may / june 2012 higher productivity, better wages...2012/05/06 · higher productivity, better...

Higher productivity,better wages

• True spirit of tripartism• Key to social bonding• Need for cost of living index

May / June 2012www.pap.org.sg行动报

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S I N G A P O R E

Contents

06 EditorialTowards higher wages, higher productivity for allHigher wages and higher productivity for all will not be easy to achieve. But it can be done if we care enough to make it happen. * Also in Chinese, Malay and Tamil

11 Quick NewsA round-up of new policies.

16 Face to FaceMobilising help for the needyMayor Sam Tan focuses on getting the able to help the needy to close the social divide.

18 DialogueRaising wages for blue-collar workersYoung PAP’s dialogue session discusses issues concerning the pay of blue-collar workers and what is keeping wages down.

Ramping up supply of affordable homesNational Development Minister Khaw Boon Wan says the housing needs of the poor must be looked after.

22 Behind the ScenesNot politics, but service to the peopleThree new branch chairmen of Aljunied GRC talk about their priorities and challenges they will have to face.

Publicity and Publications CommitteeChairman • Lawrence Wong Vice-Chairman • Seah Kian Peng Secretary • Lim Wee KiakMembers • Alvin Yeo, Arther Fong, Devi Vasantha Haridas, Kalyani Ramasamy, Chiang Heng Liang, Abdul Jafar Darwis District representative • Diana Pang Young PAP • Hamidah Aidillah PAP Policy Forum • Malminderjit Singh PAP WW • Teo Lin LeeEditor • Lim Huan Chiang Editorial and Design • Focus Publishing Limited (Tel: 6319 2392) Printer • timesprinters, Singapore. Photos courtesy of Singapore Press Holdings and istockphoto.com

Continue to serve in HougangPAP’s Secretary-General Lee Hsien Loong has told Hougang party activists to learn from their experiences and continue to work hard so that they can gradually win over the voters in the constituency.

12 Hot Topic

MAY / JUNE 2012

25 Behind the ScenesPlanning the years ahead: WW’s retreat in PenangWomen’s Wing members went on a two-day retreat in Penang recently not just to relax and bond but also to plan ahead.

26 View from the FrontSharing the fruits of economic growthWhat more must we do to ensure that we do not create a permanent underclass, asks MP Zainudin Nordin.

28 My SayCan we ‘tripartite’ a problem away?Unionist Ong Ye Kung says the term really means the opposite – one has to embrace the problem.

30 ForumWhat we can take away from HougangThe Hougang by-election is a timely reminder to the PAP that there is much more that needed to be done.

MICA (P) 151/11/2011Petir is published by the People’s Action Party Central Executive Committee. Material in this publication may not be reproduced in whole or in part without the prior consent of the publisher. Views expressed in this magazine are not necessarily those of the PAP or the government. All rights reserved.

PAP HeadquartersBlock 57B, New Upper Changi Road, #01-1402, PCF Building, Singapore 463057 • Telephone: 6244 4600 • Telefax: 6243 0114 • Internet: www.pap.org.sg

33 CyberspeakWages, jobs and citizenship...Pickings from online comments.

34 HappeningsStarting them youngMP Dr Lee Bee Wah’s pre-school table-tennis programme takes off.

35 Backbencher’s BiteA tale of two Cs – CPI and Cost of LivingMr Seah Kian Peng, Deputy Speaker and MP for Marine Parade GRC, calls for a cost of living index that people can relate to.

36 OverheardBest of the sound bites by parliamentarians.

A simple question from the PAP’s Teo Chee Hean during the by-election was enough to force the Workers’ Party into a mode of back-pedalling and self-contradictions, in a campaign which saw signs of division within the Workers’ Party.

Twists and turns in the Hougang affair

EDITORIAL

Everywhere in the world, workers want higher wages, employers want lower business costs. Having

both is only possible with higher produc-tivity and fairer sharing of gains. But this is not easily done.

In Greece, wages have gone up faster than productivity. The country is now in a deep recession. Unemployment rate ex-ceeds 20 per cent. Youth unemployment rate is close to 40 per cent.

In the United States, it is the opposite. After adjusting for inflation, median wages grew by just 11 per cent from 1973 to 2011, much lower than productivity gain of 80 per cent. Wage stagnation at the middle coupled with high unem-ployment has led to the recent Occupy Movement and the cries of “99 per cent versus 1 per cent”.

There are some lessons we can draw from these countries. High wage increases not supported by productivity gains will lead to high unemployment. On the other hand, high productivity gains without a fair sharing of gains will lead to unease and unrest.

For Singapore, wages and productivity are much better linked. Between 2000 and 2011, labour productivity grew by an average of 1.7 per cent annually while wages went up by 1.6 per cent a year after offsetting for inflation. We have improved wages, stayed competitive, kept unemployment low and maintained industrial peace.

To do better, we have major challenges to overcome.

First, workers expect higher built-in wage increases due to higher inflation. With inflation likely to stay at the current level for awhile, workers are less willing

Towards higher wages, higher productivity for all

to accept more moderated built-in wage increases as seen in the past when inflation was low. We need to bring up productiv-ity gain to at least 2 per cent, if not 3 per cent a year, so that there will be more to share. We also need to re-balance increases for the built-in component and flexible components to prevent wage stagnation.

Second, businesses must restructure continuously and faster. The world is

changing fast. Businesses need new capa-bilities to survive and grow. Continuous restructuring is our best bet. We have to sharpen our focus, move much faster, and pursue relentlessly our goals to be the “factory-of-the-future” and “services-of-the-future”. Let’s be more future-ready than others.

Third, we must create opportunities at all levels for all Singaporeans. We need

6 PETIR MAY / JUNE 12

Under e2i’s Inclusive Growth Programme, as many as 100,000 workers would have upgraded their skills and increase their wages and productivity by 2015.

By Lim Swee SayMinister in Prime Minister’s Office

Towards higher wages, higher productivity for all

quality growth and exciting jobs to meet the aspiration of a workforce that is more qualified, ambitious and entrepreneurial.

To be inclusive, we must also re-de-velop low-end jobs and low-productivity sectors. The Government has done much in topping up the salary and CPF savings of low-wage workers, offering generous training grants, allowances and incentives. It will continue to do more, spend more

and invest more. But we can only truly succeed in this endeavour, if employers, unions, businesses and members of the public all come together to do our part for the low-wage workers.

Businesses should adopt best-sourc-ing, not cheap-sourcing. Employers should upgrade skills and jobs, not just rely on more foreign workers. Unions should mobilise workers to work smart, not just work hard. Consumers should pay the right price so that workers can be paid more decent wages.

Above all, our public can help much, by not littering in housing estates and public places; by helping to clear up after meals at hawker centres; by saying “thank you” to our cleaners, retail assist-ants, security guards; and by showing our friendliness, respect and encouragement to these workers. Remember, they have their dignity and pride too.

Some people do not see any scope for improving the productivity of low-wage workers. I beg to differ.

In hospitality, a hotel receptionist who previously earned $1,200 a month, improved his skills in housekeeping and F&B. As a worker with three skills, he could be deployed more flexibly by the hotel, and received a wage increase of 50 per cent.

In retail, NTUC FairPrice upgraded service quality and productivity. With more productivity gains to share, lower- wage workers enjoyed a built-in wage increase of up to 15.8 per cent.

In manufacturing, workers in a food factory learnt to operate a packing ma-chine instead of doing the work manu-ally. Their wages went up by more than 10 per cent.

In security, with new tools and tech-nology, a security firm now offers staff the flexibility to either work fewer days with the same pay, or work the same number of days with more pay.

In cleaning, with labour-saving de-vices, 2,000 conservancy cleaners out-sourced by PAP town councils now earn at least $1,000, with more improvements to come.

These are not isolated examples. Under the Inclusive Growth Programme (IGP) spearheaded by the NTUC’s Em-ployment and Employability Institute (e2i), thousands of workers in hundreds of companies have upgraded their skills, enhanced their productivity and increased their wages. By 2015, IGP alone will reach out to 100,000 workers.

In a world of global unemployment, higher wages and higher productivity for all will not come easy. But if we all care enough to make it happen, it can be done. And with that, we can build a better Singapore for all.

In a world of global unemployment, higher wages and higher productivity for all will not come easy. But if we all care enough to make it happen, it can be done. And with that, we can build a better Singapore for all.



