Today 11 March 2006
the apolitical singaporean
He doesn't know much, won't get involved and can't accept that he's
part of the process
Lee u-wen
[email protected]
WITH a General Election on the horizon, Faye Tan says she almost
can't wait to vote, if she gets the chance of course.
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But ask her to name some political parties in Singapore, and she
sheepishly shrugs her shoulders before saying: "I know the People's
Action Party (PAP)," before pausing briefly and adding: "And the
other one with a hammer thing."
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When told that the "hammer thing" was the symbol used by the
opposition Workers' Party, she admitted: "Oh. Actually I don't know
why they are even opposing in the first place."
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A series of simple political questions later, the 37-year-old
mother of two was prepared to throw in the towel.
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"Who's my MP? I don't know. I've never met him before. I know there
are some banners displayed nearby with their faces. But unless you
have issues, you probably won't bother to find out," said the real
estate agent, who lives in Bedok, which is part of East Coast GRC.
Almost self-deprecatingly, she describes herself as "ignorant",
admitting that she ought to know a lot more about the political
system she subscribes to.
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Unsurprisingly, Ms Tan is not alone.
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In a recent survey of more than 500 people conducted by the
Political Development Feedback Group, a body under the Ministry of
Community Development, Youth and Sports (MCYS), 63.4 per cent of
Singaporeans said they knew little or nothing about the
Constitution and the organs of state.
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But wait, it gets more worrying.
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Two-thirds or more than 66 per cent of Singaporeans believe that
they have little or no influence at all on national issues.
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A whopping 92.7 per cent have never given feedback to the
Government.
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94.9 per cent have never written letters to a newspaper.
.
And 94.5 per cent don't know what it's like to sign a
petition.
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A reason for this level of political apathy, said Institute of
Southeast Asian Studies (ISEAS) fellow Terence Chong, is that most
Singaporeans tend to automatically "switch off" when it comes to
matters related to politics.
.
"Good governance is usually defined as efficient, honest and
transparent governance. As such, the political empowerment and
participation of citizens, which is sometimes messy and noisy, may
actually be seen by some as a hindrance to the smooth operation of
good governance," said Dr Chong.
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Expressing not worry but rather "concern" over Singaporeans' lack
of knowledge about basics such as the constitution, he said such a
culture and mindset here is perhaps the result of the ruling PAP's
effectiveness in running the country.
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"It could mean the PAP government has been so successful in
delivering the basic amenities that its role and presence have
become invisible to most citizens, paving the way for us to lead
happy, contented shopping mall lives," he remarked.
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A question of engagement
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Nominated MP and lawyer Chandra Mohan said that the large number of
Singaporeans who said they were disengaged and uninterested in
local politics surprised him.
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"With the population being more educated now -- many have at least
a Secondary Four qualification -- I expected a far better
response," he said.
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However, he said that it was "not essential" to rate politics as
the most important in facet in life.
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"I don't think there has been a strong interest in politics here
over the last few decades. But we must consider what it would take
to make people interested. To many, politics is not important
because they are not in power and cannot make changes."
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Could the fact that many Singaporeans don't get to vote due to the
lack of contested wards at the General Elections play a part in the
apathy displayed?
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Holland-Bukit Panjang GRC MP Dr Teo Ho Pin begs to disagree.
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"I think that this is about the level of confidence, rather than
apathy. In order to ensure that this confidence does not create
complacency, the Government has to make sure there are checks and
balances, and that they continue to attract good people of good
integrity and honesty."
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He added that he was unfazed by the results. Said Dr Teo: "What I'm
worried is if people do not contribute constructively in various
forms. And already, there are people who contribute in forms by
engaging in Voluntary Welfare Organisations, Non-Governmental
Organisations. What's more important is to create greater ownership
among Singaporeans and make them more active in society."
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Sociologist Tan Ern Ser added that the interpretation of such
surveys depended on the benchmarks employed. He said: "If 30 per
cent say they are interested, is this high or low? I would say it's
high, if we consider that Singaporeans have been described as
apolitical, and the system is depoliticised."
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"More importantly, 30 per cent equals to almost a million people in
a population of three million citizens. My conclusion is that
interest and propensity are higher than actual
participation."
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But political commentator and academic Dr Ho Khai Leong believes
that the nonchalance evident in the survey is "on the high side",
and blames the country's education system.
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"It's a reflection of our lack of political education in schools.
Such education should start from young. But we cannot blame the
sons and daughters of Singapore, we should blame the policy makers
who have given them very little exposure," he said.
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A Dummy's Guide to Politics?
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The Feedback Group, meanwhile, has proposed its own solution to
educate the masses.
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It hopes to produce a basic guide - a Politics 101 of sorts - that
would provide the public with useful information such as a list and
roles of key public figures and organisations, as well as the
various channels of feedback and complaints.
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The group's chairman, political watcher Viswa Sadasivan, is pushing
for this recommendation partly to make up for the lack of exposure
given to Singaporeans at schools and universities.
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He said: "When political education is absent, or civic education is
narrowly defined and a culture of questioning is encouraged only
now, it's understandable why interest and knowledge in politics is
low. There's a need to help catalyse this interest in a manner
that's relevant and interesting."
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While education is seen as a main tool to improve the situation for
future generations, experts also made the comment that
Singaporeans, especially the youth, want to be empowered and to see
their feedback being taken seriously and appreciated.
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And with nearly 70 per cent of the population feeling the need to
have "some influence" over national issues, Mr Sadasivan feels the
tide is slowly turning.
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"It points to a growing awareness of the need to have influence,
which in turn could point to a maturing political culture," he
said.
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Ms Tan, too, is keen to contribute to grooming the next generation
of Singaporeans as one that is in tune with current affairs and
political issues.
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"I hope my children can have some sort of political education when
they go into primary school. It doesn't have to be much, maybe the
teachers could just show them the symbols of the different parties
here, for instance," she said.
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That said, Ms Tan too has her own resolution to make: "After the
interview (with TODAY), I am now more serious with the newspapers.
Everything you ask, I also don't know. Nowadays, I turn to the main
section to read about local and world news first. It's important to
know what's happening around me."
