- Joined
- Jul 24, 2008
- Messages
- 33,627
- Points
- 0
[TABLE="width: 100%"]
<TBODY>[TR="class: msghead"]
[TD]
<TBODY>
[TD="class: msgF, width: 1%, align: right"]From: [/TD]
[TD="class: msgFname, width: 68%"] Sutukudu <NOBR></NOBR>[/TD]
[TD="class: msgDate, width: 30%, align: right"]6:39 pm [/TD]
[TD="class: msgT, width: 1%, align: right"]To: [/TD]
[TD="class: msgTname, width: 68%"] ALL <NOBR></NOBR>[/TD]
[TD="class: msgNum, align: right"][/TD]
</TBODY>[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TD="class: msgleft, width: 1%"][/TD]
[TD="class: wintiny, align: right"]55554.1 [/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TD][/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TD="class: msgtxt"]Old Fark Face with the Zombie look and who speaks like a retard .. still insists S'poreans must welcome Foreign Thrash.
S'pore will lose vitality and drive without immigrants, says Lee Kuan Yew
[TABLE="width: 260, align: right"]
<TBODY>[TR]
[TD="width: 20, align: right"][/TD]
[TD="width: 240, align: right"]
[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TD][/TD]
[TD="class: update"][TABLE="width: 100%"]
<TBODY>[TR]
[TD="width: 138, bgcolor: #f6f6f6"]Photos[/TD]
[TD="width: 47, bgcolor: #f6f6f6"]1 of 1[/TD]
[TD="width: 18, bgcolor: #f6f6f6"][/TD]
[TD="width: 19, bgcolor: #f6f6f6"][/TD]
[TD="width: 18, bgcolor: #f6f6f6"][/TD]
[/TR]
</TBODY>[/TABLE]
Mr Lee Kuan Yew[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TD][/TD]
[TD="class: update"][/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TD][/TD]
[TD][TABLE="width: 240"]
<TBODY>[TR]
[TD="width: 100%"][TABLE="width: 100%"]
<TBODY>[TR="bgcolor: #FFFFFF"]
[TD]http://www.channelnewsasia.com/stories/singaporelocalnews/view/1146843/1/.html[TABLE="width: 100%"]
<TBODY>[TR]
[TD="class: topic"]Video[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TD="bgcolor: #cccccc"]
[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TD][TABLE="width: 100%"]
<TBODY>[TR]
[TD][TABLE="width: 100%"]
<TBODY>[TR]
[TD][TABLE="width: 100%"]
<TBODY>[TR]
[TD="width: 40%"]
[/TD]
[TD="class: bodytext, width: 60%"]S'pore will lose vitality and drive without immigrants, says Lee Kuan Yew[/TD]
[/TR]
</TBODY>[/TABLE]
[/TD]
[/TR]
</TBODY>[/TABLE]
[/TD]
[/TR]
</TBODY>[/TABLE]
[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TD]
[/TD]
[/TR]
</TBODY>[/TABLE]
[/TD]
[/TR]
</TBODY>[/TABLE]
[/TD]
[/TR]
</TBODY>[/TABLE]
[/TD]
[/TR]
</TBODY>[/TABLE]
SINGAPORE: Singapore's former Minister Mentor Lee Kuan Yew has acknowledged the pressures new immigrants have placed on citizens and home prices in the country.
But he pointed out that the government is doing something about it, and without immigrants, Singapore will become an "old, diminishing society with no vitality and no drive".
Mr Lee also painted a positive outlook for the country's economy, despite the current global uncertainties.
He was speaking at the Tanjong Pagar National Day Dinner on Saturday evening
The recent elections showed a drop of about six percentage points in support for the ruling People's Action Party, from 66 per cent to 60 per cent.
Mr Lee Kuan Yew said a big part of the explanation is because of the housing shortage. Many Singaporeans also attributed the rise in home prices to new Permanent Residents and citizens from China and India.
This is something the former Minister Mentor agrees with. However, he pointed out that the government is trying to put things right.
Mr Lee said: "We've done a revamp and HDB has promised that within four years, the supply will meet the demand. It will be resolved."
The National Development Ministry has so far announced measures to ramp up the supply of new flats. But home prices aside, citizens are feeling the pressure in other aspects.
Mr Lee said: "On competition for jobs, and especially competition, pressure on their children to do well in schools. The new migrants having left his home must go all out to succeed in the country that he or she has adopted.
"That is to be expected and therefore, we must accept that they are going to do their best and if doing their best puts pressure on us, our children, it may be good for them because they will also have to put in effort to do their best to keep up."
