september / october 2012

taught the Public Service

What a dog and a Pile

of rubbiShService delivery lessons from the ground

Best Government Publication (Silver)

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The disconcertingly syncopated rhythms of Dubstep emerged in late-1990s south London, and have worked their way into mainstream consciousness since. Manipulation of drum and bass tracks produces the “wubwub” sound seemingly omnipresent in most pieces, which aren’t for the faint-hearted.

If you’ve always wanted to wade into the realm of

classical music or wondered what the Millennials are

listening to, then you’ve come to the right place. Step right in and immerse yourself as we conduct you through, in

1, 2, 3 and…

19 -26pages of must-know music content

September/October 2012

Virtual appearances have existed for years, but the technology shot to prominence when an original Tupac Shakur graphic performed at the Coachella music festival. The dead rapper’s graphic was created out of his videos and photos. With Dr Dre planning on touring with the virtual Tupac, the opportunities for bringing back more dead stars seem endless. Watch Tupac perform with Dr Dre and Snoop Dogg at bit.ly/tupacperforms

If you ever feel like sounding more cultured…Aria: Meaning “air” in Italian, arias are self-contained songs for a solo voice within an opera, for example, Mi Chiamano Mimi from La Boheme.

Soprano: On a scale of vocal ranges from earth-shaking boom to glass-shattering trill, the list goes from bass, baritone, tenor, contralto, mezzo- soprano to soprano. Maria Callas, one of opera’s greatest divas, was a soprano.

Sonata: Music of a particular form containing four distinct movements ranging in melody, rhythm and tempo, most widely developed during the Classical period from 1750 to 1820.

Vivace: A direction for a piece to be played in a lively manner.To find out more, the Austin Symphony has a comprehensive glossary: bit.ly/austinsymphony

Kitaro scrapped a concert here in 1984 because Singapore officials demanded he snip off his luscious locks before they would let him enter, in line with a government campaign against men with long hair.

DID YOU KNOW?

Skrillex is one of the most prominent dubsteppers of our time. Listen at bit.ly/skrillex_dubstep. Check out dubstep pioneer Skream at bit.ly/dubstep_skream. For a more mainstream, dubstep-influenced tune, listen to Britney Spears’s Hold It Against Me at bit.ly/dubstep_britney.

LISTEN

MUSIC ENOUGH TO RAISE THE DEAD

CLASSICAL MUSIC CHEAT SHEET

From This Moment On by Shania Twain – Skip this if you want a unique wedding experience. So overplayed it’s not even funny.

My Heart Will Go On by Celine Dion – Harking to a tragically doomed love story on what should be the happiest day of your life does not bode well.

I Will Always Love You by Whitney Houston – It’s a bit late (and out of place) to be thinking of “bittersweet memories” at your wedding, don’t you think? Avoid this breakup song like the plague.

Get your DJ to steer clear of these popular wedding tunes so

you don’t kill the romance.

DAWN OF DUBSTEP

In the 1998 film The Red Violin, a fabled “perfect violin” travels between hands, leaving love, loss and heartbreak in its wake. With a moving soundtrack from world class violinist Joshua Bell. We guarantee you won’t fall asleep halfway through.

CLASSICAL PERFECTION

PULLOUT

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38 FREE YOUR MIND BEFORE YOU LOSE IT Making a Lasting Power of Attorney could help you do that

HIGHLIGHTS04 NEWS FROM THE SERVICE

VIEWPOINTS02 INBOx Your views on the July/Aug issue of Challenge

03 Your SaY DOES THE PUBLIC SERVICE HAVE A FUNNY BONE? We asked readers for their views

18 Thinking aloud DO YOU KNOW MORE THAN YOUR BOSS? Teo Hee Lian says you should

27 leTTerS To a Young Public officer HONOUR YOUR PROFESSION Ho Peng, Director-General of Education, shares lessons from her teaching career

28 a cuPPa WiTh… “WE HAVE A STRONG ADVERSITY QUOTIENT.” Land Transport Authority chief Chew Hock Yong on the challenges of managing Singapore’s public transportation infrastructure

ON THE JOB36 leVel uP INCUBATING SOCIAL MEDIA COMMUNITIES & ADVOCATES Tips from an engagement strategist

COVEr STOrY08 FROM A DOG AND A PILE OF RUBBISH: PUBLIC SERVICE DELIVERY LESSONS How the Public Service is coping with rising public expectations

FEATUrES05 EMERGING MARKETS TRADE MISSIONARIES Exploring unchartered territories for the good of the nation

14 ONLY STRONG HEARTS NEED APPLY Two frontline staff on the ups and downs of their jobs

16 WORLD’S OLDEST CORRUPTION FIGHTER CPIB celebrates 60 years of fighting corruption

30 LIKE CANARY BIRDS IN THE COAL MINE Artic Circle leaders share what climate change and rapid development have brought to the North Pole

32 A CRADLE FOR INNOVATION Real science takes place at Science Centre Singapore

34 MAKING A BALD STATEMENT Three officers from Vital shave their heads for a good cause

rEST & rELAx

19 The challenge PullouT THE HIGHLY CONDENSED SONGBOOK 8 pages of must-know music content

37 officerS WiTh a PaSSion HE IS A CONSTANT GARDENER An NParks officer with a love for all things green

40 life.STYle SHOPPING FOR NOSTALGIA Retro furniture shops that celebrate the timeless beauty of the past

44 The irreVerenT laST Page THE NO WRONG DOOR POLICY No wrong door, but a long corridor?

Walking in the Public’s ShoesWalking in a public officer’s shoes isn’t easy noWadays. the minute people find out i’m a public officer, they can’t wait to tell me what ’s wrong with the public service. recently an acquaintance said to me, “they make decisions using this,” pointing to her head. “but do they also use this?” she asked, this time pointing to her heart. her question summed up one prevalent public sentiment about us: we lack empathy.

i can understand the public’s frustration sometimes. one example from this issue’s cover story From a Dog and a Pile of Rubbish: Public Service Delivery Lessons tells of how a passer-by had reported that a dog was knocked down by a car, only to be subjected to a whole string of questions about whether the dog was dead or alive, and whether it was lying on the road or the grass. this was to determine which agency was responsible, but incidences like this irritate the public as they are not interested in who is in charge. they just want the problem resolved.

yet, inside these pages you will also find stories of empathetic officers. in A Cuppa With… land transport authority ’s ceo, chew hock yong, shares how he has tasked his senior management team to put themselves in the shoes of the average commuter, so as to come up with better ways of getting around. Only Strong Hearts Need Apply tells of the patience and perseverance of staff at community Mediation centres in getting conflicting parties to the mediation table. in Letters to a Young Public Off icer, director-general of education, ho peng, relates how listening to students, parents and teachers helped her as a principal.

so while we may have some way to go in first-class service delivery, one good way forward may be to take a walk in the public’s shoes. it would

help us to walk a little easier in our own.

happy reading!

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Editortan hui Min

publisherPS21 Office, Public Service Division, Prime Minister’s Office100 high street, #07-01 the treasurysingapore 179434 email : psd_challenge@psd.gov.sgWeb : www.challenge.gov.sg

for enquiries or feedback on challenge, please write to the challenge editorial team at psd_challenge@psd.gov.sg.

Editorial Advisor agnes kwek Editor tan hui MinAssistant Editors ruth lim, christopher teo & geraldine yeohEditorial Assistant eric loy

Tuber Productions Pte Ltd298 river Valley road level 2singapore 238339tel : 6836-4030fax : 6836-4029email : info@tuberproductions.com Web : www.tuberproductions.com

ManagementDirector lee han shihProject Director liew Wei ping

editorialContributing Editor bridgette see Sub-editorbernice tangStaff Writers chen Jingting & siti Maziah MasramliContributors douglas chew, richard hartung, abigail kang, ck koo, ryandall lim, Wong sher Maine & sheralyn tay

creativeCreative Director ashikArt Directoryip siew feiGraphic Designerng shi Wei

Contributing Photog raphers John heng (www.daphotographer.com)Justin loh (shininghead.com)norman ng (www.normanng.com)

challenge is published bimonthly by tuber productions pte ltd (registration no: 200703697k) for ps21 office, public service division, prime Minister’s office. copyright of the materials contained in this magazine belongs to ps21 office. nothing in here shall be reproduced in whole or in part without prior written consent of ps21 office. Views expressed in this magazine are not necessarily those of ps21 office or tuber productions pte ltd and no liabilities shall be attached there to. all rights reserved. all information correct at time of printing.

printed by khl printing co pte ltd (registration no: 197801823M) 57 loyang drive singapore 508968

The digital copy is definitely useful and the content is exciting, as usual. Keep up the good work!Lewis Liupsd

I don’t usually pay much heed to Challenge but my interest was piqued to pick up the July/Aug copy. I started with your Editor’s note; I even took the extra step of googling for Nipun Mehta’s Baccalaureate address because of your brief mention of it. It is such an insightful and positive speech, providing so much for reflection. Thank you for a wonderful issue of Challenge –

I really like how this mag has morphed into a modern, relevant read. Well done! I look forward to future issues (I promise I will be looking out for these in future).

Heng San SanMcys

INBOxINBOx

I was pleasantly surprised when I saw my fellow NSmen whip out a copy of Challenge during reservist training. You know you’re doing something right when you make it to the reading list of tired men during outfield training.

Leon Voonpsd

JULY / AUGUST 2012

I liked The Noob’s Ten Commandments of the Public Service.

It was very amusing and had good suggestions, especially Commandment V on avoiding awkward moments at work!

Lim Chee Geeida

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Need We Say More?Here’s where we let the humour loose, and learn to laugh at ourselves a little more. Have ideas or jokes about the Public Service? Email us: psd_challenge@psd.gov.sg

IThou shalt address important

people by their ranks, never by

their names. So use “Dear DD…”,

“Dear PS…” or “Good morning, PS”.

Yes, even in the loo.

II Thou shalt be politically correct when

writing emails by carbon copying

people in descending order of rank.

III Thou shalt draft emails in concise and

non-emotive language. Avoid sharing

sob stories of thy sad self.

IVThou shalt attempt to understand, appreciate and

embrace gov-speak – a language largely made up of

mind-boggling acronyms.