世界各地的员工都希望赚取更

高的工资，而雇主则要削减

生意成本。鱼和熊掌若要兼

得，只有通过更高的生产力以及更公平

地分享利润。然而，这谈何容易。

在希腊，高幅度的工资增长并非基

于生产力的提升，这因此导致了高失业

率。在美国，中层员工的工资停滞，加

上高失业率，酿成了之前的“占领行

动”。

新加坡于2000至2011年之间，劳工

生产力年均增长1.7%，在调整了通货膨

胀率之后，工资每年上升了1.6%。我们

的工资增长了，同时保有竞争力、保持

低失业率以及维持工业和平。

为了做得更好，我们得克服严峻的

挑战。

提高工资、提升生产力首先，因为通货膨胀上升，员

工要求更高的固定工资增长。在通

货膨胀率偏低时,员工能接受经适度

调整的固定工资增长,但通货膨胀率

预料在短期内将保持不变,他们也因

此越来越不愿意接受这样的调整。

我们必须将生产力增长提升到至少

2%。为了避免工资停滞，我们也得重新

平衡工资的固定部分以及可变动部分的

增长。

其次，公司必须不断，并更快速地

重组。我们得更加集中焦点、加紧脚

步，还要比其他人更具前瞻性并作好

准备。

第三，我们得为每个阶层的新加坡

人制造就业机会。我们需要高素质的发

展，以及更令人振奋的工作，以满足一

支更高素质、胸怀大志和具创业精神的

劳动队伍。

我们还得重新发展低阶层的工作和

低生产力的领域。政府会继续填补低薪

员工的工资和公积金存款、提供技能培

训津贴、补助和奖励。但是，只有雇

主、工会、公司和公众一起为低薪员工

尽一分力，我们才能真正达到成功。

公司应该采取最佳外包，而非最

便宜外包的做法。雇主应提升员工的技

能和工作，而不是一味依赖外来劳工。

工会应鼓动员工不只努力工作，还得聪

明而有效率地工作。顾客应支付相应的

价格，员工才能获得像样的工资。

更重要的是，公众可通过举手之劳

让清洁工友的工作更方便，并友善对

待、尊重和鼓励我们的零售助理，以及

保安人员。

有些人认为低薪员工的生产力没什

么提升的空间，我却不以为然。

在制造业，食品工厂的员工学习操

作食品包装机器，代替人工包装。他们

的工资增加了超过10%。

林瑞生总理公署部长

Di serata dunia, pekerja meng-inginkan gaji yang lebih tinggi, majikan pula menginginkan kos

perniagaan yang lebih rendah. Kedua-du-anya hanya boleh dikecapi dengan peng-hasilan yang lebih tinggi dan keuntungan yang dikongsi bersama dengan adil. Tetapi ini tidak mudah dilakukan.

Di Greece, peningkatan gaji yang tinggi yang tidak didukung oleh pening-katan penghasilan telah membawa kepada jumlah pengangguran yang tinggi. Di Amerika Syarikat, gaji yang mendak di pertengahan dan ditambah pula dengan masalah pengangguran telah membawa

Ke arah gaji yang lebih baik, penghasilan lebih tinggi untuk semua

Oleh Lim Swee SayMenteri (Pejabat Perdana Menteri)

kepada Pergerakan Duduk Bantah baru-baru ini.

Bagi Singapura, antara tahun 2000 dan 2011, daya penghasilan pekerja telah tumbuh secara purata 1.7 peratus seta-hun sementara gaji pula meningkat 1.6 peratus setahun selepas diimbangi dengan inflasi. Kita telah memperbaiki tangga gaji, sentiasa berdaya saing, memastikan pengangguran berada diparas yang rendah dan mengekalkan keamanan dalam sektor perusahaan.

Untuk melakukan dengan lebih baik lagi, kita perlu mengharungi beberapa cabaran besar.

Pertama, pekerja mengharapkan gaji yang lebih tinggi disebabkan oleh inflasi yang meningkat. Pekerja tidak lagi berse-

dia menerima peningkatan gaji dengan kadar sederhana ketika inflasi berada di paras rendah. Kita perlu meningkatkan tahap daya penghasilan kepada sekurang-kurangnya 2 peratus. Kita juga perlu mengimbangi semula peningkatan bagi komponen gaji keseluruhan yang diterima pekerja dan komponen berubah-ubah yang membentuk sebahagian daripada gaji demi mencegah ia daripada menjadi mendak.

Kedua, perniagaan mesti disusun semula secara berterusan dengan lebih pantas. Kita perlu mempertajamkan tumpuan kita, bergerak lebih cergas dan lebih bersedia untuk menghadapi cabaran masa depan berbanding dengan orang lain.

Ketiga, kita mesti mewujudkan pel-


在清洁业，因为运用了节省人工的

机器，两千名由人民行动党市镇理事会

外包的管理的清洁工人如今每月至少赚

取1000元。将来还会有更多的进步。

这些都不是孤立的个案。在全国职

工总会的就业与智能培训中心带头展开

的“增长与同惠计划”下，数以千计来

自几百家公司的员工已经提升技能、提

高生产力，以及增加薪金。到了2015年，将有10万名员工在此计划下受惠。

在全球失业率偏高的环境里，为所

有员工提高薪金和提升生产力并非易

事。但是如果我们诚心这么做，一定能

办到。这样一来，我们就能为大家建设

一个更美好的新加坡。

Ke arah gaji yang lebih baik, penghasilan lebih tinggi untuk semua

uang di setiap peringkat untuk seluruh rakyat Singapura. Kita perlukan pertum-buhan yang bermutu dan pekerjaan-peker-jaan yang menarik bagi memenuhi aspirasi tenaga kerja yang lebih berkelayakan, bercita-cita tinggi dan juga mempunyai semangat keusahawanan.

Kita mestilah juga membangunkan semula pekerjaan diperingkat rendah serta disektor penghasilan yang rendah. Pemer-intah akan terus melakukan lebih banyak lagi dalam menokok gaji dan simpanan wang CPF pekerja yang bergaji rendah, menawarkan geran latihan, elaun dan insentif. Tetapi kita hanya boleh berjaya dengan sebenarnya jika pihak majikan, kesatuan sekerja, perniagaan serta orang awam boleh memainkan peranan masing-masing bagi membantu pekerja-pekerja yang bergaji rendah. Sektor perniagaan harus mengamalkan kaedah penyumberan yang terbaik dan bukan penyumberan yang termurah. Pihak majikan harus mem-pertingkatkan kemahiran serta pekerjaan dan tidak hanya bergantung kepada peker-

ja asing. Kesatuan sekerja harus mengger-akkan pekerja untuk bekerja secara bijak bukan sekadar hanya untuk bekerja keras sahaja. Pengguna pula harus membayar harga yang sewajarnya agar pekerja boleh dibayar gaji yang berpatutan.

Yang penting, masyarakat kita boleh turut membantu dengan menonjolkan sikap bertimbang rasa demi meringankan tugas para pekerja pembersihan kita den-gan lebih mudah selain menunjukkan sikap mesra, hormat serta sedia memberi dorongan kepada pembantu jualan runcit dan pengawal keselamatan kita.

Sebahagian kita ada yang merasakan tidak perlu untuk meningkatkan penghasi-lan pekerja-pekerja yang bergaji rendah. Saya menolak pandangan sedemikian.

Di dalam sektor pengeluaran, peker-ja di kilang makanan belajar untuk menggunakan mesin membungkus makanan daripada melakukan nya dengan menggunakan tangan. Dengan itu, gaji mereka telah meningkat lebih daripada 10 peratus.

Di dalam bidang pembersihan pula, dengan menggunakan peralatan menjimat tenaga kerja, seramai 2,000 pekerja pem-bersihan yang ditugaskan di Majlis-Majlis Bandaran PAP kini sedang menikmati gaji sekurang-kurangnya $1,000 sebulan, lebih banyak lagi peningkatan akan dapat dinikmati.

Ini bukan contoh-contoh terpencil. Di bawah Program Pertumbuhan Inklusif (IGP) yang diterajui oleh Institut Peker-jaan dan Daya Kerja (e2i) NTUC, ribuan pekerja di ratusan syarikat telah dapat mempertingkatkan kemahiran mereka serta meningkatkan penghasilan dan gaji mereka. Menjelang tahun 2015, IGP akan terus mendekati sehingga 100,000 pekerja.

Di dunia yang kini sedang berhadapan dengan pengangguran sejagat, gaji dan peningkatan penghasilan yang lebih tinggi bukan mudah untuk dikecapi. Tetapi jika kita inginkan ia menjadi suatu kenyataan, ia boleh dilaksanakan. Dan untuk itu, kita boleh membina sebuah Singapura yang lebih baik untuk semua.

我们若诚心一致地提高生产力和工资,就能共同建设一个更美好的新加坡。

The People’s Action Party (PAP) will continue to serve the resi-dents in Hougang, and gradually

win them over, says Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong.

