On the 9th of June, more than a million people (according to organisers) took to the streets of Hong Kong to protest against an extradition bill. 

Since then, things have been escalating and for the majority of us who have kept up with the episodes of violence and drama that have been plaguing Hong Kong, we’re concerned for the people there. But beyond the superficial worrying, we should also take a moment to consider:

What if this happens in Singapore?

What if, for whatever reason, one million unhappy Singaporeans were to take to Orchard Road to protest?

It’s hard to fathom something as extreme as this happening in Singapore, not just because of the safety, security, stability, and structure that we are so accustomed to but also because of the history of how strict our authorities have been on cases of unlawful assembly. Knowing this, it would have taken a major government f*** up for one fifth of our population to be riled up enough to execute a protest of this scale.

But that doesn't mean that it will never happen.

What If The Riots And Violence Were To Happen In Singapore?

Take the recent ‘brownface’ advertisement saga and a hypothetical scenario of our government enforcing a strict ruling against the Nair siblings for example. This could very well have provoked the minority groups in Singapore enough to fuel the start of a protest for the siblings to be cleared of charges. Subsequently, this could also be fodder for protestors to demand for more racial equality.

Imagine then, like what happened in Hong Kong, peaceful demonstrations along Orchard Road turn into violent riots with each new protest. Imagine going to town for a night out only to see barricades along the streets, and riot police patrolling wherever you go. 

Usually, the presence of law enforcement officers would make us feel a bit safer, but this time, we won’t know if it’s actually going to be safer.

This time, they would be ready to do whatever it takes to establish control on the ground should a protest break out—even if that means innocent bystanders or peaceful protestors become collateral damage.

Imagine going home one night, only for the train to be intercepted by a group of masked men at Bishan (for example) who storm the train station with bamboo sticks, threatening protestors who happened to be in the same cabin. 

Brandishing their weapons at everyone as tensions rise with heated exchanges, they would start hitting whoever weren’t on their side with their weapons. Everyone would try to flee the cabin. You run with them, but the masked men follow, hitting anyone and everyone they can reach while chasing after all of you. 

You’d get home in one piece that night, but with cuts and bruises.
You thank heavens that, at least, you’re alive, but you also fear for the days ahead, because this is neither an isolated incident nor the end of the chaos in the country. 

The protests have already evolved into violent-prone riots all across Singapore. Private and public properties have been destroyed in the process.

Shops, trees, street signs and anything in the way of the protests would have been destroyed. 

Lives would have been destroyed too, as people are injured or even killed in these riots. 

Most significantly, trust in law enforcement personnel, the government, and your fellow countrymen has been eroded.

When All Of That Happens In Singapore, What Do We Even Do? 

Do we wait for instructions? Who do we even take instructions from now that it the government we are protesting against?

Do we drop everything and seek shelter at home?

Perhaps schools will be suspended to keep the kids safe, but what about everyone else in the workforce? 

Assuming that life still has to go on, how are our companies, business, or our shops going to deal with all the disruptions in the workforce and economy? 

With the mounting unrest across our tiny island and the unpredictability of protestors, it would be impossible to know if it’s even safe to go anywhere. Can we put a standstill to our life at this point then?  

Honestly, none of us will know what to do if it actually happens.

Sure, the SCDF has always been running free Community Emergency Preparedness Programmes. There are also the occasional emergency preparedness events to ‘prepare’ citizens for possible emergencies. 

But having attended some of these events before, I can testify that all the attendees are a lot more fascinated at the action and special effects (smoke and fire) than the critical messages of what one should do in emergency situations.

I say this because these are also the only things I remembered from the events. 

Call me a sceptic, but even if we were to witness this simulation again today, I doubt we would have learnt how to handle such situations as a civilian besides waiting for instructions.

Will We Be Ready To Make Difficult Choices?

Amidst all the mess and uncertainty, most of us would have probably just rode it out, hoping that somehow, somewhere, someone will step out to help us end the mess. 

It is only our men (or women) in uniform who have been trained, in one way or another, to maintain law and order here. And for the most part, the rest of us would also put that same onus on them.  

Imagine then, in the case where a fifth of the country is protesting to fight for something that our people must have felt extremely passionate and adamant about, there are also Singaporeanswho would be activated by the state to maintain law and order across the island. 

