An Over-Simplistic Solution to the Challenges of National Development and Social Defence

This thread comes in following up after the National Day Rally on Sunday, and really is a response to the specific words used by NMP Eunice Olsen, with reference to PM Lee's presentation of the proposed Punggol 21+ public housing development as published in yesterday's edition (21 August 2007) of the TODAY paper, on page 6.  These were her words:

"The Punggol 21+ plan really awed the audience.  You can see community living as part of the neighbourhood.  People have a sense of pride in their community.  This plays an important role in the estate.  I hope this encourages young people to procreate."

It is obvious that many, who are comfortable with and looking forward to the carrots being dangled by the ruling political party, are striving at inferring the long-term prospects that the Government is planning for with such new initiatives, and are quick to credit the leadership with an overzealous fervour.  The premise for this argument that revolves around the aspect of national development (towards a target population of 6.5 million), and the challenge of maintaining the integrity of society.  And amongst the chief driving elements that the Government intends to focus upon in order to achieve this goal is in the improvement of public housing.

While this action is noble, and obligatory on the part of the Government, the resultant heaps of praise by the supporters of this move (NMP Olsen's words are a good, though not immediately succint, example) underpins the perceptions, impressions and expectations held by an undisputably silent majority of the public - that keys towards the government's goal of national development and maintaining social harmony can be solved through the enticement of attractive public housing alone, even though other means are not immediately made known.

To fall into such presumptuous thinking is foolhardy at best; and at worst, a continual perpetuation of the delusion that the political leadership may not even realise, or if it does, refuse to acknowledge.

 

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