Time gives clarity to everything.
My political awakening, back in 2011, was when my first son was born. For me, it was landmarked by the historical win of the Workers’ Party in Aljunied GRC. It was the first time any opposition party laid claim on a Group Representation Constituency, and it fired up the people’s imagination. Before that, the only hope for any opposition to win a parliamentary seat was to contest a Single Member Constituency.
Four years later, the tides have turned. The Workers’ Party narrowly defended Aljunied GRC in GE2015 and the ruling People’s Action Party had won a landslide victory of 69.86%. At the party’s 60th anniversary dinner in 2017, Mr Low Thia Khiang announced his intention to retire and hand over to a new generation of leaders.
Fast forward June 27, 2020. The face of Singapore’s political landscape, for both the incumbent and the opposition, has undergone very visible metamorphosis. Many of the familiar PAP leaders will step down in favour of the 4G leadership. Twelve opposition parties will now vie with the ruling PAP for the 93 elected seats in Parliament. In Aljunied GRC, a new WP team, under Mr Pritam Singh, will attempt to defend their position.
Against the backdrop of the COVID-19 pandemic, GE2020 is unfolding in a strangely alien atmosphere: no rallies, no handshakes, no gatherings of more than five people. In its place - masks, namastes, fist bumps, social distancing and online rallies. Surely, we live in an unprecedented time. What will the next decade be like?
As the foreign workers cut the plastic webs we spun for ourselves, the hawkers who endured the 73 days cried out in joy. Tomorrow we welcome a freedom that we used to take for granted - sitting down together for a simple meal. Stay safe. Stay considerate. Stay united.
#phase2 #covid19 #letusbefreemenagain #stayunited
MASK /UNMASK #15
Today we saw the biggest spike of 287 new COVID-19 cases.
As the frontliners struggle under the weight of the new onslaught, they need us, the backbenchers, to stem the spread in the community.
So please wear your masks. Please wash your hands. Please practice social distancing. We cannot all do great things, but we can do small things with great love. Do it for your loved ones. Do it for your friends and family.
#covid19 #sgunited #maskunmask #uniteagainstcovid19 #wearyourmask #maskisgood #singaporewearsmask #sgmask #wismageylangserai #smallthingswithgreatlove #gotmaskbetterthannomask
MASK /UNMASK #14
Wife and husband:
Isfarisha Sakina,29
Iswandiarjo, 37
Today we saw the biggest spike of 287 new COVID-19 cases.
As the frontliners struggle under the weight of the new onslaught, they need us, the backbenchers, to stem the spread in the community.
So please wear your masks. Please wash your hands. Please practice social distancing. We cannot all do great things, but we can do small things with great love. Do it for your loved ones. Do it for your friends and family.
#covid19 #sgunited #maskunmask #uniteagainstcovid19 #wearyourmask #maskisgood #singaporewearsmask #sgmask #wismageylangserai #smallthingswithgreatlove #gotmaskbetterthannomask
MASK /UNMASK #13
Fatimah, 63
Mariyah, 79
Puji Utami, 31
Today we saw the biggest spike of 287 new COVID-19 cases.
As the frontliners struggle under the weight of the new onslaught, they need us, the backbenchers, to stem the spread in the community.
So please wear your masks. Please wash your hands. Please practice social distancing. We cannot all do great things, but we can do small things with great love. Do it for your loved ones. Do it for your friends and family.
#covid19 #sgunited #maskunmask #uniteagainstcovid19 #wearyourmask #maskisgood #singaporewearsmask #sgmask #wismageylangserai #smallthingswithgreatlove #gotmaskbetterthannomask
MASK /UNMASK #12
John Lim, 29
Najiba Noh, 22
Coloma Escudero Arturo, 27
Jennifer Lim, 68
Tan Heng Ning, 24
Edwin Koo, 41
Today an epidemiologist said on TV: “If you wear your mask, you reduce your likelihood of spreading the coronavirus by 50%. If the other person is also wearing a mask, he or she reduces the likelihood by 50%.” I’m no expert, but it makes layman sense.
So wear your masks. We cannot all do great things, but we can do small things with great love. That’s what Mother Teresa said.
Before the circuit-breaker measures kicked in, I managed to make some portraits of people collecting masks given out by the government.
I hope these diptychs serve as a reminder of these difficult times. That each of us would need to make certain sacrifices to make sure we all overcome this crisis together, as one humanity.
#covid19 #sgunited #maskunmask #uniteagainstcovid19 #wearyourmask #maskisgood #singaporewearsmask #sgmask #wismageylangserai #smallthingswithgreatlove #gotmaskbetterthannomask
MASK /UNMASK #11
Lucia, 24
Jose, 28
Paul Ng, 73
Aidil, 33
Today an epidemiologist said on TV: “If you wear your mask, you reduce your likelihood of spreading the coronavirus by 50%. If the other person is also wearing a mask, he or she reduces the likelihood by 50%.” I’m no expert, but it makes layman sense.
