I feel many Singaporeans are becoming complacent about our current state of prosperity. They don't feel the urgency and danger of being overtaken by our neighbouring countries. The other countries are not staying still and it is important these Singaporeans wake up to this possibility. Just imagine our women going out to other countries to work as maids!

And yes, it does boils down to pride and ego that people strive to outdo one another. This is as true at the individual as at the national level. The Indonesian president Jokowi said as much. He said he felt ashamed that Indonesian women had to come out to work as maids in other countries, and he vowed to stop this. And the only effective way for him to achieve this is to make Indonesia prosper as a nation and bring up the wealth of its citizenry. And the people have to do their part!

Most times people don't really have a choice, stand still and be overtaken by the next guy or continue to work hard to maintain or extend your status. Singapore has had a good and fast start in this race over our neighbours. We should not squander this for the sake of future generations.