Endoh’s Dungeon

For automobile enthusiasts like me, we are extremely delighted that the F1 Grand Prix is finally here in Singapore. With limited land, who would have thought we would be playing host to these mean machines? Truth is, they are indeed going to be here. The engines will be roaring and the crowd will be cheering. At the end of it, it will be one of those events that will put Singapore in the limelight once more. Singapore enjoys being noticed. At least for now, The grand Prix will position Singapore in a more positive light following the boo-boo committed by ISD with the escape of terrorist Mas Selamat.

I remembered how motorsports used to be a part of Singapore (video) in the 1960s. While I wasn’t exactly born until 10 years later and by then, the Singapore Grand Prix was already a thing of the past. Having the Grand Prix back in Singapore is like reliving the dreams all over again. Except this time, the drivers are from any other countries but Singapore, unlike in the old days. That alone, is a big disappointment.

Personally, I received the Grand Prix with mixed feelings. Great event it will be, but yet it takes this international event to reinstate what Singaporeans have been forcefully deprived of all these years. For three and a half decades (the last race was in 1973), Singaporeans were “brain-washed” with how dangerous motorsports can be, following fatal accidents. That’s how long it had been.

Oh well, we did have racing afterall. If you’re aware of Kallang Rally, Singapore’s racing scene was reduced to… erm… carparks. Pathetic? Indeed. Like I have said, the issue of “safety” has always been used as one of the reasons to kill any possible racing activities in Singapore. Hence, the arrival of the Grand Prix is indeed worth celebrating.

The sad truth about the Grand Prix, on the other hand, just presented itself as the best evidence of how money-minded Singapore can be. Can you imagine how it feels like when Singapore is preaching about safety and dangers of racing and suddenly one day… HOLAAAAAAA the Grand Prix is here? This big event that is supposed to heighten Singapore’s reputation in terms of tourism, now becomes a point of mockery. Whatever happened to Singapore’s “safety concerns”? Well, the dangers mysteriously disappeared from the thick stack of propaganda. It doesn’t even matter if someone has to face the risk of flipping over the bridge and drowning in Singapore River inside his racing machine’s cockpit. All in the name of - MONEY.

I tried for weeks to battle myself, is the Grand Prix being brought back here to revive the Singapore’s racing scene? Is the Grand Prix brought back for Singaporeans, even though we know Singaporeans are going to be there? Obviously, it wasn’t. No doubt activities have been conducted to share with modern Singaporeans about our past, the main consideration wasn’t about that bit of culture when Singapore went independent. The line is drawn pretty clear. It’s the tourists and the tourism revenues they are hunting after.

You may oppose my views but let’s ask ourselves a perfectly legitimate question, should there be little tourism revenues, do you actually believe that the Grand Prix will be brought back on our shores?

Among other reasons, the inconveniences and difficulties in road closures forced Singapore into stopping such races after 1973. How thoughtful Singapore has been for three and a half decades? As a Singaporean, I appreciated the kind gesture oh-so-much. Pun intended, of course. Now the year reads 2008, and we have supposedly more cars than we had back in 1973 and earlier. It will be even tougher and more inconvenient, or so we thought.

Heck, with millions of dollars looking to find their homes in Singapore’s pocket, what is not possible? Some of Singapore’s busiest streets will be closed with “minimal disruption”. If you’re one of those “lucky ones” to be working along the race-route, you will be delivered “out of the way” as early as possible. Special transportation arrangements can be put in place to ship you out fast too. Even classic spots with festivals that clashed with the Grand Prix date have to be brought forward just to accommodate the race.

Ironic? Yes, you bet. Overnight, all the problems that Singapore had used to prevent Singaporeans from having a taste of this grand affair are no longer problems. We can always work around them, with money of course. It led me to question, if tweaking the Singapore system over the past 35 years was an absolutely impossible task? If the rules can be “bent” now, what has kept Singapore from doing the same in the past 35 years? Well, the fact that those wheels will be spinning on our roads offered the best answer. It’s not something that cannot be done. So what have the respective officials been doing all these 35 years? Sitting on their jobs?

Again, I have to applaud the arrival of Grand Prix on our shores. Yet, the other side of the circumstance tells me Singapore has been absolutely slow and unproductive in this aspect. It took them 35 years to finally learn that racing can be made safe in our country, while racing has already been a keynote event in many other countries.

With all of Singapore’s racing legends, I honestly thought it will even be a better idea to see Singapore drivers on the circuit. It’s not meant to be, because racing is too dangerous for Singaporeans. Just imagine if the Grand Prix had remained all through the years, how many more employment opportunities will Singaporeans be looking at? Who knows, there might be a Singaporean race engineer? Who knows, there might be a Singaporean racer? Missed opportunities for people in my age, or older. We didn’t make that choice. We were deprived of it.

The lure of money, how irresistible it is. The smell of money, how sweet the dream can be. The taste of money, how addictive it is. So much so, money alone can make us change our stance towards the “beliefs” that we have been holding on for 35 years. So much so, money alone can alter the policies set in place to “protect” Singaporeans from harm. And even more so, money alone can make policy-makers look in a different direction.

How true indeed, money makes the mare goes. Dear Singapore, how long more will it take for you to walk the talk? Do we really have to wait another 35 years for us to discover another propaganda is anything but real?