According to a press release by the Ministry of Manpower yesterday (Nov 8), a new Singaporean citizen from China is now facing charges for housing foreign workers in overcrowded premises. Between Oct 2015 and Jul 2016, 34-year-old Singaporean Li Dan arranged for 18 workers to live in 8-man dormitories at Upper Paya Lebar, MacPherson and Changi.
The former China national is also facing separate charges for submitting false addresses for 22 foreign workers in order to avoid detection from the ministry.
New citizens and permanent residents from China have taken headlines news recently for crimes not commonly committed by native-born Singaporeans. Earlier this month, a Singapore permanent resident from China was charged for extorting payment from his workers or face deportation. Last month in Oct, a Singapore government researcher from China was arrested for GST fraud.
As Singapore’s population balloon, Singapore has also seen a corresponding increase in crime rate in recent years.
The current population stands at 5.61 million as of 2017, but Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong signalled his intention to increase it to 6.9 million by 2030. To achieve his population target, the PM compromised on immigration qualification standards and issued out permanent residencies and citizenships indiscriminately. Unlike first world countries like Japan and Australia, there is no language test or a point system to determine eligibility.
Singapore is a population emigration destination for the rich, and the poor around Asia. Many Filipinos, China nationals and Indian nationals see Singapore as a lesser evil compared to their poverty-stricken and corruption-filled homelands.