In the case where the clashes become increasingly violent, these Singaporeans, who are also our loved ones, would be the ones who are required to follow the protocol to quell the riots: To fire tear gas and rubber bullets at fellow Singaporeans, and to possibly use violence against us if it really comes to that point.

I have trust in our army to protect us against external threats, but it is never the same when you’re talking about ‘fighting against’ your own people—your family and friends. 

At the same time, the situation will begin to escalate with each day of inaction by the government. More innocent citizens will be wounded from the clashes. 

Three months on, it would come to a point where even Changi Airport has to close all its terminals as protestors take an even more drastic approach. 

A woman was also blinded after a bean bag round shot by the police flew into her eye. By now, the police has also admitted to infiltrating groups of protestors so that they could make arrests while undercover. 

What’s even scarier is when these police officers are also suspected of planting ‘evidence’ on protestors—which was what happened in Hong Kong just two days ago. The police denied these allegations. But everyone else claims otherwise. 

Whatever the case, you start to wonder how much you can actually trust the police and law enforcement as they resort to such underhanded tactics to keep the situation under control.

We Will Never Be Prepared for This

Sure, we have special forces, the riot police and tactical units trained to deal with such situations. But it’s one thing to be trained through lessons and drills, and another to face the real deal.

In such extreme situations, everything will change even after all the riots and protests subside.

Everything from our economy, to trust in our authorities, and every part of our livelihood will never be the same again.

Which brings me back to the point of the safety, security, and stability, that we have been so accustomed to in Singapore. 

It is because of the peace that we have right now that makes it even scarier to think about that scale of chaos in Singapore. But it is exactly what is happening in Hong Kong, and it’s a reminder that nothing is ever permanent. So at least for now, we should be thankful for what we have: peace.

Also read: The War Against OT: Why Staying Back Late Doesn’t Make You A ‘Good’ Employee.

(Header Image Credit: Goh Rhy Yan, Hasan Almasi)

For 364 days a year, we complain. 

Then, for one day in August, we somehow become the most patriotic brothers and sisters, banding together to celebrate our Mother(land)’s birthday.

It’s ludicrous if you look at it this way: All year round, we see countless remarks from Singaporeans about how Singapore is a terrible place to live in, and all it takes is for one day dedicated to celebrating the country for people to become patriotic. 

Conversely, there is another group of Singaporeans that will roll their eyes at the patriots for such an absurd display of love and pride for the country—Call us hypocrites, for we sing praises about Singapore and flaunt our patriotism on our social media accounts for that one day, only to go back to complaining after. 

Yes, Singaporeans Hate Singapore

And it is true that there’s a lot to hate about Singapore. 

Right off the bat, there is the recent E-Pay and Preetipls saga, which once again put a spotlight on racism in Singapore—an issue that has been bubbling just beneath the surface for quite awhile now. It has caused quite the brouhaha, causing a divide as many took to polarising ends of the debate on what constitutes unacceptable behaviour. 

It is a harsh reminder that despite a growing number of Singaporeans taking on a progressive mindset, Singapore is still a largely conservative society. Racism is but one one of many issues our ‘divided’ society struggle with. It is also the reason behind the longstanding fight for and against 377A.

Along with all of that is the perception of a ‘strict’ or ‘authoritarian’ government among Singaporeans, especially the very outspoken ones on forums, Reddit and Quora threads, and social media comment section. From their view on censorship (fake news law) to how they crack down on the most minute of things like having to regulate PMDs and drones—disgruntled Singaporeans have time and again seen these as signs that the government is running the country with an iron fist. 

Corruption is also an issue that people are increasingly discussing, but this is a whole other debate for another day. I am also in no way qualified to make any judgment on this, as I lack the political knowledge. However, one doesn’t need to that knowledge to know, from the kind of nasty comments online, that what many people belief. 

High Cost Of Living

I penned a letter to our government last year and in it, I talked about the hopes and fears as a young Singaporean. 

I spoke about the reality of hopeful Singaporeans fearing for our future here because of the high costs of living here. Singapore is an expensive city to live in, we know. However, it is when we start to realise that sooner or later, we have to juggle being a full-time worker striving for success in our career, a reliable provider to our own children, and also a caregiver to our aging parents all at once that it becomes overwhelming. 

Heck, how can one not feel the pressure when the moment we ‘start our life’ with a new home is the moment we enter a 10 to 25 year debt? 

