May 14th 2011 - [NEWS] Informal Policy Discussion Forum by MP Chan Chun Sing

As a reader pointed out to me, Mr. Chan had organized an Informal Policy Discussion Forum just today.

Full disclosure: I had actually known about the event, but it did not occur to me to post the information on this blog. As such, I apologize to the people who would have been interested but were not made aware of it. The good news, is that Mr. Chan will be organizing more. So please keep an eye on posts with [NEWS]. It will contain pertinent updates on upcoming political activities you as residents can participate in

Here is the Facebook link to the pictures Mr. Chan had kept of the event (with reader comments providing *some* context):


Informal Policy Discussion Forum Facebook Pictures and Comments

I (being in the USA) did not attend and I am reconstructing some information from Mr. Chan's comments on Facebook:

1. This particular forum was about Education reform.
2. The next one (as voted on by the participants) will be about HDB flat pricing. It will be scheduled some time next week.
3. His house rules for attendance are:

All Singaporeans welcome. We just hv the foll rules (after yest):
1. Listen with respect.
2.One conversation at one time.
3. Listen with open heart, open mind.
4. Keep Time.
5. No political agenda pse..

Some quotes from Mr. Chan (from Facebook):

Thks to All for the active participation at last night's "Policy Disc". As voted by many of u, we will attempt the challenging topic of "How to Price a HDB flat?" next time we meet. Which night you all prefer? Can't do Mon and Tues - MPS and Walkabout. Meantime, do share readings to prep ourselves. Will announce dates asap once I sort out schedule next wk.

Personal commentary (colored by my biases): This is as close a thing to a Town Hall meeting Tanjong Pagar residents will get. As a Liberal, I like Town Hall meetings and I encourage people interested in policy decision-making to attend. I do not expect the forum format to allow enough time for people to share their personal stories (the whole point of a Town Hall meeting in the USA), but I am encouraged that this forum is not (judging from the Facebook comments) a one-way street of information either.

I do not believe these forums are intended to be an MPS session. Even if you do get to share your personal stories, please do not expect to get them solved on the spot. I would, in fact, strongly discourage this motivation and expectation when attending this forum. I think it would only distract and dilute the value of the forum.

I do feel encouraged by Mr. Chan's words (in spite of my earlier disdain for his "Lanfang Republic" speech), specifically by his encouraging participants to share reading material before the next forum. I think this is of fundamental importance to meaningful discussions (from diverse points-of-view) on matters of policy decision-making. Quantifiable information, true or false, offers a basis for verification, debunking and debate.

That is it for now, I will keep you folks updated as and when I find out more.