Meritocracy and the Singapore Political System

A meritocracy presumes those with innate and demonstrated talent will be an elite. The implementation of meritocracy remains a guiding principle of the People's Action Party's (PAP) non-communist leaders who have governed Singapore since 1959. This article focuses on meritocracy, elected public officials and the PAP's recruiting to government a cohort from among Singapore's best and brightest. The success of the PAP, the world's longest-governing elected political party, is based on meritocracy, incorruptibility and effective policies. Important to understanding Singapore's meritocracy is political recruitment which has been refined for half a century. Compensation for the high flyers means elected officials and top civil servants are probably the highest paid in the world. The realistic justification is that you can retain outstanding persons. Comprehensive and effective anti-corruption measures combined with high pay means Singapore is one of the most corruption free governments in the world. Keywords: SingaporeMeritocracyPeople's Action PartyPolitical RecruitmentElections Acknowledgements The author wishes to acknowledge Tim Yap Fuan, Senior Librarian, for his exceptional library assistance and Professor of Political Science Jon S. T. Quah, for insightful manuscript suggestions. Both individuals are at the National University of Singapore. Notes 1. Singapore citizens constitute 3,164,000 and permanent residents 478,200. The balance is foreign workers, most on temporary work passes (Singapore Government, Citation2008). 2. It has been argued rather convincingly that those societies that reward ‘those who contribute to its well-being and punish those who purposefully undermine it survive and prosper better than a society that lacks these practices’ (Pojman, 1999: 98). 3. Lee stated this on 3 March 1974. 4. For discussions of the civil service, see, for example, Quah (Citation2003a) and Bellows (Citation1989). 5. It might be noted that the entire cabinet is male. 6. Percentages calculated from Singapore Department of Statistics (Citation2007). These percentages are based on Singapore's resident population: citizens and permanent residents. 7. For a quick summary of the economic challenges confronting Singapore in this decade, see the Forum on Economic Restructuring report (Koh et al., Citation2002). This report under the direction of Professor Tommy Koh, head of the Institute of Policy Studies, was forwarded to Deputy Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong. 8. See two excellent works by one of Asia's leading scholarly experts on corruption, Quah (Citation2003a: 106–28; 2007). 9. For succinct presentations of the PAP arguments favouring the GRC system and those who claim the GRCs were designed to wake opposition parties, see Quah (Citation2001: 298). 10. A published op-ed piece and a long letter to the editor suggesting modifications in the electoral process are Tan (Citation2002) and Nair et al. (Citation2002). These Roundtable authors noted some liberalization in the political system and made recommendations for further liberalizing the electoral process. The Roundtable was a non-partisan discussion group founded by 10 professionals in 1993. At the tenth annual meeting in April 2004, members voted to dissolve the Roundtable because it had done what it could, broadening opportunities for public discussion. 11. A corollary of the search for new talent and renewal means an equal number step aside. A few may go to important non-elective positions; others withdraw from the policy arena. 12. The prime minister was interviewed by The Straits Times and Lianhe Zaobao. 13. Quah provides a detailed analysis of this policy's evolution and the continuing commitment to competitive salaries for top officials. 14. For the need to raise civil service salaries, see H. L. Lee (Citation2007). 15. The Prime Minister was interviewed by The Straits Times and Lianhe Zaobao. The quotes are newspaper-edited excerpts from that interview. Additional informationNotes on contributorsThomas J. Bellows Thomas J. Bellows, PhD, is Professor of Political Science at the University of Texas at San Antonio, USA