Election in the midst of a pandemic

Circuit Breaker came in 3 phases just so it allows Singapore to gradually open up safely and hopefully swiftly. While we were getting used to what was deemed as “the new normals”, living through extended periods of CB and lockdowns - with no bubble tea;  the G decided to bring forward Phase 2 as announced in mid June. What does Phase 2 entails? Retailers get to resume their business, consumers get to dine out, shop and arrange long overdue meet ups with a couple of friends, of course, with the measures in place. There were lots of speculations in the grapevine that something big was looming and before we were trying to get settled into Phase 2, the President announced the dissolution of Parliament on 23 June. General Election is here! This is definitely sooner than expected. Of course, strike it while the iron is hot. Without a doubt, the G has been trying their best to tide every Singaporeans through the difficult times, providing solidarity payouts and creating contractual and temporary jobs which were beneficial and come in handy especially to those who were unemployed or left jobless due to the CB. But having an election within 2.5 weeks after paliamentary dissolution was really fast and furious. 

Due to safe distancing and Phase 2 measures whereby no social gatherings/events of more than 5 people are permitted, this GE is indeed one of its kind. The typical outdoor rallies with massive crowds were a definite no-no. There were a lot more social media activities as the candidates relied on new media platforms such as Facebook Live, Instagram, Zoom to reach out to Singaporeans and one even used TikTok to engage the younger crowd. Let's not forget about Hypebeast Ah Gong and Cockles Oppa who became overnight social media sensations. Technology has indeed brought the world closer, in this case, the little red dot is now even more well connected than ever. Apart from the usual candidates walk-abouts at community spaces, this was the first time televised political debates and e-rallies via Facebook and YouTube were introduced. Although there were lack of fanfare and crowd atmosphere at the political rallies, at least the various parties managed to deliver their manifestos across safely and swiftly. 

I was never interested nor involved myself in the local political scenes till recent years. Is it because I’m much older now? Perhaps. And soon enough I’ll be part of the sandwich generation. So what are some of the key takeaways that I’ve learnt from this year’s GE?

• If one ever aspires to be a politician, make sure your life report card is clean as a whistle, you never know when skeletons would be dug out of the closets with your past track records biting you in the ass. (All thanks to social media)
• The more educated we are, the more vocal we become. More young voters want more alternative voices to represent them. The SG political scene is changing. Yay to more checks and balances. 
• Never underestimate the power of social media. It is so potent in influencing one’s public opinion and in this context - votes. 
• Every vote counts - yet there were still so many spoilt votes. Don’t sit on the fence leh. 

Change is coming albeit in baby steps.