Separation of Powers

By Lawrence Pek

Even though Singapore is a Democratic Country, I am concerned that there little if not, no concept of Separation of Powers, which is a very critical but common trait of any democratic country. Please allow me to quickly introduce the concept to you and the basis of my concerns with application to my homeland, Singapore.

In Political Science 101, you will be introduced to the concept of Separation of Powers – simply under this model, the state can be divided into branches or estates, each with separate and independent powers and areas of responsibility. The normal division of such estates is into an Executive, a Legislature, and a Judiciary.

The Separation of Powers is designed to distribute authority away from the Executive Branch – an attempt to preserve Individual Liberty in response to tyrannical leadership throughout history. The Executive Officer is not supposed to make laws (the role of the Legislature), or interpret them (the role of the judiciary). The role of the executive is to enforce the law as written by the legislature and interpreted by the judicial system.

The intentions for any state to adopt such separation are to ensure Personal Liberty, Check and Balances and critically, the Distribution of Authority (away from the Executive Branch).

Personal Liberty

Even though there are several intense discussion and study of Liberty and Liberalism, in the simplest form, the individualist theory of government holds that the state should protect the liberty of individuals to act as they wish as long as they do not infringe upon the liberties of others. The right to assembly, free speech and expression is covered under each and every citizen’s Personal Liberty.

Checks and Balances

Any 1 of the 3 branches of government (Judiciary, Legislative or Executive) should never be given supreme powers. Further to induce cooperation between these branches, they are effectively given the same quantum of powers, despite their roles and governance being different. As an example – the Executive Branch will not have any role, authority to decide on the Structure, Operations or Decisions from the Judiciary. Upon the passing of a Bill (Laws) by the Legislative, they will not have a say on how the Executive Branch implement and enforce these Laws.

Below is a quick example of how the United States of America which the Executive and Legislative Branches of Government clearly demarcates their Roles and Responsibilities. You will be clear about WHAT is separated and hence you can formulate yourself, WHY it is separated. Above and beyond the Separation of Powers, the United States has in place several other contingencies which ensure the sustainability and continuity of their way of life.

Legislative Branch	Executive Branch
Makes All the Laws	Executes All the Laws
Controls all the Monies – Makes the Budget, Taxes, Borrows or Lend	Execute the spending authorized by the Legislature
Sets, Oversees, Investigate all the Rules for the Executive and its Officers	Preserve and Protect the Constitution, Faithfully executes all the laws of the United States.
Only the Legislature can Declare War and Martial Law	Controls the Military (Commander-In-Chief)
Confirms the Head of the Executive Branch and Judiciary Officers (Judges)	Creates Treaties, Appoints (Recommends) Judges and Other Executive Heads

Even though we often see conflicts between the Executive and Legislative Branches, (The Presidency and Its Cabinet vs. Congress), we have to admit that the strength, the core and the spirit of the American culture exists in part due to The Way its Politics is Structured.

In the Singapore Context

One of the critical issues which Modern Singapore faces now is the assumption that all the Organs of Government are under the directions of the Ruling Party, the PAP. The key basis of my assumption is that the Head of each and every Ministry is helmed by a Key PAP leader. The People Association (PA) which runs all the Town Councils, Grassroots Organization, which directly impacts the daily lives of its citizens is also very much under the preview of the PAP.

The average Singapore citizen will be hard pressed to make this differentiation in Singapore, simply not because such demarcation do not exists but rather, the lines are blurred b/w Government Organs and the Ruling Party. Further it is always those Few Good Men from the PAP, which helms the Key Positions both in Government as well as the Legislature.

The Electorate and the Election Process

Singapore maybe a 1^st World Economy with World Class Process and Brands, but its People is Uneducated, Under Exposed and has been more often than not, accused of being Apathetic. The common man is often described as being uncaring, disinterested and aloof on all matters political. Even though these assumptions may be true, but let’s ask ourselves, Why is it so? Can it change?

The Singapore Electorate needs to clearly understand what options exists, that it is the government’s role to take care of its people, move the economy forward and protect the very constitution which is swore to preserve and protect. The Government Powers are given to it by its people, in order for it to organize structure, plan and execute its roles and responsibility back to its citizenry.