I’ve met underprivileged families. Families with more than two children and that lives in small, basic rented one-room flats, because that is the best that they can afford. I am also aware of the truly impoverished and the homeless who live among us but who are hidden away from sight. 

There is always a small part of me that fears falling through the cracks to that state one day, and I am sure it is the same for the rest of the Singaporeans. 

Highly Competitive Society 

It is also because of these worries that Singaporeans are aware of the need to work hard, spend smart, and stay prudent for rainy days. It is also for this very reason that a lot of people hate Singapore—We are extremely competitive.

It is not like our parents time, where degree holders are highly sought after. Today, everyone is a degree holder, and it is one’s expertise or experience in the industry that makes one valuable to a company. Which means that it is now about aiming for excellence in school and also when we start our first job. 

Yes, nothing comes easy, but this also comes at a time where we are also being encouraged to chase our passions and turn them into our career. All of us want that, and it is definitely achievable if one works hard for it. But the truth is that most don’t get there because the need to be financially stable makes it a struggle to even find that balance between passion and profit. 

It’s also a harsh truth that in whatever we attempt, it’s a constant fight to be better than all the 3.7 million employed individuals in Singapore who can easily displace us. Because Singapore is that competitive. 

There’s many other little things that add up, and it will possibly turn this article into 50 page thesis if I were to touch on everything in detail.

On the other hand, there’s also a lot that we are thankful for. And often, it is when we come home from vacations overseas when we feel it. 

But We Also Love Singapore

We aren’t happy with our people and our leaders, but on the other hand, it speaks volumes about how much people actually care. 

In the case of the recent ‘racism saga’, a lot of emotionally-driven responses were posted across social media pages. Maybe it turned out to be a whole lot of noise, but we can take comfort in knowing that people care enough to fight for justice and awareness.  

It is idealistic, but I believe that at the end of this episode, Singaporeans hope for our society to progress towards being more racially harmonious and not just tolerating. 

We often criticise the government for their inaction on various issues from racism to 377A, but if we stopped to think about what they had done, however, we will see how they try. 

I am not pro-government and neither am I a leftist. However, I have to acknowledge that we have a government that is attentive of the issues of our nation. Not everything is ideal for everyone, but we cannot deny that we have a government that is constantly worried about the welfare of our society and always looking at ways to progress the nation.

What is sad, is if our leaders completely disregards the issues that we worry about. 

Privilege

It’s been said before, and it needs to be said again: We are privileged. 

For all the imperfections that make us hate Singapore, we are blessed with so many luxuries. 

Over the past year, I’ve spoken to many millennials who shared their stories of when they volunteered overseas: In certain parts of the world, it is normal to have no access to electricity, normal to have cockroaches crawling around in their home, and it is normal for students to skip school just so that they can walk two hours to a lake for water. 

There’s also one who told me about ladies who were catfished and lured into prostitution from a young age, and whom have to face authorities who are indifferent to their plight.  

Knowing these, we can be thankful that at least we have easy access to all the basic amenities we need, like water, food, transport, healthcare, and entertainment.

We can also be thankful that we are given largely equal opportunities, whether it is education, jobs, or the chance to build our own homes. 

It’s also encouraging to know that for all the squabbles we have over unpopular opinions, we have a relatively healthy society with equal opportunities for everyone to speak and to suggest or even execute new ideas for the good of the country and the people. 

Last but not the least; Our safety and security. Singapore is one of the safest countries in the world, and all it takes is for us to travel to any other country for us to know this better. 

Singaporean Pride

For what it’s worth, I think it doesn’t matter if we complain about Singapore all year round. And it doesn’t matter if we are hypocrites to be one-day patriots, because we, at least most of us, know that this is ultimately a place that has given us a lot for us to call it home.

The very fact that one can be wherever one is and reading this article through our phone, desktop, or tablet shows how much privilege one already has. 

Most of us are proud to be Singaporean, as much as we are ashamed or shy to admit. I know this from the way we love to see Singapore-inspired stuff overseas, and how we are more than happy to #SupportLocal. 

At the end of the day, most of us know that for all the flaws that we have as a nation, it’s a darn good country to be born in and to be living in. 

So let’s celebrate that.

Also read: Home Away From Home – Is Living In Australia Really A Match ‘Mate’ In Heaven?.

