Following the raising of the idea of a pre-citizenship test by PAP MP Madam Halimah Yacob in parliament last Monday, the state media has been actively selling the idea to Singaporeans.
The Sunday Times even conducted a mock test for 50 locals and foreigners and it turned out that the former did not fare much better than the latter group.
The test consists of 10 questions ranging from Singapore’s colonial history to its public holidays with the respondent scoring an average score of just five out of 10. None got all 10 answers right.
Overall, the scores of the 36 Singa-poreans aged between 13 and 64 who were polled hovered around the six-point mark.
They fared better than the 14 foreigners, whose length of stay varied between two days and 14 years. These non-Singaporeans scored anywhere between zero and a respectable seven.
While Singaporeans are getting increasingly worried about the rate of inflow of foreigners, the government is more concerned about the rate of integration among new citizens.
According to the National Population Secretariat, there are more than 20,000 new citizens and 70,000 PRs last year. Home Affairs Minister Wong Kan Seng revealed that two out of every three PR applicants are successful.
A $10-million Community Integration Fund, probably the first of its kind in the world, was launched lately to make the newcomers feel welcomed in Singapore.
The fund offers free language courses to prospective migrants who do not have to take a basic English proficiency test before they are allowed to work and live in Singapore unlike in other countries like Australia and Canada.
Due to the rising resentment on the ground at the relentless influx of foreigners, the senior leaders have tried to reassure Singaporeans that their interests will be “protected”. However, they did not promise to reduce the inflow of foreigners other than to “tweak” it.
The pre-citizenship test will have no impact on the current rate of immigration which will see Singaporeans becoming a minority in the next few decades should it continue unabated. Already, foreigners make up 36 per cent of the population, up from 14 per cent in 1990.
The increasing numbers of new citizens will form the next generation of voters many of whom are likely to vote for the ruling party thereby ensuring its political hegemony.
The fact is not lost on the PAP which has been actively courting the new citizens and “recruiting” them into grassroots organizations like RCs.
Minister of Community, Youth and Sports Dr Vivian Balakrishnan quipped lately that he is “happy” that 4,500 new citizens are serving as grassroots leaders in various estates.
Singaporeans may soon become the one to take the pre-citizenship test to “re-integrate” themselves into a new Singapore dominated by foreigners and the newcomers.
The Sunday Times even conducted a mock test for 50 locals and foreigners and it turned out that the former did not fare much better than the latter group.
The test consists of 10 questions ranging from Singapore’s colonial history to its public holidays with the respondent scoring an average score of just five out of 10. None got all 10 answers right.
Overall, the scores of the 36 Singa-poreans aged between 13 and 64 who were polled hovered around the six-point mark.
They fared better than the 14 foreigners, whose length of stay varied between two days and 14 years. These non-Singaporeans scored anywhere between zero and a respectable seven.
While Singaporeans are getting increasingly worried about the rate of inflow of foreigners, the government is more concerned about the rate of integration among new citizens.
According to the National Population Secretariat, there are more than 20,000 new citizens and 70,000 PRs last year. Home Affairs Minister Wong Kan Seng revealed that two out of every three PR applicants are successful.
A $10-million Community Integration Fund, probably the first of its kind in the world, was launched lately to make the newcomers feel welcomed in Singapore.
The fund offers free language courses to prospective migrants who do not have to take a basic English proficiency test before they are allowed to work and live in Singapore unlike in other countries like Australia and Canada.
Due to the rising resentment on the ground at the relentless influx of foreigners, the senior leaders have tried to reassure Singaporeans that their interests will be “protected”. However, they did not promise to reduce the inflow of foreigners other than to “tweak” it.
The pre-citizenship test will have no impact on the current rate of immigration which will see Singaporeans becoming a minority in the next few decades should it continue unabated. Already, foreigners make up 36 per cent of the population, up from 14 per cent in 1990.
The increasing numbers of new citizens will form the next generation of voters many of whom are likely to vote for the ruling party thereby ensuring its political hegemony.
The fact is not lost on the PAP which has been actively courting the new citizens and “recruiting” them into grassroots organizations like RCs.
Minister of Community, Youth and Sports Dr Vivian Balakrishnan quipped lately that he is “happy” that 4,500 new citizens are serving as grassroots leaders in various estates.
Singaporeans may soon become the one to take the pre-citizenship test to “re-integrate” themselves into a new Singapore dominated by foreigners and the newcomers.
