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Legacy of peace forged by pioneer Gurkhas

August 24, 2014, 8:13 pm
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By Chong Zi Liang, The Sunday Times, 24 Aug 2014

As a Gurkha who arrived in Singapore before its independence, Mr Chandra Gurung witnessed the 1964 racial riots that schoolchildren now read about in their history textbooks.

"When Malays were beating Chinese, Malay policemen would let them continue," says Mr Gurung, 72, who served from 1961 to 1988. "When Chinese were beating Malays, Chinese policemen would do nothing."

Racial tensions were so high that each three-man patrol needed a Gurkha to act as a neutral presence while his counterparts, one Chinese and one Malay, dealt with their own community. At the height of the violence, Mr Gurung often did not even have time for a meal.

The Gurkhas are an elite force plucked from the foothills of Nepal to serve in foreign militaries.

Every year, thousands of Nepalese youngsters go through a series of medical, academic and physical tests to have a shot at becoming a Gurkha. Fewer than 5 per cent are selected in the end and sent to Britain or Singapore.

Here, they belong to the police force's Gurkha Contingent which was formed in 1949. The paramilitary policemen serve for about 25 years but cannot stay permanently and have to return to Nepal when they retire at 45.

For their children, born and raised in Singapore, the culture shock of resettling in Nepal can overwhelm. They are more comfortable speaking English or Singlish, and must adjust to the littered streets of Kathmandu and overcrowded mini-vans as the main form of public transport, among other things.

But even now, the competition to be a Gurkha is keen, and being selected is highly prized.

Unlike today's Gurkhas who mostly stand as a deterrent force in peaceful Singapore, the first batches of Gurkhas cut their teeth as policemen quelling riots and strikes that were widespread in the 1950s and 1960s. Police work during the early days of the Gurkha Contingent was no mean feat as the officers faced mounting problems from secret societies, rampant murders and strikes.

Besides racial conflict, labour unrest was a source of turmoil. In 1955, the Hock Lee bus workers picketed the bus depot and prevented vehicles from leaving.

"The protesters were very restless, like they were just waiting for something to happen," says Mr Tulsi Gurung, 80, who served from 1951 to 1972. Sure enough, violence broke out and Mr Tulsi Gurung's orders to disperse the crowd with minimal physical harm were impossible to carry out.

With only a baton and shield to work with, the Gurkhas charged at the rioters to prevent the fighting from spreading. In the meantime, lorries ferrying schoolchildren to classes in place of buses were escorted by Gurkhas to ensure the passengers' safety.

The spectre of communism also threatened Singapore then and the Gurkhas were called upon to neutralise the Malayan Communist Party in the 1960s.

Mr Chandra Gurung was relaxing in his quarters one afternoon when the alarm was raised and all the Gurkhas assembled with their riot gear. Arms and live ammunition were issued.

They were kept in the dark about their mission until nightfall, when they were notified that they were going to arrest communist conspirators who had been planning to assassinate ministers and blow up key installations.

They got into patrol cars, once again with one Gurkha to a Malay and Chinese counterpart, heading out to make the arrests. Some of the targets were half-naked and bleary-eyed when they answered the door.

Mr Chandra Gurung's account corroborates details of Operation Coldstore in 1963, where more than 100 alleged left-wing activists were arrested and detained, including key members of the opposition political party Barisan Sosialis.

Although it has been almost 30 years since Mr Chandra Gurung returned to Nepal, he still remembers Singapore fondly.

The retired Gurkha easily matches names like Goh Keng Swee and S. Rajaratnam to the portfolios they held in Singapore's first Cabinet.

He also remains fiercely loyal to the country he served as a policeman and says plainly: "I love Singapore. If anything bad happens, I am ready to fight.

"I am ready to go back and die for Singapore."

This edited extract is from The Invisible Force, a new book about the lives of the Singapore Gurkhas and the problems they face in Nepal upon retirement. It is by ST journalist Chong Zi Liang and freelance photographer Zakaria Zainal, both of whom went to Nepal six times and interviewed about 80 former Gurkhas. The book, published by Ethos Books and launched yesterday, will be available in major bookstores from Sept 1.


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Health-care pioneers lauded

August 24, 2014, 8:33 pm
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Health Minister thanks them for their hard work, dedication in the face of challenges
By Joanna Seow, The Sunday Times, 24 Aug 2014

Minister of Health Gan Kim Yong yesterday paid tribute "to the sweat, the tears and sometimes the blood" that Singapore's pioneer health-care workers had shed.

They worked during a time when clean water, proper sanitation, vaccination against common infectious diseases and good nutrition were the basic needs, he said.

Speaking at a tribute lunch for health-care pioneers, he added: "Many of you may be modest and say, 'No lah, I did not build any hospitals or new nursing homes, I didn't do anything special. I was just doing my job.'

"As we look back over the last five decades, no matter how big or small you think your role has been, the progress and achievement we have today is a result of the dedication and hard work from each one of you."

He was speaking to more than 400 seniors - current and former staff of the Ministry of Health and 10 other agencies - at the Mandarin Orchard event where guests mingled over music and dance performances and a seven-course lunch.

Mr Gan also said that Singapore's health-care system was commended by the president of the World Bank on a recent visit. However, he added that the country is now facing new challenges, such as an ageing population and public health threats like SARS and Ebola.

Mr Gan urged the current generation to be inspired by the pioneers'"dedication, resourcefulness and far-sightedness" and translate that inspiration into action.

"The best way we can thank and honour our pioneers is to do justice to their legacy, to work hard for a future that will be better for our children and their children."





Breakthrough in tb treatment adopted globally

Until the late 1970s, treatment for tuberculosis sufferers took a couple of years.

Thanks to Dr Chew Chin Hin and his team - who worked to find the best combination of drugs to combat the illness - it now takes six months. Their treatment regime has been adopted worldwide.

"I'm hoping and praying there will be more breakthroughs, especially in dealing with drug-resistant TB," said the 83-year-old adjunct Associate Professor at the National University of Singapore's Yong Loo Lin School of Medicine and former chairman of the Health Ministry's TB Research Committee.

Dr Chew also started the nation's first foray into geriatric medicine in the 1980s, when he was the ministry's deputy director of medical services. The department which he convinced Dr Francis Joseph Jayaratnam to start at Tan Tock Seng Hospital set the standard and now most hospitals have geriatricians. As Singapore's population increases and lives longer, seeing the discipline grow over the years has been "gratifying", Dr Chew said.

As the National Medical Ethics Committee chairman from 1994 to 2000, he initiated the Advance Medical Directive, which allows people to state that they do not want extraordinary life-sustaining measures if they become terminally ill.

He became the first Singaporean to receive the prestigious Mastership in the American College of Physicians in 2010. His father Benjamin Chew also worked in hospitals, treating the casualties of World War II and rampant infectious diseases.





School health booklet was her idea

Looking after 400,000 schoolchildren sounds tiring, but for former School Health Service director Uma Rajan it was "youthful ageing".

"Being with them, you felt young, you always felt life was there," said Dr Rajan, 74. "They kept you on your toes, because they were growing from ages six to 16. It was a big responsibility which we enjoyed because we felt we were moulding these children."

When she started as a medical officer in the maternal and child health clinic, she would go to nearby islands to meet villagers who sometimes cooked her a meal.

Later, she asked top hotel chefs to judge school sandwich-making competitions, as part of health education for the children.

Dr Rajan is probably best known for introducing the health booklet that follows children from birth into their adult years, providing a record of physical growth and well-being that parents can keep at home.

"Before that, parents had no way of knowing what was on their child's medical record card," said Dr Rajan, whose biggest challenge was attracting talent. "Doctors who came to school were usually women who were expecting, because they could keep office hours and not do night duty.

"We wanted a time when doctors would ask for it because they liked the work."

Dr Rajan brought in hospital specialists and made keeping up with current treatments part of the job scope.

Although now more involved in eldercare, having also served as director of eldercare at the Health Ministry, she hopes school health will be well taken care of by her successors. She added: "We have to be in tune with changing needs."





Fear not, here comes the dental nurse

As a school dental nurse of 42 years, Madam Fatimah Faridah Merican saw her fair share of scared patients.

"There was one girl who stood outside the door and refused to come in, so I let her watch her friend," said the 68-year-old retiree. "The next time, she came into the clinic but didn't want to sit on the chair, so she watched her friend again." It was only after a few days that the pupil finally let Madam Merican peer into her mouth.

Her love for children was why her father, a dental technician, suggested she take up the course at the then Institute of Health.

She was in the third batch of trainees in 1964, and her proud father photographed her as she practised on the wooden mouth models with plastic teeth.

After graduating and becoming a dental nurse, the schools she spent the most time at were Balestier Primary School and Methodist Girls' School (MGS), where she checked children's teeth and gums for 17 and 12 years respectively.

"In the early days, parents wouldn't want us to refer their children to specialists for braces. 'So what if it's crooked?' they would say. Now everyone's so conscious."

Madam Merican was at MGS until she retired in 2006, and recalls fondly one girl in particular who would go to her clinic almost every day at 3pm and ask, "Nurse, can I do my homework here while waiting for my dad?"

"She still meets up with me now that she's married and a doctor," said Madam Merican. "So I tell her, 'I used to take care of you, now you take care of me'."


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Tin Pei Ling gets PM's vote of confidence

August 24, 2014, 9:12 pm
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By Lim Yan Liang, The Sunday Times, 24 Aug 2014

Ms Tin Pei Ling, MP for Marine Parade GRC, received the Prime Minister's vote of confidence last night when he attended a National Day dinner in the MacPherson ward she represents, and praised her for proving her detractors wrong by being able to connect with and solve her residents' problems.

More than 30 per cent of the ward's residents are senior citizens.

Post by Lee Hsien Loong.


Last night, Mr Lee Hsien Loong said in a speech to some 800 of them: "MacPherson is one of our oldest constituencies, but I sent my youngest candidate here because I was confident that she would be able to establish rapport with the older aunties and uncles and serve them well."

He added: "Of course, there is still a lot to be done, and I hope you will all continue to support her."

Ms Tin, who was 27 years old when she was fielded as a PAP candidate in the May 2011 General Election, came under intense scrutiny during the campaign, with many people asking if she was qualified to be a Member of Parliament. Netizens mocked her for comments that she made during the campaign and in old videos found online.

Among the projects that Ms Tin has worked on in the three years since is a major renovation of MacPherson Community Club.

The CC, which opened in 1970, is among Singapore's oldest. The renovated club has new dance studios, an upgraded gym and a larger active-aging members' room, outfitted with specialised equipment. It has been "brought up-to-date", Mr Lee said.



Last night's dinner guests included Emeritus Senior Minister Goh Chok Tong, as well as Mr Tan Ah Sai, 77, and his wheelchair-bound wife, Madam Koh Kim Keah, 74.

Mr Tan, who visits the community club about three times a week with his wife, welcomed the new access ramp and seniors' exercise corner. "It will make it easier for us to stay healthy," he said in Mandarin.


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Never too old for love

August 24, 2014, 9:14 pm
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More people above age 60 getting married; most are men with younger, foreign brides
By Theresa Tan, The Sunday Times, 24 Aug 2014

The number of people aged 60 and above getting married has tripled over the past decade but it is mainly older men tying the knot late in life.

There were 369 bridegrooms in this age group last year, triple the 119 in 2003. They comprised 1.4 per cent of all grooms last year, almost triple the 0.5 per cent a decade ago.

Marriage solemnisers and counsellors said most of the men were marrying younger foreign women, and there has been an influx of foreigners seeking Singaporean husbands in the past decade.

With the rising number of divorces, more divorced men are also getting married again.

As for older women, 61 women aged 60 and above tied the knot last year. Although a relatively small number, it was still four times the 15 who got married in 2003.

The Marriages and Divorces 2013 report released by the Statistics Department late last month did not state the nationality of those who married older Singaporeans.

But solemnisers interviewed said most of the elderly grooms married women from countries such as China, Indonesia and Vietnam.

The 2013 statistics also showed that:
- Six in 10 grooms were previously divorced and almost three in 10 were widowers;
- Most of the men married younger women. Only about one in 10 took a wife in his age group;
- Unlike the men, almost three in four women married men in the same age group;
- Most of the older brides and grooms had secondary education or lower.
Experts interviewed said more elderly men were marrying because men seek companionship and sexual intimacy more than women, who may receive emotional support from friends.

Sociologist Paulin Straughan said that unlike older women, older men remained "in demand" as spouses.

"It's an age-old expectation that men are able to marry at whatever age they want, as long as they have money," she said.

"And men want a younger bride because they can have them. Younger women still want them, they look up to the men as providers," she added.

Care Corner Counselling Centre counsellor Jonathan Siew said some in society, such as the Chinese-educated, still frown on older women remarrying.

"Some people can be very critical and say things like the woman is so old and still hungry for a man," he said.

"Our society still finds older women remarrying abnormal. Many older women feel this way too and avoid getting into an intimate relationship."

Solemnisers said many of the senior grooms, who hold blue-collar jobs or are retired, marry women half their age.

The couples often meet through their social networks.

Some foreign women married to Singaporean men may also introduce their compatriots to their husbands' male friends.

Solemnisers and counsellors said many of those in late marriages keep their unions a hush-hush matter, afraid of being mocked by others or that their children might object.

Touch Community Services senior counsellor Chan Hon Shek said some children fear that the young foreign woman is out to cheat their father of his money - and their inheritance.

"We see children who bring their fathers for counselling, hoping we can dissuade the man from remarrying," he said. "But the man wants us to persuade his children to accept his new wife."

Grassroots leader Tay Hock Ann recalled solemnising the marriage of a 77-year-old man to a 49-year-old woman from China.

The widower kept the marriage a secret because he knew his children, whom he did not live with and was not close to, would object.

The couple had been introduced by friends. When the man suffered a stroke shortly after they met, the widow from China nursed him back to health. He eventually married her and they saw their union as fated, Mr Tay said.

But social workers said that many elderly grooms with young foreign brides run into multiple problems, from financial woes to difficulty in getting permanent residency status or long-term visit passes for the women.

Ms Ruth Tan, centre director of Marine Parade Family Service Centre, said some of the men are retired and their foreign wives are not allowed to work here.

More problems arise if such couples have children. Given their age or ailing health, the men may find it hard to secure a job or can only work part-time.

Still, those interviewed said they expect the number of late-life marriages to rise, given Singapore's ageing population and longer life expectancy.

Associate Professor Straughan said: "With people being more educated and more open-minded, more will be more accepting of seniors marrying for companionship."





Married on her 60th birthday

Financial consultant Kang Li Na met the man she would marry at a client's funeral more than a decade ago. She was then in her late 40s and divorced with a teenage daughter.

She started chatting with a man at the wake, and soon was trying to sell him an insurance policy. The childless widower was not interested in insurance, but sparks flew and the pair went on to become an item.

Ms Kang, now 62, said: "He's a very kind and nice man, and I was attracted to his smile."

But with the failure of her first marriage, she was not keen to remarry. She was content having a companion and live-in partner.

"To my younger friends and clients, I would say he was my boyfriend. To my older clients, I'd say he was my husband as I was afraid they would not accept our relationship."

A year younger than her, the retired businessman surprised her by popping the question more than 10 years after they had been together. It happened two years ago, when she was lamenting that her friends and clients might not show up for her 60th birthday party as it fell within the inauspicious Hungry Ghost festival.

"He said if we got married on my birthday, everyone would come," she said.

Touched, she accepted his proposal and they tied the knot on her birthday with a hotel reception for 80 guests, complete with a band.

