I haven't written much for this elections, which is a peculiar case because my friends know that I have a lot to say for this election. But the poll is just slightly more than 24 hours away and write I must because so many things are at stake. Stakes that I would eternally regret if I know that at least one of you might be inspired by this simple piece but made the wrong choice because I didn't write.
What is it about this particular election that fills me so much passion and makes me so involved? Its the fight for Singapore, specifically the Singapore Soul and not $ingapore Inc.
My dear friends, just take a moment to think back about 5-10 years ago, about what life was like, what did you see around you? How did you feel? Do you recall seeing old folks, or very old folks cleaning the toilets, working 24 hours shifts at hawker centres wiping tables with dirty cloths and wearing glum faces while you are having supper? Do you feel hopeful about life, or do you feel worried and stressed out?
$ingapore has always been run as a business and if money can buy us everything in this world, then its great, go ahead. But unfortunately in life, money can't buy us everything. Singapore has moved to a stage (thanks to the founding fathers of Singapore - note I did not say thanks to PAP) where a sizeable portion of us don't have to worry about a roof and food, and we realized that we are not children anymore, we need to grow and we want to grow. And we don't want to leave another Singaporean behind.
Because there are many Singaporeans left behind. When I do my volunteer work on Sundays, where I cook a hot meal and distribute rations to the elderly, I am almost in tears when I see the uncle with NOTHING in his rental flat. And I mean nothing. I see the lady who needs to crawl to the door to receive our rations, I see families living in the corridors illegally because they have nowhere to go, and I wonder why nothing more is being done. Why are the policies not going down to the people who need it the most?
I ABSOLUTELY CANNOT understand how Vivian Balakrishnan can take his millions of dollars of salary, get hundreds of thousands of dollars of pay increment and 8 months bonus, but simply REFUSE to help any of these people. His now famous words when the deeply respected Dr Lily asked for more money for the poor were simply: How much do you want? Enough for a hawker centre, food court or restaurant? He then increased funding from $260 per month, to $290 per month. A $1 a day increase. We are talking about people who CANNOT work for a multitude of reasons, and $290 a month, all in. How does he sleep at night?
WHERE did our soul go? Where did our heart go? What is happening to my country?
How did citizens become just a number in a factory environment churning GDP figures? GDP is a terrible measure of the standard of living, easily affected by outliers, because it measures the average and not the median (this would be an entire article, so please wiki/google). I don't want the next generation to grow up in a country where being anything other than an Engineer, Doctor, or god forbid, a Lawyer, is being looked down on. He/she cannot think that "I want to be a carpenter", or "I want to be a musician" and be told to be more practical and get a real job. Because these are passions and these are dreams. Without passions, and without dreams we are nothing.
What is life to live if life is just an empty chase of money?
I have no fear, because I am not stupid. The incumbent paints nightmare scenarios: women being maids, children getting raped, we'll all be jobless. But the incumbent has not shown how or why this will be the case. Their manifesto says nothing, and they forget that the ever strong civil service will run with or without them, and they will work hand in hand with whoever is in the Parliament to make it work. And if it doesn't work, that's fine because we Singaporeans know now that we are empowered and we will make it all work, together.
The incumbent asks for track record, well WP and Mr Chiam have 20 years behind them. And just for the record, neither do the majority of your newbies have any track record to speak of. Which also brings me to my next point dear PAP, your track record for the past 5 years is nothing but fail. We look nice on the outside, but we are rotting on the inside. Many people have already touch on this, so I'll skip it.
Benson tells me not to cry, but cry I will, tears of joy when Worker's Party emerges victorious, or tears of disappointment when PAP does a clean sweep of the Parliament.
The time has come, and I can feel change is in the air, I don't want to see my country rot anymore, and I will be the change that I want to be.
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You need to read some of these excellent writings that I've been reading:
And this is a MUST read -
Thank you.