The gap which has never been filled (many do not even understand it exists) is due to the fact that the only news paper (government backed Main Stream Media) – The Straits Time (with circulation of over 500,000 daily) is constantly performing the role of the government’s mouthpiece. Its justification (maybe to itself) is to ensure social cohesiveness and stability. It does not independently assess the merits of any government policies, does not relentless pursue the truth of alternative stories, options or opinions, nor does it sees itself as having this burden. The burden of Education of what is possible; of what are the options to its readership.

The Election Process

As a simple compare and contrast to the US Election Process (every 4 years) – the key differences with the Singapore process are as follows.

Primarily a 2 Party State – You can either vote for Blue (Democrats) or the Red (Republicans), based on what their party platforms are (they will spend a lot of money to gain your awareness), for the person that you trust. This is for each and every of the 52 states in the U.S. You can vote for any Independent (neither Blue nor Red) Candidate, but those are few and far between.

Every 4 years, the America gets to vote for their President, however, the prelude is such that both Democrats and Republicans will field their own candidates and allow the electorate to choose which candidate can eventually win the Party Nomination (in the last election, Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama fought to the bitter end, while John McCain had a smooth endorsement since his rival back down early in the Republican Nomination). After each Party’s nomination is finalized, then there is the fight for the eventual office of the Oval Office. You effectively decide who will head up the Legislative Branch, the President of the United States.

The Process was designed so that the electorate has a choice, by his / her own vote to decide on either the candidate or the party (platforms). The issues are clear, the candidate campaigns hard for votes and almost everything is fairly transparent and accountable.

Virtually, everything that I have described above do not exists in Singapore. At this point, I will choose not to elaborate further on our current election process in that I disagree with the terms and condition which is exists and implemented.

If it is my hypothetical assumption that the rules of elections is designed to keep the ruling party in power, it is therefore designed to reduce the chances of the opposition from gaining a majority in parliament. It is therefore reasonable to finally interpolate that the ruling party is reducing or robbing the electorate from its most important crucial rights which is the right to choose who should organize and govern them.

In Conclusion

The Objective of my article is 2 folds – to highlight, to educate, what a basic Democracy should entail, in its lowest common denominator, what is missing and hence what we could, or rather, we should be expecting.

Secondly, if we understand and we want to achieve a state of true democracy, then we need to understand that with Separation of Powers, we need not fear the change of any Ruling Party that merely organizes the Executive Branch, leaving very much the Legislature and the Judiciary intact.

The Singapore Miracle created and boasted by the ruling PAP Party has created a country with a unique DNA, one which the Founding Father, with a Few Good Men, deemed to lead the country, creating policies which they think is best for the country. The PAP (or often called the nanny) seems to justify its paternal instincts on the basis that “daddy knows best”, the electorate is still uneducated and immature, that we will never know what we want or what is best for ourselves.

I would like to make an assumption as part of my conclusion, that who and how we went about in our years of Nation Building, Cannot and Should not be how we proceed henceforth. The new world order plays by very different rules. We cannot, should not continue with the same culture of paternal supervision and implementations. The initial 44 years of nation building is very much over, the next stages of Singapore should be one of Political Awakening, of Self Preservation and Robust Deliberations.

The livelihood and future of Singaporeans are in the very hands of its electorate and not that of its Ruling Party. The Winds of Change are blowing….

Other articles by Lawrence Pek:

>> Exposure: The element of change for Singapore and Singaporeans

>> A deeper understanding of the “Foreign Talent” issue

>> Where is my country going

>> Strategies for the next election 2010/11

Exposure – The Element of Change for Singapore and Singaporeans

By Lawrence Pek

As I am writing this article on my way from Shen Zhen (where I am based now) to Shanghai, my heart is heavy. Too much has transpired in the last 18 to 24 months. Almost every conversation that I have with my family, my friends is about where this country is going and how things have changed. Besides the usual rant on immigration policies, what troubles me is not how and why the PAP has formulated these slew of policies with considerations but without deliberations with their electorate. Rather what we can do about it with these “given conditions”.

