6/09/2006

educating foreign nationals

Many have spoken about our generous contribution to the education of foreign nationals by granting them scholarships to study here. And many of these students have left our shores after benefitting from our generosities. Would there be some statistics on how much this project costs, how many have been trained and stayed and how many have taken us for a ride? If the numbers do not support that this programme be continued, by now the trend should be quite evident, then it should be scrapped and the money put to better use by training our own children. We do not have to be the international Santa Claus. We are too small to play that role. We have many children of citizens who are more deserving for such financial assistance. We need to be more charitable to our citizens than to foreign nationals who have no reason to want to be with us to deserve us throwing money at them. Would we see a report on this? Would our well paid investigative reporters take up this cause and do some research and analysis on the cost benefits of this programme?

13 comments:

Mockingbird said...

If these foreign nationals stay in Singapore and work and contribute to our economy, fine. But if they leave after being sponsored by our gahmen, it sure looks like a waste of money ;p

Chua Chin Leng aka redbean said...

looks like that's the case. but needs statistics to prove that we have been duped.

Anonymous said...

we welcome foreigners to study in s'pore provided they pay FULL fees and not sponsored nor subsidized by s'pore taxpayer.

one silly excuse for having foreigners around is that they contribute to the economy. having said that, does it imply that citizen do not contribute to the economy? all lame excuses!!

the truth is that despot wanted to rule over a population of 8 millions... or rather, he prefer a larger stage to showcase his "talent". we left the federation 40 yrs ago, we should have left despot behind too.

Chua Chin Leng aka redbean said...

hahahahah : )

Anonymous said...

NS for Singaporeans, Jobs and Uni places for foreigners.

Anonymous said...

with jobs and uni places going to foreigners, with 1 million foreigners and a further 300000 PRs in s'pore, are you ready to DEFEND and PROTECT them in a crisis? are you Willing to defend and protect them?......as if we have a choice.....sigh...

Anonymous said...

Let's face it guys. The policy of attracting foreigners to our shores is here to stay. All this bitching and whining in cyberspace ain't gonna make an iota of a difference. So, the sooner we accept it and give these guys a run for their money, the better it will be.

Chua Chin Leng aka redbean said...

that's true. the foreigner policy may be the downfall of the pap if they cannot temper the needs of the citizens and blindly pursue this to its natural end.

we can only see how steadfastly this policy continue.

Anonymous said...

yes, we do need foreigners but that doesn't mean we take in any tom, dick or harry. neither should we be throwing money nor opportunity at them.

the problem now is not of attracting them...they came in the millions...rather, the problem is getting them to take up citizenship.
presently, PRs are enjoying near citizen privileges. throwing money and opportunity at them is not going to cultivate loyalty. instead, we should enhance the value of citizenship by cheapening the value of PR. that is to take away some of the privileges of PR such as educational and medical subsidies. 1st priority for citizens in schools, jobs etc will greatly enhance the value of citizenship.

i'm sure many of you have heard the story of the shepherd tending to his sheep when a storm intrude and the shepherd and his flock seek shelter in a cave laden with food for such an emergency. in came a few lost goats and the shepherd gladly took them in and fed them with the only food he had and calmed them when they were afraid of lightning. after the storm, when no one came to claim the lost goats, the shepherd decided to make them his but the goats refused. the shepherd was angry and denounced them as ungrateful. the goats replied that they were grateful to the shepherd for taking care of them but they do not want to be a part of his herds saying:"you took good care of us and gave us your only food but you did not take care of your own flock. therefore, we do not want to be a part of your herd."

i think the above story says it all. to attract foreigners to take up citizenship, we need to demonstrate that citizens are valued about foreigners. when citizens, PRs and foreigners are treated equally, is there any reason to take up citizenship?

Chua Chin Leng aka redbean said...

that's the most appropriate story i have heard on this.

but the story must come from not so talented people.

geniuses would not think it this way. maybe in the mind of the geniuses, it is better to replace the no talent with those with talent.

Anonymous said...

I think the problem with PRs not wanting to become citizens is our no dual citizenship policy. Cheapening the privileges of PRship is not the answer. That will only serve to make Singapore less attractive for foreigners to come. Most countries I know of accord almost similar privileges to citizens and PRs in areas such as education and property ownership so Singapore is not the odd one out in this respect.

Chua Chin Leng aka redbean said...

i am not realy against the favourable terms given to PRs. i am against the unfavourable terms that singaporeans have to live with.

Anonymous said...

Cherche:
The most prominent aspect of our current epoch is the transnational mobilisation of peoples. If some are going to bitch about foreigners taking over their jobs and etc, and if racial or sexual discrimination is a non-factor, those narrow-minded people are going to suffer for something they do not even have to suffer for in the first place. The whole point is to increase competitiveness and diversity. If one cannot thrive in such an environment, one shouldn't be in said environment in the first place.