By Kor Kian Beng

EVERY Member of Parliament (MP) in Singapore is a university graduate except one - and this situation disturbs 19-year-old Keith Tan.

The third-year business student of Singapore Polytechnic was forthright yesterday when he brought it to the attention of Foreign Minister George Yeo, during a dialogue with 300 students of the institution's School of Business.

He then asked: 'We don't see any poly graduates in the Government. Is there a wall or ceiling we're looking at?'

His question was among 11 posed to the minister during a dialogue with 300 students of the polytechnic and Mr Yeo took pains to assure them that there were no pre-conditions.

What is important is a good heart and the ability to get things done. But educational qualifications are no less important, he was quick to add, noting that they give an indication of the candidates' abilities.

He highlighted to the students a quality they can be proud of, saying: 'Poly graduates have a practical bent, thus it would be the loss for any political party not to recruit from the polytechnics.'

The sole MP without a degree is Mr Charles Chong, 55, of Pasir Ris-Punggol GRC. He got his aircraft engineering diploma in 1976 from Sydney Technological College, which is now the University of Technology, Sydney.

Keith later told The Straits Times that Mr Yeo's reply was very encouraging, although he has yet to decide whether to enter politics in future.

The lively dialogue, peppered with cheers and applause, gave an insight into what were uppermost in the students' minds. Many of their questions were about their place in society, opportunities for employment and further education.

Third-year student Jeremiah Lim, 19, asked how Mr Yeo would convince Singaporeans to join the People's Action Party youth wing, or Young PAP (YP).

Mr Yeo, who was the YP chairman for about 10 years, said it was more important to ask how Singaporeans can contribute to the country, and look at the political party that can do more for Singapore.

Second-year student Jerome Tan wondered if Singapore valued those who were unconventional and even rebellious.

The reply: A healthy balance needed to be struck between conventional and unconventional talents.

Indonesian student Dian Perdana, 19, wanted to know what was the Singaporean identity, as he is thinking of becoming a permanent resident.

Using the metaphor of a crystal, the minister said Singapore was unique in being a place that reflected clearly the different races, religions and ethnic groups.

Before the dialogue, Mr Yeo handed cash prizes and trophies to three teams of students who came up with winning proposals on remaking the town centre in his Aljunied GRC.

The proposals were based on what residents told the teams they wanted from shopping at Hougang Central. One of the judges, Mr Philip Wee, chairman of the Hougang shops sub-committee, said the top team gave unusual and useful ideas.

These include setting up a graffiti art corner and a loyalty card programme.

This article was first published in The Straits Times on Aug 2, 2008.