Singapore—Workers’ Party chair and Member of Parliament Sylvia Lim (Aljunied GRC) posted Chinese New Year greetings over social media, wishing that “adversity be turned to success.”
Ms Lim recorded her greetings in Mandarin, but provided a translation in English, acknowledging that for this year, well-wishes need to be done virtually.
“Here’s wishing everyone a Happy Lunar New Year! May you enjoy peace and good health. Even though this year’s greeting has to be online, but the good wishes are as ever… may adversity be turned to success. 步步高升，扭转乾坤，岁岁平安，年年健康！Huat Ah! #CNY2021,” she wrote. 
Indeed, it has been a particularly challenging time for many Singaporeans, especially with the Covid-19 pandemic affecting people financially.
The Singapore Department of Statistics (DOS) reported on Monday (Feb 8) that the country’s median monthly household incomes from work suffered a drop of 2.5 per cent from S$9,425 in 2019 to S$9,189 last year.
The country’s GDP fell by 5.8 per cent in 2020, and, according to a paper released by the Ministry of Finance (MOF), the economy could have actually shrunk by as much as 12.4 per cent, if not for the support measures provided to soften the impact of the pandemic.
Workers’ Party secretary-general and Leader of the Opposition Pritam Singh also posted CNY greetings.
He wrote that Team Eunos went out last weekend to distribute oranges, which is a Workers’ Party tradition.
On Saturday morning, they made the rounds among the hawkers, wet-market stall owners and “early bird residents”, and visited commercial shop-units’ owners and coffeeshops the following day.
Mr Singh added that the team met not only residents from Eunos but also from East Coast, Tampines and Pasir-Ris Punggol.
Fellow WP MP Jamus (Sengkang GRC) on Thursday (Feb 11) posted a photo of his mother’s “ayam buah keluak, a stew of chicken cooked with the seeds of the Pangium edule (known locally as payang or keluak), a tree native to the mangrove swamps of Southeast Asia.”
He added that this dish is a favourite of his and his wife, and that this year, he helped his mother prepare the New Year’s Eve dish.
Ms Nicole Seah posted a video of the East Coast WP team, with greetings from Mr Kenneth Foo, Mr Terence Tan, Mr Boon Yaw, and herself interspersed with clips of them distributing oranges.
Ms Seah acknowledged that this year’s celebrations would be “more muted” and thanked the people who are still at work during this time.
“Thank you for your service amidst the festivities in keeping the shops open, and ensuring that the majority of us are able to experience the convenience of buying groceries, traveling between homes, and eating out, amongst many others. Stay safe, and have a good weekend with your loved ones near and dear,” she wrote.
/TISG
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