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[h=2]Parag: Mistake for Govt to react to public whims on population issue[/h]
December 11th, 2013 |
Author: Editorial
Dr Parag: Singapore can accommodate a population of more than 8 million
The mainstream media published today (11 Dec) a follow-up interview with Dr Parag Khanna [Link] on the population issue.
Dr Parag made the news a couple of weeks ago when he was invited to speak at the Straits Times Global Outlook Forum on 29 November 2013. He told an incredulous audience that Singapore can fit 8 million people or more by the year 2030.
He said, “There is a much more physically devolved Singapore in which the towns play a much stronger role, in which there’s much more local economic activity and vibrancy, in which everyone is not cramping down into Orchard or CBD every single day. And that Singapore can most certainly accommodate a couple million more people.”
Dr Parag has an impressive resume holding positions in various organizations (‘Prof at LKY School: S’pore can fit more than 8 million‘). As far as Singapore is concerned, he has listed himself as a Senior Fellow at the Singapore Institute of International Affairs and Adjunct Professor at the Lee Kuan Yew School of Public Policy. He is also a Singapore PR and the director of the research group Hybrid Reality Institute.
After it was pointed out to him that many Singaporeans do not feel comfortable with a population of 6.9 million living in Singapore, let alone 8 million, and many people criticised him for even suggesting the 8 million figure, Dr Parag remains unfazed.
His point, he said, was that “the Singapore of 2030 is not the same as the Singapore of today”. He said these Singaporean critics do not consider how Singapore, by that time, would be a vastly different place.
“It’s not the same technologically, culturally, demographically. So people who revolt at the number, they’re not taking into account these changes, and the broader strategic economic context of a very open economy in a competitive world.”
Looking at the Government’s future plans, Singapore will be highly decentralised, with people working in the place they live, rather than travelling downtown. He cited the future development of Tampines, Jurong West and Woodlands as examples.
“It is a city that could accommodate more people without congestion, if it’s done right,” he said.
But the fact that some people have taken issue with his suggested figure, with a few even attacking him with racist comments, shows that despite much public debate on population growth, some people “are not learning from these conversations”.
“They need to care more and debate more, and not attack more every time they hear a number like eight million,” he said.
When he was told that the Government was already addressing public unhappiness about the 6.9 million figure, Dr Parag replied, “That was their (Govt’s) mistake. I have no sympathy for that.”
“I do not believe that it’s the job of a government to perpetually react to whatever sentiments and whims that are emerging and then be handicapped in making strategy by those whims. Governments which do that (will) fail.”
It is not known what sort of democracy Dr Parag used to live in, but is democracy not about majority rule? If a referendum is held today and the majority of Singaporeans vote against expanding the population to 6.9 million by 2030, should the government not listen to the people? Put another way, if the government persists in implementing unpopular measures against the wishes of Singaporeans, it runs the serious risk of being voted out at the next or a future general election.
In fact, this was exactly what happened to the previous British Labour government. UK Labour PM Gordon Brown ignored public sentiment against his government’s liberal immigration policy. He even called a voter a “bigoted woman” when she confronted him in public over the number of immigrants in Britain during the 2010 UK election campaign. Gordon Brown and his Labour Party were eventually voted out and the Conservative/Liberal Democrat coalition became the new UK government. The new Cameron government proceeded to undo some of the unpopular, liberal immigration policies of the previous Labour government.
In case Dr Parag does not know, “democracy” originates from the Greek word (dēmokratía) or “rule of the people”. It was coined from 2 other Greek words (dêmos) “people” and (kratos) “power” or “rule” in the 5th century BC.
Perhaps Dr Parag is unaware of the riot at Little India just a few days ago (8 Dec). If he had been drinking there, he could have found himself smack in the middle of the riot and injured by the rioters.
Popular blogger Cynical Investor, making reference to Dr Parag, wrote (‘COI should look into effects of SG’s changing demographics‘):
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The mainstream media published today (11 Dec) a follow-up interview with Dr Parag Khanna [Link] on the population issue.