"My friend's niece, who is 40 and single, said she still has a chance of getting married since Aunty Li Na got married at 60," she said.





Widower finds a companion

After his wife died, Raymond, 66, felt a nagging sense of emptiness when he went home.

"I felt out of place when I went home to an empty house with eight bedrooms. I felt the emptiness, even though I kept myself busy," he said. His wife died of a brain haemorrhage seven years ago.

He ran a tuition agency and kept fit by going to the gym, and playing tennis and hockey. Two nights a week, he sang with his band at a country club for fun.

Then he met a teacher from China in her 30s through work. Despite an age gap of almost 30 years, he said, they just clicked.

"We share a chemistry. We share the same passion for teaching," he said. "The age gap is not a problem. It's about compatibility and chemistry."

Three years ago, they married when he was 63 and she was 35. It is her first marriage.

His four children are aged between 26 and 39. Two of his children are married and he has two grandchildren.

"I married for companionship," he told The Sunday Times. "I wouldn't say my children were overjoyed, but they didn't object to my marriage. It's my life and I'm independent. I don't depend on them for a cent."

Thankfully, all has been well so far between his wife and his children.

"We get along well and I'm pretty happy. There is no friction," said Raymond, who declined to have his full name revealed in this report.


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35,000 older workers earn less than $1,000

August 24, 2014, 10:05 pm
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Many work because they can't depend on children, but new govt schemes provide relief
By Radha Basu, The Sunday Times, 24 Aug 2014

The number of older workers taking home less than $1,000 a month has doubled to nearly 35,000 over the past decade, according to figures from the Ministry of Manpower.

That number has outpaced the natural ageing of the population, which had slightly more than 400,000 residents aged 65 and above last year, up 60 per cent from around 250,000 a decade earlier.

More elderly people may be working because there are fewer children to provide support, or the children themselves may be struggling with rising costs, said Assistant Professor Ng Kok Hoe of the Lee Kuan Yew School of Public Policy.

"Studies have shown that fewer parents are living with children and fewer are receiving cash transfers from them," said the social policy expert, who has published a paper on how poor Singaporeans may not be able to depend on their children as the primary source of retirement income for much longer.

"So some older folk may have no choice but to turn to work to make ends meet."

Although there are twice as many low-income elderly workers now, there was some good news in the statistics - only one in three earned under $1,000 last year, compared with one in two just five years earlier.

This could be the result of several recent government incentives to get more of the elderly into the workforce, said labour economist Randolph Tan of SIM University.

Companies get a Special Employment Credit to hire older workers. The tightened foreign worker tap has led to more jobs in the cleaning and service industries.

The unions have also pushed for the implementation of National Wages Council recommendations for a minimum $60 hike in the pay of older workers who earned below $1,000.

"Given the tight labour market, companies are being motivated to pay higher wages than before to woo Singaporean workers back to the workforce," said Associate Professor Tan.

In 2003, only about 12 per cent of those aged 65 and above worked; last year, that proportion doubled to 24 per cent.

Workers appear to be willing too. "They can now supplement take-home pay with Workfare, which has become an important pillar of social support," said Prof Tan. "So there are more incentives to work than before."

Workfare payments are made quarterly and not factored into calculations of gross monthly wages. A worker aged 65 who earns $1,000 a month, for instance, can get $350 in cash and $525 in Central Provident Fund grants every quarter from Workfare.

Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong announced in his National Day Rally speech last weekend that the Government planned to institute an annual "Silver Support" bonus to help low-income Singaporeans aged 65 and above.

Member of Parliament Lily Neo, whose Tanjong Pagar constituency is home to many who are old and poor, said she hoped the bonus would be paid not just to retirees but also to working low-income Singaporeans.

Among them is mother of five Lee Soon Chiew, 67, who told The Sunday Times she works as a cleaner because she does not want to be a burden on her children. "They all have their families and don't earn much. I have no choice but to work," she said.

Hawker centre assistant Yip Chin Foon, 77, a sprightly single who works five hours a day, five days a week, said: "I do not want to depend on the Government. I just want to work as long as I can."





Elderly poor need more than just a 'bonus'
As families shrink and fracture, children may be unable to be first line of support
By Radha Basu Senior Correspondent, The Sunday Times, 24 Aug 2014

I met Dr Alexandre Kalache back in 2011 and something he said then has stuck with me ever since as Singapore grapples with issues related to the rising number of old people.

The former head of ageing issues at the World Health Organisation pointed out that while Singapore had done exceedingly well in increasing life expectancy, it had miles to go in helping its elderly age with dignity.

Men and women in their 70s being forced to clean tables at hawker centres, scrub apartment blocks or slog in the hot sun as security guards were not signs of "active ageing", said the epidemiologist, who drafted two manuals on the issue and spent 15 years crafting ageing policies at the WHO.

He pointed out that much of the developed world already had "non-contributory pensions" - or handouts - for low-income older folk, saving them the indignity of hard labour at a time in life when many may want to retire and rest.

"I am all for active ageing, but if you have never had a decent job, don't know what job satisfaction is, to make you work till you practically drop dead is not human," he said.

Ultimately, he added, guaranteed handouts for the elderly poor were something for Singaporeans themselves to discuss.

Three years on, the time for that discussion is finally here.

For anyone concerned about the plight of the elderly poor, the most welcome nugget from Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong's National Day Rally speech last weekend was no doubt the new plan to help this group.

The Silver Support scheme will provide a payout in the form of an annual bonus to low-income Singaporeans aged 65 and above. Details will be fleshed out in next year's Budget.

It appears that Singapore is inching closer to an old-age support system entrenched in the rest of the developed world, including Hong Kong and South Korea, where the elderly poor are offered a subsistence allowance so that they don't need to work until they die - unless they want to.

But is 65 too young? How much should we pay? Will such a move cause children to abrogate their filial duties? Is a bonus sufficient? Or do we need a broader, income-guarantee scheme for the few who don't own flats and have little or no savings and family support?

As society ages, more older folk remain single and family sizes shrink, it is time to have an open and informed debate on how much social protection should be extended to those who have worked hard all their lives, yet are living out their last years fretting about money.

It is worth noting that while many European countries are rolling back pension schemes, it is not subsistence handouts to the poor that are busting budgets but payouts to the better-off, among other things, through schemes that guarantee employees a percentage of their last-drawn pay after retirement.

The idea of an income-support scheme for the elderly poor in Singapore is not new. In 2011, a Government-appointed work group of businessmen and academics proposed a means-tested retirement grant for low-income workers above 65 which would meet basic needs, similar to an existing scheme in Hong Kong.

The only long-term welfare scheme Singapore has for the aged poor is Public Assistance, under which those who are medically unfit to work, have no assets and little or no family support receive a monthly allowance from the Government, currently pegged at $450 per month for a single person. Beneficiaries also get rental subsidies and medical benefits.

However, while the number of those aged 65 and above has increased from around 250,000 to more than 400,000 over the past decade, the number on Public Assistance has remained fairly stable at around 3,000 a year. Meanwhile, the number aged 65 and above who earn a take-home pay of less than $1,000 a month has doubled from 16,500 to 34,900.

Singapore does not track the number of non-working poor - or indeed even define what it means to be poor - so it is impossible to know exactly how many retired older folk are not getting the long-term help they may need.

Some no doubt work by choice, but I have met many older workers who say their savings are depleted and they have to work, especially if they don't want to be a "burden" on their children.

Most Singaporeans have a nest egg in the form of their HDB flat. But there are at least 30,000 older folk who live in one- and two-room Housing Board flats, mostly by paying subsidised rents. To be eligible to rent, you cannot own a flat and have a monthly household income of $1,500 or below. These numbers too are on the rise.

There are also some who own an HDB flat who are cash-poor but are not in a position to downgrade because their adult children, being single or unable to afford their own flats yet, live with them.

While criteria for public assistance have been widened over the years, I have met many such folk who say they cannot get public assistance because they have children. There are also those who are divorced or estranged from family members. Others - particularly those in their 80s and older - have children who are sick and unable to work. When children stop helping because of their own problems, the parents are loath to ask for support. Surveys have also shown that fewer are receiving cash handouts from children.

But the biggest problem by far could be that older folk don't seek assistance because of the stigma attached.

In a country where a time-honed Confucian compact has made it a sacred duty for children to support their parents in old age, some elderly do not want to acknowledge being let down by their own flesh and blood, be it by choice, compulsion or circumstances.

Academics have already sounded the alarm on the long-term sustainability of getting the young to care for the old, given the twin trends of rapid ageing and plummeting birth rates.

The dependency ratio - the number of young people who support the old - has fallen sharply. Families are not just shrinking, but more are fracturing too.

So there is no doubt that Singapore needs greater old-age income support for the poor.

While the Silver Support scheme has been announced as an annual bonus, it may eventually need to grow into a strong pillar of guaranteed social support.

There is a precedent. When Workfare, the Government's income supplement scheme for low-wage workers, was piloted in 2006, it too was in the form of a bonus. It has since been expanded and strengthened considerably in recent years.

The age limit for inclusion in the Silver Support scheme could be increased progressively as retirement age and life expectancy rise over time. Payouts too can be calibrated according to age, with older citizens receiving more.

Would it absolve children from the responsibility of looking after their parents? I think not. Especially if the scheme remains means-tested and only the poor are eligible.

Details can be worked out later, but for a start, taxpayers need to ask ourselves: If an elderly person who built this nation chooses not to work in a menial job in his last leg of life, should we help make that wish come true?

The answer, I hope, is a resounding yes.


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Schools must stay inclusive

August 24, 2014, 11:29 pm
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Top schools cannot turn into closed circles: Heng
They play a role in levelling up kids from less advantaged backgrounds: Minister
By Cheryl Faith Wee, The Sunday Times, 24 Aug 2014

Established schools such as Hwa Chong Institution (HCI) cannot become "closed circles" said Education Minister Heng Swee Keat, because of the role they play in levelling up children from less advantaged backgrounds.

He also urged these schools to share their best practices so that "we can level up all our schools together".

He made these points yesterday in his speech at the 40th anniversary celebration of Hwa Chong Junior College, which is now part of HCI.

About 1,000 people attended the gala dinner at Resorts World Sentosa, from board members to teachers and alumni, including Minister in the Prime Minister's Office Grace Fu and Minister of State (Education, and Communications and Information) Sim Ann.

Several tables at the dinner were sold for charity. The proceeds from the sale will go towards the school's Holistic Education Centre, which is set to open in 2016 and will provide students with facilities such as an indoor sports hall and a student services wing.

Around $1.2 million has been raised for the building fund so far, excluding the amount from the gala dinner.

In his speech, Mr Heng said the Government has enhanced the Independent School Bursary Scheme to provide more assistance to students from lower- to middle-income families and ensure that such schools remain affordable for everyone. Fees at independent schools are about $300 a month on average, compared with around $22 at mainstream secondary schools.

"Every child should enjoy the available opportunities to fulfil his or her potential," said Mr Heng.

But schools should also do their part to encourage inclusiveness.

He spoke about how HCI works with principals at primary schools to encourage talented pupils to join Hwa Chong's Integrated Programme, regardless of their financial background.

A more diverse mix also helps "out academically able students to build empathy and understanding".

He brought up the example of HCI alumnus Arturo Neo - the youngest of three children in a single-parent family who was struggling financially but thrived at the school.

Earlier this month, the 19-year-old was awarded the prestigious President's Scholarship.

"He wants to be a doctor to serve others," said Mr Heng. "It is an example of how we create a virtuous cycle."

He said schools like Hwa Chong that have benefited from strong ministry support to pilot new approaches in education could share what works well with other schools.

"Our school leaders not only have a responsibility to achieve excellence in the schools they are in, they also have a responsibility to uplift our entire education system," he said.

Some pioneer teachers from the junior college have noticed how the demographic of its students has changed over time, from families with humble backgrounds in the school's early days to those with better-educated parents now who are more well-off.

HCI physics teacher Quek Hoon Khin, 62, who has 39 years of experience, said: "It is good for students to be exposed to programmes like community involvement so that they get to see different parts of society."


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PM Lee at post National Day Rally dialogue with students

August 25, 2014, 1:25 am
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PM to youth: Study what's good for your job
Govt not discouraging pursuit of degrees, but wants young people to be aware of choices
The Sunday Times, 24 Aug 2014

Young people peppered Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong with questions about a new national push to enhance job opportunities for polytechnic and ITE graduates at a post-rally dialogue in Ang Mo Kio yesterday.

The first question was on how the Government planned to stop the paper chase, and change attitudes in the public sector.

That was swiftly followed by one from a Nanyang Technological University undergraduate who introduced himself as Suhaimi. He wanted to know what better opportunities for diploma holders would mean for those who took the degree route and whether the latter would still be "worthwhile".



He was one of about 350 young Singaporeans aged 12 to 35 who attended the dialogue, organised by the Youth Executive Committees of Ang Mo Kio GRC and Sengkang West, and held at St Nicholas Girls' School.

Mr Lee explained that the Government is not discouraging people from pursuing degrees but it wants young people to study what would be useful and valuable to them when they went to work.

Later, he also said that young people need to be aware that they have choices. They can head straight for university after school or work first and study part-time.

Right now, many do not know the menu of choices before them. That is why the Applied Study in Polytechnic and ITE Review (ASPIRE) Committee has recommended better career guidance for students, he said.

Mr Lee and Ang Mo Kio GRC MP Inderjit Singh also highlighted the problem of some young people and their parents paying large sums for degree courses at institutions where the quality of education was suspect.



Mr Singh said that as an employer, he would prefer to hire a diploma holder, rather than someone with a degree from an unknown university that offered two-year degree courses, for example.

Turning to hiring decisions, Mr Lee tackled concerns about the public sector, which is known to consider only graduates for many jobs.

He said that the Civil Service had to make sure it hired people who could do the jobs it needed them to do.

That is why a Maths teacher, for example, needs to have a Maths degree or one in a related subject such as physics.

Someone hired to be a doctor should have passed his medical exams.

But in hiring an SAF officer, for example, there was no need for a specific academic qualification as what was needed was a man "who knew his business in the SAF, who has the right spirit and the right values and who can fight", he said.

A student from ITE College East by the name of Nicholas said he hoped to join the police but heard that diploma holders could only hope to move up to the rank of staff sergeant while a graduate would immediately be appointed assistant inspector.

Mr Lee said a degree gives a sense of what someone has accomplished but should only be a "starting point", as how a person advances in his career should depend on his performance and abilities.

Two of the young participants also asked Mr Lee about conserving nature and green places in Singapore. One expressed concern that the planned cross-island MRT line would cut through the Central Catchment Reserve.

Mr Lee said that has not been finalised and that first, the agencies in charge need to do an Environmental Impact Assessment. He also explained that if the line were to cut through the reserve, it would do so underground, and it might be possible to do so without harming the trees and animals above ground.







Too much tuition in Singapore: PM Lee
AsiaOne, 24 Aug 2014

At the youth dialogue held last night, Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong gave his take on the tuition situation in Singapore after one student expressed concern about parents sending their kids to tuition and other extra classes from a young age.

The student said his niece in her second year at kindergarten is going to so many classes - including one on leadership skills - that he fears that she is losing her childhood.

He was one of about 350 young Singaporeans aged 12 to 35 who attended the post-rally dialogue, organised by the Youth Executive Committees of Ang Mo Kio GRC and Sengkang West, and held at St Nicholas Girls' School.



In response, PM Lee acknowledged the situation and noted that many parents are overzealous in arranging for tuition classes for their children.

