Subscribe
Share
Share
Embed
“Words of Wisdom” is an initiative to document and celebrate the stories, insights, and wisdom of Singapore’s senior citizens. It's powered by Folklory, a service dedicated to preserving stories through audio podcasts, who will collaborate with 60 seniors aged 60 and above to create a series of 60 podcasts, each capturing a unique slice of Singapore’s rich history and culture. Find out more info at Folklory.com
00:00:00:00 - 00:00:24:05
Unknown
Hello there. This is Terence from folkloric. What? You're about to listen to a podcast from the Words of Wisdom project, where we spoke to 60 Singaporeans over the age of 64 as G60 and captured their life lessons for the next generation. We hope you enjoy it.
00:00:24:07 - 00:00:57:22
Unknown
And we're here today to record this for glory with Paul. How we'd like to start, maybe from Paul. Could you just give us a brief introduction of yourself? Certainly. Well, first of all, thank you, Terence, for giving me this opportunity to be part of this program. I'm sure the intent is for us to be able, through our sound bites, to, share some of our experiences and hopefully provide some insights and, and, thoughts that might be useful for others and particularly for the younger generation.
00:00:57:24 - 00:01:28:08
Unknown
I'm Paul Subramaniam. I was I'm Singaporean and we are fourth generation Singaporean family my ancestors came across in 1870. So I'm what I, I am Singaporean to the core. I was lucky enough to have, fortunate upbringing, a very privileged one. And I trained as a lawyer and worked abroad in the UK, initially.
00:01:28:08 - 00:01:59:13
Unknown
And then having become a partner at a top UK law firm, an international firm, I felt that the experiences gained and the perspectives were going to be useful. Share. And I came back to Singapore after living for 16 years in the UK and have been here back home since 1992, working as a lawyer, but also trying to do my part as a lawyer, a Singaporean.
00:01:59:15 - 00:02:19:09
Unknown
So I guess, that's a good place for us to start just talking a little bit about your career and the lessons that you learned from the, could you tell us a little bit about how you got interested in law and what pushed you towards pursuing law as your career was actually a little bit of a default decision.
00:02:19:09 - 00:03:04:04
Unknown
My father was a very eminent doctor and part of the first generation that helped to build this country. And my grandfather was also an eminent doctor and surgeon and in fact, one of the first nonwhite principal medical officers in Malaya in 1942, when the British fled their posts as the Japanese were invading, he stayed in post and continued to help, run the health services in large parts of Malaya during the difficult Japanese occupation, and then keeping the systems going, and also then after, the British returned, he, continued to be a leader in the health services.
00:03:04:06 - 00:03:29:19
Unknown
So, yes, there was a strong tradition of medicine in the family and an expectation that I would follow suit. I feel they were rather big shoes to fill of both my grandfather and my father in particular. And I had other relatives and uncle who was an eminent medical professor, and, was told that I needed to get into medical school and become a doctor.
00:03:29:21 - 00:03:54:24
Unknown
I, I felt, you know, in a way, had I not had that pressure, I probably would have gone into medicine and would probably have enjoyed a good career as a doctor and was particularly interested in surgery. And I did the subjects for medical school, but then decided I would do something different, which in those days meant, of course, that you didn't get deferred for medical school but had to go into NS first.
00:03:54:24 - 00:04:20:21
Unknown
So I did an S and then was thinking, you know, I needed a career of some sort, but what would be a career where I'd be a professional, be able to use skills that were transportable into other areas and, initially started off doing my, doing statistics, economics and politics and quite a lot of music, which is one of my great passions.
00:04:20:21 - 00:04:49:13
Unknown
And then and then added law modules and gradually did more and more law. And that then became my professional qualification. In England, ICAC so I mean, you've definitely had a long, storied career in law as well. What do you think was the quality that allowed you to excel in the profession? Well, it's very kind of you to refer to a long and storied career and excelling.
00:04:49:13 - 00:05:07:17
Unknown
I'm not sure that I did, but I was fortunate enough to, to start off with one of the best law firms in the world, and I think I was the first Singaporean ever to get recruited by what a, what wonderful call the Magic circle firms, which were the very top end national firms in London in the early 1980s.
