We're pampered and we know that
JULY 29, 2004
'We're pampered and we know that'
By Azrin Asmani
YES, we take for granted the good life that we have. In fact, we are overpampered and overprotected.
This was the admission from students at a forum yesterday, after Acting Health Minister Khaw Boon Wan delivered a lively speech posing the question: Your generation and mine - which is luckier?
Mr Khaw said his generation was luckier than his parents'. It was up to today's young, who grew up with plenty, to create their own luck.
More than 700 students aged 15 to 25 attended the Mayor's Lecture Series 2004, held at The Arts Centre, Anglo-Chinese School (Barker Road). It was organised by the Central Singapore Community Development Council.
Twenty-five students rose to have their say. After the event, Denise Lim, 15, from St Anthony's Canossian Secondary School, said she was unaware of how lucky she was compared to her parents until Mr Khaw painted a picture of the tribulations previous generations underwent.
'My parents have been overindulging me, giving me almost everything that I had wanted.
Sometimes, I feel that they give me too much, and I find myself over-relying on them most of the time,' she said.
Badri Ghent, 15, from Whitley Secondary School, thought youths were overprotected and complacent: 'We lack the determination, and we give up easily,' he said.
A survey conducted by the organisers last month revealed that nearly all of the 100 youths polled believed they had more opportunities to pursue higher studies than the previous generation.
Mr Khaw, who was visibly surprised by the candour of the students' admission that they were overpampered, was quick to offer some words of encouragement.
'Acknowledgment of a problem is the beginning of a solution. Expose yourself, and remove the protection, one by one.'
Take a trip to Johor Baru or the Riau Islands to experience what it is like outside an 'overprotective' environment like Singapore, he suggested.
'Along the way, you will realise how lucky and how blessed you are. Then the next step is for you not to take things for granted,' he added.
Mr Khaw, 52, a father of three, urged them to strive for success, and dream dreams. Do not be constrained by their parents' conservatism.
'In fact, I prefer your generation to be rebellious. Because if you are just conforming to the social norms, then you are merely following our footpath which may not be relevant for you.'
Copyright @ 2004 Singapore Press Holdings. All rights reserved.
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