As Singapore’s infrastructure groans under the weight of a five
million plus population – more than a third of them foreigners –
there’s rising resentment against the island state’s immigrant
policy.
BURSTING at our seams. This is a frequent phrase used to
describe Singapore these days, after its population crossed the
five million mark.
Hardly a day passes without a citizen or two complaining about
overcrowdedness or shortage of amenities or rising costs associated
with the mass arrival of foreigners.
With immigration continuing to rise, the controversy could
become the hottest issue in the general election that is expected
to take place within the next 12 months.
What is annoying Singaporeans is, not their presence, but the
large number of people who have arrived to work and live in their
overstretched city.
The sentiment is, however, not one way.
Support is coming from a section of society which is greatly
benefiting from cheap manpower and the larger customer base that
the foreigners bring.
For them, the newly-released statistics are encouraging. A new
census report released last week shows the population reaching 5.08
million, with foreigners making up 36.4%, or more than a third.
The number of foreign workers has risen some 75% from 750,000 in
2000 to 1.31 million currently.
Adding to the overcrowdedness is the 1.1 million tourists who
set foot on this 711 sq km island every month.
The immigration policy has expanded the population by 25% in 10
years, one of the highest rates in the world, surpassing even the
traditional migrant societies.
Canada’s population, for instance, is 19.8% foreign-born, New
Zealand’s 23% and the US 16%.
In Japan, one legislator recently suggested raising the foreign
content of its declining population to 10% within the next 10
years.
Singapore’s record, as far as its citizens are concerned, is
less than welcomed. The new arrivals have strained its
infrastructure, creating a shortage in public housing that was once
Singapore’s showcase to the world.
As a result, thousands of graduates who plan to settle down are
compelled to wait for years – or jostle with foreign PRs to pay a
lot more for a resale flat. Roads and shopping plazas are jammed
during weekends, and hospitals as well as buses and trains are
packed.
“People have to queue for a restaurant table and queue again to
pay the bill,” one shopper moaned.
Timmy lamented: “I remember Singapore was not like this a few
years ago.
“Now our standard of living is dropping every day.”
Many are complaining of spiralling prices in the wake of growing
demand. Another Singaporean, Daniel, said: “I find it unsettling
just to note how fast our society is being taken over by
foreigners.”
Last week, a foreign correspondent based here wrote that
Singapore is showing symptoms of urban stress as more immigrants
and guest workers jostle for space with the locals.
He named some of them – “flash floods along posh Orchard Road;
packed subway trains; traffic gridlock in the morning and evening
rush hours and intensifying competition for public flats.”
They have affected Singapore’s image as a squeaky-clean,
smooth-flowing city that has earned it the reputation as one of the
world’s most livable, he added.
Businesses and motorists recently complained about road closures
or diversions for major public events.
Motorists were asked to give way to buses transporting athletes
taking part in the Youth Olympics; shops in the city centre were
affected.
To cope with increasing demand and shrinking supply, property
developers have happily been reducing the average size of flats,
making buyers pay more to get less.
A 1,600 sq ft flat which was the average in the 80s is today
regarded as a luxury. In fact, some under-300 sq ft apartment
dwellings have made an appearance for S$500,000 (RM1.16mil) each –
and sold like hot cakes.
Singapore architect Khoo Peng Beng, in a speech last week in
Venice, said that urban planners who were bracing for a influx of
people should look to Singapore as a “model compact city”.
The ruling People’s Action Party (PAP) is evidently concerned
about the rising public resentment.
“It is fighting its biggest political battle in modern history,”
said a company consultant. On the outcome will decide the long-term
future of the party, he said.
Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong last week announced a number of
important measures to improve sentiments, including:
Making it easier for first-time buyers by building a total
38,000 more government flats in 2010-11, as well as cutting down on
owners having more than one such flat.
Spending S$60bil (RM139bil) over the next 10 years to double
Singapore’s mass rail network to relieve over-crowding.
A top up of S$9,000 (RM20,848) to S$10,500 (RM24,323) over 12
years in their study grant and retirement fund for those
Singaporeans who complete their 12-year national service cycle.
It is apparently aimed at convincing Singaporeans that they come
first before foreigners.
The move to increase the chances of first-time buyers to get a
subsidised flat is well received by some young Singaporeans, but
few believe Lee has changed the overall political landscape.
For the estimated 1.8 million foreign residents here, the
uppermost question is whether it will lead to any deterioration of
public sentiments towards them.
In recent years, there had been increasing conflicts between
locals and foreigners but rarely any violence. Political leaders
have repeatedly appealed to citizens to help the new arrivals
integrate.
Prominent blogger Lucky Tan said that until the arrivals turned
excessive, Singaporeans were the most open people in the world.
“Nowhere else in the world can you find such a high level of
acceptance of foreigners,” he noted.
It was only when they crossed the 25% mark and structural
unemployment emerged that Singaporeans began to react, he
added.
