Recently, I came across a news article that largely grabbed my attention immediately because it a place that i like to frequent often. It talked about 18chefs in Singapore and how the restaurant owner was a former drug addict who now turned his life around by starting up this chain of restaurants with much success. In summary, it talked about the life story of Mr. Benny Se Teo who was released from jail in 1993 and was rejected numerous times in his quest to find a job. Therefore, he wanted to become an owner himself and hire ex-convicts just like himself. Although initially it was not successful and he had to resort to closing down a few outlets, he made a few changes and slowly built his restaurant up to what eighteenchefs is today. Faced with much challenges and difficulties, but he never gave up and always persevered. He is very humbled about his successes and does not try to cover up the fact that there are challenges faced and gives the examples of one of his staff thrashing the kitchen in a drunken rage and also other instances where there was trouble. He gave this staff a chance again and he was rehired, this portrays his forgiving nature and his ability to give second chances. He talks about how his passion lay in chinese food rather than western, however he wants to give people the kind of food that they would like to eat. He attributed the success to his past failures and challenges, and how he is glad that he can be an inspiration to many.
Reading this article was very heart-warming as I have always been curious about the nature of eighteenchefs. Before entering this course, the only social enterprise that i knew well enough and had experienced was eighteenchefs. Therefore, this article largely peaked my interests. Reading about Mr Benny Se Teo has truly inspired me as I am amazed at how he managed to bring his life around despite so many setbacks and problems set against him. It portrays how hardwork is rewarded and that with the right mindset anything is possible. His ability to change so many lives is truly great and eighteenchefs is very sustainable and also popular among youths. I learnt much about the insight, his inspiration and his journey in creating this success story and it was truly interesting and a unique experience.
A few things that caught my attention was when Mr Benny Se Teo mentioned about how he did not want people to see eighteenchefs as a social cause and come based on sympathy for his social mission. He wanted people to view it as just a restaurant where people want to continuously come back for more because of its affordability or quality food. His reasoning for this being that coming just for sympathy would only last once or twice but he would rather people come just for the food. This makes the restaurant sustainable as more people want to go just for the food or ambience. Also, he mentioned about the problems faced with his staff when one of his staff thrashed the kitchen in a drunken state and also staff who broke into the restaurants safe. I think it would be extremely easy to blame the reason for these happening on the fact that they are ex-convicts. However, it could happen to anyone but we fail to realise this. We automatically associate it with the fact that they are ex-convicts. I hope that the social stigma associated with hiring ex-convicts would soon be removed from society as a whole.
In conclusion, I have learnt a lot from reading this article and it has inspired me greatly. I feel that Mr Benny found the balance between enterprise and social cause and that is the reason for his success. This is what we as students from business and social enterprise should aim to do. I hope that more aspiring entrepreneurs will follow his path and go down this route that many are scared to take. With these, more help can be given to those who need it and it will be a better singapore with better people.
References:
Huang, L. (2014). Former drug addict cooking up social change. The Straits Times. Retrieved from http://www.straitstimes.com/lifestyle/food/former-drug-addict-cooking-up-social-change on 13 August 2015.
Sunday, 16 August 2015
Monday, 10 August 2015
Unwed mothers' plight in Singapore
Although this article may not seem relevant to social entrepreneurship, it is a social issue that i did not know about until recently. Unwed mothers do not receive the same benefits as those who are married even if they have kids. In summary, the article states how single mothers do not receive the same 16 week paid maternity leave but in turn they only receive 8 weeks of leave. The additional paid leave which would greatly help mothers pay for the child expenses. They are also not entitled to the baby bonus cash gift of $6000 for their first child and also parenthood tax rebates. They are only allowed to purchase housing when they are 35 years old and above under the singles scheme. Build-to-order (BTO) flats are not available to them as they and their children are not considered family.
