Singapore People’s Party (SPP) member Khan Osman Sulaiman on Tuesday (31 Aug) indicated the rising proportion of Malay households living in rental flats as an “anomaly”, given that the Census 2020 data showed more Malays were attaining post-secondary or higher qualifications across all age groups.

“How is it possible to have a rising proportion of Malays living in rental flats?” he wrote in a Facebook post.

Mr Osman was referring to Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong’s National Day Rally speech on 29 Aug, who highlighted a worrying trend of home ownership in Singapore’s Malay-Muslim community.

PM Lee cited the Census 2020 data, which showed that that the proportion of Malay households in one- and two-room Housing and Development Board (HDB) rental flats increased from about 9,100 in 2010 to about 18,600 last year.

The Prime Minister suggested that this increase could be attributed to several reasons, such as how some young married couples who want to live independently before they are ready to buy a flat.

While this is understandable, he said that there are also some couples who may have suffered sudden changes in family or financial circumstances, or who may be facing complex challenges and have difficulties planning for their future.

However, Mr Osman highlighted that the Census 2020 data also showed that there were more Malays attaining post-secondary or higher qualifications across all age groups, with the increase even more significant for younger Malays.

It was reported that among Malay residents aged 25 years and over, nearly half had post-secondary or higher qualifications last year, compared with less than a third in 2010. This was even higher for Malays aged 25 to 34, of whom eight in 10 had post-secondary or higher qualifications in 2020.

The community was also among the most improved in the area of below-secondary qualifications for those aged 25 and older, with a drop from 41.4 per cent to 28.9 per cent over the same period.

“It is a common understanding that education has been and is a way out of poverty. It is also a way to improve our lives. If the above holds true, then it isn’t logical that there’s a rising proportion of Malays who can’t afford a home,” said Mr Osman.

He continued: “This anomaly can easily be explained away – the acute lack of opportunities made available for the Malay community. It matters little what we can achieve but without opportunities, nothing much can improve.”

Noting that the Census 2020 compares data from the period which coincides with the government relaxing immigration policies, Mr Osman noted that the Malay community has been facing “institutional discrimination” even before the “immigration floodgate” was opened.

“With race-based policies in the government uniformed groups, coupled with our liberal immigration policies and CECA in place, it is no wonder that the Malay community finds it hard to gain a footing despite showing marked improvements in our educational achievement.

“So if PM Lee and Mr Masagos are sincere in addressing the situation, they don’t need to look far and wide for solutions. Just nip the problem in its bud starting from its own backyard. Anything else is just lip service,” he remarked.

Authorities to reach out to members of Malay community to encourage them to “aspire their own homes”: Minister Masagos Zulkifli

Minister-in-charge of Muslim Affairs Masagos Zulkifli said on 29 Aug that the growing proportion of Malays living in rental flats could become an entrenched problem if these families no longer aspire to own their own homes.

Speaking to the media after PM Lee delivered his NDR 2021 speech, Mr Masagos noted that “rental homes are quite cheap and very affordable”.

“And if they get used to it and they don’t aspire to move into owning homes, then we are worried that we will have a generation who might be entrenched in living in rental homes,” he said, as quoted by TODAY.

Mr Masagos noted that the authorities are working to reach out to members of the Malay community to pass on the message that they “must aspire to own homes, because this is an asset that every Singaporean should have and should not give up on”.

Noting that the statistic coincided with a decline in the number of persons per household, the Minister observed that the issue came about largely because HDB had provided more rental flats to help address overcrowding in Malay homes.

Young couples who were unprepared to own a home ended up moving into these rental flats, he said, adding that the problem can deteriorate as “on a short-term basis, it is much cheaper than putting deposits or paying mortgage for their own home”.