I HAVE been travelling extensively over the past few months for work and leisure. I have experienced train breakdowns, packed spaces, confusing signs, pollution and traffic congestion in places like London, France, Japan and Australia. All these make me proud of how safe and secure Singapore is, where systems and processes are in place to ensure order and stability. We often compare Singapore to other countries, and envy their freedom of speech, iconic places and scenic landscapes. But we should also look at what we have that others don’t have, and ask ourselves: Is there such a thing as a perfect country? Sadly, the answer is “no”. Yet it seems that Singaporeans tend to point fingers at the Government or public agencies when systems are faulty or when things go wrong, and sometimes we take things for granted. The younger generation, in particular, are too sheltered and lack resilience. In that sense, I am glad that we have mandatory national service, which builds resilience in boys and turns them into men. As we celebrate Singapore’s 50th birthday next year, let us revisit history and remember how our forefathers weathered difficult situations to build Singapore from scratch. Instead of finding fault with government policies, we should appreciate what we have. I may not agree with every policy, but the system serves to protect the country economically and socially.
Posted on: Tue, 23 Dec 2014 09:14:00 +0000
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