Old Buggers are dying and it's more than sad

The year 2005 clearly belonged to old men. Presidents Nathan, Wee and Nair who are in their 80s shapped 2005 in a silent but significant way for Singapore.The passing of Presidents Wee and Nair pointed to the fact that the political ‘Old Guard,’ is dying and Presidnt Nathan's re-election showed how far we have to go in defining the legacy of the "Old Guard."

On one level, their legacy is complete. Today, we simply have no personal experience of the things that were so common to them. We have recently been hearing about how Devan Nair tamed the once militant labour union. Today, labour disputes are settled relatively quickly and we don’t read of wild acts of violence. Devan Nair’s name may be forgotten in a generation but if labour relations are as smooth as they are now, Devan Nair’s legacy is secured.

But nationhood is more than just political stability and prosperity. It involves having a sense of shared history, myths and other intangibles that are part of what anthropologist call culture. I share my Singaporean identity through having served National Service and an enjoyment of Laksah. But I can’t share history with fellow Singaporeans. My Indian friends by comparison can talk about the legacy of Gandhi and Nehru.

Some of the Old Guard have tried to change this. Minister Mentor, Lee Kuan Yew and President Wee Kim Wee have published their books but the ‘Old Guard’ needs to do more to help Singaporeans internalise their history.

Take the Singapore Water Story as an example? How many of us feel something about the fact that we have moved from being water scarce in the 60s to opening our desalination plant this year? I once had the privilege of being commissioned by PUB to interview someone who had worked at PUB for 40-years. I admit that I had an unfair sense of perspective. My maternal grandfather headed the water department in the 60s and my interviewee knew him. He was excited to tell me about how my grandfather had stopped him from leaving PUB. I was able to live history on a personal basis.

Then it struck me. If I had never interviewed this man, I would never have been able to feel the water story. My grandfather died the year I was born and no one else told me the story from their perspective. Isn’t it ironic that we have all the technology to record people but no one is telling their story to be recorded for future generations?

PUB Chairman, Tan Ghee Phaw should set an example and get his story recorded, either as a book or documentary. This should encourage others do the same?

Civil Servants may be less reluctant to share their experiences than politicians. After all they have spent careers trained not to speak to people about their work. But what’s not to stop them after they have retired. We should get people who have lived history to help bring it to the young. Take the example of PUB and the water story. As well as encouraging people who have served PUB for a long time to record their memoirs, we could encourage them to tell stories at schools, thereby bringing history to the young.

Age is catching up and once people die, their story is lost. Now that Singapore is 40, shouldn’t we take a bit of time out and start recording legacies so that valuable knowledge and experiences are not lost with the passing of every individual.

Copyright: Tang Li (c)2006