00:05:07:17 - 00:05:41:03
Unknown
And they came and recruited us out of Cambridge, where I was a law scholar. And, you know, I think the education that I received as a child here was perhaps slightly different from the current system. I think we we questioned more. We, we had independence of thought. And it was a time in Singapore where we had to really find ways with limited resources to make, make things happen.
00:05:41:03 - 00:06:12:15
Unknown
So there was a risk taking mentality and thinking out of the box. Lateral thinking. And and I think that helped me also because that was very much the mantra that I found at universities. I was at two universities in England and, there was always this sense of there are many ways to, to peel an onion. But you do want to find a way that actually creates the best value, the quickest outcome and the most creative way.
00:06:12:17 - 00:06:37:07
Unknown
And, I think I had that instinct of wanting to think outside the box and see things, not just literally, but maybe from, from a perspective which was not just this, these are my instructions. This is what I'm being asked to do, and I will do it. But rather, you know, what does success look like to a client?
00:06:37:09 - 00:07:06:18
Unknown
What is an outcome of that is a win win for the client, but also for the other side. And what is a way of approach and thinking that would stand out as being differentiated and stand above the crowd? I see, I see. So in that sense, what would you say definitively was the highlight of your legal career?
00:07:06:20 - 00:07:44:17
Unknown
Well, I was, you know, I'm in a career that's over 40 years. It's hard to refer to one highlight. There were many highlights, and there were many, periods which were the opposite of highlights and periods of tremendous stress and and times when things didn't go well. Very, very competitive environment. When you're with a top international firm and you're one of the very few Asians or, or people from a different, you know, society and a different ethnicity and a different nationality and a different background.
00:07:44:17 - 00:08:33:11
Unknown
So there was that challenge of having to somehow fit into, a way of thinking and behavior and patterns and articulation that was different from Singapore. And I think feeling that I had managed to make that transition, I was at Linklaters and then at slaughter. Manslaughter in May was probably the most pukka law firm in the UK, and at one stage regarded as one of the preeminent M&A firms in the world, alongside, up to Lipton in New York and feeling that I was very that I was being well-regarded there and was standing above my peers who were themselves in the main, you know, the top law scholars out of Oxford and Cambridge.
00:08:33:13 - 00:09:10:03
Unknown
It was a good feeling, being entrusted with responsibility early on, allowed to lead major transactions, I think in my third year I was sent to Italy to draft the first ever Republic of Italy public prospectus for its Eurobond offering. And that was me in my 20s, sitting with the director general of the Treasury of Italy, trying to define the Italian economy in the prospectus and being entrusted to do that was a great sense of of of positive affirmation and self-belief.
00:09:10:05 - 00:09:37:12
Unknown
But there were many, situations. I mean, when I was able to create an, a structure for reducing capital, using unlimited companies in the legislation, you know, became known for a short period of time as the super money metric. And I, you know, I was I was particularly chuffed when the, Queen's Council, we went to secure an opinion, said, well done, young man.
00:09:37:12 - 00:10:23:11
Unknown
It's a good creative solution that will work. So I think those were points of, of great satisfaction and happiness. Becoming a partner for the young in my career in an international firm was, was a period of, you know, immense, self-fulfillment and then being entrusted to come back to Singapore and help set up the Singapore office for one of the big international law firms, and then becoming managing partner, in charge in my 30s of more senior people in the firm, many of whom were, well, you know, British or American partners was, again, you know, a wonderful sense of, of of having got there despite the odds.
00:10:23:17 - 00:10:53:11
Unknown
So those were high points. I think finding solutions for clients, was always satisfying. Yeah. And sometimes feeling that you were doing things that were genuinely making a difference to people's lives, privatizations, where, you know, assets were being transferred from the state into the public, into the private sector, creating better outcomes for the economy. Those were satisfying.
