Let S’poreans have say on citizenship applications: MPs

SINGAPORE — Between five and 10 Singaporeans’ endorsements should be sought before a new immigrant is granted citizenship here — a suggestion several Members of Parliament (MPs) proposed during the Prime Minister’s Office’s Committee of Supply debate yesterday.

Mr Ang Wei Neng (Jurong GRC) suggested having 10 Singaporean “community assentors”, such as the applicant’s colleagues and neighbours, even though the applicant may have satisfied the eligibility criteria.

He noted that the cantons in Switzerland are practising such a system. “If we are accepting newcomers to join the Singaporean core, surely it makes sense for existing members of the core to express their views on the matter,” Mr Ang argued.

He added that there could be rules to safeguard the scheme, such as requiring the assentors to come from different racial groups or having to be Singaporean citizens by birth.

Mr Sitoh Yih Pin (Potong Pasir), who suggested that there should be 10 Singaporean citizens supporting a bid, added that the backers should be citizens for at least five years.

Dr Fatimah Lateef (Marine Parade GRC) felt that the decision to become a citizen of a country is “a long-term decision” and Singaporeans should be engaged and their inputs sought. “This is in line with giving Singaporeans a stake in the decision-making process and empowering them,” she said.

Noting these suggestions, Deputy Prime Minister Teo Chee Hean said the Government will consider them, as well as look at other criteria, such as an applicant’s ability to speak English or his involvement in the community, as it fine-tunes its framework. “These are possible ways to encourage integration and indicate how well an applicant has adapted to Singaporean norms, values and lifestyle.”

During the debate, MP Zainal Sapari (Pasir Ris-Punggol GRC) felt that there could be more stringent measures in selecting new migrants as citizens.

Besides involving Singaporeans and community leaders in the process, he added that the Government can consider a citizenship test to ensure the applicant understands Singapore laws and the culture here.

Responding to Workers’ Party MPs Sylvia Lim and Pritam Singh (Aljunied GRC), who called for greater transparency in the country’s immigration process and data, Mr Teo said the specific criteria is not revealed by the Government so as not to encourage individuals to tailor their applications artificially — in line with most countries’ practices.

Mr Teo pointed out that information pertaining to population is publicly available. However, there would be instances when details will not be given out. For example, the immigrants’ profiles were released according to geographic regions, instead of specific countries.

“In some cases, we provide aggregated information or data instead of a more detailed breakdown because it may not be in our interest to do so,” he said. “There may be implications on certain groups of persons, or create sensitivities in the countries of origin of those who are working here or those who have migrated here.”