(Delivered on 7 Mar 2019)
MENDAKI, MUIS and MESRA (M3) – Faisal Manap (in Malay)
Tuan, dalam sesi wawancara media pada July 2018, Menteri Masagos telah berkongsi mengenai gabungan antara 3 badan utama, Muis, Mendaki dan Mesra yang dinamakan M3 atau M-Kuasa 3 sebagai satu initiatif untuk memperkukuh dan mempertabatkan lagi masyarakat Melayu/Islam Singapura.
Tuan, saya ingin mengajukan beberapa soalan kepada Menteri mengenai M-Kuasa 3 ini;
1) Apakah ‘roadmap’ atau pelan-pelan strategik M-Kuasa 3?
2) Apakah matlamat jangka masa serdahana (mid-term) dan jangka masa panjang yang telah dilakarkan?
3) Apakah kelainan M-Kuasa 3 berbanding dengan gabungnan MUIS, Mendaki & Mesra yang sedia ada sebelum diberi nama M-Kuasa 3, terutama dalam cara pendekataan yang diambil untuk mencapai matlamat-matlamat yang telah dilakarkan.
4) Apakah nilai-nilai utama yang ingin disemai dan dibina dalam masyarakat Melayu/Islam Singapura
Tuan, merujuk kepada wawancara media menteri yang saya katakan awal tadi, saya terkesan dengan perkongsian menteri yang banyak menyentuh serta menekankan nilai-nilai kerohanian dalam usaha-usaha pembentukkan sebuah masyarakat yang berjaya. Ada beberapa kali dimana beliau menukil kata-kata ulama tersohor terkini dan yang silam sebagai contoh dan rujukan.
Tuan, insyaAllah, sebagai salah seorang AP Melayu Islam, saya menyokong usaha Menteri untuk memperkukuh dan mempertabatkan lagi masyarakat Melayu/Islam Singapura. Namun pada masa yang sama, adalah satu amanah atau satu yang dituntut bagi setiap individu Muslim terutama dikalangan ketua-ketua politik dan masyarakat untuk saling nasihat-menasihati dan tegur-menegur jika terdapat sebarang kelemahan dan kesilapan dalam misi kearah memperkukuh dan mempertabatkan lagi masyrakat Melayu/Islam Singapura.
Bersama, kita berusaha dan mendoakan agar masyarakat Melayu/Islam Singapura akan menjadi sebuah masyarakat yang cemerlang, yang menyuruh ke arah membuat kebaikkan dan mencegah dari membuat kemungkaran, dan juga sebuah masyarakat yang membimbing dan memimpin, dan bukan sebaliknya.
Tuan, ciri-ciri yang disebutkan ini adalah penting jika kita ingin menyumbang secara lebih positif dan konstruktif dalam usaha-usaha negara membina Singapura yang kukuh dan bersatu padu.
Memorial to Our Fallen Soldiers – Daniel Goh
Chairman, earlier last month, the Minister for Defence Dr Ng Eng Hen gave the ministerial statement on national service training deaths and said the following heartfelt words in conclusion:
“Singapore has lost precious sons. As deep as the hurt, as great the loss, we must not forget why we suffer them. When the founding generation pledged themselves to build a strong SAF, they were fully conscious that a strong military is only possible with fully committed national servicemen drawn from every family in Singapore. They knew the costs and sacrifice that would be required. Not only in resources that we invest in at every Budget, but much more precious would be the time, the sweat, the tears, even the lives of precious sons.”
Sir, the Founders’ Memorial will be built to honour Singapore’s founding generation of leaders by expressing the ideals and values upon which our nation is built. National servicemen and regulars who lost their lives in training and on duty paid the ultimate price for these ideals and values. The founding generation of leaders knew these sacrifices would be required to defend these ideals and values.
We must not forget the loss of these precious sons so that we can remember why we suffer the loss. Therefore, we should at least remember the names of these precious sons as long as the Founders’ Memorial stands in Bay East Garden. I believe we should build a simple and solemn memorial wall at the Founders’ Memorial inscribing the names of Singapore’s precious sons lost in service.
Sir, I speak as a Singaporean son. I am still serving as a NSman. In one training course I attended a few years ago, my unit visited the Kranji War Memorial. Though I have been to the Memorial before, it was different visiting it in uniform and reading the Indian, Malay and Chinese names of soldiers who died defending Singapore on the wall of the Memorial. It gave material meaning to our values and stirred in me the resolve to defend our nation.
These were men who died long before our nation was founded. What more would the names of our precious sons who have fallen to defend our nation do to make us stand strong and united as a people.
Singapore Football – Faisal Manap
Sir, I have made a call in one of my previous COS speeches for FAS to commission a study to search for reasons that are hampering our national football team’s progression towards excellence. However, sir, FAS has recently identified and made known to the public these reasons, in a way. Allow me to elaborate.
Sir, in early December last year, during a media interview, Fandi Ahmad remarked, “The new national coach must be able to understand and adapt to our unique ecosystem.” Fandi Ahmad’s remark has induced some curiosity and sparked discussions among Singapore’s football fans. A number of football enthusiasts had written forum letter to the media seeking clarity on what Fandi Ahmad meant by ‘Unique Ecosystem’.
Sir, in addressing this issue, FAS’s general secretary wrote a reply letter stated the following, “Much like several other football-playing countries with a small population size and land constraints, the Football Association of Singapore (FAS) has had to work around these factors as we develop the sport in Singapore. Our local young footballers, similar to other local athletes, have to juggle their commitments to national service and priorities on academia – an age group where globally and regionally, football players are full-time professionals”.
Based on FAS’s explanation, it can be deemed the factor that is hampering our National Team progressing towards excellence is our ‘Unique Ecosystem’ or in other words, a systemic issue. Sir, since the problem has been identified, I would suggest MCCY, SportsSG and FAS to form a unique team and work in transforming this Uniquely Singapore
Ecosystem into a favourable ecosystem that will spur our National Team to greater heights. MCCY should spearhead this effort since it is a systemic issue. To have a good start in this enhancement effort, I suggest the team to study on how the Iceland’s National Team, representing a nation of 300,000 populations and geographically made up of harsh terrain, has managed to attain Unique Achievements in recent years, where they played and did well in UEFA Euro 2016 and became the smallest nation to qualify for FIFA World Cup 2018.
Sir, with concerted and determined efforts, I am confident that our National Team will one day create a name in the international football scene.