VThou shalt learn the art of evading awkward

one-on-ones with the PS, especially in the lift. “Oops,

I need to use the loo!” or “I forgot an important

document” sometimes work.DISCLAIMER: The Challenge n00b Induction Team holds no responsibility for any loss of income or drop in CEP as a result of n00bs following these commandments.*n00b: Slang for a newcomer, or someone inexperienced

VI And when thou faileth to avoid the PS, thou shalt avoid foot-in-mouth disease by keeping mum until spoken to.

VII Thou shalt arrive early at meetings to get the best seat...

in the back row.

VIII Thou shalt master the art of sleeping with eyes wide open at meetings. Unless thou art the designated minute-taker.

IX Thou shalt never attempt to understand why finance procedures are so complicated.

X Thou shalt master the art of networking. When thou art stumped, there willalways be someone who can help.

The Irreverent Last Page40

as public off icers, we need to strike a balance between being professional, and being human enough to laugh at ourselves. people who can laugh at themselves are humble and approachable – traits that are equally important to a public off icer. being serious when the time calls for it and having a sense of humour are virtues of a truly well-rounded individual. Murshida Mohd Kadir

people’s association

Congratulations Murshida! We’re sending you a $100 Sistic voucher so you can use it to catch a side-splitting comedy show! Bring a (serious) friend, maybe?

Our Public Officer Meme went viral online, with more than 1,000 Facebook shares! So we asked readers if they think that the Public Service has a funny bone or whether public officers take themselves too seriously. Here are their views.

HA~ HA~ HA~HA~ HA~

of course we have a funny bone, simply because we are all human beings to begin with. We joke and spread joy to our family and friends, so why not just extend it to the rest of the service? i feel we should be our true selves and contribute the best we can in the workplace, whilst still upholding integrity as a public officer.

Allyne Hancpf board

using humour to raise public awareness can create a positive view of the public service. The high number of shares that the meme generated is good evidence of our success in engaging the public. With similar efforts in the future, not only will we gain strong public support, we will also be able to attract more talent into the service.

Suguna Sundaramsingapore prison service

This meme proves that public officers do have a funny bone. it builds on the existing ideas (or stereotypes, if you wish) of how people perceive the public service. all public officers understand the meaning of “wayang” and “getting arrowed”; this helps us bond, something which we can joke about during coffee sessions after a hard day’s work. We should celebrate this funny side of the public service to show that we also have a touch of humour that makes us all human, and approachable.

Dominic Ngpeople’s association

Meetings can be a yawn! How do you and your colleagues make them

engaging, productive and even fun? Share your ideas with us.

email us: psd_challenge@psd.gov.sg

The best entry will win an attractive prize worth

up to $100! All other published entries will

win book vouchers worth $30 each. Please include your name, agency email address,

agency and contact number.

All entries should reach us by September 30, 2012.

Need We Say More?Here’s where we let the humour loose, and learn to laugh at ourselves a little more. Have ideas or jokes about the Public Service?

Email us: psd_challenge@psd.gov.sg

PUBLIC OFFICERWe couldn’t resist coming up with a version of the “What I really do”

Internet meme. Do you agree?

What my friends think I do What my mum thinks I do What citizens think I do

What my boss thinks I doWhat I think I do

What I really do

The Irreverent Last Page

44

03Your Say

coming up...neWsfrom theserVice

CELEBRATING ExCELLENCE IN TAx AdMINISTRATIoNto mark its 20th anniversary as a statutory board, the inland revenue authority of singapore (iras) created a special microsite (http://_www.iras20.sg) and online games to reflect how taxpaying and tax administration have evolved over the past 20 years. the microsite features the significant moments of iras’s history, while the online games are helping iras to reach out to younger taxpayers and youths. part of the celebratory activities included fundraising for president ’s challenge 2012 through the sale of decommissioned revenue stamps, as well as in-house charity events organised by iras staff. a visit by president tony tan to revenue house on august 31 delivered the perfect finale to the celebrations!

INNoVATIVE WASTE MANAGEMENTthe inaugural cleanenviro summit s ingapore and WasteMet asia (WMa) 2012 were held July 1-4. themed “innovative clean enviro-solutions for asia’s growing cities”, the summit saw the par-ticipation of high-level government and industry leaders, as well as in-ternational organisations like the World bank and the united nations. the clean environment leaders plenary sessions brought together participants to address and discuss the challenges and issues in waste management, while close to 100 exhibitors from international and local companies featured in WMa 2012. the summit also saw the launch of the national environment agency ’s first sustainability report, based on the guidelines by the global reporting initiative, the most widely accepted international standard for sustainability reporting.

PS21 ExCEL CONVENTION 2012Mark your calendar this November 15-16 for this annual Public Service event at the Gardens by the Bay. It will showcase innovative ideas and projects that create significant people-centric outcomes and public value. Sign up for Learning Journeys to learn more about the work of other government agencies. More detai ls wil l be provided to agencies once available.

HIGH SPEED THRILLSThe electrifying 2012 Formula 1 Singtel Singapore Grand Prix packs thrilling race action and world-class entertainment all in one fully loaded circuit park. From September 21-23, be thrilled by superstars Katy Perry, Maroon 5 and Jay Chou as they take to the Padang stage. Tickets at www.singaporegp.sg.

MYNICEHOME.SGThe Housing Development Board has launched a new w e b s i t e o n h o u s i n g a n d home -related matters for home owners and anyone shopping for a new home.

Be inspired by the home decoration tips and ideas for green living, or uncover interesting facts about your neighbourhood. Visit www.mynicehome.sg and “Like” the site on Facebook.

ROAD TO ACCEPTANCEThe Yellow Ribbon Prison Run 2012 on September 16 is your chance to experience challenges, endurance and community involvement – all the elements that make up the reintegration journey of ex-offenders back into society. End your run at the Changi Prison Complex and find out more about helping ex-offenders at the carnival.www.yellowribbon.org.sg

NEW!

HighlightsHighlights04

Follow the leader:Dr Francis Chong, Director of the Emerging Markets Division, leads a 15-strong team to sell the idea of entering the emerging markets to Singaporeans.

billion in 2011 – a clear indicator of the massive trade potential that could be realised.

“besides, why restrict yourself to what you already know? in developed markets, you enter as a small fish in a big pond, with lots of sharks; in emerging markets, there are still sharks but you might be a bigger fish,” dr chong adds.

given that growth in the g3 economies (the us, europe and Japan) is slowing down, it makes even more sense to di-versify singapore’s portfolio by seeking opportunities elsewhere, to “rejig the system”, as he puts it.

his deputy kelvin tan agrees: “The us will not always dominate, and china may not always be there to sustain our growth. We need a competitive edge.”

developing a global imagination currently, eMd is talking to differ-

ent ministries and studying existing mechanisms and policies across gov-ernment sectors, so as to develop a comprehensive framework for promoting emerging markets.

Their overriding goal? to stimulate the “global imagination” of singaporeans; that is, the ability to understand, accept and adapt to the cultural and business practices of different countries. only with that extra edge can singapore and singaporeans excel in this globalised age, explains Mr tan.

and this , eMd bel ieves , can be achieved by targeting the young. the team hopes that all singapore schools will be eventually twinned with foreign ones – including those from emerging markets – to pique our students’ curiosity about other cultures.

so far eMd has conducted pilot projects, such as art competitions, and

he heads a 15-strong team from the Ministry of trade and industry’s emerg-ing Markets division (eMd) that is charged to develop and establish sin-gapore’s trade negotiations, agreements and policies relating to the world’s emerging markets.

to achieve that, they first have to sell their own countrymen (and women) the idea of trading with “exotic” places. Think africa, the Middle east, latin america, and south and central asia.

it is no easy task: in recent surveys conducted by the team on students’ impressions of these places, it was clear that plenty of stereotypes still existed.

latin america is perceived as a blown-up war zone in the grip of the mafia and drug cartels; africa is the dark continent of poverty and disease, plagued by “blood diamond” scandals.

dr chong is adamant that such at-titudes and outlooks need to change. for the record, singapore has sizeable oil, gas and education business ties in kazakhstan and the people there are definitely not borats.

so to fight these stereotypes and help singaporeans better understand the potential returns of emerging markets, eMd officers make frequent study trips to collate ground data and information about the countries.

according to eMd, singapore’s total trade with emerging markets, exclud-ing china and southeast asia, doubled from s$106 billion in 2007 to s$213 billion in 2011.

also compare the european union’s exports to emerging markets such as russia, central asia, turkey, india, brazil and the united arab emirates, of us$366 billion (approximately s$465 billion), with singapore’s mere s$30.5

The pre-Hispanic City of Teotihuacan, Mexico. The country was Singapore’s 27th largest trading partner in 2011.

EMD officers Chan Kah Mei (left) and Serena Liau sampling biscuits in a small confectionary shop in Mumbai, India.

EMD officers were invited to an audience with Otumfuo Osei Tutu, the King of the Ashanti people who are based in present-day Ghana and Ivory Coast.

Dr Francis chong is a man on a mission.

supported students’ overseas community service projects by providing contacts or facilitating tie-ups for post-trip events.

The bulk of their outreach opportunities, however, comes from building on exist-ing events. for example, when world-renowned lebanese composer and oud player, and unesco artist for peace, Marcel khalife, visited singapore in May 2011 for a concert as part of a Middle east symposium, eMd invited him to conduct an oud masterclass for students from the school of the arts.

The event yielded wonderful memories for all involved, and a relationship was established. that ’s how future trade partnerships are born, says dr chong, whose team’s work includes building relationships through social media. Working by faithyet, the effects of these outreach methods may only be perceptible in time, and dr

chong is realistic about the outcomes: “do we know that whatever we’re do-ing will work? We don’t. but the only 100% guarantee is that if you don’t do anything, nothing will change.”

his “never say die” attitude seems to have rubbed off on his eMd officers, who relish the unpredictable nature of their work as a constant source of excitement.

assistant director Joanna tan who oversees the africa portfolio, recalls how terrified she was upon learning that she was going on a trip to south

africa and angola, just weeks into her first job after graduation.

four years on, her passport is filled with immigration stamps from libya to Zan-zibar, and she is now more than ready to hop onto a plane at the word “go”.

she recalls: “We were in ghana and suddenly we had a phone call, saying that

the king of the ashanti tribe wanted to meet us. We went to his kingdom and all of a sudden, these tribal chiefs, in royal regalia – some on sedan chairs – began arriving. it was surreal.”

freezing trips to pristine siberia, feast-ing on camel meat in saudi arabia and visiting sites of biblical proportions in petra are just some of the epic adventures that these officers have lived to tell.

but lest one begins to think that a day in the life of an eMd officer is all about flying to exotic places, be warned: these trips can be highly pressurising, with notes

to prepare for ministe-rial staff, conferences to attend and projects to lobby for – on top of making post-trip reports and economic assessments.

ultimately, dr chong and his team hope that all their hard work, ex-periments and outreach programmes will lead to fruition.