So wear your masks. We cannot all do great things, but we can do small things with great love. That’s what Mother Teresa said.
Before the circuit-breaker measures kicked in, I managed to make some portraits of people collecting masks given out by the government.
I hope these diptychs serve as a reminder of these difficult times. That each of us would need to make certain sacrifices to make sure we all overcome this crisis together, as one humanity.
#covid19 #sgunited #maskunmask #uniteagainstcovid19 #wearyourmask #maskisgood #singaporewearsmask #sgmask #wismageylangserai #smallthingswithgreatlove #gotmaskbetterthannomask
MASK /UNMASK #10
Abdul Nasir Bin Mohd Jadi, 58 and his grandson Ahmad, 2
Jenny Maria Chan, 66
Noel Carlo Cardino, 43
Ahmad bin Salim, 64
Shah Rizal, 37
Today an epidemiologist said on TV: “If you wear your mask, you reduce your likelihood of spreading the coronavirus by 50%. If the other person is also wearing a mask, he or she reduces the likelihood by 50%.” I’m no expert, but it makes layman sense.
So wear your masks. We cannot all do great things, but we can do small things with great love. That’s what Mother Teresa said.
Before the circuit-breaker measures kicked in, I managed to make some portraits of people collecting masks given out by the government.
I hope these diptychs serve as a reminder of these difficult times. That each of us would need to make certain sacrifices to make sure we all overcome this crisis together, as one humanity.
#covid19 #sgunited #maskunmask #uniteagainstcovid19 #wearyourmask #maskisgood #singaporewearsmask #sgmask #wismageylangserai #smallthingswithgreatlove
MASK /UNMASK
Special thanks for graciously accepting my portraiture requests:
Lee York Lai, 63
Sisters Jennifer, 35, and Jen, 30
I was very touched to see Puji Utami pushing a wheelchair-bound Nenek Mariyah to collect masks. Truly a display of the much-needed community spirit we need to survive this pandemic.
One of the first things that started flying off the shelves in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic: masks. As people scramble to protect themselves from the coronavirus, losing the lower half of one’s face is quickly becoming a norm.
Yet the face is such an integral part of our social identity. Facial expressions are key to everyday interactions between people. With mask-wearing becoming a new social norm, strangers have now become even more faceless.
Adding on to quarantines, social distancing and stay-home orders, the COVID-19 coronavirus is not only eating away at our cells, but at the very core of being human.
Still, we need to do the necessary. By wearing masks, we not only protect ourselves. More importantly, we protect others by limiting the spread, should we unwittingly become carriers ourselves.
Before the circuit-breaker kicked in today, I invited people who went to collect masks to sit for a portrait - mask on, then mask off. I asked them to try to smile and emote from behind their masks. Wearing a mask should not rob us of our humanity.
By juxtaposing the portraits, I hope that these diptychs serve as a reminder of these difficult times. That each of us would need to make certain sacrifices to make sure we all overcome this crisis together, as one humanity.
A special shout-out to Wisma Geylang Serai for kindly agreeing to sponsor the venue for this photography project. All portraits were taken observing the 1-metre social distancing measure.
#covid19 #sgunited #maskunmask #uniteagainstcovid19 #wearyourmask #maskisgood #singaporewearsmask #sgmask #wismageylangserai
MASK /UNMASK
Special thanks for graciously accepting my portraiture requests:
Anna Tan, 51
Amirul Mukminin Zaini, 12
Álvaro Malo Delgado, 33
One of the first things that started flying off the shelves in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic: masks. As people scramble to protect themselves from the coronavirus, losing the lower half of one’s face is quickly becoming a norm.
Yet the face is such an integral part of our social identity. Facial expressions are key to everyday interactions between people. With mask-wearing becoming a new social norm, strangers have now become even more faceless.
Adding on to quarantines, social distancing and stay-home orders, the COVID-19 coronavirus is not only eating away at our cells, but at the very core of being human.
Still, we need to do the necessary. By wearing masks, we not only protect ourselves. More importantly, we protect others by limiting the spread, should we unwittingly become carriers ourselves.
Before the circuit-breaker kicked in today, I invited people who went to collect masks to sit for a portrait - mask on, then mask off. I asked them to try to smile and emote from behind their masks. Wearing a mask should not rob us of our humanity.
By juxtaposing the portraits, I hope that these diptychs serve as a reminder of these difficult times. That each of us would need to make certain sacrifices to make sure we all overcome this crisis together, as one humanity.
A special shout-out to Wisma Geylang Serai for kindly agreeing to sponsor the venue for this photography project. All portraits were taken observing the 1-metre social distancing measure.
#covid19 #sgunited #maskunmask #uniteagainstcovid19 #wearyourmask #maskisgood #singaporewearsmask #sgmask #wismageylangserai
