Executive Council members of IRASSU,
Commissioner of IRAS,
Distinguished guests,
Ladies and gentlemen.
It is my pleasure to be here this evening for IRASSU'S 10th Anniversary Dinner and Dance.
The Many Storms We Have Weathered
We have weathered many storms for the past five years. The first was the Asian Financial Crisis. It was a tough time. We had to go to the extent of cutting the CPF contribution rate to 30% in order to get back on our feet again. Our people united and we pulled through. A short period of sunshine and boom followed.
However, the break was a short lived one. Before long, another storm hit us. This was the September 11, 2001 attack on the New York World Trade Centre. The threat of terrorism became a very real one over night. We then uncovered the plot of the Jemaah Islamiyah cells in Singapore. That brought the threat of terrorism even closer to home. The confidence in the region was further shaken with the Bali bombing one year after the attack on the World Trade Centre (October 12, 2002). Our security agencies moved very quickly and we were able to contain the impact on the confidence of businesses operating in Singapore. Singaporeans showed their mettle and we pulled ourselves together. Things appeared to be turning for the better.
However, there were worries about an impending war in Iraq. That dampened sentiment, and lowered demand. The war did start, and all hoped for an early resolution.
Our hopes of a recovery were further dashed when another storm struck. The Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome or SARS affected many sectors. The first to be hit were the travel and transportation sectors. Many flights were cancelled and travel plans of both Singaporeans and foreigners were postponed. There were anxiety and fear in the people. We knew right from the beginning that if we did not contain the SARS problem effectively, we would go down. It had far worse impact than the Iraq War, which was mercifully short.
It was heartening to see Singaporeans rally together to tackle the problem. Our healthcare workers held their fort with great courage and commitment. Everyone played a part. Singaporeans united behind a common threat and we fought back. Eventually, we were lifted from the World Health Organisation's SARS affected list of countries. We won the battle, at least for the time being. Our ability to deal with the crisis has also strengthened the belief that Singapore is a country that can get things done!
There have been many ups and downs in the past five years. Just when we could catch a glimpse of the sunshine from behind the rain clouds, another storm came along. The events came unexpectedly and beyond anyone's control. It is no surprise that some people are reeling from the successive blows. I can understand that some people are anxious and perhaps tired. Any human being would feel this way to a different extent.
The report card for the second quarter advance estimate was swimming in a sea of red ink. However, the Ministry of Trade and Industry had pointed out in the same report that the latest economic data show that near-term outlook will improve. Financial markets have priced in stronger US economic growth in the second half of the year. This would lift business sentiments. Feedback from major pharmaceutical companies indicates that changes to the product-mix would boost output in the second half of the year. Some improvements have already been seen in visitor arrivals and hotel occupancy rates. If there are no more adverse external shocks, the economic performance in the second half is expected to improve. I share that view. However, I should add to that. How we take advantage of a recovery depends on the attitude we take.
We need to be able to change and adapt. We need to be able to learn and re-learn. We need to stay positive and resilient.
Change and Adapt
Our environment is changing very rapidly. Business cycles are becoming shorter. The competition is much keener. The future can become even more uncertain. As some say, "Change is the only constant in our world". Many would agree with me.
Workers need to change their mindsets and learn to adapt to the changes around them. The type of jobs that are available would change. Some jobs would disappear and may never come back again. We need to recognize that and change. We will see new forms of employment structure such as more of contract work. The union movement needs to recognize this and adapt.
This reminds me of the two mice named Sniff and Scurry in the book "Who Moved My Cheese". When the cheese ran out at the station, Sniff and Scurry saw that it is time to take out their running shoes again and go out in search of the next pile of cheese. There is no use in returning to the same place again and again; hoping that the cheese that is gone would reappear at the same place again. It would most probably not. Instead, we have to take charge of our own destiny, recognize that our environment has changed and we need to adapt.
Learn and Re-learn
The ability to change would depend to some extent on our ability to learn and re-learn.
Dr Charles Handy, in his book "The Age of Unreason" cited an example of what many people see as learning. A man stood in front of the class. "Now learn this," he said while writing an equation on the board. The students wrote it in their books. Three months later they wrote it out again in an examination paper. If the second time of the writing was the same as the first, they had learnt the equation. Although this is a bit exaggerated, I suspect it rings a bell in many of our minds! Dr Handy wrote: "Later on, I came to realize that I had learnt nothing at school which I now remember except only this - that all problems had already been solved by someone, and that the answer was around, in the back of the book or the teacher's head. Learning seemed to mean transferring answers from them to me."
Real learning, in the view of Dr Handy, is always about answering a question or solving a problem. It is important to be able to ask questions and identify problems. Based on the knowledge of others and experience of ours, we would be able find a solution to the questions and problems. We reflect on what we do and that becomes part of our knowledge. More questions could be raised and the process repeats itself. That is learning and that is a skill in itself.
We need to have that sort of mindset of learning and re-learning in order for us to adapt and survive in this world. We are never too old to learn. We hardly use up all our grey matter up here by the time we stop breathing. It is just that some people are afraid of failure that they are hesitant of learning new things.
When the cheese run out at the station, Sniff and Scurry in the story of "Who Moved The Cheese" knew they had to do something that they had not done for a long time. They had to put on their running shoes and go out into the maze to search for cheese again. They had to learn again the skills of negotiating the maze. It was tough initially, but they managed. Eventually, they found another station with cheese. They were happy again. From then on they did not simply put away their running shoes, but they continued to practice running the Maze. Who knows if the cheese would run out again and they would need to look for the next pile of cheese somewhere in the maze. This story to me is a constant reminder of the importance of learning and re-learning to adapt!
Conclusion
IRASSU has come a long way to where you are today. You have experienced many changes. You made tremendous contributions along with the progress of IRAS all these years. Not so long ago tax return was a laborious process of filling in pages and pages of forms, even if at the end of the day you need not pay a single cent in taxes. However, the process is very much streamlined and simplified. For those companies which are linked to IRAS' system, employees need not even fill in their annual income. The success of IRAS in embracing new technology in revenue administration had won IRAS accolades. The effective leadership played a part. More importantly, the people and the union behind IRAS made a significant difference. IRAS, as with all other organizations, will have many challenges ahead it. There will be a constant search to collect taxes with lower and lower cost. It will mean refining the processes, and making use of technology, and using fewer people. It is both a 'threat' and an 'opportunity'. The ability to take advantage of opportunities would depend on the attitude that we take.
On this note, I wish all of you a pleasant and memorable evening.