I was very shocked by this article as i assumed that single mothers would have been given privileges because they are the ones who need it the most. I did not expect them to be deprived of it. I agree that the institute of marriage should be practiced, however that does not entail the children of unwed mothers to also be subjected to this. The first few months of a child's development is incredibly vital and it is important that they attain constant support and guidance from their parents. They did not choose this or have a say in this, therefore they should not be deprived or penalized. Single mothers are already suffering with the high costs that come together with having a child but not being able to get the benefits that help other parents use bring up their child is unfair and uncalled for. Every child is a Singaporean child and should be taken care of the same way. All the additional incentives will be especially useful in bringing up a child and unwed mothers are especially those who need it most with only one income provided,
So far, little efforts have been made to improve their situation, What single parents find most unfair currently seems to be the 8 weeks maternity leave that they receive. They want the same 16 weeks as other parents in order to spend more time with their children during their early years and i think that it is totally acceptable. We should not punish them in this manner, just for being unwed. Every case and scenario is a different one that we know nothing about and thus we should not judge them too quickly. Practically, housing and a roof over a family's head is extremely vital. They should not be deprived to live together as a family instead of struggling. Benefits and subsidies should come more to unwed mothers who have families as they need it more then married couples. We should treat every child as a Singaporean child and think of their needs first.
In conclusion, I hope that the Singapore government can do more to ease the situation of unwed mothers. Through this way, hopefully their children will also receive the same benefits as every other child. With the support and guidance, children are sure to grow far. They should never be penalized in any way regardless of their situation because it is not out of choice. I hope the government looks into these matters to help Singaporeans move forward as a whole.
References:
Kok, X.H. (August 9, 2015). Don't penalise children of unwed mothers. The Straits Times. Retrieved from http://www.straitstimes.com/singapore/dont-penalise-children-of-unwed-mothers on 11 August 2015.
I was very shocked by this article as i assumed that single mothers would have been given privileges because they are the ones who need it the most. I did not expect them to be deprived of it. I agree that the institute of marriage should be practiced, however that does not entail the children of unwed mothers to also be subjected to this. The first few months of a child's development is incredibly vital and it is important that they attain constant support and guidance from their parents. They did not choose this or have a say in this, therefore they should not be deprived or penalized. Single mothers are already suffering with the high costs that come together with having a child but not being able to get the benefits that help other parents use bring up their child is unfair and uncalled for. Every child is a Singaporean child and should be taken care of the same way. All the additional incentives will be especially useful in bringing up a child and unwed mothers are especially those who need it most with only one income provided,
So far, little efforts have been made to improve their situation, What single parents find most unfair currently seems to be the 8 weeks maternity leave that they receive. They want the same 16 weeks as other parents in order to spend more time with their children during their early years and i think that it is totally acceptable. We should not punish them in this manner, just for being unwed. Every case and scenario is a different one that we know nothing about and thus we should not judge them too quickly. Practically, housing and a roof over a family's head is extremely vital. They should not be deprived to live together as a family instead of struggling. Benefits and subsidies should come more to unwed mothers who have families as they need it more then married couples. We should treat every child as a Singaporean child and think of their needs first.
In conclusion, I hope that the Singapore government can do more to ease the situation of unwed mothers. Through this way, hopefully their children will also receive the same benefits as every other child. With the support and guidance, children are sure to grow far. They should never be penalized in any way regardless of their situation because it is not out of choice. I hope the government looks into these matters to help Singaporeans move forward as a whole.
References:
Kok, X.H. (August 9, 2015). Don't penalise children of unwed mothers. The Straits Times. Retrieved from http://www.straitstimes.com/singapore/dont-penalise-children-of-unwed-mothers on 11 August 2015.
