater, etc, which are necessities, would be a bigger burden for the lower income group.

Besides this, the PUB does not help to alleviate the plight of the flat owner. The PUB levies tax on the total bill which includes the rental of cookers, heaters, etc. This surcharge should be reviewed. Is this surcharge really necessary? We should be paying tax on rates and not on rentals. This surcharge should only be levied where there is evidence of indiscriminate use of utilities and not on rentals of appliances, which are necessities. The Addendum on the Public Utilities Board states:

`69% of the Board's annual recurrent expenditure before depreciation and interest charges is on fuel oil for electricity generation. Continuous efforts are being made to increase operational efficiency of generators to conserve the consumption of fuel oil. As a result of increasing efficiency, the Board has, so far, been able to absorb the 10% increase .., in the price of fuel oil since October 1975, without increasing the price of electricity to consumers.'

The Board now says that the latest increase in oil prices will necessitate an upward revision of the tariffs. Is this really necessary? Can it not be avoided? Here again, in general, the people are most unhappy about the present rates and charges of the PUB and if the tariffs are raised there will be greater discontent among the masses. Perhaps the reserve fund could be used as a subsidy to undercut the inflation or perhaps the interest on the reserve fund could be used as a subsidy. On the other hand, we should not only depend on fuel oil as our source of energy. We should seriously think of other alternative sources of energy; like coal, etc. If rising oil prices is a great threat to our country, it is time that we should import coal as a standby or as a substitute for fuel, During the Occupation Period there was no oil. Everyone had to use coal. Why do we not try to use coal again instead of oil?

Sir, in the past too many schemes have been introduced on a trial and error basis without much proper pre-planning, consultation or even debate in Parliament. As such, some of them had complicated or confused the people as to what they were all about.

For example, the fringe car parks and the shuttle bus service which cost the Government some $7 million had an initial disastrous result. Fortunately, the Government had an alternative plan to salvage the scheme from total failure. The point which I would like to stress here is that in future thorough and proper pre-planning should be conducted prior to any implementation of projects or schemes. Otherwise if the plans turn out to be a failure, the people will be confused or Government funds wasted. In line with this, any amendments to taxes, rates or tariffs introduced by the Government or any statutory body, should be first brought to Parliament for debate and approval before implementing it, and it should never be like in the past where some taxes and amendment to rates were introduced overnight, which eventually resulted in comments here and there.

The Environment Ministry says that the present 28,750 licensed hawkers in Singapore are sufficient to cater for our population. I agree with it. Therefore, no new licence will be issued because of a diversion of manpower to more productive sectors of the economy. If this is the case, a review should be conducted on the existing hawkers to determine whether the licensed persons themselves are managing the stalls, because at the moment many stalls have been illegally sub-let to other people. Furthermore, the envisaged upward revision of hawker licence fees in stages, in view of the escalation of costs of building and maintenance of markets and food centres, may be a blow to consumers. If you increase the licence fee, they will increase the price of the food. Is this necessary? Can it not be avoided? Has any thought been given to the repercussion that will follow? I personally feel that hawkers will transfer the extra cost to the consumers. An alternative plan should be conceived to ensure that the additional costs will not be borne by the consumers.

Speaking about the civil service, many officers have reached the top of their salary scale and their pay has been stagnated for many years. If an officer's pay is stagnated for many years, he cannot work hard.

A study should be made of all these officers to assess their capabilities and potentialities and emplace them on an adjusted wage scheme.

As in the past, in promotion exercises, there were many instances of dissatisfaction in certain quarters, the reasons for which may be genuine. As an example, a matured person with many years of experience and paper qualification, finds a young graduate who had at one time been under his supervision is now promoted and takes over from his previous superior. Is this promotion not a mockery? Again there are certain jobs where the wrong sex is put in charge. Something should be done to this sort of promotion. Otherwise you may get a dissatisfied civil service which may affect the quality of work. Obviously you will find some experienced officers sticking to their job and passing time because of their many years' service. Others may be looking for greener pastures in the private sector. Proper instructions should be outlined to the effect that the right officer who has the experience and qualification should be in the right place and not a green-horn.

Sir, some years ago certain statutory bodies gave their employees who were in the Pension Scheme the opportunity to opt for the CPF scheme. This, in fact, was a wise move and many officers made use of the CPF to purchase HDB flats. However, those who did not opt at that time had some reservations for many personal reasons. Perhaps a second offer of an option should be considered because now that some time has passed the majority have already made up their mind either to stay on in the Pension Scheme or to opt for CPF in order to get help in the purchase of HDB flats. This option would also help in the computation of the benefits when a person retires from service.