00:10:53:13 - 00:11:21:08
Unknown
And there was that element of doing pro-bono work, not for money, helping individuals who wouldn't otherwise have access to top lawyers and top lawyer. And that gave tremendous satisfaction when we, when, when I had opportunities, particularly when I was managing partner and a senior partner of ensuring that we had a good pipeline of pro bono work that we were doing, to help the disadvantaged.
00:11:21:10 - 00:11:56:08
Unknown
And the less, able to afford our services, I see, I see so I mean, in the midst of all that as well, you know, you not only completed the National service, you actually extended the national service beyond the stipulated, rate, regulatory, amount of time needed to complete the national service requirements. Right. Could you talk a little bit about why you chose to, like, volunteer and go above and beyond for national service in spite of your busy schedule?
00:11:56:10 - 00:12:21:01
Unknown
You know, I was lucky enough to grow up in a family where we had these very strong family values of love, of family and love of nation and love of nation was one of the key mantras and DNA in our family, which I learned from my father and from my grandfather who my maternal grandfather who I mentioned just now, but also reading the history books about my paternal grandfather and how he had made such a difference to communities.
00:12:21:07 - 00:12:46:17
Unknown
Yeah. So, and his portrait is in fact, in the National Gallery, in the pioneer section. So, so, you know, there was there's that strong sense of, of duty and being doing the right thing. So service of nation was always important to me, and it was just the way I was brought up. And it was a value system that I learned from my father and my mother.
00:12:46:19 - 00:13:13:18
Unknown
I was born in the UK when my father was doing a special program to to help with, working out new modalities for the eradication of tuberculosis, which was the Covid of that time. And he helped with Sir John Crofton create one of the the gold standard treatment that was later adopted by the W.H.O. and he was quite eminent in medicine for that and for other things.
00:13:13:20 - 00:13:38:01
Unknown
But I was because I was born in the UK, I had dual citizenship till I was 21, but at 18 I took the decision to do an S and to renounce my British citizenship rights. Now I was not asked to do it. I just chose to do it on my own. So that was something which was a value system I had imbibed from my parents, but from my family.
00:13:38:03 - 00:14:06:02
Unknown
No questions asked. I just did it. And then when I went away to the UK for 16 years, there was this period of having to deal with exit permits and deferment, which was always quite complicated. But I when I started working in London after my first degree, second degree and then my professional law exams, I felt that I wanted to just try and still keep myself current with my military training.
00:14:06:02 - 00:14:44:07
Unknown
And I had been a SCAF infantry officer. Had been through CSE in the 1970s and one of the early SMC batches when we still actually had Israeli instructors. And so I wrote, to the then director of manpower, I think it was Mr. Saladin on one of these old error grams typed letter saying, Dear sir, would it be all right if I carry on doing some sort of military training with a British regiment and, and keep myself current with the government of Singapore and Mindef in particular, have any objections?
00:14:44:09 - 00:15:06:10
Unknown
And surprisingly, I got a letter back from Mr. Navin, himself, which is quite remarkable that he had taken the trouble to write to me. He, of course, later became a wonderful, much loved president of Singapore and a man of the people. He, said, if you can find a good British regiment. Yes, go ahead and keep us posted.
00:15:06:10 - 00:15:36:00
Unknown
So I joined one of the most prestigious British regiments and found time. And in between my work to serve in the Royal Horse Artillery, which is the oldest regiment of the British Army, founded by Henry the Eighth in 1537, and that again led to quite, you know, adaptation. I was one of the physically one of the smallest guys in the regiment, has a role in operating as long range in those days in the 80s, reconnaissance behind enemy lines.
00:15:36:00 - 00:16:13:05
Unknown
So you had to learn how to communicate by, by Morse code to listen for the sound of Russian tanks at T 55, things like that. Because it was pretty private, you know, it was pre, the dismantling of the Soviet Union and prepare a Stryker. And so when I came back and I enjoyed my service and I continued to be a member of that regiment and enjoy, you know, that that richness of regimental tradition, and in fact, I had the privilege of planting a tree at the regimental headquarters, in 2000, the year 2000, alongside the royal family and other members.
