"Singapore needs a system where the 'centre holds strong': Tharman - CNA 03 July 2015
SINGAPORE: Deputy Prime Minister and Finance Minister Tharman Shanmugaratnam has said that as Singapore looks towards the future, the Government will need to focus on planning for the long term, and holding a strong centre in society.
He said this on Friday (Jul 3) at the SG50+ conference organised by the Institute of Policy Studies and the Lee Kuan Yew School of Public Policy.
As Singapore celebrates 50 years of nationhood, it is not only taking stock of the past five decades, but also looking ahead. And as society evolves, DPM Tharman said that changes must be viewed with an open mind. But at the same time, the Government must focus on holding the centre strong.
"You must have that culture starting from very young, pre-school, primary school, where kids got to have a mind of your own. There’s something to it. I believe in that. What it implies for speak up. You don't need to always make sense, you don't need to speak logically, but you've political culture and systems, you need some humility on this.
“I think we should keep our minds open as to how this will evolve. We can't decide how, 30 or 40 years from now, our politics will be. We can't decide in advance. But we have a very good reason, based on our history and our sense of the reality we operate in, that we do need a system where the centre holds strong.
"And the centre doesn't hold strong because of the invisible hand of society. Quite the opposite. The invisible hand of society tends to pull things away from the centre. It holds strong because you've got a Government elected by people that works to keep it strong."
DPM Tharman also said it is important for the Government to be able to plan for the long term.
"There is a sense in which if your vote goes down significantly, any Government will tend to focus more on the short term than the long term. That's a reality of politics all over the world. Certainly, the current Government wants as much as it can to preserve a culture where we keep thinking long-term in the interest of people. Because it's fairer.
“It's much fairer to tell people that it's not just what we can give today, but what we can sustain in future. And the societies that haven't done that end up hurting the poor and the middle-income groups. That’s the reality of it. It's not just about inter-generational equity, about the old versus the young. It's also about the rich versus the poor. Because it's the poor who suffer when you're unable to sustain the welfare policies that you start off with.""
DPM Tharman speaks well. I watched his recent interview with the BBC 'Hard Talk' host and was impressed with his answers.
Lessons for me are:
1. keeping an open mind as things evolve. Starting from young with the young speaking their minds that may not make sense! I like this!! When someone says something that DON'T make sense, listen to move on. There is NO NEED to tear it down and bring the speaker down. UNLESS, of course, it borders on 'irresponsible freedom of speech'! Even then, just STOP the 'talking rot' without 'killing' the speakers!;
2. Planning 'long term' regardless of how the votes are coming along! It is difficult in a 'one-man-one-vote and the 1st past the majority post win' democratic election system to plan for long term especially when the voters are clamouring for short term pains reliefs!! Greece's current situation is a prime example of WHAT NOT TO BE! An ancient civilization that produced so much riches and gems in philosophy, science, arts, etc in such a pathetic situation MEANS Singapore CAN BE like that. YET, this is the CHALLENGE for the government to figure out: 'HOW can we have HIGH QUALITY voters overall that appreciate the need for LONG TERM planning while stomaching the SHORT TERM Pains'?;
3. there is a contradiction WE need to fix: to be able to PLAN and then EXECUTE quickly, someone needs to be in charge! The planning can be arduous BUT MUST NOT BE meandering. Once the issues are debated and narrowed down, solutions must be found quickly and then agreement reach before executing with total focus. This CAN ONLY BE done IF there is ONE Dominant political party in the government!
YET, an idea CANNOT be the BEST IDEA. The so-called BEST IDEA can only be found AFTER comparing between 2 or more ideas! To have MORE IDEAS, the dominant MUST have, and allow, the minority oppositions to speak out representing voices other than the majority. Ideas that preferably ARE DIFFERENT from the dominant party so that COMPARISON can be made to find the 'best idea' that will create the BIGGEST good for the MAJORITY of Singaporeans. THAT has to be the purpose and measure of a GOOD GOVERNMENT. The GOOD and STRONG 'Centre' if you like!
