By Ng E Jay
You would have thought the mainstream media would have been coy about this issue.
But today, Straits Times columnist Rachel Chang finally admitted in her article “New citizens and the next GE (24 June 2010)” that new citizens regularly express overwhelming support for the ruling People’s Action Party (PAP), with some even going to the point of unfettered adulation and admiration.
Ms Chang writes in her article that when she informally sought out the political views of new citizens, she found that she was “hard-pressed to find a new citizen who harbours anything but admiration for the ruling party“, and that their support for PAP ranged from “placidly approving to aggressively proselytising“.
Take careful note of the last word that Rachel Chang used — proselytising. New citizens do not merely support the PAP. They worship the PAP like Gods.
Rachel Chang’s article also contains quotes from some new citizens explaining why they support PAP. These quotes do not just express admiration for the PAP as a political party, but in fact seem to be geared at justifying many of PAP’s autocratic policies.
For example, university lecturer Ori Sasson, who originally hails from Israel, expressed support for PAP’s restriction on public demonstrations and other civil liberties.
Mr Sasson said that in Israel, he had never felt the need to participate in public demonstrations even though they were allowed.
Mr Sasson also said that while other countries give citizens freedom of expression, their tax rate is higher.
His implication of course is that he prefers Singapore’s lower tax rate and is prepared to give up his human rights and civil liberties in exchange for it.
Naturally, the PAP would want all Singaporeans to think like Mr Sasson, who is probably viewed as a “model citizen”.
A*Star research officer Niu Liming, who originated from Beijing, told the Straits Times that his experience with other political systems made him favour the PAP.
He said that the problems Singaporeans face, such as the lack of a social safety net or high property prices, pale in comparison to the problems citizens of other countries face.
Of course, Mr Niu as a government researcher is drawing a much higher salary compared to the daily rated and blue-collar workers, and so he may not be able to empathize with how rampant inflation and escalating prices have hurt poorer Singaporeans, and how low wage workers in Singapore are left unprotected because they do not have a minimum wage, and there are no independent labour unions to represent their interests.
But naturally, views such as those of Mr Niu are very welcome by the PAP who would want all citizens to share similar opinions.
Ms He Li Fang, 41, a teacher from China, also explained to the Straits Times that because Singapore is a small country, the strong impact of government in the lives of people meant that “new citizens will not waver in their loyalty to the ruling party“.
The overwhelming support of new citizens for the incumbent PAP does not come to a surprise to most netizens, who have probably known it all along.
All the Straits Times article does is to assure us that the government will not do anything major to drastically reduce the import of new citizens in the name of increasing productivity.
You can be rest assured that the status quo will continue, no matter how the government seems to be changing its tune every now and then.
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Headline picture courtesy of The Straits Times
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This group of new citizens provides the best of both worlds to Singapore. They came here to contribute to the economy in terms of productivity and consumption, they made up for the nation’s drastic fall in population, they pay taxes and they provide a safety net in ensuring good government is voted in to run the country.
Come to think of it, this is probably the most successful policy the PAP Government has ever implemented.
On the contrary. I believe it is coy in favor of the PAP. Wasn’t people clamouring for change because the grass looks greener elsewhere? Now ST has poll foreigners and they (the foreigners) are waxing lyrical about Singapore compared to their home countries – from the horses’ mouth, no less. Don’t be taken in. Read the subtext.
This again proves that the coming election could be the last chance S’poreans get to vote out PAP in a few GRCs to send a message!!
if i wanted to import new citizens, i would first ensure that these new citizens vote for me. would you do that too?
i would also make the national newspaper say that these extra 4% people will be insignificant in changing the result of the votes.
e.g. if the scoreline was supposed to be 48% PAP, 52% opposition, these extra 4 person more people would simply make it a draw. it doesn’t let PAP miraculously transform a 48-52 defeat into a win.
unless they import 1 more person to make the deciding vote.
Shouldn’t this article be more timely published in the pre-election news embargo period?
As this is not written by politicians nor members of the party, it can be titled “Why Spore is better” and published in MSM front page during the banned period.
WHAT?? What else do you expect a PAP member to say? Ori Sasson is a PAP member. In fact, he’s the vice-chairman of PAP Policy Forum. Wonder why Rachel Chang didn’t mention that?
http://www.asiaone.com/News/Education/Story/A1Story20100412-209856.html
This is damn gross. They might as well interview one of the ministers and ask him if he thinks PAP is a good political party.
Just FYI,
Ori Sasson is a member of PAP as well as a council member of the PAP Policy Forum.
http://www.pap.org.sg/policy.php
I have not read the papers yet, was this point mentioned in the original ST article?
