HE is worried about Singapore's future.

Especially with the manner in which our children are being raised.

Will Singaporeans be resilient enough to face the challenges ahead?

During the parliamentary sitting, the Member of Parliament of Marine Parade GRC whipped out a copy of The New Paper's report, 'Teacher, how to eat this?' (28 Feb), before proceeding with his speech.

The report had pointed out that when food was rationed to commemorate Total Defence Day on 15 Feb, some students did not know how to eat a sweet potato.

The electricity was cut off in some classroom blocks, and the lack of lights and air-conditioning, as well as the room- temperature water dispensed from the water cooler left some students grumbling.

Speaking in Mandarin, Dr Ong said in Parliament: 'I worry if we have been overly protective of our younger generation.

'LITTLE FLOWER BUDS'

'Are they little flower buds in a greenhouse, unable to weather a storm when it comes?'

Dr Ong, 46, later told The New Paper that he was not shocked by the report, but he would be worried if this is the prevalent mindset of the young.

The father of three children aged 15, 11 and 7 said: 'Maybe my children would also respond the same way.

'Given a choice, nobody likes to experience hardship. But we must have the resilience and capabilities to deal with adversities and difficulties when they arise.'

In Parliament, Dr Ong urged the Government, members of society and parents to tackle this problem together.

He said the recent Edison Chen sex scandal could well reflect some of the attitudes and values of today's young adults.

He further noted that parents should not be so concerned over their children's schoolwork, to the extent of exempting them from household chores to free up time for studies.

Asked about his own children, Dr Ong said: 'They have to do some household chores even though we have a domestic helper.

'We make them take public transport.'

Dr Ong told The New Paper that he has seen young men and women in countries such as China, India and Vietnam who are highly motivated and strong-willed.

He acknowledged that China, too, has her own set of problems when it comes to spoilt children and one-child policies.

IMPORTANT TASKS

Education Minister Tharman Shanmugaratnam, in response to Dr Ong's point in Parliament, said: 'Character building and moral development are important tasks in education.'

The School Excellence Model gives a framework to help schools access how well they have developed strength of character, teamwork and leadership among students.

As for Dr Ong's point on how well Singapore youths stand in terms of character development compared to those in other countries, Senior Parliamentary Secretary for Education Masagos Zulkifli said there has been no detailed study done in this area.

However, Mr Masagos said: 'Through our interactions with (other) education ministries... we have seen that this is indeed a high priority area and many countries place great emphasis on this.'

And Singapore hopes to learn from their 'best practices', he said.

On the whole, Dr Ong believes that most Singaporean youths are sensible and would rise to the occasion.

On his part as a parent, he said: 'My wife and I try our best not to indulge our children. For example, they don't have an Xbox or PlayStation. They share a Nintendo DS and they have access to it only during weekends and holidays.'

This article was first published by The New Paper on Mar 5, 2008.

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