PM Goh urges self-help groups to join hands in running programmes

Such cooperation will help build a more cohesive, multi-racial society, he says

By David Boey

PRIME Minister Goh Chok Tong yesterday urged community self-help groups to run more joint programmes among themselves as such interaction will help build a more cohesive, multi-racial society.

Speaking at a tea reception to thank people who have volunteered their time with the Singapore Indian Development Association (Sinda), Mr Goh said he was "particularly struck" when he was told that 10 per cent of Sinda's 2,100 volunteers are non-Indians.

"I am very pleased that Sinda has gone outside its own community to tap a wider pool of volunteers," he said.

"This not only increases your resources, but very importantly, helps to build a more cohesive multi-racial society."

Yesterday's reception was attended by more than 2,000 Sinda members, about 1,000 Indian grassroots leaders and scores of Sinda's non-Indian supporters.

Mr Goh said that joint programmes run by self-help groups like Sinda, Mendaki, Chinese Development Assistance Council and the Eurasian Association would help promote stronger bonds between Singaporeans of different ethnic groups.

He said: "We should take advantage of the ability of self-help groups to reach out to and draw out members of their own community, to participate in remedial and training programmes alongside members of other communities."

While he hoped that the efforts of self-help groups would be structured along multi-racial lines, he said that this call "should not be read as a policy change to do away with ethnic-based self-help groups".

Creating a cohesive multi-racial society will take time, Mr Goh said. "Meanwhile, the reality is that many Singaporeans remain more comfortable turning to members of their own community for help. They feel less inhibited sharing their problems with someone from the same community, culture and religion."

The prime minister also noted the success self-help groups have thus far in improving their communities. "I doubt that we would have been as effective in drawing out volunteers and reaching out to so many students and workers had we used a different approach," he said.

"But even as we pursue an ethnic-based self-help policy, we must always remember that ours is a multi-racial society," Mr Goh added.

"A multi-racial Singapore provides us that stability necessary for progress. It also gives us a unique advantage. By building on each community's complementary strengths, we become stronger overall."