Speaking of CPF, I wonder whether consideration could be given for employees to utilise their funds in the CPF to buy flats built by statutory bodies. If this service is extended to them the occupancy rate of flats built by the statutory bodies for their employees would be far better than what it is at the moment.

Sir, of late there has been a lot of exposure of traitors in our midst, Although some of them have been detected, detained and released, there seems to be some hard-cores who do not repent. Is there any proper reeducation programme being carried out?

The ISD is doing a good job in tracking these elements, many of whom have been brought to book. But what about those not detected or those who will be misled by the hardcore? The Home Affairs, Defence and Education Ministries should work very closely to check these anti-national elements at the grass-roots level.

Mr Speaker, Sir, the main aim in education is to strengthen moral and civic education. Whilst every effort is being done to raise the quality of education in the Republic, a close watch should be made at our schools where there are too many drop-outs, drug addicts, gangsters and all those undesirable acts. These schools require a cleansing operation. I received a complaint from a father that every day his son has been asking for money and if he does not give him any money, his son would beat him. The father reported this to the police and his son was arrested. The son was locked up for one day but was released on the next day. I feel that a proper re education programme must be carried out.

Finally, the Prime Minister has to be praised for his fruitful visits to different countries on goodwill tours. He has done a great deal to promote trade and international understanding for Singapore. It is welcoming to hear that we are encouraging and expecting more tourists to visit Singapore. However, the transportation service that is required to cope with an increased influx of tourists seems rather inadequate. Taxis and tour buses should be easily available for the tours.

Sir, on behalf of the people of Anson Constituency, I would like to express our high esteem for the President's Speech delivered at the opening of this Parliament.

5.43 p.m.

Haji Sha'ari Bin Tadin (Bedok): Mr Speaker, Sir, I rise in support of the motion moved by the Member for Ulu Pandan to thank the President for his address at the Opening of the First Session of the Fourth Parliament. It was an inspiring speech which should constitute the main guiding factor in our deliberations in this new session of Parliament. Many of my colleagues have already spoken on various vital issues ranging from PUB charges to Communist threats. All the 11 new Members have already made their maiden speeches, touching upon matters of bread and butter issues which are of common concern to the common man - the man-in-the-street. For it is the man-in-the-street who ultimately matters most. His life, his livelihood, his well-being, his problems, his family, his happiness - these are issues which should be our prime concern.

I have therefore chosen to speak, on a subject which is first and foremost of great concern to us all Singaporeans and which, at the same time, is very close to my own heart. I speak not only in my new role as a Backbencher and educationist but as a parent as well. The subject I shall speak on will concern all parents, that is, Education,

It is, I believe, the responsibility of the Government to provide the right kind of education for our children, as the right kind of education is the key to a good life, a good conduct, a correct attitude, a key to the world, both our own and the bigger one outside. Education being a process of living and an inseparable part of one's personal development, as one journeys through life's maze of problems and pressures, its importance cannot be over-stressed. This, I think, is recognized. However, while we have all recognized its importance and implications, have we been mapping out and implementing the right policies in education? It is a difficult task, rio doubt. And upon the shoulders of the Ministry of Education has fallen this difficult task. The Ministry of Education is not only responsible for the formulation of our present educational policies, it should also be responsible for their successful implementation and to ensure their practicality and usefulness. Has this been the case? This is the question.

The past few years have seen a great deal of debate on and discussion of our education system, not only within this House but also without. In some cases, the deliberations have been very intense, mainly in the problem areas. Much has also been printed on the subject. One particular newspaper published a series of articles, based on surveys it conducted. Parents and teachers joined in the fray with their letters and articles in the Mentor, the official organ of the Singapore Teachers' Union. Much of the statements has been critical. Some of the utterances have been evaluative and useful. There have also been instances of angry and contemptuous comment. All these go to show the immense concern our people in general have over the education of their children, in the future of their children. The questions that follow are: How much have we who are in Government taken note of all these? How much of the useful points raised have we used in our reviews and reevaluation of policies? There appears to be a continuing discontent over our educational policies.