"Why are K2 students going for leadership training programmes? It's partly because our system is competitive, I think it's [also] partly because parents are very anxious for their kids. And I think sometimes their kids also want to make sure they get the few extra points and they ask their parents to arrange tuition for them," he said.

"But I think it's too much. Tuition can help if you are really struggling with a subject. But generally speaking, we want the teachers in school to be teaching you the whole subject, not teaching you the basics and then saying 'the rest you go and ask your tuition teacher.'"

He said that from his observations, teachers make an effort to teach the whole syllabus in class most of the time and put in extra hours to teach students who need extra help.

"If you need more tuition or more help, many of the teachers I know stay back in class and in school. If you get detention class, the teachers also stay back in order to help you to pass the exam," he noted.

"So I think that actually, we are doing too much tuition in Singapore," he concluded.











Students to be given better career guidance: PM Lee
By Saifulbahri Ismail, Channel NewsAsia, 23 Aug 2014

Students need to be given better career guidance so they can make the right choices in their careers, said Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong on Saturday (Aug 23). He said this would be the recommendation of the Applied Study in Polytechnics and ITE Review (ASPIRE) committee.

The panel, which studied how to create work and study paths for Singaporeans, is expected to announce its recommendations soon. Mr Lee gave the hint during a dialogue session with youths in his Ang Mo Kio constituency. Saturday's dialogue session on the Prime Minister's National Day Rally Speech was the first involving youths.

In his address, Mr Lee had said that a university degree need not be the only route to a fulfilling career for young Singaporeans. Participants then asked if there's a need to study hard for a degree. Mr Lee said not every student is ready to go to university after school.

Prime Minister Lee said: "The answer will vary with each person. It depends on your interest, depends on your aptitude, depends on whether you are an academic type or not, depends whether you want to start getting experience, and then you can build up based on that, and study, and gain further education and qualification later on."

Mr Lee said most young people hope to do well in their studies and want to go to university. Parents would also like their children to take that path. Mr Lee said students should be advised based on their circumstances and that is why career guidance is important.

PM Lee said: "That is what the ASPIRE Committee, I think, will recommend, and that is to have better career guidance for our students so they know what the choices are, and they can make the right choices for themselves. And each person will have different choices.

"But they should know what the whole menu is, whereas now people don't know what the menu is. They have one idea, and they are fixed on that idea, and they just want to do that, and I think they may not make the best choice for themselves for the long term."

In addition, Mr Lee said the quality of the degree is also important. He cautioned students and parents against overseas institutions that provide degrees just because they want to make money.

Mr Lee said: "They earn a lot of money, they charge a lot of money and what are they giving you? They are giving you a piece of paper which the students may think is valuable but at the end, the employer really knows the quality of education which has gone into it."

Before the dialogue, participants broke up into groups to discuss Mr Lee's National Day Rally Speech. At the group session, the youths discussed issues that appealed to them the most during the National Day Rally. In addition, they shared their thoughts on what the areas are that can be further improved, and what they wish can be included in next year's rally speech."

Dialogue participant Mohamed Amin Adiman, who is an Institute of Technical Institute (ITE) student, said: "It will be good if from ITE we can go on to Poly, and we can increase the percentage of ITE students going to Poly. Now, most of the 'O' Level students are taking up the places and only 20 per cent can go to Poly from ITE."

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YOG 2014: Historic Olympic Golds for Singapore

August 26, 2014, 2:22 am
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Sailors deliver two Olympic golds for Singapore
By May Chen, The Straits Times, 25 Aug 2014

NANJING - It has taken 78 years, but Singapore are finally Olympic champions.

As Majulah Singapura filled the Jinniu Lake Sailing Venue, not once but twice, in honour of men's and women's Youth Olympic Games (YOG) Byte CII champions Bernie Chin and Samantha Yom yesterday, even the grey skies and heavy showers gave way to warm rays of sunshine.

The 15-year-old sailors became the first Singaporeans to triumph at an Olympic event since Singapore first sent athletes to the 1936 Berlin Games. They join paralympian swimmer Yip Pin Xiu as the only local athletes to have had the National Anthem played in recognition of their victories at an Olympic or Paralympic games.

For historians, the order in which the golds came - Samantha was first by about 10 minutes, at about 11.37am - will be well-documented. Such is the scale of yesterday's achievements. But on a day where even the most veteran of sports officials were moved to tears, it mattered little. Double gold, double the joy for Team Singapore.

Said Samantha, a Raffles Girls' School student: "I was confident that I would be able to do my best, sail like I have been sailing, and remain focused at the same time."

Added Bernie, who studies at Raffles Institution: "This means a lot to me. It makes me feel very proud that I can win a gold medal for Singapore."

As the leader going into yesterday's final race, he had been a favourite for the gold. But holding just a four-point lead over Brazil's Pedro Luiz Marcondes Correa, a win was by no means a guarantee. More so for Samantha, who was in second spot trailing Odile van Aanholt of the Netherlands by four points.

But a strong second-place finish, coupled with Bernie's fifth place to end the regatta, meant twin golds for Singapore.

It brings Singapore's tally in Nanjing to two golds and two silvers. At the inaugural YOG in Singapore in 2010, the Republic won two silvers and five bronzes. Singapore's Summer Olympics haul stands at two silvers and two bronzes, from weightlifting and table tennis at the 1960, 2008 and 2012 games.

The sight of the Singapore flag fluttering in the wind to the melodic tune of the National Anthem was especially poignant for International Olympic Committee member and former national sailor Ng Ser Miang, who presented the medals to the athletes.

Speaking of the joy of hearing the National Anthem play 16 years after he first joined the Olympic circle, the Singaporean said: "It's an amazing feeling. Hearing it not once but twice in the same day is just incredible."

News of the sailors' feats travelled quickly back to Singapore, where many officials also sent their congratulations. Manpower Minister Tan Chuan-Jin, who is also Singapore National Olympic Council president and was in Nanjing last week to support the athletes, said in a Facebook post: "Their win is a testimony of not just their skills but their resilience and fighting spirit."




Post by Ministry of Culture, Community and Youth - MCCY.




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NSmen to get Adidas and Zoot running shoes

August 26, 2014, 2:32 am
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By Lee Jian Xuan, The Straits Times, 25 Aug 2014

NATIONAL servicemen from the Singapore Armed Forces (SAF) can look forward to getting adidas and Zoot running shoes from year's end, said Defence Minister Ng Eng Hen yesterday.

In a Facebook post, Dr Ng uploaded pictures of the new shoes, as well as his third pair of Asics shoes and wrote: "Like most of you, I was delighted with the Asics shoes... they were high quality and have given me many hours of happy walking and jogging."

Post by Ng Eng Hen - Defence Minister.


The SAF switched to Asics in 2011, as the Japanese brand was considered to be lighter, more durable and shock-absorbent than the New Balance or Brooks models in use since 2007.

"More good news for NSmen. The next set of running shoes will be from adidas and Zoot and will be available at the end of the year," he added.

The post has drawn more than 400 likes and over 300 shares.

Some 300,000 active regulars, full-time and operationally ready servicemen could be outfitted with the new shoes from German sports brand Adidas and Zoot, an American endurance sports brand. This will mark the SAF's fourth change of shoes since 1995.

The current Asics shoes were chosen after a trial and evaluation by its medical and fitness agencies. Two Asics models - the Gel Kanbarra 4 SP for those with neutral to high-arched feet and the Gel 105 SP for those with mildly flat feet - were provided.

When contacted, the Defence Ministry said more details on the new shoes will be provided at a later date.

NSman and production supervisor Wilfred Tan, 26, who uses a pair of SAF-issued Asics shoes during his weekly runs, said: "It's good that we have some variety to choose from, but I do prefer the Asics designs and they provide good cushioning and comfort."


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How a falling property market could impact the wider economy

August 26, 2014, 2:46 am
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UBS analysts' hypothetical picture provides food for thought
By Goh Eng Yeow, The Straits Times, 25 Aug 2014

SO FAR, the big debate over the slowdown in the public and private housing markets has focused on whether it is time for the Government to roll back some of the cooling measures that have kept a lid on soaring home prices.

The pressure on this front is coming from various quarters.

For developers, the build-up in unsold property is a matter of concern, as they struggle to move homes amid flagging demand for their new condo projects.

On their part, banks are rightly concerned too. Given the huge sums lent to developers and homebuyers to finance their purchases, they are keeping an eagle eye on the impact on their housing loan book as the market softens.

DBS Bank's chief executive Piyush Gupta, for instance, was quoted as saying that the lender had done a stress test to assess if it could cope with a 30 per cent drop in property prices.

"We see no problem at a 30 per cent fall. If rates rise, there will be marginal borrowers who can't pay, but we don't anticipate a major issue," he said.

However, there is a wider, more significant perspective on the outlook for the property market that should be considered.

It is arguably more important to examine just how the wider economy would fare if there were ever such a precipitous drop in housing prices.

The scenario looks unlikely for now, with house prices slipping only 2.3 per cent between January and June, but it bears scrutiny just the same.

Analysts believe housing prices may fall by 10 per cent to 15 per cent down the road. That means a household which had paid $1 million for a condo at the peak of the market would be $100,000 to $150,000 poorer if that scenario plays out. With a worst-case scenario of a 30 per cent drop, the household would be $300,000 poorer.

Since residential properties make up about 48 per cent of total Singaporean assets, this would mean that a big chunk of wealth here would be wiped out on paper if there is a big drop in price.

It has some economists worrying whether we are too sanguine about the downside risks posed by a falling market - and the impact this has on consumer spending, business confidence and employment.

UBS economist Edward Teather and UBS strategist Maxmillian Lin warned in a recent 16-page report that the safety cushion which Singaporeans have built up on their household balance sheets may be a source of economic risk, rather than resilience, because the balance sheets have been bloated by high house prices.

They noted that at the start of the property up-cycle, more people take up housing loans to buy properties.

This sets off a chain reaction, creating a "wealth effect" which boosts household spending and additional borrowing as people feel richer.

But when prices are high, the property market may come under downward pressure as the supply of new homes builds up and housing credit slows down.

That may, in turn, spark off a vicious cycle of falling consumer spending and declining employment, which would cause asset prices to fall further and hurt a household's net worth.

The UBS analysts observed that one source of solace regarding the slowing property market is that the household net worth here - at around four times Singapore's GDP - is similar to the wealth levels attained in some other developed economies.

But that is still lower than the equivalent of five times GDP in household wealth accumulated by Americans in the United States in 2006 - the year before the sub-prime mortgage crisis sank the US economy.

Even though Americans had all that wealth on their household balance sheets, this did little to prevent the economic crisis that followed, they noted.

Another concern which they flagged is the often repeated estimate that only about 5 to 10 per cent of borrowers here are over-stretched and that this percentage may rise to between 10 and 15 per cent if mortgage rates rise by 3 percentage points.

Over-borrowing is seen when a borrower has to spend more than 60 per cent of his monthly income to service his debt payments.

The UBS analysts argued that while the percentage of over-stretched borrowers may appear modest even in a worst-case scenario, this should not lull us into a state of complacency.

Using data from the US Mortgage Bankers Association, they noted that at the height of the US housing crisis in August 2008, only 9.2 per cent of all US mortgages were estimated to be delinquent, and that this rose to just 14.4 per cent the following year in September 2009.

This shows that even when a small segment of mortgages sours, it can have a negative impact on the broader market.

They said: "We are not saying Singapore's housing market looks like that of the US in 2007, just that there are pockets of risk which matter."

But the UBS analysts concede that the Government has an arsenal of weapons to combat any slowdown caused by a falling property market.

Apart from easing up on the cooling measures in the property market, the Government may expand its social safety nets further, while a weaker labour market could prompt an easier currency policy.

What they have painted is the hypothetical picture of a falling market.

But for those who hope that prices would fall sharply so that they can pick up their dream property, they should be more careful about what they wish for.


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Low Yen Ling: Why I write love notes to my two young boys

August 26, 2014, 2:48 am
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Since entering politics in 2011, Chua Chu Kang GRC MP Low Yen Ling, 40, has been taking on one new responsibility after another. The mother of two young sons was appointed Parliamentary Secretary for Social and Family Development last year, added the Culture, Community and Youth portfolio in April this year and became South West District Mayor last month. She tells Charissa Yong that the toughest part has been sacrificing time with her boys, aged seven and nine.
The Straits Times, 23 Aug 2014


What is it like for you as a working mother?

My husband (a 43-year-old engineer in a multinational corporation) and my mum (aged 63) are my pillars of strength. My dad (she did not wish to name her family) passed away four years ago.

Juggling my commitments is indeed challenging, and I continue to try to achieve a good balance. But no matter how busy I am, I try my best to make time for dinner with my family at least twice a week because mealtimes are very important for us to talk about anything under the sun, for the children to share with us interesting things that happened or what bothered them.

Since mid-last year, I've promised my two boys, who are now nine and seven years old, that for every time I can't be home to tuck them into bed, to kiss them goodnight, I will write them a love note and leave it on their desk.

There were many occasions in the last three years when I had to go home for a change of clothes before dashing out for my evening events or constituency work. My two boys will ask me, "Mummy, can you stay home and not go out?" And of course my heart aches every time they ask me that. Which is why I constantly reassure them of Mummy and Daddy's love for them and how much they matter to us.


What more do you think can be done to help working mothers in Singapore?

The first thing is flexible work arrangements. It would mean telecommuting, flexi-time, part-time arrangements, but these are not very widely practised in companies here. For this to happen, we really need the strong support of employers.

The second one is about encouraging greater shared responsibility between parents. To encourage our daddies to be more hands-on, the Enhanced Marriage and Parenthood Package last year had the announcement about parental leave (working fathers are entitled to a week of paternity leave, and to share a week of their working wife's maternity leave). And I do see daddies being more hands-on.

The third is that the majority of working mums need to place their children in childcare. This is why in MSF (Ministry of Social and Family Development), we place a lot of emphasis on creating 20,000 childcare places by 2017. And by then, it would mean there should be enough places for one in two children at the preschool age (up from one in three, now).

We've also implemented various initiatives to make sure that childcare services are accessible, affordable and of good quality.


PM Lee announced the new Municipal Services Office (MSO) last week, and cited the inefficiency of clearing a piece of litter in your constituency as an example of why it is needed. But some ask why it takes so many office-holders - you, the PM, and Minister Grace Fu who will head the office - to pick up a fishball stick.

The example may appear to be a small matter, but the important issue at hand really is how well-defined lines of responsibilities can sometimes lead to unintended inefficiencies.

I was very heartened by the Prime Minister's announcement of the MSO. I see this as the Government's determination to make sure that issues do not fall through the cracks - onto everyman's land but where no single agency is responsible.


But why the need for an entirely new office to be created?

I'm just using this as an example: My residents asked for a service ramp link to a bus stop. I raised it with the town council.

And the town council looked into it and said, because it's connected to the bus stop, it's necessary to work with LTA (the Land Transport Authority).

So LTA got into the picture.

Then LTA looked at it and said ah, I need to work with HDB (the Housing Board), because building of service ramp links is done by HDB. So I got HDB involved.

And guess what? HDB said, ah, we need to bring in PUB (the national water agency) because there's a drain underneath. So as we're speaking, this whole thing has not moved beyond the idea stage.

In the last slightly more than three years, I've encountered many such experiences. To come to an effective solution, I've often had to set up interim task forces involving multiple agencies.

The task-force approach is critical because it gives us a common platform to discuss an issue that cuts across different agencies. This allows us to be on the same page and understand each other.