Hey new citizens, if you are smart, you will look at how PAP treats its “old” citizens. Like what PCK used to say, “use your brain” and extrapolate. If these money grubbers PAP can treat, so shabbily, those citizens, who have contributed all these years to the society, what makes you think you are any special?
Trust me, you are next! Once you have sunk in all your efforts in this place and can’t leave because of all your commitments, then the PAP will come after you and your hard earned money. Hehe, then you will become what we are to them now and new citizens will come in to replace you and you will curse the day you gave them your support just like I curse the older generation for giving up our freedom and rights to these pigs.
Hahaha….I would be very scared if the New Yory Times or BBC reports this but alas it had to come from ST????? Do you think I trust the 144th media to say otherwise? What biased and inaccurate reporting to hogwash Sgreans again…..Same old trick. As the previous poster above “use your brain”.
of course, so in times to come, they can sponsor more of their own kakis back home to come here to drown this place.
the more the merrier, this squeezy rojak is going to be real fun to watch. who asks the locals to be gonggong.
“Hey new citizens, if you are smart, you will look at how PAP treats its “old” citizens.”
they are smart alright or at least ok. since they are able to uproot from their own home country and able to survive in another country. y would they complain if they can benefit from this crazy situation.
it is the locals who need to take stock of their own positions vis-a-vis the garment policies and what all this stands for.
Guess the new citizens can’t see things in context? Well, what our dear leaders can do to us, it can be done on them…so sooner or later, their time will come.
Once you have outlived your usefulness, it is time to end. Or be prepared to be squeeze beyond limit.
If more and more of the younger,well- educated, and occupationally more mobile,native Singaporeans migrate to other lands in order to eschew the high-pressure lifestyles here,and with the Garment continuing to lure aliens to sink roots here(like the monetary inducements dished out to “our” outsourced table tennis players to represent Singapore),it would not be long when native Singaporeans find themselves becoming a minority in their own country.
When I used to pass by those hotpot eateries in Geylang,I felt like a foreigner in my own land,like the feeling I have when I visit Little India.These enterprises employ their own nationals,and send their earnings back to China.
They are foreign talents too?
What about foreign prostitutes(ask the police how many they round up each year) who can get into Singapore so easily to ply their trade?Surely they have much talent in bed,and should be considered foreign talent too.
A “gradual full-body blood replacement” of Singapore,the way I perceive it.Old natives who cannot migrate will die off,their offspring not procreating enough to produce native Singaporeans,more foreigners pouring in………..
One day,in my old age,I might find myself surrounded by foreigners talking in strange accents in the MRT,all looking me up and down,sneering…….
Face the fact people, someday there will be no more original Singapore-born Singaporean. From PAP leaders down to our ordinary next door neighbour, all will be FTs.
Enuff said.
which part of rachael chang/straits times is braindead? would rachael/straitimes vote for chaim/low even if she is housed in mental health apartment?
now would any1 here vote for chiam/low who didn’t even hav the opportunity to give you a fulLEE subsidised trip to the gold mine of singapore?
Singaporeans can trust the Law of Nature to put an end to our misery. Just how long can a senile, dying, old monkey last? Time is on the side of Singaporeans. The wind of change is here. Singaporeans will be liberated because the Law of Nature will not allow anyone to perpetuate his evil on earth. The God of the monkeys will soon perish and become mere worms eaten by the birds and deposited as droppings in a wide expense of the world, never to be recognised or heard. This time is near for the one called the God of the monkeys. We will soon be free.
WE the CITIZENS OF SINGAPORE stand as ONE UNITED PEOPLE
This election is a war between the TRUE CITIZENS & The NEW Citizens, SAVE OUR BELOVED SINGAPORE…
Should I Leave Soon? Its a frightening future.
3 very good reasons
1.No need to do COMPULSORY NS.
2.No need to do COMPULSORY NS.
3.NO need to do COMPULSORY NS.
—–while born and bred en-slaved.
What a joke of a nation.
Ask them to sing the national anthem, ask them to recite the pledge. how many of them can pass the test? actually it is not their fault, these new citizens are innocent. the policy makers are the guilty ones.
That’s the reason why the govt wants us to integrate with the new citizens/ foreigners, isn’t it?
Brainwash us into accepting them = More supporters of PAP = influx of foreigners = repeat cycle
BULLSH*T !!!
I will take this report with a bucketful of salt.
Most likely it is just another propaganda of Pee&POO !
“Should I Leave Soon? Its a frightening future.”
