Chris Reed<\/a> about Ms Tan received a lot of comments.<\/p>\n\u201cSurely this is very insensitive of her to be showing off her $1m car that her rich daddy allegedly gave her when her listeners are struggling financially?\u201d wrote Mr Reed, who also referenced a speech from last October from Senior Minister Lee Hsien Loong, who had advised rich immigrants not to flaunt their wealth.<\/p>\n
\u201cIf you are in Singapore, please keep the bling down, do not go around popping champagne, which is $20,000 a bottle, with sparklers, and do not zoom your Ferrari or Lotus or whatever down the middle of the road, in the middle of the night, just to let everybody know that you have arrived,\u201d SM Lee said in a speech in London.<\/p>\n
Mr Reed asked if this did not apply to \u201crich, entitled, out of touch\u201d Singaporeans as well, and pointed out that Ms Tan presumably had not earned her wealth but comes from an affluent family.<\/p>\n
\u201cIn a country where most normal people are dealing with higher costs of living, stagnated salaries, and job insecurity, it is totally insensitive to be showing off like this and very much against our culture too. As a public figure from a privileged family, shouldn\u2019t she be setting an example too? Wonder what SM Lee thinks about her. What do you think?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cAs someone who grew up and stayed in a government rental flat for 4 years, this article is literally crazy rich Asian,\u201d a LinkedIn user wrote.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat does it say about how you see yourself if you flaunt your material possessions? And in an economy where so many people are struggling, what does it say about how you see others?\u201d one commented.<\/p>\n
Another shared his opinion that \u201cMediacorp is countering the government\u2019s message on meritocracy.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
One agreed with Mr Reed\u2019s points and added, \u201cIt\u2019s about being aware and taking responsibility. When your audience is made up of people hustling through rising costs of living and you openly flaunt extreme wealth, especially wealth you didn\u2019t earn yourself\u2026well\u2026. It\u2019s not the wealth that\u2019s the issue, but lack of awareness and empathy.\u201d<\/p>\n
Another, however, disagreed, writing that Ms Tan has a right to spend he money as she sees fit, and suppressing a \u201cdisplay of wealth may apply to politicians, but why should it apply to normal private citizens? You can\u2019t control envy.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cI think there\u2019s a broader conversation here about public figures and how they present themselves, especially in a cost-of-living climate like this. Whether it\u2019s tone-deaf or just a personal choice, people can debate, but the optics definitely don\u2019t help,\u201d chimed in a LinkedIn user. \/TISG<\/p>\n
Read also: 987FM DJ Germaine Tan and Zouk CEO Andrew Li have announced their engagement after romantic Maldives proposal<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n