$82.6m given out in scheme launched last year to help families live closer together
By Yeo Sam Jo, The Sunday Times, 11 Dec 2016
When housewife Jennyfer Aw Young and her husband, Mr Wang Dewei, both 34, bought their first home in 2008, they chose a four-room, Build-To-Order flat in Punggol as it was readily available. But the couple soon longed to return to Jurong, where they had grown up and where their parents still live. They finally bought an executive flat in Jurong West Street 65 off the resale market and moved in this October. After receiving a Proximity Housing Grant (PHG) of $20,000, the 125 sq m unit cost them $525,000. "It's like a homecoming for us," said Madam Aw Young, a mother of three. "It's so much easier to visit our parents now. We don't need to wait for the weekend to have dinner together. "The grant definitely helped us financially because we can save the money for our kids' education."
The couple and their family are among the 5,217 Singaporean households - 4,860 families and 357 singles - that have applied for the PHG within a year of its introduction, said the Housing Board.
Some $82.6 million in grants has been disbursed to 4,315 households. Another $18.2 million will be doled out to the rest when they complete their resale transactions.
The scheme, which was rolled out in August last year, helps families live closer together when they buy resale HDB flats.
Families who buy a resale flat to live with or near their parents or married child receive a PHG of $20,000. Eligible singles get $10,000 if they buy a resale flat with their parents.
All Singaporeans are eligible for the grant once, regardless of their income level and whether they have received housing subsidies before.
Applications to be on the Fresh Start Housing Scheme are now open for families who once owned a flat but now live in public rental units. The scheme allows the families, who must have at least a child below the age of 16, to apply for a new Housing Board flat with a grant of up to $35,000, the Ministry of National Development and HDB announced in a statement yesterday. After getting on the scheme, families have a year to apply for a new flat in the HDB's regular Build-To-Order or Sale of Balance Flats launches. The scheme was first mentioned in last year's National Day Rally, with details given in this year's Committee of Supply debate. During the rally, Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong said he was concerned about the future of a group of families who, without help, may be permanently out of reach of getting their own flat. The scheme has several conditions. For instance, at least one of the applicants must have been in stable employment for the previous 12 months. The family must also be assessed by the Ministry of Social and Family Development (MSF). The MSF and HDB will do regular checks to ensure the families are on track. In a blog post, National Development Minister Lawrence Wong said: "Some second-timer public rental families are ready and hoping to own a home again - they are in stable employment, manage their finances well, and have a stable home environment." But they might find it challenging to buy a flat, he added.
The scheme helps by letting them buy a two-room flexi flat on a shorter lease and giving them another HDB concessionary rate loan and a new Fresh Start Housing Grant of up to $35,000.
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."
HDB may give shorter leases for 'Fresh Start' It could offer households renting public flats two-room flexi units on shorter leases
By Janice Heng, The Straits Times, 16 Dec 2015
An upcoming scheme to help public rental households own a home again could offer two-room flexi flats on shorter leases. Such leases are now only for elderly buyers. This Fresh Start Housing Scheme includes a new grant, which may be disbursed in tranches subject to conditions, to motivate the new home owners to stay in jobs and put their children through school, for instance. National Development Minister Lawrence Wong shared these latest ideas in a blog post yesterday. Announced at August's National Day Rally, the Fresh Start Housing Scheme is for second-timer families with young children. They would have owned a flat, but sold it and are now public rental tenants. The Ministry of National Development and the HDB have been gathering views to shape the scheme via public dialogues. One group consulted were former flat owners now living in public rental flats. Most said they wanted to own a flat again but could not get a mortgage, noted Mr Wong. First, the Fresh Start Housing Scheme will help them with a new Fresh Start Housing Grant, he said. "Second, we can consider providing them with another HDB concessionary loan," he added.
Third, the HDB will explore offering them two-room flexi flats on shorter leases, which cost less.