They are a zealous bunch, always ready to go forth, as if instructed by higher orders to explore the unchartered ter-ritories and later return to convert the uninitiated, despite the odds. They are the modern trade missionaries.

in DevelopeD markets, you enter as a small Fish in a big ponD, with lots oF sharks; in emerging markets, there are still sharks but you might be a bigger Fish.

(From right) EMD officers Oeij Ek Siang and Valerie Yuen, with colleagues from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Economic Development Board, touring Keppel’s BrasFELS shipyard in Angra dos Reis, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.

EMD officers witnessed the launch of the Jewel of Muscat, a replica of an Arabian Dhow, in 2010 before it sailed from Muscat, Oman to Singapore.

Matryoshka dolls at a souvenir flea market in Moscow, Russia. Singapore’s trade with Russia reached S$4.68 billion in 2011.

If you have any ideas or suggestions to share, please contact Dr Chong at Francis_CHONG@mti.gov.sg.

07Feature

Is the dog dead or

alive, and where is

the dog now lying?

if there Were a Meter that measures public expectations of the singapore public service, it is likely to be inching higher and higher. across the board, frontline service officers are reporting a more demanding public.

They are also encountering more unreasonable, sometimes aggressive, members of the public who wouldn’t take “no” for an answer. Just last year, a man who didn’t like the re-sponses he got from several government agen-cies persisted in calling the officers repeatedly. he made over 200 phone calls in a single morning. “it was mentally and emotionally very draining for [those] officers,” said pang kin keong, chairman of the public service’s Quality service committee, adding that public officers now get more training to manage such members of the public. (see sidebox ‘saying “no” firmly’.)

Rising public expectationsin a sense, singapore is a victim of its own success when it comes to why customer expec-

tations are increasing. “We created a certain standard and citizens hold us to it,” said ps21 office director agnes kwek, who is respon-sible for service delivery policies across the public service.

Mr pang agreed: “The older generations inher-ited a less efficient, less developed singapore. expectations were lower, and the improvements made were seen as a quantum jump in service levels. [now] we’ve become inured to a very high standard of efficiency and effectiveness.”

also, “the new generation [of singaporeans] is more educated, well travelled and more knowledgeable,” said assistant ceo and Quality service Manager roger tan at the civil service college (csc), explaining why the citizenry now wants greater accountability and a bigger say in policies.

technology plays a key role too. internet-savvy citizens now expect faster resolution of prob-lems and instant access to information. and if anything goes wrong or if service simply

Text by richard Hartung Photos by John Heng

A look at how the Singapore Public Service is coping with rising public expectations.

from a dog and a Pile

of rubbiShPublic Service delivery lessons

09Cover Story

that becomes complex and challenging to administer and access.”

The way key performance indicators (kpis) are used can hinder good service too. There may be a disconnect between the agency and the public where kpis are concerned, said professor Marcus lee, who heads the singapore Manage-ment university’s institute of service excellence.

kpis tend to be driven by agencies’ needs and what they are capable of de-livering, rather than by the customer so prof lee suggested agencies make sure they link kpis to the organisation’s vi-sion and mission, and to actual customer needs. a good example of this, he said, was the inland revenue authority of singapore (iras)’s introduction of the innovative no-filing service (nfs) in 2008. under the nfs, employers can submit information directly to iras, and taxpayers whose employees do so, do not need to file a tax return (unless they have other sources of income). instead of adding more staff to handle queues and queries to fulfil its kpis of getting tax returns filed, the agency thought out

doesn’t meet expectations, they use everything from twitter and facebook, to youtube and blogs, to broadcast their complaints. feedback received by reach, the government feedback unit’s web portal, tripled between 2007 and 2011.

the housing development board (hdb) says one area it finds relatively challenging is email correspondences. “We receive requests from customers demanding a reply to their email within two to three working days. at times, they don’t realise their case is complex and requires more time for investiga-tion,” said goh-Wong tze ying, hdb’s director of organisational excellence.

Underlying factorsThere are deeper issues worth examin-ing. to start with, the ever-increasing range of government programmes could result in over-complicated systems, hampering the delivery of better cus-tomer service. head of civil service peter ong explained: “people have com-mented that the government is quite prolific at conceiving new schemes. This may lead to a proliferation of schemes

Mopping up grey areas: the caSe of Public cleaningIn 2011, a huge pile of rubbish was left uncollected for months. The reason, said the Department of Public Cleanliness (DPC) Acting Head Roger Ng, was that agencies engaged different contractors for cleaning different areas. Drains were under the Public Utilities Board, for example, while footpaths came under the Land Transport Authority (LTA). For this pile of rubbish, it wasn’t clear who was responsible. The search for a rightful “owner” took months; the pile of rubbish languished and sparked criticism from the public who couldn’t understand the inaction. This prompted the founding of an inter-agency Public Cleanliness Steering Committee to look into the issue. The Committee eventually set up DPC as a whole-of-government approach to cleaning roads, pavements, drains and other common areas. DPC would take care of all municipal cleaning services across government agencies. The new department taps on technology to enhance its work: Radio Frequency Identification technology is used to tag and track litter bins and web-based cameras enable remote monitoring of cleanliness in public areas. Public officers are happier too. National Environment Agency Officer Manjit Singh said he is now able to spend more time on inspections and clean-up, rather than coordinating with other agencies to figure out who is responsible.

We receive requests from customers demanding a reply to their email within two to three working days. At times, they don’t realise their case is complex and requires more time for investigation.

neW Service PrinciPleS The Public Service introduced the principles of CARE (Courtesy, Accessibility, Responsiveness and Effectiveness) in 1995. Follow-ing a thorough review in 2010, three new service principles were added in 2011. They are: People-Centricity, Mutual Courtesy and Respect, and Shared Responsibil-ity for the Public Good.

Cover Story10

Identifying the gapsthe first step is to identify the gaps and develop plans to tackle them. at a broad level, Ms kwek said that an inter-agency team’s thorough review in 2010 of service principles led to a new service paradigm based on people-centricity, mutual courtesy and respect, and shared responsibility for public out-comes. (see ‘new service principles’.)

What is being stressed now is for agen-cies to design and deliver services from the public’s point of view, instead of what the public service thinks is most efficient and logical. officers are now being exhorted to “put ourselves in the shoes of our customers” so methods such as design thinking are being encour-aged. (see Challenge Jan/feb 2011 for the cover story on design Thinking.)

next, the ps21 office identifies “struc-tural problems” and solves them so that the causes of issues, rather than mere single problems, are resolved.

of the box in implementing the nfs. it was a case of an organisation meet-ing both its kpis and customer needs.

there is sometimes a gap between the officers delivering the service and the people receiving it. Well-educated public officers may have difficulties, for example, in fully understanding the situations of lowly educated or out-of-work citizens. one case in point is job fairs, said prof lee, since fresh graduates who have never lost a job are often as-signed to help out-of-work job seekers in their 40s and 50s. When the gaps are so wide, it is difficult to connect.

and finally, some issues are com-pounded when there’s no clear agency in charge. While the public service’s “no Wrong door” policy is designed to solve such problems, even deputy prime Minister teo chee hean has said there are still situations that are poorly defined and fall through the cracks. (see ‘Mopping up grey areas’.)

Case study:Saying “no” firmly Situations can get tough when you have to say “No” to customers. Here’s what tax officer Mohamad Fauzi Bin Mohamad (above) did when he was confronted with a difficult taxpayer who was upset at having to pay a penalty for her late tax return and shouted at him. Mr Fauzi calmly continued to explain why the fine was applicable. His patience and empathy finally calmed her down and she paid the fine. Mr Fauzi’s firm yet sincere service turned a nasty situation into one with a positive ending.

leveraging that new paradigm, the public service is changing processes, structures, training and technology to raise service delivery levels. if problems aren’t resolved within a certain number of days, they get escalated from the frontline up to the agency’s Quality service Manager, and sometimes even to the ps21 office.

Whose turf is it anyway?the “no Wrong door” policy, for instance, was designed to make sure members of the public get directed to the right place, even if they start out at the wrong agency. however, a review of the policy in 2011 found that while it has resolved many issues, it does not work so well when the issue is in a grey area where no agency is clearly in charge, or where the problem can only be addressed by several agencies working in tandem.

Mr pang related this story to Chal-lenge: “a dog was knocked down by a car on a public road. The question posed to the member of the public who reported it was: is the dog dead or alive, and where is the dog now lying? if the dog is dead, it would be nea (national environment agency)’s responsibility, but if it is still alive, aVa (agri-food & Veterinary authority of singapore) would take charge. it could also be lta’s responsibility if the dog is still lying on the road, but if it now lies on the adjoining grass verges, then nparks (national parks board) should be alerted.”

such cases lead to frustration because members of the public don’t care which agency is in charge. all they want is to have someone from the government take care of the matter.

to cope with what Mr pang described as “turf ” issues, the first responder pro-tocol (frp) was introduced. With the frp, an agency which has some ability to deal with the issue, even if the issue is not under its charge, should adopt a “just do it first” mentality and lead an inter-agency response. This presents to the public a more coordinated govern-ment; more importantly it tackles the public’s concerns immediately, reflecting its new people-centric service principle.

Case study 2:going the extra mile Principal Animal Welfare Inspector Soh Seng Beng (above) from AVA has devoted 37 years to animal welfare. He leads a team of junior officers to inspect pet shops and farms, and to investigate animal abuse cases. Mr Soh was praised by his colleagues for often going the distance to give great service. Once he was so determined to check on the well-being of a dog that he agreed to visit the dog’s owner at midnight – the only time the owner said he was available. Mr Soh will retire from the Public Service this year.

The frp was piloted earlier this year with aVa serving as a first responder for all animal-related issues. The frp is now being extended to all inter-agency issues.

earlier this year, there was a request to trim an unruly grass patch. Though agencies were unable to quickly deter-mine which agency was in charge, the singapore land authority went ahead to get their contractor to trim it as it had received the feedback first. it then claimed the amount incurred from the rightful agency. turf issue resolved.

