This discussion on the NPS originates from the discussions on the now defunct Straits Times Interactive Chat (STIC). It began with the posting of ‘A Consolidated Account’ on 25 January 2002. The NPS Draft #06 is posted here for further discussions for any interested person anywhere in the world who may find the subject interesting or relevant wholly or in part to his own country or to a Earth Government or even to his organisation, although for historical reasons, the NPS discussion here is Singapore-centric (Brief History; Map of Asia: Location at 1 16N, 103 51 E).
As NPS Draft #05 contains numerous amendments, additions or changes, NPS Draft #06 is now posted for easier perusal by new readers.
All amendments and changes to Draft #05 will be in purple for ease of reference. Text in italic means that there are substantive changes made to the original text.
The greatest value of NPS lies in the potential transparency in the actions of the government and public officials, and in the harnessing and unleashing of the collective resources of our entire country to solve fundamental and important problems of the nation. In the course of time, the quality of our people as citizens, voters and individuals would be greatly enhanced. They would become true citizens in the Information Age, informed, thinking and contributing, and also they would be better equipped and prepared for the knowledge-based economy and the challenges of globalization whether at home or overseas.
Unless we begin to have more people to participate or to be involved in the management of the affairs of country, we would forever have the problem of “fighting for the same people” for the jobs that are crucial to the well being of the people and nation.
Furthermore, one of our demonstrated current problems is not that there are not enough people for ministerial posts, but rather there are not enough people of ministerial calibre willing to stand as political party candidates for the election even for the ruling party. The NPS would solve this problem.
A Journey in Search of the NPS
We are now at the dawn of the Information Age that, for the first time, makes a NPS discussion by the people of the Planet Earth possible and you are invited to join this enriching and exciting journey in search of the NPS.
The search for a NPS is a worthwhile project that goes beyond local concerns with global and historic significance.
We may have problems that are apparently “insurmountable” as presently seen, but historic moments occur when such “insurmountable” problems are overcome. This is consistent with the lessons of history; for instance, the sudden and “inconceivable” demise of the former Soviet Union in December 1991.
Not least among the problems is our apparent lack of ability to rise above our current conditions and situations to think in terms of the future. The NPS journey is more than a dream. It is a journey into the future with the travellers being progressively armed with an increasingly good understanding of the past and present.
There is no doubt about it. In this journey, we can expect to encounter barrier after barrier put up by the vested interests from the existing political systems and also ridicules and discouragement from those who are too attached to or immersed in the existing political systems.
To all who would like to join in this discussion:
Would you like to comment on the NPS, especially in the following areas:
What are the areas of your substantial agreements and disagreements and why?
What is your overall opinion on these basic ideas?
What are the suggestions you would like to make?
Basically, the NPS is about an ‘ideal’ system with People Power at the core and comprising of 3 state organs, namely:
An directly elected Executive President with Legislative Powers (‘the President’)
A directly elected Senate without Legislative Powers (‘the Senate’)
Many people who are ever vigilant against any possible dictatorship have expressed grave concern that the NPS is in breach of the Principle of the Separation of Executive and Legislative Powers, a principle that is relied on by them to ward off dictatorship.
This concern is generally valid in the existing political systems where legislative powers include the powers to amend or make changes to the Constitution without a referendum and where the Legislature has the monopoly of making, amending or repealing the laws.
The Principle of Separation of Executive and Legislative Powers as practised in the existing political systems and in which many have relied on to ward off dictatorship would fail when a single political party or alliance or coalition seizes control of both the Executive Office and the Legislature by means, fair or foul. And with sufficient majority to amend the Constitution as it pleases to remove the constitutional safeguards and adding in the dictatorial provisions, the country would become a dictatorship by constitutional means. This has already happened in the world. And citizens have woken up to their horror that this principle of separation of powers has given them a false sense of security.
In the New Political System for the Information Age Draft #06 (NPS), there are stringent constitutional safeguards that makes it absolutely impossible for the elected President, notwithstanding the executive and legislative powers being vested in him, to take away constitutionally the voting rights of the people without their consent and transforming a demoncracy into a dictatorship.
The voting rights of the people are enshrined in the Constitution and to take away such rights the Constitution has to be amended. In the NPS unlike the existing political systems, the Constitution is truly put beyond the reach of the President so that there is no way he could constitutionally amended the Constitution without a referendum asking the people to take away the voting rights from the people.
Furthermore in the NPS, for removing or amending fundamental principles in the Constitution, it requires not less than 75% majority vote in a referendum or citizens' initiative, which in practice is a near impossibility unless the overwhelming majority of the people want the changes.
However, for the Constitution to be truthfully and faithfully upheld and obeyed, it is crucial that the Judiciary and other relevant state institutions or bodies are truely independent of the President.
In the NPS unlike the existing political systems, the Judiciary, Election Commission, and other Independent Institutions or Bodies are truly independent of the President who has absolutely no say their appointements, removals or remunerations or other benefits. So the influence of the President on these public officials would be practically zero.
All members of the Senate, Council of Veterans and Independent Institutions or Bodies are immune from prosecution by the government and from lawsuits.
This is to prevent the President or anybody else from using minor personal weaknesses or indiscretions of these public officials as excuses for the blackmail or harassment of the these public officials, especially for minor offences committed many years ago. The use (or the threat to use) of libel lawsuits to shut up critical reports or public discussions by these public officials would be a thing of the past.
In the NPS, if the offence or crime is grave, there will be massive public disquiet owing to the transparency of the system. If the offender were a Senator, the Senate would held a public inquiry and remove him from office expeditiously, and he would lose not only his job but also his immunity from prosecution and lawsuits:
“.....
Clause:
7 Nevertheless, the transparency of the NPS is a powerful deterrent against official corruption and wrongdoing.
8 Moreover, elected officials with limited office tenure would still be discouraged from wrongdoings or excesses as they are open to prosecution or lawsuits once their office tenure ends.
9 On and above this, the NPS also has provisions which could be used for the removal from office of any senior public official with unacceptable conduct or who has committed serious offences.
10 Any such removal from office is tantamount to the withdraw of the immunity from prosecution or lawsuits.”
If he were a councillor, he will, similarly, be dealt with by the Council of Veterans.
If he were a member of the Independent Institution or Bodies, either or both the Senate and the Council of Veterans could set up investigating committee to look into the matter, and the Council of Veterans would then recommend to the Senate for his dismissal from office.
If either or both the Senate and the Council of Veterans were too slow act decisively, then the outraged members of the public could propose a citizens initiative to remove the offender from office.
The President could be removed from office at any time by the Senate with two-thirds majority of the Senators present and voting. This is to provide a fast and efficient way of getting rid of a really bad or incompetent President.
Again as this power of the Senate is also enshrined in the Constitution, there is no way the President could constitutionally render the Senate ineffective without first amending the Constitution through a referendum.
In the event the Senate fails to remove a bad or incompetent President, the people themselves could always enforce such a removal through the citizens' initiative. This is what 'the people retain at all times their sovereign powers' means in practice.
So in such an eventuality there are actually 3 courses of action open to the people:
Propose a citizens' initiative to remove the undesirable President from office
Elect a new Senate to do the job after the Council of Veterans has dissolved the existing one:
10 The House of Justice shall have the powers to recommend the dissolution of the Senate to the Council of Veterans, if in its opinion there is a compelling case for such a dissolution after hearing the written petition of not less than 10% of the qualified voters as at the date of the petition.
11 Upon such a recommendation of the House of Justice, the Senate shall be dissolved and a new senatorial election shall be called, if not less than two-thirds (2/3) of the Councillors present and voting vote in favour of the dissolution.”
Propose a citizens' initiative to elect a new Senate to do the job after dissolving the existng one
The Judiciary has the constitutional duty to review for bad or poor quality legislations and on an urgent basis whenever it is necessary.
Any legislation or any part thereof found by the Judiciary in its absolute discretion to be bad or poor quality would cease to be operative immediately and would first be returned to the President (or the Parliament) for amendment within the time as prescribed by the Judiciary failing which it would then be referred to the Senate for approval or veto.