20% of resale flat buyers seek proximity grant Many benefiting from aid in buying units with or close to parents or children: Minister
By Janice Heng, The Straits Times, 31 Oct 2015
More than one in five Housing Board resale flat buyers have applied for the Proximity Housing Grant since it was introduced in August, Minister for National Development Lawrence Wong said in a blog post yesterday. The grant was one of several housing changes that kicked in on Aug 24, the day after the National Day Rally. Said Mr Wong: "Just two months on, I am happy to see many home buyers already benefiting." The grant - $20,000 for families and $10,000 for singles - is for those buying resale flats with or close to their parents or married children. Out of 3,506 resale transactions from Aug 24 to Oct 23, a total of 737 buyers applied for the grant. Of these, 684 applications were from families and 53 from singles. Ms Ellen Neo, 26, applied for the grant with her fiance on the very day that it was launched.
The couple are getting a five-room resale flat in Shunfu to be close to her parents, who live in Bishan.
"It's a great help to us because the flat is going to be quite expensive. We're very thankful that we managed to get the grant," said Ms Neo, who is currently not working.
Mr Wong noted that the grant had deliberately been made available to all, with no household income ceiling.
Even those who have enjoyed housing subsidies or owned private property in the past are eligible.
"We did this because we recognise that the desire to live closer to parents and children is shared by a wide spectrum of Singaporean households, and not just first-timer couples," he said.
Nearly half of the families and about nine in 10 of the singles who applied for the proximity grant would have been ineligible for grants under previous rules.
Two launches merged to let more benefit from new housing policies, says Khaw
By Yeo Sam Jo, The Straits Times, 24 Sep 2015
The highly anticipated Bidadari development will be part of a mega Housing Board flat launch in November, when around 12,000 new flats will be put on the market. Of these, about 7,000 will be Build-to-Order (BTO) flats located in six towns, including Punggol Northshore, Bukit Batok, Choa Chu Kang, Hougang and Sengkang. The other 5,000 are balance flats not sold in previous BTO exercises. The bumper crop is the result of merging this year's remaining two BTO flat launches, including one scheduled this month, in a bid to include the implementation of three major housing policies - two of which were announced by Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong at the National Day Rally last month.
National Development Minister Khaw Boon Wan posted on his blog yesterday that combining this month's BTO exercise with November's was a practical solution. He wrote: "As implementation of any new policy does require some time, we therefore decided to delay the September BTO launch by a few weeks, so that these initiatives can benefit as many Singaporeans as possible."
The highlight of the mega launch will be the 2,130 Bidadari flats, said property analysts, who expect them to cost more owing to their central location on the city fringe.
By Radha Basu, Senior Correspondent, The Sunday Times, 30 Aug 2015 Families who may have sold their flats and are living in rental housing will soon get a Fresh Start Housing Grant to help buy their own two-room flats, Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong announced during the National Day Rally last week.
They will also get counselling to resolve family, employment and other problems they may be facing. He said the grant will be given if they show they are determined to get back on their feet. Project 4650 in Siglap has been quietly helping down-and- out families get a fresh start for the past three years. Social service agency Pave and various community groups have been working together to help families without homes become self-reliant, sorting out their housing, employment and childcare needs. The families live in the Housing Board's Interim Rental Housing (IRH) blocks while awaiting more permanent homes in rental flats or flats of their own.
Some arrived in the IRH after selling their flats when they could not cope with mortgage arrears. Others include downgraders waiting for smaller flats being built or those waiting for rental flats.
The IRH scheme was introduced in 2009 to provide temporary shelter for financially strapped families with nowhere to live. The rule for most is that two families share a unit, usually a three-bedroom flat. Families are matched by race, religion and family size. Utility bills are split between the families.
Mired in numerous problems, some are among Singapore's poorest families, with a monthly per capita income of less than $150 when they first moved in.
