Former top civil servant Ngiam Tong Dow calls on academics in tertiary institutions to join the fray on public discourse

Former top civil servant Ngiam Tong Dow has called on academics in tertiary institutions here to join the fray on public discourse. 

Known for speaking his mind on national policies after his retirement from the Civil Service, Mr Ngiam was speaking at the 3rd China-India-Singapore dialogue on higher education hosted by the National University of Singapore. 

In his civil service career spanning 40 years, Mr Ngiam has served as the Permanent Secretary in the Prime Minister's Office and the Ministry of Finance. 

According to a report in the TODAY newspaper, the NUS Pro-Chancellor challenged the Singapore-based academics among the audience to help Singapore to ask the right questions. 

He argued that this is key to achieving sustainable economic growth in the country. 

He said that rather than boosting population numbers, what Singapore needs to do is to increase its knowledge base. 

Mr Ngiam said that in that regard, universities have to do more than just teach skills and technical knowledge. 

Speaking to reporters later, Mr Ngiam reiterated that with academics participating in the national discourse, the process could eventually lead to a more sensible conclusion.