Running the country

Someone criticized me for not providing an alternative solution to the current practice of relying on scholars to run our nation.

I like the system adopted in America. The citizens elect the President based on the platform of policies presented by the candidate to the people. After taking office, the President appoints suitable people to manage the various departments and agencies of the government. These appointees have to be approved by the Congress – whose members were also elected by the people.

This system allows the Present to choose the most suitable candidates from the political, business, community and academic establishments. There is no shortage of talents. The appointees are people who share the President’s visions and strategies, which were also chosen by the people. Most of them are leaders in their own right and are likely to have wide knowledge and experience of their fields.

Critics may argue that the American system does not produce the economic success that is achieved by other models, such as Singapore or China. These critics overlook the fact that economic performance is not the only factor, although it is an important factor, that determines the election of the leaders. This factor has to be balanced against other factors, such as the social policies, quality of life and America’s role in providing security and leadership to the world.

The democratic nature of the American system gets the right balance of policies, that are suitable for the challenges of the time. They are even able to elect an African American to be the President!

A negative factor for the American system is the power of the business lobby. It has led to the wide gap in income and wealth – a factor shared by the Singapore system. I hope that under President Obama and the Democratic control of both houses of Congress, the situation will be changed over the next few years – for the better of America and the world.

The lament of the shortage of talents in Singapore is a product of our Singapore model. We reap what we sow.

There is a workable alternative to the Singapore model of using scholars to run the nation. We should examine if the American system can be adopted here. The small size of Singapore actually makes it easier for the country to be managed. We only need to have an open mind and explore other models.

Tan Kin Lian