Mr Lee, who is the party’s secretary-general, was speaking at a closed-door informal session with around 200 party activists to discuss the post-Hougang by-election feedback at the PAP headquarters in New Upper Changi Road on June 2.

The feedback and discussions amongst the activists lasted for more than four hours.

One activist described the session as “pragmatic, positive and passionate”.

In his short address, Mr Lee said: “We cannot make changes overnight… the next time we can do better and over the next four years, we’ve to work even harder to get our message across.”

Mr Lee, who joined the session at its final hour, thanked and commended Hougang candidate Desmond Choo and his team for putting up “a very strong fight” in a constituency that the Workers’ Party has held for over two decades.

He said: “Hougang is very differ-ent from any other part of Singapore. The mood is different as it has been opposition-held for over two decades. Low Thia Khiang has built a strong base and the majority of the voters voted for him rather than for Yaw Shin Leong or Png Eng Huat…But I believe 38 per cent

is a good result considering the circum-stances. It shows Desmond Choo and his team have worked harder, especially the past one year.”

Mr Lee also noted that Mr Low is no longer in Hougang, and that Mr Png is not the same as Mr Low. So in four years’ time, Hougang voters would be able to assess whether Mr Png has served them well.

He added: “It’s crucial over the next four years that we learn from our experi-ences and…do better at the next General Election.”

Other party leaders have also praised Mr Choo and his team for their effort.

At a closed-door meeting soon after the Hougang result was announced, PAP First Assistant Secretary-General

Continue to serve in Hougang


Hot ToPICHot

ToPIC

By Suresh Nair

Continue to serve in HougangTeo Chee Hean told party activists: “We campaigned for what we believed in… Hougang responded well and if you look at the results, we fared better than the 2011 and 2006 GE. We have turned the tide of two elections.”

PAP Chairman Khaw Boon Wan, who was at the meeting, said that despite the loss, the party was “encouraged that more residents have seen and supported Desmond’s vision of a new future”.

“The change has started in Hougang and you (the activists and supporters) can walk with your heads held high. We’re very proud of you,” he said.

Mr Choo had tears welling in his eyes when he spoke to his team members. They all smiled when he described him-self as “a man of few words… only at the

“We cannot make changes overnight…the next time we can do better and over the next four years, we’ve to work even harder to get our message across.”

– PAP secretary-general Lee Hsien Loong

rallies I speak more”.“I have few regrets. Looking back, in

the nine days of campaigning, I would have changed nothing,” he said.

About 23,000 people were eligible to vote in Hougang. 21,951 ballots were cast, of which 294 were considered spoiled votes.

Mr Choo, who received 8,210 votes,

said he was encouraged that the PAP ob-tained 37.9 per cent of the votes this time. This improves on the results of the two previous general elections: 2006 (37.3 per cent) and 2011 (35.2 per cent).

Raising his hands to applaud his sup-porters, Mr Choo said: “We fought this by-election very well as one family. A true PAP family…well done.”


Supporters of the Hougang Branch on polling night.

Mr Khaw Boon Wan offers a hug to Desmond Choo at the post-result session.

Several CEC members turned up at the feedback session.


Hot ToPICHot

ToPIC

Mr Png initially replied that he was not selected because he had taken his name out of the ballot for the NCMP seat.

But this was contradicted by the leaked minutes of a WP Central Executive Committee meeting, which showed that Mr Png was in fact in the ballot for the NCMP seat, and had received only one vote, whereas Mr Gerald Giam received seven votes and Mr Eric Tan five.

Mr Png later claimed that rather than “taking his name out of the ballot box”, he had made clear to party leaders that he did

not want to be considered for the NCMP post as he did not believe in the scheme.

Although Mr Low later sought to clarify the situation at a rally, he only mud-died the waters further. Mr Low said that NCMPs were chosen by the CEC, and it was not a matter of personal preference.

This directly contradicted what Mr Png had said earlier. It also left unanswered DPM Teo’s original question: why did the WP field Mr Png in Hougang, when it decided not to send him as an NCMP to Parliament just a year before?

It has been 20 years since a by-election in Singapore, but the Hougang by-election saw lots of drama leading to

Polling Day on May 26.Hougang has been an opposition

stronghold for two decades, under Work-ers’ Party’s (WP) chief Mr Low Thia Khiang. But in last year’s General Elec-tion, Mr Low left the ward to contest in Aljunied GRC. And the man Hougang residents voted for – Yaw Shin Leong, a man handpicked and groomed by Mr Low – ran away after allegations of an affair.

When Mr Yaw refused to account to his party leaders, the WP expelled him, causing his Hougang seat to fall vacant and prompting the by-election.

Just before Nomination Day, the first sign of confusion within the WP appeared. It had seemed to be a straightforward two-way contest between the PAP’s Desmond Choo and the WP’s Png Eng Huat. But two other people collected their Political Donation Certificates from the Elections Department. One turned out to be a veteran WP member, Dr Poh Lee Guan.

Dr Poh told the media that he was the unofficial back-up or spare candidate for the WP. The WP later refuted this claim, saying that Dr Poh had not informed them of his intention!

While ultimately Dr Poh did not contest, his actions raised questions about internal problems within WP’s ranks.

The cracks widened in the next few days.

At a rally on May 20, Deputy Prime Minister Teo Chee Hean asked why the WP did not send Mr Png to Parliament as a Non-Constituency Member of Parlia-ment (NCMP) if he was indeed the party’s best man. This simple question sparked a series of revelations and self-contradictions by the WP.


Desmond Choo speaking at the last rally before Polling Day.



Towards the end of the campaign, Mr Choo urged residents to give themselves a fresh start, while Mr Png called for a check on the ruling party.

On voting day, the WP held on to the single ward, but with a reduced percentage of 62.1 per cent, compared with Mr Yaw’s win of 64.8 per cent in 2001.

It appeared that Hougang voters were still voting for Mr Low, their MP for 20 years, instead of the actual candidate, Mr Png.

Despite Mr Low’s claim that he had

full confidence in Mr Png, it often ap-peared that Mr Low was trying his best not to expose Mr Png to Hougang voters.

For example during the WP rallies, Mr Low would speak directly both before and after Mr Png, whose own speeches were short.

At the post-election media conference, Mr Png only said a few words of thanks, and left Mr Low to deliver the main state-ment, and to field most of the questions.

Mr Low launched a combative attack on the PAP, accusing it of “baseless attacks,

distractions and character assassinations”. Perhaps he was embarrassed by the revela-tions, and what they showed about the WP and Mr Low’s leadership.

As DPM Teo later responded, he had simply laid out the facts for voters to reflect on the issues, and all of the questions “ba-sically came from contradictions within the [Workers’] party”.

The Hougang affair that began with one question about Mr Yaw ended with another on Mr Png. Both questions re-main unanswered.

Volunteers had given full support through the nine-day campaign.

DPM Teo is one of the ministers who had lent Desmond Choo support during the campaign.

PAP improved on the results of the last two GEs.

FACE TO FACE

Mobilising help for the needyMayor of Central Singapore CDC, MP Sam tan helps those who need it most, whether with money, education or by rolling up his sleeves to squash bedbugs

When Mr Sam Tan changed portfolios a year ago, it was a return to what he cared most

about: the needy.With stints in the Ministries of Trade

and Industry, and Communication and the Arts under his belt, he was posted to the Ministry of Community Develop-ment and Sports (MCYS) to look into the needs of the disabled and was tasked to head the Central Singapore Community Development Council (CDC).

Mr Tan, who spent 23 years of his working life first, in the People’s Associa-tion and then, the Chinese Development Assistance Council prior to entering poli-tics in 2006, has positioned the spotlight firmly on helping the needy.

The CDC’s mission – to assist the needy, bond the people and connect the community – is not three separate prongs to him, but a coherent whole.

“I am trying to connect the three objectives, with assisting the needy as the over-arching link. We do not want to do these three in isolation, as if they are independent,” said Mr Tan, on what he has done in the past year.

What that means on the ground is that under his leadership, the CDC would be less inclined to organise general com-munity bonding programmes. Rather, volunteers and corporate sponsors come together, bond and connect, in a specific act of helping the needy.

“This is also to ensure that when peo-ple contribute funds or volunteer, they will know precisely where their money

will go to, and the precise outcome of their efforts,” he explained.

This is a lot of what is now called “retail politics” but is good old grassroots efforts for Mr Tan. He is currently waging a war against bed bugs in one-room rental flats together with MP Lily Neo in her Kreta Ayer ward, which falls within the boundary of the Central Singapore CDC.

lay 12 eggs every day and it spreads to other units very quickly so you have got to treat them all,” said Mr Tan.