(Header Image Credit: Wikimedia Commons)

It’s 9am on a Friday. I’m usually on the bus on the way to office at this hour (even though work’s supposed to start at 9am). Today, however, I am on my way to my neighbourhood coffee shops to make some friends with the uncles and aunties there.

As an introvert, I’d avoid most situations that require me to speak to strangers (ironic, considering my job as a writer), but today, it is my goal to better understand the lives of the older folks who seem to always be at the coffee shop in the morning, for hours at a time.

What do they actually talk about? How much time do they spend there? And for the sceptic in me; do they really have nothing else to do besides drinking kopi here every day?

I walked around the first coffee shop trying to find a strategic spot to park myself so I could voyeur and eavesdrop on conversations. Like any nondescript neighbourhood coffee shop on a weekday morning, the place is sparsely populated with mostly middle-aged to pioneer generation folks.

One table is occupied by what I presume to be a family of a 2nd generation Singaporean with her toddler and her elderly mother. As I dawdled down the corridor suspiciously eyeing the occupants of all the tables, this group of about 6 aunties caught my eye. One of them, who is on a wheelchair, is accompanied by a maid.

They must have been there for quite awhile. Their almost empty cups of coffee (or tea) were already pushed towards the middle of the table, and some of the cups has coffee stains that had already started to dry up on the sides of the cup.

The tables around them are all taken, and it will be very strange for me to be idling by the side of their table when there are other empty tables around. I threw the initial plan of voyeuring out and decided to approach them instead.

“Hello! I’m a reporter,” I greeted them chirpily with the limited amount of communicable Mandarin I can manage. “Can I join you all?”

After explaining that I was there to understand more about their lives as the older generation, the aunties around the table laughed and welcomed me.

“Aiya! Our life is like that lor, what about it?” They teased, in Mandarin. As I pulled a chair up, one of them jokingly asked if I was going to treat them to a meal. I played along.

As I chatted with them, I learnt that they had all met each other at this very coffee shop. It was all those years of having their breakfast there daily that have seen them gather over time to form this ‘breakfast group’. All retired, this has become a daily routine: They meet for breakfast at 8+am every day and stay on to chat about their lives, talking about anything from the vegetables they are going to get, to catching up on the lives of their children and grandchildren. It is exactly what one would expect of a typical Singaporean auntie.

The group will then disperse by about 10am, with each of them making their rounds at the market to stock up on groceries before heading home.

One of them in the group is Mdm Kang, who’s in her sixties and is one of the most eager to share in the group. Later, she tells me that all three of her children had already married and shifted out, and ever since her husband passed away many years ago, she has been living alone in her HDB flat nearby. Despite the circumstances, she seems to me like a free-spirit.

“一个人在家会闷, 就到处乱跑 lor.”
(I’ll be bored alone at home, so I’ll venture around.)

Sometimes, she’d travel all the way to Boon Lay to visit her son. At other times, if she is able to, she’d help to look after her grandchildren.

For all of them in the group, life is pretty much similar to how Mdm Kang spend her days—they go about each day “just like that”, eating and chatting with friends, working on the never-ending list of household chores, and spending time with their family. Sometimes, they will visit the resident’s corner or community centres for light activities.

As one of the aunties puts it, once you have reached that age, you are pretty much “jiak liao bee”, a Hokkien phrase which indirectly means that they are just sitting around waiting to be fed. Since they are no longer working and are all financially stable (enough), boredom is inevitable. Ultimately, it is all about the mindset that they have.

One, Mdm Tan, whom I spoke at another coffee shop later on, shared: “If you have been working for all these years and you suddenly stop, you will go ‘crazy’ very quickly. You have to find something to do to keep [your mind stimulated].”

For Mdm Tan, singing is one activity that she has been actively engaged in at her neighbourhood RC. It was also through there that she met a couple of her long time friends today, one of whom joined us midway after her morning exercise at the park.

I got to speak with one Mdm Ea, who is the youngest of the group of 6 aunties, after the rest left to buy groceries.

In her forties, she sees the other aunties in the group as her elder sisters. A freelance property agent, she tells me how she joined this group by chance when they noticed that she is also a regular there.

“This group of aunties are very happy-go-lucky. They are very warm and it’s a very community-spirit feeling. Like, one of them, the husband just went fishing recently and she brought the fish here and gave out to all of us.”

