Opinion | Do Singapore’s 4G leaders know their people well enough?
- After a splendid start, policymaking has turned reactive amid efforts to enforce stay-at-home rules
- Some older Singaporeans are behaving as though the killer virus will not touch them
At the heart of this malaise is a government that is coming out with one rule after another on a daily basis. Policymaking has become reactive. The decisiveness that the Singapore government is known for is missing. And the message gets blurred as ministers avoid straight talking and keep sympathising with those cooped up in their homes.
The disarray is evident nearly every day. Newspaper headlines show a helpless government trying to get a handle on its Covid-19 rules. All beaches are now out of bounds. So are the nature parks (though not all). Helpers (this time, all) must not go out on their days off. Masks are a must for everyone as long as they leave their homes. Those who flout the rules will face a fine.
What is surprising is that these steps should have been the norm once the country went into a circuit breaker mode – the Singapore euphemism for lockdown – on April 7.
So what went wrong as the 4G leadership took charge of managing the crisis? The Singapore culture is to trust the government. The initial euphoria over the way the country tackled the outbreak, acting swiftly once the first cases appeared in Wuhan, put many in a state of bliss. Two ministers were put in charge, daily press conferences were held, daily updates on how many were affected were released to the public. International accolades poured in. These lulled many Singaporeans into believing they were in safe hands.