Along with stamping out the bed bugs, the CDC is helping these elderly residents living in rental units to improve general hygiene, house and kitchen safety and save on their utility bills, as part of the three-year Hands for Home project.

Mr Tan intends to take the project be-yond Kreta Ayer to the rest of the Tanjong Pagar GRC, which falls under the ambit of the Central Singapore CDC.

“I hope there would be a demonstrat-ing effect for the other GRCs. If the pilot project is successful, we can replicate the experience in other GRCs.”

Mr Tan, who grew up supported by a single-parent mother with five children, has a soft spot for the elderly needy which he calls “one of the most vulnerable groups in our community”, along with persons with disabilities.

This ties in with his work at the MCYS, where as the Senior Parliamentary Secretary, he looks into turning the plans outlined in the second Enabling Master-plan into reality. It seeks to improve the lives of those with disabilities.

The CDC also hopes to reel in more young people in the community. Not because they are vulnerable, but to get them involved in volunteer work.

“This way, they will feel that their energy is spent on meaningful projects which are part of building an inclusive society,” he said. “Young people have a lot of energy and ideas.”

By Wong Sher Maine

He recalls a sobering visit to one such flat in Radin Mas. “When I looked into the resident’s house, I saw that there was what looked like wall paper on both sides of the walls. It appeared to be a lot of lines. But when I took a closer look, they were splatters of blood.”

The resident explained that he had been squashing the bed bugs, crawling full with his blood, against the wall. Mr Tan immediately set the town council and the HDB on his case, and also checked in with a pest-control company.

“The pest-control people told me just doing one unit doesn’t help. The bed bugs

“I hope there would be a demonstrating effect for the other GRCs. If the pilot project is successful, we can replicate the experience in other GRCs.”

– MP Sam Tan


Mr Tan has started pulling other MPs to take charge of the CDC’s projects, calling them project’s “champions”. Dr Lily Neo leads the bed bugs project, Jalan Besar GRC MP Denise Phua will receive seed money from the CDC to come up with projects to benefit people with dis-abilities, and Sengkang West MP Lam Pin Min will have support to reach out to the youth.

“Many hands make easy things. The CDC alone cannot be doing everything. Rome was not built in a day, and certainly not by one person. It’s a long process where we have to get more people to come in and play a role. Each one will carry one brick. With a lot of people coming in, we can slowly build up a city.”

A national concern is with regard to the growing income divide. When asked for his take based on what he sees on the ground, Mr Tan reflected and replied: “For any given society, the income divide is always there.

“We should shift our focus from the gini-coefficient (which measures the in-

come distribution of a country’s residents) to building social capital. The important thing is that while you can have an in-come divide, if the haves have the big hearts to help those who are more vulner-able, then the process of helping creates social bonding. This way, we can close the social rather than the income gap.

“It’s a long road towards this. Are we there? No. Are we far away? I cannot say, but no matter how far it is, the important thing is that we start doing something concrete now.”

As MP at Radin Mas, he sees many people who have difficulties finding or holding on to a job, at his weekly Meet-the-People sessions. “My heart goes out to them. Many times, after writing to the agencies, I also call people up person-ally or write an additional note to ask if flexibility can be exercised to help this individual.”

He feels that even if there is a greater burden on the lower-income segments of society, it is not due to a lack of help. “Over time, I am seeing more people who

are coming forward to help and there are also more help schemes available.

“But the frustration is that we are exposed to many outside forces. There are certain externalities like inflation, which is beyond our control but which impacts our people, which undo some of our efforts.”

Without going into specifics, he said that sometimes, government policies in-troduced in response to these externalities may affect Singaporeans in the near term. “No government wants to make people suffer. But sometimes, in the interest of time, we need to come up with policies to react to externalities which may create some issues on the ground.”

On his part, it is Chinese philosophy which helps the political science gradu-ate to view the world. Pointing to the calligraphic scrolls around his office and philosophy books by the likes of Chinese thinker Lao Tze, he said: “What makes me happy is the little things I can do which make life better. Nothing is too big or too small for you to do your best.”

Central Singapore CDC is galvanising volunteers and corporate sponsors to come together, bond and connect, to help the needy.


DIALOguE

The Young PAP (YP), the People’s Action Party’s Youth Wing, held its second open panel dialogue this

year on May 12 at the NTUC Building. The YP’s Political Discussion Committee floored the topic “How Much Must You Be Paid For Your Labour?”.

The panel comprised Mr Gerard Ee, Chairman of the Public Transport Coun-cil, Ms Tan Puay Hoon, President of the Restroom Association of Singapore, and Pasir Ris-Punggol GRC MPs Dr Janil Putchucheary, who acted as moderator and Mr Zainal Sapari, there in his capac-ity as champion for blue collar workers. About 100 YP members and followers of its Facebook page attended the three-hour event, much of which revolved around fair wages for blue-collar workers.

“We observed during the recent budget discussions that there has been a shift in the mindset of Singaporeans on the con-cept of labour. People in other developed countries are proud of having jobs, even blue-collar jobs, but nobody in Singapore wants to do them,” said Mr Abner Koh of the discussion group’s organising com-mittee.

“Such jobs are surrounded by stigma in our society, even more than before. Today’s discussion is meant to explore this shift, and the public’s sentiment on what they feel is a fair wage for our blue-collar workers,” he added.

“When I was young, my parents always told me to study hard; otherwise I would end up with a menial job, like cleaning toilets. This was a common incentive in those days, but at least there were Singapo-reans willing to do the job,” said Ms Tan, elaborating on Mr Koh’s point.

“But now, you can’t find Singaporeans

Young PAP holds open dialogue on wages and condition of the blue-collar community in Singapore

willing to be cleaners. Most people are now better educated and aspire to better employment. Cleaning companies have to import foreign workers to do the job, and at a lower cost. So this affects wages as well,” she explained.

She cited the example of a cleaner she knows. She earned $700 a month 17 years ago. Currently her salary is $750, a rise of just $50 over all these years.

Ms Tan added that leaving wage levels to market forces would not be the answer, not with so many foreigners willing to do the same job for less. “But there is no right formula to solve the problem. Environmental companies could make an intervention with skills upgrading, creating value in the cleaning industry and gradually raising salaries that way.”

She said that what was lacking from

Raising wages for blue-collar workers

“When you’re young and single, a lower-income level may be sufficient, may be enough to have a good time as well. But when you’re married with children, you have to earn as much as you can, just to survive...”

– Ms Tan Puay Hoon


Panelists at the dialogue (from left) Mr Gerard Ee, Mr Zainal Sapari, Ms Tan Puay Hoon and Dr Janil Putchucheary.

Singaporeans’ point of view was “a sense of respect” for the cleaning industry. “The older Singaporean cleaners are our unsung heroes,” said Ms Tan. “They are the ones who made our environment clean and green, and we must appreciate them for it.”

Mr Zainal had his views on the situa-tion. He said that outsourcing was one of the causes of the problem. “Companies bring in foreign cleaners and pay them less, increasing their profits.

“Also, competition plays a part. There will always be Singaporeans, very few of them, desperate enough to work for about $600 a month. No matter what, that low-paying job is valuable to them, and the only one that may be available to them. So how do you help these people, how do we help them increase their disposable income?”

An attendee, who wanted to be known only as William, mentioned that his father was a dockyard worker and the sole bread winner in the family. Yet he was able to raise a family of five on his single salary 40 years ago.

“From what I gather through discus-sions with friends and neighbours, it’s the high cost of housing that is the main problem today. Even when husband and wife both work, raising children and paying off housing loans can be too much of a burden. Even white-collar workers are feeling the pinch,” he said.

“If ways to stabilise housing prices were found, a fair wage should be sufficient to keep a family comfortable. Right now, I feel even a fair wage for any occupa-

However, she faced resistance not only from her family, but from the licensing authorities that issue the relevant permits.

Dr Putchucheary was heartened to see that not all Singaporean graduates looked down on such jobs. His take is that “blue- collar jobs can be the most fun”.

He also voiced unease that there still exists a large segment of the working population that chose jobs according to salary levels.

“I’m very concerned about people choosing jobs based on pay rather than interest,” he said. “If you’re good at what you do, the pay will follow,” he said.

Mr Gerard Ee was quick to reinforce this view with examples like pastry and curry puff specialists Old Chang Kee. “The parents of the current owners only started the business late in life, after retire-ment age. But they were good at it, and

they followed their interest. And because they worked at what they liked, they became so successful.”

The dialogue was neatly rounded off with a discussion on the definition and expectations of what a “decent” wage level should be, and Ms Tan believes that this changes with age.

“When you’re young and single, a lower-income level may be sufficient, may be enough to have a good time as well. But when you’re married with children, you have to earn as much as you can, just to survive. And when you’re older, you might have to take any job that comes along,” she explained.

