CHAPTER 3: REVISION

PART 1: THE ROLE OF THE GOVERNMENT IN SOCIETY

A. Maintaining Internal Order

1. An important role of the government in working for the good of society is the role of
maintaining internal order.
2. The government maintains internal order through the Ministry of Home Affairs which
establishes agencies such as the police, prisons and civil defence forces to protect
citizens, property and whatever society believes should be protected.
3. E.g. The Singapore Police Force protects the people from crime and all manner of
criminal harm. Another example, the Singapore Civil Defence Force provides fire-
fighting, rescue and emergency medical services, among others.
4. By performing this role, the government creates a safe environment which is important
for the people to go about their day to day activities like work, school and recreation.
5. A safe environment is important for the economy to grow. It also attracts foreign
investors to invest in Singapore.
6. This will create more jobs for Singaporeans.

B. Maintaining External Security

1. An important role of the government in working for the good of society is the role of
maintaining external security.
2. The government maintains external security through the Ministry of Defence (MINDEF)
and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MFA).
3. The government combines both deterrence and diplomacy to ensure that Singapore is
safe from external threats.
4. MINDEF comprises the Army, Navy and Air Force. Their main role is to deter external
aggressors and if deterrence fails, they are capable of securing a swift and decisive
victory. They are well-trained, well-equipped with the latest weapons and they have
military cooperation with the security forces of other countries
5. The MFA assists in maintaining Singapore’s external security through diplomacy.
6. It does this by forming strong partnerships at the bilateral and multilateral levels and
by positioning Singapore as a responsible and constructive member of the
international community.
7. E.g. the MFA shares Singapore’s developmental experience with other countries
through the Singapore Cooperation Programme.
8. Strong friendly ties can increase understanding and prevent conflict. If conflict arises,
the strong ties will enable peaceful methods to be used to deal with the conflict.
9. Maintaining external security is important because it ensures that the country’s
sovereignty is not threatened and its national interests are protected. Other countries
will not dare to infringe on our rights even though we are a small country. Not only
can we defend ourselves, we also have friends all around the world to support us.
10. When external security is ensured, citizens will be able to concentrate on their normal
lives and on contributing to the development of the country because they do not need
to live in fear of external threats. Foreign investors will also be attracted to invest in
the country because of lower risks, thus ensuring the country’s economic
development.

1
 C. Ensuring Justice

1. Another important role of the government in working for the good of society is ensuring
justice.
2. This is done through the Judiciary which independently interprets and applies the laws
passed by Parliament.
3. With the presence of the Judiciary, Singaporeans will have confidence that the courts
will judge people fairly and those who commit crimes will be dealt with accordingly.
4. E.g, the Family Justice Courts provides relevant information and takes action to protect
Singaporeans in the event of family violence.
5. A victim can apply for Personal Protection Order (PPO) which enables the courts to take
action such as by preventing the abuser from entering the applicant’s house or part of
the house.
6. In this way, the victim’s safety is ensured.
7. Ensuring justice is important in meeting the needs of Singaporeans because they know
that the law is on the side of law-abiding citizens, and that criminals or offenders will
be punished when they commit crimes against others.
8. This fulfils the citizens’ need for a safe environment where they can go about their daily
activities knowing that the law will protect them if they become victims of crimes.

D. Safeguarding the interests of citizens

1. Another important role of the government is safeguarding the interests of citizens.

2. The government does this by implementing legislations (or laws) that safeguard the
interests of Singaporeans.
3. For example the government introduced the WorkRight Initiative to ensure that
there is no abuse by employers.
4. It helps both employees and employers understand their rights and responsibilities.
5. It helps to create awareness of employment rights amongst low-wage workers and
better ensure retirement security for low-wage workers.
6. Another example is the government introduced the CPF or Central Provident Fund
and CPF Life Schemes to ensure that Singaporeans have a sense of security in old
age.
7. The CPF Scheme refers to the savings accumulated by Singaporeans when they
start working, and the savings are used to meet the needs of Singaporeans when
they retire.
8. CPF LIFE was introduced in 2009 to provide Singaporeans with monthly payout in
retirement for as long as they live.
9. By having policies like CPF and CPF LIFE to take care of the financial adequacy of
Singaporeans after they retire, the government provides Singaporeans with peace of
mind and enables Singaporeans to develop confidence in the future and stability of
the country.
10.This is especially important because life expectancy in Singapore has increased and
Singaporeans need to have more savings to last them though a longer retirement.

