Personal Opinion of a Malaysian Columnist About Singapore

[2BDriver]

http://www.themalaymailonline.com/opinion/alwyn-lau/article/my-year-in-singapore

This is the personal opinion of the columnist.

Alwyn is enduring a doctorate in Political Philosophy.

His day job involves making teaching less painful. He also torments Sociology students on occasion. He blogs at wyngman.blogspot.com.

MARCH 30 -- It was a dream job. 2001. I joined a banking project in Singapore.

One time I was on this flight, there was this anorexically challenged guy bragging about his job in Kiasu-land... someone (stupidly) asked him in what currency he was paid, he answered so loudly even the Changi control tower could have heard it, “I’M PAID IN SING DOLLARS!”

Wow. The almighty SGD. That elixir of life every KL exec hopes to drink from. That potion of success which Malaysians can’t wait to “quietly” inform their peers of. It’s like a Rolex which causes us to, uh, roll up our sleeves and wave our hands more often?

Anyway, so there I was. A year in Singapore. About 50 weeks longer than the usual fortnightly vacations I’d take to see my cousins there when I was younger. There are many things a Malaysian would greet with relief across the Causeway, and I was no exception. I mean, where do I start?

No more policemen hiding under flyovers (Singapore police, so I heard, also “hide” but it’s WAY more clandestine and sexy than the way “Bersih, Cekap & Amanah” does it). No more train or bus queues which stretch to the moon and back. No more roads and corridors with rotten food strewn all over, barely a few feet from the trash cans.

No more chewing gum and cigarette smoke. No more waits at government departments during which one could do a Masters degree. No more traffic jams because no need to drive; indeed, no need to even think about buying a car as the very phrase “Certificate of Entitlemeent” is liable to cause brain damage.

Voice as symptom

So yeah. Nice.

But then there were some “anomalies.” I noticed that practically everyone I was dealing with at work… was Malaysian.

I noticed that very few people exhibited the natural kind of relaxation (or even joy) one “feels” in Kuala Lumpur, Bangkok, Hanoi, etc. As in, most folks in Singapore appear to be either rushing somewhere or stressed out about something. Why? (Seriously—why?)

I also noticed that if shopping in KL was rated 4-star, then in Singapore shopping was a bleedin’super-NOVA. Orchard Road makes Jalan Bukit Bintang look like an alleyway in Batang Berjuntai.

Also, the “voice” coming from the Singapore MRT trains, the one which announces the next station, sounds like a dude who just crawled across the Sahara with a knife stuck in his back and with barely a drop of water left in his larynx.

Dhoby Ghaut sounds like “dubbigot” with the volume turned down and the spirit turned lower. This phenomenon echoed the fact that Singaporeans are (officially?) among the most unhappy people on the planet.

Compare this to our Malaysian trains. The way the LRT voice says Kelana JAYA!! it’s like the girl hit a SPM home-run of 14 As and Khairy Jamaluddin just proposed to her… all in the same day. Damn, after hearing that kind of announcement I tell myself I have to get off at this stop.

Another problem. To be fair this isn’t entirely a Singaporean thing; it’s really more a Chinese thing, IMO: the crazy late nights. The company I joined had this paradoxical habit, not at all helped by the project being based in what’s affectionately known as Kiasu-land: Everbody knew that if you want to be in the bosses’ good books, you can’t leave a MINUTE earlier than 8pm. People who leave before 6pm have to cover their faces like convicts.

It didn’t matter whether you did any work at all between 9am and 5pm; in fact, it would beirrational to slog from the morning because you’d be too tired to carry on till 8pm. The nett result? You had dozens of (relatively well-paid) executives “taking it easy” in the morning and afternoon, only to raise their game between 5pm and 8pm. Why? Because this made them look great for appraisal purposes.

Sure, the projects were still on time. Sure, people were still working. Sure, the money was still coming in. But “beneath” it all was a lie; the efficiency was supported by mass deception and feigning. And stress was unnecessarily high with relationship-time, obviously, being unhelpfully low (everyone left after 8pm, remember?).

Was this attitude symptomatic of the island-state? Things look great, clean and prosperous on the outside but people keep mum about certain strange things?

It’s all great until it’s not

Of course we know what else happened in 2001. I was at Morton’s when the first plane hit. And I was sitting in my Toa Payoh condo staring in disbelief as both the towers came crashing down.

9/11. An act of war, literally, out of the blue. The very thought that any nation would bomb the heart of American capitalism was – until that fateful day - funny. Given the US’ military invincibility, its geographical distance from Europe and the Mid-East, was it impossible for a mega-structure like the Twin Towers to be taken down within a few hours?

I think there’s a lesson here for Singapore. Lee Kuan Yew’s methods and policies have brought wealth, resilience and stature to the island-state. Education-wise, Singaporeans are in a league of their own. As a financial hub? Heck, it’s playing a different sport from the rest of ASEAN.

So everything’s okay – until they’re not okay. It’s like, the United States is safe – until two airplanes get hijacked and used as missiles.

Despite an internationally enviable GDP, Singaporeans are by and large still gloomy. I don’t care so much for “happiness” but if we lack joy (not the same thing) then things can’t be that good. In a twisted way, perhaps the island-state’s greatest strength is also its biggest risk. Lee Kuan Yew’s proudest legacy may also mirror his most hazardous one : An obsessive drive for success, both political and economic.

I left the island in December 2001. I don’t regret working there but I don’t regret leaving either. In a sense, I’m thankful that my year in Singapore taught me much.

One of the best lessons is one I’ve had to relearn over and over again: We can succeed, make money, be respected – but at what price?