“What’s important is that you are satis-fied with what you’re doing. If you earn enough, and have the respect and dignity

everyone needs, then you should be a happy person.”

Raising wages for blue-collar workers

tion is barely sufficient.”He feels that blue-collar workers are

the “victims” of a “structural and social problem”. They are not earning more because no effort is being made to invest in them and their skill levels, particularly those at the lower end of the salary scale.

While the issue of a shift in the mind-set of Singaporeans towards blue-collar workers was being discussed, one attendee mentioned that she was a graduate but was quite content to work as a taxi driver.


Ramping up supply of affordable homes DIALOguE

Homeless people taking refuge in hospital emergency rooms to keep warm provide a cautionary tale in housing the poor

While he was in Chicago re-cently, Minister for National Development Mr Khaw Boon

Wan, had a minor accident and went to a hospital there for treatment.

It was midnight when he arrived at the Northwestern Memorial Hospital, one of the top hospitals in the United States. That was also the hospital where the popular medical drama “ER” was filmed.

He was there till 4 am, and the waiting area at the Emergency Room (ER) was packed throughout.

This was a common sight in many hospitals around the world, except a sig-nificant number of them at this hospital were not patients – they were the homeless people of Chicago, stealing some shut-eye in the relative comfort of the hospital’s ER.

Mr Khaw related how after about three hours, these vagabonds were asked politely by the security staff to leave. The staff knew the people by name.

“The homeless are a common sight, every night, at the hospital. They go there to sleep. Three hours is how long the hos-pital is willing to tolerate them, so when it is time to leave, they will go to the next hospital’s emergency room.

“Three hours here, and three hours there, it settles the night for them. Protect them from the cold weather outside,” he said, to a crowd of about 60 participants at a dialogue organised by the Central District Women’s Wing.

Mr Khaw was relating his experience in the second largest city in America as he touched on the issue of housing for

low-income Singaporeans.To avoid a situation like the one in

Chicago, the Government has to manage the rental housing facilities very carefully.

Singapore’s rate of 92 per cent home ownership is an anomaly, as the average rate for developing countries is about 50 per cent. Despite this high rate of home

ownership, there is still a significant number of people who cannot afford homes, and Mr Khaw’s job is to ensure that the housing needs of this group of Singaporeans are looked after.

“This is where the HDB rental flats come in. We must make sure only the poor get access to these flats. And because it is meant for the poor, we must keep it really cheap.

“So we have to be very selective, make sure only the deserving ones get in. Other-wise, the not-so-deserving ones will crowd out the poor and the poor will find it a problem to have a roof over their heads.”

More such flats must be made avail-able, he said, conceding that the current number, which makes up five per cent of total flats, is on the “low side”.

The former Health Minister, who took over his current National Development portfolio after the last election in May 2011, wants to ramp it up to six or even seven per cent eventually.

At the same time, he explained that the Government must manage this carefully and must not make the mistake of build-ing too many rental flats that it becomes too readily available.

“In our lifetime, how many times do we buy a property? Maybe once, twice, at most three times. So buyers have the right to be choosy.”

– Minister Khaw


Ramping up supply of affordable homes

Mr Khaw added that he was aware that many ‘not so poor’ Singaporeans too want to get access to the flats, with the rental flats typically priced at between $60 and $120 per month for a one-room and two-room flat.

“It cannot be the case where you put

up your hand, and you are able to get a rental flat,” he said.

Meanwhile, one dialogue participant shared her experience handling young couples who are “choosy” over their choice of flats. She gave the example of a couple who came to the Meet-the-People session

to ask for help a get a flat on a higher floor, after they had turned down one on the second floor.

In his response, Mr Khaw appealed to grassroots activists not to use the word “choosy” to describe such flat buyers. He said buying a property is a big decision, thus it is only rational for buyers to be selective when purchasing their flat.

“In our lifetime, how many times do we buy a property? Maybe once, twice, at most three times. So buyers have the right to be choosy,” he stressed.

Mr Khaw acknowledged that the Government had underbuilt flats in the last few years, but in his first 12 months in the Ministry of National Development, he has ramped up the building of flats, with some 25,000 built-to-order flats released last year.

The minister added that he is build-ing these flats quickly to meet the needs of first-time buyers and young couples. In fact, in the next four years, he has the resources to build another 75,000 flats if necessary.

“I can honestly say that if a young couple, first-timer wants a flat, there is a flat for them.”

Minister Khaw hopes to look after the needs of those who cannot afford a house.


BEhInD ThE sCEnEs

the PAP recently appointed three branch chairmen at the Aljunied GRC. Just over a year since the GRC was lost to the Workers’ Party, Mr Victor Lye (Bedok Reservoir-Punggol), Poon Mun Wai (Serangoon) and K Muralidharan Pillai (Paya Lebar) have been put in the hot seat.

Petir spoke to them recently to find out more about their priorities and the many challenges they anticipate having to face in the coming years

Not politics, but service to the people

Victor Lye makes no bones about the PAP’s objective in Aljunied: To win back the right

to represent the people there.“That is non-negotiable and clear-

cut, otherwise why are we here?” says the 49-year-old principal officer of a healthcare insurance company. A PAP member for 11 years, Mr Lye began work on Feb 1 as the branch chairman in Bedok Reservoir-Punggol, taking over the ward from former Foreign Minister George Yeo.

Mr Lye is no stranger to Aljunied, having served there since 1999.

One of the first things Mr Lye did when he met his fellow activists was to stress that their work in Aljunied was not so much about fighting the WP, but to fight for the welfare of the residents instead.

“I had to make sure that I galva-nised members for a very long journey of more than five years, because we

have to build that foundation again,” he says.

“We have a new core team in place. The moment we wear the party whites and this badge, we carry that legacy in engaging the generations. It will come to haunt us if we don’t manage this well.”

The biggest hurdle, he says, was to continue to find a new breed of activists who can both adapt and think differently

Victor Lye, 49

• Branch chairman, Bedok Reservoir-Punggol• Married with two children• Joined the Civil Service in 1987 as an Administrative Officer• Joined PAP in 2001• Elected to the inaugural PAP Policy Forum in 2004

for the future. He is heartened that so many branch members, both young and old, have expressed their commit-ment to both his ward and the GRC as a whole.

“I wouldn’t exactly call what we do ‘politics’,” he says. “What we do is for our people. We need to connect with our people. We touch hearts and win minds.”


Having been the PAP’s former branch secretary in Seran-goon, the step up to be its

chairman on May 1 this year was a natural transition for Mr Poon Mun Wai.

The 59-year-old, who is cur-rently employed in the airline industry, counts himself fortunate that most of the activists under his wing – particu-larly the younger ones – chose to stay on and continue their work of serving the community.

“We have only one objective, and that is to serve the residents and make their lives better. We have not shifted very much from our original vision (under former branch chairman Lim Hwee Hwa),” says Mr Poon.

One key area that he feels requires much strengthening is the communi-cation channels between the PAP and the community, especially when it comes to explaining government poli-cies such as public housing.

“We cannot take it for granted that the people will agree with you on every policy you make. After the GE last year, there was an attempt to make improvements but more can still be done,” he says.

He adds that while all policies are intended to benefit the nation, there is usually a trade-off of some sort when the final decision is made. And that trade-off, says Mr Poon, must be ex-plained properly rather than take it for granted that the people would accept it at face value.

“We start as a political party be-

Poon Mun Wai, 59

• Branch chairman, Serangoon• Married with three children• Lived in Serangoon since 1987• Joined PAP in 1998• Became branch secretary of Serangoon in 2006

The first thing that Mr K Mu-ralidharan Pillai did when he became the new branch chair-

man in Paya Lebar was to write a letter to all 411 of his branch activists. The letter, in both English and Mandarin, was his personal way of reaching out to them and getting their support for the many plans he has for the ward.

“I have not had the opportunity to serve in Paya Lebar before, so I had to do more in introducing myself to our people and getting to know them better,” says the former Bukit Batok branch secretary who has now assumed the position last held by Cynthia Phua.

Already in the pipeline is to restart the Meet-the-People sessions but in a different format because “we are now in opposition and cannot behave like MPs,” says Mr Pillai, a litigation law-yer and partner with law firm Rajah & Tann LLP.

K Muralidharan Pillai, 44

• Branch chairman, Paya Lebar• Married with four children• Joined PAP in 2001• Branch secretary of Bukit Batok branch from 2007-2011

The plan for now is to restart the outreach programmes, particularly through ONE-Stop @ Paya Lebar, as well as provide legal and family counselling services. This is targetted to begin by late-June.

