Ageing in Singapore – What’s the Problem?!

“Class, let’s talk about the ageing population problem today.”

This will usually be my starting line when I want to discuss about population problems. But, I really feel uncomfortable calling it a problem. Why is ageing a “problem”? For whom? How would the senior citizens feel about this? Come on, do you feel good if I should label you as a “problem”?

Why am I so interested in this issue? Well you see, both my parents are above 70 years old. I have a gut feel that there is something deeper to this issue. I don’t see my parents as being a “problem” or useless.

Enough of being an armchair photographer, I convinced my fun and wacky colleague, Ms Aw from the Economics Department to do a photo trail, chasing old folks in their daily routines in the Tiong Bahru and Bt. Ho Swee area. Ms Aw is a keen photographer. I have to thank her for sneaking up on old folks to take their photos, hiding behind walls. Mind you, we got chided by an uncle in the park for taking his photo. So, hope our sacrifice was worth it for you to continue on this exploratory trail with us. ;O)

We see old people around us every day. Have we ever paid any attention to them at all?

Try looking at these photographs of old folks and ask ourselves - Are our senior citizens leading a happy life?

“Who would Dine with Me?”

“I’ve got company for breakfast.”

Lonely Walk Home

Time is relative – Watching as Life Passes By

“We’re both on wheelchairs. Why are you so much more loved?”

The words on the T-shirt read, “We Deliver Wellness.” Elderly people folding origami after their exercise in the park.

These old folks seem to take good care of their health. But sometimes I wonder if they feel imprisoned in their weak bodies and situation too.

“Buddy, at least you can walk. I have to depend on my maid….”

Supported on the left and right - luckier than the others?

Old but not useless. Making a living with his bare hands.

Haggling for a discount. Old folks are still independent and many still have to take care of their family. But where are their children? Why aren’t they helping their elderly parents out with the marketing?

As we took photos of senior citizens, we kept telling ourselves that we should be objective. But we kept seeing old folks who are either handicapped, weak and with a perpetually vacant look. We felt their sadness, waiting for life to pass by and waiting…. waiting for death. Could you bear to live the last few years of your life wasting away? Brrrr.. I can feel the chill up my spine already.

The government looks upon the ageing phenomenon as a problem. According to the Census of Population, 7.3% of the population was above 64 years of age in the Year 2000, which translates to 237,626 elderly people walking amongst us. This figure is set to increase rapidly as people live longer. Demographers are interested in such statistics. They can then calculate the dependency ratio and caution the government as to what they should do to prepare for such demographic trends. But mind you. Never totally believe in this dependency ratio nonsense. They calculate it by using the number of young (0-14 yrs) and elderly dependents (more than 64 yrs) over the economically active population (15-64 yrs). This calculation is flawed as it assumes that people within a certain age group are either gainfully employed or not.

Despite this, the government is already taking steps to solve this “problem”. “Lifelong learning, work even when you are in your eighties…” These were some messages that the government has been driving through in recent years in order to ensure that old folks can remain financially independent for a longer period of time and that Singapore’s competitiveness will not be eroded by an ageing workforce.

Preparing for an ageing population also means providing adequate and affordable housing for them. A notable trend has been the emerging trend of elderly people living alone, which comprises about 6.6% of the total number of the elderly population. The government had stopped building two- and three-room flats from the 1980s. In order to meet the demands for small housing, it is now building these flats and converting unsold flats in Sengkang and Jurong West.

As more elderly people live alone, however, it has become increasingly common to find more of them dying alone in their apartments, without anyone’s knowledge. The recent case about skeletal remains of one of the reclusive elderly sisters found in an Upper Thomson terrace house highlights the problem that Singapore will increasingly face. Isn’t it ironic that people die unknowingly in a prosperous First World City like Singapore? Nobody cares enough for these people to even visit them or knock on the door when piles of letters and litter gather outside their door. Should we allow old folks to retreat behind their closed doors? In order to draw elderly people out to lead a more purposeful and enjoyable life, the government has set up 40 senior activity centres or neighbourhood links across the island. These centres hope to bring these older folk together for exercise, karaoke sessions, computer classes, group games, counseling and financial advice.

A burning question which I wanted an answer to is why does the government see ageing as a problem? It is getting worried because unlike a welfare state, it believes that the responsibility of taking care of old folks should be the old folks themselves and their children. It blames the breakdown of traditional values such as filial piety and the emergence of nuclear families for the increasing trend of old folks living by themselves.

I would like to find fault with this argument. While some have been abandoned by their children, many have made a conscious choice to live alone. As mentioned, both my parents are above 70 years old. A few years ago, when my housing estate was under en bloc development, my eldest brother offered to buy a bigger flat and let my parents move in with his family. He and his wife have three kids and a maid. My parents agreed but they were very worried about such a living arrangement as they felt that they would lose their independence. More importantly, they felt insecure when their roles changed from being the head of the household to one who lives under their sons’ roof. They were insecure about what would happen if they could not get along with their daughter-in-law. In the end, my brother changed his mind and got a unit near our flat. My parents were so relieved.

The need for independence stems from the need for a person’s dignity. In a Straits Times report dated 20 March 2007, a wheelchair-bound bachelor who was a former seaman insisted on living alone although he had relatives as he did not want to burden others. My mother’s friend also insisted on living alone with a maid although her children asked her to live with them. So, just as young people are changing in their attitudes and value system, elderly people are changing in their mindset as well. People crave for greater independence and space. The finger should not only be pointed at the younger generation.

To me, ageing itself is not a problem. Like birth, life and death, it is a phenomenon. It becomes a problem when the society and the aged themselves are unprepared for the onslaught of time. Why do we see such unhappy faces on wrinkled faces? Financial independence might give one some semblance of dignity. However, are our elderly people prepared? Have they saved enough? How much is enough? Unlike in the previous generation of old folks, people nowadays are living longer, with more health problems and medical costs. When you do not know when you would die and there is no steady stream of income coming in, life can become very depressing.

Our challenge as a society, which also includes you, is how to prepare ourselves for old age. Being prepared would involve providing financial planning and management, establishing strong social support systems, convincing the elderly to take care of their health, giving the elderly people a sense of purpose and remain relevant in the lives of their children and grandchildren, as well as remain socially active. If I could have a wish, I would wish that there would come a day when I could see more happy, laughing old people, ageing gracefully and living healthily. Like us, they should enjoy and embrace life rather then wait frantically for it to end. In time to come, your grandparents, your parents and eventually you will grow old. What kind of life do you want them and yourself to lead depends on how we are preparing for it now.

- Written by Ms Melanie Lum
- Photographs by Ms Aw Hwee Ling