My thoughts turn to what we can do about the current scenarios. In the short run, we are faced with pro-foreigner policies and in the long run, how we can change ourselves, to be better to be more value added. My thoughts are about what we can do ourselves, take actions ourselves rather than wait for more policies, rather than continuing to believe that we will be taken care of.

If you are 25 to 40

I would like to take this opportunity to propose a radical idea – If you are between 25 and 45 (male or female), just leave Singapore and make your careers, your money and livelihood outside of Singapore. Yes, if an opportunity exists, just take it and leave – if there is a biz opportunity and it makes sense to you, just seize the day and take the plunge. If your employer offers an opportunity to work overseas, just go (may it be in Dubai, Shanghai, London or Chicago), may it be a Local or Expat package.

My reasoning is simple – with the current economic climate (internally and externally) – I will make the following assumption – My value, your value, our value is higher overseas than staying back in Singapore. With the huge influx of cheap and cheerful labor force, we need to consider where and how to maximize our value. Given Singapore’s limitations of size and natural resources, given that local jobs are getting cheaper and cheaper (hence so many cheap and cheerful foreigners), staying back and sighing over a cup of tea-c is hardly productive, for yourself, your family or for your country.

For the Local Born and Bred Students

If your sons and daughters are entering or finishing college, please do consider to send them overseas to further their education. Having lived in China for so many years, I am clear that besides the language barrier, the local Chinese lacks the single most important element – Exposure. You cannot read this in any tertiary institution, you cannot buy this off the shelves; you need to be mentally and emotionally be ready to invest in your children’s future. They will learn to interact, to speak a different language; they will see the world and hence react differently.

I never liked the local tertiary institutions for 2 reasons. Firstly, their curriculum does not foster cutting edge technology R&D nor Creative Arts and Design talents. 2ndly, upon graduation, these graduates will be herded “factory like” into the Singapore local workforce and be instilled with local paradigms and culture. The funny reference to “kiasu and kiasi” – these may be funny reference to local mentalities, but it is not funny after a while, if you need to compete globally.

Yes, I am sensitive to several issues that my idea will encounter, working parents will need to bear with temporary separations, and the all important family unit will be temporarily disrupted. Spouses will pine for each other and parent will miss their children. Even though there will be tears and pain but there will also be joyous reunions every holidays and family visits.

However, please consider the long term value add to our people and our country (above and beyond the ruling PAP). We will have seen, experienced and become more exposed to the world beyond Changi Airport. With our opened eyes, we will know what is right and wrong, what should and what should not be.

My vision is to see locals returning to Singapore not just with value added global exposure, which will propel our economy forward. Furthermore, they will be more willing, able and capable to take their destinies into their own hands. To decide what the issues are, what the policies should be, who they want to see as administrators for their neighborhoods, their districts and their country.

My conclusion is a simple summary, if you can go, please go. If your kids want to go, let them, There will be risks, there will be pain and tears. However, by doing this, we evolve and we will better take charge of ourselves, we will be better equipped to vision and administer ourselves.

The Winds of Change are Blowing….Singapore for Singaporeans!

Other articles by Lawrence Pek:

>> A deeper understanding of the “Foreign Talent” issue

>> Where is my country going

>> Strategies for the next election 2010/11

A deeper understanding of the “Foreign Talent” issue

By Lawrence Pek

Clearly, there has been a lot of unhappiness on the grounds with the huge influx of foreigners into Singapore in the last 18 to 24 months, even though PM Lee has addressed this issue (well, sort of), I would like to dwell further with a deeper analysis of certain repercussions of these misguided policies.

Value Added – Currently, clearly we have many foreigners in the service sectors, from 7-11 to waitresses to masseurs. The quality of Foreigners is both unclear and not scrutinized. Are they doing work that Singaporeans cannot do (special skills, experience or relationships) – or just competition with locals for local jobs (hawker centre, petrol kiosks and 7-11).