Friday, 7 August 2015
Help for social enterprises in Singapore
Another article on the development of social enterprises in Singapore! The social enterprise sector in Singapore is upcoming and on its way to a good development. The social enterprise sector currently needs all the help and support that it can garner in order to develop itself. In the recent news article that i read, that is exactly what they have mentioned. It is even titled 'Social enterprises to get more help'. This article mentions much about the initiatives taken to help and guide aspiring social enterprises by offering grants up to $20 000 for them to try and test out their social enterprises. Previously only those who have registered as an official social enterprise can apply for a grant. Now, an ideology and passion to try to do something and make a difference would be enough to obtain a fund to try out social enterprises. Social enterprises start-ups are able to receive up to $100000 in seed grants while social enterprises which have been operating for at least two years can obtain financial help to expand.There is even a Presidents' Challenge Social Enterprise Award which has been postponed by two weeks due to the overwhelming response.
This article definitely makes me feel more at ease in my course as i realize that there is constant and ever-growing support and help available in the social enterprise sector. It is also heartwarming to know that there are more people who are willing to try something out to help people around them. Social enterprises are a really creative and intelligent way of helping people while gaining profits themselves. When i read the article, i saw a familiar name of Ms Desiree Yang. I remembered that she graduated from Ngee Ann Psychology studies in HMS and i truly felt proud because she is doing what she really wants to do. Even though she started out small, and currently only her father and her are working full-time to help the lower income families, i'm sure that she will develop the business furthur through grants and the help from organisations such as raiSE will definitely boost her business, She could change and improve many lives from the work she is doing and it is truly admirable. Grants like this will really be beneficial especially for new and upcoming social enterprises who are struggling financially.
The support and aid given to social enterprises will definitely help and encourage more aspiring young entrepreneurs to push forward with their idea and develop a business themselves. With a growing social enterprise sector, there will be more help for more people all over Singapore or even the world. We can all play a part to change someone else's life and financial troubles should not be a barrier to that. If we have a good and feasible idea with the faith that it will work, then we should work hard to put it into action and achieve what we can. Social enterprises deserve the extra help to help them become more sustainable in the future. We should help in whatever way we can to help the people around us whether directly or indirectly.
In conclusion, i think that this article provides more of an insight on social enterprises in Singapore. Many people are still clueless and unaware as to what social enterprises are. Hopefully, more awareness will be gained among the general public to garner support. It is vital that people know of the problems that social enterprises face of lack of sustainability due to lack of funds. It is better to be transparent before developing the business furthur and learn as much as possible in this time period. It is very important to learn new things and constantly improve yourself as well as your business. Through this journey, opportunities like these are rare and should be utilized in order to maximise the benefits.
Goy, P. (2015, August 1) Social enterprises to get more help. The Straits Times. Retrieved from http://www.straitstimes.com/singapore/social-enterprises-to-get-more-help on 8 August 2015.
This article definitely makes me feel more at ease in my course as i realize that there is constant and ever-growing support and help available in the social enterprise sector. It is also heartwarming to know that there are more people who are willing to try something out to help people around them. Social enterprises are a really creative and intelligent way of helping people while gaining profits themselves. When i read the article, i saw a familiar name of Ms Desiree Yang. I remembered that she graduated from Ngee Ann Psychology studies in HMS and i truly felt proud because she is doing what she really wants to do. Even though she started out small, and currently only her father and her are working full-time to help the lower income families, i'm sure that she will develop the business furthur through grants and the help from organisations such as raiSE will definitely boost her business, She could change and improve many lives from the work she is doing and it is truly admirable. Grants like this will really be beneficial especially for new and upcoming social enterprises who are struggling financially.
The support and aid given to social enterprises will definitely help and encourage more aspiring young entrepreneurs to push forward with their idea and develop a business themselves. With a growing social enterprise sector, there will be more help for more people all over Singapore or even the world. We can all play a part to change someone else's life and financial troubles should not be a barrier to that. If we have a good and feasible idea with the faith that it will work, then we should work hard to put it into action and achieve what we can. Social enterprises deserve the extra help to help them become more sustainable in the future. We should help in whatever way we can to help the people around us whether directly or indirectly.