Although the judges as human beings may be not be perfect in carrying out their duties, but as trained professionals in a specialised relevant field, they are the best available in the market for the job.
Moreover, transparency is one of the core tenets of the NPS. Both the Senate and the Council of Veterans could call for a public hearings and participation of any process incuding the judicial processes, save those involving national security and state secrets.
The National Media Commission is constitutionally empowered to ensure that the national media and information infrastructures are fully independent of the President and the government, and that its news reports, articles, editorials and documentaries are to be as free from the governmental or presidential propaganda as the circumstances could permit.
In the NPS, there would be minimal censorship on ground of national security and state secrets as it is an exceedingly transparent system. The National Media Commission would consult the President and his Administration over anything it considers to be presidential or governmental propaganda and any disagreement would be widely publicized for the people to judge. Therefore, there is no need for censorship. In such circumstances, it would be very foolish for a President to dispute the professional assessments of the National Media Commission unless he could justify his publications or actions before the people.
The Talent Development Institute would professionally, objectively and independently select and assess candidates for appointement to the Council of Veterans and to the Independent Institutions or Bodies (other than the TDI itself), free from the influence and interference from the President.
The Election Commission is constitutionally empowered to provide free, fair, secure and efficient elections, referendums and citizens' initiatives. There is no way for the President to interfere with the elections, referendums and citizens' initiatives constitutionally.
The House of Justice is constitutionally empowered to set aside unjust judicial judgements and to vary the sentences that are meted out by the Courts of Law to what is just according to an agreed standard and principles of justice subject to a nominal sum of S$1.00. So extremely unjust laws is practically ineffective worth only a niminal sum of $1.00.
Safeguard #10: Transparency of Government and Public Service
“The Senate shall have the powers to appoint the appropriate investigating committee to look into allegations or suspicions of wrongdoing or malpractice by any person holding a public office including the President with the exception of the Councillors. The proceedings of such a investigating committee shall be telecasted live over national television and the Internet except those parts of the proceedings that involve the issues of national security and state secrets unless authorised otherwise by the Senate”
“The Council of Veterans shall have the powers to appoint the appropriate investigating committee to look into allegations or suspicions of wrongdoing or malpractice by any person holding a public office including the President with the exception of the Senators. The proceedings of such a investigating committee shall be telecasted live over national television and the Internet except for those parts of the proceedings that involve the issues of national security and state secrets unless authorised otherwise by the Council of Veterans”
There is no better safeguard for democracy other than a politically aware, informed and active people.
So the Election Commission is constitutionally responsible for the voter education for raising further the political awareness and participation by the people (Election Commission, Clause 2).
In case, any or all of the other safeguards fail, the people could still resort to People Power.
Unlike the existing political systems, the people retain at all times their sovereign powers and could exercise their sovereign powers at any time through the citizens' initiatives or referendums, not once in 4 or 5 years during the general elections.
This retention and exercise of sovereign powers by the people themselves through the citizens' initiatives, referendums and elections makes the NPS a Direct Democracy System, as there is direct rule by the people.
The above 12 safeguards are by no means exhaustive. They are only the main safeguards against dictatorship in the NPS which contains numerous other safeguards as well.
The NPS is, by definition, a truly new political system
Although this discussion on the NPS was originally inspired by the political system in Singapore, the discussion may be relevant to people in other parts of the world as well, to those who are interested in the establishment of an Earth, national, state or local government that is truly democratic or even to those who are searching for a truly democratic management structure for their organisations, with or without adaptation. So all who have something to contribute are welcome to this discussion.
The NPS is, by definition, meant to be a truly new political system which is free of the major flaws of the existing political systems. So the challenge before all of us is how to design such a system. And in order to get the discussion going, the NPS Draft is proposed for the consideration of the readers for comments or amendments or additions of more and better ideas.
In the NPS Draft, familiar terms like “President” and “Senate” are adopted merely as a matter of convenience, but their functions and the powers vested in them are radically different from the existing political systems in order to construct a new political system that is truly democratic and at the same time provides effective government.
The sacred, but potentially ineffective, principle of separation of executive and legislative powers under certain conditions and as practised under the existing political systems has been abandoned in favour of an effective government in the new political system, but subject to all the constitutional safeguards in the NPS.
In the NPS, People Power is for real and is exercised through the citizens’ initiatives, referendums and elections, with the citizens’ initiatives being the most important of the three. Any qualified citizen could, at any time, propose through a citizen’s initiative, in accordance to the provisions in the Constitution, any change to the law or even to the Constitution or for the removal from office of any public official including the President.
In the NPS, 1 person (the President) is elected with full authority to serve the people and the nation and 100 (the Senators) are elected to supervise him. And not less than 500 experienced, informed and respected community leaders, professionals and other citizens outstanding in some way with all of them acting as individuals are appointed to oversee both the President and Senators on behalf of a politically-aware people.
As the political awareness and participation of the people are of paramount importance in the NPS, the Election Commission is given the heavy and crucial responsibility of voter education. Every citizen must be aware of Michels’ Iron Law of Oligarchy and take upon himself the responsibility of melting it. Michels' Law is a phenomenon of the existing political systems
The political party is irrelevant and redundant in the NPS which would ensure its eventual obsolescence. This is because in the NPS:
election candidates are not sponsored or endorsed by political parties. Qualified election candidates either offered themselves for the election or are nominated by other citizens.
relatively little money is required by the candidates for media access and other electioneering needs as these would be adequately provided by the National Media Commission and the Election Commission.
buying of votes, whether directly or indirectly, is prohibited in the NPS and any elected public official who is guilty of such an offence on a complaint filed by the Election Commission to the Judiciary should resign from his office failing which he could be removed from office by the respective authority or failing which the offender shall be suspended from office until his case is decided by the people through a referendum.
The political party plays no essential part in the NPS and election candidates who choose to be sponsored or endorsed by a political party or to be a member of a political party shall declare such sponsorship, endorsement or membership in their election manifestos.
Moreover, justice is highly valued in the NPS. So the rule of law is tempered with justice through the House of Justice whose primary function is to ensure universal justice based on just laws. It is recognized that justice is indivisible: it is either justice for all or justice for none.
And all legislations are scrutinized by the Judiciary and the bad ones would be referred to the President for amendment failing which to the Senate for possible veto. This is to ensure that the legislations are not only properly drawn up, but also fair and just and good for the nation and the people.
Constitution as the Will of the People
In the NPS, unlike most of the existing political systems, the Constitution is recognized as the Will of the People and truly the supreme law of the land. So it shall not be amended or changed in any way by any person or state body, whether elected or appointed, except urgent temporary amendment may be made under stringent conditions in the event of an emergency. Hence, in most practical situations, only the people themselves could make any amendment or change to the Constitution through a referendum or citizens’ initiative. This is a fundamental principle of the NPS to ensure that the people shall forever remain the owners of the country unless they choose to lose it. It will be not taken away from them by constitutional means without their true consent.
So in the NPS, constitutional amendments shall require a simple majority of the voters at a referendum or citizens’ initiative for an ordinary amendment, a 2/3rd majority for important provisions and 3/4th majority for fundamental principles. However, in the event of a national emergency, the President may, other than the fundamental principles, amend the Constitution only with the sanction of the Supreme Court, House of Justice, the Senate and the Council of Veterans, but such an amendment shall lapse within three (3) months from the date of the amendment unless it is approved by the required majority of the voters at a referendum or citizens' initiative.
In the event of inconsistency between two or more of the provisions of this Constitution, the fundamental principles shall have primacy over all other provisions and the important provisions shall have primacy over ordinary provisions.
Sovereignty of the People
At the core of the NPS is the Sovereignty of the People. This is manifested in the Constitution as the Will of the People and the people, being sovereign and through the use of the referendum or citizens’ initiative shall have the final say on all matters or decisions concerning the country and the people.
Public officials including the President are elected or appointed to serve the people and nation at the people’s pleasure and certainly not to rule. So there are constitutional provisions for the removal of any unsuitable or undesirable public official including the President.