Cheap vs. Cheaper – Even though it is true that foreigners are willing to accept cheaper salaries, please consider 2 things in the long run:

1.     Will they continue to accept the same low wages in 3 to 5 years? They will not, for 2 simple reasons – if they 30% cheaper than the local Singaporeans now, they will want to price themselves 5 to 10% cheaper than a local Singaporeans, these foreigners are not stupid, they want to be “cheaper” and not simply just “cheap”

2.     What will the government do about the high unemployment rate for the local that was displaced? e.g. If you bring in a cheaper 25 years old PRC girl to work in 7-11 to replace a 35 year old Singaporean woman (or man) – then what will he or she do, once she or he is replaced? Can that local find a higher valued job (higher salary with higher function) – Isn’t it clear that MOM just created a problem by doing this?

 

Structural Unemployment:

Please allow me to use this to clarify pt 2, this comes about rarely, but it is a bitch to handle for any Minister of Manpower. Simply, there is a job mismatch – there are plenty of job vacancies to go about, but the quality of the people simply cannot perform what these jobs require…the market has changed and companies now require skills and knowledge workers in very specific or niche or high (high is not niche) areas. Then there is a clear and definite for that company to import foreign talent in order to perform the tasks at hand. But locally, MOM and MOE need to look at re-training and re-educating the local manpower to perform these task.

Why? The reason is one of valued added and sustainability. If MOM and MOE can realize that there are no short cuts to structural unemployment, then they need to bite the bullet to retrain locals, because the locals stays and with a higher skilled workforce, Singapore as an economy will be more cutting edge and more competitive.

 

What happens when the Music Stops?

With 36% foreigners now in Singapore, regardless of whether they are PRs or even New Citizens – will they be there when the going gets tough in Singapore or will they leave for their homeland (China, India, Vietnam…). Singapore is NOT HOME, they WILL LEAVE and then WHAT DO WE DO?

Who will fill the void and what will happen to our economy? There is a further perspective, if you have a small group of 100 and 10 leave, the 90 people should be able to cover and manage, but if you have a group of 10,000 and 1,000 leaves (same 10%), the balance 9,000 cannot and will not want to cover and manage the gap.

 

The Brain Drain issue

This is not a new phenomenon; there are many Singaporeans (even though they keep their passports) who will never come back here. Artists, Musicians, Scientists and lastly, people like myself, self-made business men. I have so many friends now in US, Europe and China now, they simply will not come back anymore; their reply is very simple, Singapore no longer provides the environment for their (or their kids) development. Their value in these foreign countries is higher than in Singapore. They already feel there is no more reason, no more space for them to come back anymore. Given the new demographics in their homeland now, I doubt if any of them are inclined to ever come back.

 

Conclusion

In summary, the key message that I would like to convey is that of Sustainability – Yes, it is true that the local bred and born has 2 main issues, which is driving the influx of foreigners. We are not willing to breed, and we are no longer as hardworking or have higher expectations in terms of our employment benefits.

However, we cannot take the short cut route and look at the short terms benefits in terms of GDP growth. Rather than bringing the foreigners and creating a unstable society (trust me, there are many pissed off people), why is it that we cannot bite the bullet and try to brain storm ideas to increase birth rates, to control wages for locals.

Unfortunately, it is true that I am not a full time labor officer at MOM, so I am not privy to lots of internal discussions or data, which I am sure, has led our urban planners to decide on the current course of actions. However, I do not think that I am wrong in my assessment above and I do would like an opportunity to be proven wrong.

As a last word, to these scholars and ministers, I would like to implore your better judgments on 2 fronts. Please trust us to understand your predicament and we will do our best to understand the issues, which we understand is our issues, anyway. Please do not be so insecure in your policy making, talk to us and make us understand, we are your people and responsibility.

 

Other articles by Lawrence Pek:

>> Where is my country going

>> Strategies for the next election 2010/11

Strategies for the next election 2010/2011

By Lawrence Pek

With the looming GE slated in 2010 / 2011, there are plenty of issues that need to be reviewed by any respectable Opposition Party. Playing the role of a Campaign Manager, I would like to add value with Election Strategies, rather than the issues itself.