00:16:13:05 - 00:16:37:19
Unknown
So, you know, they respected me as a Singaporean who had decided to serve. And I was allowed to serve because I'd been born British. So I came back and I was fully engaged in my work. But I was contacted eventually by Mindef who said, look, can we try and use you? But I was only a lieutenant in the late 30s, early 40s, in my late 30s.
00:16:37:19 - 00:17:01:23
Unknown
And they left me for a few years to get my practice up and running for the international firm here. But then they contacted me and said, how can we use you? Because I had done NVC training. You know, I had sort of become familiar with how you look at chemical warfare and nuclear biological warfare, things that look current and contemporary in, in, in Europe and in NATO, but not so here at that stage.
00:17:01:23 - 00:17:26:19
Unknown
And so I went back and then they found gradually roles for me. And then it evolved and morphed and, and I became slightly more useful and advanced and, and, and I did various forms of training that were of benefit to the SAF and some of it was was highly confidential. And I was made, I was made a key appointment holder and gradually promoted.
00:17:26:19 - 00:17:55:19
Unknown
I went to Archie as one of the few volunteers, a senior officer. And and yeah, I was and then, I was asked if I would continue serving, because I helped in some of the thought and implementation for some of our, more sensitive roles as an armed forces. And, and I did and served till I was 56, as, you know, as, as a lieutenant colonel.
00:17:55:21 - 00:18:17:00
Unknown
Oh, well, okay. I mean, what's the right thing to do? And I did it. In fact, when I was asked to go to Archie and was stuck in Archie, I was not able to complete my forms to justify my bonus in the US law firm, where I was a senior partner. And, it would have meant flying back to complete the forms.
00:18:17:00 - 00:18:39:18
Unknown
We couldn't, you know, get the connectivity. We I was in Malabo and and and Madame and and and holding a very important appointment on behalf of the SAF and working with the coalition forces. And so I took a decision that I would not submit and that I would I would stay in post, not fly back, which I could easily have done to fill my bonus forms.
00:18:39:18 - 00:18:58:24
Unknown
And I probably lost a bonus of, you know, a significant amount of money, several hundred thousand dollars. But I felt it was the right thing to do for the nation and the right thing to do for humanity. Well, I mean, that's I guess, a good place. So we can talk a little bit about love because you talked about love for country.
00:18:59:01 - 00:19:31:05
Unknown
What the when you hear the word love, what does that would mean to you? You know that very the Bible talks about different types of love, agape love and, you know, other modalities of love. And, and so it's love for family. It's love for nation. Love can also mean, having a true sense of where we are, why we are here on earth, and a belief in and a higher being that created us.
00:19:31:05 - 00:20:02:12
Unknown
I'm a Christian. I believe that God created us for a plan and purpose. And, and it does mean love of love of God and love of all things that that matter. For us as humanity and trying to trying to make a difference. Clearly we all have love of family. Some people say it is important that you cannot love others if you don't love yourself.
00:20:02:12 - 00:20:28:06
Unknown
I actually never really felt that love of self or putting one's self first and one's interests first, are the right thing to do. I've always felt that it's love of God, love of nation and love of family. And it, you know, that that are the key relationships. And of course, as parents, we do terribly love our children.
00:20:28:08 - 00:20:55:09
Unknown
And sometimes can be over indulgent. But we do love our partners and spouses. But there are different facets of love. And love can also mean the true essence of you as an individual that is enriched by passions. You know, passion. For me, I can truly with, in all honesty, say that, you know, I have a great love of of art and love of music.
00:20:55:11 - 00:21:24:19
Unknown
And to this day, I mean, yesterday I was in a meeting with, with a Polish ambassador talking about the possibility of setting up the Chopin Society of Singapore. I have a tremendous love of Chopin and a love of music, and I feel that music is a universal language that binds people. Even in the First World War, the German and the British soldiers had an armistice, to play football and to and and to sing carols in at, you know, at Christmas.