Improving training apart from introducing changes to structure and processes, training – one of the most important steps to improving service – is being revamped.

csc’s Mr tan said that in the past, training focused narrowly on procedures and what to do. now, he said, it focuses on soft skills, such as building relation-ships, empathising with customers and co-creating solutions.

“We rely more on experiential learning to deepen the value of training”, he said, so officers now engage in more role plays or simulations. The college has also rolled out training to enhance teamwork and will be developing similar programmes for using social media and other newer technologies.

individual agencies are also ramping up customer service training. hdb has an elaborate training roadmap for frontline staff. This includes training staff to draft better email responses, with some of the outstanding replies compiled into a manual for other officers to refer to.

leSSonS from abroadOne Stop ShopConsulting firm PwC reported that public sector agencies worldwide are increasingly adopting a “One Stop Shop” model that enables customers to use a single access point to get information and services. Residents in New York can dial 311 to speak to a customer service agent 24/7 about where to get help, for example, while Hong Kong residents can log onto HKGov.org for the same. Across the world a “One Stop Shop” has the potential to “im-prove the customer experience and reduce cost by transform-ing the way governments deliver services,” PwC said. The Singapore Public Service has also conducted in-depth studies on the feasibility of a one stop call centre, including a visit to New York City’s 311 team to understand the challenges. While there are some consid-erations such as resource and training, work is underway to introduce integrated hotlines; for example, the Department of Public Cleaning’s hotline and the People’s Association’s OneConnect hotline.

Speech analyticsThe London Borough of Lam-beth Council is tapping on speech analytics technology to improve its service levels. It is expected to save more than £2 million by using this technol-ogy, which was originally designed for military commu-nications. While the military uses the technology to spot words like “bomb” or “terrorist”, the Council uses it to highlight phrases like “repeat visits” and “second time I’ve called you”. Currently, it takes staff an average of three calls to solve residents’ issues, costing the Council about £5 per call. The Council expects to identify key problems across hundreds of calls and help get things right the first time, thereby driving efficiency up and costs down.

The extremely unreasonable customers can place a burden on public resources with their demands. This means staff have to be trained to handle them deftly and know when to “disengage” tactfully, and focus on other customers who genuinely need their help.

learning to deal with tough customers is also essential. The extremely unrea-sonable ones can place a burden on public resources with their demands. This means staff have to be trained to handle them deftly and know when to “disengage” tactfully, and focus on other customers who genuinely need their help.

Tapping technologytechnology is another tool wielded by the public service to improve customer experience. as mentioned, iras intro-duced the no-filing service in 2008 that relieves employees of the need to file tax returns if their employers do so directly. hdb launched the Mo-bile@hdb application to complement its hdb infoweb, giving customers with smartphones another channel to interact with the board.

technology also helps public officers to improve service delivery. nea officer Manjit singh, who is responsible for cleaning services, now uses his new office-issued ipad to respond to prob-lems more quickly. While on-site, he can send out details and photographs of problems immediately, without having to wait till he returns to the office.

from tweaking a broad-based frame-work at the top to introducing better technology and process improvements on the ground, a breakthrough in service delivery by government agencies is on the way. and as innovations such as the frp have shown, so long as the public service continues to review and adapt its policies by standing in the shoes of the public, it has a good chance of pleasing even the toughest of them.

13Cover Story

it could haVe been a scene right out of a hong kong drama se-rial. a woman, accused of being the third party in a marriage, had made a complaint to the subordinate courts after the wife assaulted her.

both parties were ordered to go for mediation. during a heated session at the community Mediation centre (cMc), the woman struck the wife in the face.

centre Manager diana heng had to call in security and halt the session. The fracas was reported to the courts and both women were ordered to go for another mediation appointment.

dealing with high-strung members of the public who can turn violent is something Ms heng has to be pre-pared for. she is not a mediator, but she schedules mediation sessions for disputing parties and mediators, who are all volunteers.

in her 14 years at the cMc, Ms heng has at times been the punching bag of frustrated parties in conflicts. her job is not for the faint-hearted because sometimes when Ms heng calls to arrange appointments with disputants, “they start complaining and shouting.”

there are currently two cMcs; one at The treasury and the other at the subordinate courts, where Ms heng works with another frontline colleague.

operated by the Ministry of law, cMcs provide mediation services to members of the public who wish to resolve disputes without going through costly legal proceedings.

at a cost of $5 in administration fee upon registration, parties get to sit down with mediators to discuss solutions to their conflicts.

parties either sign up for mediation on their own or are referred to the cMcs by the police, town councils and other agencies. in other cases, parties are ordered by the courts to do so, such as the wife-mistress tussle.

Paving the way to peacemakingMost cases that come to cMcs are quarrels between neighbours, says se-nior centre Manager tan chong yang, who has been coordinating mediation

Nasty remarks, unreasonable demands and occasional violence – these are all in a day’s work for the frontline staff at Community Mediation Centres.

Text by Chen Jingting

sessions for the last 12 years. he works with two other frontline staff at cMc central within The treasury.

The number of mediated cases at cMcs has been increasing yearly; as of July, there were already about 600 cases seen this year.

“The public has become more demand-ing,” Mr tan observes. he often receives calls from disgruntled parties, insisting that the cMcs conduct investigations and “take action” against the other side. at times like these, all Mr tan can do is listen patiently to the caller and explain politely, but firmly, that cMcs do not have enforcement or investiga-tive powers.

once, he was even yelled at on the phone by a member of the public who

threatened to report his “unsatisfactory performance” to a higher authority.

the public officer of more than 40 years – he started out as a clerk in the Ministry of education and later worked at the singapore land authority, before joining cMc – takes such unpleasant experiences in his stride. he chuckles: “i’m just doing my work, serving the community. it’s quite interesting to help them solve their problems.”

besides taking the heat from frustrated members of the public, cMc officers also devote much time and effort to the administrative work for every case. Though they do not attend mediation sessions, which can stretch beyond office hours, they have to stay back to time the sessions, send the mediators

off, and then complete some paperwork before

calling it a day.

cMc officers also need to be alert to uncommon behaviour among those who turn up for mediation, for example, those who mumble to themselves. to prevent any violence during mediation sessions, no one is allowed to bring helmets, walking sticks or umbrellas into mediation rooms.

for all the trouble cMc officers go through, “it ’s quite a thankless job because the thanks go mainly to the mediators,” admits Ms heng.

No pain, no gainstill, happy endings in some cases do motivate the staff to continue in what they do.

“sometimes i feel so touched, especially when once, the disputing parties came out of mediation hugging each other,” Mr tan says.

as work at the cMc is full of ups and downs, for Ms heng, separating work from personal life was a challenge when she had just started working there.

“in the beginning i did have second thoughts about continuing,” she says. “every day i went home and thought: why are people fighting? i felt very upset and depressed... now, i have learnt not to take things personally.”

she has also gleaned a precious life lesson. “We should not be fighting over little things… There are better things to do with our lives.”

for ThoSe Who WiSh To Sign uP for mediaTion, You can conTacT The folloWing:

cmc (central) – 6325 1600cmc (Subordinate courts) –6536 9665 or

register online at bit.ly/cmcmediate

15Feature

Complaints received that are not corruption-related are referred to relevant authorities such as:

• Commercial Affairs Department investigates commercial crime, fraud and scam cases

• Immigration and Checkpoints Authority handles sham marriage cases

CPIB is an agency, under the Prime Minister’s Office, dedicated to investigating and preventing corruption.

CPIB investigates both public and private sector corruption.

CPIB specialises in investigating corruption cases.

CPIB officers who stray are punished without favour. In 2002, a CPIB officer was jailed two years for receiving $1,350 in exchange for revealing investigation-related information.

At 60 years old, CPIB is the world’s oldest dedicated anti-corruption

agency.

Money, gifts, property, loans or

payment of loans

Employment or contract

Sexual favours

Free service, meals, or

entertainment

Corruption is receiving, asking for, or giving any gratification (bribe) to reward or induce a person to do or not do any act, with corrupt intent. It involves using power or position dishonestly to give advantage (favour) to a person or organisation over others.

Catching crooks since 1952, the Corrupt Practices Investigation Bureau (CPIB) celebrates its 60th anniversary this September. Find out what the Bureau has achieved all these years. Text by Siti Maziah Masramli Illustration by Ng Shi Wei

World’s Oldest

WHAT IS CORRUPTION?

Special privileges

(e.g. speeding up or interfering

in a process)

Confidential information

Leniency Influence over a superior’s

decisions

BRIBES FAVOURS

Power Exchange of Bribes & Favour

Intent Act

The British Colonial government sets up the Corrupt Practices Investigation Bureau in the Supreme Court building. But CPIB lacks resources, and legislations to punish corrupt offenders are largely ineffective.

CPIB begins its own basic training course for new CPIB officers.

CPIB moves into the former Keppel Primary School building at Cantonment Road, where it starts its Heritage Centre.

CPIB moves to its current location at Lengkok Bahru. The Computer Forensic Unit is set up. The Bureau's flag is commissioned to strengthen identity.

September 1952 1996 1998 2004

Singapore attains self-government. The new government strengthens CPIB’s position as an enforcement agency. The judiciary is reformed and anti-corruption laws are revamped.

1959

The Prevention of Corruption Act (PCA) is enacted to provide for more effectual prevention of corruption.

1960

The Complaints Evaluation Committee is set up to deliberate on complaints of alleged corruption and to decide if any investigation should be conducted.

1989

TIMELINE

CPIB relocates to Hill Street Centre.

1984

HILL STREET CENTRE

Polygraph testing as an investigative tool is introduced.

1995

The Financial Investigation Unit is set up.

2008

COMPLAINTS RECEIVED & INVESTIGATED IN 2011

Number of persons charged

Sexual briberyIn 2007, volunteer police corporal Ng Wan Fu Ivan asked three female foreigners for sex in exchange for not arresting them (for vice-related activities).

Immigration-related corruptionIn 2006, an officer took bribes from foreigners and gave falsified official documents to immigration authorities to help the foreigners extend their stay in Singapore.

Football match-fixing and bribesTwo former Korean professional football players were charged in May 2012 for match-fixing, involving bribes of $8,000. (CPIB completed the case in two days.)

The biggest case (in monetary value) involved Choy Hon Tim, former Director

of the Electricity Department and Deputy Chief Executive of the Public Utilities

Board (PUB). He was charged in 1995 of receiving bribes of up to $13.85 million in exchange for awarding contracts to

suppliers and contractors of PUB.