1.          A Clear and Concise Message

a.        Pick 3 to 5 Issues and Hammer Hard – People cannot remember so many things, 3 to 5 things will do, It is important to keep repeating these issues and use clear BUZZWORDS. People remember these key words.

b.        DO NOT ATTACK THE PAP – 2 reasons here – 1stly, PAP will NOT attack unless provoked (because they want the moral high ground), with SPH (with all its newspapers and CNA) under their control, you cannot win this battle. 2ndly, If you attack the PAP, this will cause the electorate to deviate on your message. For this election, the PAP will be on the defensive, they will spend a lot of resources in explaining their unpopular policies.

c.        Know the IN and OUT of these issues so that you will never be blindsided by any response from the PAP – Be ready with clear and strong responses from the PAP camp – “if they say this, we need to say this…” Let PAP attack you, then respond robustly, engage the issue. Make sure your audience gets these messages clearly. The MSM will have the burden to carry any Opposition responses, since it has to carry the initial attack from the PAP camp.

2.          Sympathy Votes:

In Singapore’s political landscape, it is strange that none of the Opposition used this tactical advantage. If the opportunity arises, Opposition needs to play the Underdog card, a lot of swing or undecided votes can be curried over.

3.          INTERNET:

The Opposition cannot depend on SPH (newspaper and CNA) to give you the same space and time support. You will need to expose your message to your audience via the various online platforms – you will need to choose carefully as choice of online platform will associate you accordingly i.e. you will be branded accordingly.

a.        Videos and Audio – the strongest trend recently in political reporting is On Line Journalism –  e..g. “CNN’s I-REPORT” – have an armada of student activists that will record your rally messages, carry interviews from Opposition Leaders and Public responses (kopitiam comments are critical).

b.        Time to Air – this is a critical strategy, you need to deliver your content faster than the PAP – usually, you can win mindshare faster and you will be seen more credible with 1st to Market. Put the PAP on the back peddle.

c.        Create “Talking Heads” videos of key Opposition Leaders – video clips which will delivers key points about the issues, about their party and what is happening daily during the campaign period. Email these opposition supporters and make sure that they forward to as many people as possible. Stay away from traditional print media – they are too expensive and many legal issues.

d.        Create a “Jingle” – similar to Buzzwords – easy and catchy. Create a simple jingle – this can be a simple 10 sec jingle to a full 3min song – which can reflect the entire the pissed off mood of the local Singaporeans. There is a song on you tube from Dick Lee that uses Billy Joel’s “we did not start the fire”…I thought that was catchy and sticks on people’s minds.

4.          Measure the responses from the ground:

a.        Prior to the Election, even now, there are so many raw sentiments on the grounds – regarding the various issues.  What they think, Why they think that, and What should be done. Carefully, you need to understand that this is different from what YOU think, why YOU think that and what YOU think should be done. It is important to understand that it is NOT YOU, the Opposition Party against the PAP, but rather – it is the PEOPLE against the PAP. Carry the people’s messages effectively, and you will be OK. Position yourselves as the People’s Alternatives Voices.

Summarize what they are thinking, saying and use key Buzzwords to position your summary. If possible, use local dialects to carry these responses effectively. If financial resources, it is important to do a simple poll for these issues and these buzzwords.

b.        After each rally, it is important to know what the attendees think about the speeches, the speaker and most interviewees will be more than happy to provide their responses as well as their recommendations.

Preparation is key – know what resources you have and how you can use them effectively, clear roles and responsibility should be assigned. Campaign Manager should not be just that, managing the resources as well as measuring the responses and tweaking the strategies.

The election boundaries are such that period of campaigning will be short so effective use all avail resources will be key. Even though this is a given, my suggestions maybe more applicable to 2 major difference since the last election. The Internet as well as how much more pissed off the local Singaporeans is now with their policies. These 2 things create a potent mix that may spring a surprise on the ruling party.

There are bound to be more strategies and I welcome lots more ideas to add or refine to mine, but rather than blogging about the issues, let’s consider specific strategies to win more and more votes. Let’s think differently.

The Winds of Change is blowing….

Where is my country going?