In conclusion, i think that this article provides more of an insight on social enterprises in Singapore. Many people are still clueless and unaware as to what social enterprises are. Hopefully, more awareness will be gained among the general public to garner support. It is vital that people know of the problems that social enterprises face of lack of sustainability due to lack of funds. It is better to be transparent before developing the business furthur and learn as much as possible in this time period. It is very important to learn new things and constantly improve yourself as well as your business. Through this journey, opportunities like these are rare and should be utilized in order to maximise the benefits.
Goy, P. (2015, August 1) Social enterprises to get more help. The Straits Times. Retrieved from http://www.straitstimes.com/singapore/social-enterprises-to-get-more-help on 8 August 2015.
Tuesday, 21 July 2015
Raising Social Enterprises in Singapore
I've come with a new article to talk about. I'm aware that this article should have come before the previous blogpost as the previous post talks about about this organization already giving out grants. However, I feel that this was an important milestone in the social enterprise sector. The acknowledgement and independence of this group. The Singapore centre for Social Enterprises also known as raiSE was launched as a place for Social Enterprises to seek funding when necessary and also gain access to mentoring. It has the backing of four organisations, namely Ministry of Social and Family Development, National Council of Social Service, Social Enterprise Association and Tote Board. With these support, it is surely more able to be able to help social enterprises in need or those starting out. To back my point, raiSE has received S$30 million from the MSF and Tote Board to help develop the sector in the next year 5 years.
I found the statement that Gautam Banarjee, Chairman of raiSE and nominated member of parliament to be very interesting. I have always considered social enterprises in a narrow perspective of establishing a business in order to tackle social problems. However, Mr Banerjee mentioned that it was an important part of the broader system to address social gaps and needs in our community. (Banarjee, 2015) Seeing this, I realised that social enterprises play a greater role in society than i thought they did. It is important to have smaller sectors such as social enterprises playing a part to create a more inclusive society by bringing people together through what they do. This makes it all the more meaningful and heartfelt. I have realised that i should not just look at the smaller picture but also take notice of the big picture and understand it's consequences and impacts surrounding it in order to fully understand it. I am even more proud to be in this course, where i have a greater role in society and I will be able to bring people together through what I do.
As many social enterprises face challenges in being sustainable, this is a good platform to approach to help keep social enterprises afloat. The social enterprise sector is steadily growing till today, even though they may face challenges such as finding talent, business know how and funding as President Tony Tan has said. He also mentioned other thought provoking statements such as "We have made significant progress as a country. How advanced a society is should not be measured by just its GDP but by how it helps the less fortunate among us. Social enterprises take the proverbial approach of ‘teaching how to fish’ as opposed to ‘handing over the next" I think this is vital in our society as we should always care for others as well as ourselves. There is little point in developing yourself and leaving others behind. With that, it will only result in a personal improvement and not a total effort.
In conclusion, I think that this is important and a relevant article that I really wanted to talk about as I think it relayed how Singaporeans are becoming more open-minded and open to such ideas. This is a great leap for singapore's social enterprises and I hope for more development and support to come for this sector. It is a really important part of society as it really integrates everyone together as one which is necessary for Singaporeans. We should always seek to help one another in whatever way we can. I hope that my children get to see a brighter and more vibrant Singapore, where everyone has an big heart and always a helping hand for one another.
Chua, J. (2015) " Raising Social Enterprises in Singapore" Eco-business. Retrieved from http://www.eco-business.com/news/raising-social-enterprises-in-singapore/ on 20 July 2015
Friday, 26 June 2015
Age-Friendly Places
This picture shows the steps being rather gentle making it easy to climb even for the elderly, therefore it is age-friendly and adheres to the fact that elderly may have trouble climbing rather steep slopes.
This picture shows a slope at the left side which is age-friendly and suitable for all ages, it makes the entry to school easy for all. However ironically, the only way to come from across school is the overhead bridge which may not be very user-friendly to all. people may have trouble constantly climbing the overhead bridges.
