Rally speeches, govt records now on National Archives portal

By Melody Zaccheus, The Straits Times, 29 Apr 2016

Addressing the young nation at the 1968 National Day Rally, then Prime Minister of Singapore Lee Kuan Yew said it had been a "splendid year" for the country.

With determination and confidence written on his face, he said "the figures sparkle" and the next step was to chart out the course for the year ahead.

That stirring speech and others that listed the key developments and challenges of the Republic, as captured in the annual National Day messages and rally speeches by Singapore prime ministers over the decades, are now available to the public on the National Archives of Singapore's (NAS) online portal www.nas.gov.sg/archivesonline/

They include Mr Lee's early rally speeches, which were also delivered in Hokkien, from 1966 to 1979.

The recent addition of these audiovisual recordings to the NAS portal was announced by Minister for Communications and Information Yaacob Ibrahim at his ministry's work plan seminar yesterday.

The clips were assembled over the past year by NAS' audiovisual team, which worked to sync silent film footage with sound tapes.

Dr Yaacob said these speeches give an insight into the outlook of the nation's leaders at each stage of the country's development.

He said: "These National Day speeches will help us gain a better understanding of the challenges that Singapore faced, the aspirations that our leaders shared with our fellow citizens and the policies that have shaped Singapore and made it what it is today."

PM Lee: Nation's success must be measured by values too

He hopes more will give back to build a more gracious society

By Goh Chin Lian, The Straits Times, 10 Nov 2012

SUCCESS is not just about economic growth but growth in values such as compassion and empathy, Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong said last night.

He also spoke of how many people had shared with him their hope for a more gracious, big-hearted Singapore at a dinner last night to celebrate the 60th anniversary of the Singapore Children's Society (SCS).

"We can't just measure our success by GDP growth, important as this is, but also by the growth of our values: compassion, empathy, altruism, love for our fellow citizens," he said.

That has been a theme of Mr Lee's recent speeches, including the National Day Rally in August when he dwelt on how Singapore can become a home with heart.

Participants in the ongoing national conversation on the country's future have also spoken at length about values.

Mr Lee hopes more Singaporeans will do their part to help bring about a more gracious society by giving back.

"I hope more Singaporeans will step forward to contribute in big ways and small, because this is the way Singapore can remain our home with a heart," he said.

NTUC calls for 2 weeks of paternity leave

By Hetty Musfirah, Channel NewsAsia, 6 Oct 2012

The labour movement has revised its position on the issue of paternity leave.

Instead of a compulsory two-day leave for fathers, it is now proposing for the government to grant two weeks of paid paternity leave.

This should be over and above the current 16 weeks of maternity leave.

The change comes after NTUC surveyed 1,000 people in September.



Ms Cham Hui Fong, NTUC's assistant secretary-general, said: "The sense is that ideally the paternity leave... should not be part of the 16 weeks that's currently provided for the women today. The sense is that it is already just right or not enough for the women, so let's not touch the four months (of) maternity leave."

PM Lee quizzed on ideal population size at forum

He says it's difficult to give a concrete number as the situation is evolving

By Phua Mei Pin, The Straits Times, 24 Sep 2012

A DISCUSSION on the country's ideal population size became the highlight of an hour-long televised forum with Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong last night.

And while he said it was difficult to pinpoint a concrete number, he estimated that Singapore would be able to house about six million people in the future.

Said PM Lee: "It's very hard to give a concrete figure because the situation is evolving. We're gradually increasing our land area, and if we rebuild our older towns, then we can accommodate more people.

"Today our population is over five million. In the future, six million or so should not be a problem. Beyond that, we'll have to think more carefully."

That number falls in line with the 6.5million figure that has been used as a government planning parameter since 2007. With the population standing at 5.26 million as at December last year, and frustration about currently overtaxed public infrastructure, concern has been rising over Singapore's population size.

The question followed a frank exchange with 30 Singaporeans on issues ranging from pre-school education to the state of the Chinese community.



Acting Minister for Community Development, Youth and Sports Chan Chun Sing, Minister of State for Finance and Transport Josephine Teo and Senior Parliamentary Secretary for Education and Law Sim Ann were also on the panel at the forum conducted in Mandarin.

