Dr Ker Sin Tze - Hongkong as role model for population growth

Dr Ker, an ex PAP MP and Consul General to Hongkong wrote an article published in the ST yesterday. The gist of his argument is that what Hongkong can do we can too. And the principles can be summarised by this statement, “As the economy of a territory or nation grows and expands, more manpower is needed. Successive inflows of immigrants contribute to the growth of the economy.”

Dr Ker conveniently lumped a country’s economy and its polity together as an inseparable entity. A country is not just the economy with only economic interest and no other interests. The political interest and consideration of a country, of its people, is far more important than just the economy and economics.

Dr Ker can be right in describing a commercial organisation, a business concern. When an enterprise grows and expands, it needs more manpower and other factors of production to grow even bigger. A country is not just an enterprise but also a home. When the owner of a home gets richer, he does not fill up his home with more outsiders/guests to occupy every room and share all his wealth. A country is like a home to its citizens. The guests may be needed to work on the economy but never become part of the owners of the home. The home must never be taken over by the guests.

What Dr Ker has said reflects on his economic mindset. He is only thinking economics. And this is a dangerous premise to start with and that is where the PAP has fumbled and getting itself into bigger problem, losing its bearing and purpose, losing the confidence of the people and losing the country to foreigners. The party thinks that it is running a corporation and as such citizens, PRs, foreigners and what not, do not matter as long as they contribute to the economic pie. How dreadfully wrong can the party be? How blind can the party be that it cannot even understand that it is walking down a slippery road of building an economic enterprise but losing the core interest of its people and the country in the process?

Singaporeans will be turned into a stateless people, with no country to talk about, if this grave mistake is not dealt with immediately. Growing the economic pie is important, economic growth and well being are equally important. But blindly pursuing economic growth and losing the country is a great tragedy that only fools, economists and corporate honchos will do without a single care if there is a country and a citizen to care for. Where are the politicians, the political leaders of a nation?

And they are all so blind to this simple political consideration, the primacy of the state and its people? Unbelieveable!

When are they going to stop selling this snake oil of bigger population?