Image via WikipediaToday's My Paper (我报）headlines "Club Mad - Free Entry for Foreigners but not for Locals" demonstrates how far Singapore has leaned in continuing the foreigner good, locals bad service attitude.
Basically, St. James Power Station (a popular nightclub) allows for free entry to foreign guests if they produce a valid foreign student pass. So this poor local undergraduate who if he is a Singaporean male would have served 2 years in full-time national service prior to starting his university course has to cough up $20 for the cover charge whilst his foreign student friends get in free-of-charge.
Private commercial organisations are free to set any type of admission policy but this case makes you think about why you should patronise St. James Power Station to perpetuate the discrimination against fellow Singaporeans. St. James management should re-think this policy as it has shot itself in the foot as MyPaper put this article as a Headline (kudos to you MyPaper!)
It seems absurd that you can serve your country in the military, police forces or civil defence, risk your life and in return, when you want to patronise a night spot, you pay MORE than your foreign student friends who are already taking up places at a taxpayers' funded institution of higher learning and still enjoy additional benefits of free entry.
WTF?
I am not a St. James Power Station patron nor would I ever want to voluntarily step into the doors of an establishment that has a policy that is clearly discriminatory against Singaporeans.
Your 2 years and 10 years of reservist doesn't get you much respect in this country.
Majullah Singapura.
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4 comments:
Replace the word 'foreigner' with 'ladies' and your article will still be wholly relevant and valid. As a matter of principle, I don't patronise clubs on Ladies nights either and I certainly won't go to St James anymore.
Dear Point
Night Clubs are free to set up any policy they want so long as it does not violate any law.
I like to comment on discrimination towards Singaporeans because NS is one form of official discrimination against our own male Singaporeans.
This is one form of discrimination that can get you killed as those servicemen who were involved in the Taiwan jet accident and those I have witnessed myself in my 2.5 years + 10 years of reservist.
Majullah Singapura.
What about ladies night? They don't serve 2 years NS, 10 years reservist either, right?
What about other tourist promotions - like Malaysians using ringgit to pay for things like Singapore Zoo during Malaysian school holidays? Isn't that also discriminatory? Or that foreigners can have GST refunds when they leave Singapore?
What about the other way around? Singaporeans can buy HDB flats, buy landed property, join things like SAFRA, etc.
Dear rajan r
There are so many discriminatory policies in Singapore that I have barely scratched the surface with my own observations as a ex-concript in the Lion City.
You are spot on. Would you like to write about your own policies with regards to those discriminatory practices of allowing women NOT to serve NS?
Foreign tourists in most developed countries get GST rebates. If you visit UK as a tourist and purchase stuff beyond the min. threshold, you get a tax refund from them too. So where's the discrimination? Mind yet, UK's VAT is about 17%!!!
Are you a Singaporean? You don't sound like one to me.
Singaporean men can join SAFRA. They can also die running IPPT at age 32.
Some of your examples are frankly not comparable but hey, you can have your opinion until I get tired and delete your comments.
Hormat to you, friend.
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