00:21:24:21 - 00:22:14:02
Unknown
So, so so yeah, I, you know, those aspects of love matter enormously. A painting can move me enormously and and feed my soul and my spirit, when I'm down and we all have periods when we do need to, truly to to just recalibrate our minds, our value system and a sense of also, I find a love of nature helps us to have an attitude of gratitude for this beautiful world we are in, and that then fills us with also a tremendous sense of responsibility as to what we're doing to our planet, and what is the legacy we are leaving for the next generation.
00:22:14:04 - 00:22:34:12
Unknown
I mean, you're definitely a man of many passions. You know, because there will be a lot of young people who have been this thing through this is a time capsule of the future as well. What advice do you give to a young person who maybe is feeling a little unmoored, or just feels like he's drifting along with life?
00:22:34:14 - 00:22:43:09
Unknown
And he hasn't found a love or passion in his life? What would you say to that young person?
00:22:43:11 - 00:23:08:00
Unknown
Number one, I would say just think back to where we were as a nation and where we are. And that is a remarkable story. The envy of the world. I'm young. I'm old enough to remember us going from mudflats to metropolis, from Third World to First World. And how did we get here? It took hard work. It took discipline.
00:23:08:00 - 00:23:47:23
Unknown
It took leadership with gumption. It took risk taking. And then I think where we are today is not as important as where we want to be. What is our societal destination and how are we going to get there. And I think nobody has all the answers. I don't think even PM one will have all those answers, and you, as the younger individuals, are in the place position and with the solemn responsibility and duty to shape that conversation, to infuse your values, your thought processes.
00:23:48:00 - 00:24:13:18
Unknown
And you have the right and you have the privilege growing up in this society, which is so blessed, so well managed, an improbable society, which is, you know, people refer to it as a city within a garden, one of the most livable cities in the world, a good quality of life, good housing, good education, access into the world.
00:24:13:20 - 00:24:46:03
Unknown
You have a privilege and a choice to make a difference. So you feel slightly at a loss and unhinged. Think that this country needs hardware, mind where an IQ, where to deal with the future, which is going to be far more challenging, far more competitive, and where some of our current heated to comparative advantages are being eroded by technology and many parts of the world, you know, you can set up.
00:24:46:03 - 00:25:14:16
Unknown
I, centers of excellence anywhere in the world. Now, it doesn't have to be in Singapore. It could be in places with bigger populations and lower costs. So I think the younger people need to think, hey, I'm privileged. I'm in this wonderful place. I didn't do anything to deserve to be born in Singapore. And here I am with a golden opportunity in a place that many people would.
00:25:14:16 - 00:25:37:03
Unknown
You know, we have long queues for PR and citizenship. People would give their right hand for it. And here I am. What can I do to make a difference? Let me not feel sorry for myself. Let me rather think. Hang on, dust myself down. Realize that I'm blessed and fortunate to be here and not somewhere else. Living in Gaza, or in Ukraine.
00:25:37:05 - 00:26:03:05
Unknown
And that is that is Providence. That's God putting me here. And am I going to seize the opportunity and do something where my life means something to me, where I can face myself in the mirror and say, every day my life is making a positive difference to those around me who care for me, who love me, but also those who are part of my common humanity.
00:26:03:07 - 00:26:24:19
Unknown
Or am I just going to feel sorry for myself? So, I mean, related to that, I think you touched on it a little bit, but what what do Singaporeans need to do to adapt to, you know, the the changing future that we're facing right now?
00:26:24:21 - 00:27:00:22
Unknown
Okay. You know, I think what what we did at the past was I think we believed and had self-belief and self-belief. Who would have thought that out of a tiny, overpopulated, underserved city state that was crowded with virtually no infrastructure, which was meaningful by international standards and was an LDC, that we would be where we are today within 60 years, one of the ten richest countries of the world on a per capita basis.