The group has become so tight-knitted that whenever one of them doesn’t turn up for their daily breakfast, the others will be concerned.

“They will really worry that something happened to you. So now when I go overseas, I will inform them.”

She shared that the rest of them are averagely in their sixties and have children that have all grown up and leading their own lives. Most of these aunties spend their days simplistically, spending their time with their family as much as possible.

However, for Mdm Ea especially, her life does not revolve around her only son, because she cannot afford to do that.

She explains:

“Of course, ideally our children will look after us, but they got their own lives to lead also. We cannot possibly rely on them to look after us completely.”

Her wish as a parent is to continue being a part of her child’s everyday life when she’s in her golden years. However, the pressures of work in an ultra-competitive society today has made her realise that this may not be the most practical arrangement.

“It’s very difficult for the younger generation these days because both have to work. Then they have their own family to support also.”

As such, Mdm Ea has, together with her husband, started to set aside their own retirement funds. In any case, she would rather plan for her own retirement than let it become a burden for her son.

Hearing this reminded me again on how our parents’ sacrifice last for their lifetime. It starts from the moment they give birth to us all the way till they leave. They always want the best for us and would often place our interests before theirs.

At another coffee shop, I spoke to one Mdm Tan. Also in her sixties, Mdm Tan also stressed the importance of having to plan for her own future without having to be dependent on her two children.

Her son had already married and shifted out, and her daughter will be following suit next year.

A trait of a typical Asian mother is how they find it difficult to ‘let go’ of their children. After all those years that they have invested into their babies and bringing them up, it can be hard when their babies are now grown adults leading their own, private life that does not necessarily include their mother in it.

From the times Mdm Tan repeated herself about how she has learnt not to intervene in her children’s life, I inferred that perhaps, there were conflicts that she had faced with her children in their life decisions, like her daughter’s choices in housing and wedding preparations.

Then, she said something that showed that no matter what, her love for her children will never falter: “What I can do is to see them grow up, get married, form their own family, and if they ever need anything, I’m just a phone call away.”

For both Mdm Tan and Mdm Ea, their ‘job’ as parents is to bring up their children the best they can and hope that they have cultivated a good person. And as grandparents or soon-to-be grandparents, they also know that the prime of years have long passed.

While our generation are going about our lives proving ourselves at work, romancing with our partners, and mingling with our friends, these aunties and uncles spend their days, for lack of a better description, ‘just like that’.

It is places like these, the coffee shops, resident corners, community centres, places that the younger generation like us pay no attention to, that continue to be to older folks what is to us our restaurant, bars, cafes, and chill out spaces. It is where they spend a substantial number of hours each day because otherwise, what else are they supposed to do when their home is empty?

As I continued chatting with Mdm Tan, I realised how the morning has taken me from wanting to learn about the life of the older folks at the coffee shops to being a confidante for them. When I finally bade goodbye to Mdm Tan, who was the last person I spoke to at the coffee shops that day, I was relieved. It reminded me why I always avoided chatting with aunties: they have a million things to talk about and sometimes, you just don’t know what to say but nod.

But then again, one day, I’ll be like them. We all will.

Also read: 65-Year-Old Mdm Rebecca’s Life: A Look At The Reality Of Singapore’s Privilege Gap.

Her family was torn apart by a big family dispute over property. Today, 65-year-old Mdm Rebecca only has her 76-year-old cousin as family. To avoid getting embroiled in the disputes, Mdm Rebecca decided to sever all ties with her family. The last time she spoke to her only brother was more than 40 years ago. Today, she lives in a one-room rental flat in Punggol. Her 76-year-old cousin whom she cares for is bedridden and suffering from Parkinson’s and stroke among other ailments. In her heyday more than 10 years ago, Mdm Rebecca dabbled in PR, secretarial work, and was once a housing agent. However, a severe respiratory problem left her with no choice but to stop working. Life got more challenging since then. Most of her household ‘income’, which comes from her cousin and her retirement funds, as well as her cousin’s social welfare payout, is spent on her cousin’s medical necessities like medicine and bandages. Then, there’s the struggle of being unemployed and being the only caregiver to her bedridden cousin. Mdm Rebecca’s daily routine includes feeding her cousin milk through a tube seven times through the day, changing his diapers several times, giving him the medications he needs for different conditions, repositioning his body every two hours, and stretching his limbs to prevent his muscles from atrophy and shortening. She also has to monitor him throughout the day for any signs of discomfort. She would then have to use a vacuum-cleaner-like machine and a tube to manually suck the phlegm out from his lungs - a painful but critical process for her cousin that has to be done a few times a day. With the bulk of her time dedicated to caring for her cousin, what little time she has left is spent on reading and praying. A ‘vacation’ for her today is as simple as being able to go out for a meal with a friend. Even so, she has to return home within three hours to care for her cousin. Hiring a caretaker or a maid to do her job is out of the question and it isn’t just the lack of finances. Having had maids who have told her lies, stole from her, and even cursed her with black magic, she could no longer trust them. Bad experiences with nursing homes that led to the passing of her comatose mother and the close-to-death state that her cousin returned in after a 2-day respite care have also left a bad taste in her mouth. Since then, Mdm Rebecca resolved to taking care of her cousin herself.