Participants were upbeat about the prospects of future generations, and in full support of Mr Lee's call for less stress on children and more games-based learning at pre-school level. But several people voiced a reluctance to start families.

Nine in 10 polled say intolerance is growing: REACH survey on National Day Rally 2012

But over 80% say society is harmonious, in survey by govt feedback unit REACH

By Janice Heng, The Straits Times, 23 Sep 2012

Almost nine in 10 citizens in a recent government poll agreed that there are "some troubling signs" of Singaporeans becoming less tolerant.

Seven in 10 also thought it a concern that Singaporeans have been "expressing nasty views on foreigners". But more than eight in 10 still felt that Singapore society today was harmonious.

These were some of the findings of a telephone poll of 813 citizens - aged 18 to 79 - by government feedback unit REACH on issues raised by the Prime Minister in his National Day Rally speech. The poll was conducted from Aug 29 to Sept 3, a few days after the rally on Aug 26.



Almost all of those polled agreed with Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong's call for Singaporeans to have bigger hearts, as well as the other rally themes of offering hope for the future and making Singapore the "best home".



There was also support for specific policies, both potential and actual. Almost eight in 10 thought singles should be allowed to buy flats directly from the Housing Board, which PM Lee said the Government was looking into.

Currently, singles can buy flats only on the resale market.

Post-Rally forum focuses on values of the young

Participants also worry about declining use of Mandarin among younger Singaporeans

By Janice Heng, The Straits Times, 23 Sep 2012

Concerns about civic and moral values and fluency in the Chinese language dominated a Mandarin dialogue on the National Day Rally yesterday.

But the two ministers chairing the session gently reminded the audience that the Government cannot tackle such issues alone.

In his Rally speech last month, Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong hoped that Singapore could have a "bigger heart". In his Mandarin speech, he also emphasised the need to preserve traditions, including Chinese culture.

These themes resurfaced during yesterday's 90-minute dialogue, organised by government feedback unit Reach and Chinese daily Lianhe Zaobao. The 200 participants included Lianhe Zaobao readers and Reach contributors.

Of the 23 speakers, four asked if the right values were being taught to the young, with one Mandarin teacher lamenting that "many parents themselves don't seem to know what moral values are".

Others worried that younger Singaporeans no longer spoke Mandarin and were at risk of becoming monolingual.

Health Minister Gan Kim Yong and Acting Minister for Community Development, Youth and Sports Chan Chun Sing acknowledged the concerns, but noted that they are not the sole responsibilities of either the Government or schools.

Elders should set good examples for the young, said Mr Gan. "Our values, for most of us, came from our parents."

Similarly, the Government cannot mandate the use of Mandarin at home, for instance. What it can do is create more opportunities for speaking the language. In this, the community and the media can help by organising Mandarin activities, he added.

Indian community focuses on national issues

Minister gratified that no woes specific to Indians were raised at post-Rally dialogue

By Phua Mei Pin, THe Straits Times, 20 Sep 2012

THE first post-National Day Rally dialogue with the Indian community began with a question that appeared to focus on the community. Why, someone asked, weren't there any Indian ministers speaking at the rally?

The confident answer came quickly - not from the politicians chairing the dialogue, but from another participant. And it was: The opportunity would come at a future rally.

Then, the rest of the session last night quickly moved back to the usual hot topics that have dominated past post-rally dialogues, from birth rates, housing and transport, to education, manpower and ageing.

This heartened Environment and Water Resources Minister Vivian Balakrishnan, who noted that these national issues were issues that concerned all communities in Singapore.

It was a "gratifying discovery", he told reporters, that no problems related to the Indian community were raised during the dialogue. And this, he added, reflected well on it.

"It just shows the extent to which we are integrated into the life of this nation. Our major challenges are exactly the same challenges that confront us as a nation," he said.

Last night's dialogue with more than 200 members of the Indian community was the latest in a series of sessions held to get Singaporeans' feedback on Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong's rally speech last month.

Malays can do without burden of affirmative action

I read last Sunday's report ("Ex-AMP head critiques 'myth of meritocracy'") and felt saddened by Mr Nizam Ismail's call for affirmative action.

