11/25/2007
Another sacrifice that we have to make for economic progress in Singapore...
My Dad just came home. He was fishing around Kallang river when some dudes from PUB came on speedboats to stop him, as well as many other uncles fishing along the same river. They were told to pack up and leave, if not they risk having their IC numbers taken down and fined, and last resort, it will involve the local police.
Basically what is happening is that the river water is going to converted to a freshwater area, due to the redevelopment plan at Marina Bay. They are going to build a dam, connecting the area around Esplanade to Marina Bay. And the water within that area is somehow connected to that river, therefore the entire stretch of river will be affected. Not only will there not be big catch, fisherman will not be allowed to fish there right in the first place (since it was percieved that fisherman dirty the river water... =S)
I'm not saying that economic progress is no good... Seriously speaking we owe our materialistically comfortable lifes to our governance... It is arguably - our choice, thanks to the Representative Democracy in practice over here, you choose the group/person that best represents your interest.
Fishing is my Dad's only form of leisure. He spends the bulk of his time serving distinguished guests in the hotel restaurant he's working in... and once he comes back home... he cooks... deal his daily finance calculations... complaining about the electrical and water bills... before he watches the television until he falls asleep. He's doing every bit for the family and leaving little for himself. I used to recall going on fishing trips with him, as a weekly family activity. However, as time past and we got ever-increasingly busier... it became his solitary activity. Nevertheless he still enjoys it, sharing with us his big catch for the week (if any).
No doubt that losing 1 leisure activity is arguably not very significant... how can it be positioned as of equal importance as the nation's interest when it comes to economic progress...? However, this endless pursuit of economic excellence, endless discourse about the fear of how we are going to survive in the future in face of worldwide competition... is tiring...
Students study increasingly demanding syllabus... (recalling the recent commotion about the PSLE Maths Exams...). Adults work longer hours only to realise they have shorter hours for healthy leisure and social activities. Getting caught in the rat race. Leisure and social activities is inevitably tied to commercial interest (like where can we now find activities that don't require you to spend money? there's not even fishing now...) Christmas, Valentines, New Year... is all tied to commercial interest. Family and finance planning for the future is becoming increasingly scary... I don't even dare to think getting married, buying a house, having kids, supporting their education. No wonder the Straits-Times survey about a month ago revealed that Singaporeans are the most pessimistic bunch.
Surprisingly I complained a lot today... Anyway I'm going to join the Complaint Choir of Singapore. My boyfriend asked me a very good question: so what if you guys complain through a song - will anything happen or everything just goes on as usual. Honestly I don't know... in a nation where strikes are banned due to economic interest, I guess that's probably the only way you can openly voice out your complaints in a less active, more symbolic manner.
No wonder I choose to be politically apathetic most of the time...
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2:59 PM