138 Cases

493 or 65% of complaints were corruption-related.

INV

ESTI

GAT

ED 23%from

public sector

77%from

privatesector

VSPrivatesector

Publicsector

Of the 138 cases investigated...

The number of cases investigated has been falling since 2007 because...

Non-related complaints are now handled by other law enforcement agencies

Some corruption-related cases were not pursuable due to lack of information in the complaints

13143

1 2

3

4

5

BIGGEST CASE

OTHER TYPES OF CASES

757 COMPLAINTS

Complaints received that are not corruption-related are referred to relevant authorities such as:

• Commercial Affairs Department investigates commercial crime, fraud and scam cases

• Immigration and Checkpoints Authority handles sham marriage cases

CPIB is an agency, under the Prime Minister’s Office, dedicated to investigating and preventing corruption.

CPIB investigates both public and private sector corruption.

CPIB specialises in investigating corruption cases.

CPIB officers who stray are punished without favour. In 2002, a CPIB officer was jailed two years for receiving $1,350 in exchange for revealing investigation-related information.

At 60 years old, CPIB is the world’s oldest dedicated anti-corruption

agency.

Money, gifts, property, loans or

payment of loans

Employment or contract

Sexual favours

Free service, meals, or

entertainment

Corruption is receiving, asking for, or giving any gratification (bribe) to reward or induce a person to do or not do any act, with corrupt intent. It involves using power or position dishonestly to give advantage (favour) to a person or organisation over others.

Catching crooks since 1952, the Corrupt Practices Investigation Bureau (CPIB) celebrates its 60th anniversary this September. Find out what the Bureau has achieved all these years. Text by Siti Maziah Masramli Illustration by Ng Shi Wei

World’s Oldest

WHAT IS CORRUPTION?

Special privileges

(e.g. speeding up or interfering

in a process)

Confidential information

Leniency Influence over a superior’s

decisions

BRIBES FAVOURS

Power Exchange of Bribes & Favour

Intent Act

The British Colonial government sets up the Corrupt Practices Investigation Bureau in the Supreme Court building. But CPIB lacks resources, and legislations to punish corrupt offenders are largely ineffective.

CPIB begins its own basic training course for new CPIB officers.

CPIB moves into the former Keppel Primary School building at Cantonment Road, where it starts its Heritage Centre.

CPIB moves to its current location at Lengkok Bahru. The Computer Forensic Unit is set up. The Bureau's flag is commissioned to strengthen identity.

September 1952 1996 1998 2004

Singapore attains self-government. The new government strengthens CPIB’s position as an enforcement agency. The judiciary is reformed and anti-corruption laws are revamped.

1959

The Prevention of Corruption Act (PCA) is enacted to provide for more effectual prevention of corruption.

1960

The Complaints Evaluation Committee is set up to deliberate on complaints of alleged corruption and to decide if any investigation should be conducted.

1989

TIMELINE

CPIB relocates to Hill Street Centre.

1984

HILL STREET CENTRE

Polygraph testing as an investigative tool is introduced.

1995

The Financial Investigation Unit is set up.

2008

COMPLAINTS RECEIVED & INVESTIGATED IN 2011

Number of persons charged

Sexual briberyIn 2007, volunteer police corporal Ng Wan Fu Ivan asked three female foreigners for sex in exchange for not arresting them (for vice-related activities).

Immigration-related corruptionIn 2006, an officer took bribes from foreigners and gave falsified official documents to immigration authorities to help the foreigners extend their stay in Singapore.

Football match-fixing and bribesTwo former Korean professional football players were charged in May 2012 for match-fixing, involving bribes of $8,000. (CPIB completed the case in two days.)

The biggest case (in monetary value) involved Choy Hon Tim, former Director

of the Electricity Department and Deputy Chief Executive of the Public Utilities

Board (PUB). He was charged in 1995 of receiving bribes of up to $13.85 million in exchange for awarding contracts to

suppliers and contractors of PUB.

138 Cases

493 or 65% of complaints were corruption-related.

INV

ESTI

GAT

ED 23%from

public sector

77%from

privatesector

VSPrivatesector

Publicsector

Of the 138 cases investigated...

The number of cases investigated has been falling since 2007 because...

Non-related complaints are now handled by other law enforcement agencies

Some corruption-related cases were not pursuable due to lack of information in the complaints

13143

1 2

3

4

5

BIGGEST CASE

OTHER TYPES OF CASES

757 COMPLAINTS

17Infographics

Teo Hee Lian says we should know more about our

work than our bosses do.Do you know more than your boss?

there are also no model answers. so, writing papers at work is different.

first, we tell our readers something they need to know now, and probably did not know before. therefore, un-like in school where we have a more knowledgeable teacher who checks our facts, now we must ensure our papers are accurate before sending them out.

second, we help our readers understand and decide the next step. this includes showing them what the information means. how serious is it? What do we

have to do now, and why? should our policies or priorities change in future?

third, we want to show why what we do matters. Why is our work worthy of recognition? Why is what we pro-pose necessary and important? if we cannot do this, we risk our work be-ing dismissed as merely routine. We may even end up always reacting to problems because we fail to persuade our readers to prevent them from oc-curring in the first place.

this means that in whatever area we are directly responsible for, we must know more than our boss.

a s a r ep o r t W r i t i n g trainer at the civil service college, i am often asked, “What must i include in my paper?” and “Why can’t my boss tell me exactly what she wants?”

officers remember draf ts that go through several, sometimes painful, revisions. come end of the year, a third question is, “Why don’t they recognise my work?”

in school, when teachers and examiners read our work, they are also correcting and grading it. they, who know more about the subject than we do, know the answer before they read. there may be a model answer for comparison. at work, our readers want to know,

“What happened in the past, and why?”, “What should we do now?”, or “Why are we thinking of this for the future?” they do not have the answer – until they read our paper. even our boss may not have the answer – until she reads our paper.

she may have some idea of what the answer should be. but it is only after we have investigated the case, inter-viewed the people, or researched the issue, that she knows for sure what happened and why, or what should be done now, or what we should be preparing for next. only then can our boss give clear directions.

this is quite reasonable. let us take the school example again. a teacher knows the subjects she teaches and every student in her class well. she knows who needs a slower pace and who more challenging assignments, and how best to reach both students. the principal has other responsibilities; he leads the whole school and knows the student profile and all his staff well. but if he is a science specialist, he does not have to know as much about teaching english as the english teacher does. he also need not know every student well, only the ones brought to his attention.

We are like the teacher. We are the experts and know more about our own work than our readers (including our bosses) do.

so when we write papers, we first give our readers Information they may not have known before but need now. then we explain the Implications. finally, we convince our readers of the Importance of our proposal and work.

this is how we can add value to our writing. this is also how we show the value of our work.

In whatever area we are directly responsible for, we must know more than our boss.

Teo Hee Lian is an associate trainer with the Civil Service College and former director of the Institute of Public Administration and Management.

Thinking Aloud18

DEAr YOUNG OFFICEr,

Much of the Way i liVe My life bears the imprint of my mother’s teachings. she was promised school if she worked hard growing sugar cane and sweet potatoes during the Japanese occupation. she worked hard, but school never materialised. fortunately, there was the itinerant teacher of chinese classics, who gave Mum a strong grounding in chinese history and classics. When i told her my decision to become a teacher, she was overjoyed.

i clearly remember what she said to me: “jing ye le ye” (敬业乐业). honour your profession, and find joy in it. give it your very best. This has been a guiding principle in my life. as teacher, it was hard work juggling the myriad of tasks in teaching and knowing the students. it was especially in extra-curricular activities that one got to know the character and temperament of students. those moments were invaluable in guiding their growth as young adults. going the extra mile often meant burnt weekends and school holidays. perhaps it was my stubborn nature that made me dig in my heels, refusing to give up even when the going was tough.

as a principal in the 1990s, i saw the world through the eyes of my students, many from struggling homes, and sadly, non-intact families. discipline was poor when i took over the school. it took me six months to evolve a clear set of school rules.

as principal, it was a true test of leader-ship: balancing the needs of students and teachers, deciding on what to do in the

short run, as well as the future direction of the school. it required clear think-ing, stamina, drive and perseverance. to listen was important. this had a ripple effect, with more and more teach-ers and parents stepping up when they saw discernible improvements in the school that had resulted from feedback. there were countless suggestions on ways to build school pride and improve learning, programmes and facilities.

after extensive consultation with stakeholders, we wrote to the Ministry of education, requesting to move the school out of the vicinity of the railway station to quieter surroundings. the approval was a powerful rallying call

that gave the school a new verve. i could see the school turning round, as discipline improved and a strong sense of community emerged. the school was later selected as one of 22 “demo schools” when the first ict Master-plan was launched, with the inspection team summing it all up – that we had a “caring school”.

from this success, what are the lessons distilled? •L i s t en in ten t l y and wa lk the ground, to know issues and concerns, to know who could be tapped on, and be alerted to pitfalls. This helps in clarifying your thinking. When in a dilemma, i often ask myself what would benefit the most people in the longer run. it also pays to consult key stakeholders and seek advice from those with the relevant experience. •People are important.Respect them. be f a i r and impar t i a l . r a l l y peop le and bu i ld s t rong teams so that improvements would be sustainable. be patient too – the best results are obtained when there is a confluence of the right people coming together at the right time.

•Finally, go the extra mile.To be a leader, you have to work harder than anyone else. This means you need to be physically fit and emotionally ready to run the course well. have a regular exercise regime, and take time out to re-charge. Most importantly, connect with family and friends. They provide you the emotional support to keep on going.

i have no regrets – this has been a life worth living, a good life, because i make a difference to the many young lives that pass through my hands.

Honour your profession, and find joy in it. Give it your very best. This has been a guiding principle in my life.

27Letters to a Young Public Officer

by Ho Peng director-general of education

Honour

professionyour

here is probably the question you have always wanted to ask the man at the helm of sin-gapore’s land transport authority (lta): do you take public transport?

the answer is a reassuring “yes”. every workday morning, Mr chew hock yong, 47, catches the train from potong pasir to the little india Mrt station just outside the lta office at hampshire road. “i try to get in early, before 8am,” he says, on his strategy to beat the crowds.

With that elephant out of the room, talk turns to how he has had to “fight fires” at a time when lta is under intense public scrutiny.

because of service disruptions on Mrt lines and some niggling train faults, some commuters worry if they can get to work on time. Mean-while, coe prices continue their unrelenting ascent, and car buyers are unhappy about the prices they have to pay.

singaporeans, it seems, are in-creasingly dissatisfied with getting around in the city-state – and they are making it known.