He wants to serve the community through social programmes that reach out to the needy and disenfranchised. “I want to show and demonstrate leadership on matters that count for them and to represent their interests. That is really my po-litical philosophy,” he says.

lieving that we can do a better job than others, to make life better for all Singaporeans as a whole,” he says. “The next question is, do we have enough indicators out there to tell us that we are heading in the right direction?”


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Mention Penang, and one im-mediately thinks of its end-less array of mouth-watering

culinary delights. But for members of the People’s Ac-

tion Party’s Women’s Wing (WW), it was its pro-poor policies, as well as recogni-tion for street cleaners, that left a deep impression.

The two-day overseas retreat was held for the first time in the northwestern state of Malaysia from April 6 to 8.

Led by WW’s Chairman Grace Fu, the 34 participants first paid a visit to Chief Minister of Penang Mr Lim Guan Eng. In the two-hour session, Mr Lim shared the key development works, con-tributions and future plans during his tenure. Several points left deep impres-sions on WW members.

One was Mr Lim’s plans to continue alleviating poverty by distributing a monthly stipend to the poorest house-holds. The other was to increase the

number of state awards given to the best street cleaners and motivate them to punch above their weight.

It was the first time such a large con-tingent of members participated, with a total of 14 women MPs and three former women MPs. The retreat was planned a few months ahead by a working com-mittee, chaired by Ms Foo Mee Har and four members.

WW members also met up with Wanita UMNO members, who shared amongst other ideas, their core outreach programme “Love Squad”. The social assistance initiative involved a group of female activists assisting the needy and underprivileged at the grassroots. “It’s very inspiring and meaningful, and if done well, could help bring in the votes,” says Dr Lena Lee, the WW’s Assistant Secretary who is also an administrator at the National University of Singapore.

The WW’s main objective was to conduct an internal work-plan discussion

BEhInD ThE sCEnEs

Planning the years ahead:

WW’s retreat in Penang

the Women’s Wing of the People’s Action Party held an overseas retreat amid the historic richness and modern vibrancy of Penang. Kong Yen Lin reports on their activities and plans discussed

for reviewing and debating the group’s key mission and direction for the next three years.

Yet, it was not all work and no play. Members had some time to see Penang as tourists, sampling seafood at Batu Fer-inggi, a famous beachfront, and shopping for souvenirs.

“There was never a dull moment! Somehow, when we women are together, we discover so many hidden talents – we have great organisers, visionary speakers, outstanding motivators and those with a treasure trove of motherly advice,” says WW’s Vice Chairman Ms Josephine Teo

One word to summarise her retreat experience? Dr Lena Lee replies: “Pre-cious.”

“We travelled, worked, ate and slept together; there can’t be any better way for building bonds and camaraderie. In Singapore, there’s just no time for light- hearted moments to catch up with each other as our lives are too fast-paced.”

The first Penang retreat proved to be a fruitful and inspiring one.


VIEw FROm FROnT

Singapore today is among the most successful eco-

nomic nations. In a short span of decades, we have transformed our small nation from a relatively undeveloped transhipment port into a thriving modern metropolis.

Yet, through my work with low-wage workers and during my Meet-the-People sessions, I have come to understand the deep sense of helplessness among our low-wage workers.

While they appreciate the help that the Government offers them, through GST rebates and Workfare Income Sup-plements, more should be done at the grassroots and by the Government to ensure that everyone who is eligible for support schemes should benefit from them – and quickly.

Low-wage workers have seen their incomes stagnate, with the bottom 20 per cent seeing hardly any real income increase over the last 10 years. With rising costs of transport, health care and hous-ing, which have increased significantly in the same period, low-wage workers are struggling to make ends meet.

Sharing the fruits of economic growth

I am concerned that there will be a growing disenchantment among this group, particularly when they see the relative growth in wealth and its con-spicuous consumption among the elite of our society.

Economic sense and common sense tell us that salary and income cannot and should not be arbitrarily tampered with without improvement in productivity. Yet, we must also acknowledge that in

certain service sectors like cleaning, landscap-

ing, F&B and security, there are not much room

for productivity improve-ment. Unless we revolution-

ise these sectors and change the mindsets of our society, there is just

very little progress that can be made in productivity.

Thus, the million-dollar question is: How would the workers get better re-muneration? Is economic value the only way we measure the worth of a worker?

Let us see the big picture of Singapore today. People are much better educated and the workforce is better skilled. Our homes are more modern and we have a plethora of choice of housing types. Our transport infrastructure is ever growing, bringing greater convenience to commut-ers. Our healthcare facilities are of such high quality that that they not only serve Singaporeans, but also medical tourists from around the world. Singaporeans can hope to enjoy a long life expectancy, well into their 80s.

All this did not happen by accident. It was possible because of the tough-minded and courageous vision of Singa-

By Zainudin Nordin


poreans, from the political leadership, to the businessmen, civil servants and work-ers who contributed to building today’s Singapore. It could not have been easy and no doubt, many difficult decisions and sacrifices had to be made.

A more complex world

Singapore today continues to be at the top of international surveys of business competitiveness, of governance and of the quality of our workforce.

This is a great place to do business and the proof of the pudding is in the thousands of companies from around the world that have invested in Singapore, creating jobs and adding to our knowl-edge base. But Singapore is not immune from the vagaries of being plugged into the world. We have experienced more violent business cycles and the time be-tween growth and stagnation cycles seems to be getting shorter.

My concern is whether the least competitive in our society – the lowly educated, the unskilled, the elderly and the sick – can benefit from the fruits of our growth.

Whether they work as cleaners or unskilled labourers, the opportunities

that they have for upgrading are severely limited. And when they can easily and cheaply be replaced by foreign workers, there is little incentive among businesses and among policy makers to think of more creative and more equitable ways of helping this group.

We have a responsibility to help them break out from their poverty cycle, if not for themselves, then for their children.

– MP Zainudin Nordin

The income gap in Singapore is not a new phenomenon. There have always been people at the top and at the bot-tom of the income ladder. But what has changed is societal attitudes towards wealth and consumption.

Rich young people today think noth-ing of splurging on fancy cars, or on designer goods, whereas in the past, the wealthy seemed more discreet. Wealth is more ‘in your face’ and this is jarring. All this adds up to the sense of social alienation.

MP Zainudin Nordin: Help the low-wage workers break out of the poverty cycle, and give their children a chance at a better life.

Bolder stepsThe battle to uplift the lives of the

most vulnerable amongst us must be fought with new strategies and ‘weapons’. Low-wage workers have contributed to our growth and prosperity and deserve an equal chance at enjoying the fruits of growth.

We have a responsibility to help them break out from their poverty cycle, if not for themselves, then for their children. We cannot in good conscience allow successive generations of the poor to continue to be in the same situation, with little hope for improvement or advance-ment. We need the same courage and determination today that our forefathers displayed when they changed a fishing village into a bustling metropolis.

Now, let us have the courage to re-examine our policies to see what more we must do to ensure that we do not create a permanent underclass.

The writer is an MP for Bishan-Toa Payoh GRC and the chairman of

Government Parliamentary Committee for Manpower.


mY sAY

Technology – which gave us the jet plane, Internet, and smart devices that put the world of Internet

into our pockets – is also creating two parallel worlds. The skilled and talented can tap into the world’s market and be-come rich. The low-skilled compete with hundreds of millions of workers in vari-ous developing economies, driving their wages down. An ageing population with a rising number of retirees exacerbates the situation.

High-income earners versus low-wage workers; foreigners verses local citizens, these are the dichotomies thrown up by globalisation. These will be the central dilemmas of our times, faced by all so-cieties. In a globalised world, almost all countries, and especially a small city state like Singapore, need to earn a living by reaching out to the world. I believe most Singaporeans deep down understand that. But we are also very troubled by the side effects of opening up.

In an earlier era, the industrial revolu-tion in Europe also threw up winners and losers. Unions were formed, minimum wages adopted, welfare schemes and new social compacts were developed, for so-cieties to manage income disparities and protect local workers.

Against that backdrop, political parties are divided on where they stand on either sides of the debate on the major dilemma of that time. On the left were those char-acterised as more Socialists, in contrast with those that were Capitalists and right wing. But in recent elections in Europe, we witnessed left wing governments fall-ing to the right (UK, Spain), and the right wing governments falling to the left (France, and in a way the Netherlands).

Whatever set of policies that governments adopted or whichever side they were on, they could not solve the problems, and voters threw them out.

Perhaps this is not an era where we characterise our solutions (or indeed our problems) as being more capitalist, or more socialist. We need businesses to do well, so that there are good jobs for Sin-gaporeans and we generate the resources to help the low-wage and the disadvan-taged. We need individual Singaporeans to do well and be taken care of, so that businesses have the talent and manpower

that are motivated and enthused to sustain and improve organisational performances. And we need a stable and competent gov-ernment, to set the stage for these essential conditions to happen.