Over the past three years, most of the 1,000 or so families in the two blocks have moved out. About half have gone to rental flats and a third now have their own homes - a distant dream when they first moved in.
To Pave executive director Sudha Nair, the new Fresh Start Housing Grant is a "fantastic scheme" that will give some of the remaining residents the leg up they need.
"It's like the collective voice of these blocks has been heard," she says.
By Ker Sin Tze, Published The Straits Times, 1 Sep 2015
The major goals of the Government, as illustrated by Deputy Prime Minister (DPM) Tharman Shanmugaratnam in his speech at the Economic Society of Singapore SG50 Distinguished Lecture, are to sustain income growth, mitigate income inequality and enhance social mobility. The Government has systematically devised a series of plans to achieve these, particularly since 2006, he said. After a decade of policy implementation, Singapore has managed to sustain income growth across the board, including the low-income households. The bottom 20 per cent of employed citizen households saw their incomes per household member from work rise 37 per cent from 2004 to 2014 (after taxes and transfers). With the use of government transfers from tax revenues, income inequality has been mitigated. The long-term solution for the uplifting of low-income households is to maintain social mobility through education and skills training.
On top of attaining the three goals, the overall objective is to develop Singapore into an innovative and inclusive society.
All these mean more expenses to be financed by government transfers through tax revenues.
Using tax revenues from the rich to help the poor is a common practice across the developed world, notably in European and Scandinavian countries.
The state imposes highly progressive tax rates to pay for health expenses, education costs, unemployment benefits and other social benefits. The marginal tax rates are steep, and attract criticism that they discourage people from working harder in these welfare states.
Welfare benefits, once given, are not easily withdrawn without dampening popular support. High tax rates are necessary to keep on providing welfare benefits, and the two are closely intertwined.
Breaking down that two-thirds Singaporean core: Lim Swee Say The Manpower Minister clarifies the number of locals to foreigners in the workforce, and tackles questions on the CPF payout eligibility age and minimum wage.
Channel NewsAsia, 26 Aug 2015
Some have asked if the goal of a two-thirds Singaporean core in the workforce is a realistic one, since Manpower Minister Lim Swee Say said in a recent interview that the Government would hold fast to it.
Currently, residents make up about 62 per cent of the workforce. But this figure includes the construction workforce, where the ratio is one local for every seven foreigners, said Mr Lim. Clarifying this on Tuesday (Aug 25) in a one-hour live show on MediaCorp's Channel 5, he said that taking only the manufacturing and services sectors into account, the ratio was in fact three locals to every one foreigner.
Of this three-quarters who are residents, he said, "the majority are Singaporeans - so in other words, if you look at these sectors outside of construction and foreign domestic maids, we are about there, at two-thirds," he said.
Helping to maintain this 2:1 ratio has been the tightening of foreign worker quotas and impact of levies. Mr Lim noted the "sharp drop" in Employment Passes since 2012 and in S-Passes since 2014. "Our challenge is, how do we maintain this and yet without running into problems of slow economic growth and high unemployment?”
In the past, a 3-per-cent growth in workforce plus 1-per-cent productivity growth made for 4-per-cent GDP growth. With foreign labour growth slowed to 1 per cent, "if we are not able to increase productivity, 1-plus-1 will only give us 2-per-cent growth every year,” he noted.
And small and medium enterprises - who employ 70 per cent of the workforce - would be most affected. The way out is to help these SMEs through the transition and to grow by becoming lean enterprises, added Mr Lim.
During the forum, Mr Lim fielded wide-ranging questions from members of the public on issues raised in the Prime Minister's National Day Rally speech on Sunday.