Dr Parag made the news a couple of weeks ago when he was invited to speak at the Straits Times Global Outlook Forum on 29 November 2013. He told an incredulous audience that Singapore can fit 8 million people or more by the year 2030.
He said, “There is a much more physically devolved Singapore in which the towns play a much stronger role, in which there’s much more local economic activity and vibrancy, in which everyone is not cramping down into Orchard or CBD every single day. And that Singapore can most certainly accommodate a couple million more people.”
Dr Parag has an impressive resume holding positions in various organizations (‘Prof at LKY School: S’pore can fit more than 8 million‘). As far as Singapore is concerned, he has listed himself as a Senior Fellow at the Singapore Institute of International Affairs and Adjunct Professor at the Lee Kuan Yew School of Public Policy. He is also a Singapore PR and the director of the research group Hybrid Reality Institute.
After it was pointed out to him that many Singaporeans do not feel comfortable with a population of 6.9 million living in Singapore, let alone 8 million, and many people criticised him for even suggesting the 8 million figure, Dr Parag remains unfazed.
His point, he said, was that “the Singapore of 2030 is not the same as the Singapore of today”. He said these Singaporean critics do not consider how Singapore, by that time, would be a vastly different place.
“It’s not the same technologically, culturally, demographically. So people who revolt at the number, they’re not taking into account these changes, and the broader strategic economic context of a very open economy in a competitive world.”
Looking at the Government’s future plans, Singapore will be highly decentralised, with people working in the place they live, rather than travelling downtown. He cited the future development of Tampines, Jurong West and Woodlands as examples.
“It is a city that could accommodate more people without congestion, if it’s done right,” he said.
But the fact that some people have taken issue with his suggested figure, with a few even attacking him with racist comments, shows that despite much public debate on population growth, some people “are not learning from these conversations”.
“They need to care more and debate more, and not attack more every time they hear a number like eight million,” he said.
When he was told that the Government was already addressing public unhappiness about the 6.9 million figure, Dr Parag replied, “That was their (Govt’s) mistake. I have no sympathy for that.”
“I do not believe that it’s the job of a government to perpetually react to whatever sentiments and whims that are emerging and then be handicapped in making strategy by those whims. Governments which do that (will) fail.”
It is not known what sort of democracy Dr Parag used to live in, but is democracy not about majority rule? If a referendum is held today and the majority of Singaporeans vote against expanding the population to 6.9 million by 2030, should the government not listen to the people? Put another way, if the government persists in implementing unpopular measures against the wishes of Singaporeans, it runs the serious risk of being voted out at the next or a future general election.
In fact, this was exactly what happened to the previous British Labour government. UK Labour PM Gordon Brown ignored public sentiment against his government’s liberal immigration policy. He even called a voter a “bigoted woman” when she confronted him in public over the number of immigrants in Britain during the 2010 UK election campaign. Gordon Brown and his Labour Party were eventually voted out and the Conservative/Liberal Democrat coalition became the new UK government. The new Cameron government proceeded to undo some of the unpopular, liberal immigration policies of the previous Labour government.
In case Dr Parag does not know, “democracy” originates from the Greek word (dēmokratía) or “rule of the people”. It was coined from 2 other Greek words (dêmos) “people” and (kratos) “power” or “rule” in the 5th century BC.
Perhaps Dr Parag is unaware of the riot at Little India just a few days ago (8 Dec). If he had been drinking there, he could have found himself smack in the middle of the riot and injured by the rioters.
Popular blogger Cynical Investor, making reference to Dr Parag, wrote (‘COI should look into effects of SG’s changing demographics‘):
I wonder if the PAPpy FT academic calling for a population of 8m by 2030 will be allowed to continue shouting his message. If there is a riot (a riot that causes so much angst) in a population of 5.3m, 25% of whom are FTs, imagine a scenario where there are 8m people here where 37% are FTs***? If one includes PRs, then the percentage of FTs would jump to 53%. I’m use simple extrapolation to derive these numbers.
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