My experience in all these task forces is: it's not about fixing the symptoms of the problem. It's not about picking up the litter. It would have been very easy to pick up. But the task-force approach is very effective in going beyond the symptom to address the root of the issue. And I believe this will lead to quicker responses, and sustainable solutions for our residents.







PM Lee said earlier this year that without the bilingual policy, there would be a generation today of Singaporeans who cannot read Chinese or speak Mandarin. You're a member of the Committee to Promote Chinese Language Learning. What do you think?

Since bilingualism was made a cornerstone of our education system and after many years of the Speak Mandarin campaign, I think fellow Singaporeans now have a better appreciation of the importance of Chinese.

And for many Singaporeans, the foundation they had in Mandarin in their school days actually gives them an edge when they go to China.

As chief executive officer of Business China (from 2011 to 2013), I spoke to fellow Singaporeans who ventured into China. A lot of them tell me that although they stopped speaking Mandarin on a daily basis after they joined the workforce, because they had to be immersed in Chinese in China, they found it quite easy to regain the proficiency in their language, and it serves them very well when they navigate China.

What we can do more of is work with community stakeholders like the Singapore Federation of Chinese Clan Associations (SFCCA) and the Singapore Chinese Chamber of Commerce and Industry (SCCCI), as well as Business China and others. We can do more to promote the love and use of Chinese language and create more opportunities to appreciate Chinese culture.

There are also many ways for us to gain access to interesting Chinese content and stay in touch with the language. You can shop at the Taobao site, you use the Baidu search engine instead of Google. There's "Song of China" (a talent search TV programme), on which (Singapore singer) Tanya Chua is a judge.

We need to support and encourage parents to create a conducive environment at home for the family to use their mother tongue in a fun, interesting and hip way.


How do you teach your children Chinese?

I am the Mandarin tutor at home. When I'm at home, I'll speak to them in Mandarin. When my elder boy was two years old, his Chinese twang sounded really strange. Like, (for the word for "ear",) instead of er (third tone) duo (first tone), er (first tone) duo (second tone). I said, oh dear!

Knowing that he loves song and dance, music, I got a Chinese DVD, and he danced to the tune of San Zhi Lao Hu (Three Tigers, a children's song about tigers which teaches the terms for parts of the body), and there were words and visuals.

I believe that when it comes to languages, it's about listening, reading, speaking and writing on a regular basis. Hopefully daily.


You grew up in humble circumstances and your family had a lot of past difficulties. How has this shaped you?

My parents taught me values of integrity, hard work and determination through example. My father took 10 years to pay off a debt (rental arrears from the three tailor shops that he had) of $100,000, 30 plus years ago, and did not crumble under the pressure.

He took pains to pay off everything because he told me, at the end of the day, it's integrity that really matters.

Only when we were debt-free did my parents get the means to buy their first HDB flat for the whole family (of four - her parents, elder brother and herself) to live together. That was when I was 10 years old. I saw first-hand how the burden of debt took a toll on my dad's tailoring business and how it can affect lives.

But because of that crisis, my family grew stronger. My mum stood by my dad. My grandmother stepped in to look after me, took me home when I was 40 days old. She took care of me till I was six years old. Probably because of this, family means a lot to me.

That motivated me to change the Edusave awards ceremonies in Bukit Gombak since last January from a mass ceremony to small and intimate sessions. I encouraged the students to reflect on how their parents supported them and to express their appreciation to them, their loved ones, through simple gestures of a warm embrace or just presenting a card.

Little did I realise the emotions that would come along with it. There were tears of joy. The parents cried, some of the students, after reflection, also cried, and I also cried along with them.



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Municipal Services Office to open on 1 October 2014

August 26, 2014, 2:49 am
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Bridging gap is priority for municipal services unit
Grace Fu wants to improve interaction between public and govt agencies
By Walter Sim, The Straits Times, 25 Aug 2014

THE minister tasked with heading a new Municipal Services Office (MSO) to be set up on Oct 1 says her priority is to bridge the communication gap between the public and government agencies providing these services.

In her first comments since Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong announced in his National Day Rally on Aug 17 that she would be heading the MSO, Minister in the Prime Minister's Office Grace Fu told reporters yesterday morning: "We must be more effective in public service delivery, we must also make it easier for the public to get in touch with government agencies. So this will be my guiding principle.

"I will spend the next six months focusing on the interaction between the public and government agencies, starting with the eight agencies that we have listed, because I believe this is what ordinary Singaporeans would face most frequently," said Ms Fu, who is also Second Minister for the Environment and Water Resources, and Foreign Affairs.

"It's also about how we reply to them. So if we receive complaints, how long before we acknowledge and then how long before we close the issue and get back to them," she added.

The eight agencies Ms Fu referred to are the Agri-Food and Veterinary Authority, national water agency PUB, National Parks Board, HDB, Land Transport Authority, Singapore Police Force, People's Association and National Environment Agency.

PM Lee announced the setting up of the MSO to deal with a lack of inter-agency coordination in municipal matters. He cited the example of a walkway in Bukit Gombak - the site of the now infamous discarded fishball stick - that was not cleaned due to such a problem.

But Ms Fu stressed that the MSO would not be an "omnibus organisation". "If the public already knows that certain (things) are done by certain agencies which have the expertise, there is no reason we should create a bureaucracy to pull these services into a central unit."

The MSO will not cause further delays by adding a layer of bureaucracy or require the public to learn a new number to call for help, she added.

It will be housed under the Ministry of National Development (MND), which said in a statement yesterday that the goal is to "improve the Government's overall coordination and delivery of municipal services".

When asked why the MSO has not involved town councils, Ms Fu said that is an area still under consideration. "But we need town councils to cooperate, obviously."

Details of how the MSO will be run, including how feedback can be gathered from the public, are being ironed out. But members of the public can contact MND on 1800-323-3331 or e-mail mnd_hq@mnd.gov.sg in the interim.





Who you gonna call?
A lack of inter-government agency cooperation is failing to solve everyday problems such as noisy birds and fishball sticks left lying on the ground. Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong has announced a new government office to deal with this. Insight examines if this is the right fix.
By Tham Yuen-c And Rachel Au-yong, The Straits Times, 23 Aug 2014

THOUSANDS of noisy mynahs roost every day in trees outside the Jurong West flat of leasing executive Clement Lim.

Mr Lim has complained to several agencies to get the problem solved - but so far, it has been three years of looking for a permanent solution, and the squawking continues.

One agency, National Parks Board (NParks), did swing into action and pruned several trees near his house, but the mynah nuisance continues and Mr Lim says: "Either get rid of the birds or prune the trees, but if neither happens regularly, then the problem is still there."

The issue of who fixes such problems was put in the spotlight during Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong's National Day Rally speech, when he made a now-famous reference to a fishball stick.

Mr Lee cited such a stick, lying along a pathway in Bukit Gombak, to illustrate how the lack of cooperation between government agencies had led to a public area not being cleaned thoroughly.



The example came from Mayor Low Yen Ling, who tells Insight: "Different agencies with different roles may look after a common area with little interaction. Due to the number of parties involved, we spend a fair amount of time and effort coordinating the agencies to get things sorted out."

The anecdote was also among the top three most-read stories on The Straits Times online, following the rally.

During his speech, Mr Lee announced the setting up of a new office under the Ministry of National Development to coordinate eight public agencies - the Agri-Food and Veterinary Authority (AVA), national water agency PUB, NParks, Housing Board, the Land Transport Authority (LTA), the police, People's Association and the National Environment Agency (NEA) - so they can work in concert to address such issues.

Minister in the Prime Minister's Office Grace Fu, helped by National Development Minister Khaw Boon Wan, will oversee the Municipal Services Office (MSO).

Scale of problem

WHILE it might seem a tad drastic for the top man in the country to devote important speech-time to a stick on the ground, the issue of cross-agency cooperation has plagued citizens and businesses for years. Indeed, even before this latest reference, PM Lee has been highlighting examples over the years.

MPs who spoke to Insight say the problem is not widespread - issues about the lack of inter- agency cooperation figure in less than 10 per cent of the complaints they handle. But such cases can be protracted since they require working out a solution between multiple parties.

Tampines GRC MP Baey Yam Keng, for example, has been trying for the past year to get the NParks and LTA to work with his town council to coordinate grass-cutting schedules, to make sure an open field between the Tampines Expressway and a block of flats - with different tracts managed by the different parties - is trimmed frequently enough to stop mosquitoes breeding.

"Even as an MP, I get bounced around. Imagine (what it is like) for the public. It irritates those who are affected when the problem doesn't get resolved for a long time," he says.

This is especially so since the issues affect the living environment, say MPs. For some MPs, complaints about noise and cleanliness alone make up 10 per cent of the feedback they get.The Ministry of National Development says it will unveil more details on the MSO in the coming weeks.

What's the issue?

SO WHY do public agencies have a problem working together?

Over the years, the Government has put in place various policies and schemes to break down the bureaucratic barriers that impede inter-agency cooperation.

The No Wrong Door policy, introduced in 2004, requires civil servants to put a member of the public in touch with the right agency. In cases where the query or feedback applies to several agencies, the agency where the query was first made has to contact all the relevant parties and come up with their responses.

Internally, there are also schemes like Zero In Process, which streamlines the process of resolving cross-agency issues.

The Public Service Division could not reply to queries from Insight by press time.

But according to various ministers who have spoken about public agency service delivery, things have improved.

Deputy Prime Minister Teo Chee Hean, who is also in charge of the civil service, gave front- line agencies and public officers a pat on the back when he said in Parliament in May that they had done "good work in the last two years to improve service delivery and policy responsiveness".

Mr Lee also acknowledged during his National Day Rally speech that some progress has been made, but added that "we have not arrived yet".

MPs agree, and say that more can be done. Jurong GRC MP Ang Wei Neng, for example, feels the No Wrong Door policy has only made good on the first part - passing on feedback to the intended party.

Where it has fallen short is in closing the loop, he says, explaining that since the agency receiving the complaint may not be the one responsible for the issue, it may not be motivated to follow up on the complainant.

National University of Singapore sociologist Tan Ern Ser reckons the problem could lie with how an agency's performance is measured.

"Organisations and staff are evaluated on whether they have met their key performance indicators (KPIs), and if cross-agency cooperation does not help them to meet their KPIs, it is quite understandable that they would be assigned low priority," says Dr Tan.

The practice of outsourcing - with different agencies hiring their own private contractors - can further complicate the situation.

At the Tampines field, for example, grass on different tracts of land is trimmed at different times by different contractors hired by the various parties. "They might all be cutting the grass every six months, but the six months may not coincide, so the whole patch is never fully cut at any one time," Mr Baey says.

Dr Tan adds that contractors, paid to perform specific tasks, are "even further removed from any responsibility to cooperate with other government agencies".

"(The contractor's) KPI is to fulfil precisely those things, and nothing else," he says.

Former Nominated MP and NUS sociologist Paulin Straughan suggests over-specialisation could be another factor.

"We may have specialised too much, and in some instances, we have encouraged a bureaucratic culture which encourages us to only focus on what we are officially expected to do, and therefore, negate the merits of a holistic approach to management," she says.

Nee Soon GRC MP Lee Bee Wah cites the example of getting someone to remove bicycles haphazardly chained at MRT stations.

"Who do you contact? SMRT if it's in the station compound? NParks if it's been chained to a tree? Town council if it's to a lamp-post? LTA if it's to a roadside railing?" she asks.

Fixing the problem

BUT will the MSO be the answer?

Some might say that the new office will merely add yet another layer of bureaucracy.

A jaded Jalan Kayu resident, Mr Chris Lau, who once spent eight hours calling the AVA, which handles animal-related issues, waste contractor Sembcorp, the Zoo and Jurong Bird Park to help remove two large eagles that had fallen into his balcony after a mid-air fight, says: "I doubt they will give us an immediate response, and if we have to wait for them to call back, it will be the same problem.

For the MSO to work, everything must be made as simple as possible, says Chua Chu Kang GRC MP Zaqy Mohamad.

"I have one wish: that the MSO has a single hotline, single e-mail and single app for feedback. The more seamless it is, the better."

Getting a minister to pick up after Singaporeans - as some might simplistically describe the role of overseeing the MSO - may also seem extreme, especially when some of the issues can be solved easily with a bit more civic consciousness.

On the infamous fishball stick, many online commentators said the resident who saw it could have just picked it up and thrown it away.

However, Central Singapore District Mayor Denise Phua says having a minister lead the MSO is "an indication of PM's seriousness in wanting to plug this gap".

MPs who spoke to Insight agree that the office may succeed in getting the different agencies to work together, where other schemes and policies have failed, if it is given enough bite.

Ms Phua adds that the office should have "clarity in scope, a shared vision, efficiency and effectiveness as key performance indicators, and sufficient authority to push through sound solutions".

Put in the context of the Government's push for Singapore to become a smart nation that is the "best place to live, work and play", the MSO could well also be an important piece needed to complete the puzzle.

Says Institute of Policy Studies senior research fellow Gillian Koh: "You do still need different agencies with different specialisations. But there must be a way for the agencies to be 'tacked' together. This is what we mean by being a 'smart city' - integration will also allow for innovation, effectiveness and efficiency."

Dr Straughan also thinks the MSO could promote a greater sense of civic consciousness.

"It shouldn't be yet another office to go to for complaints. Rather, I expect the MSO officers to sit down with (the citizen) and work through the problem together.

"A good model is one where the MSO can discern which issues can be managed locally by residents, and which need to be escalated. If done right, it will empower residents to take charge of their community."

The Government sees the delivery of seamless service by public agencies as a way to build trust with citizens, especially at a time when strategic shifts in policies are being made. Last year, PM Lee stressed the importance of this while speaking to public service leaders at an annual planning session.

At the end of the day, says NUS political scientist Reuben Wong, it is really about running Singapore more efficiently and providing better service to Singaporeans.

The MSO, then, could possibly help extend good service delivery from the ministerial level, all the way to the ground - even, right where a dratted fishball stick might be lying.




WORKING AS ONE

Our ministries are efficient if it involves only one ministry. If it is inter-ministry, you will find that no one wants to lead.

– Ms Lee Bee Wah (Nee Soon GRC) on how the MSO would help residents deal with cross-agency municipal issues



SEVEN-YEAR WAIT

It took seven years from envisioning Tampines as a cycling town, to it being declared one. In between, lots of frustration to the extent that I almost wanted to give up!

– Ms Irene Ng (Tampines GRC), recounting the cumbersome process of dealing with multiple agencies to see through her idea



SWIFTER FEEDBACK

In an uncoordinated arrangement, it could take the feedback a while to get to the relevant agency. The delay could discourage people from giving feedback in the first place.

– NUS sociologist Tan Ern Ser on how the MSO could improve feedback mechanisms



FREE MPs FOR COMPLEX ISSUES

At this point, we can afford to let MPs rise above the minute municipal details at the tactical level and focus on the strategic and financial governance aspects of estate management. There are still the softer and increasingly complex community issues to deal with.

– IPS senior research fellow Gillian Koh on whether the MSO would erode the yardstick of evaluating MPs on how they handle municipal issues from day to day



CLOSING THE GAP

There is nothing wrong with the No Wrong Door policy but sometimes you open more doors than you expect... More importantly, the MSO closes the gap on interactions between resident and government.

– Mr Zaqy Mohamad (Chua Chu Kang GRC) on how the MSO could work where other processes have not





Cross-agency coordination: Efforts over the years
By Rachel Au-yong, The Straits Times, 23 Aug 2014

2000: Zero-in-Process (Zip)

Zip is set up by the Public Service to make ministries more aware that the public sees the Government as one entity. It aims to reduce the number of agencies they approach for help.

