Keynote Address by Deputy Prime Minister Mr Teo Chee Hean at the 2010 PSC Scholarships Award Ceremony on 24 July 2010, 2.30pm at Shangri-La Hotel

Mr Eddie Teo, Chairman, Public Service Commission

Distinguished guests, principals, parents, teachers, scholarship recipients

Ladies and gentlemen

         It is my pleasure to join you today at the PSC Scholarships Ceremony. First, let me congratulate the 70 recipients who will be receiving one of the country’s most prestigious scholarships. Let me also thank the parents, principals and teachers for teaching, nurturing and mentoring these fine young men and women to who they are today. You should be proud of them.

2       To our award winners, accepting your PSC scholarship means that you have decided on a career to serve the people of Singapore and to make a real difference in their lives. Today marks the start of your journey as an officer in the Singapore Public Service.

3       In 1973 I was in your very same position, as I made the commitment to take up a PSC scholarship and join the Singapore Armed Forces. Looking back, it was possibly the best decision that I have made because I believe what I am today has been shaped very much by the wide range of challenging experiences in my twenty years in the SAF.

THE SINGAPORE PUBLIC SERVICE

4       As a member of the Singapore Public Service, you can serve with pride. Internationally, the Singapore Public Service is well-regarded. The Political and Economic Risk Consultancy or PERC, recently rated our Public Service as the most efficient Civil Service in Asia. The 2010 World Competitiveness Yearbook by the International Institute for Management Development in Switzerland rated Singapore 2nd in the world for government efficiency. We frequently receive requests from civil services from other countries to study our system and to have exchanges with us. They know that having an efficient and effective, clean and committed public service is key to their countries’ economic competitiveness, social development and the betterment of the lives of their people.

5       They acknowledge the high calibre of our public officers and want to learn how we attract, retain and develop them. They want to know how we make the Public Service an attractive career option for our bright young people and are able to keep our Public Service nimble and forward-looking. They are impressed by how our public officers from different government agencies have been able to work together as one government, and how our officers remain clean and trustworthy. Quite a few countries send their civil servants, at their own expense, to be trained at our Civil Service College – they want to find out the “secret” of how this is done.

6       While all these accolades are good testaments of what we have achieved to date and say much about the professionalism of our Public Service, we cannot take our success and reputation for granted. What is clear to us and many of our visitors is that the quality of the Public Service is only as good as the calibre of the people we bring into it – people with the passion, commitment and understanding that when they join the Public Service, it is not for self gratification but for the long term interest of the country. And this is the real test - not the accolades we receive from ranking tables and foreign visitors – but whether we are making a positive difference to the lives and future of our fellow Singaporeans. That is the ultimate goal and the ultimate source of satisfaction for our public officers which no other career in Singapore can offer.

7       The Public Service Commission has assessed that you have the potential to excel in the Public Service and to contribute to the nation based on your record of leadership, social consciousness and intellectual ability thus far. The PSC sees your potential; the Public Service will help you grow it; but you have the responsibility to realise it.

8       What are the qualities that we are looking for?

A PIPELINE OF STRONG LEADERS FOR THE PUBLIC SERVICE

9       Some of you may be aware that recently, the Public Service Division launched a book entitled “Pioneers Once More: The Singapore Public Service 1959-2009”. The book chronicles stories of previous generations of passionate and committed public officers over the past 50 years. Many of them dared to try new ideas and persevered even when faced with daunting challenges. There are many inspirational stories in the book that make us proud of their contributions. Some worked with more visibility in the public; many more worked tirelessly behind the scenes. It is people like them, working with the political leadership, who have helped make Singapore what it is today. I am quite sure that a number of these public officers when they looked back, must have also felt, with quiet satisfaction and pride, that they and their colleagues have each played a part in making a difference to Singapore.

10       We want you to be inspired and feel a sense of pride in belonging to this Public Service that you have decided to join. We are thus presenting each of you with a copy of the book so that it may serve as a guide and inspiration to you as you begin your own journey in the public service, and help take Singapore into the future.

11       The challenges of the future will be even more complex than in the past. Issues are rarely single dimensional; they are often multi-faceted. For example, SARS and more recently the H1N1 pandemic were not merely health issues – we had to quarantine those affected so it was a housing problem as well. It also became an education issue when some students were affected and schools had to be closed and classes rescheduled. It was a logistics issue as we had to suddenly buy more than a million thermometers for every student and every household, and stock up on protective gear for our doctors and nurses. It was a technology issue as we had to develop IT systems to do contact tracing and infra-red sensors for rapid fever detection. And it was a public communication and community bonding issue as public confidence had to be maintained.

12       Many challenges are no longer localised but globalised. For example, the recent Icelandic volcanic ash problem did not just cause chaos in many cities in the path of the ash, but also massive disruption to air travel and air freight worldwide. There are many more examples like these, some immediate and dramatic, others longer term but more insidious, be it climate change, global economic meltdown, terrorism and so on.

13       Because of the nature, complexity and scale of such challenges, all the more must we continue to have public officers who can anticipate the future, but who are equally aware that there can always be surprises that we did not anticipate. We need people who are curious and bold to explore new ideas. We must have officers and institutions that are nimble and adaptable to changing circumstances. We require officers who are in touch with what is happening around us, in the capitals of the world, and in the heartlands of Singapore. Traditionally, public officers are great problem solvers; in future they must also be able to identify and seize opportunities for the long term interest of Singapore.

14       It is with this in mind that since the inception of the Public Service Commission scholarships in 1961, the PSC has been offering scholarships to the best and brightest in every cohort to groom them to serve Singapore through a career in the Public Service. Over the last 49 years, PSC scholarships have been effective in providing top-tier talent for our Public Service to lead an effective and responsive Public Service committed to improving the lives of the people in Singapore.

PREPARING YOURSELF FOR A CAREER IN THE PUBLIC SERVICE

15       Your journey into a Public Service career begins today. Over the next few years as you pursue your studies, make full use of the time and opportunities to train your mind, build your character and hone your leadership skills. Over time, you will realise that it is not so much the course of study that will determine your usefulness to the Public Service but rather the rigour of your learning process. Go out of your comfort zone in your learning. Enjoy your new environment. Learn from your professors and debate with your peers. Open your eyes and ears to the diversity of views, needs and aspirations of the people around you. Learn how to be discerning, and to relate theory to real world practical application especially to the context of Singapore. Remember too that in all your exchanges and interactions, you will be ambassadors of the Singapore Public Service, and of Singapore.

16       In short, use the next few years to nurture a mind and heart that will prepare you for a career in the Singapore Public Service.

CONCLUSION

17       Many cohorts of Public Officers have journeyed on the path that you are now taking, dedicating themselves to working towards a first class Public Service that is committed to creating a brighter future for Singapore.

18       I wish you success in the years ahead.