Recently I had an encounter from a business associate whom I have known for over a decade. I do not wish to discriminate or pinpoint certain countries as it could happen to anyone from anywhere.
Cut short to the 'chase' .He Whatsapped (social media chat app) me ouf of the blue and after the pleasantries of about 5 sentences, he proceeded to ask me if I could help his niece who had recently graduated from a foreign university and wanted to apply for a job in Singapore under the SPass program.
I quickly told him my company did not meet the criteria of having the minimum number of Singaporeans to qualify for an SPass worker. In addition, my company uses an outsourced Corporate Secretary and internal auditor to provide submissions for GST and Fiscal Year end reporting.
I also told him not to bother about applying for the jobs, given the much stricter regulations and the current public mood about taking care of Singaporeans welfare above the foreign 'talent' first and foremost.
This lead to his second question whereby he asked for me to vouch for his 'son' as a referee as he was applying for a place at the National University of Singapore.
I did not bother to reply him for the 2 reasons :
a) he did not bother to cultivate any friendship over the years, except when he wanted something for his benefit.
b) his expectation that the friendship continues at his expense and nothing else stuck me as shallow.
It then dawned upon me, that as a father with 2 grown children, one who is working and another in the final year of his university, Singapore,while reliant on foreign 'talent' to achieve its goals for GDP growth has a problem in the the fertility growth rate and has an aging population. In addition, while new migrants are coming in to Singapore, they are normally of a certain mindset captured in 3 points (or at least 2 of the 3) :
> hungry and driven
> clever
> use their connections to get ahead.
So, for our Singapore children who go through the education process and achieve an ITE certificate, Polytechnic diploma or University degree, they are competing for jobs in the marketplace against many from the region with the above 3 traits. Our Government has to offer some form of 'leg up' for our children in the form of
a) access to grants for post graduate education
b) give SME employers as much incentives in the form of :
1. hiring grants
2. productivity grants
3. internship and placement grants
to help our Singaporeans first and foremost.
The marketplace is not for the 'cruisers' nor the entitled happy go lucky. It is brutal and dog eat dog out there.
It is high time our children abandon their 'entitled' mindset and strive to achieve the best that life can offer them. Take whatever is being offered with both hands, use their brains and compete with the best of them. They have a choice to make, and they need to make that choice wisely.
Or else, they will be cast aside and go down the slope of economic disillusionment.
The cause is urgent and pressing.
