ESM Goh Chock Tong said that Singapore needs to guard against elitism because it threatens to divide society.
He was speaking at the Raffles Institution Homecoming event yesterday. He cited that top schools such as RI must ensure that their students do not become elitist or develop a sense of entitlement.
ESM Goh also spent 6 years in RI during the 1950s and he described it as Singapore's melting pot of the best students from different racial and religious backgrounds. He added that it did not matter whether they were rich or poor back then.
Mr Goh said that back in his day, there was a very open meritocracy that allowed social mobility for most people. However but he also acknowledged that as society matured, there has been a stronger divide and income inequality has grown.
Children of rich backgrounds tend to have a head start in life, thanks to their parents giving them greater opportunities, but ESM Goh warned against letting this develop into a sense of entitlement.
"When society's brightest and most able think that they made good because they are inherently superior and entitled to their success; when they do not credit their good fortune also to birth and circumstance; when economic inequality gives rise to social immobility and a growing social distance between the winners of meritocracy and the masses; and when the winners seek to cement their membership of a social class that is distinct from, exclusive, and not representative of Singapore society - that is elitism."
Despite acknowledging that the system of meritocracy maturing over the years may have caused this greater divide, ESM Goh said that the solution is not to replace meritocracy.
He said that meritocracy should not be practiced in a way that divides society.
"Those of us who have benefited disproportionately from society's investment in us owe the most to society, particularly to those who may not have had access to the same opportunities. We owe a debt to make lives better for all and not just for ourselves."
Commenting further on what the government is doing, he said that they are continually intervening with policies and programs to benefit families who have fallen behind.
He reiterated that these measures would help to ensure that Singapore's meritocracy remains fair and inclusive.