<TABLE border=0 cellSpacing=0 cellPadding=0 width="100%"><TBODY><TR class=msghead><TD><TABLE border=0 cellSpacing=0 cellPadding=0><TBODY><TR class=msghead vAlign=top><TD class=msgF width="1%" noWrap align=right>From: </TD><TD class=msgFname width="68%" noWrap>kojakbt_89 <NOBR></NOBR> </TD><TD class=msgDate width="30%" noWrap align=right>7:38 am </TD></TR><TR class=msghead><TD class=msgT height=20 width="1%" noWrap align=right>To: </TD><TD class=msgTname width="68%" noWrap>ALL <NOBR></NOBR></TD><TD class=msgNum noWrap align=right> </TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE></TD></TR><TR><TD class=msgleft rowSpan=4 width="1%"> </TD><TD class=wintiny noWrap align=right>34917.1 </TD></TR><TR><TD height=8></TD></TR><TR><TD class=msgtxt>Jun 21, 2010
Accept and adapt: New citizens in grassroots bodies
Grassroots organisations have been designated the frontline of the national integration effort. But with the growing number of PRs and new citizens determined to carve out their own spaces in these heartland institutions, adaptation is proving a two-way street.
<!-- by line -->By Rachael Chang
MEMBER of Parliament Muhammad Faishal Ibrahim recalls a recent party for new citizens and permanent residents from India in his Kaki Bukit ward, organised by the local grassroots group Indian Activity Executive Committee.
Attendance was outstanding, with over 100 present: 'They brought their entire families...three or four generations in the room.'
There were chairs and tables, but the guests chose to sit on the floor to eat.
Alarmed, the grassroots leaders wanted to persuade their guests to sit at the tables instead. But Dr Faishal told them to 'let them be', as they were simply doing what they were used to doing.
'It's good for us to learn about their ways,' he mused. 'But they have to adjust to our practices too. It takes two to tango.'
New citizens and PRs are making their presence felt in grassroots organisations across the country.
The People's Association (PA) does not have figures for the number of grassroots volunteers who are non-citizens. But among registered grassroots leaders, there are now 1,409 who are permanent residents, and 4,625 who became citizens three years ago or less.
This makes up about 20 per cent of the 30,000-strong corps. Those from China and India form the biggest groups, says the PA.
The numbers have seen a steady increase in tandem with the rise in PR and new citizen numbers in the overall population. A year ago, there were only about 1,000 PR grassroots leaders.
In the process, how to walk the fine line between those two prerogatives - learning about their ways and having them adapt to Singaporean practices - has become a delicate balancing act for constituencies.
A poll of 10 MPs showed estimates of the proportion of new citizens and PRs in grassroots organisations ranging from 4 per cent (Punggol Central) to 18 per cent (Punggol North) - the latter a high because of its aggressive recruitment of PRs and new citizens.
Those in Clementi, Aljunied and Ang Mo Kio ho- ver at about 10 per cent.
Each ward has a grassroots body numbering 200 to 300 volunteers.
About two years ago, a national integration drive was launched by the PA. Grassroots organisations would be on the frontline of efforts to induct new citizens and PRs into the heartlands.
Community centres began to hold events specifically for newcomers. According to Punggol North MP Penny Low, prior to the integration drive 'events were not large-scale, purposeful ones targeted at new citizens', but 'events that welcome everybody'.
Special events marking festivals in other countries have become a new feature and are proving effective in bringing newcomers to the CC.
But some have also alienated locals. In April, a water festival planned in Bukit Batok to celebrate the new year in Thailand, Cambodia, Myanmar and Laos spawned irate Facebook groups and petitions.
Netizens, professing to be residents of Bukit Batok, argued that public funds should not be used to fund events 'foreign to local culture'. Concerns about the wastage of water were also raised.
Ms Chan Leng Leng, 38, is a Myanmar emigre turned Singapore citizen who was tapped by Bukit Batok grassroots leaders to help plan the water festival. Among her 60-strong residents' committee are six members from Myanmar.
She shrugged off the negative feedback: 'Frankly speaking, I know that I am not welcomed by those people. But there are many welcoming people in Singapore.'
Said Madam Susan Lim, the Bukit Batok grassroots leader who came up with the idea: 'To me, the protest does not make sense.
'We didn't organise it only for Myanmar or Thai residents. It was for all residents.'
(Kojakbt: How cum we have such idiots in PAP grassloot? Which Singaporeans want water to be splashed onto them???)
Despite the threat of boycott and protest, the event went off without a hitch, with over 3,000 people attending.