2
D. Providing goods and services for the public

1. Another important role of the government is providing goods and services for the
public.
2. The government devotes significant resources in order to provide goods and
services that are important to the citizen’s well-being. This includes
transportation, education, water, electricity, housing, and healthcare. These goods
and services are provided at a subsidized rate so that all citizens can have access to
them.
3. An example of a service provided for the public is transportation. In Singapore, the
government has developed a people-centred public transport system. Over the
years, more bus interchanges, bus stops, taxi stands and MRT lines and stations
have been added and are located near residential and commercial areas for easy
access.
4. The goods and services for the public provided by the government are important in
improving the well-being of citizens. Cheap, convenient, and efficient forms of
public transportation are essential in the people’s daily lives, to go to school, work,
and so on.
5. In land scarce Singapore where private car ownership is expensive and
discouraged, it is essential to have an efficient public transport system that is
affordable and accessible to all.
6. Like transportation, education, water, electricity, health services and housing are
all vital to the well-being of citizens and they must be efficiently provided by the
government.

PART 2: ROLE OF CITIZENS IN SOCIETY

A. Contributing to the needs of society

1. An important role of citizens is to contribute to the needs of society.

2. This means improving and maintaining the well-being of society.
3. Citizens can do this by volunteering their time, effort and money to meaningful
social causes that they care about. This can be individually or in organised groups.
4. E.g., in 2013, Ms Elisa Ng started a programme called “A litter at a time” to
encourage citizens to pick up a piece of litter a day. This example shows that
citizens have a role to play in improving the environment and thus improve
everyone’s lives.
5. Another example was during the haze crisis in 2013. A university student, Mr
Jeremy Chua, started a Facebook page called “SG Haze Rescue”. He asked people
to donate their excess masks. Hundreds responded and even volunteered to help
distribute the masks. This shows that individuals can come together as informal
groups and identify what society needs to solve a problem. Their efforts
contributed to the needs of society because it ensured that Singaporeans remained
healthy during the haze crisis.
6. The citizens’ role of contributing to the needs of society is important because it will
benefit many people directly because the improvements can be felt immediately.
Secondly, when citizens get together as organised groups to contribute, the
combined efforts will be more effective in improving the situation. Thirdly, when
citizens help others, they strengthen the bond with people whose life improved as a
result of the help given. They will realise that they live in a caring society. This will
strengthen their sense of belonging and social harmony will also be strengthened.

3
 B. Influencing Government Decisions

1. An important role of citizens is to influence government decisions.

2. This means people can give feedback and suggestions to influence the government’s
decisions and plans.
3. Citizens’ constructive feedback and suggestions can help to fine-tune or improve
government’s decisions or plans.
4. E.g. in ‘Our Singapore Conversation’ in 2012, Singaporeans took part in
discussions to share their views and ideas with the government about what matters
to Singapore. Their ideas have helped the government to make future plans for
Singapore that are more in line with the citizens’ hopes and wishes.
5. Another example is in 2011, two NGOs working in the interests of migrant workers,
HOME and TWC2, recommended that foreign domestic workers be given one day off
a week in recognition for the work they do. When the foreign domestic workers get
a day off each week, they get to rest and feel that their Singapore employers are not
exploiting them. Thus, they will be more willing to do a good job in looking after
the people under their care.
6. Influencing government decisions is important because when the government uses
citizens’ feedback and suggestions, the needs of the people will be met more
accurately. They help the government to refine policies and focus on areas which
require more attention. The people will thus benefit and they will be more
supportive of government policies.
7. The people will also feel a greater sense of belonging because their ideas and
feedback are valued by the government. All this are important in contributing to
social, political and economic stability.

C. Strengthening citizens’ sense of belonging

1. An important role of citizens is to strengthen citizens’ sense of belonging.

This happens when citizens are given the opportunity to engage the government to
share and discuss their views about current or future policies.
When citizens give their feedback or views in a responsible and constructive manner, it
will ensure that the ideas given are relevant and can be considered by the government
to shape policies.
2. Doing this will strengthen citizens’ sense of belonging. This means they feel a greater
sense of attachment towards Singapore because they have played a part in shaping
government policies.
3. E.g. the media, especially social media such as Facebook and Instagram, has been
used by the government to give citizens the opportunity to clarify or provide feedback
on national issues and policies.
4. Other channels to provide feedback to the government include REACH which stands for
Reaching Everyone for Active Citizenry @ Home. Citizens can provide feedback on
social issues through the feedback pages found in other media platforms and websites
of government ministries or government agencies.
5. When the government seriously considers the people’s feedback, it will make them feel
that the government values their ideas. This will strengthen the citizens’ sense of
belonging to the country.

4
5