So for the NPS, the quality of the voters is of paramount importance. Voters’ education which is a responsibility of the Election Commission is, therefore, crucial to the success of the NPS and the future of the country.
Concessions to the Minorities
In the NPS, all citizens are not only truly equal before the law and entitled to the equal protection of the law, but also entitled to the same justice. So there shall be no special rights or privileges to anyone including the electoral majority.
Also in the NPS, justice is valued above the law and so the House of Justice is empowered constitutionally to reduce any unjust punishment or penalty under the law to a minimum of S$1.00. The ass no longer rules supreme.
For the sake of national unity, stability and prosperity, these are concessions of the electoral majority to the rest of the citizens who happen not to be with the electoral majority on any particular issue (“the minority”).
The electoral majority must accept the universality of whatever law, rule or principle of justice approved by it. Such a law, rule or principle of justice shall be applicable to all and sundry equally and fairly, without discrimination or injustice against the minorities.
Any minority who is aggrieved by any law would have the same recourse to the same justice through the House of Justice as any other citizen.
Moreover, unlike the existing political systems where minorities without the electoral numbers are completely unrepresented, such minorities in the NPS could have their voices, concerns or aspirations heard loud and clear through the appointed Council of Veterans which could accommodate the necessary number of Councillors as there is no maximum limit to the number of Councillors who could be appointed so long as it is within practicality and reason.
Furthermore, it is not possible for any citizen to be with the electoral majority all the time on all issues and so he has to be a minority on some issues some of the time and be subjected to the will of the majority based on the principles of equality before the law and of entitlement to the same justice.
Eventual Obsolescence of the Political Party
One of the primary causes of the fatal flaws of the existing political systems is the political party. By its very nature, the political party is an association of individuals or groups with the view of eventually capturing state powers in furtherance of personal or group agenda.
Very often such agenda are seldom fully consistent with the interests of the people as a whole or of the nation and are frequently inimical to such interests.
In really bad cases, it may result in the unconscionable privilege and bloody dictatorship of a tiny minority.
Owing to the huge and increasing amount of money required for political advertising and promotions in the media or by other means of publicity or propaganda, especially during the election campaign, the political party and its controlling politicians are often beholden to or even under the control of the gigantic organizations or corporations which in turn would benefit fabulously from certain government policies or businesses, if their favoured candidate or candidates win the election. So such huge corporate or organizational political ‘donations’ or ‘contributions’ are seldom altruistic or acts of non-selfish social contributions.
Individual supporters are often not better and are motivated by personal interests or advantages in their support of the political party or its leaders who have to look after them well, especially after the election victory, to ensure continued support.
So when an electorally victorious political party or candidate looks after its or his supporters well, it is eventually at the expense of the majority of the people who are not its or his active supporters.
Moreover, in such a situation, political parties and politicians also often succumb to the temptation of squandering away the country’s assets and resources to gain votes, especially just before the election.
In the NPS, relatively very little money is required by the candidates for election purposes. It is because the National Media Commission and the Election Commission would provide sufficient coverage for the election candidates and other electioneering needs so that the best person for the service of the people and nation is elected, not the best person in raising enormous amount of political ‘donations’ or ‘contributions’.
More importantly, potential election candidates are known and assessed by the voters through their daily contributions and performances in the government, Senate, Council of Veterans or as ordinary citizens in their participation in the discussions and debates of the affairs of the state.
Furthermore, the election candidates primarily either offer themselves for the election or are nominated by other citizens with the Talent Development Institute providing the backup candidates in case there are insufficient candidates. In the NPS, the political party is redundant and is expected eventually to become obsolete. However, an out right ban of the political party is not recommended because such an action would infringe on the citizens’ freedom of association.
Immunity from prosecution and lawsuits
All members of the Senate, Council of Veterans and Independent Institutions or Bodies shall be immune from prosecution by the government and from lawsuits.
The president and members of his Cabinet shall be immune from lawsuits.
However, any such former member or former President or Cabinet member may be liable for prosecution under the law for any crime or offence or for lawsuits provided there shall be no prosecution or lawsuits for any act or omission done or failed to be done in good faith in the course of official duty or while any such former member is still in the process of appealing to the Supreme Court or The House of Justice for reinstatement to his office.
The immunity from prosecution by government against the members of the Senate, Council of Veterans and Independent Institutions or Bodies while in office is to forestall any threat, intimidation or blackmail against such member by the President so that the aforesaid members could carry out their official duties free such threat, intimidation or blackmail.
The immunity from lawsuits against senior public officials while in office is to forestall against any blackmail against such officials by the threat of lawsuits or against any exploitation of their social or personal eminence by citizens or others for instant fame or fortune.
More importantly, such public officials would not be bogged down by private or personal matters or by officially irrelevant sensationalism so that they would not be seriously distracted from discharging their vital public duties.
Nevertheless, the transparency of the NPS is a powerful deterrent against official corruption and wrongdoing.
Moreover, elected officials with limited office tenure would still be discouraged from wrongdoings or excesses as they are open to prosecution or lawsuits once their office tenure ends.
On and above this, the NPS also has provisions which could be used for the removal from office of any senior public official with unacceptable conduct or who has committed serious offences.
Any such removal from office is tantamount to the withdraw of the immunity from prosecution or lawsuits.
Antonio Dialectic Communication Model
Subject to the availability of a better communication model, the communication model currently adopted in the NPS is a variant of Antonio Rossin’s Dialectic Communication Model (“Antonio Dialectic Communication Model”).
It shares with the Antonio Dialectic Communication Model the core principle that the way people communicate determines not only the quality of the contents or the results of the communication, but also the development or the further development of the quality of the participants involved in the communication process which may include discussions, debates and political education of the audience.
The essence of this principle has been captured by Antonio’s formulation as communication model [(+A-B)->C] which has also emphasized the crucial importance of its application in the family environment to the development of the brain and the intellectual capacity of very young children even as passive learners, especially between ages 0 to 3 when such development is not only most critical and fastest, but also having enormous bearings on the future intellectual capacity of these children as adults. (see details at http://www.flexible-learning.org ).
In the public discussions and debates in the NPS, +A refers to the communicator or proposer of an idea or program before the entire nation or the examinee of a public enquiry. He or she could be the President, one of his Administration officials, a Senator, a Councillor, an expert or a citizen engaged or invited to give an opinion or to propose a program, or a group or committee comprising two or more of the aforesaid persons.
-B refers to the examiner or scrutinizer of the opinion or proposal for its rationality, for its consistency in logic and in facts and for the value of the opinion or proposal to the people and nation, with or without the help of experts.
The duty of -B is not to contradict or to demolish the proposed idea, program or explanation for the sake of contradicting or demolishing it, but to proffer to the final user ->C (mainly the People) a dialectical chance for making well-informed choices.
-B could be a Senator, a Councillor, an expert or a citizen who participate in the discussion or debate, or a group or committee comprising two or more of the aforesaid persons.
->C refers to the audience, to anyone listening or following the debate or discussion at a particular point in time (including those who are playing the roles of +A and -B, but at that point of time not playing such a role), the overwhelming majority of whom are the ordinary citizens.
Public discussions and debates in the NPS would, as far as possible, be broadcast live and uncensored over the national media including the internet and are open to participation by any interested citizen. The NPS targets a minimum initial participation rate of 0.01% of the citizens in a major discussion or debate. This envisages a scenario of 1% of the citizens at any time interested in such a discussion or debate and 1% of such interested citizens actually participate in the discussion or debate. This would give a participation rate of 0.01% (or 1 in 10,000).
In a huge country like the European Union (when it becomes a country) with a population of 500 million, a participating rate of 0.01% of the total number of citizens = 50,000 actively participating citizens. With 50,000 pairs of eyes and 50,000 keen and enthusiastic minds scrutinizing and examining any matter of importance to the people with the lead of knowledgeable and experienced people from the Council of Veterans together with the help of experts in open public debate and discussion with as much time as needed by the majority of the participants, the depth and breadth of the debate or discussion and the quality of the decision are expected to be superior to those of a tiny ad hoc group or committee of lay people of half a dozen or so selected randomly by lottery, compelled by law or societal pressure and deliberating in closed or open discussion over the issue in question and over a couple of days or so .
