Ugly Singaporeans As A Result Of Our Rapid Infrastructure Growth of Singapore 

Singapore is a global marvel of efficiency. We have "mudflats to metropolis" in our DNA and "First World" infrastructure at our fingertips. But as a tour guide, I’ve realized that our rapid evolution has come with a hidden, ugly price tag: the death of empathy in the face of entitlement.

We’ve created a class of "Emperor Tourists." These are our fellow citizens who, armed with a government voucher or a modest tour fee, believe they have purchased not just a seat on a bus, but a human soul to berate for four hours.

I have accepted the company's challenge to do Local Tours, for a change of environment beyond Tourist Attractions. I felt that it was a great way to allow seniors, who have not been traveling domestically, to see our development. I thought it was a great opportunity to "give back" to the society that raised me. I thought it was great to utilise my skills and knowledge for locals who are my fellow countryment. I was so wrong. 2 months into this program. I am Defeated. And with this, I gave up on Local Senior Tourism. A mere $50 tour using CulturePass by government, includes a 4 hours fully guided bus tour with bus commentary on the development of different areas of Singapore, and to revel on nostalgia on places that some participants may related too, and to go even further to its etymology and heritage to bring meaning to the Singapore landscape and Urban Planning. We end this with a lunch, usually with Fish, Prawns, Omellete, Chicken, Vegetables. I thought it was a great program. I thought. Just my thought. I was wrong. 

The Myth of the 'Pioneer' Pass

There is a pervasive sentiment among our seniors that because they helped "build the past," the present must be frictionless. They demand "shade" without offering an ounce of grace to those currently planting the trees.

On a recent local tour, the complaints began before the engine even started. Despite being a "pick-up-and-go" operation, participants arrived expecting a luxury coach to be on standby like a royal carriage. They complained the meeting point was too far from a toilet; they complained the bus steps were too high. This is a demographic that had the choice to read the itinerary and assess their own mobility, yet they chose to sign up and then weaponize their physical limitations against the organizer.

When a minor logistical delay occurred, I was met not with understanding, but with a four-hour "bitch-fest." I offered a 90-degree bow; I even physically slapped myself in a moment of desperate service recovery to absorb their anger. It wasn’t enough. When we finally sat down for a lunch featuring fresh prawns and fish—a meal that, alongside transport and expertise, far exceeded their $50 entry price—the response was a sour: "I’d rather eat at the hawker downstairs."

The 'Auditor' Mentality: Counting Cents, Losing Sense

This ugliness isn't confined to our shores; we export it. As a tour leader on outbound trips, I’ve witnessed the "Singaporean Auditor" in full force. I’ve watched participants take out jotter books at every meal and attraction, meticulously recording costs to "verify" if they are being cheated.

They demand to see "black and white" for every ambiguity, ignoring the "or similar" clauses and the reality of international travel. They calculate the cost of the chicken on their plate and the ticket at the gate, completely disregarding the invisible costs of the local guides, the transport logistics, the operator margins, and the very person standing there ensuring their safety. They forget they had the freedom to compare the market and choose any tour—yet once they've paid, they treat the relationship as a hostile audit rather than a holiday.

The 'Customer is King' Poison

We are a nation built on meritocracy, but we’ve curdled it into a zero-sum game. The "Customer is King" era taught us that if we pay, we are superior. In this world, the provider is a "service utility." If that utility glitches, the Emperor doesn't seek a solution; they seek a scapegoat.

It is a transactional ugliness where the "sovereignty" of the consumer is used to devalue the provider. Everything is solvable with a complaint, yet nothing is solved by grace. They want a "First Class" experience on a "Budget" reality, and they will burn the guide’s spirit just to feel they got their "money's worth."

A Wake-Up Call

If tourism is to survive in a local context, we need more than just better buses. We need a fundamental shift in the Singaporean psyche.

A tour is a shared experience, not a kowtow session. If we continue to treat our service providers as soulless entities and every itinerary as a legal contract to be audited, we will find that eventually, no one will want to tell our stories anymore. We will have the best infrastructure in the world, but we will have lost the heart of the people who make this city worth touring in the first place.