A clean S’pore requires mindset shift
I refer to the report “Balakrishnan urges stand against littering as summonses double” (Feb 2).
Calls for Singaporeans to clean up after themselves, after rubbish was left behind at the Laneway music festival, might have stirred some to be more conscious, but they also stirred xenophobic sentiments online.
While denying the culpability of “true-blue Singaporeans”, many railed against foreigners and new citizens for creating the mess — eccentric perspectives backed by prejudice.
This is not the first time we have been asked to clean up our act. Singapore has a long history of campaigns such as the Keep Singapore Clean campaign, launched in 1968, and the Clean and Green Week, launched in 1990.
Led by the National Environment Agency, the Clean and Green Singapore campaign of today aims similarly to “inspire Singaporeans to care for and protect our living environment by adopting an environmentally friendly lifestyle”.
Perhaps, punitive measures are more effective. The 19,000 summonses issued for littering last year, twice as many as in 2013, could point to greater indiscretion, though more information could be furnished on the enforcement efforts.
The long-term trend of these summonses could be studied together with the intensity of enforcement efforts and preventive endeavours. Ascertaining the latter would be useful when planning new ways to engage the public beyond the Clean and Green Week.
It is convenient to proclaim success through feedback exercises with participants claiming that they learnt something, yet much harder to track behavioural changes due to a programme.
The ultimate intent is for Singaporeans to manage their consumption habits and take greater responsibility in public spaces. Mindsets must shift.
The tone of the message matters too. Emeritus Senior Minister Goh Chok Tong’s Facebook remarks that “cleanliness is a character thing (which) shows who you really are” were harsh.
It is not necessarily accurate to equate one’s character with the level of civic-mindedness. This change to clean up our act must come, but it will only come collaboratively.
