Complacency and elitism in the top ranks of civil service

I agree with the observation by MP Inderjit Singh. The full article can be read here.

Complacency and elitism in top ranks of civil service

Singh also spoke out against the complacency and elitism he “detected” in the top ranks of civil servants. He said, "today’s policy makers live in a different society from the average Singaporean”.

The MP said that during his Meet-the-People sessions, he had encountered a number of residents who questioned the rationale of government policies.

He urged the government to consider reorganizing the policy making process, to “reverse it to make it more bottom-up and driven by the man in the street” instead of the top-down approach of policies crafted by those seated in “an ideal clean and sterile policy lab or an ivory tower”.

Singh had observed that the civil service’s top ranks are populated by scholars chosen for their academic achievements. He expressed concern that these scholars, who are “parachuted” to high positions at a young age, may not have the experience or understanding to craft policies for the rest of the population.

Singh supported a different approach to talent management in the public service, saying that “we need the best people for the respective jobs not necessarily the best academically qualified for all the jobs.”

Since it was published on Monday evening, Singh’s post has been shared over 400 times on Facebook, garnering over 400 likes. Comments thus far have been positive, applauding Singh for his insights and thanking him for speaking out. The CEO of a Singapore home appliances and electronics company, Singh has been an MP for 18 years.