Restaurants are generally age-friendly because whether the young or old anyone can dine in together just depending on your taste preference. The elderly may opt to go for something easy to chew while
the young may prefer something more exciting and new to eat.
Non age-friendly places
The water theme park located at NEX is not age friendly because it is only suitable for children below 12. For young adults, teens and the elderly it is not a suitable place to go. Especially for elderly as it may be slipperly and the chances of falling are higher. therefore not a recommended place for them.
This basketball court is more suitable for teens who are interested in sports. It is not recommended for the elderly as they may get injured through an accident. It is also not very inclusive to the adults and the elderly or even young children as it is more for teens who prefer sports and thus may be more physically fit.
Finally, the hill in Ngee Ann is definitely not age friendly as it is even a struggle for teens to climb the hill to reach areas like makan place. For the elderly, it will probably be even harder and there are few ways to avoid the hill and these are usually tedious or involve staircases. Therefore this is not age friendly.
That's all! Thanks for reading!
Tuesday, 23 June 2015
2 Social Enterprises chosen for grants
Back with an opinion on another article! This time it isn't about what social enterprises are doing for people but rather what is being done for social enterprises. Reading this article, i felt happy that even though the thought of social enterprises was not explored until recently, people are still very supportive of the idea and help them in any way they can. Two social enterprises were offered grants by the Singapore Centre for Social Enterprise (raiSE). raiSE itself was officially opened very recently on 27 May 2015 by President Tony Tan.
Two social enterprises, one of which helps migrant workers integrate into society, Social Development Initiative Academy (SDI), and the other is Society Staples that conducts fitness programmes connecting people with disabilites and society attained a grant of $50 000 and $25 000 respectively. raiSE will also be giving advisory services and other resources. At the event, Minister Teo Ser Luck was present and said that many public and private sector partnerships are vital in expanding the social enterprise sector which is young and still new.
In my opinion, I think that this is a really good for many of the social enterprises in Singapore. As said by raiSE executive director Alfie Othman, "Running sustainable businesses that create social impact is challenging, even for mature enterprises. raiSE is keen to support aspiring young social entrepreneurs who want to make a difference in the community" Therefore, it is important to have such organisations to help more social enterprises come up and develop themselves. It is also a good encouragement for social entrepreneurs that their businesses would be well supported and bring forward their mission. It is good that Singapore is becoming increasingly supportive of Social Entrepreneurship. It will greatly help those who are just starting out.
Social Enterprises have a good cause and the mission to make a change in society. I think that this is greatly admirable even though there are risks involved in starting up an enterprise. Hopefully, with more social enterprises there will be a larger impact on society.I'm happy and feel encouraged that Singapore is being rather supportive. I think that co-ordination is vital in order to be able to achieve the best results.
In conclusion, I thought that it was nice that there was an organisation to help enterprises help others instead. It creates a more inclusive society and also is heart-warming to know how much people care and are willing to do to make things work. I would like to see more of such incidents!
References:
Choo, F. (June 15, 2015) '2 social enterprises picked for grants' The Straits times. Retrieved from
http://news.asiaone.com/news/singapore/2-social-enterprises-picked-grants
Two social enterprises, one of which helps migrant workers integrate into society, Social Development Initiative Academy (SDI), and the other is Society Staples that conducts fitness programmes connecting people with disabilites and society attained a grant of $50 000 and $25 000 respectively. raiSE will also be giving advisory services and other resources. At the event, Minister Teo Ser Luck was present and said that many public and private sector partnerships are vital in expanding the social enterprise sector which is young and still new.
