Interview with Chan Chun Sing

Leadership a work in constant progress
By Tan Weizhen, TODAY, 30 Jun 2012

The man touted by some to be the next Prime Minister believes that the Republic's fourth generation leadership is not yet in place, even though it is only eight years away from the deadline that Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong has set himself to pass on the baton.

In a wide-ranging interview with TODAY, Acting Minister for Community Development, Youth and Sports Chan Chun Sing, 42, on Friday noted that the leadership is still "thin", despite the induction of himself and Education Minister Heng Swee Keat into the Cabinet after the General Election last year.

Said Mr Chan: "It is a constant search. We have a very thin layer now and it is work in constant progress."

Reiterating that leadership renewal is a continuing process, the former Chief of Army nevertheless said he was not quite comfortable with the "fourth generation leadership" tag.

Said Mr Chan: "The only slight thing I don't like about the 'fourth generation' term is that it's as if there is a distinct break.

"But if you look at the way we have organised ourselves over all these years, it's not a distinct break."

He added: "Every election we bring in some, we retire some - so there's always a fresh inflow of new blood, new ideas."

Describing the batches of national leaders as "first, second, third or fourth generation" also implies a Cabinet built around a particular individual, he felt.

"Of course, the leader plays a part, but more important than the leader is the team. And if you look at the team, there's a certain continuity," he said.

Mr Chan added that "it's not obvious that the next Prime Minister must come from this team, and not another team". He said: "My position has always been that I'm not worried about the individual. I'm more concerned about the team having the requisite skill sets, so that when called upon, you have the skills."

The fact that the next Prime Minister will be chosen by his peers in the Cabinet has not stopped speculation that Mr Chan - given his credentials - is the Prime Minister-in-waiting.

On whether he feels added pressure, Mr Chan stressed that he would rather focus on doing good things for the people.

He pointed out: "There can be only one PM but that doesn't mean that if you are not the PM, you cannot make a contribution to the team."

On a personal note, he concedes that, not only were his friends surprised that he went into politics, he did not envisage it himself.

Describing himself as "not a political creature", he said: "I didn't plan to go into the army. I didn't expect myself to do well in the army. I didn't come (into politics) because I want to be the PM, or the Deputy PM. You come in because this bunch of people you (will) work with are honourable people. You want to do some good, make a contribution."

Amid the changing political landscape, the Government has been increasing its engagement with the citizenry.

While there are detractors who still feel that, in some cases, the Government has already made up its mind before consulting citizens, Mr Chan reiterated that the key lies in finding a "sweet spot", where there is agreement that it is at an appropriate stage for consultation.

He readily acknowledges that the Government is still feeling its way and noted that there is no one-size-fits-all approach.

For instance, public consultation for social safeguards for casinos will be quite different from that for issues involving the redevelopment of Bukit Brown, he said.

And for every person who feels the Government should consult the citizens at a more preliminary stage, there will be others who expect the policy-makers to frame a particular issue before seeking people's opinions.

Mr Chan also noted that, ironically, any dissatisfaction over the Government's consultation efforts stems from its desire to constantly pre-empt issues before they snowball into problems.

Citing the building of the eldercare centres as an example, Mr Chan said: "(We) could have avoided these issues politically by not doing anything in the short term."

He added: "Then, one day, everyone will grow old and, suddenly, there will be a huge clamour for certain services to be provided. When the clamour starts, you will have no political problems, you will have enough political support."

Dissecting the wage issue
Bigger challenges are the income gap and meeting Singaporeans' aspirations, says Minister Chan Chun Sing
by Tan Weizhen, TODAY, 2 Jul 2012

With policymakers around the world grappling with the forces of globalisation, the Republic - as one of the most open economies - has been feeling the brunt, including the growing income disparity.

While much of the recent public discourse has centred on the plight of the low wage earners, Cabinet Minister Chan Chun Sing, who helms the ministry synonymous with state support for the needy, points out that taking care of the low income and making sure they have enough to get by is, relatively, an easier issue to resolve. The far trickier challenges are meeting the aspirations of highly-educated Singaporeans and determining the "acceptable range" in terms of the gap between the haves and the have-nots.

Despite calls to the contrary, the Government has held firm on its position against adopting a minimum wage, citing, among other things, the negative impact to the economy's competitiveness.

Speaking to TODAY in an interview last Friday, Mr Chan, who is the Acting Minister for Community Development, Youth and Sports, reiterated that raising productivity and increasing social transfers would be the way to go to ensure a basic standard of living for low wage earners. "When we do these two (measures) concurrently, (the salary for the low wage worker) is now enough to buy milk powder and other basic necessities ... But now we cannot say there is no problem. It is not just the absolute issue we are solving in today's world ... but we are also dealing with a relative issue," Mr Chan said.

There are many more graduates today, Mr Chan noted, and it is hard to convince some of them that it is their station in life to be earning less than a fellow graduate, he said. "Supposing that we want to move up and narrow the relativity, to what extent are we prepared to do that as a society? What would be an acceptable range?"

Apart from the narrowing the gap between the haves and the have-nots, Mr Chan stressed that the Government also needs to meet the aspirations of Singaporeans. The fear that an aspiration is unattainable creates "a lot of angst" among people, he noted. "The Government will try to solve the absolute part, but the Government may not be able to solve the aspirational part - (it's) very difficult," he said.

Tackling falling birthrates

Last week, the Government announced that it is reviewing its marriage and parenthood policies. And for some Singaporeans, it is the high cost of living that has put them off having more children.

But Mr Chan pointed out: "I've seen people earning S$2,000 with two kids, I've seen people earning S$5,000 but never enough. It is very difficult to tell people that some part of it is a personal choice."

Based on national data, it is becoming clear that when it comes to encouraging couples to have more children, it is not just about money, Mr Chan said.

He cited how, statistically, income levels are not proportional to the number of children that couples have.

"If money is the only factor, higher income people should have kids," he said.

To tackle the issue holistically, Mr Chan felt that there must be measures to influence outcomes at four different phases: Encouraging singles to marry, getting married couples to have their first child, persuading those who already have a child to have more, and incentivising those who can afford it to have more than three children.

"Different people, depending on which stage you are at, you will need different help," Mr Chan said.

He added: "Your experience of having your first kid will determine how fast you have your second kid. Supposing you need to quit your job, you cannot handle your first, then you will be very uptight about having your second kid. So we need to ensure the experience of having your first kid is smooth."

On the issue of fees at childcare centres, Mr Chan said that he would be more inclined to help those "who really need it" by subsidising the operators.

"The issue is with finite resources, the hard decisions that we need to make. Where do we put our resources to do maximum good and minimum bad? That's always a tough issue in social policies," said Mr Chan.