Keep momentum from dialogue going: OSC committee member

SINGAPORE — The Our Singapore Conversation (OSC) project may have concluded, but one committee member hopes that Singaporeans will continue to participate in shaping the country’s future.

And one way to keep the momentum going could be to have a modified form of OSC dialogues, which will revolve around specific policy ideas, said Mr Benett Theseira, 48, the Managing Director of a real estate investment company, who joined the 26-member OSC committee after receiving a call from Education Minister Heng Swee Keat, the committee Chairman.

This would provide a “sounding board”, where people who want to make a contribution can come together with others who are like-minded, to “provide a more rounded approach to policymaking”, said Mr Theseira in an interview with TODAY.

The OSC committee released its 48-page report based on the dialogue sessions with about 47,000 Singaporeans last Saturday. Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong is expected to address the top three concerns of healthcare, education and housing that emerged from the OSC sessions at the National Day Rally this Sunday.

Apart from having organised platforms for Singaporeans to participate in, citizens and interest groups also need to be “empowered with information” — access to information is needed for constructive discussions on specific policies, Mr Theseira felt, adding that the formation of more civil society and interest groups should encouraged.

“To some extent we’ve had a very paternalistic Government for the last few decades. And maybe, we are going through this evolutionary process in the relationship between the Government and the people; where people do want to have more of a say in the future of the country,” he said. “Perhaps that’s where some of the unhappiness with people has been — that our system may not have allowed it.”

A former Colombo Plan Scholar, he also serves as the Vice-President of the Singapore Eurasian Association and sits on the National Integration Council. Sharing his experience on the OSC committee, Mr Theseira said dialogue participants were “really keen to contribute to making a difference in ensuring that we have a better future for Singapore”.

He agreed to come on board the committee as he was supportive of the project and felt he could contribute. The tone that Mr Heng set for the project, which was to be consultative, open-minded and not top-down, also convinced him.

As a committee member, he worked with the OSC secretariat to map out the process of the dialogue sessions, and suggested tweaks along the way. Committee members also participated in dialogue session to “get a good pulse of what sentiment is like”.

While he had some scepticism about how effective the OSC would be initially, they were quickly allayed.

“I thought there was a risk that it could be a bit of a complaining session … while there will always be certain grouses or areas of unhappiness, I think the mindset of most of the participants was generally positive (in) trying to make a contribution and trying to find solutions,” he said.

Asked how he planned to keep contributing in future, Mr Theseira said the OSC committee will be meeting in the coming weeks to discuss how they can carry the OSC forward.