MyStory

Mr Nagara Raja
Master Warrant Officer, Singapore Armed Forces

Do you know that you share a very important birthday with our country? 3rd December is the date when Singapore’s National Anthem, the new flag and Coat of Arms (State Crest) were first unveiled to the newly-self-governing state. How do you feel about that?

Yes. And all my relations know too, that I’m born on this special date. They always talk about it. I was born at the same time of the installation. There was an article on the 6th December 1959 on it. Actually, ‘Nagara’ is not a real Indian name. ‘Raja’ is Indian. When I was born, because it was ‘Negara Day’, my father felt that the word should be in my name. My mother was given presents on that day, free tinned milk etc, and delivery was free.

It’s been 50 years since Singapore achieved self-governance, and 44 years since Independence. I would like to find out more about your thoughts about Independence. Singapore has seen three governments during its history - British, Japanese and Malaysian. Have you ever wondered what it will be like if Singapore is not independent?

We talked about it actually. The younger generation may not be aware of this. Probably we would not have achieved so much. I’m not sure, if we would have achieved all those things that we have achieved today.

Do you think it’s important for Singapore to be independent? Why?

You get to choose to do what you want to do. Instead of having people telling us what we should do, should not do. That’s the purpose of setting up our SAF (Singapore Armed Forces). That even though we are small, we can look after ourselves too.

We have six national symbols - the Flag, National Anthem, Pledge, State Crest, the Lion Head and the National Flower. Which of these symbols mean the most to you? In what way, and why?

The Crest. Having been in the Forces for so many years, it’s a symbol for us. And the Flag of course.  I regard the Crest as an official symbol. It represents authority.

What were your growing-up years like?

We were quite a big family. There were eight children, so there were ten of us in the family. My grandparents were from Malacca, and I was the only child in my family to be born in Singapore. My father was a goldsmith, and he did not earn much. So growing up, life was a bit tough.

My father was a travelling goldsmith, and he travelled to Malaysia to work. When I was born, we were staying at Buffalo Road. Later, we moved to Malaysia and stayed in Kuantan. We came back after my father passed away, when I was in Primary Four.

I remember that we moved about quite a bit, because we did not really have a home of our own. We stayed with relatives and rented places. My mother had to bring all of us up by herself. So allowances, food, all that was difficult. We had to walk a long way to school, I remember. And pocket money was ten cents a day. My mother was doing work as a domestic helper. And during school holidays, we took on part-time work, like gardening, sending papers to help out.

My mother brought us up emphasising the values. I thought that was important because my father was busy while he was alive and he had to work. We could have gone astray. And later, she worked and brought us up. She emphasised values, things that we were supposed to do, boundaries. She herself is a very responsible person, and she raised us up with little support. It was tough! And she managed to give us some schooling. She also helped us to look after our children, so hopefully some of it will rub off.

Food was simple at home. We didn’t get meat that often, mostly vegetables. I told my two children about this too, how we went through those days. They would listen, and after too many of these, they would say, ‘Ya, I heard this story before.’

Last time, we didn’t get a lot of luxuries. Food and things for the festivals, we would only get on the day before. Like, we could only buy new clothes the day before the festival, like New Year. And brand new slippers, that was a luxury. People around us were not well-to-do either. Life was tough, no luxuries, we had to work hard.

There was a time we stayed at a rented kampung house in Yishun. The toilet was the bucket system type. It was a common toilet. The house was built by these Chinese towkays (Hokkien: bosses) to rent out, so the rooms were shared and the toilets were common. There were no lights. Don’t talk about TV, radio, all that luxury. So, there were about six families staying there. Some of the families were big, some with just two or three children.

I joined the Navy after my studies. I was 17. Back then, if you had three O’Levels passes, you could not stay back. And you could not go for further studies either. So I was stuck. Then I took some night classes, and worked at night. And I saw the advertisement to join the Navy and see the world. So I joined the Navy. Then they had a scheme, where SAF regulars were offered leftover flats. So through that I managed to get a four-room flat for my family.

Life slowly got better. My mother didn’t have to work by then. Then I married my wife. It was match-made. My sister and her mother were friends.