But the storm in the teacup did not go unnoticed by other constituencies. Prior to the Bukit Batok experience, grassroots leaders in Aljunied GRC and neighbouring Hougang constituency were planning to hold a similar water festival. They have since decided to pursue other avenues of community activity instead.
(Kojakbt: Cheebye lah... erection cumming liao, MPs all scared liao... tell grassloot to stop celebrating foreigners festivals... after erection, MPs will act big shot again lah...)
Welcome parties and personal visits
THE close connections within new immigrant communities are a boon for grassroots organisations in their efforts to tap into them.
'If you invite one (from a certain community), they will in turn invite the rest to come,' said Dr Faishal.
In fact, some grassroots organisations have made this a recruiting strategy.
At a team retreat in 2008, the Punggol North grassroots decided to aggressively recruit new citizens, with the understanding that 'after we engage them, this group of people can engage more of their own friends from their country', explained senior constituency manager Edmund Low.
The PA supplies grassroots organisations a list of new citizens moving in to every ward. Even before the citizenship ceremony, where new citizens recite the pledge and receive their pink identity cards, Punggol North grassroots leaders make personal visits to these new residents to welcome and encourage them to join the grassroots.
The strategy is paying off. On June 12, Punggol North received a Community Lead Champion gold award for best overall recruitment performance.
Often, the best advocate for new citizens joining the grassroots is a new citizen himself.
Mr Tommy Lin, a senior consultant with NTUC, moved with his family from Taiwan to Singapore in 1987. He became a citizen in 1996.
The grassroots leader in the Zhenghua ward of Holland-Bukit Timah GRC makes it a point to attend citizenship ceremonies: 'I'll strongly advocate to them (new citizens) the benefits of joining grassroots,' said the 35-year-old.
'You get a very close-knit network. The best part is you don't keep to your group, you can expand out to other friends.'
He also relates how the presence of new citizens and PRs adds alternative viewpoints to policy and political discussions among grassroots leaders.
During one discussion about the Workfare Income Supplement, a scheme where the Government tops up the income of low-wage workers, some grassroots leaders argued that low-wage workers should be given strings-free cash vouchers.
'I stood up and said: I am from Taiwan where they give such vouchers. And what happens? It's like giving them fish which is just squandered away,' he recounts.
'We have that comparative perspective,' he says, adding that PRs and new citizens can help supply a broader outlook in grassroots organisations.
But as these recruitment efforts start to bear fruit, grassroots organisations must decide how to galvanise the newcomers without discomfiting the old.
In Sengkang, which has a sizeable population of expatriate Indians, differences have occasionally been all too visible.
Some expatriate Indians were once asked to organise a Deepavali event in the ward, recalls MP Charles Chong. But to these Hindi-speakers, the occasion is known as Diwali - what the festival of lights is called in the north of India. Subsequently, publicity materials identifying the event as 'Diwali', including a banner, were produced.
Local Indians are largely Tamil-speaking, originating from Tamil Nadu in the south of India.
'Some locals got upset,' says Mr Chong, referring to the Diwali-Deepavali mix-up. 'We had to tell them, in Singapore, Tamil is the official language.'
'They may cause offence without knowing it,' he says, adding, 'sometimes we cause them offence also without knowing it.'
His grassroots leaders have been very successful in attracting PRs and new citizens, thanks in part to people like Mr Vijay Badami, 52, a business development manager and citizen since 2004.
In Sengkang, events like a party for the North Indian dance festival Dandiya and a Cricket League have been resounding successes.
As Mr Vijay tells it, the Dandiya event had to rely on word of mouth when it was first held in 2005 because Indian expatriates rarely went to the CC, where it was advertised on notice boards. About 100 guests attended.
Over the years, it has gone from strength to strength. Last October, over a thousand tickets for the event were sold. It had to be held over three days.
The cricket league, another brainwave from the new citizen grassroots leaders, has grown from 40 players in 2008 to 150 now.
When asked if local Indians participated, Mr Vijay says that 'they don't have much interest in this game'. Local Indians mostly prefer football, he adds.
There are MPs, however, who staunchly refuse to sanction their grassroots organisations to fund events for only one particular group.
Ang Mo Kio GRC MP Lee Bee Wah is one. Her grassroots activists, of whom 15 per cent are PRs and new citizens, does not organise events which are nationality or ethnic-centric, she says.
(Kojakbt: Any more mistakes from Lee Bee Wah and she can kiss her chance for running in the next erection goodbye liao)
'We don't want them to segregate. We invite them to mix with the locals,' she emphasises. 'We want them to think of themselves as part of Singapore. Rather than have one particular group of nationals come together, we come together as Nee Soon South,' she says, referring to her ward.
