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Hallo everyone |
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The recent
Huang Na incident in which an 8-year-old girl from China was found
murdered has put Singaporeans in the spotlight again. This time, the attention
is not so much on Singaporeans' sympathy piled on the dead girl's family, but
rather, on Singaporeans' craze for lottery. |
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Thousands of people turned up at Huang Na's wake,
presumably to offer their condolences to the family of the dead girl. But, the
newspapers have it that many went there to look for lottery numbers on
anything found at the wake that had numbers on it or could be related to
numbers. |
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And, as if to justify the actions of such people,
the newspapers reported that some of these numbers came out in the recent 4-D
draws and people won money as a result. |
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This, of course, fuelled attention in Huang Na's
funeral. More than a thousand Singaporeans turned up for her funeral and a
report has it that the priest attending to the funeral rites had to stop many
from offering incense as the situation was getting out of control. |
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Just imagine - all these things happened though we
do not have a casino in our midst. So why blame a casino for the excesses of
Singaporeans? Even without a casino, Singaporeans are already ugly for all
sorts of reasons. Remember the
Everitt Road saga, and the takeaways at corporate shareholders' meetings? |
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We should not pile blame on the casino proposal
for Singapore. Rather, we should look at the proposal objectively. |
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Much has been said about the casino proposal in
the newspaper
forums, as well as on the Government
feedback Web site. It has been reported that opinion is almost evenly
divided on this matter. |
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There is no need for me to revisit those comments
already voiced out in the forums. Let me offer another perspective. |
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I am already in my late forties. I have seen
Singapore in its best times. I have been fortunate to have been born in the
post-riots era so I missed out on Singapore's worst times. |
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I would say Singapore experienced its best years
in the early 1980's. I would also say the good years peaked in 1984.
Singaporeans will agree with me on this. We had many expatriates here then - a
sign of the good times. I think we went downhill after that. I also think we
won't have such good times again. But, that doesn't mean that we can't have
good times again. |
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I would say good times will come around again if
we have a casino in Singapore. But, it's not because we can party at the
casino till we go broke. Rather, it's because a casino will help bring in much
needed revenue both for the Government and us people. |
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The Government gains through taxes. We gain
through the money that comes in at the sidelines - through increased spending
in our shops and restaurants which translates into more job openings, and
consequently, more money for the family. |
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We need not worry about the crimes that go hand in
hand with casinos. Our police have been doing a good job maintaining security
in our streets. In fact, we have an international reputation for clean and
safe streets. Surely, we can't be thinking that our police will be any less
effective in combating crime if a casino opens here! |
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I am offering serious thought on the casino
proposal because I am afraid that if we do not have a casino, we may not be
able to draw in sufficient income into Singapore to bring in the good times
again. |
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If the good times do not return, I am afraid that
more Singaporeans may think of emigrating with their families to start a new
life elsewhere. Though this may not occur in the near future, there is a
distinct possibility that it may occur within the next ten or twenty years.
These able Singaporeans have no second thoughts about setting up home
elsewhere - their personal well-being comes first on their minds. |
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In case you haven't been noticing, our younger
workers are generally less enthusiastic about their jobs. They have no qualms
about switching to less demanding jobs. It is sad to note this, but in
bringing about such high standards of living, the Government has inadvertently
created what I would call the soft-Singaporean mentality which has already
infected our younger generation, particularly those in their early 30's or
younger. |
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My fear is that these younger Singaporeans will
not think twice about emigrating to another country, thus creating a
Singaporean diaspora. |
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Do we need to wait till such a situation occurs in
our midst before taking action? I say no! Our Government is known for its
pragmatism. It has been its pragmatism that has brought us thus far. We may
not like the way the Government puts things in our face, but we can't deny we
have prospered as a result. |
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Again, the Government is putting the integrated
resort, of which a casino is a part of, in our face. Because we are used to
the Government planning ahead for us and know it has already worked out the
mathematics behind such a proposal before letting us know of it, we can't deny
it's for our good. |
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The casino proposal is not new to Singaporeans.
Over the years, as the Government realised that Singapore was finding it
increasingly difficult to keep growth rates up there, it had been considering
the casino proposal. |
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In the words of Prime Minister Lee, "We've
said, 'No' to the casino for a very long time.
I've said 'No' to the
casino for a very long time.
In 1985, we had a recession. I remember the late Mr Teh Cheang Wan
wanted the casino, argued for it. We said,
'No'.
We didn't proceed.
This time round, we had the ERC
(Economic Review Committee). The Subcommittee has put up the
proposal for a casino.
On the ERC, I said, 'No', a
majority of the members said,
'No'.
We didn't recommend it.
But the subject didn't die and we have to reconsider because the argument
comes up, the situation changes." |
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Yes, indeed, the situation has changed. And Prime
Minister Lee, no doubt, has access to information that the ordinary
Singaporean doesn't have. That PM Lee, who previously didn't support the
proposal, has laid the proposal on the table for Singaporeans to
take a look at it again shows the gravity of the situation. |
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We need to decide. The situation has changed. PM
Lee was a nay-sayer to the idea of having a casino here, but he has relented
and let us decide. Those among us who have previously said 'no' should think
again. |
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It's not a case of doing what the Government wants
us to do. Rather, it's a case of deciding in favour of Singapore's continued
prosperity and preventing a Singaporean diaspora from taking place sometime in
the future. |
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I repeat - it was pragmatism that has led us thus
far, and it will be pragmatism that will lead us safely into the future. In
the end, we must ask ourselves whether we are pro-Singapore or just plain
complaining. |
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Have a good week! |
Monday with the Editor: A casino for Singapore? Why Not?
