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Recently, my fwen sent me a blog entry written by an 18 yr old girl from RJC whose dad is one of our MP. After reading the entry, franking speaking I was quite angry, angry at her insensitive remarks, angry at her arrogant remarks, angry at her “unfortunate” remarks (quoted from the comment make by Mr Sin MP of Tampines GRC). After all, what does this girl know about the problems we as ordinary citizens faced? But then the most infuriating part is the comments make by her dad (MP for AMK GRC). Really, if he was my MP, I would really reconsider about casting my vote on the next election to PAP.

It is not that I dun support PAP, in fact, I am very happy and satisfied with our government even though with the price hikes, the bread and butter issues, the high competition in Spore for jobs with our peers and foreigners. Despite all that, they really did a good job in running our country. But, just this incident set me thinking. The leaders that we choose, the things they promised, the actions they did that were suppose to be “for the commoners”. Are they all nothing but an act? I couldn’t condemn the whole government because of 1 member but, it just make me wonder just in fact how many of them have the same thoughts as this guy?

This girl whose dad is a businessman is born with a silver spoon or so I presumed. Studied in one of the most prestigious school in our country, top the o levels in her year, whose future is not certain but is clearly a lot brighter than a lot of people (in her own words),just how much would she know about the life of us commoners? Given her “achievements” I think she would maybe be on her way to become one of our future leaders or stuff like that. But it is scary, just scary to think that our country would be run by this kind of people in future.

I couldn’t speak for the majority but coming from an average or rather below average income family, I really do agree with the comments make by the Derek. We are all in the same situation, struggling to get on with life, trying to get a good job, wanting to give a better life to our parents or children. These are the common problems that we commoners faced and struggled to face with.

Have she ever tried before wearing hand down clothes from either brother or mum’s friend’s daughters? The only new clothes I got when I was young was during CNY and even then, my mum will only buy 2 new sets for the 1st 2 days of the New Year. It is the same for the 3 of us. Textbooks were always 2nd hand, either also from my brother or from my mum’s friends again should the syllabus had changed. But there is an advantage of this, cuz the exercises in the textbooks will all be done but the previous owner. Hehe. Only workbooks are brand new.

Toys are rare, I dun remember my mum buying toys for me when I was young. Again, it is taking other’s discard one or they have grown tired of their toys. With dad as the sole breadwinner in the household and not earning a lot, my mum controlled our household spending tightly. Although never once we have to go hungry or deprived of education, but the 3 of us grew up without much luxury that only the kids from the more privileged families are entitled to .

I still remembered that when I was in poly, some of my classmates thought I was anti social as even though I was friendly with them in school, I would not join their outside activities. The reason being, I dun have the extra cash to go for those extra entertainments. My dad walked out on us when I was 14, providing us with our pocket money and nothing else. Mum was left to keep the household going. With no formal education in S’pore (she is a Malaysian), she was left with little choice to choose her work. It doesn’t help for the fact that she has not been working since my elder brother was born, she was a full time housewife.

In the end, she found work as a domestic helper or widely known as part time maid. The pay was not bad, as they charged hourly, the time is flexible, thus enabling her to still be able to take care of us and most importantly, and it is what she is doing at her best- housework. Just like that, we got thru year after year with my mum slogging her guts out for others and sometimes have to put up with humiliations from unfeeling people who coincidently also feels that they are the elites of our society.

I started working after my o levels, and during my school vacation every semester break. Sales assistant in Sim Lim, hamper packer in a food factory, data admin clerk, accounts assistant in a chemical company, Chinese tutor, extend IA with my attachment company etc. In fact, at that time, I was grateful to have a job regardless of how pathetic the pay is. I was wanted to earn some money for either textbooks, or new year clothes. Even so, I would remember to surrender half of my pay to my mum as to help her out.

I would like to know that this girl in question that had she ever tried working before for her own money? Even though her parents might not give her a lot to spend, but had she ever tried to work for any one of the things she owned? I really dunno and judging from the way she comment, I would safely say she didn’t.

Yes, I do admit that as compare to her, I am just a nobody living in the same country as her. I didn’t top my o levels in my class, let alone school and for that year. Didn’t study in one of the top school in our country, grades were only average, couldn’t get into the university on the 1st try, didn’t have good grades for university studies. In fact, I think, she would have found it an insult for me to be compared to her. But then, if she ever stops in her track to think, she might have known that it wasn’t me who wants to be in my situation. Given a choice, I would also want to be brand as the elites of my nation, study in a top school, and have a rich businessman dad who is a MP. But was this within my control? No, it wasn’t. In fact, this is not within anyone’s control.