Even in a small country of 10 million citizens, with 1,000 actively participating citizens, it could still be expected to be superior to that of the aforesaid tiny ad hoc group or committee of lay people.
The President
This is a President vested with both the executive and legislative powers subject to the safeguards as provided in the Constitution and is the equivalent of a Prime Minister with overwhelming control of Parliament (such a Prime Minister hereinafter referred to as ‘the Prime Minister’), which is what we have for the last 40 odd years. This makes a strong and efficient government. The election of the President (or the Members of Parliament, if we retain this part of our existing system, hereinafter referred to as ‘the Parliament’) is to be held every 5 years or as soon as practicable, but within three (3) months, if the President (or the Prime Minister’) is impeached by the Senate or if he is removed from office by a successful citizens' initiative.
A government of such a President would be ultra-efficient and certainly not less efficient in the ordinary business of government than our existing system of a Prime Minister with overwhelming control of Parliament even if the President wins by a single vote in the presidential election. This is because laws are made by Presidential Decrees after internal debate and discussion. Draft legislations can, of course, be referred by the President to the Council of Veterans or the Senate for debate and discussion or even to the Judiciary or the House of Justice for comments and advice, but such a referral is optional and not mandatory so that urgent and critical laws can be decreed by the President at any time and without undue delay.
So in the NPS, the dumbfounded spectacle of a President’s necessary and critical programs for the urgent needs of the people and nation being distracted, delayed or hijacked by a partisan Congress more interested in political manoeuvring or gains, or by the de facto representatives of big business, powerful organizations or other vested interests would be a thing of the past.
So is a hung Parliament similarly infected with undemocratic vested interests in which a weak and impotent government with insufficient support in the legislature struggling in vain trying, often frustrated, to implement such a meaningful program. Or with unstable governments with each lasting for only a few months.
So it is not necessarily a bad thing to abandon the sacred principle of separation of executive and legislative powers as practised under the existing political systems in favour of an effective government in the new political system, especially with all the constitutional safeguards in the NPS.
The principle of separation of executive and legislative powers as practised in the existing political systems and in which many have relied on to ward off dictatorship would fail when a single political party or alliance or coalition seizes control of both the Executive Office and the Legislature by means, fair or foul.
And with sufficient majority to amend the Constitution as it pleases to remove the constitutional safeguards and adding in the dictatorial provisions, the country would become a dictatorship by constitutional means. This has already happened in the world. And citizens have woken up to their horror that this principle of separation of powers has given them a false sense of security.
No person shall be a President who shall not have attained the age of thirty-five (35) and been ten (10) years a citizen of Singapore as at the date of announcement of the election for the President.
That a President or the leader of a nation be a certain minimum age is a wisdom derived from the accumulated experiences of mankind over thousands of years of history. The rule is proposed in recognition that most people understand the wisdom that experience, knowledge and judgement require time to learn and accumulate.
If the proposed rule is no longer valid in our time and age, it could be struck off before the new Constitution is adopted by the people in a referendum or citizens’ initiative.
All qualified citizens including former presidents are eligible for election to the Presidency, provided that he has not been a President for an aggregate of more than ten (10) years as at the date of announcement of the election for the President.
The preceeding clause sets a maximum limit of fifteen (15) years for any qualified citizen to serve as President. This would make a dictatorship that much more difficult, just in case something goes terribly wrong with the constitutional balance of powers.
It also prevents the people and country from developing over-dependence on one man and, at the same time, it creates the opportunity for more people to gain the experience of having served in the Presidency.
The trade-off is the sacrifice of the democratic right of the people to choose freely the national leader of their chioce and the loss of the services of the most competent and experienced man for President.
A directly elected executive Presidency with a limited tenure replacing the present Parliamentary System would make obsolete such controversial and divisive features of our existing system such as the 'walkover constituencies', the GRCs (Group Representation Constituencies), gerrymandering, selective HDB (Housing and Development Board) and private apartment upgrading, selective non-building of MRT stations, etc, in constituencies where the voters could be induced to vote for the ruling party.
The President shall have full powers to appoint any suitable person as the members of his Cabinet and as other top government officers and shall be fully responsible for them. The existing system only allows the Prime Minister to appoint members of his Cabinet from among the MPs. This is a very crippling restriction that denies the Prime Minister access to more suitable and talented individuals outside Parliament. The US Presidential System is an example of a system that has this advantage.
The President shall be the Commander-in-Chief of the Singapore Armed Forces.
The terms of office including the remuneration and other benefits of the President shall be recommended by the Talent Development Institute, approved by the Council of Veterans and confirmed by the Senate.
Impeachment of the President
The Senate shall have the powers to remove from office an unsatisfactory or unsuitable President by not less than two-thirds (2/3) of the total number of votes cast by the Senators present and voting.
A President who is impeached by the Senate by not less than two-thirds (2/3) of the total number of votes cast by the Senators present and voting shall be deemed to be unsatisfactory or unsuitable for the purpose of the impeachment proceedings.
This is a clear repudiation of the existing ‘just-trust-me-for-four-or-five-years’ systems. Never again is a condidate allowed to deceive, cheat or otherwise betray the trust of the voters by making solemn promises in his election manifesto or campaign without the intention of carrying them out after his election victory or worse still with the intention of doing just the opposite.
In such a case, the onus of proof is on the President to show that he has the intention of carrying out the solemn promises in his election manifesto or campaign after his election victory.
Any President who has been removed from office by such a senatorial vote shall be allowed to stand for re-election. This is because the voters have the final say on whether or not a person is suitable for the Office of the President.
Such a President when re-elected shall be suspended or removed from office during the re-elected term by the Senate only with the sanction of the Supreme Court, House of Justice and the Council of Veterans, if he is suspected or guilty of high treason as defined in the Constitution.
The Presidency of such a re-elected President shall end when he has served in aggregate a total of fifteen (15) years as President.
In the event of sudden death, resignation, impeachment or incapacity of the President, the Grand Councillor shall be the acting President pending the election of a new President. A new President shall be elected as soon as practicable, and the presidential election shall be called not later than three (3) months from the date of such an eventuality.
The person who is the acting President shall cease to be the Grand Councillor so long he remains acting President. At the same time, the Council of Veterans shall elect an acting Grand Councillor from among the Councillors to perform the functions and duties of the Grand Councillor until the Grand Councillor ceases to be acting President.
This is a Senate without legislative powers as such powers are already vested in the President (or in the Parliament).
The primary functions of the directly elected Senate in the NPS are its supervisory role over the President, approving the use of the National Reserves at the request of the President and approving or vetoing legislations considered bad or poor quality by the Judiciary .
Other functions of the Senate include debating legislations and other actions of the Government together with the constitutional powers to impeach the President (or the Prime Minister and dissolve Parliament) under certain conditions specified in the Constitution and with the necessary constitutional safeguards.
The approval of the Senate in each case on the recommendation by the Council of Veterans shall be required for the Appointment of candidates to the Independent Institutions or Bodies, for the Removal of the incumbents from the Independent Institutions or Bodies, and for approving the terms of office.
No person shall be a Senator who shall not have attained the age of twenty-five (25) and been five (5) years a citizen of Singapore as at the date of announcement of the election for the Senate.
The Senators are to be elected directly instead of constituently so as to avoid group interest representation and for the following reasons:
In a constituency election, the Senator represents only the people of his constituency. So in order for him to ensure his own re-election, he has to serve his voters well at the expense of other Singaporeans. And in order to serve his voters well, he may have to form a gang within the Senate or to do some “horse trading’ with other Senators to obtain the desired benefits for his own constituents.
The President would have the opportunity to ‘play’ one Senator against other. For instances, those Senators who are willing to do the bidding of the President would have more development projects in his constituency, a MRT station built there, HDB or private flat-upgrading, etc.