Yes do leave. I have left and I tell you, your whole perspective about life will be so different once you leave this god-forsaken place. I never felt so lucky to have been able to leave Spore and unlike the situation in Spore I do not feel an obligation to attribute my current lifestyle to any particular political party and give it my loyalty. I just live how I like and will vote for whichever party that I think is capable to run the country.
Also, I have never been happier… :) Leaving is tough and not for everyone who can’t get past the downside but the rewards are amazing!
Prior to taking up the Singapore citizenship, these people would have considered carefully various factors, including the quality and competence of Singapore’s government. Of course they must have been impressed by the PAP Government’s performance.
I think in any country its totally understandable for foreigners who have been granted “New Citizens Status” to be in awe of a Government. What else would one expect them to say?
They can’t possibly be saying anything negative as it defeats the very purpose of their application not to mention perhaps having their citizenship maybe revoked in some countries.
However, i feel commnents by new citizens in any country may not necessarily be relevent because their starting point is entirely different.
People who have been born & bred in a country, who have seen the many stages in a country, the twists & turns,the good, bad & ugly side of their leaders, the truths behind the lies, the lies behind the truth,the success & oppression/ percecution of citizens,the bright & dark side of a country,is something that i doubt any new citizen in any country would be able to fully comprehand nor appreciate.
And If & until they themselves go through such experiences, it might totally transform how they view a country & its leaders. Often than not, there is far much more than just a Public Persona that some leaders in some countries struggle to upkeep.
Perhaps a more objective view in taking any citzenship is to research more on the migration of citizens in a particular country. This might give new citizens a better idea of what lies beneath the surface of a country & its leaders.
As for loyalty, i do not think there is such a thing as “Blind loyalty.” As an example, if one works for leaders who expects his people to jump off the 20th floor, when he’s not willing to do so himself, they ought to persuade him to lead by example!
Its finally apparent now and confirms why the influx of foreigners and so called ‘foreign talents’ and how citizenship can be so fluid.
Suddenly singaporeans ask themselves what so great about being borned here and being singaporean.
A report from ST? AstroTurf?
Is it easier or much easier to enter sg to work or get PR or get citizenship compared to other places if not most places in the world?
If so, people from 3rd worlds of course would love the policies that enabled them to earn so much more.
so many have entered in the last few years. Many of them are permanently here. Lets brace ourselves.
Meanwhile, consolation prize remains as waiting for the ultimate permanent retirement.
Outrageous to its very core, thats my opening comment. Its unbelievable what they saying…….
this is nothing new.
singaporeans should have known why and should have known long ago.
But native singapoerans are one of the most apathetic citizens in the world.
no more complaints! its game over!
A new height of desperation within the PAP – cultivating new citizens for votes. It is star-struck proof that all major past policies have failed so badly, and after 45 years, they are fast losing support among its heartland voters. New voters have not yet taste bitter medicine of being used and ditched. In the meantime, the show goes on and on and on.
this is like a survey, & like all surveys, questions can be tailored to bring a desired outcome based on how the questions are asked, & how limited the choice of answers there is.
what more if the survey is a compulsory 1 carried out by govt agencies? die die must answer, no choice…
the prove of the pudding is in the actual vote itself. maybe MSM is driving the fear among some who prefer strength in numbers & may be swayed by the report to stick with the larger crowd?
people ought to remember the herd mentality that brought about global financial crisis, the collapse of major banks. but i guess people will make the same mistake twice…
The real problem is not the foreigners.
The real problem is the natives.
Natives are world famous for being BoChap and kpkb only in the background, some even during their sleep.
The end result is InAction.
when sg was 3rd world, they were all behind and had lower expectations or felt more contented. They were more innocent.
With the high pace of living in the last 2 decades, singaporeans also had no choice but to be always on their toes in their work and constantly competiting with one another and foreigners. The cost of living keep rising. Wage stagnation and lowering of wages due to ample supply and easy supply of foreigners especially in the past 5 years led to more strain on the natives.
The best part is, natives basically accept.
so, there is nothing surprising when i see what is happening today.
what is a singaporean? how united are you? what soul do you have as a people?
nowadays, it is not only ministry of labour that refuses to tell you how many citizens have work in which place.
our department of statistics have joined in the game. it will be hard for you to find out a simple number – how many citizens do we have in a certain year, let’s say, 2005.
no prizes for guessing how this is done – the magic number they will gladly show you is – how many residents there are – citizens plus PRs combined.
they are trying to tell us, there is really no difference in the jungle experience of these 2 breeds of people.
yes, during our fathers and grandfather’s era, they all supported without questioning and loyaly all policies.
