'Be impatient to participate, initiate, collaborate': Tharman urges Singapore's youths to do more in volunteerism

SINGAPORE - There is still more scope for active and sustained volunteerism among the youth, even as they become more civic conscious and active, said former senior minister Tharman Shanmugaratnam on Thursday evening.

Rather than one-off efforts, more can be done through sustained and cause-driven volunteerism which has the biggest impact, he said.

He called on youth to “be impatient for change... but more than that, be impatient to participate, to initiate, to collaborate”.

Mr Tharman, who is among the presidential hopefuls for the upcoming election, was speaking as the guest-of-honour at The Halogen Ball, a fundraising gala dinner organised by Halogen, a charity focused on empowering young people.

The dinner also marked the charity’s 20th anniversary.

Not everyone has to be the loudest voice in the crowd, or the leader of a movement, said Mr Tharman, 66.

Young people can make a difference by mentoring children, volunteering at a social service agency, or simply lending a helping hand where needed.

He noted that across the globe, there is an unsettling trend of disengagement among youth, leading to a gradual fraying of societal bonds and a loss of faith in progress and the future.

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Singapore has been fortunate to avoid the large schisms, and more than trying to avoid them, it needs to deepen its social compact, said Mr Tharman.

“There’s a lot to do, strengthening trust in our neighbourhoods, growing civic responsibility generally, and very importantly, just increasing interactions between people,” he added.

“We need a more richly interwoven community space in Singapore, where there’s a lot more mutual respect, a lot more respect for others, regardless of their backgrounds, and a lot more support for each other,” said Mr Tharman, whose platform for his bid for the presidency is themed Respect for All.

He added that organisations such as Halogen are key collaborators in this journey, noting that Halogen has grown to have close to 3,000 volunteers.

“I think what we’re really trying to do here in Singapore, in the region, in fact globally, is to build optimism amidst challenges that are unprecedented,” he said.

Singapore’s youth are standing in a moment where their capacity to shape a better society, and to contribute to the region and the world, is unmatched compared to the past, he added.

They are also more educated than previous generations, and more of them are expanding their own comfort zones and broadening their aspirations.

Young people are still thinking about their careers, but they would also like to do something else - to help the disadvantaged, underprivileged or the environment. “It’s becoming quite common for young people to have twin aspirations, and I think that’s really encouraging,” he said.

“More of them are seeing that immersing themselves in the region and the world is something that they like to do, even as we deepen our own multicultural compact at home.”

At Thursday’s dinner, founder of Octave Institute and chairman of IMC Pan Asia Alliance Group Mr Chavalit Frederick Tsao presented a $250,000 cheque from Octave to Halogen, meant to pave the way for collaborations to empower youth.

Octave is a non-profit organisation that focuses on business reforms and leadership transformation.

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