$3 billion plan to help seniors live more fulfilling lives On the cards are active ageing hubs and programmes for learning and volunteering
By Linette Lai, The Straits Times, 27 Aug 2015
In a push to brighten the golden years, a $3 billion five-year plan will give Singapore's seniors opportunities to learn, volunteer and live independently, well after retirement. The new Action Plan for Successful Ageing will open senior centres for social activities as well as daycare in at least 10 upcoming HDB projects, and launch a free PAssion Silver card with perks for those aged 60 and over. Up to $200 million could also be set aside for ageing-related research. Announcing the measures yesterday, Health Minister and Minister- in-charge of Ageing Gan Kim Yong said the goal was to help seniors live more fulfilling lives. "The ageing population need not be a burden to us," said Mr Gan. "In fact, longevity is something that we can celebrate." There have been similar government-initiated plans for active ageing in the past, for instance in 2010, when $100 million was set aside to keep seniors healthy and involved in their communities. By 2030, one in five people - or some 900,000 - will be aged over 65. By then, there will be only 2.1 working-age citizens to support each one aged 65 or above, compared with 5.2 as of last year. In coming up with this action plan, the Ministerial Committee on Ageing, of which Mr Gan is chairman, spoke with more than 4,000 Singaporeans young and old over the past year. The plan will also launch a National Seniors' Health Programme to address ageing-related health concerns that aims to reach out to at least 400,000 seniors aged 50 or above by 2030. Active ageing hubs will be built in future Housing Board developments. They will be similar to senior activity centres but larger, said Mr Gan, and incorporate both social programmes and rehabilitation or daycare services.
Other plans on the cards include more elderly-friendly public transport and even therapeutic gardens designed to help seniors who have dementia and stroke.
"The package is really to make it easier for couples to look after their children, support them on their journey," said Ms Fu, who oversees population issues.
Previously, the first two children of a married couple got $6,000 in cash each under the Baby Bonus scheme, while the third and fourth child received $8,000 each.
There was nothing in cash for the fifth and subsequent children.
So, depending on the birth order, married couples will get $8,000 or $10,000 per child in cash from the Baby Bonus scheme.
Singapore goes to the polls on Sept 11 It's the first time since 1997 that a general election will be held on a weekday
By Zakir Hussain, Deputy Political Editor, The Straits Times, 26 Aug 2015
Political parties and their supporters swung into action yesterday, after President Tony Tan Keng Yam dissolved Parliament and news followed that the general election would be held on Sept 11. At People's Action Party (PAP) branches and opposition party offices across the island, activists finalised their candidate line-ups and worked to ensure that campaign flags, posters and, especially, nomination papers would be in order. Nomination Day will be next Tuesday, Sept 1, with the minimum of nine days to campaign before Cooling-off Day on Sept 10. Polling Day will be a public holiday.
It is the first time since 1997 that a general election will be held on a weekday. Some PAP activists said holding the polls on Sept 12 would have clashed with community events planned for the last day of the Chinese Seventh Month. The widely anticipated news came two days after Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong said at the National Day Rally that he would be calling the elections soon, and that they would be a critical one for the country. Yesterday, he underlined his message that this general election is about renewing and reinforcing the PAP's slate in Parliament to give Singapore the best leadership team to take the country forward.
"I called this general election to seek your mandate to take Singapore beyond SG50, into its next half century," he said in a Facebook post. "You will be deciding who will govern Singapore for the next five years. More than that, you will be choosing the team to work with you for the next 15-20 years, and setting the direction for Singapore for the next 50 years."
The elections, Singapore's 12th since independence, are likely to be the first since 1963 to see the PAP challenged in all seats.
As many as nine opposition parties have indicated that they will put up a fight in all 89 seats across 16 group representation constituencies (GRCs) and 13 single-member constituencies (SMCs). The largest opposition party, the Workers' Party (WP), has said that it is targeting 28 seats.
The elections will be the first in 60 years without the presence of founding Prime Minister Lee Kuan Yew, who died in March.
Observers said the timing may be to the PAP's advantage, given the positive sentiments from the Golden Jubilee celebrations and the unprecedented expressions of solidarity in the week of national mourning following Mr Lee's death.