During the Budget debate in 2002, then-MP for Marine Parade Lim Hwee Hua says: "There (is) frequently great reluctance (among agencies) to take the perspective of the end-user or of another agency as it may mean having to go the extra mile."

Then-Deputy Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong points to Zip as an effort to eradicate this: "We are not quite satisfied with what we have achieved and we will try our best to do better."


2004: No Wrong Door

To cut red tape, the Public Service introduces the No Wrong Door approach. All agencies must put the public in contact with the correct agency, so they won't be shuffled from one to another.

Then-Senior Minister of State for Health and Information, Communication and the Arts Balaji Sadasivan says: "Many a time, when faced with an issue that did not belong to an agency's purview, the agency would simply tell the citizen that he was knocking on the wrong door, and the poor citizen might have to go from door to door until he found the right one."


2004: Is the Duck a boat or a car?

In his first National Day Rally speech, PM Lee recalls how regulators took two years to figure out if a tour operator's "Duck" transport - a reconstructed American amphibious military vehicle - was a boat or a car, and the operator waited two years for a licence.

Urging the Government to have a mindset change, he says: "We have to rethink all our problems, big and small. Nothing should ever be set in stone."


November 2006: Walls coming down

In an addendum to the President's Address, then-Defence Minister Teo Chee Hean tells the House to expect better inter-agency cooperation in the Public Service, and more rounded policies.

The walls are coming down because the service often has to handle work that does not fall neatly into specific portfolios, he says, adding: "A whole-of-government approach is critical in ensuring that these cross-cutting issues are addressed coherently."


2012: First Responder Protocol

The Agri-Food and Veterinary Authority of Singapore (AVA) is the first agency to use the First Responder Protocol, an "improvement" on the No Wrong Door policy.

The first agency to receive feedback must draw the required expertise from across agencies and come up with a solution. It must then close the loop with the citizen who raised the problem.

Announcing this during the Committee of Supply debates, Deputy Prime Minister Teo Chee Hean acknowledges it is a complex area, saying: "People will have different views on, for example, whether a bird singing in the morning is noise or a happy reminder of nature."


March 2013: Department of Public Cleanliness set up

With the job of cleaning public areas split among different agencies - one for footpaths, another for vacant land and yet another for drains - the National Environment Agency (NEA) is put in charge of cleaning all public areas except public housing estates, which remain under town councils.

During the Budget debate, then-Senior Minister of State (Environment and Water Resources) Grace Fu announces a new Department of Public Cleanliness in NEA "to better manage cleaning contracts, improve service standards and to improve our responsiveness to public feedback".


October 2013: The snake and seamless service

At an annual planning seminar, PM Lee tells public servants to present a seamless experience to people or risk losing their trust.

He relates a "not so serious but telling example" of a member of the public calling the NEA about a snake near Tanglin International Centre. The officer who took the call asked whether the snake was in a public park or in the building, and even which direction it was moving in.

He was trying to work out whether NParks, national water agency PUB, AVA or the police should deal with the snake.

In the end, he called non-governmental organisation Acres (Animal Concerns Research and Education Society) for help.





How it works in soccer city
By Rachel Au-yong, The Straits Times, 23 Aug 2014

THE new Municipal Services Office (MSO) could take its cue from the city that recently hosted the soccer World Cup, Rio de Janeiro in Brazil.

Its Rio Operations Centre uses traffic cameras, weather graphs and energy reports to monitor municipal crises, and also help prevent them. A team of 400 officers work round the clock, monitoring real-time data on 300 screens.

In his National Day Rally speech, Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong cited Rio as a city "(bridging) inter-agency boundaries and serv(ing) the public in an integrated way".

The centre was set up after Rio was hit by floods and landslides in April 2010, in which 200 people were killed and over 15,000 left homeless. Mayor Eduardo Paes admitted the city's preparedness had been "less than zero".

Today the centre is touted as an example of how a "smart city" uses technology to, in this case, streamline the functions of 30 municipal and state agencies.

The city's various agencies - utilities, police, fire department and the health authorities, among others - work with technology giant IBM to monitor everything from rubbish collection to disease outbreaks. The centre has helped cut the city's response time to emergencies by 30 per cent.

While Singapore's MSO would not be as large-scale - The Straits Times understands it will deal primarily with noise and cleanliness issues - the Rio centre's data-sharing example shows how agencies here could be more efficient. More likely, the MSO will oversee all eight - perhaps directing relevant ones to sort out a problem from the outset.

Ms Irene Ng (Tampines GRC) notes that the MSO can eliminate residents' frustration if its roles are clearly defined.

But she asks: "Is it to act as buffer or middleman between government agencies? Or is it to coordinate policy across government agencies and reform the way things are done and delivered on the ground?"

Mr Ang Wei Neng (Jurong GRC) hopes the MSO will eventually provide a hotline for municipal issues, much like the ones in New York City and Taipei.

But he warns that it is unlikely to be a "call me, cure me" agency. "Ultimately, we have to build a strong sense of ownership in the areas we are staying. Only then will residents take pride in their environment and suggest ideas to continuously improve it, which is more sustainable."


Related
National Day Rally 2014
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Halimah offers to take lead to explain Lease Buyback

August 26, 2014, 3:26 am
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Malay/Muslim grassroots leaders raise concerns about understanding scheme
By Nur Asyiqin Mohamad Salleh, The Straits Times, 25 Aug 2014

A POST-RALLY dialogue yesterday found that many in the Malay/Muslim community are struggling to understand the intricacies of the Lease Buyback Scheme.

That has prompted Speaker of Parliament Halimah Yacob to offer to take the lead in efforts to explain the scheme.



At last week's National Day Rally, Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong announced that the scheme would be extended to four-room Housing Board flats - bringing the five-year-old scheme back into the public eye.

It emerged as a top concern at yesterday's closed-door dialogue with 150 Malay/Muslim grassroots leaders.

Madam Halimah has offered to take on the challenge of explaining the scheme as part of her duties as chairman of the Pioneer Generation Joint Committee. These duties include getting across the Pioneer Generation Package and MediShield Life.

"When you look at retirement, these are the core issues: income security once you retire, housing, health care... It's interrelated," she told reporters yesterday.

The Lease Buyback Scheme allows retirees to sell part of the lease on their flats to the Housing Board in return for monthly payouts.

Madam Halimah said some participants at yesterday's dialogue wanted the scheme to be more flexible. Others wondered about their options should they outlive the 30-year lease they would have left on their homes under the scheme.

"As we go and talk about the Pioneer Generation (Package) and MediShield Life, we will also talk about these options. To me, this is also related to the pioneer issue: the options available for them to enhance retirement income," Madam Halimah said.

"We need to drill down to the specifics, and express their concerns so that it becomes a real option for them to choose from."

Having attended four post- Rally dialogues, she said participants have expressed concerns over the lack of clarity in the details of the housing scheme. And such concerns seem stronger in the Malay community, she said, possibly due to the issue of inheritance.

"Maybe they're thinking if their child doesn't do so well, perhaps there is this option of them inheriting the lease that has not run out," she said.

Yesterday's dialogue was chaired by Minister-in-Charge of Muslim Affairs Yaacob Ibrahim, who is also adviser to the People's Association Malay Activity Executive Committees Council.

On concerns about the Lease Buyback Scheme, he said "we will certainly study them together with the HDB", and that people "want to see how to monetise the flat without losing it altogether".

He also highlighted participants' concerns about how people without university degrees could gain qualifications while working, with a focus on mature workers who may face difficulties keeping their jobs once they pass 50. This, he said, was a valid concern for the community, which is "starting from a low educational base".

"If they are able to continue to work in the same company and the company offers opportunities for them to upgrade, that will be a wonderful outcome," he said.


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Time to relook private pension plans

August 26, 2014, 8:55 pm
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Mooted and dismissed a decade ago, private pension plans may now be a timely addition to the policy mix in aiming to raise CPF returns.
By Fiona Chan, The Straits Times, 26 Aug 2014

THE National Day Rally this month heralded some significant changes to Singapore's much-discussed retirement fund system.

To provide more state support for lower- and middle-income groups, Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong announced an annual bonus for the poorest old folk and extended the Lease Buyback scheme to owners of four-room Housing Board (HDB) flats.

He also said rules will be eased so CPF members can withdraw more funds in a lump sum upon retirement, in response to such requests.

But even more notable shifts may lie ahead. An advisory panel is being set up to study further updates to the CPF system.

One area it may look at is giving CPF members more flexibility to invest their savings, so they can take higher risks in the hope of higher returns on their funds.

Whether the current CPF set-up and returns can meet retirement needs is a matter of deep concern for Singaporeans.


Last year, only half of CPF members turning 55 met the Minimum Sum. That included 15 per cent of members who pledged their properties to meet part of it.

Some think higher returns on CPF savings will yield a nest egg better able to withstand inflation.

One proposal being resurrected is letting CPF members pool their money to invest in private pension plans. The funds would be put into a balanced portfolio of assets and managed by private-sector firms, with low fees.

The mix of assets would be chosen with the aim of capital preservation - in other words, low-risk, modest-return assets - to minimise the threat of large losses.

This option has been considered before, to much excitement, but ultimately rejected. In 2003, it was recommended by the Economic Review Committee (ERC) - chaired by Mr Lee, who was then deputy prime minister - as a way to raise returns on CPF savings.

The CPF Board followed up with a consultation paper on this idea in 2004.

It was raised again in Parliament in 2007, but rejected mainly because CPF balances were too low to take the higher risks necessary for higher returns.

Then Manpower Minister Ng Eng Hen said simulations showed most people would be better off with private pension plans. But one in 10 could end up with returns lower than CPF's rates - a risk that could not be stomached, given members' risk tolerance.

Not everyone was convinced. Financial adviser Leong Sze Hian questioned the Government's simulations, saying his own calculations showed a much lower chance of underperforming CPF's returns: less than one in 50.

More investment discipline

IN ANY case, times have changed. In the last decade, CPF balances have more than doubled, from $111.9 billion in 2004 to $253 billion last year, said Bank of America Merrill Lynch economist Chua Hak Bin in a recent report.

Older members have significantly more savings now than previously, which was a specific worry back then. The average CPF balance of a member aged above 55 to 60 was nearly $100,000 last year, up from $40,000 in 2004, Dr Chua said.

CPF members today also seem more vocal in seeking greater control over their retirement savings, which may signal a higher risk appetite from some segments.

At the same time, they are investing less of their CPF money because they have seen poor results with the CPF Investment Scheme (CPFIS).

As at March, only about 10 per cent of total CPF balances were invested in CPFIS - down from 20 per cent in 2009.

This is probably due to the fact that from 2004 to last year, only 18 per cent of those who invested their Ordinary Account (OA) funds under CPFIS managed to best the CPF's rates.

Between October 2011 and September last year, only about 15 per cent of these investors earned profits above CPF's rates. Over 40 per cent made losses.

This is despite CPFIS' unit trusts and investment-linked insurance products returning 10.4 per cent and 10.7 per cent in 2012 and last year respectively, Dr Chua noted.

The Straits Times Index of blue-chip stocks rose 19.7 per cent in 2012 and was flat last year.

Dr Chua suggested the discrepancy may be because CPF members invested directly in stocks - picking individual shares rather than investing in a managed fund like a unit trust - clearly with detrimental results.

Private pension plans "could potentially introduce more investment discipline and less speculative trading", Dr Chua concluded.

Advantages over individual investments

SUCH plans have some advantages over individual investments by members in CPFIS, as the ERC noted in its 2003 report.

It said many unit trusts are relatively small and cannot achieve economies of scale, so investment costs are high.

Many CPF members also have too little funds individually to achieve balanced and diversified investment portfolios that can allow for lower risks and higher returns over the long term.

Pooling their monies in a pension fund to be managed by private fund managers would address both these problems.

Fund managers have said that if private pension funds invest for the long term - at least a decade - they are likely to achieve higher rates than what the CPF offers.

Members now earn guaranteed interest of 2.5 per cent and 4 per cent on their Ordinary and Special Accounts respectively, with an extra one percentage point on the first $60,000 of their savings.

This is more generous than the yields on Singapore government bonds and the interest rates on most bank deposits, especially given that CPF returns are assured.

But these rates - unchanged since 1999 - have barely kept up with the higher rate of inflation over the last few years.

Inflation averaged 4 per cent between 2011 and last year and may stay high.

The experiences of other countries lend some credence to the call for private pension plans.

According to the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development's Pension Markets in Focus 2013 report, pension funds in over half of the 50 or so countries surveyed earned average annual returns of at least 2.5 per cent in the 10 years to 2012.

A third of them earned at least 4 per cent. Both figures are in real terms, that is, even after accounting for inflation.

Deputy Prime Minister and Finance Minister Tharman Shanmugaratnam, who chaired the CPF sub-committee of the ERC in the early 2000s, said last month the Government may relook private pension plans. But he warned such plans may not end up achieving better returns than those guaranteed by the CPF.

There are also dangers in any investment that is not a sure thing. In 2012, an investment firm in Japan lost US$1.3 billion (S$1.62 billion) in pension money after a series of risky bets.

Still, while private pension plans are not about to replace CPF, they may be a worthwhile addition. As overall CPF balances grow, there is scope for such plans to take some burden off the Government providing the bulk of the returns on retirement funds.

In Parliament last month, Manpower Minister Tan Chuan-Jin said 20 per cent of those who turned 55 last year had CPF balances above the Minimum Sum that were not withdrawn, suggesting a potentially large pool of funds that might be invested with private pension plans.

The Manulife survey cited earlier found that 20 per cent of respondents would buy an additional retirement or pension plan.

It may be time to look more at these voluntary savings plans for people who want more choices in investing their CPF funds, especially younger members with a longer horizon to retirement.


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ASPIRE committee report

August 27, 2014, 12:49 am
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More training and career pathways for ITE, poly grads
Key new features include place-and-train scheme
By Sandra Davie Senior Education Correspondent, The Straits Times, 26 Aug 2014

STUDENTS from technical institutes here will have more chances to work and further their qualifications at the same time.

Under major changes being made, Institute of Technical Education (ITE) and polytechnic graduates will get more career options, guidance and direction.

The moves come amid ongoing efforts to encourage lifelong learning and to go beyond qualifications in developing workers' skills.

"Learning must be continual and lifelong, instead of just being front loaded in the first 20-odd years of our lives," Education Minister Heng Swee Keat said at a press conference announcing the changes yesterday.



A key new feature is the place-and-train programme, modelled after the Swiss and German apprenticeship schemes.

After leaving the ITE and polytechnics, graduates can undergo structured on-the-job training in the workplace which will complement what they learnt in school. Those from the ITE can work towards diplomas, while those from the polytechnics can aim for advanced and specialist diplomas.

The scheme will be organised differently, depending on the industry. An ITE trainee, for example, can work three days a week and study for a diploma two days a week. Or he can alternate between three months of work and three months of study.

Upon completion, workers are expected to receive higher pay.

"The basic idea is to integrate work and study, since many skills are best acquired through real work and practice," said Mr Heng, adding that the Government will work with employers to look at remuneration during and after training. "The goal is to work towards a system where higher skills of the staff can translate into higher productivity and higher pay," he said.

The place-and-train programme is among 10 key recommendations by the Applied Study in Polytechnics and ITE Review (ASPIRE) committee led by Senior Minister of State for Education Indranee Rajah.

Its report, which was released yesterday, called for career counselling for students and better internships, among others.

Standardised benchmarks will also be introduced to help workers upgrade their skills and be rewarded accordingly.