“My mother had already suffered. I don’t want my cousin to go through the pain of what my mother had to go through.”

Attributing her strength to her religion, Mdm Rebecca emphasised on how a positive mindset helped tide her through the hardships. “Life is temporary and all these challenges are part of life. I don’t cry easily because crying doesn’t change anything. I just do my best with what I have and I pray for the best.” As I chatted with Mdm Rebecca at her doorstep while volunteers from the Young NTUC- North East CDC Project Refresh were cleaning up her unit and giving the walls a fresh coat of paint, I couldn’t help but admire her for her resilience.

Her fizzy, greyed hair and gaunt face tells of a woman who is still facing adversity, but Mdm Rebecca’s strong spirit is refreshing and humbling. She spoke about helping neighbours in need and counselling her friends and their children. Her empathy in prioritising other people’s problems above so many of her own made me feel a mix of guilt and respect.  

Having come from a relatively privileged middle-class background, I couldn't comprehend the significance of her struggles until I stepped into her home. Mdm Rebecca’s home is about as big as a typical HDB flat’s living room, with a small corner as kitchen and a toilet right beside it. The only bed in the flat is taken up by her cousin.

As such, volunteers from Project Refresh brought in a foldable mattress for her and a desk fan. Part of the project’s efforts to improve the standards of living for the underprivileged, volunteers also helped to clean the flat, paint the walls, tidy up the home, and change the flat’s light bulbs to more cost-efficient ones as part of the ‘Switch and Save - Use LED initiative’. Project Refresh’s first session in 2016 started off with just 30 volunteers covering five units. With more and more volunteers coming onboard, the Project Refresh session I was at on 18 August saw more than 350 volunteers coming together to spruce up 38 rental units. Many think that millennials are a strawberry generation of entitled and spoilt ‘kids’. That day, however, 60% of the volunteers I saw were millennials.

For 23-Year-Old Jamie*, what they do “may not change the whole world but at least we’re able to impact someone’s life directly.” As her full-time job requires her to deal with wealthy people who live in luxury and never having to worry about basic necessities, volunteering with Project Refresh and learning about the lives of underprivileged people like Mdm Rebecca is a way for her to “feel like human again.” Year 2 student at Nanyang Polytechnic (NYP), Kelvan, was another volunteer I spoke to. Kelvan and four of his NYP classmates were painting the walls of Mdm Latifah’s unit (another resident) when I chatted with them. Still recovering from an operation to treat her osteoarthritis of the knee, 56-Year-Old Mdm Latifah is living on just $210 a month from financial assistance, and food rations from a mosque. Divorced for 30 years, she brought up her only son, who was four back then, all by herself. On some days, Mdm Latifah would even go without food so she can save money.

Like many elderly and the underprivileged, loneliness is one of the many challenges for her. With no one to talk to or help her with problems, she could only cope with the struggles of a single mother without child support from the father by going for religious classes. “I have 9 siblings and my father, but I don’t want (to bother them). Everyone’s got their own problem.” Volunteering projects like Project Refresh goes beyond the physical act of cleaning up the home. It is showing the beneficiaries that there are people out there who do care for them. The interaction among the volunteers and the beneficiaries could create strong emotional bonds too. Volunteering with Project Refresh for the second time on his own accord, Kelvan decided to sign up again because of the sense of accomplishment and the appreciation he got from the family he helped the first time round. “A couple of us from the last project even went back to visit the family. The children and the parents were just so appreciative and warm. It’s back-breaking work, but I came back because it’s very heartwarming and fulfilling.”