Wearing ideological colours on our sleeves does not put bread on the table.

When faced with stark dilemmas, societies will be tested on their unity and ability to collaborate. Government, work-ers and businesses cannot retreat into their respective corners to fight the other side. I have no solutions to today’s problems. But I do think the solution lies somewhere

Can we ‘tripartite’ a problem away? tripartism has been misunderstood as a way to sweep problems under the carpet. But what it really does is to require you to embrace the problem, understandit thoroughly and embed the interests within institutions

The true spirit of tripartism is a symbiotic relationship between businesses and workers, where both strive for each other’s well-being.


By Ong Ye Kung

in making tripartism – the concept of close collaboration between government, unions and business – relevant once again.

However, tripartism today is viewed with skepticism by some Singaporeans. Perhaps it has been abused or used as an excuse to sweep problems under the car-pet, or to advance self-interest. Recently I came across a human resource executive, with a thorny workers’ issue. He asked the union staff: “Can we tripartite this problem away?” You cannot ‘tripartite’ a problem away. In fact, tripartism requires you to embrace the problem, understand

it thoroughly and embed the interests pre-sented within institutions – both business and government – of the day. It requires you to sit down with the union and take a walk in the workers’ shoes.

In another isolated encounter, a union leader recently told me that in the spirit of tripartism, Singapore should implement the ‘union shop’ system. This means that if a company is unionised, it becomes mandatory for all its workers to be union members. The logic behind this is that, then unions will be strong, and tripartism will be strong. But it is not right to make union membership compulsory (inciden-tally, it also contravenes an International Labour Organisation Convention).

Unions have to be of service to work-ers, and workers must want to join in. We need to emphasise the true spirit of tripartism. It is about businesses taking care of their workers to start with, and workers in turn doing what is necessary to help the business do well. And both sides must recognise problems when they arise, and resolve them with tenacity.

Upholding tripartism must go beyond the Ministry of Manpower. Every agency plays a part. It may mean discarding the old notion of an agency being classified as an economic agency or social agency. An agency’s mission cannot be as simplistic as

growing an industry as an economic func-tion. That must now be coupled with the social objective to ensure that Singaporean workers can participate in the industry, and get their fair share of the pie.

Countries and societies that can man-age these central dilemmas of our times will be able to answer to their citizens, and add value to the world as a model for governance. Singapore has done well in the past, by relying on a system in which the sum is always greater than its parts. If as a society we can resolve these dilemmas, by uniting the collective wisdom and will of workers, businesses, and the Govern-ment, then we will be well-poised to seize the opportunities that the world presents.

We want to be a kind society, but wanting gets us no where without a vibrant economy. We want a vibrant economy, but not at the expense of a weak society. We need to have a good head and a good heart, and if there are enough of us with both, there need be no compromise between economic growth and taking care of fellow Singaporeans at the same time.

The writer is deputy secretary- general of the National Trades Union Congress and stood as a candidate for

Aljunied GRC in GE2011.

Can we ‘tripartite’ a problem away?

A human resource executive with a thorny workers’ issue asked the union staff: “Can we tripartite this problem away?” You cannot ‘tripartite’ a problem away... It requires you to sit down with the union and take a walk in the workers’ shoes.


FORum

By Malminderjit Singh


The Hougang by-election is a time-ly reminder that while our work since last year’s General Elections

has been on the right track, there is much more that needs to be done. There is also a considerable amount of encouragement for party members to take away and to build upon.

Even though the by-election arose because of the expulsion of Hougang Member of Parliament, Yaw Shin Leong, it was nevertheless an uphill battle for the PAP to win back the ward as it has been with the WP for more than two decades.

Moreover, there was the “by-election effect” in play. Residents in Hougang may have voted for the opposition because the PAP Government was already in power and the outcome would not have had implications on a national level.

Despite the odds against him, credit must be given to PAP candidate Des-mond Choo for sticking to his course and putting up a good fight. He and his team must be commended for running a disci-plined, vigorous and effective campaign that focused on ground issues. In fact, several political observers were quoted in the mainstream media as saying that the messaging of Desmond’s campaign was much tighter than the party has had in recent years.

Desmond displayed a deep commit-ment and sincerity to serve and this,

What we can take away from Hougang

coupled with his message of hope and change for a new beginning for Hougang, resonated with many residents there.

Consequently, he managed to win even more votes than he did both in the 2011 and the 2006 General Elections. Desmond also earned respect from not just Hougang residents, but also Singa-poreans across the country, for fighting a respectful campaign by staying away from commenting on any controversy his rival candidate and party were involved in.

With composed rally speeches and media appearances, he embodied a young, sincere and capable candidate, someone our younger members can

learn from.Even on social media and other fronts,

the party gained much ground with vis-ibly more support from netizens, includ-ing some prominent ones. As Cherian George, an academic and blogger, wrote recently: “No longer was cyberspace so uniformly hostile to the PAP. Suddenly, the WP was getting its share of criticism online,” comparing the difference in online sentiment between the Hougang by-election and GE 2011.

Clearly, it is encouraging to note that more PAP supporters have come out to speak up on the party’s behalf in cyberspace.


What we can take away from Hougang

But this is just the beginning. Both in cyberspace and on the ground, we will need to intensify our efforts to show that the PAP is committed to working with Singaporeans to constantly better their lives while advancing the national interests of the country.

This is no easy task. Sustainability is key. We will need to constantly engage with Singaporeans from all walks of life, on a plethora of topics and issues, through multiple platforms and at vari-ous levels.

In particular, we must not give up on Hougang and Aljunied. We have to per-severe to do our best there. Desmond and

his team have shown that constant and sincere work can yield results.

But beyond that, our prime ob-jective should always be to continue to work hard to strengthen local engagement, build strong links with residents and help the needy in con-crete and practical ways. We have to show with our actions, not just with words, that the PAP is a party by the people, and for the people.

The writer is the assistant secretary of the 4th PAP Policy

Forum Council and serves at the Kebun Baru Branch.

BrieflyWork for stability

The world is so big outside of Singapore and for every trip that I take overseas, whether

for leisure or business, it has always provided new perspectives. However, one thing that stands out clearly is the stability of our nation and our govern-ment’s unchanging focus on our people.

I would like to urge my friends and fellow Singaporeans to work towards building a better future for Singapore together with our government. We cannot allow our individual selfishness and self-centredness to destroy our long history of a harmonious and gracious society. We must continue to create “miracles” even in the face of challenges.

Regardless of issues with the trans-port system, housing, health care, immigration, population or cost of living, we need to work together with our government and not against it. We must stand united as one people with one common mind and heart to create a caring and integrated community, touching hearts and changing lives.

For every trip out of Singapore, I cannot help but reflect on how secure I am back home. And I have never failed to look forward to returning to Singapore. I know I will always have a place in my country as I am assured that our government puts a priority on the people.

May LowAssistant secretary,

Pasir Ris West Branch.

32 PETIR MAY / JUNE 1232 PETIR MAY / JUNE 12

3 JALAN SAMULUN

SINGAPORE 629127

After Office Hour:

P.Y. TAN: 9783 6036

COLLIN LIM: 9011 6385

EMAIL: [email protected]

CYBERsPEAK

Singapore has an extremely low unemployment rate… we should have a bit of unemployment so that companies can select the best. There will always be people who are not suitable for the job…and since we are at virtually zero unemployment rate, it is only natural we need foreigners to help us. It is not always a lose-lose situation, but (it) can be a win-win situation. Employers get to be profitable and competitive, Singaporeans can be in managerial positions and higher paying jobs, foreigners can help us by running our operations yet getting a better salary than back home. If we think of it as lose-lose all the time, then we are very narrow-minded.

– Jack Lin

I am a Malaysian contemplating citizenship in Singapore. If I become a Singaporean, I will definitely vote PAP. We have great appreciation of good government in Singapore after having experienced a lousy government for the last 30 years in Malaysia. Go and travel the world. Appreciate that Singapore is not a perfect place but it is a lot better than most “First World Parliaments” that WP preached about.

– Paul Yong

Give (the PAP) time to change. And one year on, they have made significant changes. If their policy stance is drastically altered, won’t the argument now shift to ‘PAP panders to voters’ and how about opposition claiming credit for PAP’s change? Bukit Brown is a classic example – it isn’t that Government did not listen. They (the people) continue to be displeased because their voices/ideas were not implemented, though heard, respected and taken into consideration.

