By Braema Mathiaparanam

As we went into the nation-building phase, with the ruling party taking over much of the decision-making and implementation for the betterment of the people of Singapore, it is my view that much of this early community-spiritedness gave way to an economic pragmatism.

This meant that most people were focused on singular economic pursuits, like access to shelter, clean water, food, good schools, the best tertiary education. As the government assered its role as an inclusive provider for all who needed help, it became easier to step back from being responsible for the community. It became easier to pass on the role of minding society to the government with the people feeling less empowered to engage in the process as the government took on a domineering role.

It was also easier to become more comfortable with giving money and time to help out at agencies that provided direct services. This meant that it was easier to be armchair giver through donations while watching television, than to get engaged in upstream measures such as picking up on more advocacy-related causes.

The above excerpts are from the article by Braema Mathiaparanam for Singapore Perspectives 2010.

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