A Reddit post about life in Singapore has gotten Singaporeans all riled up.
A netizen wrote a post on the site, urging Malaysians to treat Singapore as a place to earn money and not put down roots here.
It was not stated whether the OP was Malaysian or Singaporean.
The reason for the post?
The OP had a conversation with a private-hire vehicle (PHV) driver who claimed he regrets giving up his Malaysian citizenship to become Singaporean.
The driver painted a bleak picture of life in Singapore. In his words, living here feels like an endless grind, where he must work until he dies just to keep up with rising costs.
It is unclear how old the PHV driver or when he became Singaporean, but one thing is for sure, retiring here is not on the cards for him.
His backup plan lies across the Causeway as he shared that his wife remains a Malaysian citizen, which gives them the option to eventually retire in Malaysia, where living costs are significantly lower.
However, one issue continues to weigh on him. His two children are Singaporeans, making National Service (NS) unavoidable, and is something he worries could limit their flexibility as a family in the future.
The conversation clearly left an impression on the OP, who went on to caution Malaysians thinking of migrating to Singapore.
While the Redditor acknowledged that some Malaysians may have frustrations with the country’s politics, he argued that citizenship is a bigger trade-off than many realise.
“Singapore is already densely populated, with millions of people living on a small island. More forests are being cleared to build additional housing, and new citizens may find themselves surrounded by buildings for the rest of their lives,” he explained.
He also pointed out that Malaysian men do not need to serve National Service, unlike Singaporean men who must serve two years and continue reservist duties for years after.
First-generation male citizens who obtain Singapore citizenship as adults, typically in their 30s or 40s, are generally not required to serve NS.
However, those who become citizens at a young age and are educated in Singapore are enlisted.
Now, to say Singaporeans were furious at the OP’s post was an understatement. Many flooded the comments criticising both the netizen who wrote the post and the PHV driver.
“Stop playing the victim. No one is stopping you from leaving, or forcing you to stay,” read a comment.
Another sarcastically wrote, “If it’s really that bad, the Causeway is right there”.
The post has since been taken down on Reddit.