In my opinion, I think that this is a really good for many of the social enterprises in Singapore. As said by raiSE executive director Alfie Othman, "Running sustainable businesses that create social impact is challenging, even for mature enterprises. raiSE is keen to support aspiring young social entrepreneurs who want to make a difference in the community" Therefore, it is important to have such organisations to help more social enterprises come up and develop themselves. It is also a good encouragement for social entrepreneurs that their businesses would be well supported and bring forward their mission. It is good that Singapore is becoming increasingly supportive of Social Entrepreneurship. It will greatly help those who are just starting out.
Social Enterprises have a good cause and the mission to make a change in society. I think that this is greatly admirable even though there are risks involved in starting up an enterprise. Hopefully, with more social enterprises there will be a larger impact on society.I'm happy and feel encouraged that Singapore is being rather supportive. I think that co-ordination is vital in order to be able to achieve the best results.
In conclusion, I thought that it was nice that there was an organisation to help enterprises help others instead. It creates a more inclusive society and also is heart-warming to know how much people care and are willing to do to make things work. I would like to see more of such incidents!
References:
Choo, F. (June 15, 2015) '2 social enterprises picked for grants' The Straits times. Retrieved from
http://news.asiaone.com/news/singapore/2-social-enterprises-picked-grants
Wednesday, 10 June 2015
My comments on the article "NTUC 'roving truck' for elderly making its rounds"
In summary of the article, it is part NTUC's social enterprises' Pioneer OK! Package whereby mobile trucks containing NTUC goods will be making its way around Singapore to provide services to the residents. The rationale being that not every area has an NTUC outlet, thereby bringing NTUC to them instead. This is specially targetting elderly or the pioneer generation. The Pioneer OK! package is a 15 month package with discounts and preferential treatment for the elderly according to the NTUC webpage. NTUC has also launched a new social enterprise, SilverACE senior activity centre which aims to reach 500 seniors, especially those who do not have access to social networks and little family support. Therefore, they have the best interests at heart and also want to allow those who may feel neglected or cut off from the outside world to feel more included and appreciated through these measures.
In my opinion, I think that this package might be able to benefit many people and might also be successful in portraying gratitude towards the elderly. As the elderly are one of the groups in Singapore that require constant attention and care due to ageing population.The idea is rather good and creative and something that is not done very often. It also requires a lot of effort and time to plan.They also have catered to what kind of things the elderly may want such as health supplements. Free health screening is also provided for the elderly. They have put in much effort to collaborate with others in order to make this work going down to places whereby elderly frequent, an example would be the Thye Hua Kwan Seniors' Activity Centre in Ang Mo Kio. They also have themes that vary monthly to incite interests and make it more attractive for the elderly. These could allow to elderly to also bond and meet new people as they may feel lonely and out of place. Some may even feel under appreciated in their own ways. This could be a platform for them to brighten their moods and also make them more positive.
However, I also feel that constraining showing our elderly appreciation only for 15 months is not a very feasible plan. Although it has goodnatured thoughts behind it's production. Gratitude and appreciation are not things that can be portrayed within a short amount of time alone by certain people. It has to be a combined effort, whereby even the smallest things add up with consistency. However, these are just my own personal opinions and others may have different thoughts on this matter. I also do not have an established level of expertise, therefore i may be unaware of additional efforts that are taken for the elderly in a continuous effort. Our elderly get much special privileges and discounts.I feel it is not going to be well appreciated as it came out of the blue. Also, I think that this could have been done in conjunction with SG50, thus making it less sincere or either more depending on personal view. It could be less sincere because it could be used to hype up the atmosphere along with other SG50 privileges. As, through SG50 many seniors are also benefitting. I read another article from Channel News Asia which stated that 700,000 elderly have gotten the Seniors Package goodies. The Pioneer OK! Package may also be one of the specialties about SG50. However, It could be viewed as a sincere gesture, because as it is commonly stated our pioneer generation have played a key role in building up Singapore to what it is right now.
