Masagos Zulkifli giving the welcome speech during the Tampines Unite Gathering at the N8 Open Plaza at Tampines Street 81 on Oct 27. - ST PHOTO: LIM YAOHUI
SINGAPORE (The Straits Times/ANN): The trust that Singaporeans have in one another should be built up and not taken for granted, to ensure that extremists seeking to divide the country do not succeed, said Minister for Social and Family Development Masagos Zulkifli.
He said that over the years, much has been invested to foster mutual trust and understanding within and between communities. That trust that Singaporeans share is the country’s “armour”, said Mr Masagos.
Speaking at the inaugural Tampines Unite Gathering on Oct 27, he said that it has been a particularly difficult time for the community in the area, given the recent news of a planned terror attack by a 17-year-old Singaporean that was foiled by the authorities.
The gathering was held at the open plaza between Block 826 and Block 828 in Tampines Street 81 – the site where the teen had planned to carry out his plan to stab non-Muslim men.
In a press statement on Oct 18, the Internal Security Department (ISD) said the self-radicalised teen, who was a supporter of terror group ISIS, was arrested in August under the Internal Security Act (ISA). He was issued a two-year order of detention in September.
Religious leaders from different organisations lead a silent prayer on stage at the event on Oct 27. - ST PHOTO: LIM YAOHUI
Mr Masagos, an MP for Tampines GRC, said that while no lives were lost, some residents may worry about their safety, or question if they could trust others in the community, especially those who are of a different race, language or religion.
“I can understand this can be real, but we cannot let this get into our armour,” said Mr Masagos, who initiated the event after the incident.
“Even though our security agencies have been successful in preventing the attack, the extremists will still succeed if, because of the news, we have lost the trust in one another. Even if that trust has gone down a little bit, you must get that trust up again.”
He pointed out that those influenced by extremist ideologies are a minority and do not represent the majority, and those who become self-radicalised can come from all races and religions – not just the Muslim community.
For example, he cited how a Protestant Christian Singaporean youth had planned to attack Muslims at two mosques on the second anniversary of the Christchurch terror attacks in New Zealand. The teen was detained in December 2020 under the ISA before he could carry out his attack.
Masagos said: “We must never allow such people or views to divide us. We must remain united.”
He added that building trust and community bonds does not happen automatically, and asked those at the event to get to know their neighbours, especially those from different backgrounds, and participate in community activities.
Masagos, who is the Minister-in-charge of Muslim Affairs, called on religious leaders to connect with other communities as well to show that in spite of being different, there are similarities.
At the gathering, religious leaders from different organisations went on stage for a silent prayer – the first time they have done so in a public setting to offer blessings and best wishes to the residents of Tampines.
They were from Holy Trinity Church, Lighthouse Evangelism Church, Living Hope Methodist Church, Masjid Darul Ghufran, Soka Gakkai Singapore, Tampines Chinese Temple and Victory Family Centre.
Tampines GRC MP Baey Yam Keng gave the Mandarin translation of Masago’s speech at the Tampines Unite Gathering on Oct 27. - ST PHOTO: LIM YAOHUI
Masagos asked residents to be on the alert for those who appear to be radicalised and urged them to contact the ISD, even if the radicals are family or friends.
He said: “Radicalisation knows no boundaries. It knows no barriers. It doesn’t care what religion you are. It is up to us, every one of us, (to have) a collective responsibility to address it.”
Masagos was accompanied at the event by Mayor of North East District Desmond Choo and Senior Parliamentary Secretary for Transport, and Sustainability and the Environment Baey Yam Keng, who translated Mr Masagos’ speech into Mandarin. Mr Choo and Mr Baey are also MPs for Tampines GRC.
Dr Charlene Chen, the second adviser to Tampines GRC Grassroots Organisations, who was introduced as a new grassroots leader for the Tampines East ward earlier in 2024, was also at the event.
Retired electrical engineer Suhaiemi Sakon, 65, who was at the event with his wife, said they were sad to hear the news about the potential attack by the teen.
Suhaiemi, who has lived in the area for about 30 years, said the incident affects all Singaporeans. “We should be thankful that we are a multi-religious, multiracial country. We have built trust among each other up until today, and it’s not by chance. Whatever our religions are, we should respect each other.” - The Straits Times/ANN