The Malay-Muslim community in Singapore has risen in education, family togetherness, employability and quality of life over the years through consistent effort.

The community started on a lower base and battled many social problems. And it has progressed much on its own steam.

Mr Nizam's refusal to see the improvements made but to instead lean on phrases like "stubborn gaps" and "social inequality among the races" is puzzling.

His lack of confidence in the ability of his own community is a put-down for the growing number of Malay-Muslims doing well as students, undergraduates, skilled workers and professionals; and as parents raising healthy families. They have risen with fellow Singaporeans purely on merit.

Racial quotas will only lead to a loss of respect for the very people they seek to benefit. Would he want the doctors, firemen, soldiers, or teachers of any one ethnic group to be seen to be lesser than those from other groups?

Singapore will stick to policy of encouraging traditional families: Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong at TV forum 2012

By Imelda Saad, Channel NewsAsia, 14 Sep 2012

Singapore Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong has said that the country will stick to its policy of encouraging traditional families.

He made this point at a television forum hosted by Channel NewsAsia to discuss the country's future on Friday.

The forum, called "A Conversation With PM Lee", also involved Education Minister Heng Swee Keat, and Members of Parliament Indranee Rajah and Dr Intan Azura Mokhtar.

The Singaporeans at the forum were a diverse mix - entrepreneurs, students, housewives and even new citizens.

The forum was not so much about getting immediate answers from the panel, but rather it was a chance to air their views and aspirations about Singapore, in a no-holds barred discussion.

One of those at the forum, fashion designer Jo Soh, said: "If I can't find a husband that I want to marry, why can't I have a child as a single woman? Or why can't de-facto couples be recognised? Why can't de-facto couples have children and still have the same access to subsidies and rights?"

It was a question that prompted PM Lee to ask for a straw poll on the issue - should non-married couples have children?

The vote was split almost equal - 46 per cent voted "yes" and 54 per cent said "no".

While it took Mr Lee by surprise, he underlined the fact that Singapore society has benefited from sticking to a policy of encouraging traditional families.

A Conversation With PM Lee: TV Forum 2012

14 Sep 2012






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Singapore will stick to policy of encouraging traditional families: Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong
Mandarin forum "和总理对话"

Do you want to be a dinosaur or bacteria?: Gary Hamel

Work according to the best values, not rules, and you will always add value to tomorrow's economy, management guru Gary Hamel tells senior writer Cheong Suk-Wai
The Straits Times, 14 Sep 2012

IMAGINE a workplace where you have no boss, no designation and no obligation to commit to work you do not want. You may skip any meeting you consider a waste of time, use company money to test a crazy business idea and even choose with whom you want to work.

Seems like the height of anarchy, right?

Well, says management don Gary Hamel, welcome to Management 2.0 where everyone, and not just the bosses, calls the shots.

This way, ideas bubble up from all across the organisation - a good way to stay ahead in today's ultra-competitive, super-speedy and ever-uncertain world.

Management 2.0 is his antidote to the existing lumbering corporate pecking order.

Dr Hamel, 58, was in town late last month to give the Singapore Institute of Management's Annual Management Lecture on how managers must change the way they oversee people.

He emphasised how crucial ethics was to success.

He talked about big companies; not to laud them, but to flay them - Microsoft, he charged as being near obsolete and having, as he put it, "been late to every trend in software and advertising services in the past 10 years".

He criticised the field of management studies, crowded with "I have the answer" gurus.

As he told his audience here: "We management thinkers have been fiddling at the margins. We talked about flattening hierarchies but did not eliminate them. We talked about empowering people but would not surrender power to them. We asked people to choose their leaders but did not give them authority to do so."

A caring nurse even outside duty hours

Woman lauded in National Day Rally speech for helping MRT passenger sees it as a duty

By Melissa Pang, The Straits Times, 8 Sep 2012

MOST people would be flattered to be mentioned by the Prime Minister in his National Day Rally speech.

But Ms Sathiyawathi Ganeson, 25, squirmed uncomfortably in her seat and smiled sheepishly when the matter was brought up at an interview on Thursday.