Land Transport Authority chief Chew Hock Yong talks about the challenges of managing Singapore’s public transportation infrastructure.

Text by Wong Sher Maine Photos by Norman Ng

“We have a strong Adversity Quotient.”

What’s usually in your cup?Jasmine tea.

Where do you usually have your cuppa?

In the office. My secretary brews 2-3 cups a day for me.

onslaught of feedbacklta is receiving more feedback than ever. it now gets 1.5 million instances of feedback yearly, which is about one every 24 seconds!

What does Mr chew make of this? “i think people want to be heard and to have their views considered as well. We’ve a population that ’s better educated. they want to have a say in how certain things get done in the community, which is a good thing, rather than to have people who don’t care,” he says.

lta has hired more frontline offic-ers to handle the rise in feedback, and it pays even greater attention to listening to and communicating with commuters. but he concedes that it can get tricky when officers have to say “no” to customers.

“i always tell our officers in lta, ‘don’t be disappointed if people still don’t accept your explanation after you have carefully explained our approach’,” says Mr chew. “as long as you have done your job dili-gently and fairly, given due consid-eration to people’s suggestions and addressed them, the management will always be behind you.”

Caught off-guardMr chew, who has worked at five different ministries before lta, ac-knowledges that the public trans-port crunch is due to a surge in commuter numbers, and transport infrastructure is struggling to cope.

“We’re doing a bit of catch-up in our transport hardware. the main infrastructure will be completed in the next few years,” he says. “the challenge is how we manage public expectations before the cavalry (new trains and Mrt lines) starts arriv-ing from about 2015. We are doing whatever we can to alleviate the sit-uation. and we are laying the foun-dation for a better transport system and better ways of getting around, going forward.”

“on hindsight, what probably caught some planning agencies a bit off-guard was that the population grew at a faster pace than the forecast,”

says Mr chew. “When we look back we can always find things that we can do better. We’ve picked up from this experience, and we’re making our planning and coordination sys-tems more robust.”

lta will also increase its checks on Mrt stations and tracks: “We are also tightening the regulatory framework so that the operator will put in more effort in maintaining the trains properly and running them well.”

Being a commuter champion away from the glare of policy and big engineering projects, Mr chew’s heart is firmly with the commut-ers. he has tasked senior manage-ment staff to champion the man in the street.

his “pedestrian champion” walks the ground and “pays special atten-tion to how things can be improved at street level”. for example, wheth-er mothers with prams can walk around the Mrt station easily. the “cycling champion” does the same for cyclists.

“there are things we won’t see if we approach it from just the higher perspective of train networks and lines, and engineering systems,” Mr chew explains.

he recounts the story of the “pedes-trian champion” who didn’t think there was a need to build a sheltered walkway from a train station to an hdb block in Jurong.

but when he was at the station and

was trying to get to the hdb block, it rained. “he saw there were a lot of people who were all stuck. he came back convinced of the need for a sheltered walkway there, and we built it.”

from walkways to cycling paths, lta aims to create what Mr chew calls a “portfolio of mobility op-tions” to further ease the nation’s dependency on cars.

despite the challenging times, Mr chew remains incredibly proud of his staff.

“i don’t know if it ’s because we have to deal with difficult issues, but it takes people with resilience and a good spirit to deal with it on a daily basis and not get demoralised. at lta, we have a strong adversity quotient.” he concludes: “you know what lta stands for? it stands for ‘let ’s try again’ – to persevere and push on and do the right thing, even when times are challenging.”

29A Cuppa With...

before the days of electronic detectors, canary birds were brought into coal mines to test the air quality. They acted as an early warning system as they could detect toxic gases quickly. a dis-tressed canary was a clear sign of unsafe conditions.

today, the indigenous people of the arctic circle say they are the canary birds of the world. they are the first to feel the effects of climate change, with the arctic warming up twice as fast than anywhere else.

in 2009, 3,500 walruses were stranded on alaska’s north-west coast because of reduced ice. scientists estimate that polar bears are likely to be extinct in 70 years when they lose their breeding and hunting grounds because of melting ice.

“We don’t want to die. We want our cultures to flourish, and not be wiped out,” said chief gary harrison of the arctic athabaskan council.

chief harrison and five others from the arctic council permanent participant organisations (see side box) were in singapore recently on a study visit. for five days, they met government agencies

and institutions that shared with them singapore’s experience in environmental protection, sustainable development, ed-ucation and community-building. They also visited the sungei buloh Wetland reserve, an internationally recognised site for migratory birds.

chief harrison and Mr olav Mathis eira of the saami council (represent-ing the saami indigenous people) were impressed by singapore’s focus on sus-tainability and planning for the future, they told Challenge. Mr eira said that the government seems unafraid to impose environmental standards on in-dustries and that private companies are well aware of them. also, he observed that instead of seeing environmental con-cerns as barriers, businesses here see them as opportunities.

Not against developmentchief harrison, who leads the chick-

Recently in town to learn more about sustainable development, two leaders from the Arctic Circle warn of the challenges brought on by climate change.

aloon tribe in alaska, said the ex-traction of oil, coal, copper, gas and other resources in his village has led to heavy pollution, threatening animal and plant species. natural resources are being exploited too quickly, without long-term planning. as a result, the tribe’s traditional way of living off the land – foraging and hunting – has been affected.

“We should look seven generations ahead, but they look at the now,” he said.

fearful of further pollution, his people are fighting plans for a new coal mine in chickaloon. after spending us$1.2 million to rehabilitate their waters that had been badly polluted by previous coal mining activities, salmon is finally breeding well again in their area. but a new coal mine could halt the recovery.

“i don’t want to revolt,” said chief

Text by Bridgette See Portrait Photos by Justin Loh

Like canary birds in the Coal Mine

harrison, “but i want to change a revolting situation. We’re not against development but if you can’t do it cleanly, don’t do it. in the long run, the clean-up is costly.”

Feeling the effects of climate changeagreeing, Mr eira, an ethnic saami who lives in the northernmost part of norway, said his people are also feeling the il l effects of climate change and rapid development.

Mr eira is a reindeer herder who inherited the ancestral occupation from his father. for the saami people, reindeers are a source of food, clothing and trade.

Mr eira hopes his three sons will take over his reindeers and continue the

Olav Mathis Eira (far left) of the Saami Council and Chief Gary Harrison of the Arctic Athabaskan Council.

tHe Arctic council member stAtes

Canada • Denmark • Finland • Iceland • Norway • Russian Federation • Sweden •

United States of America

tHe permAnent pArticipAnts of tHe

Arctic council Arctic Athabaskan Council • Aleut

International Association • Gwich’in Council International • Inuit Circumpolar

Council • Russian Arctic Indigenous Peoples of the North • Saami Council

saami culture. but climate change is a big threat.

Warmer temperatures mean there are now rains in the winter. The rain causes traditional winter herding routes over lakes and rivers to become dangerous – the normally frozen ice becomes un-stable. two of his nephews have fallen through ice before.

“Winter is crucial to the reindeers,” Mr eira said. “When it rains in the win-ter, they can starve.” The ice that forms after a rain covers up the reindeers’ only source of food dur-ing winter – lichens. to cope, saami herders now feed the reindeers with expensive food pellets.

ironically, the saami people are also affected by climate change mitigation programmes, pointed out Mr eira. for instance, the scandinavian countries are now installing giant windmills to

generate clean energy. but the windmill farms have encroached on traditional reindeer grazing lands, impacting the reindeers’ hunt for food yet again.

The need to innovateThe indigenous people know they have to innovate and adapt if they are to survive climate change and rapid de-velopment.

fo r in s t ance , the athaba skans of chickaloon Village set up alaska’s only tribally owned full-time school to teach and preserve the athabaskan culture. their salmon rehabilitation project, called the Moose creek res-toration project, has been recognised for habitat conservation.

reflecting on his study visit, Mr eira said he was impressed by singapore’s unique situation of having no natural resources, and yet being able to thrive and “find new ways to be sustainable”.

chief harrison hoped that more coun-tries, even those that are still resource-rich, would think this way before it is too late.

for that to happen, the world would have to take its canary birds’ distress signal more seriously.

“The world is a living thing and we’re all co-dependent. you people down here (in the south) are all co-dependent on us up there (in the north),” he said.

www.arctic-council.org

I don’t want to revolt,

but I want to change a revolting situation.

31Feature

more, because you need to know why this bit of science applies.”

launched in april 2012, cradl∑ (centre for research and applied learning in science) is the science centre’s latest initiative to inspire young scientists and engineers to stretch their abilities.

Through experiments, data collection and analysis, cradl∑’s structured

Visitors to the science centre may be familiar with its fas-cinating interactive and hands-on exhibits, but little do they know that behind closed doors, serious science is taking place.

about a third of the centre houses a large number of scientific facilities that are available only to students. they include a dna learning laboratory, a movie-making studio and a robotics

learning centre. There, youths aged 12 to 18 carry out experiments and con-duct projects, transforming the science they had learnt in their textbooks into real experiences.

“to really learn, you must immerse yourself in a project,” says associate professor lim tit Meng, the science centre’s chief executive. “When you apply science to a problem, it will inspire and push you to understand

More than just a collection of exhibits, real science takes place at Science Centre Singapore. Text by Douglas Chew Photos by John Heng

A/Prof Lim, who heads the Science

Centre, at the newly opened CRADL∑ lab.

A CRADL∑ for InnovATIon

A student learns about the Arduino microcontroller during a CRADL∑ workshop. A light sensor is attached to the

Arduino that has been programmed to turn on or turn off a lamp, depending on what is detected by the light sensor.

Joel Tong, a member of the Science Centre’s Singapore Academy of Young Engineers and Scientists,

demonstrates his Arduino-controlled blimp he had built for the Singapore Mini Maker Faire in August 2012.

An assortment of gears being cut out from acrylic by a laser cutter at the CRADL∑ lab. With its speed and ease of use, the laser cutter allows students to quickly test out ideas

and prototypes for their projects.

experimentation programmes explore scientific concepts and aim to bridge the gap between the theory and practice of science.

participants get to measure the speed of sound and light, and explore related phenomena, such as standing waves, diffraction and resonance, using the same types of electronic test and mea-surement devices found in professional research laboratories.

students can also make use o f the h igh tech scientific equipment at cradl∑, such as its atomic force microscope, scanning electron micro-scope, 3-d printer and laser cutting and engrav-ing equipment.