Mr Vijay defends his grassroots activities against any charge of segregation. Before his committee came up with events to appeal to Indian expatriates, only local Indians would come. Now that his committee has added multicultural and multilingual touches, attendance has shot up.
For example, the annual Sengkang CC's Deepavali event now has two MCs - one speaking in Tamil, and the other in Hindi. Whenever there is a Tamil dance performance, a Hindi Bollywood one follows it.
'When we did this, the response was fantastic,' he says. 'Previously, we had great difficulty filling up chairs.'
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Accept and adapt: New citizens in grassroots bodies
Grassroots organisations have been designated the frontline of the national integration effort. But with the growing number of PRs and new citizens determined to carve out their own spaces in these heartland institutions, adaptation is proving a two-way street.
<!-- by line -->By Rachael Chang
MEMBER of Parliament Muhammad Faishal Ibrahim recalls a recent party for new citizens and permanent residents from India in his Kaki Bukit ward, organised by the local grassroots group Indian Activity Executive Committee.
Attendance was outstanding, with over 100 present: 'They brought their entire families...three or four generations in the room.'
There were chairs and tables, but the guests chose to sit on the floor to eat.
Alarmed, the grassroots leaders wanted to persuade their guests to sit at the tables instead. But Dr Faishal told them to 'let them be', as they were simply doing what they were used to doing.
'It's good for us to learn about their ways,' he mused. 'But they have to adjust to our practices too. It takes two to tango.'
New citizens and PRs are making their presence felt in grassroots organisations across the country.
The People's Association (PA) does not have figures for the number of grassroots volunteers who are non-citizens. But among registered grassroots leaders, there are now 1,409 who are permanent residents, and 4,625 who became citizens three years ago or less.
This makes up about 20 per cent of the 30,000-strong corps. Those from China and India form the biggest groups, says the PA.
The numbers have seen a steady increase in tandem with the rise in PR and new citizen numbers in the overall population. A year ago, there were only about 1,000 PR grassroots leaders.
In the process, how to walk the fine line between those two prerogatives - learning about their ways and having them adapt to Singaporean practices - has become a delicate balancing act for constituencies.
A poll of 10 MPs showed estimates of the proportion of new citizens and PRs in grassroots organisations ranging from 4 per cent (Punggol Central) to 18 per cent (Punggol North) - the latter a high because of its aggressive recruitment of PRs and new citizens.
Those in Clementi, Aljunied and Ang Mo Kio ho- ver at about 10 per cent.
Each ward has a grassroots body numbering 200 to 300 volunteers.
About two years ago, a national integration drive was launched by the PA. Grassroots organisations would be on the frontline of efforts to induct new citizens and PRs into the heartlands.
Community centres began to hold events specifically for newcomers. According to Punggol North MP Penny Low, prior to the integration drive 'events were not large-scale, purposeful ones targeted at new citizens', but 'events that welcome everybody'.
Special events marking festivals in other countries have become a new feature and are proving effective in bringing newcomers to the CC.
But some have also alienated locals. In April, a water festival planned in Bukit Batok to celebrate the new year in Thailand, Cambodia, Myanmar and Laos spawned irate Facebook groups and petitions.
Netizens, professing to be residents of Bukit Batok, argued that public funds should not be used to fund events 'foreign to local culture'. Concerns about the wastage of water were also raised.
Ms Chan Leng Leng, 38, is a Myanmar emigre turned Singapore citizen who was tapped by Bukit Batok grassroots leaders to help plan the water festival. Among her 60-strong residents' committee are six members from Myanmar.
She shrugged off the negative feedback: 'Frankly speaking, I know that I am not welcomed by those people. But there are many welcoming people in Singapore.'
Said Madam Susan Lim, the Bukit Batok grassroots leader who came up with the idea: 'To me, the protest does not make sense.
'We didn't organise it only for Myanmar or Thai residents. It was for all residents.'
(Kojakbt: How cum we have such idiots in PAP grassloot? Which Singaporeans want water to be splashed onto them???)
Despite the threat of boycott and protest, the event went off without a hitch, with over 3,000 people attending.
But the storm in the teacup did not go unnoticed by other constituencies. Prior to the Bukit Batok experience, grassroots leaders in Aljunied GRC and neighbouring Hougang constituency were planning to hold a similar water festival. They have since decided to pursue other avenues of community activity instead.
(Kojakbt: Cheebye lah... erection cumming liao, MPs all scared liao... tell grassloot to stop celebrating foreigners festivals... after erection, MPs will act big shot again lah...)
Welcome parties and personal visits
THE close connections within new immigrant communities are a boon for grassroots organisations in their efforts to tap into them.
