Halimah Yacob to Singaporeans: I Feel Sad Looking At How Unkind We Can Be

Madam President Halimah Yacob expressed her disappointment with Singaporeans. She read some negative comments about Joseph Schooling’s loss in the Olympics and was sad to see people “thrash” him to the ground.

She has had enough of us giving excuses for ourselves when we do not perform well but mocking others when they cannot do the same.

“One moment, we carry people to the highest pedestal with our words, yet the next moment we thrash the to the ground just because they fail to live up to our expectations. Yet, many a time, we would ask for dispensation for ourselves if we did not achieve something which others expect of us. We argue that we are only human but we don’t apply the same yardstick to others.”

She said that we always talk about building a gracious society but do not practice it. She reminded all of us to appreciate our national athletes as they have put in a lot of effort to prepare for the Olympics.

“We talk incessantly about building a gracious, compassionate and caring society because we believe that a society thrives not just on economic growth alone. It’s easy to articulate these values, but a lot more difficult to practise it. We will be tested ever so often, like in this instance.

So let’s be kind. Support our athletes wholeheartedly. They are doing their best.”