“cradl∑ aims to cu l t ivate the research mindset so that research and development becomes part of the nature of our students’ training,” says a/prof lim.

another workshop gets students to measure the non-linear conducting properties of semiconductors. students have to work out for themselves the elementary charge of an electron. other workshops deal with electro-magnetism, electronic circuits and even quantum physics.

More advanced students with the aptitude for scientific work can sign up to conduct research at cradl∑. from proposing the research project,

defining the problem and designing their experiments, to project planning and management, the young scientists and engineers take responsibility for their work.

Meanwhile the sponsorship of dso national laboratories and the agency for science, technology and research (a*star) helps fund deserving proj-ects. the Ministry of education is also supporting cradl∑, through the secondment of teachers as educa-

tor researcher Mentors. They develop and teach cradl∑ programmes, and mentor student research.

one recent project studied microwaves in ovens. from the results, the student researchers learned that the waves are not evenly distributed within the oven, and thus discovered problematic hotspots.

another tackled whether plants moved in the dark. The students had to think of how to isolate any stray light waves in a darkened space, and how to measure the minute movements.

recognising that the research pro-grammes at cradl∑ will have a limit in capacity, the centre is also train-

ing teachers to be research mentors. a/prof lim intends to work with schools for them to become satellite cradles, bridging the geographic dis-tance that being in the western part of singapore can pose.

a/prof lim has big plans for cradl∑: “We want to give every student, who has an aptitude for science, a chance to develop it. We should not leave behind any potential scientist or engineer.” aiming to handle tens of thousands

of students in future years, he notes that cradl∑ needs to scale up. he hopes to generate more results and attract more funding in the process.

already linked up with dso and a*star, the science

centre plans to enlist small and medium enterprises (sMes) to provide real technical problems in their businesses that student researchers can tackle, at the same time exposing them to entrepreneurship.

some real-world problems might prove to be too difficult for the students so research scientists from cradl∑ and the scientific organisations sponsoring cra-dl∑ act as consultants to guide them.

but a/prof lim notes: “We don’t underestimate the power of youth.” The fresh eyes of the young scientists might see what the more experienced have missed, bringing to the table novel perspectives that might open up new dimensions in science.

We want to give every student, who has an aptitude for science,

a chance to develop it. We should not leave behind any potential

scientist or engineer.

33Feature

for Mr clarence ti, the chief executive of Vital, cancer is a subject that cuts close to the heart. The 40-year-old lost his father to cancer last year, after a year of fighting.

“i know first-hand that it’s not an easy time,” he says. “support is so important, not only for the patient but also for the caregivers who have to make sacrifices.”

so when a colleague mooted the idea of getting their heads shaved to help attract donations for the children’s cancer foundation’s annual hair for hope (hfh) fundraiser, Mr ti wasted no time in saying yes.

together with 16 others from Vital, a shared services centre under the finance Ministry, Mr ti had his head shaven at an hfh satellite event held on Vital’s premises on June 21. That inspired more than 180 Vital colleagues to support the cause, raising more than $9,000 – nearly double the original $5,000 target.

Mr ti is clearly moved by this. “We all need great colleagues to rouse us from our preoccupation with our own lives, to remind us that there are those in our society whose lives are more difficult, more in need than our own,” he says.

Mr ti, however, is also quick to point out that the satellite event was not an official corporate event.

“beyond letting our staff send out emai ls on the subject , there was actually very little that the ‘organisa-tion’ did,” he says. “The word of mouth, the buzz, the rallying was all done by the equivalent of a grassroots movement. it was an effort from the ground up.”

Creating awarenessfor Vital’s operations director Wong Wai Mun, shaving his head was his way of sharing hope.

less than a year ago, he had suffered a stroke and lost his speech and memory temporarily. now getting back on his feet again after months of rehabilitation, he shares, “as i pondered over what life is about and the blessings which i have received, i realised that giving a little hope to others is perhaps a small but right thing to do.”  Mr Wong, who last shaved his head during his national service, says his family fully supported his decision to participate in the fundraiser. like the rest of his newly bald colleagues, he is doing his part to start conversations with curious friends and colleagues on the issue of cancer. he hopes their efforts will help more people become aware of cancer, and boost the chances of early detection and cure.

for Mr Jason toh, head of business growth at Vital, going “botak” for the

Text by Douglas Chew Photo by Justin Loh

cause is about delivering a vital mes-sage to cancer patients: do not give up.

Mr toh, whose grandmother and uncle both passed away from cancer some years ago, understands only too well the importance of encouraging patients in their battle against cancer. he adds: “through my action of shaving my head, i [also] want to teach my kids the values of empathy and care.”

Rallying Vitalhaving participated in hfh the past two years, Mr toh was about to shave

Shaved heads at Vital help open hearts and minds to the issue of cancer.

Making a bald Statement

his head for the third time as an in-dividual “shavee” when he thought he could, in fact, rally the entire Vital to join him in the fundraising.

as the main coordinator for the satel-lite event, he encouraged his colleagues to sign up as “shavees” or to donate to the cause. part of this involved sending out publicity emails to explain to his colleagues the work of the children’s cancer foundation and about child-hood cancer. Mr toh jokes that there was a period

when no one was willing to take the lift with him, as he took advantage of the enclosed space to ask for volunteers to join in the shave.

he also organised an educational talk by the foundation, where a child who had recovered from cancer and was a beneficiary of the foundation shared with Vital officers his story of bat-tling cancer.

“it is important that people are aware of and understand cancer so they can join in giving encouragement and showing

support to the patients in their fight against cancer,” Mr toh says.

and while he is pleased that the dona-tions surpassed the $5,000 target, he also makes it clear that the fundraiser is about more than dollars and cents.

“it’s not the monetary value,” Mr toh says. “it’s about having the heart to want to do your part. so you find donations coming in between $5 and $500. and these add up.”

It is important that people are aware of and understand cancer so they can join in giving encouragement and showing support to the patients in their fight against cancer.

Going bald for a reason (from left): Clarence Ti, Jason Toh and Wong Wai Mun.

35Feature

your Monthly progress report on your social media campaigns is due: you cross your fingers that your fan acquisitions have increased with more likes on your facebook page and more follows on your twitter site. after all, aren’t these numbers supposed to indicate the level of success of your social media endeavours?

or so we think. in fact, as we mature and move towards government social Media 2.0, we are actually more con-cerned with the quality of engagements, as the real measure of the success of our social media communications. This means looking beyond acquiring likes, shares and follows, to developing strate-gies to build advocacy from the online community as a powerful tool of influ-ence, since 90% of online participants trust peer recommendations, compared with 14% who trust advertising. as such, we’ve refined an Integrated Social Media Engagement framework to help government enterprises estab-lish and sustain public engagement, for tomorrow.

1. Listen enterprises should closely monitor online conversations, to decipher per-tinent issues and pick out key trends, tonalities and sentiments. in short,

take a macro perspective of the online conversation landscape.

2. Profile Stakeholders no two stakeholders are alike, so to conduct deep engagement, we must recognise their diverse positions and concerns. this means understanding the aspine (actions, sentiments, perceptions, interests, needs and expectations) of stakeholders, and leveraging these as key target points of engagement. using aspine as a tool, government agencies might un-cover blind spots and anchor construc-tive points of engagement that relate to stakeholders.

3.Communication Strategy & Roadmap We need to ask, what are our desired communication outcomes? The answer: Mindshare, heartshare, & action. Mindshare refers to creating stake-holder awareness and interest in your engagement; heartshare, to the buy-in through positive influence and support engendered; and action, to the acting on your engagement. use this framework to guide your engagement strategies.

4. Engage-Influence-Advocate Manage and influence the relationships and experiences of online stakehold-ers. don’t go in with a transactional

Norman Ng is an Engagement Strategist, and is the Managing Director of Icon Media Group. He has delivered consultancy and enterprise capability development solutions to Fortune 500 corporations and public enterprises. He adjunct lectures at the Civil Service College on various programmes covering traditional-new media and public communications.

mindset. rather, execute your en-gagements in a way that supports conversations on a personal level. This could mean adopting a people-oriented tonality of engagement, addressing each participant in person; or sustaining real two-way conversations.

do this and you will then develop a credibility that gives people compelling reason to engage you online. because they will start to see that you’re not merely keen to “market” to them the government, but you’re listening and empathising with them, as real people with real concerns.

so for government agencies thinking of how best to move forward beyond social Media 1.0, start by putting the “social” back into social media: build relationships through quality conversa-tions and focus on the online experience of your stakeholders.

IncubatingSocial Media Communities

& Advocates

Creating deep engagement, from the bottom up.

Text by Norman Ng

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Level Up36

the Van of clarence chua sprouts a grass roof.

it is a green and innovative way to keep cool in singapore’s blistering heat. Made up of a series of shallow trays that could support a lush lawn and yet be secured safely on the van roof, the mobile patch is the brainchild of clarence, a manager of visitor services at gardens by the bay.

“My van does not have roof insulation, so on a hot day it is like an oven,” he said. “so i thought, why not make my own insulation, but on the outside?”

the 29-year-old is an ardent fan of nature who spent his growing-up years catching spiders and roaming in parks like a kampong boy (despite living in an hdb flat), thanks to the enthusiasm of an equally nature-loving father. Te

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e37Officers With A Passion

but it was at university when he worked on a photo essay of singapore’s green spaces for his final-year project that his simple love for nature deepened into a conviction. now clarence is a sup-porter of local green spaces, knowing how important it is to “strike a balance between preserving natural heritage and development”.

The eye-catching garden van is a simple creation resulting from clarence’s green philosophy. and it doesn’t hurt that the vehicle always brings on smiles wherever it goes. he recalled: “once, a woman and her child ran after the van and told me how cool the idea was. she put her young daughter on the roof and took a picture.”

Well, who wouldn’t? after all not only is it a cool idea in tropical singapore, it’s a heart-warming one too.

An NParks off icer has cultivated a love for all things green from a young age.

He is a ConSTAnT GARDeneR

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for Most of us, planning for sickness or death doesn’t come easily.

people tend to remember only the best parts of life and there is a general reluctance in today’s culture to think about growing old and losing memories, said richard Magnus, chairman of the public guardian board. so when Mr Magnus, 66, decided to make a lasting power of attorney (lpa) and wanted to discuss with his family about who should handle his affairs should he lose mental capacity one day, his children initially resisted.