'If you invite one (from a certain community), they will in turn invite the rest to come,' said Dr Faishal.
In fact, some grassroots organisations have made this a recruiting strategy.
At a team retreat in 2008, the Punggol North grassroots decided to aggressively recruit new citizens, with the understanding that 'after we engage them, this group of people can engage more of their own friends from their country', explained senior constituency manager Edmund Low.
The PA supplies grassroots organisations a list of new citizens moving in to every ward. Even before the citizenship ceremony, where new citizens recite the pledge and receive their pink identity cards, Punggol North grassroots leaders make personal visits to these new residents to welcome and encourage them to join the grassroots.
The strategy is paying off. On June 12, Punggol North received a Community Lead Champion gold award for best overall recruitment performance.
Often, the best advocate for new citizens joining the grassroots is a new citizen himself.
Mr Tommy Lin, a senior consultant with NTUC, moved with his family from Taiwan to Singapore in 1987. He became a citizen in 1996.
The grassroots leader in the Zhenghua ward of Holland-Bukit Timah GRC makes it a point to attend citizenship ceremonies: 'I'll strongly advocate to them (new citizens) the benefits of joining grassroots,' said the 35-year-old.
'You get a very close-knit network. The best part is you don't keep to your group, you can expand out to other friends.'
He also relates how the presence of new citizens and PRs adds alternative viewpoints to policy and political discussions among grassroots leaders.
During one discussion about the Workfare Income Supplement, a scheme where the Government tops up the income of low-wage workers, some grassroots leaders argued that low-wage workers should be given strings-free cash vouchers.
'I stood up and said: I am from Taiwan where they give such vouchers. And what happens? It's like giving them fish which is just squandered away,' he recounts.
'We have that comparative perspective,' he says, adding that PRs and new citizens can help supply a broader outlook in grassroots organisations.
But as these recruitment efforts start to bear fruit, grassroots organisations must decide how to galvanise the newcomers without discomfiting the old.
In Sengkang, which has a sizeable population of expatriate Indians, differences have occasionally been all too visible.
Some expatriate Indians were once asked to organise a Deepavali event in the ward, recalls MP Charles Chong. But to these Hindi-speakers, the occasion is known as Diwali - what the festival of lights is called in the north of India. Subsequently, publicity materials identifying the event as 'Diwali', including a banner, were produced.
Local Indians are largely Tamil-speaking, originating from Tamil Nadu in the south of India.
'Some locals got upset,' says Mr Chong, referring to the Diwali-Deepavali mix-up. 'We had to tell them, in Singapore, Tamil is the official language.'
'They may cause offence without knowing it,' he says, adding, 'sometimes we cause them offence also without knowing it.'
His grassroots leaders have been very successful in attracting PRs and new citizens, thanks in part to people like Mr Vijay Badami, 52, a business development manager and citizen since 2004.
In Sengkang, events like a party for the North Indian dance festival Dandiya and a Cricket League have been resounding successes.
As Mr Vijay tells it, the Dandiya event had to rely on word of mouth when it was first held in 2005 because Indian expatriates rarely went to the CC, where it was advertised on notice boards. About 100 guests attended.
Over the years, it has gone from strength to strength. Last October, over a thousand tickets for the event were sold. It had to be held over three days.
The cricket league, another brainwave from the new citizen grassroots leaders, has grown from 40 players in 2008 to 150 now.
When asked if local Indians participated, Mr Vijay says that 'they don't have much interest in this game'. Local Indians mostly prefer football, he adds.
There are MPs, however, who staunchly refuse to sanction their grassroots organisations to fund events for only one particular group.
Ang Mo Kio GRC MP Lee Bee Wah is one. Her grassroots activists, of whom 15 per cent are PRs and new citizens, does not organise events which are nationality or ethnic-centric, she says.
(Kojakbt: Any more mistakes from Lee Bee Wah and she can kiss her chance for running in the next erection goodbye liao)
'We don't want them to segregate. We invite them to mix with the locals,' she emphasises. 'We want them to think of themselves as part of Singapore. Rather than have one particular group of nationals come together, we come together as Nee Soon South,' she says, referring to her ward.
Mr Vijay defends his grassroots activities against any charge of segregation. Before his committee came up with events to appeal to Indian expatriates, only local Indians would come. Now that his committee has added multicultural and multilingual touches, attendance has shot up.
For example, the annual Sengkang CC's Deepavali event now has two MCs - one speaking in Tamil, and the other in Hindi. Whenever there is a Tamil dance performance, a Hindi Bollywood one follows it.
'When we did this, the response was fantastic,' he says. 'Previously, we had great difficulty filling up chairs.'
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