Mr Speaker, there is indeed a pressing need for solidarity and a shared sense of identity that is crucial to tide us over these uncertain times. The pandemic has posed a threat to all Singaporeans in two key spheres: at home and at work. Just as these anxieties have, at a global level, caused governments to turn inwards, it is increasingly tempting for us as a people to do the same. This could bring us down the slippery slope of apathy and distrust. Therefore, at every juncture, we must evaluate the lengths to which we go in the name of self-preservation, and what it would cost us as a people.
I would like to paint a picture from my childhood, where I spent much of my days in a row of shophouses along Holland Drive where my father had his clinic. Though I haven’t been back there in the past decade since his passing, I have fond memories of the sincerity and kindness the community lived by. I remember the neighbourhood and the people living in the neighbourhood as if it were yesterday. Right next to my father’s clinic was the neighbourhood hair salon run by aunties. It was the neighbourhood water cooler where residents came by not just for the latest fashion tips, but also to find out how their neighbours were doing.
At Tat Lee Bank next door, all their business ran on the currency of trust—our neighbourhood sole proprietors and hawkers knew the names of the bank staff and sometimes even those of their families – their children and spouses. And all the shopkeepers need to do is to place their day’s earnings, in cash, on the counter and could count on receiving a faultless chit the next time they came around.
My father, the neighbourhood doctor, delighted in the service he provided to the community. There were many occasions where he didn’t take money from patients because they couldn’t afford it. However, without fail, we would receive a gift at our doorstop from them. If they raised chickens, we’d get eggs. If they made sauces, we’d get a bottle.
The kindness and trust I saw in the community were not naïve; it did not ignore the challenges and struggles that faced the community but stood strong despite these trials. When times were tough, Uncle Mohammed had to sell his business and started selling magazines under the bridge. But it never did break his spirit; it never caused us to turn cold towards each other. The bond that held us together as a community ran deeper and would not tear at the sound of trouble. This was because of the intimate interest we had in each other’s lives. My dad knew Uncle Mohammed both as a patient and as a friend. My mom knew his wife, Aunty Gowri and the troubles she had raising three children. And I knew one of their daughters and chatted with her often when we were growing up. Within the community, we knew the challenges others faced, and we knew the stories behind these faces, and more importantly, the stories behind the challenges.
In the same way, my hope for Singaporeans is that we’ll continue to be champions for kindness in the community, built on understanding and empathy toward the challenges others in our community might face. The incessant shouting you might have been hearing at home could actually be a couple in financial distress. The tired homemaker who has been moving furniture at odd hours could have had her hours stretched in the daytime because there are more people at home. It is on us to open our hearts to the stories that run deep and to extend a helping hand to those in the community who might need it. Sometimes I wonder, have we been too quick to judge?
When I was previously running my company, we had a new employee who had been consistently putting in good performance. However, one day the HR department came to me and raised some serious doubts. The employee had started to make a habit of sleeping on the job and it caused him to miss many calls. And that was an issue because he was a call centre operative. But what we decided to do was to give him the benefit of the doubt and asked him about his recent performance. As a result, and after quite some digging, we discovered that he had recently become the sole breadwinner in a family of seven, and that was because both his parents had lost their jobs because of COVID-19. In order to support his family, he had to take on extra work as a delivery driver from 10pm to 4am every day.
When we’re willing to listen, everyone’s a winner. Be it at home or at work, it would go such a long way if we all fostered an interest in each other’s lives and uncover the stories that lie beneath. I believe that Singaporeans will only be able to build a rich national identity when we allow ourselves to deep dive into the richness of the lives around us.
As many of us spend more time at home than ever before, and as we are faced with the anxieties of this age, the bonds we have with our community are exposed. As the saying goes: 远亲不如近邻 - better a close neighbour than a distant relative. As much as the government will work hard to build social safety nets and implement policies to ensure Singaporeans emerge from this pandemic stronger, it is but a distant relative. When the rubber hits the road, it is our Singaporean community that must band together— it is these communities that Singaporeans can have to hope to be able to lean back on.
In this House, and in the many households across our Singapore, we must heed our President’s call to embrace our plurality and diversity, undergirding it with a deep appreciation of the lives of those around us. Then, and only then, can we work out community solutions that will allow us to become greater than the sum of our individual parts.
Speaker Sir, I shall continue in Mandarin.
议长先生，我刚才和大家分享了疫情给于社会带来的挑战，但，在我们面临疫情挑战的时候，我们需要额外努力解决疫情带来的经济危机。我认为，我们在积极推动员工培训转型、掌握未来技能，以及提倡职场多元性的同时，也必须重新审视“工作”的定义，是不是朝九晚五才算工作呢？如果员工因为需要照顾家人而希望能够拼凑工作时间，雇主是否能够接受？
我认识一名居家护士。她的为人非常善良，也做事非常能干。她选择做晚班，每天由晚到早照顾年老者，几乎全年无休，时时刻刻为病患者操劳。我曾经有想过，她怎么不到医院去上班？是过后我得知，她如此辛苦工作全是因为了她的儿子，他中了脑瘫。因为只有她一个人照顾儿子，所以她只是在晚上等儿子睡觉后才上晚班。这位伟大的妈妈，白天照顾孩子，晚上看护赚钱养家。
这位护士的情况其实很普遍，在这段期间我认为会有更多的妇女加入自由职业。这些是因为疫情带来家庭的经济困扰，有些是因为她们选择了走不寻常路, 非单一直线的事业。但，大家都是希望能够利用生活中的小时间，赚钱养家。未来，零工经济将会成为一种趋势。自由业职业也会有更大的需求，我们就更加需要调整政策框架，保障自由业者的福利，让他们有充足的保健储蓄和退休基金。
因此，经济转型也需要人力资源政策的调整和转型，以及雇佣概念的转型，这才能吸引更多国人从事新领域的工作，真正促成更加包容、更加多元，以本地人为核心的职场。
Mr Speaker, I’d like to move the motion. Thank you.
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