Speech by President Tony Tan Keng Yam at the 2015 President's Scholarships Award Ceremony on Friday, 14 August 2015 at The Istana
The 2015 PSC Scholarships Award Ceremony was held at the Grand Copthorne Waterfront Hotel on 21 July 2015.
Keynote Address by Mr Teo Chee Hean, Deputy Prime Minister, Minister in charge of the Civil Service and Coordinating Minister for National Security and Minister for Home Affairs, at the 2015 PSC Scholarships Award Ceremony on 21 July 2015
Five outstanding young people have been awarded the Lee Kuan Yew Scholarship this year.
Deputy Prime Minister Teo Chee Hean
and Mrs Teo
Minister for Education Heng Swee Keat
Chairman and Members of the Public Service Commission
Ladies and Gentlemen
Good evening. Every year, the President’s Scholarship is awarded to outstanding young Singaporeans who are committed to public service. Recipients of the President’s Scholarship represent the best in their cohort, and display exceptional qualities beyond academic achievements – servant leadership, uprightness of character and a steadfast drive to improve the lives of others in the community.
2015 President’s Scholars
This evening, four outstanding young men and women have pledged to give their utmost for the continued success of our nation. They are Miss Lim Shu Qi Clara, Miss Lim Tze Etsuko, Second Lieutenant Russell Ewe Yuhang and Probationary Inspector Tan Kuan Hian.
Clara will be the first President’s Scholarship recipient in nine years to read Engineering. Etsuko will read Law and join the Singapore Legal Service upon graduation. Russell will be serving in the Singapore Armed Forces and Kuan Hian in the Singapore Police Force. Russell will be reading Politics and Philosophy, and Kuan Hian Liberal Arts.
I congratulate each of you on being recognised by the Public Service Commission for your leadership potential, commitment to service and strong desire to contribute to Singapore’s prosperity and progress.
I would also like to acknowledge your families, principals, teachers and friends for their continued support, and their roles in developing your potential and shaping your character and values.
Beyond SG50: What Lies Ahead
A few days ago, we came together as one people to celebrate Singapore’s 50th year of independence. It was a remarkable milestone for our nation.
We have much to be proud of – a strong SAF that protects our country’s sovereignty; an effective Home Team that keeps our community safe; and an education system that is highly praised worldwide. We have a thriving economy which continues to attract foreign investments, and we are a leading hub for innovation, technology and entrepreneurship.
We have our pioneers to thank for Singapore’s achievements and success. With grit and determination, they overcame the odds and laid the foundation on which many of our accomplishments today are built. We must recognise that we are beneficiaries of the labour of our pioneers, and that we are responsible for continuing to improve Singapore for future generations. We must not, and cannot rest on our laurels, despite what we have achieved.
Leading Singapore to an Even Brighter Future
As recipients of the President’s Scholarship, you carry the important mission of continuing the legacy of our forefathers, and leading Singapore to greater heights. In a more diverse Singapore society, you will need a discerning mind, to think critically through the issues and challenges confronting Singapore and our people, and to formulate policies which will serve the interests of Singaporeans. You must engage and understand citizens at all levels, encourage and harness new ideas to serve the people, and place the nation’s continued progress as your top priority.
The responsibilities placed on you are high and I encourage you to seize every opportunity to do good, especially towards those who are less privileged. Beyond achieving economic success for our country, lead by example in building a caring society.
In all that you do, remember to uphold the principles which undergird our Public Service – Integrity, Service and Excellence.
Conclusion
You have come in a long tradition of President’s Scholars, so many of whom have done us proud with their achievements in the universities they went to and in their Civil Service careers.
By accepting the President’s Scholarship today, you have also accepted the responsibility that goes with it.
We hope that you will preserve and protect the best of what has made the Public Service and our nation strong, while innovating and improving so that the Service stays relevant to serving Singapore into the future.
Clara, Etsuko, Russell and Kuan Hian - I am confident that you will live up to the expectations placed on you and contribute to bringing Singapore to greater heights.