The first 100 or more (in the event of a tie of the last group of successful candidates) candidates with the highest number of the respective choice votes in a senatorial election shall be the Senators-elect. The young, energetic and enterprising are especially encouraged to stand for the senatorial election
In the new Senate following a senatorial election, the 1st Senator and 2nd Senator shall be the Chairman and the Vice-Chairman of the Senate respectively.
The Senators shall be elected for a 5-year term and the senatorial election for the new Senate shall be held before the current Senate ends so that the new Senate shall commence work immediately after the end of the current Senate.
Dissolution of the Senate
The House of Justice shall have the powers to recommend the dissolution of the Senate to the Council of Veterans, if in its opinion there is a compelling case for such a dissolution after hearing the written petition of not less than 10% of the qualified voters as at the date of the petition.
Upon such a recommendation of the House of Justice, the Senate shall be dissolved and a new senatorial election shall be called, if not less than two-thirds (2/3) of the Councillors present and voting vote in favour of the dissolution.
If the recommendation for the dissolution of the Senate fails in Council of Veterans, then there shall be no more recommendation for the dissolution of the Senate by the House of Justice for the next 12 months unless there is a petition for the dissolution of the Senate to the House of Justice of at least 10 percentage points more of the qualified voters as at the date of the petition than that of the previous petition.
However, the Senate shall be dissolved and a new senatorial election shall be called, if, at any time, there is a petition for the dissolution of the Senate by more than 50% of the qualified voters as at the date of the petition.
The quorum for the Senate shall be 50 and should the total number of the Senators at any time fall below 80, there shall be a new senatorial election within three (3) months therefrom.
Terms of office including the remuneration and other benefits of the Senators shall be recommended by the Talent Development Institute and approved and confirmed by the Council of Veterans.
In the event of sudden death, resignation or incapacity of the Chairman or Vice-Chairman, the Senate shall elect from among the Senators a new Chairman or Vice-Chairman, as the case may be.
In the event of the temporary unavailability of the Chairman or Vice-Chairman, the Senate shall elect from among the Senators an acting Chairman or Vice-Chairman to perform the functions and duties of the Chairman or Vice-Chairman, as the case may be.
Except for the impeachment of the President (or the Prime Minister and dissolution of the Parliament), all other matters or questions proposed for decision in the Senate shall be determined by a majority of the votes of the Senators present and voting, and the Chairman shall have the casting vote in the event of a tie.
The Senate shall have the powers to appoint the appropriate investigating committee to look into allegations or suspicions of wrongdoing or malpractice by any person holding a public office including the President with the exception of the Councillors. The proceedings of such a investigating committee shall be telecasted live over national television and the Internet except those parts of the proceedings that involve the issues of national security and state secrets unless authorised otherwise by the Senate.
The Senate shall have the powers to remove any undesirable Senator from office after a public debate provided that any Senator so removed shall have the right to appeal to the Supreme Court and House of Justice for reinstatement to his office and he shall be reinstated to his office if both the Supreme Court and House of Justice rule in favour of the reinstatement.
The Senate shall have the powers to appoint the appropriate committee for any purpose as it deems fit.
Council of Veterans (non-elected)
The Council of Veterans is a non-elected Institution or Body and comprises preferably with people who have the knowledge and experience in the management of state affairs and who are respected community leaders and thinkers. It is not a platform for the promotion of vested interests or an arena of conflicts for the various groups in the country.
Being a non-elected institution or body, the Council of Veterans is particularly important to the minorities who do not have the electoral number to elect their own representatives to the Presidency or Senate. Outstanding individuals from such minorities could be appointed as Councillors so that the voices and the legitimate needs or aspirations of their communities could be heard loud and clear by the nation.
Leaders of the business and professional communities may be included in the Council, if they are qualified individuals as spelled out in the preceding paragraph, but not as members of vested interest groups or lobbies. In other words, Councillors are expected to view issues from the national perspective and not from a personal or group perspective.
Apart from being a huge reservoir of ideas, experience and knowledge it can also have certain constitutional functions such as making recommendations to the Senate for the Appointment or Removal of the Judges of both the Judiciary and the House of Justice and of other Independent Bodies for a more balanced system of governance.
Moreover, the Council of Veterans would not be in competition with the Presidency, Senate or Independent Institutions or Bodies for talents. It is actually designed for people who could make valuable contributions to the country, but somehow they are unable to serve in the Presidency, Senate or in the Independent Institutions or Bodies. The Councillors are likely, save for the justifiable cases, to be people who are retired, semi-retired or near retiring age to have the necessary experience, knowledge and judgement on state and societal matters (and hence ‘Veterans’).
Councillors can be full or part-time depending on the Councillors themselves. Full-time or more active Councillors would be given more resources. They are likely to be former presidents, ministers, members of Parliament, permanent secretaries and other senior government officers, and community leaders, academics, thinkers and business leaders. Citizens with problems may approach the Councillors or Senators of their choice for help, because the Councillors or Senators would be more effective in dealing with government departments or civil servants than ordinary citizens. This is because they can bring up any matter of public concern or interest for debate in the Council of Veterans or the Senate respectively or in the national media.
Each Councillor shall be appointed by the Senate as such for the life of the person on the recommendation of the Talent Development Institute.
Terms of office including the allowances and other benefits of the Councillors shall be recommended by the Talent Development Institute and approved and confirmed by the Senate.
Any Councillor who has failed to attend the Council sessions or to his allotted duties by the Duties Allotment Committee of the Council for five times consecutively in a continuous period of more than one (1) month without a good or acceptable reason or excuse shall be deemed to have resigned from the Council. However, such a person is still eligible for appointment as a Councillor subject to the procedures for the appointment as provided in the NPS.
Any Councillor who is on approved leave shall be deemed to have a good or acceptable reason or excuse for not attending the Council sessions or to his allotted duties.
Councillors who are on approved leave are still eligible for voting in the Council sessions.
For the first year following the establishment of the Council of Veterans, the total number of Councillors at any time shall not be less than 300 and the quorum shall be 150.
For subsequent years, the total number of Councillors at any time shall not be less than 500 and the quorum shall be 250. If the total number of Councillors should fall below 500, then more Councillors shall be appointed as soon as practicable, but within three (3) months from such eventuality.
The Council of Veterans shall have the powers to appoint the appropriate investigating committee to look into allegations or suspicions of wrongdoing or malpractice by any person holding a public office including the President with the exception of the Senators. The proceedings of such a investigating committee shall be telecasted live over national television and the Internet except for those parts of the proceedings that involve the issues of national security and state secrets unless authorised otherwise by the Council of Veterans.
The Council of Veterans shall have the powers to remove any undesirable Councillor from office after a public debate provided that any Councillor so removed shall have the right to appeal to the Supreme Court and House of Justice for reinstatement to his office and he shall be reinstated to his office if both the Supreme Court and House of Justice rule in favour of the reinstatement.
Notwithstanding any provision to the contrary, the Senate may call or propose a referendum to remove any undesirable Councillor from office after a public debate and any Councillor so removed shall have no right to appeal to the Supreme Court and House of Justice for reinstatement to his office as the voters' decision on his removal from office shall be final and conclusive. Such a person shall henceforth not be eligible for another appointment to the Council of Veterans unless there is a subsequent referendum approving him being appointed to the Council of Veterans.
If the proposal for the removal of a Councillor were not adopted by the voters in a referendum, then there shall be no more referendum for the removal of the same Councillor for the next 12 months unless the House of Justice sanctions such a referendum.
The Council of Veterans shall have the powers to appoint the appropriate committee for any purpose as it deems fit.
Grand Councillor
The Council of Veterans shall elect a Grand Councillor (the Chairman of the Council of Veterans) for a term of 5 years. It may also elect a Councillor for a second or subsequent terms of 5 years each as Grand Councillor, provided the election is confirmed by not less than a two-thirds (2/3) majority of the votes of the Councillors present and voting.
The Grand Councillor shall be the Head of State and shall assume and discharge the duties and responsibilities of that office.