By Lawrence Pek

I have lived more than 12 years outside of Singapore. During these times, I have missed home and my family, my country and I have tried my best to keep track via the net, what is happening, where is it going and what it will take to get us there.

I cannot say that I am at all happy with all that has happened in the last 2 to 3 years. The PAP which I knew, trusted and depended on, has changed, evolved and maybe mutated….

There has been many articles pro and anti government / PAP in recent months, with all sorts of people with all sorts of ideas thrown into the mix. I have read many of them and after a while, paused to wonder, where all these will lead to, while entertaining, many of the stories are now merely specific incidences of indiscretions by either pro or anti establishment figures. Pro government / PAP stories are heavily carried in the Straits Times and other MSM (Main Stream Media), while any anti government antics are heavily exposed via the various blogs.

The objective of my article is not to go into specific issues like growing influx of foreigners, rising HDB prices or losses incurred by our GIC and Temasek Holdings. As the battle rages on b/w pro and anti establishment, I am inclined to think about the following questions.

Where is my country going? Why are we on this course and who decided?

Why do we need 6 mil headcount in Singapore by 2020? What is this number about and how was it derived? What scares me is that our numbers people from various Ministries will be so fixated with this number and becomes a KPI which they will die trying without a clear understanding of how this number was derived and what impact this number will mean.

My assumptions are that in the various ministries, the below were discussed at length:

1. We need this number to achieve a certain GDP growth, to sustain our economy, living standards and yes, our way of life. (in biz, we acknowledge that Size Does Matter), if we do not achieve this KPI, we will be left behind in the global fight for talents and growth engines.

2. Our local birthrates is not growing, if not declining, therefore if we cannot do it organically, lets artificially import them.

3. Yes, there will surely be unhappiness in streets, but our people have always known a singular PAP, we can explain, communicate via our MSM, we will highlight examples of “Success Stories” and eventually, at some point in the future, they will accept our policies, they always have anyway….When we (PAP, the government of Singapore) arrive at 2020, my local children will understand my pains and they will thank me later, for now, the healing medicine is bitter and they need to be forced feed to them.

My concern is not whether these assumptions are right or not (in the rules of global politics, these are never straightforward) – but what about the voices of the local people? what they want and if there were any constructive discussions before the conclusions, the target settings and eventually, the executions.

Yes, there will be a lot of objections if these issues were brought up 5 years ago and nothing will move forward, if such sensitive issues were to be brought up for discussions and a referendum sought. Further, there is a lot of arguments to be made for a lot of successful policies that benefited the people, which were not welcomed and not discussed and so why should this be any different? (ERP is a good example, no one likes it, but it does solve the congestions problem, somewhat..)

But why can’t we do things differently? How about a simple 3 step process…

1. Please tell us what you are thinking? What are the basis of such thinking? What are the alternatives?
2. Let’s table for discussion via a debate online or via MSM – with either Opposition or NMPs or even better yet, the common man on the streets (lets choose them carefully, of course)
3. Let the Various Ministries Decide with clear communications about what were the critical issues and why we need to do this, what will be the impact if not….

I would like to implore the ruling party to consider the following…

a. The Policy of the Paternal PAP – has worked (somewhat) for the past 44 years – but given the new social fabric, will be the way to go in the future ? Is there no scope, no more tolerance for public discussions before each and every major policy announcements?

b. The Process of Discussions has a lot of benefits – the people cannot say their views were never considered, they did not know before, the government agencies, the ruling party (which we have voted in) has studied the issues, heard the feedback and now, have made a decisions.

c. The Winds of Change are Blowing – things are different now, the policies of the Past cannot be the way forward, unless I am mistaken, the ruling party knows this, but maybe, just have no idea what to do about it. They need to evolve and not mutate, if they continue to NOT LISTEN to the people, they will do so at their own Perils.

On a more personal note – having served my National Service, I have grown to realize, to value, to love, the sanctity of a sovereign state, my Country, my Singapore. I consider it my privilege that I have met my Minister Mentor, Mr. Lee Kuan Yew, in person….I will take a bullet for the man, but I do not want him to lead my country into the next lap, the next 50 years.

The Winds of Change are blowing….