So, this pathetic 22yr old me, who is struggling to get thru the 2nd year of my engineering studies, juggling with work, school, home, relationship etc. is here complaining about her and her dad’s insensitive remarks. It is not that we Singaporeans no matter highly or not highly educated cannot deal with the challenges of life. If you were in my shoes, you would need more effort to deal with it and I tell you, the more effort is really MORE.

You were born with a “brighter future than others” in front of you. For me? I am working hard just to have a little brighter future. In fact, I am not convinced that after I received my degree from NTU, my future will be brighter, nowadays, half of my peers are degree holders, and to put salt on the wound, employers nowadays are spoiled with choice for candidates for job openings. Ya, like what she mentioned other people is being hired because they are better but just to enlighten me, how u define better? How will you know that we will not be better when we are being denied of a chance in the 1st place?

And yes, discrimination does exist everywhere, the older generation like that guy, the younger generation with not much formal education, the younger generation with only the minimum require education(i.e diploma and ITE certs, I think may change to degree in few years time), the inexperience one, the over- experienced one and even females who are of marriageable age, all these can post as the criteria on whether you are suitable for the job or not. Yes girl, this is the brutal truth of life, these are the challenges we commoners faced in life and it only the tip of the iceberg. And yes, we are trying our very best in getting on with the challenge of life.

Although as compared to the more unprivileged people in S’pore or in other country, my situation or even Derek’s situation is consider lucky, as we are not denied an education not been forced into child prostitution, not having our clan massacred by the government, but then one cannot denied that this is a REAL PROBLEM also although not as serious. But then again, if you thinks that those are then consider problems, I suggest that you can move to one of the developing countries and help to solve the above mention problems there. I am certain that you can contribute a lot to them. Meanwhile, I sincerely hope that someone, just someone in our parliament have the heart to listen to our problems, pick it up and try to solve it or rather provide some sort to assurance to the people of Singapore.

Let’s face it, no matter it is a developed country or a developing country, we have our own sets for problems. The job of the government or rather a good government is to help to see that majority of the problems are solved if not all. The reason we choose you to represent us as MP, Mr Wee is to hope that you can represent us citizens to speak up not to the other way round to tell us to stop bemoaning about the Government and get on with the challenges in life. In that case, I am sorry to inform you that you seems to be redundant as a MP representing us.

Perhaps, some of her comments maybe hurtful but truthful but to a certain extend, like what it was mentioned in the papers, her remarks came across as insensitive and arrogant above anything else. I think it is the her background that make things worse. Take for example, if it was Miss Natasha, the girl who went to Afghanistan to teaches voluntarily were to make the comments, I think the rebuts would not have been so harsh. She, is someone who had first hand experience on the hardships there and how the people deal with the challenges, faced them bravely. She was the one who choose to spend 1 month there to volunteer her services instead of going on a shopping trip to Hong Kong with the money.

This girl who was feature in the Newpaper for a week on her trip to Afghanistan really touches my heart. She is also 18 years old, but the things she did, the big heart she have got, makes me feel ashamed of myself as I am sitting her writing this entry and complaining about some comments people make and in the my own insignificant life. Instead of staying in her comfort zone, she went out of it and did what she can and try to make a difference to the people who is far more unprivileged than us.

On the other hand, I think if it was Miss Natasha who is to comment on Derek’s input, I think she will ask him to treasure what he have, face up and overcome the challenges , try to reflect on himself as there are a lot of people out there worrying out just how they can lived through the day without being killed in any cross fire. I reckon that she, having witness the hardships of the people of Afghanistan would not tell Derek to get out of her “Elite uncaring face”. However, above is only my assumptions base on the reports of her which I had seen from the papers.

Well, this is after all a ranting from a 22 years old girl on her private blog. If my comments sound insensitive and caused hurt to anyone, I hereby sincerely apologized for it. If by any chance, some people who read my blog (not much anyway) cannot take the brutal truth and that sort of language, I ought to learn from it. But then, the new media of the Internet is such that if you don't like what I had said, you have the right of rebuttal.
Since I wrote in a private blog and I feel that my privacy has been violated should anyone really read this and make a big hoo haa over what I wrote. (Most of the words here are quoted from our dearest MP of AMK, Mr Wee, his comments on the blown up issue of his daughter blog, I merely changed some of the 3rd person words to 1st person speaking.)
In any case, please forgive me as I am a young and perhaps naïve girl.