Return of the good, bad and ugly Singaporeans

 

Filepic of Singapore car zig-zagging to overtake.

JOHOR BAHRU: Johoreans seem to be breathing a sigh of relief with the reopening of the Singapore-Malaysia border, with one petrol station openly displaying a huge banner welcoming those from across the Causeway with “open arms.”

“Welcome back neighbours, we missed you!” read one banner at a petrol station near the city.

The mood is upbeat all over, despite some negative publicity about Singaporeans filling up their vehicles with RON95 petrol, which they are not allowed to do.

Some shopping centres such as Lotus’s in Bandar Seri Alam, posted a signboard saying they accepted Singapore currency with the current exchange displayed prominently.

Welcome neighbours signboard spotted at a petrol station

A sales counter staff said although the outlet was busy before the reopening, it is now even busier.

“The danger of Covid-19 spreading has increased but on the upside, there are more job openings and we are getting much more foreign currency,” she said.

“We may have taken Singaporeans for granted before the pandemic, not realising their presence is much needed in the city,” she told FMT.

Lotus’s in Bandar Seri Alam has a signboard saying they accept Singapore dollars

However, with the good came some ugly behaviour of Singapore motorists, who are known for speeding and beating traffic rules once they are on Malaysian roads.

Federal police at Bukit Aman said on Friday that more than 100,000 summonses issued to Singaporean motorists have yet to be settled.

At the weekend, a Facebook user posted a video clip of a Singapore-registered vehicle zipping impatiently and dangerously on a highway.

Netizens expressed anger with some asking why Singapore residents are all so law-abiding while in the republic but change the moment they hit Malaysian roads.

And of course the bad “RON95 thieves” are giving Singaporeans a bad name although they are in the minority.

A petrol station owner told FMT it is very difficult to monitor because of the staff shortage. She said she has installed the remote cut-off system if they see a Singapore-registered car topping up RON95.

She said owners of vehicles come up with all kinds of excuses with some completely ignoring orders to stop which has led to ugly scenes.

“But we cannot be monitoring all the cars. We need a good number of extra workers. As it is now, many dealers are planning to lay off workers when the new minimum wage of RN1,500 kicks in next month.

Eddy Suresh.

“And since those with less than five employees need not pay the minimum wage, they might resort to having the minimum to avoid raising the wages of others,” she said.

Edey Suresh, the Johor head of a UN Global Compact sustainability initiative, said the state has undergone a period of economic stagnation and recovery would not happen overnight.

“Businesses will need to reignite hiring of local talents, upgrade their facilities and even ingrain sustainable practices to cater to the market trends and anticipated requirements. This should not be seen merely as a cost but as a strategy to avoid loss of business opportunities,” he told FMT. - FMT