SG50: 50 Things from Singapore’s Past – Part 1

As we edge closer to the 50th year of Singapore’s independence, this got me thinking about some of the things from our past, be it lifestyle, environment, government policies etc that marked this era. It’s also likely that some of these things are gone forever and it’s good to reminisce about the years gone by. So I’ve come up with my list of 50 things, I witnessed growing up. Some I’ll miss, some I’ll pine for and some I hope are forever left in the dustbin of history. Obviously there are far more than 50 things, but these are the things I can recall off-hand, in no order of significance.

1. Non-air-conditioned buses

Of course some non-aircon services lasted into this century, but there was a time when all buses were non-aircon and if not a veritable death trap, made travel very uncomfortable. Imagine being stuck like sardines in a crowded bus on a rainy day with all the windows closed. There was a term coined ‘stunt bus.’ No the buses didn’t do tricks, but since services were not very frequent, you’d better take/catch the bus no matter what. Those days buses had grab bars extending on the steps, so the stunt involved either running to grab a bar to catch the bus as it slowly moved out of the bay, or simply hanging on for dear life.

2. Bus Drivers were gangsters

Those early days bus services were haphazard, with different firms all trying to muscle in on the better routes. No friendly bus captains like today, bus drivers were a law unto themselves, frequently not reporting for work, forcing some services being unavailable, not stopping at bus stops even when the bus was relatively empty. Certain bus companies were related to gangs and their drivers either current or ex-gang members. You’ll recall we had the Hock Lee Bus Riots in the 50s, so bus companies were a favourite of the underworld. There was nothing you could do in way of complaints. A very common sight was to see a bus driver stopping midway through his journey to patronise a hawker stall and buy his food!

3. Bus Conductors were a common sight / The Police took over SBS

I dunno if Service 170 still has a bus conductor but it was the last surviving one for sure. Those days conductors were a common sight. You either told them your destination or handed in the fare amount and get a ticket with a hole punched in to reflect the amount. On crowded buses they played an important role, since the driver could hardly see if it was safe to depart or reverse. So came the ubiquitous sounds ‘Gohead’ and ‘Gostan.’ Meaning ‘go ahead’ or ‘go astern’.

Finally in 1978, the Govt had enough of the rowdy and undisciplined bus companies and took over direct management of SBS. To ensure that everyone will not muck about, the first directors and senior management were seconded from the Police Force. This brought a swift change in attitudes and SBS was able to grow unchallenged and be more pro-active and public oriented from then on. And yes the cops benefitted too, policemen travelled free on SBS buses.

4. Policemen wore shorts and were known as ‘Mat Kampao’

Those days cops wore shorts, hence you’ll still hear some old timers refer to the past – ‘when policemen wore shorts.’ They wore a baggy khaki shorts, before finally we settled on the current smarter all-blue outfits. We also had until then the head of the Police being a Briton, before Cheah Kim Seang became the first local Commissioner of Police in 1967.

You might hear older policemen refer to themselves as ‘Mat Kampao.’ This is actually from the words – ‘makan’ and ‘pao.’ Oh yes, those days being a policemen even the lowliest constable had a lot of clout. Not only did they expect to eat for free but you had to ensure they could ‘taopao’ back for free as well. Fail to do so and you could find your stall suddenly having a lot of enforcement action. There were many other ‘fringe benefits’ too. An old cop told me, how he went to the market – he would go to the first stall with an empty basket and return hours later at the last stall, with it fully stocked up, ‘foc’ of course. And think you could simply walk into police stations and lodge a report straightaway? Nope, you had to wait your turn or rather wait until he was ready to serve you. A small token donation of $1 or so, could very quickly speed up this process.

But the police were feared especially by gangsters and law breakers and to be fair, they did dive in serious cases with a lot of zeal. 2 of our former Commissioners – Goh Yong Hong and Tee Tua Ba, actually battled gunmen when there were lower ranked officers as did many of the top management. (Eat your heart out! – current and soon to retire CP – Ng Joo Hee).

5. We had Jury Trials until 1969

Throughout the British reign and the pre-statehood Govts of Marshall and Lim YH, all cases before the courts were tried by a jury of 7 men. This was changed by Lee Kuan Yew in 1959, except for capital cases. Finally in 1969, he abolished this altogether – saying, ‘I had no faith in a system that allowed the superstition, ignorance, biases, and prejudices of seven jurymen to determine guilt or innocence.’ It’s rumoured he developed this reasoning after noticing how successful certain lawyers were, notably his then rival, David Marshall, who could ‘weave his magic’ in court and convince juries of his clients’ innocence, and Lee’s own experience in getting a person he believed was guilty of the hook, when he was a trial lawyer.

