FORMER CIVIL SERVANT: PLEASE STOP COMPARING LHL TO LKY!

Hi allsingaporestuff team, I really do hope that this article of mine will be published.

I am those type of person to just read the news online and see comments and laugh it off without commenting or replying. But after yesterday's MRT train fault incident, and after all the articles and comments I read online, I really felt the need to write this.

A little bit about myself,

I worked in the govt sector for 2 years in the past, shift hours, you may narrow down to a few sectors working shift hours. I left the previous job, because of the tiring shift hours, most importantly, because of the complaints and demands from the public.The public here, i refer to the handful of Singaporeans and PRs out there, foreigners, a few.

Pay and benefits were relatively better than average, I won't say its bad, but i won't say its good either, because I have friends in private whose payout and overall package are much more attractive. I am really proud of myself for having a job in the govt sector in the past, it made me proud and my family, at least. I am a girl in my twenties. I had always thought that "govt job is easy and the pay was good", as said by most of us. Only till i enter the workforce, then i realise how wrong i was, and it was the start of my nightmare.

Shift work is tiring, especially night shift, its gruesome and madness. Besides having to cope with your heavy eyelids, you need to cope with the demands from the public, and the public, really, can complain on anything, and i really mean anything! A handful of Singaporeans, think that it is given that we serve them like kings and queens. During those days, me and my colleagues, we really appreciate it a lot when some Singaporeans give us a smile, a thank you, or just saying " its ok, i understand " . its so hard to come across those, but its easy to meet those who just come right up to our face and scold us.

I recalled my supervisor telling me "because you are in govt job, you must always try to understand the public", yes i understand this, tax payers money that we are earning, but, sorry, even if you pay us, we are not oblige to serve you 24/7 only, and we do not need to hear all those vulgarities coming for you. Being unable to cope with the tiring hours and all the scoldings from public, I would sometimes cry alone in the toilet, you may call me as weak, but I was really stressed out. Soon after, when the bond ended, I left and joined a private MNC, never looking back, I am actually thankful for the previous job, allowing me to realise and know things that i would never have known or experience otherwise.

Back to the MRT incident, I think that complaints are good, it helps one to know where had gone wrong, and to strive to do better. However, a complaint will turn bad with the use vulgarities. Below every article, in the comment section, there are bound to be some people out there, complaining about the govt, oh wait, I dint say that complaining isn't good. But pinpointing a person isn't good. "PM LHL XXXX XXXX XXX", "YOU ARENT LIKE YOUR FATHER", "SG IS GONNA FALL" all these comments of cursing and swearing, are really unforgivable, and actually to be honest, I actually feel sad for our PM.

Yes, MR LKY did bring Singapore to where it is now, a world class stage, a world class country. And we the citizens, are also considered as world-class citizens, but, do we have a world-class heart? A forgiving and understandable heart? No, many of the comments, show the ugly side of Singaporeans, unforgiving and disgusting. PM LHL, is after all only a normal human being, there are also things that is not within his means, there are also times when he needs a rest, there are also time when he break down. Because he is a leader of Singapore, there are many sides that he can't show the public, all he can show was his confidence and to be able to live up to the promise he made to Singaporeans.

Comparing PM LHL and MR LKY is really alright, but it should not be used as an insult, and it should not be used at a time when situations are bad enough. We should really see PM LHL as our PM, and to work together with him, as building a country is not solely the job of the govt, but also the citizens. But all i see are people complaining and directing their insults to PM LHL, complaining that he is not as good as his father etc.. OUCH! Some comments you see online are really over broad. And to remind all of us, his father, Singapore's founding father, just passed away not long ago. Before PM LHL had enough time to grieve over him, he had to face all the demands, complaints, cursing and swearing from the public.

Before, when i joined the queue to Istana to pay MR LKY respects , I saw many kindness in people, I saw Singaporeans going in one direction, one voice, one heart. Deep inside me, I was deeply touched and moved, I felt so bonded and a sense of belonging to Singapore.

But after this MRT incident, I again, saw many ugly side of human?

Sure, I do complain too,about this and that and everything, but I urged those handful of people out there, to not do personal attacks, everyone have their own stories and struggles that you do not know of. Even PM LHL.

I felt that we are all living too comfortably in Singapore that we are complacent, and took everything for granted. Trains cannot have faults, bus cannot have air cons etc.. Everything, we blamed the govt, but did we calm down and not let our anger get the better of us? Who gave us the safe surroundings and streets?

In other countries, where their govt earn more than SG govt, citizens even had to worry for their safety on the streets, or even worry for food, not to even mention transport. Because we, here in Singapore, we had everything, iPhone, iPad, high technology softwares, machines, and we took it for granted, as time goes, we all think that its a given, if things goes wrong, we blame everyone.

The aim of all these writings is not to say to not complain, but to stop blaming one person to that very extent thats its ugly. PM LHL is LHL alone, why do people always want him to walk in his father's shadow? Yes no doubt MR LKY is great, but if all we ever did was to compare, we will not be onward going, but backwards. What we can do as Singaporeans is to learn to trust PM LHL, and not to complain and complain. After all, he is someone's husband, someone's father. If he is your father or relative, can you really tolerate all the hurting insults directed to him? We should really appreciate the present and work together as one Singapore.

Remember the news when hongkongers protested and burned flags with MR LKY 's and PM LHL 's faces? I really felt angry and sad. As we so non threatening to them that they can burn our govt flags? If we, Singaporeans don't even support our own govt, how will other countries' people look at us?

Also, my dad was a taxi driver, whenever I hear or saw those bad comments online about taxi drivers, I feel sad for my dad, because in my memory, my dad was a loving and caring dad, one with loyalty, righteousness and integrity. He too, for many times, blamed the govt for this and that, but at last he always say, "You are lucky to be born in Singapore". And for your info, my dad, passed away 1 month before my 21st birthday. But i still do look upon him, for I am lucky to be under his teachings, to "give thanks, be contented and appreciated what you have".

I urged that the handful of Singaporeans who are still typing hurtful comments to people to stop and reflect, what we have now, did we take it for granted, did it come by too easily for us? That whenever something happens, insults and vulgarities start to fly all over the place. When you are at your comfort zone typing those cursing and swearing comments, some people in other countries are still worrying about their dinner, worrying about where are they gonna sleep tonight. Many people in other countries, don't even have the chance to complain.

Singapore, as many said, is a world class country, on a world class stage, and I believed that many, like me, would want to live in a place with world-class citizens with a world-class heart.