Describing the recommendations as "powerful", Mr Heng said he believed they would have a significant impact.

But the changes are not aimed at dissuading ITE and polytechnic graduates from aiming for a degree, he said in response to The Straits Times at the media conference. He stressed that the insights underpinning the changes apply across the board, including to university studies.

"For instance, on applied learning, even the world's best surgeons spend thousands of hours honing their skills in the operating theatre," he said, adding that a variety of pathways is needed for different jobs.

"It's not a matter of one qualification versus another, but the right and relevant qualifications and right and relevant type of learning experiences that will enable an individual to build deep skills and expertise, and enable him to excel in the workplace."

Such strong skills are in strong demand both here and abroad, said Ms Indranee. "The employers tell us this, OECD reports point this out and our study trips abroad confirm this," she said.




Post by Indranee Rajah.





At a glance
By Pearl Lee, The Straits Times, 26 Aug 2014


1 Secondary schools, junior colleges, polytechnics and the Institute of Technical Education (ITE) to have trained education and career guidance officers to advise students on career and education choices.

2 Polys and ITE to review internships and possibly lengthen them to ensure they have clearly defined outcomes and that students' tasks contribute to the goals.

3 ITE to raise the number of places in its Higher Nitec programmes to allow students to upgrade skills.

4 Each poly and ITE college to be designated as a lead institution in a particular sector, to coordinate work with partners.

5 Polys and ITE to expand online learning to make it easier to learn on the go.

6 Polys and ITE to offer more support to students to develop soft skills such as resilience and leadership.

7 Employers to integrate study and work, allowing fresh graduates to work and draw a salary while getting a recognised skill certification that will lead to larger job scopes and a higher pay.

8 Polys to provide more post-diploma refresher courses to give graduates more opportunities to continue their education and training.

9 Polys and ITE to work with the Ministry of Defence and Ministry of Home Affairs to support their graduates being posted to national service vocations that match what they have learnt in school.

10 The Government to collaborate with industry partners to develop sector-specific benchmarks that will state clearly the skills needed to advance in a career.





ASPIRE committee report: 6 ways to improve polytechnic and ITE education
The Straits Times, 25 Aug 2014

The Applied Study in Polytechnics and ITE Review (ASPIRE) committee, tasked with enhancing the education and job prospects for students from the Institute of Technical Education (ITE) and polytechnics, released its report on Monday.

The committee, led by Senior Minister of State for Education Indranee Rajah, made 10 recommendations which fall under three broad themes:
- Better choices: Helping students make better education and career choices;
- Deeper skills: Helping polytechnic and ITE students grow the skills they need;
- More pathways: Building more paths that will allow polytechnic and ITE graduates to progress in their careers.
Here are six things to note from the report:

1. Better career guidance for students

Students in secondary schools, junior colleges, polytechnics and ITE will soon have trained education and career guidance officers who can offer them advice.

A pilot will be launched in 2015, involving about 40 to 50 secondary schools and junior colleges. There will be one trained officer for every few secondary schools and junior college/centralised institute. There will be three to five such officers in each polytechnic and ITE college.

The polytechnics and ITE will develop a new education and career guidance programme covering areas such as personal management and career exploration.

To train career guidance officers and those interested in this field, Republic Polytechnic will offer a new specialist diploma in career counselling in October 2014.

A one-stop portal will also be set up for students and working adults to make transiting to the workforce more seamless.

2. Work and study at the same time

From 2016, a place-and-train programme will introduced for those who have completed basic studies at the ITE and polytechnics.

The programme - modelled after the Swiss and German apprenticeship schemes -will allow them to work and further their qualifications at the same time. They will be employed by companies and paid monthly salaries. They will undergo structured on-the-job training in the workplace, which will be complemented with classes at the ITE and polytechnics.

Trainees who were from the ITE can work towards higher-level trade certificates and diplomas, while those from the polytechnics can aim for advanced and specialist diplomas.

The scheme can be organised differently, depending on the industry or type of job. An ITE trainee, for example, can work three days a week and study for a diploma two days a week or he can alternate between three months of work and three months of study.

For a start, ITE will offer their graduates place-and-train diploma programmes in emergency medical technology (or para-medicine), marine and offshore engineering, hotel and restaurant management, pastry and bakery, and environmental engineering.

The polytechnics will do so for courses including specialist or advanced diploma programmes in aerospace, biologics, marine and offshore engineering, built environment, info-communications technology, and logistics.

3. More Higher Nitec places at ITE, more structured internships

The Education Ministry will increase the number of Higher Nitec places for ITE students. From 2015, there will be 100 more such places, primarily in engineering and info-communication courses. Currently, about one in three Nitec students progress to Higher Nitec. The Education Ministry hopes to push the figure up to one in two.

Internships for polyetchnic and ITE students will also be more structured, such as having clearer learning goals and better-designed internship curriculum.

For a start, the polytechnics and ITE will enhance internships in the built environment sector, marine and offshore engineering, and early childhood education within the next three years. The duration of internships may also be lengthened to make the experience more meaningful for students.

4. More subsidies for post-diploma courses

More support will be given to polytechnic graduates taking up their first post-diploma courses.

Subsidies will be increased to 90 per cent of course fees - from the current 85 per cent - for those taking up their first post-diploma certificate in selected courses, two or more years after completion of the programme.

The polytechnics will also offer an additional full-time option for some of the post-diploma courses so that they can be completed within a shorter time.

5. Closer link between school training and NS

National servicemen could be posted to vocations in national service (NS) that suit the courses they took in the polytechnics or ITE, so that they will stay in touch with all that they learnt during the two years away from school.

National servicemen could also obtain industry-recognised accreditation for relevant skills honed during NS so that they will be better placed to join the industry they had trained for.

6. National training scheme for poly and ITE graduates

A national training scheme which focuses on industry-specific skills will help those who have completed basic studies at the ITE and polytechnics deepen their knowledge and progress in their careers.

Under the scheme, frameworks will be drawn to specify the industry-relevant skills required for workers to advance, and can be used to establish benchmarks for hiring and promoting workers.









Better prospects for poly, ITE grads as S’pore adopts ‘cultural shift’
More career guidance resources, new schemes integrating work and study among ASPIRE panel’s recommendations
By Siau Ming En, TODAY, 26 Aug 2014

In the next three years, polytechnic and Institute of Technical Education (ITE) students and graduates can look forward to better internships, more opportunities to work and study concurrently, and clearer pathways for career advancement.

Across secondary schools, junior colleges, polytechnics and ITEs, the Government will provide more resources for education and career guidance, in addition to a new national framework to help Singaporeans make informed education and career choices.

These were among recommendations put up yesterday by the Applied Study in Polytechnics and ITE Review (ASPIRE) Committee yesterday, following the completion of almost nine months of work looking into improving career and academic prospects of polytechnic and ITE graduates.

Accepting all 10 recommendations on behalf of the Government, Education Minister Heng Swee Keat outlined the “significant shifts” underpinning the committee’s proposals.

“We must break the boundary between learning in the classrooms and learning at work. In fact, the workplace should become a great learning place,” he said at a press conference, adding that a renewed and stronger emphasis has to be placed on skills and applied learning, so students can deploy knowledge in the real-world context.

Pointing out how changes in technology and economic structures would cause jobs to be reshaped, Mr Heng said that learning must be continual and lifelong, instead of being “frontloaded” only in the first 20 years of one’s life.

Multiple pathways for development must be encouraged in the course of study and at work, he added. “As a society, we must respect every person and every job, and encourage everyone to achieve excellence in their fields.” Mr Heng acknowledged that it would take many years for individuals, employers, government and society to make these shifts, which would constitute a “major transformation” in Singapore’s education and career landscape.

The ASPIRE committee is headed by Senior Minister of State for Education Indranee Rajah. Its 35-member steering committee includes senior civil servants, the principals of all five polytechnics here, ITE CEO Bruce Poh, as well as corporate leaders such as Hyflux CEO Olivia Lum.

Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong announced last November the setting up of the committee, which began work in January and has since reached out to about 12,000 polytechnic students, 5,000 ITE students, 3,000 parents and alumni, and almost 400 polytechnic and ITE staff through dialogue sessions and focus group talks, among others. It also visited Germany, Switzerland, Australia and New Zealand to study their applied education models.



Following its visit in February to Germany and Switzerland, the committee saw, among other things, the need for early career guidance to help students discover their interests and understand prospects in the vocational education track. It recommended a new education and career guidance programme to be developed for polytechnics and ITEs, and proposed that more officers trained in this area be deployed in schools, polytechnics and ITEs.

In response, the Ministry of Education said it will have one education and career guidance officer assigned to about five secondary schools and junior colleges for a start. This will be piloted next year with about 40 to 50 schools. Separately, three to five such officers will also be deployed at each polytechnic and ITE college.

To develop expertise in this area, Republic Polytechnic will launch in October a specialist diploma in career counselling. Internship programmes will also be enhanced with longer duration and clearer learning outcomes. To allow more Nitec graduates to deepen their skills before starting work, the ITE will offer an additional 100 Higher Nitec places, starting with Engineering and Infocomm courses next year.

Taking a leaf from the Swiss and German apprenticeship models, place-and-train programmes at polytechnics and ITEs will be piloted in selected sectors from 2016. Under these programmes, to be developed in collaboration with the industry, participants will be paid monthly salaries by their employers as they work towards skills certification such as Specialist or Advanced Diploma awarded by participating polytechnics and diploma by ITEs.

Mr Heng reiterated: “To be trained as a doctor, an engineer or an architect will require certain certification. And in that regard, the degree programme is important and useful.” Even then, these qualifications are only a start, he noted. “It is not a matter of one qualification versus another, but the right and relevant qualifications, and the right and relevant type of learning experiences that enable individuals to build deep skills and expertise and to be able to then excel at the workplace.”





Trained officers to give students career advice
Pilot scheme for 40 to 50 secondary schools and JCs next year
By Amelia Teng, The Straits Times, 26 Aug 2014

SECONDARY schools, junior colleges, polytechnics and the Institute of Technical Education (ITE) will soon have trained career officers to help students make decisions about their long-term future.

Between 40 and 50 secondary schools and junior colleges will get them as part of a pilot next year.

The aim is to have one officer for every few secondary schools and junior colleges, and three to five in each of the five polytechnics and three ITE colleges.

Students at the latter two will also have a new programme covering areas such as career exploration across classroom activities, workshops and seminars.

A one-stop online portal will also be set up for students and working adults to make transiting to the workforce more seamless.

This will integrate existing resources in schools with the Workforce Development Agency's Individual Learning Portfolio, an online account for workers to track their training and job opportunities. It will also have features such as self-assessment tools, labour market information and course requirements for students.

Working adults will have access to information about upgrading and furthering their skills.

These moves are among recommendations by the Applied Study in Polytechnics and ITE Review (ASPIRE) committee to strengthen education and career guidance efforts from school years to beyond graduation.

Senior Minister of State for Education Indranee Rajah, who chairs the committee, said that many young students may know they want to do well, but they "actually don't have an idea of what they might like to do".

Currently, schools do not have coaches or counsellors who are dedicated to providing students advice about their careers. Such advice is usually given by teachers and lecturers. Ms Indranee said the committee studied career counsellors in countries such as Switzerland, many of whom had worked in non-education sectors.

These officers will help students identify their interests and strengths, and understand the range of jobs and skills required in the workplace. To train people for this role, Republic Polytechnic will launch a specialist diploma in career counselling in October for individuals and educators.

Education Minister Heng Swee Keat said: "The aim is not to try and persuade students to go into specialised fields when they're very young, but to stimulate a lively interest in a variety of fields, and to see if some of this may catch the interest of the students."

Statistics show that every year, 400 to 500 junior college students switch to a polytechnic midway through their programmes. Many do this after realising they are interested in certain disciplines.

Mr Sim Cher Young, 52, director of the Dato' Kho Hui Meng Career Centre at Singapore Management University, said: "It's important to have career guidance available when young people are at the stage of making decisions, around 17 to 18 years old.

"The people advising them on their careers have to be skilled to guide them."





Fresh ITE, poly grads can soon work, study at same time
By Siau Ming En, TODAY, 26 Aug 2014

More funding and resources to help firms review their human resource (HR) practices would entice employers to participate in place-and-train programmes, as recommended by the Applied Study in Polytechnics and ITE Review (ASPIRE) Committee yesterday, said companies and HR experts.

These place-and-train programmes, which will be akin to the Swiss and German apprenticeship models, will allow fresh graduates from polytechnics and Institutes of Technical Education (ITEs) to start earning their spurs through structured on-the-job training. They will be paid a monthly salary that will be complemented by classes at the polytechnics or ITEs. Pilots in selected sectors will begin from 2016.

For polytechnics, it will start in the Aerospace, Biologics, Marine and Offshore Engineering, Built Environment, Logistics and Info-communications Technology sectors, with a specialist or advanced diploma being awarded upon completion of the programme.

ITEs will pilot the programmes in Emergency Medical Technology, Marine and Offshore Engineering, Hotel and Restaurant Management, Pastry and Baking, and Environmental Engineering. Those who complete these programmes would be awarded a diploma by the ITEs.

On the recommendation, Mr Mark Hall, vice-president of Kelly Services Singapore, noted that while firms will be excited at the opportunity of helping staff expand upon their skills, some concerns may crop up, such as whether the industry would value these certifications from post-graduation skills-upgrading programmes.

How much one’s salary under the place-and-train programme is also important, he added. “It’s important to get that salary alignment correct. The level of salary must be appropriate to the individual and it cannot be too low.”

Mr Hall said co-funding from the authorities may be needed to encourage firms to support these programmes.

At ASPIRE’s press conference on the recommendations yesterday, Mr Jonathan Asherson, the regional director of Rolls-Royce Singapore, noted that to get small and medium enterprises (SMEs) on board, the value of monetary incentives should not be underestimated. President of the Singapore Human Resources Institute Erman Tan also pointed out that while the apprenticeship models in Europe have proven successful, the committee needs to ensure that local SMEs, in particular, have the resources to support the programmes.

Meanwhile, chief executive officer of Sakae Holdings Douglas Foo agreed that funding would help offset the additional costs of implementing such a programme. A new committee, to be headed by Deputy Prime Minister Tharman Shanmugaratnam, will bring together employers, unions, educators and government agencies to develop an integrated system of education, training and career progression for all Singaporeans. It will also promote industry support and provide social recognition for individuals to advance their careers based on their skills.







More places for ITE advanced courses
By Pearl Lee, The Straits Times, 26 Aug 2014

THE Institute of Technical Education (ITE) will add more places to its more advanced Higher Nitec courses, starting with 100 spots from next year.

Most of these extra places will go to the engineering and info- communications technology programmes.

The five polytechnics here will also review their internship programmes, including possibly extending their duration.

These measures are aimed at equipping students with stronger skills, said Ms Indranee Rajah, chairman of the Applied Study in Polytechnics and ITE Review (ASPIRE) committee making the recommendations.

"There is a need for real skills. The employers tell us this, OECD reports point this out and our study trips abroad confirm this," said the Senior Minister of State for Law and Education at a press conference yesterday.

The increased number of Higher Nitec places will allow more Nitec graduates to deepen their skills before they begin work, the committee said in its report.

It added that some industry sectors have said having longer training at the ITE would better prepare students for work.

Now, about one-third of Nitec students progress to Higher Nitec. The authorities hope to raise the figure to half.

The committee also said in its report that the internships at the polytechnics and the ITE are "generally good".

But the experience "can differ significantly from student to student, depending on how the internship is carried out by the host employers".