Those were the good old days. the 3rd world days. got rice to eat happy liao.
nowadays, the global competition results in tougher lives for all. materialistically, it appears better because of manufacturing technologies.
in terms of Quality of Life, i not sure its that great compared to the past.
i like the idea of having many new citizens from 3rd worlds to become citizens. like this , its like the good old days – citizens satisfied with what they see, earn more than back home and a red carpet. Buy property can likely profit and if finally decide to go home, still can cash out. else stepping stone to australia or europe or usa.
It is so difficult to find information of how many citizens there are in Singapore nowadays that it has become another National Secret. One day we will need to go downstairs and start counting.
Fortunately for us, we don’t need to rely on the government for any information anymore nowadays. Based on:
https://qspace.library.queensu.ca/jspui/bitstream/1974/5671/1/Baey_Grace_HY_201005_MA.pdf
From 1980 to 1990, the slice of the pie occupied by citizens shrank from 90.9% to 86.1%. That means in the old days, 5.25% of the citizen’s slice (4.8 out of 90.9) got cut off and replaced by PRs / foreigners.
In the new days, in year 2000, the pie has shrunk from 86.1% to 74%. This shrinkage represents a chopping of 14% of the smaller citizen’s pie of 86.1%. This chopping of 14% is on top of the previous chop of 5.25%.
Before 10 years is up, in 2008, this pie shrank again to 65.4%. This is an 11.62% chop off the measly 74% pie that citizens had.
If you extrapolate what would happen if we complete 10 years (to today’s date), it would be a 14.5% chop, more than the last round under the previous ruler.
You don’t see the share of national defence going up by 14% every 10 years in the PR or foreigner population.
Fewer and fewer fraction of the country’s population is guarding more and more and higher-priced possessions of everyone.
90.9% of the people used to guard 100% of our possessions.
in 2009, 64.17% citizens guard 100% of the possessions, and these possessions have increased in quantity and value.
someone please explain to me the logic.
can i suggest TOC make a documentary of foreigners applying PR now and see how long they take to get the PR cert?
I mean, we hear about reducing the influx. but what does that really mean? what is really happening?
can have a few types of applicants documented:
1. high demand skillsets
2. non-high demand skillset but earning about 2k or higher.
3. grads or diploma holders.
the people need to know.
what’s wrong with having more new people?
got more people open more businesses, have more variety, can choose nicer spouses than the existing stale pool, can swear in different languages,
as long as these new people don’t disrupt the job market, the housing market, with enough housing to cater to old and new people such that they don’t interfere with one another, they can share in national defence through effort, or through money (taxes)
oh, you mean, all these disruptions were allowed to take place? hmm…..
Now the cat is out of the bag. The immigration policy has always been about buying votes, but productivity or diversifying the talent pool. Note how the PAP only gets migrants from worse-off countries, not better-off ones who will think singapore has lots to improve on.
But beware! These migrants are more cunning that you think. They’ll praise the PAP sky-high to get all the benefits they want, and then plan their next move to REAL destinations like canada, australia etc.
The Singapore population – that exist up till Year 1999 – will still outnumber the new migrants becoming new citizens.
If the electoral process is not manipulated and gerrymeandering is stopped, the Pro-Alien Party will surely be given a lesson in Citizen’s choice.
.
.
Read the following:-
‘Election Strategy and Ethnic Politics in Singapore’ – Joel S Fetzer
http://www.tfd.org.tw/docs/dj0401/135-154-Joel%20S.%20Fetzer.pdf
Who or what caused or contributed even slightly to the property or HDB price to become more and more unreachable to the 1st time flat buying young couples?
Who or what cause directly or indirectly, slightly or substantially, the stagnation or lowering of salaries ?
Who or what cause or have some effect on the supply of labor or oversupply of cheaper labor causing stress on citizens trying to earn a living? especially to older mature citizens?
Who or what causing congestion on public amenities, facilities and infrastructure?
Can congestion lead to higher Quality of Life?
Can congestion or density of population cause traffic jams? cause more communicable diseases to be spread? more littering? more pollution? more noise? more friction?
Lets accept unconditionally.
hey,
“whats wrong with having more new people”,
you are like a sales man.
you say only the nice bits about your product.
lets hear some bad stuff about it, can?
nothing bad are?
wow, totally unbiased. you really can sell man, but no, i won’t buy from you. hahaha.