In conclusion, I think that although the package may be able to help the people and also reach out to some people to make them feel appreciated. Others may feel as though it is not very sincere due to it's inconsistency and also it's clashing with SG50 which may lead people to think that it is just a part of promoting SG50 and efforts done by Singapore. However, a good deed is a good deed and should be credited for it's efforts and thoughts to make it happen. I think that Singapore is trying to reach out to it's people more and also leave a personal touch through these ways and we should try to appreciate them. I have mixed feelings about this article which leads me to sound rather contradictory. In short, I appreciate the help they are trying to offer the elderly, but i also question their motives and fail to understand fully understand their rationale.
References:
Anon. (May 2015) " More than 700,000 to get SG50 Seniors Package goodies" Channel News Asia Retrieved from
http://www.channelnewsasia.com/news/singapore/more-than-700-000-to-get/1864984.html
Anon. (April 2015) "NTUC 'roving truck' for elderly making its rounds" Channel News Asia Retrieved from
http://www.channelnewsasia.com/news/singapore/ntuc-roving-truck-for/1801480.html
In my opinion, I think that this package might be able to benefit many people and might also be successful in portraying gratitude towards the elderly. As the elderly are one of the groups in Singapore that require constant attention and care due to ageing population.The idea is rather good and creative and something that is not done very often. It also requires a lot of effort and time to plan.They also have catered to what kind of things the elderly may want such as health supplements. Free health screening is also provided for the elderly. They have put in much effort to collaborate with others in order to make this work going down to places whereby elderly frequent, an example would be the Thye Hua Kwan Seniors' Activity Centre in Ang Mo Kio. They also have themes that vary monthly to incite interests and make it more attractive for the elderly. These could allow to elderly to also bond and meet new people as they may feel lonely and out of place. Some may even feel under appreciated in their own ways. This could be a platform for them to brighten their moods and also make them more positive.
However, I also feel that constraining showing our elderly appreciation only for 15 months is not a very feasible plan. Although it has goodnatured thoughts behind it's production. Gratitude and appreciation are not things that can be portrayed within a short amount of time alone by certain people. It has to be a combined effort, whereby even the smallest things add up with consistency. However, these are just my own personal opinions and others may have different thoughts on this matter. I also do not have an established level of expertise, therefore i may be unaware of additional efforts that are taken for the elderly in a continuous effort. Our elderly get much special privileges and discounts.I feel it is not going to be well appreciated as it came out of the blue. Also, I think that this could have been done in conjunction with SG50, thus making it less sincere or either more depending on personal view. It could be less sincere because it could be used to hype up the atmosphere along with other SG50 privileges. As, through SG50 many seniors are also benefitting. I read another article from Channel News Asia which stated that 700,000 elderly have gotten the Seniors Package goodies. The Pioneer OK! Package may also be one of the specialties about SG50. However, It could be viewed as a sincere gesture, because as it is commonly stated our pioneer generation have played a key role in building up Singapore to what it is right now.
In conclusion, I think that although the package may be able to help the people and also reach out to some people to make them feel appreciated. Others may feel as though it is not very sincere due to it's inconsistency and also it's clashing with SG50 which may lead people to think that it is just a part of promoting SG50 and efforts done by Singapore. However, a good deed is a good deed and should be credited for it's efforts and thoughts to make it happen. I think that Singapore is trying to reach out to it's people more and also leave a personal touch through these ways and we should try to appreciate them. I have mixed feelings about this article which leads me to sound rather contradictory. In short, I appreciate the help they are trying to offer the elderly, but i also question their motives and fail to understand fully understand their rationale.
References:
Anon. (May 2015) " More than 700,000 to get SG50 Seniors Package goodies" Channel News Asia Retrieved from
http://www.channelnewsasia.com/news/singapore/more-than-700-000-to-get/1864984.html
Anon. (April 2015) "NTUC 'roving truck' for elderly making its rounds" Channel News Asia Retrieved from
http://www.channelnewsasia.com/news/singapore/ntuc-roving-truck-for/1801480.html
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