By: Dr Vivian Balakrishnan, Minister for Community Development, Youth and Sports
11:30 AM AT ROYAL PLAZA ON SCOTTS
Dr Amy Khor, Chairman, REACH
Ladies and Gentlemen
Introduction
It gives me great pleasure to join you this morning at the Policy Study Workgroups Appreciation Lunch.
The economist and writer John Kay published an article in the Financial Times on the 29th July 2009. It was entitled ''True Democracy is not just about taking part''. He elegantly rebutted the simplistic view that ''more avenues for participation make democracy more real''. He wrote and I quote, ''Our leaders blog and twitter, receive online petitions and e-mails, consult focus groups and monitor opinion polls. If the measure of democracy is the frequency of communication between politicians and their voters, then society is steadily becoming more democratic.'' unquote.
Instead, he stated that ''these developments do not make society better governed''. I believe this should be the fundamental question that we ask ourselves as we evaluate the work of REACH and the Policy Study Workgroups - are we making society better governed?
Let me read a further extract from John Kay's article. ''If you ask people simple questions that can be answered yes or no, you will get honest answers. But there is not the slightest reason why these answers should add up to a coherent policy programme, and typically they do not. Mature democracies have found ways round this dilemma. There is a big difference between expressing wants and opinions, and taking responsibility for decisions. Experiments in what is now called deliberative democracy show that when you give participants extensive information, and ask them to review alternative policy options, most people are conscientious and sensible in their approach.''
That is why I would like to thank all of you who were members of the Policy Study Workgroups. You were given extensive information, reviewed policy options, and were conscientious and sensible in your approach. I am grateful for your considered and insightful presentations on some of the more pressing issues facing Singapore today - healthcare access and service delivery; integrating Permanent Residents and new citizens; helping businesses stay afloat and boosting training support for the working population amid the global downturn; raising the overall standards of pre-school education; and taking a visionary approach as a long-term solution to sustainability.
Time is a precious commodity in our fast-paced society, and you freely gave us your precious time over the last two years.
We owe it to you to respond equally conscientiously to your proposals. We will ask the relevant Ministries to say ''Yes'', ''No'' or ''Maybe'' and to give your reasons for the responses.
REACH has evolved beyond merely being a channel for feedback - although feedback remains important. Today, REACH is part of the concept of deliberative democracy - a platform for responsible citizens to come together, identify the key issues, analyse data, formulate innovative policy options and ultimately co-create solutions to the many fundamental challenges we face.
I hope you don't misinterpret my preceding comments as an argument for an elitist approach to policy formulation or a recipe for more of the same. Let me end by quoting Albert Einstein, ''Problems cannot be solved by thinking within the framework in which they were created.'' This is a reminder that we must always create space for mavericks and radical ideas that challenge fundamental paradigms. The only pre-conditions should be a sense of responsibility for the long term good of all Singaporeans, an openness of mind, and the willingness to be conscientious and rational.
Conclusion
I would like to thank the Policy Study Workgroups for your hard work over the past two years, and congratulate you on the successful completion of your terms. As always, we must continually look forward and do better than what we have in the past. Similarly, I look forward to the new Policy Study Workgroups taking our citizen engagement agenda beyond what the pioneer batch has achieved. The bar has been set, and I look forward to the recommendations that the new Policy Study Workgroups will have in store for us next year.
Thank you very much.
MCYS SPEECH NO: 72/2009
DATE OF ISSUE: 23/09/2009