Singapore again

We are now back in Singapore again. It has been 4 months since we left. Nothing has changed while we were away. The drive back home on the west coast from Changi Airport was as normal except for that there was a little more traffic on the road.

Four months away and the house was covered with dust. The floor was dirty and covered with a thin layer of black dust/soot from vehicle exhausts. Walking with bare feet resulted is black soles on the feet. The first job on the priority list was mopping of the floor. We then went to the local supermarket for our essentials and a little dinner at the foodcourt.

This morning I went out for my morning paper and my coffee at the local market. Sitting down at a table for my coffee and read my papers an old man in his 70s struck up a conversation by pointing to the headline on the paper and saying that there will be more trouble in Myanmar. To my great surprise he continued by saying that the same thing should happen in Singapore. From him I found out what COE and ERP stand for. They should stand for Certificate of Entitlement for car ownership and Electronic Road Pricing. He said they should stand for Certificate of Extortion and Everyday Rob People. He was a very unhappy man. I made a hurried departure from him as I was not prepared to be marked by any government agent who might be lurking nearby. I cannot afford to be marked as one who asks too many questions or who is too outspoken. I need my visa to stay in Singapore.

My next stop was to my vegetable seller friend. I greeted him by asking how he is and about his business. He too indicated a great downturn in his business since our last encounter 4 months ago. Things are getting harder by the day for ordinary people in the street he said.

Singapore is an economical miracle. The stock market is at a high peak and as a country it is doing extremely well. However, from the marketplace, people are whinging and grumbling at high costs, price hikes on daily essentials and transport. One comment often heard is that the great Singapore miracle is only good for a small percentage of the population. For the majority of Singaporeans things are getting tougher.

It is going to be an interesting 3 month stay here in Singapore. Who knows, things might change for the poor Singaporeans. It is changing elsewhere, why not in Singapore?