Work is also underway to add more train lines and carriages as well as more buses on the roads to ease the problem of overcrowding on the public transport system.
"So our trains and buses will be overcrowded during the peak hours for the short-term," said Mr Lee.
While the inflow of new PRs and citizens is being moderated and more being done to assimilate them into society, Mr Lee stressed Singapore needs immigrants to bump up the country's low birth rate.
He said: "That is a fact of life, we either have them or like Japan, our population will shrink and the economy will stagnate. These are the stark choices we face.
"Our birth rate last year was 1.1, down from the year before at 1.22. Every year, 30 or more per cent of men or women stay single. They are doing good jobs, earning good pay and unless they meet the ideal man or ideal woman, they are quite happy living their lives because they can afford it...and those who are married are having few children and having them later.
"So if we do not take in migrants, we will become an old, diminishing society with no vitality and no drive."
And against the backdrop of debt problems in the American economy and the EU facing a currency crisis, Mr Lee remains confident that Singapore will pull through. This, despite some economists warning of a double dip recession.
That is because the twin giants of China and India are still growing rapidly. Mr Lee said their growth has saved Singapore from "going down like the US and the EU".
He said: "We have a good workforce and in spite of difficult conditions, investments have come in to make use of our workforce to thrive and to prosper. As long as we have investments coming in, there will be employment opportunities plus income."
Singapore's economy is projected to grow between five and six per cent this year.
Earlier in his speech, Mr Lee also spoke about the appointment of fellow Tanjong Pagar MP, Indranee Thurai Rajah, as a new advisor to the Tanjong Pagar-Tiong Bahru ward.
87-year-old Mr Lee has been helming Tanjong Pagar since 1959. He retired from cabinet this year.
"I'm not able, as I get older, to run up and down blocks of flats. It's just not possible, my knee caps will give way," he said.
But Mr Lee gave this assurance to residents: "I want to assure you, any trouble you face, it will come back to me and I will resolve it in the government."
<A href="http://www.channelnewsasia.com/stories/singaporelocalnews/view/1146843/1/.html" target=_blank>http://www.channelnewsasia.com/stories/singaporelocalnews/view/1146843/1/.html
[/TD]
[/TR]
</TBODY>[/TABLE]
<TBODY>[TR="class: msghead"]
[TD]
<TBODY>
[TD="class: msgF, width: 1%, align: right"]From: [/TD]
[TD="class: msgFname, width: 68%"] Sutukudu <NOBR></NOBR>[/TD]
[TD="class: msgDate, width: 30%, align: right"]6:39 pm [/TD]
[TD="class: msgT, width: 1%, align: right"]To: [/TD]
[TD="class: msgTname, width: 68%"] ALL <NOBR></NOBR>[/TD]
[TD="class: msgNum, align: right"][/TD]
</TBODY>
[/TR]
[TR]
[TD="class: msgleft, width: 1%"][/TD]
[TD="class: wintiny, align: right"]55554.1 [/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TD][/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TD="class: msgtxt"]Old Fark Face with the Zombie look and who speaks like a retard .. still insists S'poreans must welcome Foreign Thrash.
S'pore will lose vitality and drive without immigrants, says Lee Kuan Yew
[TABLE="width: 260, align: right"]
<TBODY>[TR]
[TD="width: 20, align: right"][/TD]
[TD="width: 240, align: right"]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TD][/TD]
[TD="class: update"][TABLE="width: 100%"]
<TBODY>[TR]
[TD="width: 138, bgcolor: #f6f6f6"]Photos[/TD]
[TD="width: 47, bgcolor: #f6f6f6"]1 of 1[/TD]
[TD="width: 18, bgcolor: #f6f6f6"][/TD]
[TD="width: 19, bgcolor: #f6f6f6"][/TD]
[TD="width: 18, bgcolor: #f6f6f6"][/TD]
[/TR]
</TBODY>[/TABLE]
Mr Lee Kuan Yew[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TD][/TD]
[TD="class: update"][/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TD][/TD]
[TD][TABLE="width: 240"]
<TBODY>[TR]
[TD="width: 100%"][TABLE="width: 100%"]
<TBODY>[TR="bgcolor: #FFFFFF"]
[TD]http://www.channelnewsasia.com/stories/singaporelocalnews/view/1146843/1/.html[TABLE="width: 100%"]
<TBODY>[TR]
[TD="class: topic"]Video[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TD="bgcolor: #cccccc"]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TD][TABLE="width: 100%"]
<TBODY>[TR]
[TD][TABLE="width: 100%"]
<TBODY>[TR]
[TD][TABLE="width: 100%"]
<TBODY>[TR]
[TD="width: 40%"]
[/TD]
[TD="class: bodytext, width: 60%"]S'pore will lose vitality and drive without immigrants, says Lee Kuan Yew[/TD]
[/TR]
</TBODY>[/TABLE]
[/TD]
[/TR]
</TBODY>[/TABLE]
[/TD]
[/TR]
</TBODY>[/TABLE]
[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TD]
[/TR]
</TBODY>[/TABLE]
[/TD]
[/TR]
</TBODY>[/TABLE]
[/TD]
[/TR]
</TBODY>[/TABLE]
[/TD]
[/TR]
</TBODY>[/TABLE]
SINGAPORE: Singapore's former Minister Mentor Lee Kuan Yew has acknowledged the pressures new immigrants have placed on citizens and home prices in the country.