In the event of the temporary unavailability of the Grand Councillor, the Council of Veterans shall elect from among the Councillors an acting Grand Councillor to perform the functions and duties of the Grand Councillor.
Unless otherwise expressly provided in the Constitution, all questions proposed for decision in the Council of Veterans shall be determined by a majority of the votes of the Councillors present and voting, and the Grand Councillor shall have the casting vote in the event of a tie.
Independent Institutions or Bodies (IIB)
These Institutions or Bodies are independent meaning that they are independent from the Presidency which is the Executive-cum-Legislature.
The President shall not have any say or in any way be involved in the Appointments, Removals, Budgets, etc of the Independent Institutions or Bodies as well as the Senate and the Council of Veterans so that these Institutions or Bodies can also act as the constitutional checks and balances.
The terms of office including the remuneration and other benefits of the members of the Independent Institutions or Bodies other than Talent Development Institute shall be recommended by the Talent Development Institute, approved by the Council of Veterans and confirmed by the Senate.
Any person for appointment to the Independent Institutions or Bodies other than Talent Development Institute shall be recommended by the Talent Development Institute, approved by the Council of Veterans and confirmed by the Senate.
The Appointments to the Independent Institutions or Bodies would follow broadly the same format like the one in which the Judges are appointed to the Judiciary. For instance, each Judge would serve until the retirement age of 65 years and since the great majority of the Judges do not have their retirement ages at the same time, the problem of all the Judges retiring simultaneously or within a very short period would not arise. But the format of service of each Independent Institution or Body may differ from the rest according to the needs and requirements of that Independent Institution or Body.
Election Commission (EC)
The Election Commission is responsible for organizing free, fair, secure and efficient citizens' initiatives, referendums and elections. The electoral, referendum and citizens' initiatives processes could be updated, modernized and improved with the advances already made in the Information Age.
The ballot is secret.
Notwithstanding any other provision of this Constitution, any issue that has been adopted by the qualified voters in a citizens’ initiative or referendum shall have primacy over any other law.
The Election Commission is also responsible for the voter education for raising further the political awareness and participation by the people.
The political party plays no essential part in the NPS and election candidates who choose to be sponsored or endorsed by a political party or to be a member of a political party shall declare such sponsorship, endorsement or membership in their election manifestos.
Buying of votes, whether directly or indirectly, is prohibited in the NPS and any elected public official who is guilty of such an offence on a complaint filed by the Election Commission to the Judiciary should resign from his office failing which he could be removed from office by the respective authority or failing which the offender shall be suspended from office until his case is decided by the people through a referendum.
All rules, regulations or procedures made or formulated by the Election Commission shall be operative only after they are confirmed by the Council of Veterans and approved by the Senate.
No person who shall not have attained the age of twenty-one (21) and been three (3) years a citizen of Singapore as at the date of announcement of the election for the President or Senate shall vote in the election.
Qualified Voters
All persons who are not disqualified by the Constitution and whose names are listed in the Register of Voters kept by the Election Commision as at the 20th day following the election, referendum or citizens’ initiative announcement shall be eligible to vote in the election, referendum or citizens’ initiative (“the qualified voters”).
Notwithstanding any other provision of this Article, a citizens' initiative, referendum or election shall be null and void, if the number of qualified voters who participate in it is not more 50% of the total number of the qualified voters.
The Election Commission shall provide all qualified voters with their login and candidate endorsement and voting passwords.
It is the voters’ responsibility to test and ensure that the login and candidate endorsement and voting passwords are working properly once the Election Commission announces publicly that an election would be held soon (hereinafter referred to as “the election announcement”). Any voter who has a problem in his access to the Election Commission website, in the candidate endorsement function or who has any other problem should contact the Election Commission immediately with the view of sorting out such a problem. It is also the voters’ responsibility to ensure the confidentiality of their login and endorsement passwords.
Following the election announcement, all qualified persons who are interested to be a candidate shall send in their application in a prescribed online form for the election. Other persons who are nominating a qualified candidate shall confirm in their prescribed online nomination form that they have the written consent of the candidate they are nominating.
The Election Commission, after verifying the application or the nomination of a prospective candidate, shall, on a first-come-first-serve basis for the purpose of the voters’ endorsement, post his photo together with the relevant personal particulars on its website with a hyperlink to the candidate’s website where the voters can find out more information about the candidate and his election programmes.
Application and nomination of candidates for the election shall cease on the 10th day following the election announcement.
All voter endorsements for the candidates for the election shall cease on the 20th day following the election announcement.
All ballot boxes shall be sealed as soon as practical after the election ends and securely kept by the Election Commission for 6 months in case of allegation of cheating or other complaints and thereafter all the ballot papers shall be destroyed according to the election rules and regulations.
The printed ballot papers may carry a serial number for the purpose of auditing in the event of a complaint, but the writing or recording of the voter number or any other particular of the voter on the counterfoil of the ballot paper that could lead to the identification of the voter shall be prohibited.
Presidential Election
The following procedures shall be adopted for the presidential election:
Each voter may endorse more than one candidates in order of choice, but not exceeding 21 candidates and only one endorsement for each candidate.
Not later than the 23th day following the election announcement, the Election Commission shall finalize a list of 21 candidates who have obtained the most 1st to 21st choice endorsements for the election or such lesser number of candidates that are available.
In the event there are more than one candidates who obtain the same total of the 1st to 21st choice endorsements which would immediately render the aforesaid list to exceed 21 candidates, all such candidates shall be eligible for the election together with those who have obtained more 1st to 21th choice endorsements than they. So the list at this point of time would contain more than 21 eligible candidates, with the extra candidates over 21 as the result of the tie. All other candidates who have obtained a total of the 1st to 21th choice endorsements less than this last group of candidates shall not eligible for the election.
To this list of 21 or more candidates shall be added all other persons who have obtained not less than 10% of the total of the 1st to 3rd choice endorsements of the voters.
In addition to the aforesaid candidates, the Talent Development Institute shall propose 3 candidates of its choice for the election.
If the total number of valid candidates is still less than 24 as at the 24th day following the election announcement, the Talent Development Institute shall then propose such additional number of candidates to make up to a total of 24 candidates for the election.
The Election Commission shall then post the final list of candidates for the presidential election on its website.
On the 40th day following the election announcement (the election day), the voters shall go to the polling stations to key in their votes for the candidates in order of choice and then have their lists of chosen candidates printed out and the hard copy of each voter shall be deposited by him personally whenever possible into a ballot box provided at the polling station.
The candidate who has won more than 50% of the first choice valid votes cast shall be the President-elect.
In the event when there is no candidate who has won more than 50% of the first choice valid vote cast in the first ballot, there shall be a second ballot and only the top twelve (12) candidates with the greatest number of 1st to 12th choice valid votes cast in the first ballot shall be eligible for the balloting. The candidate who has won more than 50% of the first choice valid votes cast in this second ballot shall be the President-elect.
In the event when there is no candidate who has won more than 50% of the first choice valid vote cast in the second ballot, there shall be a third ballot and only the top seven (7) candidates with the greatest number of 1st to 7th choice valid votes cast in the second ballot shall be eligible for the balloting. The candidate who has won more than 50% of the first choice valid votes cast in this third ballot shall be the President-elect.
In the event when there is no candidate who has won more than 50% of the first choice valid vote cast in the third ballot, there shall be a fourth ballot and only the top five (5) candidates with the greatest number of 1st to 5th choice valid votes cast in the third ballot shall be eligible for the balloting. The candidate who has won more than 50% of the first choice valid votes cast in this fourth ballot shall be the President-elect.
In the event when there is no candidate who has won more than 50% of the first choice valid vote cast in the fourth ballot, there shall be a fifth ballot and only the top three (3) candidates with the greatest number of 1st to 3rd choice valid votes cast in the fourth ballot shall be eligible for the balloting. The candidate who has won more than 50% of the first choice valid votes cast in this fifth ballot shall be the President-elect.
