Zack (not his real name) works for an organization that
collaborates closely with a Singapore government ministry on a
project basis. He is passionate about bringing changes to the land
he calls his country and home. He works tirelessly in his own
capacity to help bring about changes that he hopes will one day
benefit future generations. He does not like to talk about his
contributions, but rather lets his feet do the talking.
Dr James Gomez pointed out in a public forum entitled:”Youth
in Politics: Southeast Asia and Singapore” a
trend that alleges a huge degree of political apathy amongst our
youths. Gomez attributed this to our historical past, alluding to
the Hock Lee bus riots that saw the participation of
politically-active chinese middle schools and Nanyang University
students. It isn’t wrong to say that the youth of today are the
agents of change for tomorrow, but unfortunately, the conditions in
Singapore currently do not have the fertile soil to sow the seeds
of youth participation to bear the fruits of change for
tomorrow.
I elect to focus the angle of my argument on the unfavorable
dates in which the elections are held, which deter our youths’
participation in the events leading up to Polling Day.
For the 2001 General Elections, the
Nomination Day was on 25 October and the actual Polling Day was on
3 November and for the 2006 General Elections, the Nomination Day
was on 27 April and the actual Polling Day was on 6
May.
In terms of schooling calender, the months of April to May and
October to November are the most unfavorable. During that period,
students will be busy revising for their examinations. During the
2006 General Elections, the final examinations for my university
modules lasted until 3-4 days before Polling Day. As much as I
wanted to attend an election rally, I ended up being bogged down by
the heavy content of my modules. After my last paper, my professor
came up to me and asked how was the paper. My cynical reply was
that his paper was okay, but the date was problematic – it was
agonizing close to the elections. The professor fell silent and
gave me a wry smile. I must admit that I was quite cynical of the
political development process in Singapore, and I considered myself
among those youths who wanted to migrate. However, I had the good
fortune of attending the final Workers’ Party rally at Serangoon
stadium. It was a jam-packed atmosphere, but my outlook totally
changed when Mr Low Thia Khiang led our national pledge. The icing
on the cake was the “Ole, Ole, Ole!” chants that revived my
childhood memories of the camaraderie amongst Singaporean football
supporters at matches involving our national team at our Grand Old
Lady (National Stadium). I thought this show of passion will be
buried away for good, but I had least expect it to be revived in a
rally such as this. The awe-inspiring air made me re-consider my
options, convincing me to stay behind and work towards changes in
every possible way that I could muster. However, it could have been
different had my examinations finished later. I might have gone
ahead and be a ‘quitter’ so to speak. I considered myself among the
lucky few who could manage to soak in the atmosphere during
elections time, but I cannot say the same for my other classmates
who had to mug for their final examinations.
Narration of Kelvin’s experience
I had to help tutor a junior friend of mine who happened to live
near Potong Pasir. My junior was preparing was for his General
Certificate of Education (GCE) examinations. I vaguely remembered
it was the late October period. His daily routine was to study at
the McDonald’s cafe at Potong Pasir, and I would come along and
help him when I have the time. Most of his days was spent revising
for his coming examinations. I could recall there was one night
when Mr Chiam See Tong came in and and had a photo session with
with my junior. His contesting candidate, Sitoh Yih Pin arrived
moments later and had another photo session with him. So, my junior
showed some good measure of fairness to both candidates by savoring
the experience of a photo session with both of them. However, is
that encounter even considered soaking in the atmosphere of
elections? I think not, especially when he is studying the whole
day, oblivious to what is happening around him, and then say
“cheese!” for a few seconds in front of the camera with Chiam and
Sitoh. That is really unfortunate, especially considering the fact
that the elections period is a good time for our youths to soak in
the atmosphere, but it has to fall during the busy part of their
academic schedule.
The next elections
The typical conspiracy theorist will say:”Oh the election dates are
deliberately set because the government has learnt well from the
past where the Chinese middle school and Nanyang University
students were so actively involved in local politics, so the dates
have to be fixed at a time when they are busy preparing for their
examinations.” Whatever the ostensible reasons for the previous two
General Elections dates, the busiest period merely takes up four
months (April to May, October to November) in a year. Which means
the more favorable periods take up the majority part of the year.
The best periods for youth involvement would be during the holidays
(June, December) and the months close to the date of school
reopening (January, July). However, let’s look ahead in
anticipation of the next General Elections. Hopefully, it will fall
during a more favorable period when our youths will be able to soak
in the atmosphere and participate in the political process without
worrying for their studies.