Parliamentary Snapshots — 12 Feb 2009

February 13, 2009 by admin
Filed under: Parliament

Physical Training Phase for unfit NS enlistees extended

The Ministry of Defence (MINDEF) has decided to extend the Physical Training Phase (PTP) for National Service enlistees who fail to get the NAPFA (National Physical Fitness Assessment) Silver Award.

The PTP will be extended from four weeks to eight weeks, but the overall duration of full-time two-year National Service will remain unchanged for these enlistees.

The eight-week PTP will be implemented for those enlisted from December 2009.

Dr Ng, speaking in Parliament on Thursday, said: “Four weeks of PTP does improve their physical performance. Even after four weeks, many still do not reach the same level of fitness when compared to their peers who were enlisted directly for BMT … … So MINDEF and the SAF have decided to extend PTP from four to eight weeks. This will ensure a more uniform level of fitness amongst the recruits when they start their BMT.”

Dr Ng, however, hopes that young male Singaporeans will not get the wrong idea and neglect or reduce regular exercise, because eight weeks of PTP may still be inadequate for those in poor physical condition.

Noting that the duration of NS has already been reduced to two years, MP Maliki Osman (Sembawang GRC) asked if a longer PTP might affect the armed forces’ operational readiness.

The minister said the eight-week PTP “does not compromise our ability to forge a strong SAF”, but there is a limit to how much it can be extended.

To this end, Dr Ng, who is also the Minister of Education, said that both ministries would work together to improve fitness levels of pre-enlistees.

Responding to a question from MP Indranee Rajah (Tanjong Pagar GRC) about how older servicemen who have completed their two-year full-time training are being encouraged to keep fit, Dr Ng pointed to a similar fitness training programme for NSmen.

Since it was first started in 2006, more than 8,000 NSmen have undergone the 10 training sessions spread over five weeks, designed to help them pass an annual fitness test.

Dr Ng also answered Ms Rajah’s query on how the fitness levels of servicemen related to deaths that sometimes occur during training.

He explained that all new recruits must undergo a medical screening in order to determine their Physical Employment Status or PES grade. This, in turn, determines the type of training they undergo and the vocation they perform.

Nevertheless, the minister noted that even after passing “the most detailed of screening techniques”, a small number of unexpected deaths can still occur.

NS deferments rare as system must be fair: Eng Hen

IN THE last 10 years, fewer than 10 Singaporean sportsmen and musicians were given permission to defer their full-time national service (NS).

These deferments are often sought when these young men want to pursue their studies, training or represent Singapore in international competitions.

However, rarely is approval given because it is vital to uphold the national service system’s strength and integrity by making it universal and fair to all Singaporeans, said Second Minister for Defence Ng Eng Hen.

He was replying to Nominated MP Eunice Olsen, who wanted the Ministry of Defence to be more flexible in giving deferments.

In explaining Mindef’s position, Dr Ng underlined the three principles that underpin national service.

First, he said national service ensures Singapore’s national security and survival. This is the basis for the Enlistment Act, which mandates that all NS-liable males are to be enlisted at the earliest opportunity on turning 18.

Second, universality makes national service a duty for every fit Singaporean male to fulfil.

Third, equity ensures every national serviceman is treated the same way, regardless of background or status.

However, Mindef does exercise flexibility in selected situations, he said.

For example, it lets students defer full-time national service to complete their studies up to A levels, polytechnic diplomas or equivalent qualifications.

It also defers full-time national service for exceptional talent based on the merits of each case. But such talent is very rare, he added.

Five stations on Circle Line to open in May

Circle Line Stage 3, which has five stations, Marymount, Bishan, Lorong Chuan, Serangoon and Bartley, will open on May 30 instead of June, Transport Minister Raymond Lim announced in Parliament during the debate on his ministry’s budget.

The remaining 24 stations on the new line will open progressively from next year.

When completed, the Circle Line will take about 10 to 15 per cent of commuter trips from existing lines. The Circle Line is among $40 billion worth of rail projects that will double Singapore’s rail network.

Besides adding new rail lines, the Transport Ministry is also intent on reducing waiting time along existing lines, which introduced 900 extra train trips a week last year. One major move is the purchase of 22 new trains, to be delivered in 2011.

Another is to expand Jurong East MRT station, where there is a bottleneck.

Last year, public transport ridership spiked by 7.4 per cent — one of the fastest rates in years. And the overcrowding is being felt on MRT trains.

“MRT trains still suffer from an overcrowding problem. Has LTA (Land Transport Authority) reviewed the capacity? Is it possible to add more tracks on the existing lines, which are now overcrowded and have reached maximum capacity,” asked Cynthia Phua, MP for Aljunied GRC.

Mr Raymond Lim said the only way to increase capacity is through infrastructural changes.

But large infrastructure projects take time to kick in, with one of the main changes coming only in 2011. At the same time, public transport ridership is increasing, and may go up even further during the economic downturn. So the situation may just get worse before it gets better.

One other major initiative this year is the LTA taking over the role of central bus network planner. This will be a two-stage process — first, talking to the industry, operators and experts, and then to grassroots representatives.

The transport minister said: “One of our guiding principles is to avoid making any radical, big-bang-type changes to bus services. Commuters make more than three million trips on buses every day, and we are conscious that any change must be gradual. Otherwise, there will be mass confusion … … Our approach instead is to identify any gaps in connectivity, try to plug them, and see where bus services can be streamlined to improve efficiency of the network.”

No change to road tax and registration fees

THE Government will not change reductions to road tax and additional registration fees (ARF) on cars even if it collects less revenue from Electronic Road Pricing (ERP).