Thank you.
KEYNOTE ADDRESS BY DEPUTY PRIME MINISTER, MINISTER IN CHARGE OF THE CIVIL SERVICE, COORDINATING MINISTER FOR NATIONAL SECURITY AND MINISTER FOR HOME AFFAIRS, MR TEO CHEE HEAN AT THE PUBLIC SERVICE COMMISSION SCHOLARSHIPS AWARD CEREMONY ON 21 JULY 2015, 6.40PM AT GRAND COPTHORNE WATERFRONT HOTEL GRAND BALLROOM
Mr Eddie Teo, Chairman of the Public Service Commission
Members of the PSC
Distinguished Guests
Parents, Ladies and Gentlemen
1. Good evening. First of all, congratulations to the 75 scholarship recipients at today’s PSC Scholarships Award Ceremony. I also congratulate your families, principals and teachers whose support and guidance have been instrumental in helping you to develop and to grow.
Building on the Foundations Laid by Our Pioneers
2. This year marks the 50th year of our nation’s independence. In the past 50 years, our public officers have worked closely with our political leadership and Singaporeans in our nation-building journey – from Third World to First. From living in cramped conditions in squatter settlements, and in kampungs without sanitation and utilities in our early days, building one flat every 50 minutes, to arrive at our modern public housing estates today. Building one school a month in the early years, and gradually improving the quality of our teachers so that our students receive a good education that prepares them for further education and the job market. Attracting investments and creating good job opportunities for Singaporeans, bringing unemployment down from 10% in 1965, to 2% today. Cleaning up crime and corruption to have a safe and secure Home. Having our sovereignty protected by a nascent Singapore Armed Forces with the first batch of full-time National Servicemen called up and officers commissioned in 1967, to the capable, internationally respected armed forces today.
3. The work of our public officers has transformed the lives of Singaporeans – bringing peace, progress and prosperity. Compared to our early years, Singaporeans today enjoy a better standard of living, have better-paying jobs in a more diversified economy, and feel safer and more secure as they go about their daily lives.
4. All this would not have been possible without able, honest and dedicated public officers – serving in and leading the Public Service. Because our Pioneer and subsequent generations of public officers painstakingly built up the values, systems, processes and infrastructure in the Service, we now have an effective, efficient and trusted Public Service that is well-regarded at home and abroad. Leaders and officials from other countries are keen to understand how we do things in the Singapore Public Service, and see what they can adapt and apply to their own countries.
5. But our Public Service cannot stand still. The Public Service is continually seeking to improve, to be more effective, to serve Singaporeans better, working with political leaders and Singaporeans to create a brighter future together. This is the cornerstone of our nation-building journey and why we are in the Public Service – putting Singaporeans at the centre of all that we do.
Building an Even Better Public Service for the Future
6. 50 years on, the issues that we face today are different, but no less challenging. How can we take better care of the less fortunate to ensure that all Singaporeans benefit from the fruits of development? How can we help Singaporeans to deepen their skills throughout life, and not just while in school? How do we overcome our resource constraints, and turn vulnerabilities into strengths? How do we take care of our aging population and support Singaporeans in their aspirations to raise a family? How do we restructure our economy and jobs to meet the aspirations of an increasingly well-educated population? We need to ask and answer questions like these, not just within the Public Service, but also more importantly through consultation and dialogue sessions like the “Our Singapore Conversation”, co-creating the policies and programmes with fellow Singaporeans. And working with them to make these programmes succeed for all.
7. The Public Service continues to play a key role in this next phase of our nation-building journey. Whether we can continue to have a good Public Service for the next 50 years and beyond depends very much on whether we can continue to attract, develop and retain good people in the Service.
8. The PSC scholarship remains an important channel to bring in young people who choose to become public officers at the start of their careers. And each year, PSC scholarships are awarded on merit, regardless of financial background, to deserving young men and women who demonstrate a commitment and passion to serve our country. The key tenet of meritocracy allows the Commission to select from among the young people every year who have the heart to serve Singapore who have the heart to serve Singapore and Singaporeans.