In the event when there is no candidate who has won more than 50% of the first choice valid vote cast in the fifth ballot, there shall be a sixth and final ballot and only the top two (2) candidates with the greatest number of 1st to 2nd choice valid votes cast in the fifth ballot shall be eligible for the balloting. The candidate who has won more than 50% of the first choice valid votes cast in this sixth ballot shall be the President-elect.
In the event of a tie of the first choice valid vote cast in the sixth ballot, the Grand Councillor as the Head of State shall have the casting vote. The candidate who has the vote of the Grand Councillor shall be the President-elect.
Senatorial Election
This election is open to all eligible citizens and the young, energetic and enterprising are particularly encouraged to stand as candidates. The Senate in the NPS is the cradle for future Presidents as it provides excellent exposure to the voters and valuable electioneering experience for those who believe they could serve the people and nation better if they were presidents.
The following procedures shall be adopted for the senatorial election:
Each voter may endorse more than one candidates in order of choice, but not exceeding 100 candidates and only one endorsement for each candidate.
Not later than the 23th day following the election announcement, the Election Commission shall finalize a list of 270 candidates who have the most 1st to 100th choice endorsements for the election or such lesser number of candidates that are available.
In the event there are more than one candidates who obtain the same total of 1st to 100th choice endorsements which would immediately render the aforesaid list to exceed 270 candidates, all such candidates shall be eligible for the election together with those who have obtained more 1st to 100th choice endorsements than they. So the list at this point of time would contain more than 270 eligible candidates, with the extra candidates over 270 as the result of the tie. All other candidates who have obtained a total of 1st to 100th choice endorsements less than this last group of candidates shall not eligible for the election.
To this list of 270 or more candidates shall be added all other persons who have obtained not less than 10% of the total of the 1st to 3rd choice endorsements of the voters.
In addition to the aforesaid candidates, the Talent Development Institute shall propose 30 candidates of its choice for the election.
If the total number of valid candidates is still less than 300 as at the 24th day following the election announcement, the Talent Development Institute shall then propose such additional number of candidates to make up to a total of 300 candidates for the election.
The Election Commission shall then post the final list of candidates for the senatorial election on its website.
On the 40th day following the election announcement (the election day), the voters shall go to the polling stations to key in their votes for the candidates in order of choice for up to the first 100 candidates and then have their list of chosen candidates printed out and the hard copy of each voter shall be deposited by him personally whenever possible into a ballot box provided at the polling station.
The candidate with the greatest number of 1st choice votes shall be the 1st Senator-elect. The candidate with the greatest number of 1st and 2nd choice votes shall be the 2nd Senator-elect and so on until the candidate with the greatest number of 1st to 100th choice votes shall be the 100th Senator-elect.
In the event there are more than one Senators-elect who obtain the same total of choice votes, such Senators-elect shall draw lots to determine their senatorial seniority. For example, if there were 2 Senators-elect with the same total of the 1st to 6th choice votes, then they shall draw lots to determine who is the 6th and 7th Senator respectively.
Within 90 days after the election, the Election Commission shall publish with full details the reasons for the invalidity of the unsuccessful applications to be election candidates, if there were any.
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Referendum
The following procedures shall be adopted for the referendum:
All qualified voters shall, at any time, be entitled to propose any legislation for a referendum.
The Election Commission shall provide online facilities for any qualified voter to make such a proposal.
Subject to the provisions of this Article, a referendum announcement shall be made within thirty (30) days for any proposal that is shown to have the support of not less than 1% of the qualified voters ('supported proposal').
It is the voters’ responsibility to test and ensure that the login and proposal endorsement and voting passwords are working properly once the Election Commission announces publicly that a referendum would be held soon (“the referendum announcement”).
Following the referendum announcement, the Election Commission shall post all the supported proposals for the referendum on its website for the voters' endorsement.
Each voter may endorse more than one supported proposals for the referendum.
All proposal endorsements for the referendum shall cease on the 10th day following the referendum announcement.
Not later than the 13th day following the referendum announcement, the Election Commission shall finalize a list of supported proposals which have obtained endorsements of not less than 25% of the qualified voters ('endorsed proposals'). If there were no endorsed proposal on that day, then the referendum process for the foregoing supported proposals shall come to an end.
Any supported proposal which has obtained voters' endorsements of less than 25% of the qualified voters shall cease to be eligible for the referendum ('failed proposal') and shall not, for the next 12 months, be proposed again for another referendum unless the proposal is shown to have the support of not less than twice the number of qualified voters as at the date of the subsequent proposal than that of the failed proposal.
Notwithstanding any provision to the contrary, any referendum called or proposed by the President, the Senate or the Council of Veterans shall not require any voters' endorsement and such referendum shall be carried out on the 30th day following the referendum announcement (the referendum day).
On the referendum day, the voters shall go to the polling stations to key in their votes for the endorsed proposals they support and then have their list of such proposals printed out and the hard copy of each voter shall be deposited by him personally whenever possible into a ballot box provided at the polling station.
The proposals which have obtained more than 50% of the valid votes cast shall be declared adopted.
If there were two or more conflicting proposals which have obtained more than 50% of the valid votes cast in the same referendum, then the proposal which has obtained the greatest number of the valid votes cast shall prevail.
If there were two or more conflicting proposals which have obtained more than 50% of the valid votes cast in the same referendum and more than one proposals have obtained the same greatest number of the valid votes cast, then the proposal which has the vote of the Grand Councillor as the Head of State shall prevail.
If there were two or more conflicting proposals which have obtained more than 50% of the valid votes cast in different referendums, then the proposal which is adopted by the voters in the later or latest referendum as the case may be shall prevail.
The proposals which have obtained less than 50% of the valid votes cast shall not be eligible for another referendum for the next 12 months unless the House of Justice sanctions such a referendum.
Citizens’ Initiative
The following procedures shall be adopted for the citizens’ initiative :
All qualified voters shall, at any time, be entitled to propose any issue for a citizens’ initiative.
The Election Commission shall provide online facilities for any qualified voter to make such a proposal.
Subject to the provisions of this Article, a citizens' initiative announcement shall be made within thirty (30) days for any issue that is shown to have the support of not less than 1% of the qualified voters ('proposed issue').
It is the voters’ responsibility to test and ensure that the login and issue endorsement and voting passwords are working properly once the Election Commission announces publicly that a citizens’ initiative would be held soon (hereinafter referred to as “the citizens’ initiative announcement”).
Following the citizens’ initiative announcement, the Election Commission shall post all the proposed issues for the citizens’ initiative on its website for the voters' endorsement.
Each voter may endorse more than one proposed issues for the citizens’ initiative.
All issue endorsements for the citizens’ initiative shall cease on the 10th day following the citizens’ initiative announcement.
Not later than the 13th day following the citizens’ initiative announcement, the Election Commission shall finalize a list of proposed issues which have obtained endorsements of not less than 25% of the qualified voters ('endorsed issues'). If there were no endorsed issue on that day, then the citizens' initiative process for the foregoing proposed issues shall come to an end.
Any proposed issue which has obtained voters' endorsements of less than 25% of the qualified voters shall cease to be eligible for the citizens’ initiative ('failed issue') and shall not, for the next 12 months, be proposed again for another citizens’ initiative unless the issue is shown to have the support of not less than twice the number of qualified voters as at the date of the subsequent proposal than that of the proposal of the failed issue.
On the 30th day following the citizens’ initiative announcement (the citizens’ initiative day), the voters shall go to the polling stations to key in their votes for the endorsed issues they support and then have their list of such issues printed out and the hard copy of each voter shall be deposited by him personally whenever possible into a ballot box provided at the polling station.
The issues which have obtained more than 50% of the valid votes cast shall be declared adopted.
If there were two or more conflicting issues which have obtained more than 50% of the valid votes cast in the same citizens’ initiative, then the issue which has obtained the greatest number of the valid votes cast shall prevail.
If there were two or more conflicting issues which have obtained more than 50% of the valid votes cast in the same citizens’ initiative and more than one issues have obtained the same greatest number of the valid votes cast, then the issue which has the vote of the Grand Councillor as the Head of State shall prevail.