And most critically, when will the bill arrive?

[Mockngbrd]

jin glooomy?

[Pocus]

I agree that to be fair, not everyone can take our pace.

 

I had a few malaysian friends who commented the same during their stay here.

 

But for us, we were so conditioned to the pace since young that it's seems normal for us.

 

For me, when I studied overseas, the pace was dramatically reduced that I felt things over there are inefficient and people are lazy.

 

I had a friend who stayed on after graduation to live and work. He had been there for almost a decade. When he decided to call it quits, he packed up and return to SG. But upon his return he was so cultureshocked by the pace and culture here that he went back within a year.

 

He eventually found his girl and got married there. He said he will not be back for a long time.

Edited March 30, 2015 by Pocus

[Macrosszero]

He is entitled to his opinion and talking about Singapore from north of the Causeway, just like we talk about Malaysia from south of the Causeway.

 

What he saw was the cost and psyche of the Singapore that has become the envy of the region and some parts of the rest of the world. In many respects, the observation is accurate. But you don't get omelettes without breaking eggs - if Singaporeans aren't getting results despite putting in the long hours, quick walking and rushing around, while Malaysians are, with their relek-dek demeanour, then something is wrong somewhere.

 

He is merely justifying his choice why he prefers Malaysia to Singapore, and I respect that. Of course it will get airtime on a Malaysian newspaper...

 

Its kind of like a kid who scored B3 for an exam, saying that the kid who scored A1 has good grades but has no life outside of studying.

[Mockngbrd]

jb xmms like my pace

[2BDriver]

I agree that to be fair, not everyone can take our pace.

 

I had a few malaysian friends who commented the same during their stay here.

 

But for us, we were so conditioned to the pace since young that it's seems normal for us.

 

For me, when I studied overseas, the pace was dramatically reduced that I felt things over there are inefficient and people are lazy.

 

I had a friend who stayed on after graduation to live and work. He had been there for almost a decade. When he decided to call it quits, he packed up and return to SG. But upon his return he was so cultureshocked by the pace and culture here that he went back within a year.

 

He eventually found his girl and got married there. He said he will not be back for a long time.

I spent 6 years working in Japan Tokyo, operating business 6 years in China Suzhou and 3 years in East Malaysia Sarawak Kuching/Matang, my hardship experienced are all different compared with one another, but it is definitely very much easier being in Singapore then overseas to meet ends meet.

[2BDriver]

jb xmms like my pace

JB XMM's like you to paste them with these

[Celicar]

To remember what LKY says, it is because we are not like other countries (in this case MY), our circumstances require us to punch above our weight class, and that is a collective effort. And mind you, this is not just about the people now, it is about the future of our next generation.

[2BDriver]

To remember what LKY says, it is because we are not like other countries (in this case MY), our circumstances require us to punch above our weight class, and that is a collective effort. And mind you, this is not just about the people now, it is about the future of our next generation.

Yesterday driving her back student hostel, I heard my daughter weeping stressful of her U studies, I just pacify her that me and her mum will accept her "best" without any degree or honour later graduation.

Mind you, her long hours of studying in the room worried me a lot, our education standards is on par in the world.

[Mcscot]

To each his own!

 

We don't have to bother with opinions from north! The lack of representation from our neighbours is very telling of our fraught relationship or rather the lack of relationship!

 

At the end of the day, we need to be happy what we have. I read an article published in the New York Times (?) about an Indian expat living in Singapore.

 

She was accompanying her husband here and stayed here for approx 10 years before moving to USA. In her opinion, she reported that living in Singapore during that period of time was the most "free" she has ever had in her life! She claims to have been "drunk" in a taxi and yet arrived safely at her destination and not worrying about her daughter when she returns home late etc etc.

 

Everyone has their prerogatives in their life which they hold dear ... some maybe freedom of speech ... some maybe the Second Amendment The Right to Bear Arms but for me and a lot of my comrades ... is the ability to sleep soundly at night having forgotten to lock our front door or drive down Orchard Road stuck in traffic without having to fear someone riding a bike smashing my car window to steal the wife's bag or even buying submarines which cannot dive (https://www.defencetalk.com/malaysia-first-submarine-unable-to-dive-24168/)

 

Yesterday we mourn the end of an era. Today we fight to establish our new legacy.

 

(PS - Sorry for the rant but still raw from last week)

[Evillusion]

jb xmms like my pace

must be fast....😂😂😂😂!

[Wt_know]

so, si mi tai ji ... another amos but this time much older than 17 years old ... lol?

Edited March 30, 2015 by Wt_know

[2BDriver]

so, si mi tai ji ... another amos but this time much older than 17 years old ... lol?

This one is a much older, he calls..... Alwyn Lau...."LANG"

[Evillusion]

This one is a much older, he calls..... Alwyn Lau...."LANG"

wah lau.....! Not many can take the heat in our red dot.......but its kinda true lar.....we worked like there is a ghost after us....run here run there.....we are so kiasu that we become kiasi!

[Jamesc]

The truest form of democracy

 

is people voting with their feet.

 

How many of us work in Malaysia

 

and how of them come here to work.

 

[Joseph22]

Propaganda lah. Every country also have. Why u all cannot see thru Malaysia one.

[Jamesc]

I wonder what Mr Lau has to say

 

about a Malaysian minister saying

 

Don't buy from Chinese and boycott

 

Chinese companies. I bet the Malay Mail

 

will not be featuring an article from Mr Lau

 

about this topic.

 

[Jamesc]

Will Mr Lau be writing an insightful piece

 

on being a second class citizen in his own country?

 

I for one will be looking forwards to reading

 

what he has to say.