6. We had Clean Sweep Parliaments until 1981

Following independence, we had a Parliament totally controlled by the PAP. They won 4 straight elections to-nil – 1968, 1972, 1976 and 1980. Then in 1981, Devan Nair resigned his Anson seat to become President, and J B Jeyeretnam won the ensuing by-election becoming the first opposition member since independence. And since then we’ve always had at least 1 opposition member. (JBJ was ousted from his seat in 1986 in an outrageous fashion, but Chiam See Tong surprised many by beating Mah Bow Tan in Potong Pasir in 1984 and was the sole opposition MP until WP’s Low won Hougang, and the SDP picked up another 2 seats in 1991).

7. Most of us lived in Kampongs

In 1965, the majority of Singaporeans lived in villages dotted across the island, even in other islands. Lim Yew Hock built the first flats in Mountbatten, and the HDB was formed soon after 1959 and built the Queenstown estate after the Bukit Ho Swee fire.

But kampong life was extremely fun, there was a sense of neighbourliness and a carefree lifestyle, although times were tough. People planted vegetables, reared livestock – usually a few chickens.

8. We had ‘Night-soil Men’

You would hardly think of doing ‘your business’ outdoors today, but this was a common sight in those early days. There was no proper sanitation, and very few homes had proper toilet facilities. So in each village there were 2 huts – 1 for bathing and another to do ‘your business’ in a pot. Sometimes you might find your pot snatched from under you! But no fears, these were ‘night soiled men’ who had the unenviable task of clearing and replacing them. But if you were having a serious stomach ache and could not queue up, you had to find an alternative spot, which was any bush nearby. As the saying goes -’when you gotta to go, you gotta go.’

9. Floods were a real problem

In those days a flood was very severe event, if you lived in a kampong. Not only could your produce be washed away, but also your home and valuables. That’s why many huts were built on stilts or had some stone foundation. The rainy season was not a welcome event and I recall we had a most severe flooding in 1978, where nearly 2/3 of the island faced flooding of some sort. Bus services had to be stopped and also other essentials.

10. Blackouts and water rationing were common

As we moved slowly out of the kampongs, the increase in electricity consumption grew and very soon you’d have blackouts, sometimes lasting a day or 2. Therefore every home would have a steady supply of candles. And water supply could be disrupted too, and we had water rationing. Trucks would come to deliver potable water. Many villages and even those in rental flats or ‘quarters’ would ensure a few drums of water was stashed away in the event of water disruption. Rain water was collected to feed livestock, for produce and to bathe.

11. We all had to be ‘jabbed’

In those days cholera, typhoid and then dengue fever were commonplace. Cholera was a real problem, and all of us had to be inoculated. You will find older Singaporeans with the ‘needle marks’ on their shoulder. Kids used to live in fear of being pricked by that very long needle. Houseflies were a common sight because of rubbish strewn at will and chiefly responsible for cholera. It would only be until the mid-80s, when they did not appear so often. Needless to say hawker and roadside stalls were not very hygienic and you ran the gauntlet – have a tasty meal but end up with diarrhoea.

12. Jobs were hard to come by, a Govt job was most sought after

In those early days, jobs were not easy to be had. People tried to find any general or part-time work, but there was no security. Hence getting a job in the Civil Service was considered a huge achievement, you were guaranteed of a salary, maybe a bonus and had health and even educational benefits. Even a gardener, road sweeper or driver was not looked down upon. The higher up in the Civil Service you were, the more clout you had. Policemen and detectives for example were more likely to be referred as ‘Cheng Hu Nang’ – ‘Govt people’ rather than ‘Mata.’ Teachers and doctors were highly respected and MPs were treated like some kind of ‘demi-god,’ because they had the power to improve your estate or village.

To better their lives, a number of Singaporeans ventured overseas, working as sailors, builders, tractor drivers and so on. The fall of Sukarno in the late 60s, and the rise to power of Suharto in Indonesia opened a path for many Singaporeans as that country embarked on a modernisation programme. My father was one of the lucky ones, who found work there and that lifted my family out of poverty. As such to this day, I always have a debt of gratitude to Indonesia and treat Indonesians as friends.

13. We had a small population

In those days, to be recognised as a great city, you had to have a population of over 1 million. And for much of the 1970s, we were well under this mark. Obviously there were more than 1 million in the country but the number of actual citizens was below the million man mark. I remember most children my age growing up then, wanting a bigger population for Singapore. We wanted to be a big global city. Fast forward 40 years later, it’s the opposite that we now desire.