– Clara G Tan

Wages, jobs and citizenship…

If you treat Singapore as your home, don’t damage it but help to make it better, don’t just condemn those who (are) working hard to bring in the bacon and forget to ask what you have done for Singapore.

– Kallen Chong

Personally, I believe that Singapore can implement a hybrid minimum wage system that benefits mainly the low-wage workers which account for at least 20 per cent of the population – numbering about 300,000. This group usually does not earn more than $1,500 per month. Those belonging to the professional, managerial, engineer and technican (PMET) level should be articulate enough to negotiate for better wages with their employers on their own.

– Gilbert Goh

To encourage Singaporeans to have more kids and have a decent quality of life, it is essential that we pay the workers of all industries a decent salary. Based on demand and supply theory, if there are no Singaporeans prepared to work in these jobs, then wages have to be at a certain level (even exceeding the white-collar jobs) to attract them to take up such jobs. Relying on cheap labour is not a sustainable solution.

– Leng Leng Clara

Maybe if we moved our economy away from rent-seeking behaviour, from parasitic landlords who are encouraging the property bubble to obtain ridiculous amounts of rent by just owning a piece of land, employers might actually be able to have money to pay workers who are the true value generators, more.

– Shian Wen

Petir trawls the Internet to get a sampling of what netizens are saying about various issues – wages, jobs, foreigners, citizenship, change and Singapore as our home


Starting them young

hAPPEnIngs


Three years ago, the STTA-PCF table tennis programme, to intro-duce the sport to pre-schoolers,

was mooted by Member of Parliament (Nee Soon GRC) Er Dr Lee Bee Wah and President of the Singapore Table Tennis Association (STTA).

Today, there are more than 1,000 tiny paddlers at 20 constituencies, who take lessons from professional coaches. The aim of the programme is to spot and develop talents. The STTA has said that it wants local-born paddlers make up at least half the team at the 2016 Olympic Games.

Promising players are invited to the association’s training zone centres at Bishan, Tampines, Toa Payoh, Ryobi Kiso (Yishun), Jurong West, Bedok Res-ervoir-Punggol or Keppel Corporation (Clementi) for intensive training. From these zones, young paddlers are sent for selection trials to the Youth Development Squad and later on, to the National Youth Team and eventually, the National Team.

With the seeds for the growth of local -born talent planted, the STTA believes the programme will start to see results in the next 10 to 15 years, with hopes for international medals a few years after.

At the recent Crocodile Challenge Cup (a table tennis tournament for the primary school level), Andy Wong Yan Kai (above) who had participated in the

A grassroots sports programme for pre-schoolers hopes to groom national talent for Singapore

programme won the Primary 1 and 2 Boys’ Singles event. Andy started playing table tennis at the Nee Soon South PCF Kindergarten and represented his school, Maris Stella Primary at the games. He now trains three times a week with the Youth Development Squad.

Er Dr Lee said: “Through the STTA-PCF Table Tennis programme, the STTA also hopes to encourage the young stu-dents to stay active and fit. We believe it is through sports that students learn a range of skills from acquiring an aware-ness of physical well-being and develop-ing a sense of self-esteem, to picking up important values such as teamwork, fair

play and a can-do spirit.” Every year, the STTA organises a

STTA-PCF table tennis carnival where students from PCF Kindergartens are given an opportunity to showcase their table tennis skills. Graduates of the programme are invited back for an invi-tational friendly competition.

It hopes to popularise and raise the level of table tennis in Singapore starting from the children. “My dream is to make table tennis a favourite activity among Singaporeans. If every Singaporean plays table tennis at least once in his or her life, I would have achieved my goal,” said Er Dr Lee.

Comrade Lee Bee Wah hopes to nurture children’s interest in table tennis through the annual STTA-PCF Table Tennis Carnival.

BACKBEnChER’s BITE

Seah Kian PengDeputy Speaker and

MP for Marine Parade GRC

Recently, I was with one of my grassroots leaders, having a meal at the Kovan hawker centre. At

the same table was a middle-aged couple. The man recognised me and we started chatting. He and his wife were lament-ing that these days, a meal at a hawker centre or kopitiam was no longer cheap and it was increasingly difficult to find economical meals.

They agreed with me that some fac-tors causing the increase in price could be

due to rising rental, utilities, manpower costs and raw materials too. I said: “The cheapest and best meal is to cook and eat at home!” They nodded and agreed.

Our discussion came amid headlines of Singapore’s inflation: a high 5.2 per cent in March. As a result, everyone is concerned about cost of living issues and rightly so. But, are the two Cs the same? Is the CPI of relevance to the man in the street? What does the 5.2 per cent mean to us?

In the parliament sitting in May this year, Minister for Trade and Industry Mr Lim Hng Khiang explained what the CPI comprises and how it is computed. So too, did newspapers and academics. First, they noted that the two largest contributors to CPI inflation are imputed to rentals on owner-occupied accommodation and car prices. In fact, these two factors alone accounted for more than half of the 5.2 per cent CPI inflation this year.

So, in a sense the CPI, because of how it is computed, is totally accurate but

absolutely useless as information for the man in the street. From

their point of view, they just want to know what the real cost of living increase is.

And what can Govern-ment do about it.

I do not want to alter the CPI

computation. But I do want t o h a v e a cost of liv-ing (COL) index which

people will find useful and can relate to. For one, prepared meals account for

about 60 per cent of the food basket in the CPI. The remainder consists of other food items like rice, meat and vegetables. Working at NTUC FairPrice, this is a matter close to our heart. We have our own inflation price monitor reports which we track diligently. For the last six months for example, I can tell everyone that prices of white rice, palm cooking oil, sugar, frozen pork, eggs and instant noodles have been stable but infant and adult milk powder, UHT milk, frozen poultry and leafy vegetables have seen prices going up.

So, prices are not rising across the board, and certainly not by the same proportion.

The cost of living index, at the end of the day, should be about consumption expenses that impact the majority of us. What are these? Food (both prepared/cooked food and raw food prices) trans-port (bus, train and taxi fares, petrol prices), utilities charges, education (school and related fees), health care, and enter-tainment and leisure (clothes, recreation).

I have deliberately left out housing as the HDB publishes the cost of housing prices on a regular basis. This is a one-off expenditure which, if included, skews the index, but more importantly, does not impact a big majority of the people as most of us already have our own homes.

This is the raw outline of a COL index. It may be rough and ready, not having the same sophisticated and academic rigour of a CPI, but I believe that it will be a more useful barometer in telling us the price of everyday life.

A tale of two Cs – CPI and Cost of Living



OVERhEARD

“People are constantly saying they are anxious that the cost of living is going up, like food prices and fuel prices leading to higher electricity bills... At the back of their minds is what can be done to moderate the increases.”

– MP Lim Biow Chuan reflecting his constituents’ concerns about the rising cost of living.

There will be pressure on consumer prices this year and for the next few years. We must do our utmost to raise productivity. With higher productivity, businesses will be able to pay higher wages in a tight labour market without pushing up prices.

– Deputy Prime Minister Tharman Shanmugaratnam warning that cost pressures on businesses are to be expected as wages increase.

“Having watched them, I have decided to join the fun…… As a Facebook newbie, I would appreciate your advice, suggestions and, most of all, your patience.”

– Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong on his decision to start his own Facebook page after being encouraged by his colleagues.

“We are all human and influenced by society. But I hope people can see others in their entirety, and not be fixated on labels.”

– MP Indranee Rajah hopes women will choose their potential partners based on how well they can

“click” and not just on paper qualifications.

“We’ve come to politics to serve. So, we have a common cause. So, you decide what is important

for Singapore and as a party, we stay united.” – PAP Chairman Khaw Boon Wan during nomination

day for the Hougang by-election.

“We’re different animals. He’s as grounded as you can get. I try to follow his style, being genuine.”

– First-term MP Ong Teng Koon, comparing himself to his father, ex-MP Ong Ah Heng.

“We can all turn on our taps today and receive clean, safe drinking water at any time of the day, any day of the year… We often take this for granted, but behind each tap lies... over 7,000 km of drains, 17 reservoirs, water catchment areas which constitute two-thirds of Singapore,”

– Minister Vivian Balakrishnan on the importance of protecting water infrastructure.

“At some point, it falls to the Government to take a decision, and explain the reasons for it... Understanding and accepting that there are trade-offs to be made is part of the maturing of our society.”

– Deputy Prime Minister Teo Chee Hean quoting Bukit Brown Cemetery as an example of

how the Government seeks to balance consultation with the need to be decisive and get things done.

“Everyone also has a personal responsibility for his own health. Practising healthy eating habits and exercising regularly should be among every Singaporean’s priorities.”

– Minister of State Dr Amy Khor feels that health care is too important to leave it to ‘someone else’.

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