Mdm Latifah and Mdm Rebecca are just two of the many underprivileged who live in completely different worlds that most Singaporeans will never experience. “Seeing the conditions they live in, it makes us appreciate the things we have,” Kelvan added. Growing up in a comfortable era where we got to enjoy quality education, a stable economy, and a generally more privileged lifestyle compared to our earlier generations, it is hard to dispute the fact that millennials do demand more. However, we are also a generation that wants to do more.

Volunteer with Young NTUC

As millennials, we tend to procrastinate volunteering as much as we want to give back to society. But today, there are many volunteering opportunities available. Besides Project Refresh, there is also the Young NTUC U Heart, which lets you decide your own do-good projects for low-income families, the environment, for workers, the elderly or people with disabilities, and children or youth-at-risk. So you get to dictate the kind of change you want to make! Learn more about Young NTUC’s volunteering programmes here! * Name has been changed for privacy reasons This post is written in partnership with Young NTUC. Also read: To The Generations Before Us – Trust The Millennials With Singapore’s Future.

Opinions expressed in this article are merely opinions of the writer and are not meant to be representative of Singaporeans. 

Dear Government, I love Singapore but I don't see how I can survive here when I'm in my sixties. From a tiny red dot to a thriving nation, Singapore has come a long way. I’m proud to be Singaporean and thankful for the many benefits we enjoy from safety and security to having (largely) equal opportunities and a powerful passport. The nation has built up a playground for a comfortable life, but at times I wonder if we are getting too comfortable. There’s a well-known Chinese saying, “打是疼，骂是爱,” which means to hit or scold is to love. Akin to a naggy mother’s love, Singaporeans complain a lot about our country and government only because we care enough to. We won’t bother voicing out our dissatisfactions if we were nonchalant, and nonchalance isn’t something a country want in their citizens. We hear many stories of Singaporeans migrating overseas for greener pastures, but there are as many Singaporeans who choose to stay. While the grass is always greener on the other side, we also believe in being appreciative of the good things we have here. This tiny island has been our humble abode from the day we were born and we will always see her as home. Which is why even though I am no political writer, I feel it important to speak out on behalf of fellow young Singaporean adults who are disgruntled with our government but can never quite put into words why we feel that way, or who fear treading onto this sensitive territory. Our leaders need to know that we are not complaining merely because we love to complain, but it’s the only way we know how to (and dare to) fight for a home that we can confidently say we are happy with.

We Are Worried For Singapore’s Future, Our Future

As a young Singaporean adult of a ‘lower SES’, I fear that my country is going to be too expensive to live in, to raise a family in and to retire in. Our fertility rate is at a new 7-year low and it is definitely not because there’s no space to bang or that the government isn’t trying hard enough. I am of a fertile and marriageable age but I am not contributing to Singapore’s fertility rate; and it isn’t for my lack of a partner or drive either. The conventional life goals of getting married, buying a house, and having children are milestones I eventually want to reach, but they all seem so daunting and impossible.

Singaporeans may feel emotionally ready for a baby, but we know the vulnerabilities of having a family without being financially solvent. We appreciate perks like the baby bonus and Marriage and Parenthood package but we also know that these one-time assistances aren’t sustainable for a lifetime’s investment. Then, there’s the painful truth of having to prioritise between aging parents and children because we do not have enough emotional, physical, and financial strength to support both parties on top of a housing loan. We also need to address how we don’t see our children for 9 hours a day or more because we will be slogging to save for the family’s healthcare, education, and daily necessities. The government meant well to give $700million worth of our budget surplus back to us as GST rebate. But the $700million could have been better used on reformative programs to encourage young couples to have children instead of the one-time GST rebate. After all, $100 is nothing but spare change to the rich, while $300 is only enough for bills and bare necessities for the poor. We aren’t ignorant to the fact that our decreasing birth rates will come back and haunt us. We recognise the pressing need to raise the fertility rates today. 20 years later, we could either be benefitting from a thriving work force or we could be dealing with later retirement ages and even higher taxes. I fear that the latter is more likely. We might be trapped in a vicious cycle of ever-increasing costs of living and ever-declining fertility rate, because the lesser citizens there are to share the cost of taxes, the more expensive it is for each person, which places more stress on each citizen. I want to marry and have children but I feel the pain and foresee the effects of my partner and my savings being wiped clean for a modest wedding, a 3-Room or 4-Room HDB flat, renovation, and furniture – something almost every Singaporean will go through today. Any prospect of a happy and comfortable future is marred by the six-figure sum that we have to fork out for all those. And that’s just the beginning. Housing grants and CPF do help, but with ever-increasing costs and a somewhat stagnant pay, the future looks worrisome and bleak. How am I to afford a future here?