I think only in the late 70s, did we actually cross the million mark and it hovered around the 1.5 million mark for much of the 80s. It eventually crossed over the 2 million mark in the late 1990s, when the Govt opened the doors to Hong Kongers and Indonesians fleeing the change in political systems in their respective countries.
But in no way was there the ‘squeeze’ we feel right now. Everyone had their own space literally and there were clear demarcations between citizens, PRs and others here on permits.

14. The Disastrous ‘Stop at 2′ and ‘Graduate Mother’s Policy’

Yes I’ll be the first to admit, that the PAP has done a reasonably good job from independence right through the 1990s. From living in squalid conditions, we moved into flats with proper sanitation and more amenities. From a rural and lowly educated populace we all improved through mandatory education. Transport and health services improved maybe 10 fold from what we knew growing up and much more.

But even the PAP and Lee Kuan Yew could get things very wrong and nothing better highlights this than the 2 disastrous policies – ‘Stop at 2′ and ‘The Graduate Mother’s Policy.’ Those days families were large, some had like 10-12 children, but the average family had around 4-5 children. Having a big family obviously meant a struggle for the parents, especially the father. Most mothers would prefer to be housewives and look after the kids, so the father had to ‘bring home the bacon.’ It was tough, and some needed to work 2 or 3 jobs to put their children through school.

But it kinda paid off later on, most children started work after finishing school, and were expected to chip in. The eldest son/daughter was usually looked upon as the ‘leader’ because it was he or she who would help the family coffers and ensure his/her younger siblings could grow up in better surroundings. So having a big family was not so bad after 16 years or so. And as such our population shot up throughout the 70s.

Then LKY got worried and wondered if we could actually sustain such a large population. We were still in developing stage and not yet rich enough. So came the ‘Stop at 2 Campaign.’ Parents were told to stop at 2 and ‘penalties’ and ‘measures’ were put in place to ensure that those who didn’t comply, found themselves at ‘the bottom of the queue.’ The PAP also noticed that graduate mothers or those with at least an ‘A Levels,’ were not producing as much as those with a lesser educational background. Somehow they got the idea that only ‘graduate mothers’ would be capable of producing and bringing up brighter and better educated children, and the ‘Graduate Mother’s Policy’ came about, where they were placed in front of the queue and given more benefits.

Needless to say, it was a disaster from the get go, instead of stopping at 2, many stopped at 1 or none. Those that did not stop at 2, found themselves kind of ostracised and quite a number aborted their pregnancies. And graduate mothers, most of them already working were not so easily convinced to have 2 or more children. A kind of elitism began to be set in place and many Singaporeans were upset at these 2 policies. Eventually they were scrapped, but the effects would only be felt later, in the late 90s and present day. Birth rates declined and we have a greying population, and not enough of the younger generation to take over. And look now at what happened – our population has to be ‘imported’ and many Singaporeans are upset, finding themselves slowly becoming a minority in their own country. Anyway this a topic for another day.

15. The ‘Speak Mandarin campaign effect on dialects’

Another faulty policy although it looked good at the time. There were a lot of dialects amongst the Chinese population although Hokkien was the most common one. To streamline Chinese education, the Govt introduced Mandarin as the unifying language. There’s also the view that some take, that it was introduced to keep an eye/curb the Chinese vernacular schools, always a hotbed for ‘pro-Communist’ and ‘anti-Govt’ rhetoric. So Mandarin was promoted and dialects were frowned upon, even taken off the air.

This policy has definitely succeeded, almost all Chinese now can speak it, even boosting our relations with Taiwan and China in particular. But there is a downside, many younger Singaporean Chinese cannot speak their own dialects at all. In fact some other races can speak dialects better than them. My father for example could speak Hokkien like ‘water.’ If you heard him on the phone, you would think you were speaking to a Chinese!

Also with the change to Mandarin, certain customs associated to the various dialect groups were rapidly fading away. Only recently has the Govt realised this and as such there’s been a concerted effort to promote old customs and traditions – festivals like the Autumn, Spring, Ching Ming and others are now promoted even though they are not recognised public holidays. And children are encouraged to learn a bit of dialect. But there’s much to be done, for example whenever I hear a younger Chinese speaking Cantonese, I’ll purposely ask him in Malay – ‘awak orang Malaysia bukan?’ (You’re Malaysian, no?). He’ll reply – ‘How did you know?’ I’ll then add – Because it’s almost impossible to find younger Singaporeans speaking Cantonese. Only the older ones, the younger ones that do have to be either Malaysian or from Hong Kong.’

