There have been a lot of articles in the recent news on the unhappiness of Singaporeans; from the litterbug culture, to the stressful education system that our poor kids face, the rising divisiveness in our society, increasing number of doctors in bad practice, and of course, the transport woes in Singapore. Singapore is far from perfect. There are many things we can do better and the process of improvement always begin with recognising the problems.
Yet ask any Singaporean who has traveled extensively enough, there are many things to like about this little island we call home. One of the things that many Singaporeans may have taken for granted is the fixed price policy. Sure, there are those who love a good haggle and bargaining is in their blood, but after a while it can become tiring not knowing how to much to pay for a product or service; there are places you have to worry how much to pay for meal what with all the taxes and tips (which can become a touchy issue with the waiters); or not knowing how much to pay for taxi and having to do mental estimate of the distance before even getting to your destination; not knowing if have been ripped off paying for a counterfeit product. And that doesn't even begin to cover how in Singapore, service is expected to be prompt. I was once in Leonardo Da Vinci airport in Rome, waiting for a flight back to Singapore with a group of friends. We had about an hour to go and feeling a little peckish, we decided to order sandwiches and coffee. However, despite having no queues, the airport cafe staff took their own sweet time to prepare the food and by the time we got our order, we had less than 10 minutes to get to the boarding gate. Gentle reminders from my friend didn't help at all. In Singapore, there are ample manned paying counters and transactions are a breeze.
Many people feel that the system in Singapore is too rigid but look at it from another angle, there is a sense of certainty in our society right from the way our country is governed down to the fixed price policy and the expectation of prompt service.
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