She was lauded for her gracious act in helping a sick passenger on an MRT train.

"Actually, I really didn't expect this," said the Malaysian who has worked in Alexandra Hospital for a year.

"I really don't know what to say also," added Ms Ganeson.

In Mr Lee Hsien Loong's annual National Day Rally address last month, he expressed concern over Singaporeans' attitudes towards foreigners. Foreigners behaving badly evoke overwhelming condemnation but good deeds largely go unnoticed. Bad Singaporean behaviour, however, is ignored.

He cited a Straits Times Forum letter about a sick woman on an MRT train - she was ignored by everyone but a foreign nurse came to her aid.

No one filmed the incident and there was no Internet response to the letter.

Not that it mattered to Ms Ganeson, who put it down simply as answering the call of duty.

Of wrongful pride and prejudice

By Sim Ann, Published The Straits Times, 7 Sep 2012

LOCAL-FOREIGNER relations can be dicey, to say the least.

I see this in my work as a Member of Parliament. It is not unusual for residents, complaining about noise or litter created by their neighbours, to whisper to me in lowered tones: "You know, they are foreigners." Sometimes they are; frequently they are not.

Any community dispute where one party is a permanent resident or a foreigner is likely to have an invidious dimension. It takes all the tact and skill one can summon to keep both sides focused on the actual problem, and not let identity conflict cloud the issue. That is easier said than done, and I for one don't always succeed.

Recently, I was asked to adjudicate between two households quarrelling over corridor space.

It was clear that one household - let's call them Mr and Mrs C - was being unreasonable. Their shelves, potted plants and other belongings took up so much space along the walls that their neighbours were left with only a miserable corner for a small shoe rack. And now their things were advancing into the middle of the corridor too. "Our plants need more sun," explained Mr and Mrs C.

Mrs D, from the flat next door, pleaded with me to speak to Mr and Mrs C. According to her, prior attempts at reasoning with them had failed.

I was glad to try. Handling neighbourly disputes is bread- and-butter work for any MP.

But there was a slight hitch. Mrs D's Mandarin accent was almost local, but I could hear remnants of an unfamiliar lilt. When I asked, she told me she came from a province in southern China. On the other hand, both Mr and Mrs C were true-blue locals.

Uh-oh. An alarm bell went off in my head. Visions of imaginary online headlines spewing vitriol flashed across my mind. "Pro-foreigner MP sides with PRC woman in corridor dispute!" or something nastier.

Mrs D must have noticed my hesitation, because she quickly added: "I have been living here for many years."

I caught sight of a man inside Mrs D's flat. "Is that your husband," I asked. "Please ask him to come out and speak with me," I said. As it turned out, Mr D is a Singaporean, born and bred. Let me be honest - I was relieved.

He was not as articulate as his wife, but I insisted on dealing with him. It became a mediation involving locals: Mr D, Mr and Mrs C, facilitated by me.

This scene has been replaying itself in my mind lately. I have asked myself whether I did right not to include Mrs D in my effort to mediate. I could not help wondering if Mrs D's foreign origins had something to do with the fact that they could not settle the dispute among themselves.

More than anything else, I have asked myself what I would have done if it had turned out that both Mr and Mrs D were not local-born.

I share this personal experience to make the point that local-foreigner relations are real issues on the ground. For those of us whose job it is to maintain peace and harmony in the community, it is something we wrestle with constantly. But we also know there are many potential pitfalls whenever the subject is raised, that few are motivated to talk about it.

Social spending - where will money come from?

By Aaron Low, The Straits Times, 4 Sep 2012

THE debate on increasing Singapore's social spending centres on two questions.

The first is: How much more to spend? The next: How to fund it?

On the first, the Government has already started to commit itself to significantly higher spending. This has come about in response to two key trends. Singapore's ageing society and widening income inequality mean the Government will have to spend more on health care for the elderly; and on social spending to level up the playing field and to redistribute income.

As Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong said in his Aug 26 National Day Rally speech, "nothing falls from heaven". So taxes will have to go up eventually to fund higher social expenditures - "not immediately" but within the next 20 years.