The polls will also take place against the backdrop of global economic uncertainty, with international markets routed in recent days. The full-year growth forecast for Singapore itself has been revised downward to 2 per cent to 2.5 per cent.
There are rising concerns too over global security and, indeed, Polling Day will be on the anniversary of the Sept 11, 2001 terror attacks on the United States. The snap 2001 elections called here after those attacks and amid a global recession saw the PAP's vote share surge by 10 points from 65 per cent in the 1997 polls to 75.3 per cent.
The 2006 General Election, the first led by Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong, saw the PAP get 66.6 per cent of the vote. But the 2011 election proved a watershed, when a rising opposition tide tapped into simmering discontent over housing affordability, immigration and cost of living issues to drag the PAP's vote share down to 60.1 per cent.
That election saw the WP winning its first GRC, ousting a high-powered PAP team led by Cabinet minister George Yeo. The WP retained Hougang SMC at the polls and went on to win Punggol East SMC in a by-election in 2013.
Since 2011, the Government has embarked on a range of policy measures - some of which had been in gestation before the polls - to address voter concerns, and analysts say this year's elections will show how its efforts have been received.
Said Dr Gillian Koh of the Institute of Policy Studies: "The GE will be a good measure of voters' sentiment on whether the Government has helped citizens access and afford the key essentials in life: if they think the Government has dealt with the immigration issue that was also tied to higher costs and congestion, and if they feel that the Government has, in the last four years, given them a stronger sense of security and assurance about work, family life and developing a fair and inclusive society."
However, she felt a segment of voters would also hold the view that it is important to have some opposition representation in Parliament "to ensure that the Government is indeed responsive to the needs and concerns of Singaporeans".
This is a theme the opposition parties can be expected to use to appeal to voters. The Singapore Democratic Party began introducing its candidates yesterday, and the WP will do so from today.
The PAP has announced its line-up in all but four GRCs and Fengshan and Punggol East SMCs. It will name its teams for Marine Parade and Nee Soon GRCs today.
Yesterday, Mr Lee said that strong support from Singaporeans is critical for the country to move ahead in a challenging environment and to stay special.
"Here many races live in peace, and many from humble homes make good. We will surely meet challenges ahead, but whatever the world throws at us, as one people, we will overcome," he said on Facebook.
"If you are proud of what we have achieved together, and support what we want to do for our future, please support me and my team. We have to do it with you, in order to do it for you, and for Singapore. Together, we can keep Singapore special for many years to come."
All Singaporean families buying a Housing Board resale flat near or with their parents or married children will receive a new $20,000 grant, regardless of their income levels and whether they have received housing subsidies before. Eligible singles now get $10,000 if they buy a resale flat with their parents. Details of the Proximity Housing Grant (PHG) and other housing policy changes were released by the Ministry of National Development and HDB yesterday, after Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong announced the moves on Sunday. Kicking in yesterday, the new grant is the latest move to help families live closer together. Under the PHG, resale buyers receiving a subsidy for the first time get $10,000 more than under the previous Higher-Tier CPF Housing Grant. Singles get $5,000 more than before. The Higher-Tier grant will be discontinued.
The PHG is open to previously ineligible buyers, including owners of private property, though they must sell it within six months of buying the resale flat. Buyers can get the PHG only once. Grant recipients and their parents or married children must live near or with each other for at least five years afterwards.
Property experts believe the grant could boost transaction volumes in the sluggish resale market. But R'ST Research director Ong Kah Seng added: "It is unlikely to have a major impact on resale prices as (loan curbs) can effectively curb lifting of prices by sellers."
At Sunday's National Day Rally, Mr Lee also announced the higher income ceiling of $12,000 for HDB flats and $14,000 for executive condominiums (EC).
"The raising of the income ceiling is welcome news to us," said operations manager Ken Lee, 30, who is applying for a Build-to-Order (BTO) flat with his accountant girlfriend, 27. Their combined pay is $1,000 above the old $10,000 ceiling.
