Growing up in the 1980s, there were many things to be proud of Singapore. The place was orderly, with efficient clean public transport, well paved roads, manageable crime rate and racial harmony. 20 years later, a lot of the things we used to feel proud when compared with our neighbouring countries are starting to make life uncomfortable in Singapore.
We grew up chagrined by images of gridlock in Bangkok, and while Bangkok continues to be gridlocked, I definitely see an improvement in the traffic situation since they built their city rail transport, perhaps inspired by Singapore’s MRT system. And as our economy grows and the government allows more to fulfil their dreams of owning a car, the rush hour traffic gets worse. We used to be able to say “its just the CTE at the Braddell road exit”, but nowadays, a lot of the other expressways are slowing to a crawl, ERP or no ERP. I dread to go to town on the weekends, I have not done so in ages. Driving or taking the bus means getting stuck in traffic for at least half an hour between Suntec City and Orchard Road. While the trains are on time, they are overcrowded. Hopefully, a motorcycle will help in this situation.
The efficiency of buses is one problem that has always been there, but when the bus system goes private, and the private companies post yearly record earnings, one starts to wonder why. The bus companies continually ask for price increase, while pulling unprofitable routes, all these while stealthily reducing the bus frequencies.
The MRT system was built in its heydays as a prestige project as opposed to a transport necessity. It featured expensive modern stations while what we really need now is more frequent and basic stations. Look at the London Underground and Paris Metro, most of the suburban stations are simple concrete platforms with minimal or no staff, but their station frequency is close and the network is wide, the walk to the nearest station is always manageable. Try walking from one MRT station to another on a daily basis. Of course, Singapore will never be able to build any basic structure, everything needs to be an architectural icon. The transport operators need to get their act together before anyone can be convinced to give up their cars.
We used to complain about potholes on the roads in Malaysia, and privately feeling quite lucky that our government only needs to maintain a shorter stretch of roads. With increased road usage, the roads have deteriorated. I remember that in the past, when roads were repaired, long stretches of it was repaved at the same time. With growth of the economy, the roads have been repeatedly ripped up to install new cables and pipes, however, these are done in such uncoordinated manner that you can see the same stretch of roads ripped up repeatedly over a short period of time. And when they are patched up, only a small area is repaved, usually uneven to the road surface, so instead of potholes, we have speed bumps that sprout out everywhere, endangering motorcyclists and cyclists.
Low crime does not mean no crime, the police reminds us. But I cannot help but feel that crime has increased since the 1990s, especially against the elderly. Born and bred Singaporeans have a lot to lose, we have a comfortable life and a steady income and for the most part, crime does not pay. With the influx of low wage foreigners, we suddenly have a large group of individuals who may have less to lose, where crime might actually pay. They also have half a mind on their escape route, back to their large home countries where the arm of the law is not as long.
I will not park my bicycle out on the pavement, too many cases of bicycle thefts have occurred, with the police so helpless about that they give replies like, “why are you reporting this to the Police?” The standard answer on the local motorcycle forum to lost bikes is also similar, “good luck finding your bike, but I doubt it will be found.” You cannot blame them completely, but that reply is just indicative that such petty crimes against the underclasses are no longer on their list of worthwhile jobs to do.
We can be proud to wave our racial harmony flag to the world outside. The 1960s racial riots were still fresh in the minds of our parents, and while derogative names, stereotyping and suspicions remain, at least there is harmony. As more foreigners, even of the same racial roots as us, start to appear on our shores, I believe that the spectre of racial problems might resurface. Some of it are global issues, such as the so-called War on Terrorism and the Israeli-Palestinian which have ripples throughout the world. Others are quite clearly cultural, Singaporean Chinese versus Mainland Chinese, Singaporean Tamils versus Indian Indians. The government have kept a lid on the large groups of foreign workers that throng certain parts of Singapore on weekends, and lets hope it stays that way.
Not too long ago, we pointed our fingers when terrorists captives have managed to escape from Filipino and Indonesian custody. Their lowly paid guards are so easily bribed. Their Police force is infiltrated by terrorists and sympathisers. Look where we are now. I think Singapore will have to go to the next regional security conference a little more humble and a lot more understanding. Were our guards bribed and our forces infiltrated or was it plain old incompetence? Only time will tell. Mas Selamat was caught once, and hopefully he will be caught again.
Yes, I am complaining about the state of Singapore, but I have a right to be complaining. I served my National Service, and I pay my taxes, the government and civil servants work for me, not exclusively but still. I have had to defend Singapore verbally on occasion while overseas, and one of the last line of defence is this. The only government a person has a right to complain about is his own, no one else has a right to complain about the Singapore government. Likewise, Singaporean should keep that in mind before they complain about neighbouring countries and their governments. For all of Dr. Mahathir’s faults, he was good for one thing: keeping PAS out of power. And all the internal bickering in Indonesia has kept its growth in check, and given Singapore the breathing room to surge ahead.
Singapore is not some tropical island west of Los Angeles, north of Perth and southeast of London, its in the middle of South East Asia, and its beginning to look the part again, after 40 years. Welcome back, Singapore.
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