I feel a sense of satisfaction. That despite the little education I had, I could give my children enough education, making sure they could go as far as they can go. I think this is important. And a reasonable home. Compared to where we were, this is a reasonable place. I’ve never thought one day I’ll own a car! Sometimes, my relations come and they ask, ‘Those days, remember?’ And I go, ‘Yes, I remember, where we come from.’ So there is a strong sense of satisfaction.

What are some of the biggest changes between the Singapore of your childhood and now? Could you share more about them?

The quality of housing, life, transport. Over 50 years, almost everything! Just take my case, when I finished O’Levels, I was stuck. Nowadays, you have so many opportunities.

I think that Singapore has also grown, transformed. Now I work in the Warrants Officer School, representing the Navy, since it’s a joint course by the Army, Navy and Air Force. Recently, I attended Joint Services Warrant Officer’s course in the United Kingdom. So I had an opportunity to share about Singapore and our Armed Forces. You’ll be surprised that many are not aware of where Singapore is in the first place. When we shared about Singapore, what is in Singapore, and the SAF, and some of the corporate videos of SAF, they were surprised that in a short 44 years, Singapore has achieved so much. You feel proud, you know, to hear some of the comments that they gave. In fact, there are areas where they can learn too, from us. Like the SAF, the way our National Service started and all that, they said that it’s the best thing that can ever happen. They want such a thing to happen so that they can get their youngsters, that’s the age you get them, 18, 20, to shape them.

So if you ask me, Singapore has achieved a lot!

Also, in those days, secret societies were quite active. I remember hearing fights and all that. And once I saw a guy got stabbed when I was staying in Siglap. And there was a lot of brawling and gangs. Nowadays, things are well controlled.

What does ‘Home’ mean to you?

Where you want to go to, and your loved ones are. Warm. Singapore is my home. It’s where I was brought up. And all my friends, relations - everybody is here. I get to travel a little bit, but when I come back, this is always my home.  You see, there are many other places, other places that are more comfortable. Environment, weather and all that. But the people there may be a bit different. Singapore is where you are brought up, where you grow up. You know the places, you know the people, you always feel comfortable. No doubt some other countries will give you the weather, etc. The pace of living, yes, no work and all that. But still a bit different. This is your country. Over there, it is not your country, you know. That’s the way I see it. In the Navy, we travel a little bit. We look forward to coming back also.

Have you ever been abroad for a period of time? Or on holiday? What do you miss about Singapore when you are away?

About six, seven months. I miss food, miss the people, miss the friends. My friends are of different races. We grew up together in school. Some have migrated, and sometimes they come back to see me. Some of the friends in army, we still keep in touch. There’s a good mix.

What does it mean to be a Singaporean to you?

What makes you a Singaporean? If you are male, then you serve the Nation. Being in the Forces, at a young age, it’s not easy you know. You give up your freedom at a very young age, 16, 17 years old. You have to wake up early, you have to get to work on time. All these were sacrifices.

Are there moments you feel proud of Singapore, or to be a Singaporean? Can you share with us these moments?

When I hear people talk about Singapore. And during National Day Parade. There are moments, when we worked for so many months, and on the actual day, everything goes well.

And safety. You don’t take safety for granted. Today, why we are able to attract people, to me, one of the key things is security. It’s a safe place. I think that if you travel a lot, you will realise that. Security and safety.

In fact, living in a multi-racial environment, it’s something that people envy us of. They ask questions like, what do you study in school? I say, racial harmony, racial tolerance, some of those things that they emphasise so much on, the importance of it. I think, Singaporeans, we are aware that we cannot take racial harmony for granted. We make an effort to ensure that there’s racial tolerance. I think we are also quite close to people of other races. In a kampung, we lived among the Chinese, Malays, all that, we were very close. So how are we going to talk to our children about this? We got the understanding that these are the important things.

I should be proud. Unless you have travelled, and you have seen, you’ll realise that you should be very proud to be a Singaporean. For what we have achieved. So if you ask me, I should be very proud to be a Singaporean. So, be responsible citizens.

What hopes and aspirations do you hold for Singapore?

Hope Singapore will go on and will progress. And the people are cohesive. That’s what I hope. Now, we got more people coming in, Permanent Residents and all that, it becomes even trickier. Whether this place is their home, or they are just here for the money, I think all these are challenges.  There are many different races here now. We need to impart to young Singaporeans, the importance of tolerance, don’t take it for granted.