By Audrey Tan, The Straits Times, 25 Aug 2015 The ASEAN Secretariat is offering a Singapore citizen or organisation a US$10,000 (S$14,000) cash grant towards that person's or group's efforts in regional community building. The inaugural ASEAN People's Award, announced yesterday by Minister for Foreign Affairs K. Shanmugam, aims to recognise those who are contributing in areas ranging from economic integration to volunteering. "Our efforts to bring our peoples closer together will work out in the medium to longer term," he said in his speech at the annual ASEAN Day Reception at the Shangri-La Hotel last night. "So long as we persevere, we will get closer to our goal - a vibrant, fully integrated ASEAN Community. To this end, each ASEAN member state will be conferring an ASEAN People's Award. "
Nominations open from 8am today on the Ministry of Foreign Affairs website, and will close at 6pm on Sept 6.
Mr Shanmugam said "everyone has a role" in establishing a regional community. For its part, he said the Government conducts events like yesterday's ASEAN Day Reception, and promotes the region within schools.
The award could also raise ASEAN's profile in Singapore.
A new ASEAN study found that young people here are generally ambivalent about the body.
Results released yesterday showed that while more than 80 per cent of the 4,600 undergraduates polled across the region had a strong ASEAN identity, Singaporean respondents exhibited an "ASEAN- ambivalence".
Mr Shanmugam said: "Building a national identity is still a work in progress, let alone... a supra-national identity but still we have to try. Because as one community, we can achieve so much more."
Excerpts from Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong's National Day Rally speech on Sunday evening. He stresses the core principles that held the nation together in the last 50 years and highlights what's needed for the next 50 years. The Straits Times, 25 Aug 2015 Two weeks ago, on the 9th of August, we celebrated our Golden Jubilee with a parade at the Padang. For everyone who took part at the Padang, at the Floating Platform, around the Bay, watching at home or overseas, that night was something special to remember. It was not just a birthday bash, we were celebrating something far greater. First of all, we celebrated our resolve to defend ourselves and to survive over the last 50 years. We started out at Independence with only two infantry battalions in a rough neighbourhood. But our pioneers were determined to defend ourselves - we built up the Singapore Armed Forces (SAF). Within four years, we paraded a few of our units on National Day in 1969. Overhead, we had one Hunter aircraft and one Alouette helicopter flying the Singapore flag. In the mobile column, we had 18 AMX-13 tanks, which were appearing in public for the first time and Major Goh Lye Choon was a second-in-command. Singaporeans cheered, everyone understood what it meant and it was not just Singaporeans who took note. Fifty years later, our pioneer servicemen kicked off the SG50 vintage Parade.
Above us, instead of one Hunter fighter, we had 20 F-16s, flying across the Padang forming the number 50. A Chinook helicopter flew the flag, escorted by two Apaches and Colonel Goh Lye Choon, now retired, was once against the second-in-command of the mobile column, this time on a Leopard tank. That is him.
Behind Lye Choon, 178 vehicles rolled past the City Hall steps. Tanks, artillery, AA missile launchers, special ops vehicles, Hazmat vehicles and completing the mobile column we had nine vehicles carrying nine families.
They were the pioneers who had served in the SAF and the Home Team and they were on parade with their children who are presently serving and, in two cases, with their grandchildren too.
Secondly, on National Day, we celebrated how we had turned vulnerability into strength. We started off with no hinterland and a weak economy. We depended on our entrepot trade, but our neighbours were building their own ports and sought to bypass us. Our workers were unskilled and anxious about their future but we determined to make the world our hinterland. And the tripartite partners worked together, worked hard to create the best workforce in the world. The Government, the employers and the unions, we worked together. Business Environment Risk Intelligence (Beri) every year ranked us No. 1 in the world. And with that workforce, we made PSA and Changi the best in the world.