Transport Minister Raymond Lim said that additional revenue from new ERP gantries and revised charges implemented last year might fall to $50 million a year from the projected $70 million.

But the Government will not change the cuts to road tax and ARF, costing $310 million in all. The minister also addressed a question from Mr Lim Biow Chuan (Marine Parade) on why ERP is implemented on roads where there is no congestion.

He explained that the rate for a gantry within a wider cordon is determined by speeds along roads in that cordon. Gantries in a cordon must have the same rate, or motorists will jam the road with the gantry that charges a lower price.

COE supply to be slashed by a quarter

CAR sellers and buyers will have to contend with far fewer COEs this year. For the quota year April 2009-March 2010, there will be 83,789 certificates of entitlement — 24 per cent or 26,565 fewer COEs than the previous year.

The supply takes into account a new 1.5 per cent cap on annual growth rate of the vehicle population. If the previous 3 per cent cap were still in place, the COE quota reduction would have been around 12 per cent.

The new supply included adjusting for an oversupply of 10,103 COEs in the previous quota.

Despite calls from some MPs for the vehicle growth rate to be cut further on account of the weak economy, Transport Minister Raymond Lim said the 1.5 per cent cap will remain for three years before another review takes place.

Minister Lim also announced that the formula for determining COE supply will be tweaked. The current formula has often resulted in a drastically uneven vehicle population growth pattern over the years, as well as an oversupply and undersupply situation that has led to price swings.

Independent, secure S’pore a product of prudent, steady defence investments

Singapore has defended its prudent and steady investments in defence over the years, saying today’s independent and secure Singapore is made possible by a capable Singapore Armed Forces (SAF).

Defence Minister Teo Chee Hean told Parliament on Thursday he expects the defence budget over the next five years to be in the range of 4.5 to 5 per cent of the GDP.

The issue of defence spending during an economic downturn was raised by several MPs — both during the main debate on the Budget and during the allocation for the Ministry of Defence (MINDEF) on Thursday.

Nearly 28 per cent of the total budget has been allocated for defence expenditure.

MPs such as Mr Hawazi Daipi (Sembawang GRC), Mr Michael Palmer (Pasir Ris-Punggol GRC), Mr Arthur Fong (West Coast GRC) and Ms Irene Ng (Tampines GRC) backed the budget to maintain defence capabilities here. But Ms Ng, noting that as a policy, the annual defence budget is pegged at up to 6per cent of gross domestic product (GDP), said this made the ministry’s budget recession-proof.

Ms Ng said: “All the ministries, which also need to take a long-term view, are not recession-proof, except the Defence Ministry. As a policy, it can spend up to six per cent of the GDP, no matter what happens … … Nevertheless, it is valid to ask the question — if the principle of making the defence budget recession-proof is itself a defensible one.”

The minister explained that while the government is prepared to spend up to 6% of the GDP on defence, it has not always used the full amount, and invests only on what is needed.

In fact, from 1997 to 2002, defence expenditure was about 5 to 5.5 per cent of GDP. And since 2002, defence expenditure has been between 4.5 per cent and 5 per cent of GDP.

Mr Teo stressed that security threats do not disappear during an economic downturn. Social and political frictions increase during difficult economic times and having a credible SAF to defend Singapore’s sovereignty and vital interests is even more crucial under these circumstances.

The defence minister stressed that the current economic crisis has altered the security landscape, and a strong SAF underpinned the peace and stability that will allow Singapore to ride out the economic slowdown and protect vital interests.

Singapore to join anti-piracy efforts in Gulf of Aden

Singapore will be joining the international community in its anti-piracy efforts in the Gulf of Aden.

Defence Minister Teo Chee Hean told Parliament on Thursday that Singapore will be deploying a Landing Ship Tank (LST) with two Super Puma helicopters for a period of three months this year.

The ship will work with the newly-formed multi-national Combined Task Force 151 to protect shipping in the Gulf of Aden.

The LST will be deployed once the operational arrangements have been made.

The defence minister explained that Singapore’s involvement is because as a maritime nation, the country shares the concerns of the international community regarding piracy.

It is also committed to supporting international efforts to keep the sea lanes safe and secure.

NMP: What is the legal status of the right to vote?

THE legal status of the right to vote came into question, when Nominated MP Thio Li-ann threw up the poser: Is it a fundamental right here, or simply a statutory one that can be easily repealed by lawmakers?

She asked for the Constitution to be amended to declare explicitly the right as a fundamental liberty. Or if not, perhaps convening an advisory tribunal to consider the question.

Article 100 of the Constitution specifies that the President can refer a constitutional question to a panel made up of at least three Supreme Court judges.

Professor Thio, who teaches constitutional law at the National University of Singapore, made this proposal in Parliament yesterday during the debate on the Law Ministry’s budget.

“To affirm and underscore the workings of our system of representative democracy, would the Minister consider taking the desirable step to amend the Constitution to expressly entrench the right to vote in the Fundamental Liberties Chapter?” she asked.

She said that the lack of any clear mention of the right to vote in the Constitution, as well as a 1998 High Court ruling that appeared to refer to the right to vote as a “privilege”, seemed to suggest that it did not have constitutional status. In that case, the right could be repealed by Parliament.

“Surely, our right to vote cannot depend upon legislative will?” she said. “This would place something so basic on too tenuous a footing, for what Parliament gives, Parliament can taketh away.”

She also argued that existing clauses that seem to imply the right to vote — for example, Article 66 of the Constitution, on General Elections — did not do enough to entrench it as a basic right.

“Article 66 is not formulated as an individual voting right. There is a difference between a state obligation and a fundamental liberty,” she said.

The Article states that general elections must be called within three months of Parliament’s dissolution.

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