I am of the opinion that we should not read too much into the pledge and attempt to interpret it for one’s own convenience and to suit one’s argument. The language used for the pledge is simple and succinct, to the point.
- First part of the National Pledge, “We, the citizens of Singapore, pledge ourselves as one united people, regardless of race, language and religion”, is a statement of facts that we are a multi-racial, multi-lingual and multi-religious society and we are all Singapore citizens. By having this common identity of being Singaporeans, we should be united as a people. We are a young nation.
- The second part is to forge a consensus for a road map forward, “to build a democratic society, based on justice and equality”. It clearly defines the guiding principles by which Singapore as a society should forge ahead with actions, based on justice and equality tenets, towards the type of society we wish to build i.e. a democratic society.
- The last part of the pledge expresses our ultimate goals and aspirations for Singapore as a nation Why the need to be a united people and to build a democratic society? It is to achieve happiness, prosperity and progress for our nation.
Therefore, my view is that we should read and understand the pledge as a reminder of the fundamental statement of what we want to be as a people, as a society and as a nation. Some may want to argue over the details or even how to formulate or implement policy to conform to every word of the pledge, but we should leave the pledge as it is and not attempt to interpret it in one’s own way, breaking it down into its component parts for application in arguments.
The National Pledge represents the spiritual part of our nation, and unless it is really necessary and justifiable, we should not invoke it for the sake of argument.
Last, but not the least, ideals and principles enshrined in the National Pledge are always work in progress and the pledge begins with, We, the Citizens of Singapore, pledge ourselves, Not The govt of Singapore pledges itself; therefore, each of us as citizen, if we find government policy or some social behaviors which are not right for Singapore, then as a citizen, we should do something to make it right for Singapore.
