SINGAPORE, Sept 8 — He calls himself “Laek1yo,” inspired by the late Singaporean leader, Lee Kuan Yew.
But listen to the lyrics of his song “Chicken Rice” and the intentions of his nickname are clear.
Preferring not to give his real name out of fear of repercussions for criticising the government, the 30-something says he’s fed up with the country’s focus on independent wealth.
“Here it’s really nothing else but money, it’s really boring. Everything equates to money, everything equates to profit. When you show off, when you invite someone to your house the first thing you say is how much you paid for it, your shoes cost, everyone knows how much everything of you costs, that's success,” he explains.
He’s not alone in his criticism of the so-called “Five-c’s”... cash, car, credit card, condo, and country club membership.
He’s one of a growing number of young Singaporeans who are turning their backs on the material joys of the “Singaporean Dream”.
But will this translate to real change when voters hit the polls on Friday?
This National University of Singapore Sociology professor says, probably not.
“By now, because they can get on the internet and say whatever they want to say, they’re not as constrained about their complaints, but a lot of those complaints doesn’t quite add up to demanding policy changes, so you know they vote, my sense is that at the end of it, most of them will still vote for stability and security,” says National University of Singapore Sociology Professor Chua Beng Huat.
A Singaporean based research firm says young people in the country are generally happy with the PAP and they are likely be the country's largest voting block for the first time in history. — Reuters