“they didn’t want to talk about this now; they said we could resolve the is-sue when it comes,” the former senior district judge recounted.

such a mindset and the taboo of talk-ing about death and sickness tend to deter many people from planning for contingencies in life.

Why the need to plan however, singapore’s population is age-ing rapidly. The number of persons aged 65 and above was 300,000 in 2010 and is estimated to rise to 900,000 by 2030. 

The likelihood of suffering age-related illnesses like dementia or stroke increases as a result. dementia cases are set to grow from 28,000 in 2010 to 80,000 in 2030. This means one in 15 singaporeans aged 60 and above will likely lose their mental abilities by 2030.

The ageing population led the govern-ment to enact the Mental capacity act in March 2010. The act allows an adult (the “donor”) to appoint one or more trusted persons (“donees”) to act and decide on matters of personal welfare and/or property and affairs through an lpa.

for example, a personal welfare donee can decide where a donor should live or what to eat or wear. a donee given responsibilities over property and affairs can manage a donor’s bank accounts, finances, property and assets.

overcoming attitudesthe office of the public guardian (opg), a division of the Ministry of community development, youth and sports (Mcys), was set up in 2010 to maintain the register of lpas as one of its functions.

to raise public awareness and to over-come resistant attitudes, the opg has held 14 lpa workshops and 277 public talks from March 2010 to end-2011. so far, close to 2,000 people have already made an lpa.

public officer low sze Wee, 42, made a will after buying a flat. he also made an lpa.

unlike a will, which functions only after a person passes away, the lpa comes into effect when a person is still alive but is vulnerable and unable to make decisions due to reduced mental capacity.

it is a relatively simple process for a donor to appoint donees while being sound of mind. “to save everybody the

hassle, why not make an lpa when i’m still able to make the decision?” said Mr low, who works at the national art gallery.

Life is unpredictablehence the opg wants to move citizens to make the decision sooner rather than later, and to think about their lives the way they think about their assets.

“When we buy a house and want to pass it on, we make a will. but our life is more valuable than a house,” said Mr Magnus. “an lpa is more than just filling forms. you’re affirming that even if you lose mental capacity, your dignity and autonomy should still be protected.”

“Many people don’t realise that the capacity to make decisions is integral to themselves,” he continued. “if you lose a hand, you can still function without it or use a prosthetic. if you lose your mind, you lose your personality.”

The lpa isn’t just for the elderly. an accident could make a person mentally incapable as well. The opg hopes their campaigns will persuade more singa-poreans to sign an lpa and encourage their loved ones to follow suit. after Mr Magnus convinced his two children of the benefits of an lpa, they have become his donees.

“if every public servant brings the mes-sage home to their family, it will help to change mindsets,” said Mr Magnus.

The LPA comes into effect when a person is still alive but is vulnerable

and unable to make decisions due to reduced mental

capacity.

• OPG encourages individuals to plan proactively through an LPA so that their interests can be protected if they should lose their mental capacity.

• Making an LPA involves appointing a trusted person(s) to take care of specific areas of one’s life – personal

welfare and/or property and affairs matters. To make sure that a person is signing the LPA voluntarily, it must be certified and witnessed by an accredited doctor, practising lawyer or psychiatrist.

• The OPG organises workplace talks and free regular workshops for the public to

learn more about the LPA. On-site mobile clinics to facilitate LPA registrations can also be arranged. There are guidebooks and online instructional videos to take applicants step by step through the LPA form. For more information, visit www.publicguardian.gov.sg or call 1800 226 6222.

39Feature

Photos by Norman Ng

Ryandall Lim scours modern Singapore for retro furniture shops whose products and designs celebrate the timeless beauty of eras past.

Shopping

nostAlgiA

ReStore Living Pte Ltdrestore living represents a small number of young, mid-sized, retro-themed household shops started by entrepreneurs keen to marry their passion for preserving old furniture with a self-satisfying career. Just two years old, this vintage furniture shop is the baby of good friends, Megumi Wettstein and liew hwee Min. The simply decorated shop is bright and cheery, with a row of colourful, newly upholstered din-ing chairs perched on the shop’s railing. below them, a number of retro wooden cabinets sit side by side. everything in the shop is unique and for sale. They were sourced from hdb void decks or industrial estates and restored. The shop also houses a cafe, where one can relax around old tables, on chairs of different shapes and sizes, enjoying home-made waffles, ice cream and piquant coffee. The store-and-cafe concept, explains Ms liew, allows young homeowners to have a cozy, stress-free environment as they contemplate possible buys over a cuppa. but don’t take too long to decide, or that perfect chair you were eyeing might just get sold as you sip on your cuppa.

Vintage chair haven

Address: 124 Tanjong Pagar Road Singapore 088533

Opening hours: 11am-7pm (Tue – Fri) 11am-6pm (Sat & Sun)Closed on Mondays

Telephone: 62223510

Website: restoreliving.blogspot.sg

Item price range: Dining chairs from $190 onwards

Hock Siong & Coreputed as singapore’s leading second-hand furniture and homeware store, hock siong sells items sourced mostly from local hotels. look out for unique finds such as silverware with dragon head handles, shisha lamps and old-school marble dustbins. The best part? you can even bargain down the already oh-so-low prices. started 20 years ago by karang guni man Mr toh chin siong, hock siong today shares a special bond with its customers. says its store manager brillyn toh: “We’re more a community than a shop. We’ve loyal customers who pop by every weekend, and sometimes even bring snacks or home-cooked food to share with us!” indeed the friendly atmosphere of the place is contagious, courtesy of the cheerful staff. you’d wish you could bring some of that great hospitality back!

second-hand homeware specialists

Address: 153 Kampong Ampat #01-03 Junjie Industrial Building Singapore 368326

Opening hours: 9.30am-5.50pm (Daily)

Telephone: 62818338

Website: www.facebook.com/hocksiongco

Item price range: From $0.50 for a shot glass to about $2,000 for display shelves

41Life.Style

Changi Junk Storepak haji basman Johari’s 40-year-old changi Junk store is an odd inhabitant among the numerous eating outlets, karaoke joints and budget hotels that line colourful Joo chiat road. it is packed with all kinds of furniture and knick-knacks, some spilling out into the common walkway and onto the road. curious passers-by peek in, and some quickly dismiss the store as containing what its name says; but those with a good eye will spot some rare prized pieces. in fact, nearly half of pak basman’s more than 1,000 items – most of which are kept in a kallang pudding road warehouse – are precious antiques. interesting finds include a gold-leaf bridal dais that once belonged to bugis royalty, a pair of wooden peranakan clogs, intricately carved bird cages, classic Malay sireh sets, indonesian oil paintings and teak carvings. and if you have a piece of old furniture, pak basman will gladly restore it to its former glory for a fee. today, the sprightly 72-year-old still cuts a strapping figure and continues to single-handedly collect, deal and restore his wares.

Antiques treasure trove

Just Anthony Pte Ltd from the outside, the bungalow that Just anthony occupies looks and feels like an old museum. its spacious driveway is half-filled with ceramic vats and lined with pot-bellied statues and stone lions. step inside, and you’ll find that most of the products – from traditional wooden chests, dressers, cupboards to an original shanxi horse-cart – are from china. Many of the items come with their histories intact. Just anthony also restores, reproduces and customises popular wooden furniture styles, including those from the Ming dynasty. feast your eyes on elaborately carved wedding beds, shiny mother-of-pearl din-ing sets, a fish-shaped stone pillow, hand-painted wash buckets and iconic circular shelves. Just anthony bills itself as having singapore’s largest selection of chinese antique furniture. Ms danielle lee man-ages the place with her father, anthony. here, loyalty is very much the name of the game. “customers who’ve been buying from my father long ago, now have children who come back to us,” says Ms lee. Just anthony has been around for 30 years, and with the level of product authenticity maintained through time, future generations may just keep coming back.

loyalty through time

Address: 379 Upper Paya Lebar Road Singapore 534972

Opening hours: 9am-6.30pm (Daily)

Telephone: 62834782

Website: www.justanthony.com

Item price range: $25 for hand-painted dishes and ceramic tiles, to $18,000 for a 150-year-old original canopy bed from Shanxi

Address: 125 Joo Chiat Road Singapore 427413

Opening hours: 9am-5pm (Daily)

Telephone: 96359425

Website: www.facebook.com/pages/Changi-Junk-Store/279725578711337

Item price range: From $15 onwards

43Life.Style

Need We Say More?Here’s where we let the humour loose, and learn to laugh at ourselves a little more. Have ideas or jokes about the Public Service? Email us: psd_challenge@psd.gov.sg

no Wrong DoorThere’s never a wrong door. It’s just that sometimes there’s a very long corridor.

The Irreverent Last Page44

Pairs ofMovie Vouchers

to be won

Congratulationsto the winners of the

July/August 2012 Trivia Quiz

Roslinda ArsadICA

Tein Jun GangNEA

Lim ZhongyanHDB

Tong Woei ChengEMA

Yeow KeshinMCYS

For answers to last issue’s quiz, please go to www.challenge.gov.sg.

Submit your answers byOCTOBER 3, 2012 at:

Challenge Onlinewww.challenge.gov.sg

Please include your name, email address, agency and

contact number.

All winners will be notified by email.

at the 2012 excellence in Public Service awards, deputy Prime minister Teo chee hean announced the addition of new service principles to the existing four of care, accessibility, responsibility and effectiveness (care).

a. oneb. twoc. threed. four

1

The newly implemented first responder Protocol, which builds upon the Public Service division’s no Wrong door policy was first piloted in 2012 by the .

a. Agri-Food and Veterinary Authorityb. National Environment Agencyc. National Parks Boardd. Singapore Land Authority

2

The customer-centric initiative (cci) assistance package covers up to of eligible costs for Smes to encourage them to raise service standards in their industry.

a. 50%b. 60%c. 70%d. 80%

3

launched in 2011, the is awarded to the most outstanding organisation that has demonstrated the highest levels of customer satisfaction and organisational service excellence.

a. Premier Customer Satisfaction Awardb. Singapore Service Excellence Medallionc. Best Customer Service Awardd. Gold Medal for Excellent Customer Service

4

is the second phase of the go the extra mile for Service (gemS) movement which aims to raise the level of service excellence in Singapore.

a. GEMS 2.0b. GEMS Upc. Next GEMSd. NuGEMS

5