Is SG Really Secure?The Performative Power Of The SGSecure Counter-Terrorism Policy And Its Implications On Effectiveness

The Singapore government published an official threat assessment report in 2016,asserting that the country was faced with its highest threat of terrorism since the 9/11 World Trade Centre incident sparked the Global War on Terror.In response,the government launched SGSecure in September 2016-a national movement to sensitise,train,and mobilise all of its citizens to be vigilant,cohesive,and resilient in the fight against terrorism.Since its implementation,the government has spared no expense and resources in pushing out initiatives to ensure SGSecure becomes a way of life for all clusters of society.SGSecure reached its two-year mark in September 2018.Given the high stakes and the amount of resources invested in the programme,it is timely to ask:has SGSecure been effective?Through drawing in theories across the disciplines of counter-terrorism policy effectiveness,non-traditional security,civil protection and disaster management,this paper attempts to assemble a holistic overview of the SGSecure movement and proceeds to deconstruct the aims and modus operandi of the SGSecure counter-terrorism policy.SGSecure is first assessed using Jackson's epistemic crisis framework to demonstrate case for counter-terrorism as a discursive security issue;a discursive problem requires a discursive solution,which then offers ground for SGSecure to be assessed using de Graaf and de Graaff s 14-factor performative power framework,and discusses how performative power serves as a proxy for understanding effectiveness in counter-terrorism policy.Based on the findings,this paper offers a discourse on the implications of SGSecure's mild performative power on its policy effectiveness,before closing off with some recommendations and suggestions for future research.