National Day, What does it mean to you?

Dear Singaporeans, as you all know, we will be celebrating our 43rd National Day tomorrow, August 9. Therefore, my question for you is, what does the country mean to you and are you proud to call yourself a Singaporean or do you feel nothing different at all every year on August 9? In my post today, Im going to tell you more about some of the reasons why many Singaporeans are deciding to migrate overseas and whether the country actually means anything to them.

Before that, lets go back into history first. Singapore celebrated its first National Day in 1966, one year after Singapore's independence from Malaysia on 9 August 1965. If you compare the Singapore back then to what it is now, I think you would agree that we have achieved a lot of things, some that were thought impossible to achieve. When we separated from Malaya, now known as Malaysia, nobody expected us to turn into a successful nation just like we are today. Afterall, we are only a small country with no natural resources to depend on. However, we managed to prove the critics wrong and because of that, I am really proud to call Singapore my home. Unfortunately though, not many Singaporean share the same feelings for the country as I do. Today, we are seeing more and more Singaporeans, in particular the younger generation migrating overseas for different reason. According to recent revelations, the country loses about 1,000 educated Singaporeans each year. In addition, there are an estimated 150,000 Singaporeans working or studying abroad, a good slice of whom will not be returning. Now that is a lot of people and considering that we have a population of about 4 million people, that is a sad statistic to see. It is fine if they are studying or working abroad if they are returning back to Singapore in the future, but that is not the case unfortunately. They have their own reasons for doing that but it should not be happening.

I mean if you compare Singapore to other countries in the region, we have one of the best government that provides most of the things for its people, but that is not enough for some though. I dont have the statistics, but if Im not wrong, I have heard somewhere that the majority of Singaporean who chose to migrate went to Australia. That is not a bad choice if you ask me but our country is not as bad as Australia, and probably better. The next popular destination is America. Some of you might think that this is a recent problem but its not. I still remember how the then Prime Minister Goh Chok Tong sparked a rare public outcry when he described Singaporeans who left the country as "quitters." As more Singaporeans are deciding to leave, more foreigners meanwhile are planning to come to Singapore to make it their new home. We welcomed 14,600 new citizens last year, a 10-per-cent increase from 2006. To put it in perspective, 2001 to 2004 saw an average of 8,000 new citizens per year. Applications for PR status have also been increasing. The good thing about this is that it shows that the country is good enough to attract foreigners to live or start a company here, which makes us more competitive nation. But given the choice, I would rather have those Singaporeans who have migrated returning than attracting more foreigners.

The Government realised that the problem is getting more severe and it has taken some actions to try and solve the problem though. The Government takes a pro-active approach to reach out through organisations like 'Contact Singapore' and the 'Singapore International Foundation', as well as organising some Singaporean-theme festivals in major cities around the world like the Singapore Food Festival which was held in New York last year if Im not mistaken. Im not sure whether it is working but at least the Government is putting in some effort to woo them back. It is important to instil a sense of pride and loyalty in them because they represent the future of our country. I dont wish to see our country being fill with the foreigners and the PR while our own people going abroad to start a new life. In our quest to become a competitve nation to adapt with the changes of globalisation, it is important that we stay true to our roots. I also think that the Government should change the way on how they view foreign talents to our local talents because I think that the issue sometimes is not someone sense of 'loyalty' or lack of rather to Singapore, but simply because that the foreign talent here would be treated better than a local.

Whatever it is, as we celebrate our 43 years of independence tomorrow, we should remember how much hardships and challenges that we have managed to overcome. We should never that everything that we have achieved for granted. In conclusion, I dont really know whether the majority of Singaporeans are actually proud of the country. I know the fact that every year when it comes to the National Day, every Singaporeans would get excited in watching the celebrations live, whether it was held during the National Stadium or at Marina Bay now. I hope it is not because of the funpacks or the fireworks that they are eager to see it. They should also know the reasons behind the celebration. I also only hope that they have the same level of enthusiastic during the fireworks display when they are singing the National Anthem or saying the pledge, that would be great to see. Thats it from me for now. Please come back tomorrow to see my National Day message. For now, goodbye.

Just for your information, you can catch the National Day parade this Saturday, coverage starting from 5.45pm to 8.15pm on Channel 5, Channel 8, Channel U, Suria, Vasantham Central and TVMobile. It will also be shown live online at www.channelnewsasia.com/live. for the overseas viewer.