There’s something about spirited Singapore

There could not have been a better time than the weekend to come to Singapore on the way back from Sabah or Malaysian Borneo. Fifty years ago, Malaysia had packed Singapore unceremoniously off from the union and a new state took roots under a weeping leader Lee Kuan Yew who promised a nation in which all – the Malays, the Chinese and the Indians - were equal in religion, culture and language. In those 50 years of the late Lee or his son Lee Hsien Hoong’s rule, a small oriental entrepot created one of the most remarkable stories of development and nation-building as it transformed into an ultra modern city-state.

As Singapore reaches out to a post-modern future, there may be the merest signs that it is creaking a bit, but who cares about that when the people are contented, wear the bright clothes and the biggest smiles and are unbelievably polite and friendly and so disciplined as to match the Japanese in behaviour in public. The National Day Parade at the Padang was all about the happiness quotient of the people, spectacular as it was in celebrating the jubilee with 165 types of fireworks from two spots, including from one famous name that will ring a bell in any Chennaiite’s heart – Marina Bay.

Rooms with a view of the fancy fireworks ringing the Marina were close to S$2,000 (about Rs 95,000) for two nights as Singaporeans and visitors craned their necks to take in the spectacle. The few thousand tickets available for the parade were allocated through a lucky draw and at every vantage point in the city people’s eyes were on the sky for the fly-past that included an Airbus A-380 too besides aerobatics by the air force and then the fireworks. The orderliness in the people vying to catch a piece of the action was out of the world even as the government opened up the public transport services to offer free rides to everyone on a day of enjoyment and national pride.

A richer per capita than the US or the old colonial master Britain is ample reflection of the prosperity of Singapore’s 5.5 million people as well as the ringing success of “state paternalism and market economics” as an analyst puts it.

The discipline in the people may have been imposed by rigorous state laws, including the one banning chewing gum in 1992, but which made perfect sense if you wanted a clean environment. The worry now is whether Singapore might simply “dissolve into the world” as Prime Minister Lee, who does not want his country to end up like Greece, puts it.

There may be signs in the slow moving immigration queues at Changi airport that the efficiency Singapore sought may be creaking because people are not necessarily more productive as time goes on. And then, of course, there is a restlessness caused by the ease with which the social media creates scope for diverse points of view. As the government litigates against criticism with the liberal use of libel laws, there is always the fear that the small undercurrent of tension could blow up. But, as Lee said in a recent media interview – “There is always a balance between freedom and the rule of law; freedom is never totally unlimited” – which is a fair enough view.

While those weighty issues are to be tackled by the long ruling People’s Action Party – an envy of the political world for its continuous rule that started even before independence – the people appeared so cheerful in a spontaneous celebration of 50 years of freedom. As we waded with the flow through colourful Singapore on Sunday, the milling crowds revealed very positive vibrations. The national anthem “Majulah Singa pura,” which begins with “Let us unite with a new spirit” and is the theme for SG50 or golden jubilee of Singapore was fully reflected in as magnificent a national celebration as one could imagine.