If there were two or more conflicting issues which have obtained more than 50% of the valid votes cast in different citizens’ initiatives, then the issue which is adopted by the voters in the later or latest citizens’ initiative as the case may be shall prevail.
The issues which have obtained less than 50% of the valid votes cast shall not be eligible for another citizens’ initiative for the next 12 months unless the House of Justice sanctions such a citizens' initiative.
For those who are unable to key in their votes, staff from the Election Commission who are sworn to secrecy may help out confidentially in full view of the voter concerned, but the voter himself, save for exceptional circumstances, shall complete the voting process after verifying his voting choices and deposit the signed hard copy into the ballot box.
Further refinements for voters with special needs such as those who are visually handicapped can be looked into by the Election Commission where possible and feasible.
House of Justice (HOJ)
The House of Justice like the Council of Veterans is a freshly created Institution or Body. It is not a replacement for the Judiciary. It is a constitutional equivalent of the Judiciary and exists side by side with it, but unlike the Judiciary, its primary concern is justice and not law.
The House of Justice shall have the constitutional powers to set aside unjust judicial judgements and to vary the sentences that are meted out by the Courts of Law to what is just according to an agreed standard and principles of justice subject to a nominal sum of S$1.00.
The House of Justice would recommend the principles of justice either to the Senate or Council of Veterans for debate and, if they are approved, for referendum for possible adoption by the people.
The House of Justice would be very busy for a very long time because it has to hear, consider and propose the principles of justice to be enshrined in the new Constitution and also to review or consider the following:
all proposed legislations;
all questions of justice referred to it by the Senate and the Council of Veterans;
the Petitions of citizens who believe that they are unjustly treated by the state or the law;
any instance of injustice that may come to its attention; and
the whole lot of existing legislations and other laws:
When the day comes when the House of Justice is idle most of the time, we would have a society that is among the most just on the planet, where justice rules supreme and not a dirty word in the mind of many. Having a just society would also be a very good reason to be proud of being a Singaporean wherever he may be, apart from having redeemed an important part of the National Pledge to build a democratic society based on justice and equality.
Judiciary
The Judiciary is to remain as it is and its primary concern is law and not justice, except that it would have the additional duty to review for bad or poor quality legislations and on an urgent basis whenever it is necessary.
Any legislation or any part thereof found by the Judiciary in its absolute discretion to be bad or poor quality shall cease to be operative immediately and shall first be returned to the President (or the Parliament) for amendment within the time as prescribed by the Judiciary failing which it shall then be referred to the Senate for approval or veto.
With regard to any legislation or any part thereof which has been vetoed by the Senate, the President shall still have the option to call for a referendum for the approval of the voters. Any legislation that has been rejected by the majority of the voters shall then be discarded.
National Media Commission (NMC)
The National Media Commission is responsible for the management and operation of all state-own or -run media and information infrastructures.
It is extremely important for the national media and information infrastructures to be fully independent of the President and the government, and its news reports, articles, editorials and documentaries are to be as free from the governmental or presidential propaganda as the circumstances could permit.
In the NPS, there would be minimal censorship on ground of national security and state secrets as it is an exceedingly transparent system.
The National Media Commission would consult the President and his Administration over anything it considers to be presidential or governmental propaganda and any disagreement would be widely publicized for the people to judge. Therefore, there is no need for censorship.
In such circumstances, it would be very foolish for a President to dispute the professional assessments of the National Media Commission unless he could justify his publications or actions before the people. Moreover, any abias or incompetence of the National Media Commission would also be in full public view.
History has unequivocally shown that tyrants and dictators depend on the control of the media to perpetuate their rule and control of the ordinary citizens through falsehoods and misinformation.
The duties of the National Media Commission include adequate media, internet and other appropriate coverage or access for or to the President and his Administration, the Senate and the Council of Veterans, the Senators and the Councillors, and the Independent Institutions or Bodies to ensure maximum transparency of the government, and good and effective interactions of the various state bodies among themselves, with the citizens and among the citizens.
It is also the duty of the National Media Commission to provide adequate media access and to look after the communication needs of the election candidates, the Election Commission and the election process itself.
Talent Development Institute (TDI)
The Talent Development Institute may, among other responsibilities, sponsor new election candidates for the Presidency and the Senate, especially from among young and unknown ones to the Council of Veterans for debate, discussion and, if suitable, for endorsement. However, this is not the only way in which election candidates are accepted by the The Election Commission.
The first three persons for appointment to the Talent Development Institute shall be recommended by the Judiciary and appointed by the Senate. Subsequent persons for appointment to the Institute shall be recommended by the Council of Veterans and appointed by the Senate.
The terms of office including the allowances and other benefits of the members of the Talent Development Institute shall be recommended by the Council of Veterans and approved and confirmed by the Senate.
The Talent Development Institute shall recommend candidates to the Senate for appointment to the Council of Veterans as Councillors.
The Talent Development Institute shall maintain an online system for the nomination and endorsement of the persons for appointment to the Council of Veterans by the qualified voters so that it could give due consideration to the appointment of such persons as Councillors.
It shall also make the recommendation for the remunerations, allowances and other benefits of the President, Senators, Councillors and other Independent Institutions or Bodies to the appropriate authority.
Conversion from the existing system
We may have to abolish or upgrade the existing Presidency and create the new Presidency with Legislative powers. The existing Parliament may be converted into the Senate except that the Senators are subsequently to be elected directly instead of constituently so as to avoid group interest representation. We also have to create the House of Justice and the non-elected Council of Veterans.
During the transitional period, there have to be special provisions for the conversion from the existing system to the NPS.
The existing Parliament may be converted into the Senate and the Prime Minister becomes the 1st President. At the absolute discretion of the President, he may appoint his existing ministers and other parliamentarians to important positions in his new Administration. The rest of the Members of Parliament would then become the first Senators of the new Senate. The total number of Senators in this case may be less than 100.
Similarly, we may see the new Council of Veterans, the House of Justice and the Talent Development Institute having many prominent people from or associated with the existing ruling party. So the voters would have at least five years to familiarize themselves with the workings of the NPS and for intensive voter education.
We can also expect that, for the next 2 or 3 elections, the influence of the existing ruling party may still be considerable because it has a very good head start with the first Presidency and a near total dominance of the new Senate. As the first people running the government and appearing on national television and on the Internet debating and discussing national issues, the voters would know them far better than most other people and hence their excellent re-election chances.
However, the de-PAPization of Singapore society would have also gone a long way towards the eventual emergence of a no-party state.
If we prefer to retain our existing system, we can still have the Council of Veterans and the House of Justice enlarging our system. If we do so, then we are settling for something that is quite far away from the ‘ideal’, but nevertheless, it is still a huge improvement for our existing system.
If we retain the existing system, we do not have the ‘ideal’ condition. Every organ of state or institution is not fully independent of the Prime Minister. The best we can have is to have the Justices for the House of Justice recommended by the Public Service Commission (the nearest equivalent to the Talent Development Institute in the NPS) and approved and confirmed by the elected President (the person most independent of the Prime Minister).
Apart from certain constitutional duties, the Council of Veterans being a prestige Institution or Body should be a relatively low cost set-up requiring only an avenue for discussing and advising the nation by very experienced and talented people who would not be paid the market price for their services. What they would get are prestige, recognition and honour for their past contributions to society and what they would provide is the opportunity for the nation to tap on their experience, judgement and talent. What they would enjoy is free publicity for their views and opinion and perhaps an allowance. The Council as a whole also contributes to the constitutional checks and balances and to a working democracy.
The payment for justice includes sacrificing some time on a Sunday or on a weekday for voting in a referendum as we cannot afford to declare a public holiday for the holding of every referendum. The Information Age would eventually provide a secure, efficient and reliable electronic voting system that would support a maturing democracy by assigning to the museum the current cumbersome and expensive voting systems. In the meantime, those who value justice and democracy must be prepared to make the necessary sacrifice.
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