Annual health-care spending will double to $8 billion over the next five years. This year, the Government introduced the permanent GST Voucher, which pays out a combination of cash, conservancy rebates and Medisave top-ups, with more for older and lower-wage Singaporeans, to offset increases in the goods and services tax. This will cost the Government $680 million this year.

Also formalised in 2007 is the Workfare Income Supplement, which supplements low-wage workers' income with cash and Central Provident Fund (CPF) top-ups. This cost the Government $440 million last year.

Plans are also under way to spend $60 billion over the next 10 years to improve the transport system.

All that adds up to rising expenditure for the Singapore Government. In the last financial year, the Government collected $50.5 billion in tax revenues and charges. It spent $47.5 billion, resulting in a primary surplus of about $3 billion.

But the Government also spent $8.58 billion of special transfers on programmes such as Workfare, and top-ups to various endowment funds, such as the Medical Endowment Fund.

To make up the shortfall, the Government tapped $7.91 billion of returns from investment income from its reserves. This is known as Net Investment Returns (NIR).

After deducting and adding all the elements, the Government had an overall net surplus of $2.32 billion last year.

At a time when developed countries in Europe and the United States are drowning in sovereign debt, Singapore's fiscal position is much envied and admired.

But what happens when spending has to go up in the years ahead? Just one item of higher expenditure already promised - raising health spending by $4 billion - would have wiped out last year's $3 billion primary surplus.

So where will the money come from?

The new Singapore narrative

by Leong Chan-Hoong, Published TODAY, 4 Sep 2012

Pause for a second and imagine this: You pick up a random bunch of people from the streets and line them side by side. What would be the immediate and salient observation to the naked eye?

Without prompting, most of us will talk about the visual differences, their gender, the way they dress, their behaviour and perhaps any physical indication to their racial background and religious inclinations. 

The mathematically inclined may argue that one out of three is a foreigner, based on the demographic data in the statistical yearbook. 

This thought process, in essence, is the typical framework in the management of diversity. Some look for differences, while others may see "deficits".

The theme in this year's National Day Rally has shifted markedly away from the traditional economic-centric messages to one that emphasises aspiration, identity, and belongingness - with the theme of Hope, Heart And Home. 

At a time when sentiment towards foreigners is highly critical and unflattering, Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong has rightly and audaciously zeroed in on our social fabric as the theme of the rally. 

Our Singapore Conversation Facebook page launched on 3 September 2012

Heng Swee Keat starts 'national conversation' on Facebook page

The Straits Times, 4 Sep 2012

EDUCATION Minister Heng Swee Keat made his first posting yesterday on a new Facebook page, "OurSGconversation", in another step by the nation's leaders to start the "national conversation" on Singapore's future.

In his welcome posting, he called on Singaporeans to keep contributing their ideas and thoughts, explained why the conversation was necessary, and promised it would be as inclusive as possible.

"We will engage Singaporeans from all walks of life through multiple channels, including dialogue sessions and this Facebook page," he wrote. "Let us share and listen to each other's concerns, hopes and aspirations with open minds and open hearts."

Mr Heng will helm a committee of younger ministers to review Singapore's policies. While he has yet to reveal the members of his team, he has been urging people to join the conversation on what they want Singapore to be like in 20 years' time.

 

The Facebook page features a logo made up of a heart with the words "Our SG conversation" as well as "Home Heart Hope" - the key themes of Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong's National Day Rally last month. It includes postings of links to articles and videos about the national conversation.

Why so ungracious?

PRIME Minister Lee Hsien Loong challenged Singaporeans to be big-hearted towards one another and to foreigners.

In his National Day Rally speech on Sunday, he praised Singaporeans who worked to improve society.

But he also highlighted self-centred and intolerant behaviour: quarrels between neighbours, refusal to have homes for the elderly nearby and vitriol against foreigners, often expressed online and anonymously.



He urged citizens not to focus only on the bad behaviour of foreigners but to recognise all the good they do as well.

He said: 'It's ultimately up to us how big-hearted we want to be. We may be a small island, we cannot be small-minded.

'We cannot just be a prosperous and successful country. We’ve also got to be a caring, a generous, a decent people.'

