A good and competent government is no longer enough for Singaporeans

A good and competent government is no longer enough for Singaporeans

When asked by the media if he felt that younger Singaporeans could want change in political leadership like in the United States, newly anointed Deputy Prime Minister Teo Chee Hean replied that what voters young or old want is good and competent government. (read article here)

Singaporeans do want a good and competent government, but to many of them, especially the younger generation, it is no longer enough just to be “good” and “competent”.

Singapore is fortunate to have such a government in the early years of independence which laid down the foundations of our nation, transforming us from a third world outpost of the British colonial empire to an affluent developed country in the span of two generations.

After 44 years of nationhood, it is no longer good enough for Singapore just to have a good and competent government.

Nazi Germany was a good and competent government too. Under the Third Reich, crime was almost non-existent, the economy grew at a frantic pace and Germany managed to repay its foreign debts incurred during World War I to become a major European power again under the leadership of Adolf Hitler.

The Republic of Korea under the President Park Chung-hee was considered a good and competent government as well. Park oversaw the modernization of the Korean economy and transformed a rural, backward country to one of the wealthiest country in the world today.

Yet, these good and competent governments do not last long because they lack accountability, transparency and responsibility to the people. They may prosper for a period of time, but will never leave a long-lasting legacy behind to future generations as the real power behind their reign does not lie with the people, but dictators.

On the whole, the PAP government has been a relatively good and competent government, but it fails miserably in other critical attributes such as accountability and transparency.

A responsible government is one which dares to admit its mistakes to the public, learn from them and rectify them immediately to prevent a recurrence.

The Minister of Home Affairs Wong Kan Seng should have at least offered a public apology to the people for the escape of JI terrorist Mas Selamat Kasteri last year.

We have lost quite a substantial amounts of our reserves in ill-timed investments in ailing U.S. and European banks which would have called for an inquiry in other countries, but nobody has stepped forward to accept responsbility for the error.

What’s so difficult of saying “I am sorry, but I screw up”? Even United States President Barack Obama, the most powerful man in the world has the humility and decency to admit and apologize for his mistake over the appointment of his Treasury Secretary.

To err is only human. No man is infallible. An culture permitting deficiencies to be aired openly in public is important in any governments so that inadvertent mistakes made can be revealed and rectified instead of being swept under the carpet.

Accountability in governance means to give an explanation to the people for every single action, major or minor, taken by the government and the explanation must be as complete, detailed and truthful as possible.

While it may appear harsh to criticize the Singapore government for a lack of accountability, there are many areas in which its response has been found pretty wanting.

Why did GIC decide to invest billion of dollars in Citibank last year in the midst of the financial crisis? Who made the decision and what was the rationale behind?

Why do Singapore need to have two Senior Ministers and two Deputy Prime Ministers in the cabinet? What does the Minister Mentor do to deserve his high salary?

Till today, we have no idea about what happened.

The PAP government has always defended the need to peg their salaries to the private sector in order to attract the best talents to join them. It is both disingenuous and unreasonable for them to demand private sector salaries and not adhere to good standards of corporate governance at the same time.

Public-listed companies release the salaries, bonuses and perks receive by its top honchos. As SMRT CEO Saw Phaik Hwa puts it succinctly, ‘I think disclosure is very important . . . deliberate omission is as sinful as telling a lie sometimes.’ (read report here)

The Singapore government is often described as Singapore INC to reflect the corporate style in which it is run. The people of Singapore are the stakeholders in Singapore INC. We should hold it to higher standards of transparency than a public-listed company.

Transparency demands a timely release of information. We have been kept in the dark on so many issues of national importance for far too long.

How much money did GIC lose exactly? What is the size of our reserves now? How many months of bonuses did the ministers receive last year? What are the salaries and bonuses of the CDC staff? What is the cost price of one HDB flat?

The list goes on. Just because there is no opposition MP to ask these relevant questions in Parliament doesn’t mean the government can conveniently ignore our concerns and turn a blind eye to them.

A good, honest and competent government has nothing to hide from the people. It is always forthcoming in the release of information and responsive to queries from the people.

DPM Teo Chee Hean should know better himself if the PAP government is a responsible, accountable and transparent government.

To cosmopolitan Singaporeans who are widely traveled, even possessing all these three qualities may no longer be enough.

When I was in Xiamen in 2007 on a business trip, I found myself in the midst of a protest march by residents to protest against a chemical plant which is planned in the vicinity.

The protestors were allowed to march peacefully to the municipal office to shout slogans and invectives at the city’s mayor before dispersing on their own accord. There was a sizable police force outside the building, but no arrests were made. I was flabbergasted and wondered if I was indeed in a communist country.

In March last year, 18 activists of the Tak Boleh Tahan campaign were stopped and arrested by the police for holding an “illegal procession”. And just recently, I read a law will be passed soon to forbid the assembly of even one person in public. Are we living in Stalin’s Soviet Union or a first world country?

At that particular moment, I feel ashamed to be a Singaporean citizen. I have never voted in my entire life. This is not the type of government I want and I did not even vote for it.

In his first speech as Prime Minister of Singapore, Mr Lee Hsien Loong pledged to build an “inclusive” society for all Singaporeans. He did not live up to his promise at all.

An inclusive society is one which embraces diversity and tolerates dissenting voices, not one which makes use of the law to clamp down on the opposition in order to preserve the ruling party’s political hegemony and interests.

Competence and democracy are not mutually exclusive. In fact, they cannot do without each other. Democracy holds political leaders accountable to the people which ensures they exercise due diligence and competence in the discharge of their duties.

Without democracy as the whip to check on the government, it will be like a wild horse which can gallop at dazzling speeds, but is unwilling to be brought to a halt at will.

In his parting shot, Mr Teo said “‘Any political party, any government who wishes to stay in power, has to continue to be able to meet those challenges, the needs, the requirements of the population, young or old.”

I cannot agree with him more. The PAP has failed to meet the needs and aspirations of the population so far. Without the GRC system, a weak opposition and a compliant media under its thumb, it would have been booted out of office a long time ago.

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