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Member of a CCA vs. Citizen of a country
- There are some similarities between being a member of a CCA and being a citizen of a country.
- The differences between being a member of a CCA and being a citizen of a country are:
| Being a Member of Your CCA | Being a Citizen of Singapore | |
| Membership | – A personal choice – By interest | – By descent – By marriage – By naturalisation |
| Responsibility | – Be committed to your CCA | – Be committed to your country |
| Rights | – Be awarded CCA points – Able to use facilities assigned to your CCA, e.g. CCA room | – Access to public education – Freedom to practise religion |
Ways to Become a Citizen
| 1. By descent | To gain citizenship by descent, a child requires at least one parent to be a citizen of that particular country. |
| 2. By country of birth | Citizenship is granted to those who were born in the country. |
| 3. By marriage | Citizenship can be obtained by marrying a citizen of that country. |
| 4. By naturalisation | Citizenship is granted to those who have migrated to that country or have been resident there for a given number of years and registered themselves as citizens. Some countries require aspiring citizens to pass a test and/or to give up their original citizenship. |
Ways to Become a Citizen
- Democracy is a system where people choose their representatives in government.
- These representatives from the government and are given the authority to make decisions on behalf of the citizens.
- Governments in a representative democracy do not have unlimited power to make decisions or carry out actions.
- They are required to act according to the laws of the country, also known as a constitution.
Rights of citizens
- A constitution is a collection of rules that determine the creation and operation of the government, its organs, and institutions.
- It is the supreme law of the land, which means all other laws passed must not contradict the constitution.
- Countries usually include the rights of citizens as part of the constitution.
- Rights are liberties that citizens have that are protected by the law.
- When the rights of citizens are clearly articulated, it will ensure that these rights are respected by the law and by everyone in the country.
- Citizens have to exercise their rights responsibly even though their rights are protected by the Constitution.
- Citizens should practice the values of respect and consideration for other people when it comes to exercising their rights.
- The Constitution also gives citizens certain rights in respect of education. It states that no citizen will be discriminated against on the ground of religion, race, descent, or place of birth when it comes to the provision of financial aid for education in any educational institution.
Responsibilities of citizens
- We have responsibilities or duties to fulfil as a citizen because we are connected to other members in the community or society.
- As a Singaporean, we have the responsibility to obey the laws of the land and not to discriminate against people of different ethnic groups.
- As citizens, we have the responsibility to participate in meaningful causes which contribute towards the good of the country because it will bring about progress and prosperity and to build a harmonious Singapore.