Insight invited five Singaporeans to pen their reflections on the outbreak of ungraciousness. They are Singapore Kindness Movement general secretary William Wan, sociologist Daniel Goh, Non-Constituency MP Gerald Giam, entrepreneur and blogger Adrianna Tan and Straits Times journalist Feng Zengkun.
The Straits Times, 1 Sep 2012

'We can still revive the kampung spirit'
By Dr William Wan,  General Secretary, Singapore Kindness Movement

PRIME Minister Lee Hsien Loong's speech at the National Day Rally has certainly jump-started our national conversation. Amid the many positive things he said regarding the state of our Republic, he also served a timely reminder to all of us that certain anti-social behaviours are antithetical to nation-building, especially our unfriendly conduct towards new immigrants and foreigners.

Not surprisingly, both the traditional and social media have vigorously latched onto this last point. PM's point is that because social media is global, he is worried that this anti-foreigner sentiment taints our reputation as a people. But for some people, their reaction is simple: "We didn't cause this."

Neighbour Disputes: Legal Framework to Tackle Social Nuisances?

Law Minister Shanmugam says new norms needed when we live so close to each other 

by Neo Chai Chin, TODAY, 1 Sep 2012

As no satisfactory legal solution exists currently to deal with social nuisances that affect one's neighbours, new ways of dealing with such conduct should be considered, said Law and Foreign Affairs Minister K Shanmugam yesterday.

In a Facebook post, Mr Shanmugam spoke of a recurrent issue, when what is done in one Housing Board flat - such as singing and drumming while others are asleep - has an impact on others. "Most of such conduct is social nuisance, but not criminal, and there is not much the police can do," he wrote.

The police can only take action if it is criminal conduct, while residents turning to the civil courts "is not really feasible either", he noted.

"We probably need a legal framework, which sets out what we should avoid doing, when we live close to each other - because it unreasonably impacts on our neighbours - we need to develop new norms," said Mr Shanmugam. "The key is of course to identify what is unreasonable, because complainants can also be unreasonable. And there should be sanctions for such conduct which are easy to enforce."

Mr Shanmugam's post attracted over 60 "likes" and 40 comments in five hours. Some chipped in with instances of disturbance caused by their neighbours, some called for more understanding and others questioned if noise transmission in newer flats is higher than in older flats.

Pre-school education: Clearer guidelines

MOE is drawing up curriculum that outlines learning goals for children

By Ong Hwee Hwee, The Straits Times, 31 Aug 2012

PARENTS will soon get a better idea of what pre-schoolers need to know by the time they enter Primary 1.

For example, the basic standards required in areas like language, literacy and numeracy will be made clearer.

The Ministry of Education (MOE) yesterday said it is drawing up a "comprehensive" kindergarten curriculum. It will outline the "learning goals" for children by the time they complete kindergarten, and will be made available to all pre-schools by the end of the year.

This curriculum, which will incorporate the latest research in early childhood education, will include a guide for teachers. It will help them plan lessons and activities suitable for five- and six- year-olds, and include resources, such as games and puzzles, which teachers can use for lessons.

These moves, said MOE, will help to ensure children have a smooth transition from pre- school to Primary 1. It will also ensure consistent quality across the sector, which has about 500 kindergartens and 950 childcare centres.

A new committee will look at how to shape the curriculum, said a joint statement yesterday by MOE and the Ministry of Community Development, Youth and Sports (MCYS).

The committee will be co-chaired by Education Minister Heng Swee Keat and Acting MCYS Minister Chan Chun Sing.

It will spearhead the big push to raise the standards of pre-school education, while keeping it affordable for children from less privileged families.

The last major review of pre-school education here was in 2008. Since then, "steady progress" has been made, said the statement. "The Government will now step up its efforts to accelerate the quality improvements in the sector," it added.

The group will also look into the setting-up of a new statutory board to oversee childcare centres and kindergartens; oversee a pilot project of Government-run pre- schools; and provide better training for teachers. These were the priorities outlined by Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong in his National Day Rally speech on Sunday.

Parents yesterday welcomed more clarity in the pre-school curriculum.

Interview with Ng Eng Hen

Defence Minister Ng Eng Hen fields questions from the media after the REACH National Day Rally public forum.





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