As a military personnel, we are not to openly support any presidential candidate and should remain neutral. We serve whichever leader that Singaporeans elect. We respect the system in place and for the choice of the Singapore people. Hence, during this presidential election, all I hoped for was a unifying figure, whoever is elected. I am happy to know that our president was voted in with a strong majority.
The other two candidates were respectable. I genuinely feel that they had stepped up to run for the presidency to serve the Singapore public. Both were honourable in their own way, and I hope to see a continuation of individuals willing to be under public scrutiny to serve the country, even when such involvement can be highly uncomfortable, intrusive, and stressful. These candidates have thrown themselves into the limelight and sacrificed their privacy. While some may say it is a necessary price for the high position and salary, many who have reached that status in life to even qualify for running don’t even care about matters such as monetary rewards or fame.
For the past few days, there was much work to be done. For many Singaporeans like myself, yesterday was a public holiday. But for others, it was answering the call of duty. One of them is my wife, who had left the two kids with me for the past two days. I’m not sure if it was my luck, but there have been quite a few challenges. For instance, I had to stop my elder child’s dialysis last night at 2 a.m. and ring up the nurse on duty. I would like to give thanks to those who keep the system running – the police, the medical professionals, and, of course, my fellow colleagues from the SAF, not forgetting also those who deliver food in the night or drive a PHV.
I am happy that we have elected a non-majority race president. I think this reflects well on our multi-racial community and shows that many Singaporeans are able to look past race when it comes to electing our leaders. The past weeks have been exciting. Let’s look forward to greater heights with our new head of state.
Majulah Singapura.
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