It was recently announced by DPM Wong Kan Seng that August 18th would be earmarked as a public holiday in the not-too-distant future, to be christened Citizenship Day. Which set me thinking: just what constitutes genuine citizenship?
The establishment would have us believe that citizenship is best represented by a designated date for hundreds of individuals and families alike to take up Singaporean citizenship in an official capacity. Yet, if the tabloids are anything to go by, such an event was mentioned over about ten lines, hardly noteworthy by any stretch of the imagination (the Straits Times fared slightly better in terms of coverage it must be said). Clearly, a cursory inspection of the evidence shows that citizenship goes far beyond that pink plastic card known as the National Registration Identity Card or NRIC for short.