What Retirement Life?

I look at the hunched back elderly with a head full of white hair, struggling with piles of dirty dishes at coffee shops. I notice the bony limbs, sunken cheeks, and wrinkled skin of this drink stall auntie at my neighbourhood coffee shop and how she would get tutted at for getting drink orders wrong. This elderly auntie messes up often but her sincere, apologetic voice and embarrassed expression is telling of the effort she puts into doing her job as best she could despite her frail body and poor memory. My heart aches.

I remind myself to work hard because my parents will end up like these elderly workers if I don’t provide for them. I tell myself to be prudent or I will really have to work until I die. In case it seems like I despise the old folk or their jobs, let me assure you that I respect their strength and perseverance. I’m not talking about the ones who choose to work out of the pride of self-reliance or those who work to pass time either. It is the ones living in poverty and still toiling away in their sixties or seventies that breaks my heart. Nobody should be resorting to collecting scraps or foraging through rubbish bins just to get through another day. After spending a good 30 to 50 years of their life contributing to the country, our grandmothers and grandfathers should be enjoying retirement sipping coffee, tea, or wine and doing whatever they wish. Why do we still have so many elderly living with severe financial difficulties in our country? Then, there’s always the worry of expensive healthcare. The fear of dying from an illness that one cannot afford is unspoken, but very real. So many times, I have heard of how someone’s life got flipped upside down from hefty hospital fees or from bills incurred by their aging parents. What if, fingers crossed, my parents or I have the misfortune of cancer and insurance wouldn’t cover my treatments and subsequent check-ups? Why can’t we adopt a healthcare system like France’s? Citizens are reimbursed for 70% to 100% of their medical fees and the poorest people are covered 100%. Or Finland? Patient fees are capped at a specific amount to prevent citizens from paying too much for healthcare. Nothing is free of course, and these perks are only possible because of the higher taxes citizens have to pay. So, it’s a matter of finding the right balance between being pragmatic and idealistic – do you want to have to invest more into something that will eventually support you when you need it the most, or get more financial freedom but heavier responsibilities? It is a concept that young Singaporeans understand, but we challenge it because we also know that there must be a way to find the right balance.

Rich Nation, Poor People

Singapore has close to a trillion-dollar reserves but we can't afford to have kids. We have so much money but we still have citizens who fall through the gaps of welfare aids and elderly who continue to live below the poverty line. Our nation is an extremely wealthy one. We have the money but our strict parents place ridiculously tight restrictions to the usage of this wealth, our wealth. I do not expect the government to deplete our reserves. The importance of having savings and the complications of dipping into it is not lost to me. However, as pointed out by Chris Kuan in a Facebook post, IMF’s opinion is that a 27% of our GDP or S$113 billion will be a good enough amount of reserves, and MAS' foreign exchange reserves as of Jan 2018 are already S$369b or 88% of GDP.

https://www.facebook.com/chris.kuan.94/posts/774990799357677

In other words, our reserves are more than 3 times the prudent limit. So what are we saving for? I quote NMP Kuik Shao Yin, “how much surplus is enough?” Idealism VS pragmatism, being excessively prudent VS investing in the people today: how much is enough savings before the children of our extremely wealthy family, can reap the benefits from these savings? I am well aware that there are many complexities to our laws, policies, and schemes. I understand that one action can cause a ripple effect that which will shift the economy and impact us and our livelihood. Being Singapore’s government is not easy and the decisions made thus far are backed by facts and figures. I have faith that the decisions made thus far weighed all possible options and identified the lesser evil. However, I quote NMP Ms Kuik again, "Every tilt towards the side of pragmatism is simultaneously a tilt away from the side of our ideals.” So, dear Government, "when will it ever be the right time to tilt our balance just a little more towards our ideals rather than always towards what’s pragmatic?" Can you let us continue believing that you will lead us to better days?