00:27:00:24 - 00:27:55:17
Unknown
I think what got us here was exceptionalism, strong leadership. And I think that sense that people were encouraged to be themselves, to think out of the box, to contribute. And there was a plurality of ideas. So we had I have a worry now that it seems that there's a lot of groupthink that, we don't question enough, that, you know, an employee will not go to work thinking I need to fix and make the system work better, that I need to say to my boss, hey, can we improve things because it is easier to just go with the flow, take your salary, go home and enjoy your family and enjoy your handphone and your TV
00:27:55:19 - 00:28:30:16
Unknown
and and so that gumption of trying to take risks and to be better, I think we've lost. And I think part that's partly by having an overt paternalistic society where the leadership has said, trust us, and, let us make all the decisions for you and, don't question us. I think, unfortunately, that has not served us as well as it could have had we, you know, greater alternative voices and and I think I think I think that's I think that's a pity.
00:28:30:16 - 00:28:57:19
Unknown
You know, one sometimes wonders why there is this overwhelming sense of grayness and groupthink and everybody being sort of similar at the top level. And anybody who is not a yes man is left out of the thought process and the discourse. And I think, I think that's the problem. And I think the young people need to say, look, we want more transparency.
00:28:57:19 - 00:29:22:03
Unknown
We want more accountability. I think we are prepared to take risks. We throw so many. So, you know, we throw billions at research within, we have entities like a style so well funded, why don't we have unicorns? What can we be doing better? Where can we be holding people accountable? If mistakes are made, can we be grown up enough to say yes?
00:29:22:03 - 00:29:49:00
Unknown
Sorry, we did make mistakes on these policies. We're going to learn and we're going to go forward. I think that sense of having greater, greater involvement of the entire population, and not just of the yes men at the top, is going to be important for the country to go forward. I, I see that I think our young need to be more prepared to take risks.
00:29:49:00 - 00:30:21:08
Unknown
I think, failures important. I was talking to a professor from, from the Technion University in Israel, which has produced multiple Nobel Prize winners and has far less funding than our agencies. And why do we struggle to to provide a Nobel Prize winner? You know, we've created a society which is so improbable and so successful because we had that first generation who really were prepared to have self-belief and take risks.
00:30:21:08 - 00:30:43:16
Unknown
So we need more risk taking. I think we need to have proper, debate and discussion, not just saying, yes, we're doing this and we're consulting. They only consult with people who will tell them what they want to hear. Well, that's not a good thing for the nation. Sure. And then I worry a little bit about selfishness in society.
00:30:43:18 - 00:31:07:18
Unknown
You know that we can we've got so comfortable. We are so rich that mistakes made can be glossed over because, you know, a couple of hundred million lost year etcetera seems to not move the needle. And so I think we want people to be thinking, young people to think, to be cynical, to question.
00:31:07:20 - 00:31:47:22
Unknown
To focus on a society where they can also talk about what kind of society they want for themselves, for their families, for their children and for their parents. You know, a proper debate about HDB leases. And I think we have to also. As individuals learn to be honest about ourselves, each of us as individuals, and seek every day to try and improve ourselves in in areas where we feel, you know, we could be better, better.
00:31:47:22 - 00:32:14:24
Unknown
Read more widely. Knowledgeable about affairs of the world, less buried in one's telephone and one's narrow sort of orbit of discourse. I mean, the young people, I don't know if many of them maintain the ability to have good debates and good discussions, because it's easy to just go with the flow and, and keep to monosyllabic words via WhatsApp.
00:32:15:05 - 00:32:45:17
Unknown
And, and, you know, all of that has changed, some of the ways people interact. You know, parents and children maybe don't sit down and have meals where they talk. And I suspect one thing we need far more of societally across the board is a greater natural curiosity. A curiosity of, of generally everything in life, not just politics or, but just everything.
00:32:45:17 - 00:33:07:12
Unknown
Not too many people are just monolith. And let's just do our job. And also, the thing is, we've now got such a big government. I mean, we have and so many people in the civil service, I mean, I think we have as many. Somebody sent me a statistics statistic to say with as many ministers as Canada. And we have, you know, where one permanent secretary in the past could have run the Health ministry.