Li Han Thong:
if we have more new people, but there were measures taken to avoid disruptions to your infrastructure like your housing supply-demand-pricing, your transport-overcrowding, your job market, your estate cleanliness (foreigners according to our newspapers prefer to litter because their home countries mostly have litter anyway)
if such measures are taken, and everything doesn’t affect you, then it’s ok to have more new people right?
i suppose there are many lessons to learn in governance.
and the lesson today is that even when such mismanagement has occured, when we face a political party that does not admit to its inadequacies, mistakes, misjudgments, being caught offguard often, and continuing to deny these incidents, giving excuses to pass it off, criticising the public instead for having the wrong idea when they discovered actually the right idea,
when we have to learn this lesson,
we’re in trouble.
My Views
the quality and competence of Singapore’s government. Of course they must have been impressed by the PAP Government’s performance.
…………….
hello braindead myviews..if you are from a 3rd world country with no proper job/qualifications..leekuanyew/son welcome you with openned arms..would you not be impressed? what else you want free malaysian cigarettes as well?
last time, sg already had foreign workers and talents and new citizens and citizens could understand its normal in a globalised world to have some foreigners in any countries.
But i think this time, the natives have finally woken up but a bit too late to realise that the Total Number of these is TOO LARGE such that they have been AFFECTED even during economic crisis when jobs were scarce, many continued to come in.
What to do?
They have entered and here to stay.
We are not against foreigners per se.
We love foreigners per se.
We are just concerned about the proportion of residents being PRs and new citizens.
got enough congee to go around or not?
That is the question.
I am disappointed by citizens. if only u know what i mean.
“our department of statistics have joined in the game. it will be hard for you to find out a simple number – how many citizens do we have in a certain year, let’s say, 2005.”
I cant find number of citizens in singapore in 2005.anyone manage to find it?
in 1990, for every 100 citizens, there were 16.1 foreigners
in 2009, for every 100 citizens, there are 55.8 foreigners
that means suddenly, standing around the 100 of you, another 39.7 foreigners are crowding around you
all this is fine since there are some benefits associated with it. however, if there is bad civil planning there are ill effects too.
people used to take a 20 year loan and use 20% of their income to buy a family home, an HDB flat.
because of manipulation of such population numbers and deliberate reduction concomitantly of public housing supply, they have managed to push supply-demand mismatch such that you need 10 more years of your life, and for each and EVERY year of the 30 years you need an extra 10-15% more income than before, to get the flat – NOT the same flat, but an older flat. this is because that same flat is now 5-10 years older and needs some paintwork.
this is because they suddenly realise that one way to solve the elderly problem of having no retirement funds is to have, as usual in all countries, the young subsidise the old.
but you can’t just copy that scheme outright because people don’t think too highly of that scheme.
so you get the young to pay more for the same old flats from the old, therefore GIVING them the retirement money. the young have less to retire on, but will do the same to their young, otherwise they too end up in the same fate.
explain it simply, everyone understands.
there was manipulation, there is a need to subsidise the old etc.
such simple truths, you’ll never find it written so clearly in the newspapers, whichever section you read. this is because it is one of the truths which is not considered prudent for everyone to know.
which smart citizen dare to take up this challenge and answer the following : ?
How many native citizens are left now in singapore?
How many new citizens as of 25th June exist now in singapore?
How many PRs in total exist in singapore as of the above date?
So how smart or well informed are you, really?
Pop Quiz Challenge for YOU! yes YOU!26 June 2010 said: which smart citizen dare to take up this challenge and answer the following : ?
the 2009 numbers have not been taken down from singstats.gov.sg – the previous years numbers however are now rather invisible. everything now looks like the Ministry of Manpower style = Singapore has x,xxx,xxx numbers of “residents” whereby residents comprise citizens & PRs
and nowhere in the multipage multiparagraph deluge of numbers will you find this historical breakdown. if you don’t know the number distribution, you cannot draw comparisons.
therefore, it’s similar to saying, “don’t compare please”
or you can turn to non-government sources of information, which you now have access to, unlike in the past. you have been liberated.
does this lack of transparency also translate to how much they are paid? how do people know they are not paid more than what they say they are paid?
i am vault costodian, i guard your money, you dun have the key, but i do. u have $***,***,***.**. i have been guarding your $$ over the years, i buy new guard uniform (premium quality, designed by bigwig designer) to look & feel good. i invest in anyway i like, when loose $$, i say so, u must believe me- cos u hired me, so must die die trust me. but u cannot fire me, i changed to locks & oni i know the code to ur $$ inside that very vault. i demand higher pay as & when i can, demand fat-fat bonus. if u dun accede to my request (as always), u will never see ur (CPF) $$, ever!!!