But he pointed out that the government is doing something about it, and without immigrants, Singapore will become an "old, diminishing society with no vitality and no drive".
Mr Lee also painted a positive outlook for the country's economy, despite the current global uncertainties.
He was speaking at the Tanjong Pagar National Day Dinner on Saturday evening
The recent elections showed a drop of about six percentage points in support for the ruling People's Action Party, from 66 per cent to 60 per cent.
Mr Lee Kuan Yew said a big part of the explanation is because of the housing shortage. Many Singaporeans also attributed the rise in home prices to new Permanent Residents and citizens from China and India.
This is something the former Minister Mentor agrees with. However, he pointed out that the government is trying to put things right.
Mr Lee said: "We've done a revamp and HDB has promised that within four years, the supply will meet the demand. It will be resolved."
The National Development Ministry has so far announced measures to ramp up the supply of new flats. But home prices aside, citizens are feeling the pressure in other aspects.
Mr Lee said: "On competition for jobs, and especially competition, pressure on their children to do well in schools. The new migrants having left his home must go all out to succeed in the country that he or she has adopted.
"That is to be expected and therefore, we must accept that they are going to do their best and if doing their best puts pressure on us, our children, it may be good for them because they will also have to put in effort to do their best to keep up."
Work is also underway to add more train lines and carriages as well as more buses on the roads to ease the problem of overcrowding on the public transport system.
"So our trains and buses will be overcrowded during the peak hours for the short-term," said Mr Lee.
While the inflow of new PRs and citizens is being moderated and more being done to assimilate them into society, Mr Lee stressed Singapore needs immigrants to bump up the country's low birth rate.
He said: "That is a fact of life, we either have them or like Japan, our population will shrink and the economy will stagnate. These are the stark choices we face.
"Our birth rate last year was 1.1, down from the year before at 1.22. Every year, 30 or more per cent of men or women stay single. They are doing good jobs, earning good pay and unless they meet the ideal man or ideal woman, they are quite happy living their lives because they can afford it...and those who are married are having few children and having them later.
"So if we do not take in migrants, we will become an old, diminishing society with no vitality and no drive."
And against the backdrop of debt problems in the American economy and the EU facing a currency crisis, Mr Lee remains confident that Singapore will pull through. This, despite some economists warning of a double dip recession.
That is because the twin giants of China and India are still growing rapidly. Mr Lee said their growth has saved Singapore from "going down like the US and the EU".
He said: "We have a good workforce and in spite of difficult conditions, investments have come in to make use of our workforce to thrive and to prosper. As long as we have investments coming in, there will be employment opportunities plus income."
Singapore's economy is projected to grow between five and six per cent this year.
Earlier in his speech, Mr Lee also spoke about the appointment of fellow Tanjong Pagar MP, Indranee Thurai Rajah, as a new advisor to the Tanjong Pagar-Tiong Bahru ward.
87-year-old Mr Lee has been helming Tanjong Pagar since 1959. He retired from cabinet this year.
"I'm not able, as I get older, to run up and down blocks of flats. It's just not possible, my knee caps will give way," he said.
But Mr Lee gave this assurance to residents: "I want to assure you, any trouble you face, it will come back to me and I will resolve it in the government."
<A href="http://www.channelnewsasia.com/stories/singaporelocalnews/view/1146843/1/.html" target=_blank>http://www.channelnewsasia.com/stories/singaporelocalnews/view/1146843/1/.html
[/TD]
[/TR]
</TBODY>[/TABLE]
