No shit!
A first-time member of parliament, a lawyer by profession, announced a couple of days ago, that he will be “retiring” from politics because “he felt his work was done.”
Until the announcement, I have never heard of Alvin Yeo – yup, Alvin who? – and before I could follow his progress, he has already done a Lui Tuck Yew, saying “I suppose…I owe it to my family to spend a bit more time with them…”
What this nation needs are men and women who will stick it out. When is a conscientious MP’s job ever done? Coffee shop critics will only jump to the inevitable conclusion that this strawberry-generation softie probably couldn’t handle the pressure that comes with the MP job. In fact, Yeo himself was quoted saying “If you aren’t prepared to put up with the demands then you shouldn’t do it.” Yeah, when you can’t stand the heat, get out of the kitchen.
Maybe he was following his own advice but didn’t he know that all serious and diligent MPs basically have no life, what with weekends burned doing constituency walkabouts and nights spent at “Meet-the-People” sessions? Didn’t he know that he was signing up for such a lifestyle right from the beginning when he stood for elections? Or did he think that being an MP is a piece of cake? A nice addition to his CV?
We need to weed out the jokers, especially those who come in riding on the coattails of the ruling party, earn their generous monthly MP allowance, do all the PR shit and then scoot off at their own convenience.
Imagine if our founding fathers had that kind of attitude. We would have all gone to hell in a handbasket. It was their “never say die” attitude that got us to where we are today.
Public office is no child’s play. Some people need to wise up to this fact.