An internship should have a clearly defined outcome, and the student's job scope should contribute to that goal.

These enhancements may lead to students going on longer work attachments.

For instance, students in Ngee Ann Polytechnic's marine and offshore technology programme take part in a three-month internship in their third year. But by 2016, the internship will be six months long.

Students agreed that completing a longer internship would allow them to learn more and may make companies more willing to hire them.

Third-year marine engineering student Mong Jun Hao, 18, completed a six-week internship at engine manufacturer MTU Asia.

The Singapore Polytechnic student spent his time last year in an engine servicing workshop where he learnt how to disassemble, inspect, clean and re-assemble engines and their parts.

"I learnt a lot. You could see what was inside the engines when you opened them, and when you clean them, you really learn about the different parts," he said.

"If the internship was longer, say, six months, I imagine I would learn a lot more."







He chose work as animator over degree
By Amelia Teng, The Straits Times, 26 Aug 2014

GO TO university? Or work on blockbuster movies as an animator at Lucasfilm Singapore?

Faced with this decision, Mr Peter Tan, a Nanyang Polytechnic digital media design graduate, took the road less travelled seven years ago - and turned down a place at the Academy of Art University in San Francisco.

"I got an offer from Lucasfilm giving me a six-month contract to replace another animator going on maternity leave," said the 35-year-old, who eventually converted to a full-time position.

"People go for degrees to work in reputable companies, but I thought to myself, 'I already have the job and nothing beats work experience.' My passion has always been animation so I didn't need to think so hard."

His job is to create the movement of characters and objects using computer graphics, such as in fight scenes, or when actors cannot carry out certain sequences, such as falling from a building.

He has worked on a string of titles, including several movies in the Transformers series, The Avengers and Pacific Rim. He has also contributed to the television series Star Wars: The Clone Wars, and the animated film Rango.

Mr Tan, who has more than doubled his salary since he first started, now leads a team of 20 animators in his role as lead animator at Industrial Light & Magic, a division of Lucasfilm Singapore.

"In this industry, many animators are diploma holders," he said. "It's not about the paper qualification. It's about how well you do your job and gaining experience with each show.

"You get promoted because you have the right qualities and abilities, not because you've gone through a course and have a certificate."





NS servicemen may get postings to match their skills
By Amelia Teng, The Straits Times, 26 Aug 2014

GRADUATES of polytechnics and the Institute of Technical Education (ITE) could be posted to national service (NS) vocations that match their studies.

The Applied Study in Polytechnics and ITE Review (ASPIRE) committee said in its report yesterday that it supports a recommendation of the Committee to Strengthen National Service to take into account the skills and prior training of full-time national servicemen (NSFs) in their NS deployment.

About 10,000 polytechnic and 4,500 ITE graduates are enlisted into NS every year.

The polytechnics and the ITE will work closely with the Ministry of Defence (MINDEF) and Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) to identify postings for students. The move is aimed at helping NSFs maintain their skills during the two years of service, and speed up the transition to working life.

MINDEF manpower director Teo Eng Dih said taking into account existing skills "will help to provide NSFs with a better NS experience and allow the SAF to benefit from the skills and competencies NSFs already have".

An MHA spokesman said assigning NSFs to vocations based on their skills has already been part of the Home Team's strategy, which allows them to "maximise their potential" and results in a more "meaningful stint for our NSFs".

The move could see NSFs with Higher Nitec qualifications in paramedic and emergency care becoming medics, and those with information security diplomas being deployed to IT-related vocations.

Mr Teo Ye Wei, 28, a Singapore Polytechnic (SP) aeronautical engineering graduate, was posted to the Republic of Singapore Air Force for his NS. As a flight line crew member, his job was to inspect planesand check components.

"It was a coincidence that my vocation matched what I studied," said Mr Teo, now a lecturer in SP's aeronautical engineering course. "It was an eye-opener as I saw in action things I had learnt in theory.

"It would be good if more students have the chance to go into vocations that suit their skills, but not every course has a matching posting."





Sector-specific skill benchmarks to help chart career paths
By Amelia Teng, The Straits Times, 26 Aug 2014

WORKERS will soon have clear and standardised benchmarks to guide them in upgrading skills and charting career paths.

The standards will be made sector-specific, so that bosses can reward workers based on defined skills which they have achieved, the authorities announced yesterday.

In the early childhood education sector, for instance, a junior nursery teacher should be able to set up conducive environments in classrooms and use books and games for lessons. But as he moves into a mid-career level, he would be expected to customise learning to his pupils' needs.

Finally, to go even higher, he should be able to assess the effectiveness of the learning environments and resources.

Introducing these industry standards will allow skills - and not paper qualifications - to determine career progress.

"We would be able to encourage employees to move up the ladder," said Senior Minister of State for Education Indranee Rajah. "Or in some cases the movement may be lateral, where they deepen their skills and become master craftsmen. But the overriding thought is to give them the opportunity to go further to realise their aspirations."

The skill benchmarks are among the recommendations by the Applied Study in Polytechnics and ITE Review committee led by Ms Indranee.

Employers and workers, she said at a press conference yesterday, can refer to these skill benchmarks to chart different career paths.

The Singapore Workforce Development Agency will take the lead in developing these benchmarks, having run the Workforce Skills Qualifications training scheme since 2005.

Employers welcomed the change. Restaurant chain Sakae Holdings' chairman Douglas Foo said that having national standards will help him be sure a worker can do his job well.

But Mr Jonathan Asherson, Asean and Pacific regional director of engine-maker Rolls-Royce, said workers of small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) may struggle to take up training. "Bigger firms should encourage the SMEs they do business with to build up a skilled workforce. They can help to draw up some of these training programmes."





Nurturing talent: Different strokes for different folks
Key is to figure out what works best for each student
By Sandra Davie, The Straits Times, 26 Aug 2014

TWO years ago, the Government announced an expansion of university places to give 40 per cent of each school cohort a shot at university education right here at home by 2020.

It translates to 16,000 places yearly and the additional spots will be provided mainly by the Singapore Institute of Technology and SIM University which will have a more applied, practice-oriented focus and produce a different type of graduate.

Parents and students no doubt cheered the move, and the promise of a better future for young Singaporeans. But now with the Applied Study in Polytechnics and ITE Review (ASPIRE) committee recommending pathways in which Institute of Technical Education and polytechnic students can work and further their qualifications, some parents and students are left confused. "Why this flip-flop?" asked businessman Terence Koh who has two sons studying engineering in the polytechnic.

"I was very happy that the Government was providing more places for polytechnic students and a more applied pathway that is suited for poly students like my sons. But now it looks like they are saying a degree path is not for them.

"They are better off going to work and furthering their qualifications through work," said the 46-year-old, after reading the recommendations.

But as Education Minister Heng Swee Keat said yesterday, his ministry is not changing its stance. Neither is the ASPIRE panel trying to dissuade ITE and polytechnic graduates from pursuing degrees.

Rather, it is pointing out that for some students at least, a diploma plus deep and relevant skills may pay off better in the long run. As Mr Heng stressed, it is about having the "right and relevant type of learning experiences that will enable an individual to build deep skills and expertise".

Senior Minister of State for Education Indranee Rajah, who chaired the committee, stressed that the recommendations must be seen against a backdrop where there is growing demand worldwide for workers with deep skills. "The employers tell us this, OECD reports point this out and our study trips abroad confirm this," she said, adding that students and parents must also be mindful of the changing nature of jobs and how technology is disrupting jobs.

She is right - the jobs that are in demand today may not exist tomorrow. These are important issues that students and parents must consider.

No doubt, right now having a degree increases the prospects of landing a graduate-level job and, along with it, graduate salaries. Fresh graduates earn $3,000 a month on average.

A 2007 Ministry of Manpower (MOM) study showed that every extra year of schooling increases a worker's earnings by 13.7 per cent. The rate is higher for tertiary education.

MOM figures also indicate that currently the Singapore economy can support a large number of graduates. About half of Singapore residents aged 25 to 29 hold degrees and 44 per cent of those in this age group earn at least $3,000 a month.

Still, what happened in the past may not accurately reflect what may happen in the future. The opening up of university places may lead to a glut of graduates, especially during times when the job market is unable to absorb them all. One only needs to look at the situation in South Korea and Taiwan where graduate unemployment is high and starting salaries for degree holders have fallen. In Taiwan, starting salaries for fresh university graduates are about $1,200 - less than half that for those here.

Also, in a recession, graduates are more likely to be laid off. When the Singapore economy slowed a few years ago, diploma holders fared better. Official figures for the third quarter of 2009 showed that among those unemployed, about 6 per cent were diploma holders while 22 per cent were degree holders. And fewer polytechnic graduates were laid off than their university peers.

Degree hopefuls should also note that not all degrees are created equal. Those opting for one that does not emphasise quality are likely to be disappointed when it doesn't land them the jobs they want. This is already the case for many private school graduates who complain of employers not recognising their qualifications or paying them less than graduates from reputed universities.

As the ASPIRE committee has stressed, it is important that students, whether diploma holders or A-level school leavers, first figure out where their interests and talents lie.

And not all talents are best nurtured by immediately heading for a diploma or degree. There are many who would benefit from going out to work for a few years to hone their skills and understand the demands of the career they are interested in.

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Govt to boost measures to counter cybersecurity threats

August 27, 2014, 11:45 pm
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By Tan WeiZhen, TODAY, 27 Aug 2014

In the wake of recent large-scale global cybersecurity breaches, the Government has unveiled a raft of measures to counter such threats to the Republic, including beefing up detection capabilities.

The tightening of Singapore’s defence against heightened cybersecurity threats, announced yesterday by Communications and Information Minister Yaacob Ibrahim, includes the setting up of a Monitoring and Operations Control Centre.

Its role is to coordinate activities and operations against such threats and use the results of investigations to execute measures against potential attacks on the entire government infrastructure, said the Infocomm Development Authority (IDA).

“(The centre will) provide the Government with a full suite of capabilities to guard against security threats and respond to them in a timely manner,” said Dr Yaacob at the opening of the Infocomm Security Seminar yesterday.

He cited the theft of credit card details of millions of customers of American retailer Target and the discovery of the Heartbleed bug, which left two-thirds of the world’s websites vulnerable to cyberattack, as examples that warranted higher vigilance and the beefing up of the security of infrastructure and systems.

In Singapore, there were attempts last year to bring down or deface government web pages, including those of the Prime Minister’s Office and the Istana.

The Cyber-Watch Centre — set up in 2007 to monitor critical public-sector IT installations around the clock — will be upgraded by January next year so it can better monitor unauthorised changes to government websites, such as defacements, and sniff out malware and leakage of sensitive data.

Chief information security officers will be appointed to strengthen the infocomm security governance in government agencies, Dr Yaacob added. This is in addition to the chief information officers already appointed in statutory boards.

On the part of the IDA, it will aim to increase the number of cybersecurity professionals here, at both the degree and diploma levels.

For instance, the Singapore Institute of Technology will be starting the first undergraduate information security degree programme in September next year, Dr Yaacob announced yesterday. The four-year programme will take in 50 undergraduates a year.

Nanyang Technological University has included an information security specialisation programme as part of its undergraduate curriculum this month, with more than 30 per cent of the final-year cohort opting for it.

Two new diploma programmes will be offered next year — a diploma in digital forensics at Temasek Polytechnic and a diploma in information security and forensics option at Ngee Ann Polytechnic.

Dr Yaacob said that at the post-degree level, manpower will also be boosted to develop a pool of postgraduate researchers and technologists who will create solutions in this field.

The training of manpower was a welcome move for the industry, which has been confronted with a shortfall of such professionals.

Mr Wally Lee, president of the Association of Information Security Professionals, said: “We have not been able to find the right candidates at the degree or diploma level. In general, the pool of security professionals here is very small ... and some people who study related courses may end up doing something else, so it is good that we can have a bigger pool.”


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Meeting between Deng Xiaoping, Lee Kuan Yew depicted in China TV serial

August 28, 2014, 12:03 am
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Drama features ex-Chinese leader's 1978 visit to S'pore
By Kor Kian Beng China Bureau Chief In Beijing

DURING their meeting at the Istana in November 1978, China's Deng Xiaoping told then Prime Minister Lee Kuan Yew that it would take a long time for the Chinese economy to recover from the tumultuous Cultural Revolution.

Mr Lee said in reply that he believed China would rebound quickly and even do better than Singapore because it had the "progeny of the scholars, mandarins and literati".

Looking ponderous, Deng said: "You're right. There is no reason for China's economy to be lagging behind."

Shortly after returning to Beijing, China's de facto leader launched the opening up and reform policy at the Communist Party's third plenum in December. That landmark policy, which ushered in more than 30 years of rapid economic growth for China, would cement Deng's political comeback, after surviving a purge in 1976, to become the country's paramount leader. This important piece of history in the Sino-Singapore relationship was re-enacted, possibly for the first time, in a state-sanctioned TV drama on Deng on Monday night.

It was his only official visit to Singapore, the last stop of a three-country tour that included Malaysia and Thailand. But only the Singapore leg is featured in the 48-part serial titled Deng Xiaoping At History's Crossroads, which was produced by state broadcaster China Central Television to mark his 110th birthday anniversary last Friday.

Four other foreign leaders featured in the serial, which chronicles Deng's life and work from 1976 to 1984, are former British prime ministers Edward Heath and Margaret Thatcher, former United States president Jimmy Carter and former Japanese premier Kakuei Tanaka.

Observers say the inclusion of Mr Lee and the Istana meeting reflects the unique place Singapore holds in China's development from 1978. The former Singapore leader is played by veteran actor Zhang Guangbei.

"Singapore, out of the three countries he visited, probably left the deepest impression on Deng. The TV series also shows that Chinese leaders appreciate the positive role Singapore has played in China's reforms," Shenzhen University's Sino-Singapore expert Lv Yuanli told The Straits Times.

Many of the scenes involving Singapore corroborate Mr Lee's recollection of the events in his memoirs. Mr Lee's character, who spoke in English and Mandarin, appeared in episode 23 on Monday and again in episode 26 last night. Two episodes are shown every night.

In Monday's episode, Mr Lee was shown paying attention to details in preparations for a dinner banquet, instructing officials to get ready a spittoon and ashtray for Deng, as recorded in the memoirs.

Even when officials pointed out that smoking was not allowed in the Istana, Mr Lee insisted on the items, telling the officials: "You see, we're receiving a great man in world history. He is a special guest. I hope he would be pleased."



SINGAPORE APPRECIATED

Singapore, out of the three countries he visited, probably left the deepest impression on Deng. The TV series also shows that Chinese leaders appreciate the positive role Singapore has played in China's reforms.

- Shenzhen University's Sino-Singapore expert Lv Yuanli


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S'pore keen to be part of Africa's growth story

August 28, 2014, 12:17 am
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The Straits Times, 27 Aug 2014

PRIME Minister Lee Hsien Loong welcoming Nigeria's Minister of State for Foreign Affairs Viola Onwuliri at the Istana yesterday. Africa is a continent on the move, and Singapore would like to be part of its growth story, said PM Lee during his meeting with ministers and senior officials from seven Sub-Saharan African countries: Angola, Ghana, Mauritius, Nigeria, Rwanda, Tanzania and Zimbabwe.

Exchanging views on how to enhance bilateral engagement, the ministers said Africa can learn from Singapore's development experience in education, urban planning and harnessing human capital, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said. The group also wished to see more people-to-people exchanges and tourism flows.

Post by Lee Hsien Loong.