Sir, let me touch upon a few areas in our educational policies and our education system which have brought about a great deal of unhappiness and not a little confusion. The unhappiness and confusion apparently cut across the entire score board - principals, teachers, parents and pupils. The general feeling during the past few years has been that students have been made the "guinea-pigs" of what appeared to be a series of rather haphazard experiments formulated totally on an ad hoc basis, without any prior research nor any in-depth study done. Principals and teachers are equally apprehensive and concerned over the frequent "chops and changes". But most concerned of all are parents, naturally. They are often heard complaining about the frequent implementation of short-lived policies and new ideas, only to be aborted before they have time to take root. New experiments are abandoned as swiftly as they are implemented. Can we wonder the concern expressed all around? The recent Ministry of Education announcement of its decision to impose a second language requirement for entry into pre-university classes in 1979 and 1980 is an example of what has generated much concern among parents. It has also aroused anger and annoyance. Students begin to feel insecure all over again, unsure of their future and what is actually to come.

What is needed now is to convince all concerned, especially parents whose children are, in the final analysis, the ones to benefit or to suffer, that there is every justification for this fresh imposition. There may be, as there should be, very good grounds for the move. But if there are, we have not heard them in clear terms, in simple language, and in convincing tone. What parents and pupils are uneasy about is that this may yet be another one of those many new experiments and new ideas that crop up in the minds of Ministry officials. What they wish to know is whether this new decision is the result of a careful study and survey of the real needs of pre-university students. And would this really create a new thirst for the learning of a second or third language? Or would students do it simply because they are compelled to and not because they are interested? There are, too, numerous other attendant aspects of the second language learning process that must necessarily be looked into before a far-reaching change of this nature is implemented. We must presume that the situation has been fully assessed and evaluated. But has it? Factual and forthright answers to these various questions would go a long way to dispel the doubts lingering in the minds of parents and pupils. I think we need these answers and assurances.

Mr Speaker, Sir, in the Addendum to the Presidential Address on the Ministry of Education, it says, amongst other things, that:

`Moral and civics education is mainly taught through the subject Education For Living which is a combination of Civics. History and Geography) in the pupils' mother tongue'

Sir, as far as I know, when the Education For Living idea was introduced, it was aimed to give exposure to pupils doing a second language, which may not necessarily be the mother tongue. Let me give an example. To many children who go to an English-medium school, English is a foreign language. Even for children of Chinese ethnic origin who come from English-speaking homes, they will find that the learning of Mandarin is not an easy task to cope with, Mandarin not being their mother tongue. In such homes, it is probable that other than English, Cantonese, or Hokkien or Teochew would be spoken. But Malay children attending an English-medium school would find it easy enough to learn Malay as a second language because they speak Malay at home. Then again, the Education For Living idea is carried Out only in the primary schools, but not in the secondary schools, where Civics, History and Geography are required to be offered separately. Where is the continuity?

Sir, it is the feeling that the problems in education today are traceable to the primary schools, where all kinds of what must have appeared to parents and pupils alike, very ad hoc ideas and decisions - like the Primary Pilot Project, the Education For Living, and what have you! While the number of these new-fangled ideas introduced in the recent years has been disconcerting, the frequency with which they have been introduced has been astounding. Where have all these ideas so suddenly come from? The answer would be enlightening.

The resulting frustration is inevitable. The resulting feeling of insecurity rears its ugly head. The resulting position can be most damaging.

Take what took place a few years back when almost equal weightage was given to the second language because of a policy change. Many pupils attempting to achieve equal proficiency in languages at the same time actually ended up achieving neither. They finished "half baked" in both languages What was, for example, the rationale behind this policy change? Was there any attempt made to assess the damage done as a result? Our education system, with its examination and achievement oriented characteristics, places demands and pressures upon our children to an extent of daily harassment with hardly any let-up. Language learning capacity differs from person to person. This must be realised. To expect everyone and all to progress similarly together in this difficult learning process is to expect too much. It would be unrealistic, and it would be impractical.

Sir, the current wave of social ills prevalent all around us is another aspect of education I would like to touch upon. For the ills of society are traceable to the schools. I feel that there should be a spiritual balance too in our education system. This would certainly combat the making of future drug addicts, drug traffickers, gangsters and other such like men of menace in society. A touch of religion is always good. Any moral value, strengthened by religious belief, at once becomes a matter of greater conviction and a better sense. Otherwise, the trend towards a money-minded and materialistic society would continue unabated. Proper, correct all round education should provide for the development of the intellectual, physical, social, aesthetic, and spiritual, areas of a growing person. One need not be a fanatic in any of these areas. A balance of all these aspects of the growing process is most desirable. This should be our aim and purpose in teaching the young.