16. Chinese Secret Societies

If you were a young man growing up in the 60s and 70s, maybe even the 80s, you had to be very wary of Chinese Secret Societies (SS). You had to steer clear of them, and when confronted, would be wise to hold your tongue. The younger SS members were a major problem for teenagers and young men. They would be bullied and even extorted. The SS usually controlled their own ‘turf’ and it was common in those days for business to pay some form of ‘protection’ or coffee-money, to ensure these gangs would not harass your business.

Even in your village or new HDB estates, you had to be wary. One way they would collect money, was to organise ‘wayangs,’ ‘temple activities’ or dinners like ‘the 7 month festival.’ Very often they would knock your door and request for some small donation for these ‘charitable acts.’ I remember my mother hurriedly paying her contribution, when 1 such knock came, even though we knew nothing about these festivals and wouldn’t participate in any way. To be fair, they didn’t actually extort or demand, but just to play safe, we ‘donated.’ Such was their reputation. Gang fights and turf wars was not an uncommon sight.

The only thing that kept them in check, was the Police use of ‘Section 55.’ This was the provision in the Criminal Law Act (CLTPA), that allowed any police officer to detain without trial anyone they believed to an SS member or involved in their activities. The particular provision has been changed to Section 14 something, and the CLTPA has remained in force, renewed each time by Parliament. However in those days policemen were also prone to abusing their arrest powers, as such while it remains legally possible, SPF’s own guidelines forbid normal police officers form exercising this power, only to those attached to the Secret Societies Branch (SSB).

We may argue about the merits of the Internal Security Act (ISA) , but believe me, in those days ‘Section 55′ was the only way to curb the growth and menace of SS groups. And it’s still valid today, there remains SS groups throughout the island, but they no longer harass ordinary folks and turf wars are far less frequent, because they are aware and fear ‘Section 55.’

17. Telephones and Telephone Booths

For much of those initial days, we didn’t have telephones in our homes even when we moved into our new HDB flats. The only way to communicate was either write (snail mail) or use a public phone booth. Almost every village or estate had at least 1 phone booth, where you had that black coin operated telephone. So it was big thing to be able to have a phone in our homes, once the 80s came along.

Imagine those days when you wanted to meet or visit someone or make an appointment, you had to tell them way beforehand. Say you want to meet your friend Ali to go catch a movie on January 4th, you had to tell him beforehand, or write to him. Or if you wanted to find out the latest goings-on with your friends or relatives, but they lived far away from you, then you’ll have to write to them and inquire. Telephones changed all of this, but it was still limited, it’s not like now, you can change locations or times by simply using your handphone to communicate. In those days, once you made an appointment via your home phone, there was no way to communicate any change of plans once the other party had left his residence.

18. Pagers and Handphones

Finally a breakthrough came in the 80s, we had pagers. This made it easier for you to contact somebody, you simply paged him a number you were at, and waited for him to call back. Then came pager codes – you could send an agreed code to indicate something. Some used it to send ‘I Love You messages, but the most common one was for urgency. For example – one 9 after your number meant urgent, two 9s meant rather urgent and 3 9s meant very urgent – must return the call straightaway.

Finally as the 90s beckoned, handphones made their long awaited appearance. It was considered a status symbol to own one. Those ‘brick type’ phones were not cheap, around $2500 when it first came about, but generally settling to a price range of $1100 – $1300. The perception was, that you either had to be a businessman or an “Ah Long’ if you could be able to own one.

19. Television

The most common form of entertainment in those days was to be able to own a TV set. No plasma, no LCD, LED types, but a just a bulky set. A bulky 17″ set was the most common, and they weren’t cheap. Most were also in black and white. If you remember watching sports on TV in those days especially football, you’ll notice that 1 team wore a bright lighter colour usually white, while the other wore a dark one say blue or red. This was because most people only owned a black and white TV, so such colours helped you tell each team apart. The first coloured live television sports event in Singapore’s history was the Final of the 1974 World Cup between West Germany and Holland.

Eventually more and more people were able to afford colour TVs. The ‘coming of age’ was to be able to own those brown box type of TVs, where you could close the screen after you had finished watching your show. Mind you those days, TV programmes weren’t 24 hours, usually from 6pm to midnight. We only had 4 channels. It started off with just 1 – Channel 5 in 1963 (Yes until then no one had a TV in Singapore). Then we had Channel 8. – which hosted all the other languages. And of course, we could watch the 2 Malaysian channels – Channel 3 and 10. Movies were rarely shown except on weekends, and the programming usually started with a cartoon for kids, before some serials like Hawaii 5-0, the news and some variety programme. But it was great entertainment to us, the whole family would group together round the TV set to watch shows. In some kampongs, if you had a TV, it meant that you’d frequently have to share it with your neighbours.