January 1, 2010
By Lawrence Pek
I have lived more than 12 years outside of Singapore. During
these times, I have missed home and my family, my country and I
have tried my best to keep track via the net, what is happening,
where is it going and what it will take to get us there.
I cannot say that I am at all happy with all that has happened in
the last 2 to 3 years. The PAP which I knew, trusted and depended
on, has changed, evolved and maybe mutated….
There has been many articles pro and anti government / PAP in
recent months, with all sorts of people with all sorts of ideas
thrown into the mix. I have read many of them and after a while,
paused to wonder, where all these will lead to, while entertaining,
many of the stories are now merely specific incidences of
indiscretions by either pro or anti establishment figures. Pro
government / PAP stories are heavily carried in the Straits Times
and other MSM (Main Stream Media), while any anti government antics
are heavily exposed via the various blogs.
The objective of my article is not to go into specific issues like
growing influx of foreigners, rising HDB prices or losses incurred
by our GIC and Temasek Holdings. As the battle rages on b/w pro and
anti establishment, I am inclined to think about the following
questions.
Where is my country going? Why are we on this course and who
decided?
Why do we need 6 mil headcount in Singapore by 2020? What is this
number about and how was it derived? What scares me is that our
numbers people from various Ministries will be so fixated with this
number and becomes a KPI which they will die trying without a clear
understanding of how this number was derived and what impact this
number will mean.
My assumptions are that in the various ministries, the below were
discussed at length:
1. We need this number to achieve a certain GDP growth, to
sustain our economy, living standards and yes, our way of life. (in
biz, we acknowledge that Size Does Matter), if we do not achieve
this KPI, we will be left behind in the global fight for talents
and growth engines.
2. Our local birthrates is not growing, if not declining, therefore
if we cannot do it organically, lets artificially import
them.
3. Yes, there will surely be unhappiness in streets, but our people
have always known a singular PAP, we can explain, communicate via
our MSM, we will highlight examples of “Success Stories” and
eventually, at some point in the future, they will accept our
policies, they always have anyway….When we (PAP, the government of
Singapore) arrive at 2020, my local children will understand my
pains and they will thank me later, for now, the healing medicine
is bitter and they need to be forced feed to them.
My concern is not whether these assumptions are right or not (in
the rules of global politics, these are never straightforward) –
but what about the voices of the local people? what they want and
if there were any constructive discussions before the conclusions,
the target settings and eventually, the executions.
Yes, there will be a lot of objections if these issues were brought
up 5 years ago and nothing will move forward, if such sensitive
issues were to be brought up for discussions and a referendum
sought. Further, there is a lot of arguments to be made for a lot
of successful policies that benefited the people, which were not
welcomed and not discussed and so why should this be any different?
(ERP is a good example, no one likes it, but it does solve the
congestions problem, somewhat..)
But why can’t we do things differently? How about a simple 3 step
process…
1. Please tell us what you are thinking? What are the basis of such
thinking? What are the alternatives?
2. Let’s table for discussion via a debate online or via MSM – with
either Opposition or NMPs or even better yet, the common man on the
streets (lets choose them carefully, of course)
3. Let the Various Ministries Decide with clear communications
about what were the critical issues and why we need to do this,
what will be the impact if not….
I would like to implore the ruling party to consider the
following…
a. The Policy of the Paternal PAP – has worked (somewhat) for the
past 44 years – but given the new social fabric, will be the way to
go in the future ? Is there no scope, no more tolerance for public
discussions before each and every major policy announcements?
b. The Process of Discussions has a lot of benefits – the people
cannot say their views were never considered, they did not know
before, the government agencies, the ruling party (which we have
voted in) has studied the issues, heard the feedback and now, have
made a decisions.
c. The Winds of Change are Blowing – things are different now, the
policies of the Past cannot be the way forward, unless I am
mistaken, the ruling party knows this, but maybe, just have no idea
what to do about it. They need to evolve and not mutate, if they
continue to NOT LISTEN to the people, they will do so at their own
Perils.
On a more personal note – having served my National Service, I have
grown to realize, to value, to love, the sanctity of a sovereign
state, my Country, my Singapore. I consider it my privilege that I
have met my Minister Mentor, Mr. Lee Kuan Yew, in person….I will
take a bullet for the man, but I do not want him to lead my country
into the next lap, the next 50 years.
The Winds of Change are blowing….
http://www.temasekreview.com/2010/01/01/where-is-my-country-going/