We were a poor Third World country; people lived in cramped and squalid slums, no modern sanitation, no utilities, but we built HDB flats to house all of us and made Singapore a First World metropolis and our beautiful home.
Nearly all our water came from Johor and every now and again, when an issue arose with Malaysia, some crazy politicians would threaten to turn off the tap, to get us in line - but we did not die of thirst. We cleaned up our rivers, we dammed them up to become reservoirs, we built Marina Barrage and turned Marina Bay into Marina Reservoir. Our whole island became a catchment area. We invented Newater and on National Day 2002, we toasted our success, "Huat Ah!"
Thirdly, we celebrated our journey from Third World to First as one united people. When we separated from Malaysia, we were not yet one people, memories of the race riots were fresh and raw. The minorities were uncertain of their place in the new country. They saw what had happened in Malaysia, they wondered, will the new Singapore Government keep its promise of a multiracial society? But 50 years on, we celebrate as one united people. On National Day, when the siren sounded, we stood and recited the Pledge together - regardless of race, language or religion. We sang Majulah Singapura.
MPs and political watchers polled say his pitch to voters was restrained
By Rachel Au-Yong, The Straits Times, 25 Aug 2015
It was billed as an SG50 rally, to take stock of how far the country had come as well as where it might be heading.
But coming in the midst of much talk of an impending general election, Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong's speech on the Government's achievements and plans for Singapore also struck some as being a clear pitch to the voters for their support at the polls.
Political watchers interviewed yesterday, however, noted that PM Lee had taken pains to do it with some finesse.
They lauded Mr Lee for the restraint he showed in his speech on Sunday. Though he asked Singaporeans to "support (his) team", he did not use words like "vote" or "People's Action Party", they said.
MPs like Mr Hri Kumar Nair did not think the Prime Minister was engaging in electioneering.
Pointing to the policy changes announced at the Rally, such as enhanced measures to encourage parenthood and raising the re-employment age, the MP for Bishan-Toa Payoh GRC said these have been raised in Parliament many times.
"The problem is that people think that anything announced before an election is for an election. But you must measure the Government's track record, and not just what it does three or six months before the general election,'' he said.
Mr Lee said at the Rally that elections would be called "soon''.
Other MPs argued that it was inevitable to recall the late Mr Lee Kuan Yew's legacy as it was the first Rally without him. PM Lee had evoked the memory of the late Mr Lee in his Malay, Mandarin and English speeches. While the week of national mourning in March had an impact on many, law don Eugene Tan said the references could be seen as trying to gain political mileage; similarly, in giving "due recognition to the pioneers, who've been a traditional vote bank for the PAP".
But Tampines GRC MP Baey Yam Keng said it would have been strange to omit the late Mr Lee from the speech, as he was instrumental in building the country's successes in the last 50 years.
"The party knows that there would be a backlash if it was seen to be exploiting his death. But the late Mr Lee was and is a symbol of the PAP and Singapore; even if there wasn't an election this year, I'm sure he would have been mentioned," Mr Baey said.
PM Lee had also urged Singaporeans to "be alive" to their external environment, or risk the country's survival. Ongoing troubles in Malaysia and Indonesia could affect the country, he said. It was a topic he had "spoken too little" about in recent rallies because of the focus on domestic affairs, he added.
Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong's National Day Rally 2015 Speech - English, Malay, Mandarin
PM Lee: Keeping Singapore special for the next 50 years Multiracialism, self-reliance, mutual support and strong Govt-people bonds are key factors
By Zakir Hussain, Deputy Political Editor, The Straits Times, 24 Aug 2015
Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong used his SG50 National Day Rally last night to remind Singaporeans of what it took to make Singapore succeed and what is needed to keep it special for the next 50 years. He had no video clips or special effects as he paid tribute to the pioneer leaders and citizens who strived from 1965 to defend a suddenly independent Singapore, turn vulnerability into strength and remain united despite challenges. It has been an exhilarating journey, he declared, adding that three factors helped Singapore get to where it is today: the determination to be a multiracial society; a culture of self-reliance and mutual support; and keeping the faith between the Government and the people. He said the same elements were needed if Singapore is to celebrate SG100 from a position of strength.