SINGAPORE: Deputy Prime Minister and Finance Minister Tharman Shanmugaratnam has said that as Singapore looks towards the future, the Government will need to focus on planning for the long term, and holding a strong centre in society.
He said this on Friday (Jul 3) at the SG50+ conference organised by the Institute of Policy Studies and the Lee Kuan Yew School of Public Policy.
As Singapore celebrates 50 years of nationhood, it is not only taking stock of the past five decades, but also looking ahead. And as society evolves, DPM Tharman said that changes must be viewed with an open mind. But at the same time, the Government must focus on holding the centre strong.
"You must have that culture starting from very young, pre-school, primary school, where kids got to have a mind of your own. There’s something to it. I believe in that. What it implies for speak up. You don't need to always make sense, you don't need to speak logically, but you've political culture and systems, you need some humility on this.
“I think we should keep our minds open as to how this will evolve. We can't decide how, 30 or 40 years from now, our politics will be. We can't decide in advance. But we have a very good reason, based on our history and our sense of the reality we operate in, that we do need a system where the centre holds strong.
"And the centre doesn't hold strong because of the invisible hand of society. Quite the opposite. The invisible hand of society tends to pull things away from the centre. It holds strong because you've got a Government elected by people that works to keep it strong."
DPM Tharman also said it is important for the Government to be able to plan for the long term.
"There is a sense in which if your vote goes down significantly, any Government will tend to focus more on the short term than the long term. That's a reality of politics all over the world. Certainly, the current Government wants as much as it can to preserve a culture where we keep thinking long-term in the interest of people. Because it's fairer.
“It's much fairer to tell people that it's not just what we can give today, but what we can sustain in future. And the societies that haven't done that end up hurting the poor and the middle-income groups. That’s the reality of it. It's not just about inter-generational equity, about the old versus the young. It's also about the rich versus the poor. Because it's the poor who suffer when you're unable to sustain the welfare policies that you start off with.""
DPM Tharman speaks well. I watched his recent interview with the BBC 'Hard Talk' host and was impressed with his answers.
Lessons for me are:
1. keeping an open mind as things evolve. Starting from young with the young speaking their minds that may not make sense! I like this!! When someone says something that DON'T make sense, listen to move on. There is NO NEED to tear it down and bring the speaker down. UNLESS, of course, it borders on 'irresponsible freedom of speech'! Even then, just STOP the 'talking rot' without 'killing' the speakers!;
2. Planning 'long term' regardless of how the votes are coming along! It is difficult in a 'one-man-one-vote and the 1st past the majority post win' democratic election system to plan for long term especially when the voters are clamouring for short term pains reliefs!! Greece's current situation is a prime example of WHAT NOT TO BE! An ancient civilization that produced so much riches and gems in philosophy, science, arts, etc in such a pathetic situation MEANS Singapore CAN BE like that. YET, this is the CHALLENGE for the government to figure out: 'HOW can we have HIGH QUALITY voters overall that appreciate the need for LONG TERM planning while stomaching the SHORT TERM Pains'?;
3. there is a contradiction WE need to fix: to be able to PLAN and then EXECUTE quickly, someone needs to be in charge! The planning can be arduous BUT MUST NOT BE meandering. Once the issues are debated and narrowed down, solutions must be found quickly and then agreement reach before executing with total focus. This CAN ONLY BE done IF there is ONE Dominant political party in the government!
YET, an idea CANNOT be the BEST IDEA. The so-called BEST IDEA can only be found AFTER comparing between 2 or more ideas! To have MORE IDEAS, the dominant MUST have, and allow, the minority oppositions to speak out representing voices other than the majority. Ideas that preferably ARE DIFFERENT from the dominant party so that COMPARISON can be made to find the 'best idea' that will create the BIGGEST good for the MAJORITY of Singaporeans. THAT has to be the purpose and measure of a GOOD GOVERNMENT. The GOOD and STRONG 'Centre' if you like!
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