As a last point, may I now turn my attention to the area of Extra-Curricular Activities, or ECA for short. The aims and objectives are laudable enough. We do want the rugged Singaporean more than just bookworms, As they say, a sound mind in a sound body is the best thing in the world. Games are made for health. Debates and the like are made for intelligent enjoyment. Uniformed organisations are made for smartness and discipline. Other ,extracurricular activities are made for leisure. These are all fine, until their implementation goes wrong, until the importance becomes lopsided, until the real purpose goes cockeyed. The over-stress placed on ECA activities in the recent years has turned the original aim and purpose more than a little awry. The result? Pupils participate in ECA activities not so much to better themselves physically or to better the correct enjoyment of their leisure, but to gain points to add to their academic achievements, in order to gain admission to pre.-university classes. This is true in countless instances in schools all over the island. All this again has been the result of over-emphasis placed on a "new idea" - I say "new idea" because the idea of physical well-being complementing mental and intellectual well-being is as old as the hills.

Sir, my purpose in bringing up all these various points is not so much to be unduly critical, but merely to express the general feeling prevalent among principals, teachers, parents and pupils like. But more importantly, to urge the authorities concerned to make a careful and an in-depth study - a real, genuine survey - of a situation before making policy changes which in the ultimate analysis affect our citizens as a whole, for today's school children are tomorrow's citizens of the State, who will have a hand in the running of the government, the business world and society. The implications of a drastic change is often lost sight of in the enthusiasm of implementing a new idea. The frequency of changes can also be bewildering. But these would be quite in order if they are made after a careful study, not just because a few principals happen to agree with the changes. I do not think I need elaborate on the importance of a good survey and the value of a thorough study before one embarks upon a new idea which is to be implemented and which will affect the lives of hundreds of thousands of our future citizens.

Then there is the question of making the reasons for far-reaching changes widely known. This is equally important for general information and acceptance. Otherwise the unhealthy feeling of "throat-ramming" will, rightly or wrongly, persist. Needless to say, a policy change in .education that has the acceptance and support of the people - parents in particular - is certainly bound to have a greater chance of success than otherwise. Any successful policy change is also bound to be easier to maintain and sustain upon implementation, thereby avoiding the rather unpleasant task of having to make frequent "chops and changes" and to offer repeated explanations.

In his Addendum to the President's Speech the Prime Minister, amongst other things, correctly pointed out that our youth "take the relative prosperity of Singapore as the norm" and everything else that goes with it, like "high expectations, the desire to seek jobs in comfortable surroundings". Sir, the young that we are much concerned about are, in fact, the products of our educational policy - the PAP Government's educational policy based on the acceptance of the 1956 Report of the All-Party Committee of the Singapore Legislative Assembly on Chinese education which provided, inter alia, the introduction of bilingual education in primary schools and trilingual education in secondary schools. Our present educational system was the result of the Prof. Lim Tay Boh Education Commission of Inquiry which was set up in 1962 when we were part of Malaysia. Its Final Report which embodied the unanimous findings and recommendations was submitted in 1963. Since then, more than a decade ago, our educational system has undergone so many changes not only in terms of the frequent ad hoc policy changes that have caused a great deal of confusion, irritation and frustration among teachers, principals, pupils and parents alike, but in that period of seven years there have been six changes of Ministers. In the Addendum on the Ministry of Education much stress has been laid on the Ministry's plans to reduce drastically the "enormous wastage in terms of pupils not benefiting from the system". This may appear to be fine on paper but I do not think that some of those measures that will be taken could produce the desired results.

To avoid further "mistakes" and in the light of what I have already mentioned, Sir, I would like to urge the Government to set up a Commission of Inquiry to review the present Government educational policy. Its contents and administration in all fields and to make recommendations to the Government. I feel very strongly, Sir, that whilst we have done very well in the field of technical and vocational education, the implementation of our bilingual policy and the method of second language teaching and learning need a thorough study and, if need be, a general overhaul.

Sir, I have tried to be both critical and constructive. I hope my comments will not fall on deaf ears - as so many comments on education have in the past.

Some hon. Members: Hear, hear!

Mr Speaker: It is 6.00 p.m. now.