PM Lee hoped the 3rd Africa-Singapore Business Forum (ASBF), organised by IE Singapore, which will be held here today and tomorrow, would help companies from both countries connect and identify joint business opportunities.

The delegates also visited the Hyflux Innovation Centre and attended a dinner hosted by Deputy Prime Minister Tharman Shanmugaratnam.






Tap Africa for business opportunities: Tharman
Global economic trends favouring the continent
By Yasmine Yahya, The Straits Times, 28 Aug 2014

SINGAPORE firms have been encouraged to seize business opportunities in fast-emerging Africa as global economic trends favour the continent.

Deputy Prime Minister Tharman Shanmugaratnam suggested that Africa could present major openings as production costs rise in China's transformed economy.

"China has dominated manufacturing, particularly low-cost manufacturing, but China is becoming much more expensive, wages are rising quickly, they're trying to move up the value curve as well," he said yesterday.

As a result, many companies are shifting manufacturing out of China - a trend that Africa, with its rapidly growing middle-class consumer market, should capitalise on, he said.

"If you can bring manufacturing production closer to the market, I think that's a major economic opportunity. I think the future of Africa has to be about value-add - value-add processing and manufacturing for a growing market."

Mr Tharman, who is also Finance Minister, was speaking on a panel to about 600 government officials and business leaders from Singapore and Africa attending the Africa Singapore Business Forum held at the Grand Copthorne Waterfront Hotel.

The views he hears from policymakers and business leaders regarding Africa today reflect positivity and optimism, he said, which is quite different from just five years ago.

"Everyone also knows that there is an unevenness across Africa. Some countries are more ready, some countries have moved ahead with significant governance reforms... and others are lagging behind. But even with the unevenness and lack of homogeneity, people now see opportunity in Africa."

Singapore companies have a role to play in Africa's future too, especially in areas such as port and airport services and urban solutions such as in water and waste treatment, which Singapore has a lot of experience in, Mr Tharman said.

"When we think of Africa, we must think of it as an opportunity to add value... introduce new ideas, new approaches and raise productivity. And there's tremendous scope for that in Africa right now."

Also on the panel was Mr Peter Matlare, chief executive (CEO) of South African consumer goods firm Tiger Brands.

His message to foreign investors seeking to do business in Africa: "We are not looking for new colonialists. We are looking for business partners who will grow with us as opposed to those who seek to simply invest and extract (wealth)."

Standard Chartered Bank's CEO for Europe, the Middle East, Africa and the Americas, Mr V. Shankar, told The Straits Times on the sidelines of the forum that companies considering doing business in Africa tend to worry about the security issues there, the lack of infrastructure and the "sheer pain" of getting to the continent.

Singapore's trade with Africa has grown at a compound annual rate of close to 12 per cent over the past five years, reaching $14 billion last year. Investments by Singapore firms have reached $20 billion to date.





S'pore beefs up business ties with African nations
Agreements signed in areas ranging from aviation to education
By Yasmine Yahya, The Straits Times, 28 Aug 2014

SINGAPORE'S business ties with a range of African economies were boosted yesterday with a series of deals to expand relations in areas ranging from aviation to education.

The agreements were signed at the third Africa Singapore Business Forum with parties from Nigeria, Burkina Faso and Zimbabwe among others. The two-day forum, which ends today, was attended by about 600 African and Singaporean government officials and business leaders.

Encouraging business between Singapore and the fast-growing continent was high on the agenda.

Second Minister for Trade and Industry S. Iswaran signed bilateral investment treaties with Burkina Faso and Ivory Coast that will promote trade.

Mr Iswaran said in a statement: "The treaties will provide our companies operating in Burkina Faso and Ivory Coast better protection and greater investment confidence, thus promoting investment flows between our countries."

There are a few Singapore firms already in Burkina Faso, including Olam International and Agritech. Bilateral trade between Singapore and the West African country stood at $2.54 million last year.

Trade with Ivory Coast, also in West Africa, was higher, at $36.1 million. In 2012, Singapore's cumulative direct investments in the country amounted to $220 million, primarily in agriculture.

In another key deal signed at the forum, trade promotion agency IE Singapore and accounting giant Deloitte & Touche will help Singapore companies expand into Africa while promoting Singapore as a trading hub to East African businesses.

Singapore and Zimbabwe also signed an air services agreement to allow carriers from both countries the flexibility to plan their commercial operations and capitalise on market opportunities.

Education was addressed as well with two agreements signed.

Nanyang Technological University's (NTU) Nanyang Business School signed an agreement with the Strathmore Business School of Kenya and the Lagos Business School of Nigeria's Pan-Atlantic University.

These will pave the way for partnerships in research, executive and leadership training, and student exchange programmes between NTU and these two African business schools.

The first collaboration takes place next month with Nanyang Business School and Strathmore Business School running a five-day leadership course here for 35 senior managers from Kenya and Tanzania.

Finally, NTU and the Singapore Business Federation have launched a Centre for African Studies, which aims to provide Asian executives, entrepreneurs and policymakers with in-depth insights on African markets.

The centre will operate under the Nanyang Business School.


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Capitalism is dead, long live capitalism!

August 28, 2014, 12:38 am
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As more companies wake up to their social and environmental responsibilities, it's fair to say that a more compassionate and moral capitalism is emerging.
By Willie Cheng, Published The Straits Times, 27 Aug 2014

THE ills of modern capitalism are apparent.

The symptoms are everywhere: economic growth that fuels climate change, growing income inequalities, the global financial crisis, corporate activism such as Occupy Wall Street... the list goes on.

Although the world has largely experienced positive economic growth and prosperity over the last few decades, "brute capitalism" - or capitalism carried to its excess - is increasingly viewed as a major contributor to social, environmental and economic problems around the globe.

Companies are perceived to be prospering at the expense of the broader society.

The corporate beast

THE root cause of these problems is often attributed to the nature of corporations and their single-minded pursuit of maximising value for shareholders (and in the process, that of the corporate elite).

It has been argued that this exclusive focus on shareholders and profits is how corporations are constituted in the first place.

Mr Joe Bakan, a legal scholar, points out that companies are legal entities created to "valorise self-interest and invalidate moral concern" and, thus, are naturally and "pathologically selfish" in their pursuit of profits.

Following such a perspective, the pushback against unbridled capitalism has largely taken two forms.

The first has been calls for, and implementations of, rules and more rules to rein in corporate excess. Thus, over the years, there have been increasing environmental regulations, stronger labour protection laws, and stricter codes of corporate governance.

Every time instances of corporate abuses and scandals come to light, new regulations are created to punish the behaviour and to prevent their recurrence. That said, the burden of increasing regulations to rein in corporations is probably not a long-term sustainable option for economies.

The second form of response has been attempts to redefine the nature of the corporation so that it is accountable to the wider group of stakeholders of the economy.

Social-business hybrids

TO BE sure, there already exist organisations that, from inception, are created to focus not just on financial returns, but also on the triple bottom lines of "people, profits and planet".

These social-business hybrid organisations are often broadly termed as "social enterprises" or "social businesses".

They are usually small and medium-sized enterprises, purposefully creating social impact, with profits usually ploughed back to the community. Local examples include Bizlink Centre, which seeks to provide employment services for disadvantaged people, and the many cooperatives of the labour movement such as FairPrice and NTUC First Campus.

An overlapping group is "inclusive businesses". These focus on low-income communities by providing goods and services to, as well as livelihoods for, members of the community.

An example is SaniShop, which was established by the World Toilet Organisation, a Singapore non-governmental organisation. SaniShop operates a franchise model where it supplies toilets made by local masons to local sales entrepreneurs to sell to poor communities in countries such as Cambodia, India and Mozambique.

While social enterprises and inclusive businesses have existed for decades, they have mostly operated at the fringe of the business sector. Most were set up by social sector players and some by businessmen with social leanings.

However, in recent times, the number of these organisations has grown. They are becoming less of a side show as they receive recognition from mainstream businesses and, in turn, influence their thinking and actions.

One manifestation of this is the emergence of "impact investing". This is the active placement of "patient capital" into social enterprises and inclusive businesses.

The interest in impact investing has led financial institutions to create impact investment funds. Investment bankers get starry-eyed with projections of a US$1 trillion (S$1.25 trillion) market for this emerging asset class by 2020.

Corporations are also beginning to make more impact investments. Traditionally, some large corporations engage in corporate venture capital, investing in a portfolio of companies to drive financial and strategic returns for the parent company.

Some of these companies are now extending that investment concept to "corporate impact venturing", where social and environmental impact are part of the metrics for measuring success in the venture.

Furniture retailer IKEA, for example, created IKEA GreenTech AB, a corporate venture vehicle which has invested in "green" technology firms that can help Ikea "go renewable" in its core activities, encompassing energy, materials, water and waste issues.

Last year, Patagonia, a sustainable outdoor apparel pioneer, started an internal venture fund, "$20 Million & Change", to invest in start-ups focused on clothing, food, water, energy and waste, so that it can "do business more responsibly".

Beyond investments, mainstream corporations are also directly engaging with social enterprises and inclusive businesses, even integrating them into their core business. DBS Bank, for example, nurtures social enterprises in a significant way. It promotes, mentors and supports them both as suppliers and customers by starting them off with a special package of "virtually free banking services".

Corporations with a heart

OF COURSE, it is only when mainstream corporations behave much like these social enterprises and begin embracing social and environmental impact in their core businesses that we will really have turned the corner.

Some major corporations are leading the way in this respect.

One of the pioneers is Interface, the world's largest manufacturer of modular carpets. Its founder Ray Anderson had a dramatic awakening in 1994, feeling that "some day people like me will end up in jail" for being "a plunderer of the earth" and stealing "our children's future".

He set the company on a path of an innovation-based green strategy. Over the years, Interface has been recognised for being a leader in sustainable business. Even after Mr Anderson's death, the company continues its "Mission Zero" agenda to be the world's first fully sustainable company with zero negative impact by 2020.

Another leader is Unilever, the world's third-largest consumer goods company. It developed a Sustainable Living Plan in 2010 which set three big goals for 2020: Improve the well-being of a billion people, source 100 per cent of agricultural raw materials sustainably, and halve the environmental footprint of its products. Close to mid-point, the company has reported "excellent progress" and the achievement of a "virtuous circle of growth".

On the local front, City Developments has built its business around the principles of sustainability. It is a pioneer and leader in green buildings, recently delivering the world's first green library for children at the Central Public Library, and Singapore's first zero-energy green gallery at the Botanic Gardens.

It has significantly reduced its carbon emissions. It is the first Singapore company to be listed (currently ranked 39th) on Corporate Knights' Global 100 Most Sustainable Corporations in the World. These examples show that even though a corporation might be constituted with a narrow focus of maximising shareholder value, it is the people in the company who determine its DNA and culture.

These corporate executives understand that just as corporations have created many of the world's problems, corporations are also the solution.

They have moved from a focus on shareholder values to a focus on what Harvard professor Michael Porter calls "Creating Shared Values", by recognising the mutual dependency between the health of the community and the competitiveness of the firm. As more companies take on this mantle of shared values, it is fair to say that a more compassionate and moral capitalism is emerging.

Yes, while capitalism, as we knew it, has been ill, change is in the air.

Long live capitalism!


The writer is a former managing partner at Accenture. He currently sits on the boards of several commercial and non-profit organisations, and is chairman of the Singapore Institute of Directors. He is the author of Doing Good Well.


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Celebrate old age too with 'Silver Bonus'

August 28, 2014, 1:12 am
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By Kanwaljit Soin, Published The Straits Times, 27 Aug 2014

THERE are just about 400,000 of us in Singapore - those aged 65 and older. About 35,000 of us earn less than $1,000 a month.

Another piece of depressing news - 24 out of 100,000 elderly people committed suicide last year. In the United States, only 14 in 100,000 did so. Also, the rate of elderly suicide is twice the rate of those younger in Singapore.

Nearly 30 per cent of us in 2011 were living in a four-room Housing Board flat and about 24 per cent of us in a three-room HDB flat. Twenty per cent were in HDB apartments that were five-roomers or executive flats. Fifteen per cent of us were living in private property. Seven per cent live in one or two-bedroom flats. The remaining 3 per cent of us were in institutions.

Compared with the general resident population, a higher proportion of us were staying in HDB one and two-room flats (7.3 per cent versus 3.2 per cent) and HDB three-room flats (24 per cent versus 17 per cent).

More of us are women than men in the above 65 age group. In 2011, there were 795 elderly resident males per 1,000 elderly resident females.

As we get older, there are fewer men. Above 85 years of age, there are only half as many men as women and so it gets quite lonely for us women. If women live to beyond 85, nearly 90 per cent are widowed while for men, the figure is 35 per cent.

About 35,000 of us elderly are frail but most of us are relatively healthy. The number living alone is also about 35,000 which comprises about 8 per cent.

Overall, we are less educated than the rest of the population. Times were harder during our younger days, education was not compulsory and we had to work at an early age to help in the home or find work outside to help the family.

Nearly nine in 10 of us have below secondary qualifications compared with three in 10 for younger people below 65. Although we are not so educated, we have the experience of lived experience and hopefully some wisdom, but it is difficult to find meaningful work or we are unable to work for some reason like caring responsibilities for others in the family.

Most of us depend on our children's allowances as our main source of financial support. Many have no or low Central Provident Fund savings. It is not much fun to stretch out our hand each time we need money and often we have to explain our need. Over 80 per cent of those of us who are widowed depend on our children's allowances.

We are glad that through the Pioneer Generation Package, we will get subsidies for outpatient care at general practitioner clinics, polyclinics and specialist outpatient clinics. We are also grateful for the annual Medisave top-ups.

Some of us have always been ineligible for any form of health insurance. If we survive till the end of next year, we will at least have some peace of mind on hospitalisation expenses as these will be covered by MediShield Life.

But life does not just consist of health-care needs only. We all need some money for transport and incidental expenses not covered by the Pioneer Generation Package.

We know that our compatriots in Hong Kong get what is called "fruit money". There are two types of "fruit money" in Hong Kong. One is the "Old Age Allowance" - a universal sum given to everyone who is a resident over the age of 70. It is HK$1,180 (S$190) and given without any needs-based criteria.

The other is the "Old Age Living Allowance". It consists of HK$2,285 and comes with eligibility criteria.

If each one of us over 65 who is a resident in Singapore is given an old age allowance of just $200, it would be a good bonus.

For those with very little, the $200 will go a long way.

For those who already have plenty, they can spend the $200 on themselves or their grandchildren, thus stimulating the economy.

The cost to the country would be $960 million annually.

The total cost of the Pioneer Package is $9 billion and this old age allowance could be a small part of the total package.

Much of Singapore's success has been built on the backs of the pioneer generation and of the baby-boomer generation.

Setting aside part of the reserves for older people also alleviates the fiscal burden on the younger working age population, allowing we elderly to age with some dignity.

The Baby Bonus package is given to parents of new babies. It comes without any means testing, and is seen as a celebration of new life.

We would also like to celebrate old age, with a small allowance given to all elderly people aged 65 and above, without the need for intrusive means testing. Like the Baby Bonus, the Silver Bonus need not be stacked under a mattress but will be spent and can have multiplier effects on the economy.

In his National Day Rally speech, the Prime Minister announced a new Silver Support annual bonus for the low-income elderly with no asset and family support.

That is a most welcome move. In addition to that, I hope the Government will consider giving a Silver Bonus to all elderly people aged 65 and above to celebrate old age, and to reward the elderly for their contributions to nation-building.

The writer is a former Nominated Member of Parliament and immediate past president of Women's Initiative for Ageing Successfully (WINGS). She is 72.


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