SINGAPORE — Young people in Singapore have it better today because they enjoy advantages and opportunities that “never existed in my generation”, Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong said.

"My starting point is, as an old man, I envy the young men and women," he said in an interview with Singapore media around three weeks before his May 15 handover of the premiership to Deputy Prime Minister Lawrence Wong.

He added: “We have built Singapore, we have built the education system, we have educated you, we have given you perspectives on the world and opportunities to travel.”

With nearly half of the youth in Singapore having attended autonomous universities here compared with the 3 per cent or 4 per cent that did so during his youth, Mr Lee said that “practically everybody” who attended university today has an externship and overseas attachment during their course of study.

An externship is a short-term work experience in a company and is similar to an internship.

Looking back at his political career that spanned four decades, Mr Lee gave two separate interviews in English and Mandarin at the Istana on April 26 and 28 respectively.

He fielded questions on various topics ranging from political engagement among the youth, the Singapore identity to the Opposition’s impact in Parliament.

Responding to a question about how young people can have the confidence that they are really doing better than previous generations, Mr Lee said that the present generation’s exposure to technology at a younger age has opened up job possibilities that his own generation never heard of in the past.

“E-sports trainer – you can make a living! You are sitting there playing with your fingers and mouse, in a super special chair with a big screen, and you can make a living," Mr Lee observed. “So, is that a worse life than the previous generation? I do not think so."

He then said: “I would feel very disappointed that a young person was pessimistic about his opportunities in life and wished he had been born earlier. I wish I had been born later.”

When it comes to the upgrading of material possessions and progressing in life, it is important for young people today to understand that they are at a higher starting point than the previous generations, Mr Lee said.

Previous generations underwent rapid progression as Singapore transformed itself from “third world to first”, which was an “exhilarating journey” that saw many people become very successful, he added. 

For example, Singaporeans in the past might have started their home ownership journey with a three-room flat, later upgrading to an executive apartment or private property. 

In contrast, Mr Lee said that today's young might start with a four-room or five-room flat, and in some cases, a condominium. 

“You are not starting at the same very low level, but you are starting at a higher level and a higher quality of accommodation as well as life,” Mr Lee said. 

“Can you bring it higher? Answer is yes. It will not improve as fast as before, but you came very fast from here to here and you are not going back down.” 

Mr Lee said that while upgrading may be slower now for young people, if they continue to “work at it", it is possible to continue moving upwards. 

Responding to a question about how the Government can convince young people to look beyond financial and material gains, Mr Lee said that young people must consider the “quality of living” as wee, and not just the type of property where they live.

Mr Lee said that rental flats of yesteryear would house between five and 10 people in a family, something that is uncommon today.

Even though it might be more difficult for the younger lot to upgrade from public housing to private housing today, the surrounding amenities promise a high quality of life no matter where they live. 

“In terms of the quality of the life in your home — the amenities, the connections, the social environment in the neighbourhood that we have built up — I think you can have a very high quality of life in Singapore, and (it is) comparable to, if not better than, nearly every other major city in the world,” Mr Lee added.

He noted that the only thing Singapore perhaps lacks when compared to other major cities is having space for people to “decompress”, such as how those working in Manhattan in New York can travel upstate to de-stress.

"There is no upstate Singapore, because all of Singapore is pretty developed. But our neighbouring countries are not very far away. Many Singaporeans travel — that is why there are long traffic jams on the weekend on the Causeway," he said. 

On this matter, he then said that the upcoming Rapid Transit System Link between Singapore and Johor Bahru will "make things better".

‘WOKENESS’ CAN HAVE NEGATIVE EFFECTS

Responding to another question on how outside influences affect the younger generation, such as the “wokeness” movement, Mr Lee said that when "a new fad sweeps the world", Singaporeans should look at it cautiously before deciding whether it is a wise cause to follow.

A concept originating from western societies, “wokeness” refers to the state of being aware, especially of social problems such as racism and inequality.

Mr Lee said that this movement leads to “very extreme attitudes and social norms” that have a negative knock-on effect, especially in some academic institutions and universities. 

“You are super sensitive about other people that you become super sensitive about other people's issues, and you become hypersensitive when other people somehow or other say things or mention things or refer to you, without the respect that you or your super subgroup feel you are entitled to.”

He mentioned concepts such as creating safe environments, respecting preferred pronouns, and giving warnings before potentially offensive remarks.

“I do not think we want to go in that direction,” Mr Lee added. 

“It does not make us a more resilient, cohesive society with a strong sense of solidarity. We must be more robust.”

GETTING YOUTH INTERESTED IN POLITICS

On the subject of social media channels such as Facebook, Instagram and TikTok being a way of getting the young interested in politics, Mr Lee's view is that they cannot convey the essence of being Singaporean.

However, social media is effective during a crisis because the younger generations would “pay attention”, he observed. 

He cited as an example how, during Covid-19, his social media posts across platforms were well-followed because people were anxious and wanted to know what was happening. 

“If I had something new to tell them or to update them, they wanted to know.” 

It was the same during major world events such as Israel’s war on Gaza or the Ukraine war when news consumption increased. 

“Hopefully, people read all these and do not just treat it as entertainment,” Mr Lee said. 

His hopes are that when young people consume the news, they will also contemplate what it means to be Singaporean.

Singapore has been trying to instil this sentiment by various means such as through schools, during National Service and on National Day.

This may be "a lot of work", but they are important tasks, he said. 

"It is an opportunity for people to take pride in the country. These things mean something and we need to do more of them."

When asked about getting young people interested to join politics, Mr Lee said that those who are idealistic and want to make a contribution should “seriously consider” doing so.

However, he acknowledged that it is harder nowadays to decide to stand as a candidate in elections, because people who enter public life often lose their privacy in the process.

Candidates are also often subject to online vitriol, which can sometimes be “very vicious”, Mr Lee added.

“If all your weekends are spent in the constituency, when are you going to take your kid to the zoo?” he asked.

Even if young people were willing to give up their privacy and family time for public life, their families might not feel the same. 

“The families say, ‘Why do I want to put myself and my kids through this? Even if you are willing to sacrifice, you must think about us.’ So that is a real problem.”