00:33:07:12 - 00:33:29:21
Unknown
Now we have 4 or 5 doing the same job. And so people go into their little tunnel and have an easy life and so they don't have to think out of the box. Just do do the minimal or just do enough to get by and not rock the boat. Yeah. And and so maybe we've become too comfortable, too complacent.
00:33:29:23 - 00:33:53:19
Unknown
And that could be our undoing. That's true, that's true. I mean, just, you know, given that is 60 and we're looking to the future, what do you hope for? Singapore in the next 10 to 20 years of its existence?
00:33:53:21 - 00:34:24:02
Unknown
First of all, I'm very pleased that we have a Prime Minister who has started the forward Singapore discussion, and I'm pleased that he is leading a group of people committed to, at the 4G level to, wanting, I mean, he said he wants to be the champion of every Singaporean. I would like to see that translate from not just mere words to, to actions, where he engages.
00:34:24:02 - 00:34:52:06
Unknown
He's prepared to listen to people who have alternative views, where he's prepared to bring in into his thought process and discourse, people who are not yes, men who will and who have a real love of the country. I would like to see the young directly involved. And it was very nice to see younger people made ministers who have undoubted ability.
00:34:52:08 - 00:35:38:08
Unknown
20 years from now I would like to see us as successful on a comparative basis as we are today. It gets harder and harder the higher you get up the greasy pole. I'd like us still genuinely and not just lip service, committed to exceptionalism rather than managed, mediocrity. I hope we don't drift down that way. I'd like us to still be a country where people are motivated to work hard and to make a difference, and not become a nanny state or a state with creeping welfarism where you can get by by doing very little simply because the state wants your vote, or the government or the leading party wants your vote.
00:35:38:10 - 00:36:06:10
Unknown
So we'll give you whatever you want. Just to keep your vote, whether or not it sort of moves us towards, you know, a nanny state. I hope we don't go that way. I'd like us to be a place which produces thought leadership, which helps influence some of the bigger challenges that globally face us. So what we are doing with climate change, with sustainability is wonderful.
00:36:06:12 - 00:36:42:19
Unknown
What we've done with water. We're one of the best societies in the world with how we capture water. You know, that sort of moral leadership and thought leadership. I'd like us to be doing more. And most importantly, I'd like us to continue to be a nation where everybody has a voice that we have open doors, that we are truly a global super node, where we we embrace diversity, we keep to our strong and steadfast multiracial ism and, and multi-religious, texture.
00:36:42:21 - 00:37:11:13
Unknown
And where we have people who genuinely think and care for others. You know, I'm, I take the meat from time to time and it always surprises me. And I find it disappointing that 90% of the time, the seats for the old ones, and they can genuinely see that we're older, are taken by young people who will bury their heads in their foam and have no conscience about doing the right thing.
00:37:11:13 - 00:37:38:09
Unknown
I think that's worrisome, and I put a lot of the blame to parents. And, you know, they say the mothers that rock the cradle are the influencers. So has something gone wrong in how our women and our mothers become are setting standards for their children? I was in a train recently where there was a very obvious pregnant woman, and it surprised me that nobody was standing up to give her a seat.
00:37:38:11 - 00:38:02:23
Unknown
And I was tempted to go up to a young man who clearly was a national serviceman and say, you know, you're meant to be serving the nation and you can't see there's a pregnant lady who needs a seat. And if the train suddenly breaks and lurches, she could be hurt and she could lose her baby. What is it about our society that has produced this kind of societal behavior?
00:38:03:00 - 00:38:27:08
Unknown
I think that's worrisome. We need to look at ourselves in the mirror and say, some of these things. Maybe we're too much of a nanny state and people are expecting too much and only care for themselves and can be too selfish or self-centered. So I think I'd like to see more come, you know, true sense of caring for others.
00:38:27:10 - 00:38:33:17
Unknown
I.
00:38:33:19 - 00:39:03:15
Unknown
Hello again. I hope you enjoyed listening to that for query. Words of wisdom is a project by Charlotte Gall, powered by full query and supported by our Singapore Fund. To find out more, please visit our website at Aecom. That's f o l k o r y.com. Goodbye.