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Have we taken “self-reliance” a bit too far, PM Lee?
I want to clarify that I am not asking for the government to provide quantitative social welfare benefits, at the expense of economic growth. What I hope is that we can look at Singaporeans, not only as economic nodes of production, but also as humans in our own right. Our government has stated time and again, people are the main and strongest resource of Singapore. However, how do we understand people as resources? It is not enough just to equip us with “good jobs and (to) own (our homes)”. Allow us to grow emotionally and psychologically, enable us to manage ourselves. When we give lower wage workers a low wage, what are we saying to them – You fulfil an economic role of little significance towards the economy and we do not value you as a human, thus we pay you what you deserve, a human of little value. But is this right? When Singaporeans complain, they get angry and perpetuate this anger. Is this what we want? The drive for self-preservation creates an anger that can motivate us towards being steadfastly focused on increasing economic growth, but at what expense?
PM Lee said, “only when citizens accept the political system as legitimate, and economic order as fair, will they give the Government the mandate to run Singapore in their best interests. And only with this mandate can the Government do the best for Singapore and all of us.” But it works both ways. What if Singaporeans do not think you are working for our best interests? What if our best interests is not the same as the government defines it? What if, after 46 years of independence, our best interests have changed? It does not mean we take, what the government has done over the years to bring us here, for granted. It means that we have shared in the progress with the government and we hope that our government will keep progressing with us.
Singaporeans are unhappy. Why? On the surface, it might seem that we are unhappy because of rising costs, incomes that have not kept up with inflation and higher housing costs. These are real issues – and the verdict is out as to whether the government is responding quickly and adequately. What is not so obvious is that Singaporeans could be unhappy because we feel that our basic rights as humans are undermined. I want to live, I want to be human. I want to be happy, not by having lots of money but knowing at the end of the day, I have done something that gives me a genuine sense of achievement.
For this to happen, Singaporeans should no longer treated just as economic nodes of production. Trust us to be passionate about issues and allow us to speak up without fear or favour. Trust that even with this passion, Singapore will not derail from economic growth because we strongly believe in what we do, that ultimately, we want the country to grow. Trust and work together with us to make Singapore truly our home. If you fear we cannot critique intelligently, teach us. Only by working together with your fellow Singaporeans will we believe the mandate given to you is one that is of our best interests.
- http://theonlinecitizen.com/2012/06/thoughts-on-pm-lees-speech-to-the-economic-society/
I want to clarify that I am not asking for the government to provide quantitative social welfare benefits, at the expense of economic growth. What I hope is that we can look at Singaporeans, not only as economic nodes of production, but also as humans in our own right. Our government has stated time and again, people are the main and strongest resource of Singapore. However, how do we understand people as resources? It is not enough just to equip us with “good jobs and (to) own (our homes)”. Allow us to grow emotionally and psychologically, enable us to manage ourselves. When we give lower wage workers a low wage, what are we saying to them – You fulfil an economic role of little significance towards the economy and we do not value you as a human, thus we pay you what you deserve, a human of little value. But is this right? When Singaporeans complain, they get angry and perpetuate this anger. Is this what we want? The drive for self-preservation creates an anger that can motivate us towards being steadfastly focused on increasing economic growth, but at what expense?
PM Lee said, “only when citizens accept the political system as legitimate, and economic order as fair, will they give the Government the mandate to run Singapore in their best interests. And only with this mandate can the Government do the best for Singapore and all of us.” But it works both ways. What if Singaporeans do not think you are working for our best interests? What if our best interests is not the same as the government defines it? What if, after 46 years of independence, our best interests have changed? It does not mean we take, what the government has done over the years to bring us here, for granted. It means that we have shared in the progress with the government and we hope that our government will keep progressing with us.
Singaporeans are unhappy. Why? On the surface, it might seem that we are unhappy because of rising costs, incomes that have not kept up with inflation and higher housing costs. These are real issues – and the verdict is out as to whether the government is responding quickly and adequately. What is not so obvious is that Singaporeans could be unhappy because we feel that our basic rights as humans are undermined. I want to live, I want to be human. I want to be happy, not by having lots of money but knowing at the end of the day, I have done something that gives me a genuine sense of achievement.
For this to happen, Singaporeans should no longer treated just as economic nodes of production. Trust us to be passionate about issues and allow us to speak up without fear or favour. Trust that even with this passion, Singapore will not derail from economic growth because we strongly believe in what we do, that ultimately, we want the country to grow. Trust and work together with us to make Singapore truly our home. If you fear we cannot critique intelligently, teach us. Only by working together with your fellow Singaporeans will we believe the mandate given to you is one that is of our best interests.
- http://theonlinecitizen.com/2012/06/thoughts-on-pm-lees-speech-to-the-economic-society/