Last night's Rally was held at the Institute of Technical Education's College Central in Ang Mo Kio. As always, Mr Lee spoke first in Malay and Mandarin, but there was a surprise before his speech in English. Singer Kit Chan appeared on stage to deliver a soulful rendition of Singapore's best-loved National Day song, Home, dedicating it to founding Prime Minister Lee Kuan Yew, who died in March, aged 91.
PM Lee noted that just two weeks earlier, the Padang had reverberated with the strains of the same song, as National Day Parade spectators sang along heartily.
He said the Golden Jubilee parade was much more than a big birthday bash. It celebrated the resolve to make Singapore succeed despite the odds and go from Third World to First.
He noted that policies to foster multiracialism - from making English the working language to ethnic integration in HDB estates - helped encourage communities to come together and were a key factor for Singapore's success.
"Some people may think that racial and religious harmony is not a problem any more and that I am making too much about this, but they would be wrong," he said. "Race and religion are always sensitive matters, especially for us, and in some ways more complex and difficult to handle than 20 years ago because religiosity has gone up."
Stressing the importance of self-reliance and mutual support, he said the ethos of a "rugged society" had to be ingrained in the young.
Especially crucial was the strong bond between the Government and people over the past 50 years. The Government, PM Lee said, did not shy from hard realities, and people trusted it to have their interests at heart as they supported it.
He cited the tough issue of land acquisition in Singapore's early years when land was needed to build homes, industrial estates and later, the MRT network. It was tough on landowners who suffered financial loss, and resettled families whose lives were disrupted.
"But if the Government had not done this, we could not have housed our population, we could not have transformed Singapore," he said. "There were sacrifices, but in the end, it was for the common good and everybody benefited." New tough issues will come up - such as immigration and the need for foreigners in the workforce - a difficult issue because people have strong views, and every option for dealing with it has a downside.
"Whichever option we choose, it will involve some pain. But I believe that I am doing what Singapore needs and what best safeguards your interest," he said.
"It is my responsibility to make this decision, to make this judgment and then to act on your behalf. And having acted on your behalf, to account to you for the results and for the reasons why I decided the way I did. I owe it to you. You've elected me."
He said as a little red dot, Singapore had to be alive to its external environment. "South-east Asia is an exciting place to be, but also a rather dangerous place to live," he said.
A strong Singapore Armed Forces, successful economy, good diplomats and leaders all help to safeguard the country's interests.
Singapore has to be special, "a shining red dot", he added. "If we are soft and flabby, we are going to be eaten up. We have to be rugged, to have that steel in us. If we are divided, whether along racial lines or class lines, we can't survive."
For Singapore to continue to do well, a strong sense of national identity is also key. "After 50 years, this faith, this sense of togetherness and purpose, is stronger than before," he said, as he cited instances when the Singapore spirit shone.
"Fifty years ago, our challenges seemed insurmountable," Mr Lee added. "Fifty years on, our challenges are still formidable but they are far from insurmountable."
Returning to the Parade at the end of his speech, he recounted how he went down to the Padang to meet the youngest performers.
"They were in high spirits, their faces shone with excitement and hope. I thought to myself: These are the faces of the future of Singapore. 50 years from now, SG100... I hope they will be back at the Padang celebrating again, remembering SG50, congratulating one another on how much they have done, on how far they have come and looking at more young, radiant faces of children and many grandchildren and singing Majulah Singapura."
When housewife Jennyfer Aw Young and her husband, Mr Wang Dewei, both 34, bought their first home in 2008, they chose a four-room, Build-To-Order flat in Punggol as it was readily available.
