Got problem? Make video lah!

Today I watched yet another new campaign video. Usually I do such a good job of avoiding them (by not listening to the radio, watching TV – free to air OR cable – and keep my eyes averted on the MRT) but today curiosity got the better of me.

As you can see, this time the issue being targeted is that of filial piety. It makes sense, I suppose, what with increasing life spans and Singapore’s birth rate at an all-time low.

Other issues, like that of problem gambling, have also been tackled with similar campaign videos:

A lot of thought and work have obviously gone into these two videos. They look good and can even be quite touching, although they are also relentlessly preachy (and drive me crazy), and have been accused of sending the wrong message. However, the issue that I have with these videos is something else.

Apart from the “filial piety is good” and “problem gambling is bad” messages that are the obvious thrust of these videos, there is another message that is a lot more subtle and sneaky: that the problem of these issues lie with us, the people, and therefore we are the ones who should fix it. Just think about it: why are they making these campaign videos, targeting the people? Why were these videos deemed necessary? Why such large-scale campaigns?

The filial piety video shows a middle-aged man taking in his elderly mother after the death of his father. She is portrayed as a rather bitter, sour little old lady who criticises her daughter-in-law’s cooking, is generally unpleasant and even makes a big scene, insisting on moving out. Her presence causes quite a bit of unhappiness and disharmony within the home, but her son remains devoted to her. She eventually grows sick and is hospitalised, and the man stays by his mother’s side in the hospital. His son, having witnessed all the unhappiness that his grandmother has brought to the family, asks his father why he is still so devoted to his mother even though she has been the source of so many problems. We then flashback to the mother carrying her young son and taking him to the hospital when he was ill, singing to comfort him. We then go back to the present day with the three generations in the hospital room, and the slogan “How one generation loves, the next generation learns”.

From ThinkFamily.sg

The government is now worried that if children no longer want to take care of their aged parents, there would be a growing number of abandoned elderly people in need of both financial and social support, and increased need for old folks’ homes built on land that could be used for other purposes. Therefore, they unleash this huge campaign (costing a whopping S$1.6 million!) about Filial Piety, making this lovely video and taking out ad space on Facebook and whatnot. This campaign video urges Singaporeans to take responsibility for their parents and to teach the next generation to respect and love their elders, and grow up to be filial offspring.

From ThinkFamily.sg: Does joining a Facebook page make you more filial?

But while filial piety certainly is a virtue and a great boon to the social fabric of any nation (and thus should be encouraged), the campaign fails to examine any of the possible root causes for this perceived erosion of filial piety. Is it because the children have to work such long hours that they simply do not have the time and energy to tend to their elderly and perhaps sickly parents? Or is it because the cost of living is so high that Singaporeans can barely afford to support themselves and their children, much less their parents as well? Is there enough support available for Singaporeans who find themselves having to support two generations on top of stressful work conditions? Could it be possible that instead of not wanting to take care of their parents, certain Singaporeans are simply not able to? Has the government taken note of this? Are they going to be doing anything about it to help Singaporeans live up to this virtue of filial piety?

The campaign, and its video, raises none of these questions. In fact, it seems from the video that if all Singaporeans would just “be filial” and devote themselves to taking care of their parents, the problem would be eradicated. Hence, it suggests that the whole problem lies with us average Singaporeans, and therefore it is up to us, and not the authorities, to sort it out by just taking the responsibility, no matter what our individual circumstances are.

From NCPG.org.sg

It is the same with the problem gambling. The video opens with a little girl celebrating her birthday without her father. She then lies awake at night listening to her parents quarrelling; her father is yelling while her mother berates him for losing all the family’s mother. The girl comes home from school to find loan shark graffiti on the walls of her home, and hides in the house with her crying mother as loan sharks hammer on the door. We then see the message: “If problem gambling is affecting your family, you’ve crossed the line.” The slogan is “Problem gambling: know the line”.

Image from AboutSingaporeCasino.com

Again, the government has made this video to warn people about the ills of problem gambling. However, the video cleverly ignores the fact that the two Integrated Resorts – with their much talked-about casinos – were being built and nearing completion at the time. If the government was really so worried about problem gambling spreading as a problem through the nation, why would they still be so eager to open not one, but two casinos on this tiny island? Would the opening of two such prominent gambling dens not exacerbate this problem? Surely it is not helping the issue that the government is allowing – nay, encouraging – two hothouses of temptation to spring up in our society? Why are they not worried about the slippery slope now? Do they really think this campaign video is actually going to do any good in stopping the gamblers from losing their heads in the casinos?

By completely ignoring the contradiction in launching an anti-problem gambling campaign at the same time as heralding in two large gambling dens, the problem gambling campaign seems to suggest that the only factor that leads to this problem would be the people themselves. If only those prone to gambling addictions would monitor themselves and control their own behaviour, then there would be no problem, and the casinos would probably be able to open without all the controversy! So again, the responsibility is laid at the door of Singaporeans; please, go to the casinos all you want, but make sure you don’t turn into an addict.

To be fair, some of the responsibility does fall on average Singaporeans like you and me. We can’t just sit back and expect everything to be taken care of. However, such important issues cannot just be pushed onto us by million-dollar campaigns. It is not enough for the government to convene a council, make a video, or print some posters. All that is only cosmetic; it doesn’t deal with the real urgent problems at all. Such campaigns only make it look like the government is doing something, when nothing actually gets fixed. That is because these problems cannot be solved by Singaporeans alone without some sort of support from the government; policies need to be reviewed – and reviewed quickly – then changed, new support structures need to be set up and the focus needs to be in some measure shifted away from constant money-making and GDP growth towards social security and quality of life standards. These are things that Singaporeans not in government cannot do alone, which is why it is pointless for the government to launch video after video to tell us of our “responsibilities” and “duties”.

It is not that we Singaporeans want to shirk our responsibilities. We love our country just as much as the government does. But it is both unrealistic and unfair for the government to expect us to solve the country’s problems ourselves. After all, they are in better positions than we are in to make real and immediate changes to the social policies of Singapore. And it is their job – a job they are all getting paid more than handsomely for – to lead us in striving for a better society to live in. Therefore, it is not enough for them to just saturate us with campaigns and emotionally manipulative videos. Much as it pains me as a filmmaker, even I have to admit that you can’t solve a problem just by making a video about it.

They, too, need to step up and take the responsibility.