9. From this year, we are unifying the PSC’s Overseas Merit Scholarship, Local-Overseas Merit Scholarship and Singapore Government Scholarship into a single “PSC Scholarship”. This is in line with the establishment of the Public Service Leadership Programme (PSLP) through which our officers with high potential, including our PSC scholarship recipients, will now be recruited. The PSC will focus on selecting candidates with a clear potential for the Public Service Leadership Programme or PSLP.
10. PSLP officers in the General Phase will gain experience in different aspects of public sector work. Subsequently, some will proceed on the more sectorally specialised track of the PSLP, develop and grow deep domain expertise. Others will go on to the Administrative Service and take up cross-sectoral postings across the Public Service. This allows the Public Service to have a range of officers with skills that complement each other – some with deep domain expertise, while others have experience integrating whole-of-government policy and execution across sectors and agencies.
11. Through development programmes and career opportunities provided under the PSLP, the Public Service will build up a core of officers and leaders who collectively have the depth and the breadth to tackle the more complex and inter-connected challenges facing Singapore. This will ensure that the Public Service is well-placed to serve Singaporeans in the years to come.
12. But the PSC scholarship is only one channel to attract good people to join the Public Service. The Public Service welcomes all candidates who have the right skills, passion and motivation to serve Singaporeans. The PSLP draws from officers currently working in our Government agencies, people with prior work experience in the private sector, as well as fresh graduates seeking their first job. Indeed, these three groups accounted for a third of the officers appointed to the PSLP General Phase in 2014.
Preparing for the Future
13. The PSLP and the changes to the PSC Scholarship are aimed at ensuring that we will continue to have a Public Service that is ready to tackle the challenges of the future. As this year’s scholarship recipients, you are joining the Public Service at an exciting time. We need public officers like you to analyse issues deeply, and develop innovative solutions; to understand Singaporeans’ needs better, and work with Singaporeans to develop better solutions; to work with one another, within your own ministries and agencies, and across the whole of government.
14. In the work that you do, remember to uphold the Public Service values of Integrity, Service and Excellence. Remember that you have a responsibility to make the lives of Singaporeans better, to make Singapore better than what it is today, so that we can progress towards SG100 with hope and optimism.
15. I wish you all the best as you embark on your studies, and look forward to your contributions when you return to serve in the Singapore Public Service.
16. Congratulations. Thank you.
Standing (L to R): Mr Seow Zhixiang, MAJ Ingkiriwang Shawn Wei Zhong, SLTC Tan Yueh Phern
Sitting (L to R): Miss Yong Yoek Ling, Miss Harpreet Kaur Dhillon
The Lee Kuan Yew Scholarship was set up in 1991 by the Tanjong Pagar Citizens’ Consultative Committee with funding from the public, to commemorate the contributions made by Mr Lee Kuan Yew to Singapore.
Five outstanding young people have been awarded the scholarship this year to pursue their post-graduate studies:
1.Miss Harpreet Kaur Dhillon – Pursuing Masters of Laws at New York University, USA
2.MAJ Ingkiriwang Shawn Wei Zhong - Pursuing Tsinghua-MIT Global MBA at Tsinghua University, PRC
3. Mr Seow Zhixiang – Pursuing Bachelor of Civil Law at the University of Oxford, UK
4.SLTC Tan Yueh Phern – Pursuing Master of Science in Management for Experienced Leaders at Stanford University, USA
5.Miss Yong Yoek Ling – Pursuing Master in Education at Harvard University, USA
Applicants for the Lee Kuan Yew Scholarship must be Singapore citizens and have an outstanding track record of leadership and service within or beyond their profession. Lee Kuan Yew Scholarship holders can pursue postgraduate studies overseas or locally in various fields to develop their potential as leaders. The scholarship holders are expected to actively contribute towards the betterment of Singapore, Singaporeans and the community.