History has shown that cities grow and die. This is not a problem if a city is in big country. When it dies, a new city will grow in its place.

For a city-state, it is a different matter. In this case the city is the country and the country is the city. This means that, if the city dies, the country perishes as well. This was probably why Temasek decayed and disappeared in the 14th Century.

If we do not keep this lesson of history in mind, then when the city of Singapore degenerates and dies, our nation may not survive.

Why do great cities die? Cities go through the natural progression of birth, growth, maturity and aging. They die when they stagnate, lose their vibrancy and their attractions.

All cities, therefore, need to rejuvenate, transform and re-create themselves continually to stay alive. In this age of globalisation, they even need to compete against other cities to sustain themselves.

Singapore is a clean, safe and very efficient city. While these factors may make Singapore a comfortable and convenient place to live in, they do not guarantee that Singapore will become a great global city.

A great global city, must not just be a comfortable and convenient place to live, it must also be a great place to live, a satisfying place to work and an interesting place to play. It must be alive and pulsating.

It would be a mistake to think that we can turn Singapore into a great global city by just focusing on the physical aspect. A great global city needs life, energy and a soul. And what gives a great global city this verve and vitality is the drive and enthusiasm of the people who reside in it.

We may have a good physical environment, many great buildings with beautiful architecture and the most advanced technological infrastructures but if our people do not have the drive and enthusiasm, the city will be as listless as a sparkling shopping centre that has little activity. The people factor is, therefore, the most important ingredient in the making of a great global city. A city can only be vibrant if there are enough people to lead changes, to create and to innovate. New York is one example of such a city. It is a place where new ideas and new concepts are always hatching. It is fast and lively because of the people and not the skyscrapers.

Tricia Haynes, former inhabitant and writer wrote, "New Yorkers are the most vociferous people on earth. In New York everyone has a voice and everyone feels entitled to exercise it." This is what makes New York throb and why it is able to attract "the ambitious, the flamboyant and those who want a slice of the action".

A city that reverberates with verve and energy rejuvenates itself and acts as a magnet for people and ideas.

Singapore, thererfore, needs to change if we are going to compete effectively against the likes of New York. As long as our people are tuned to act on cues from above and conditioned to move like a herd, then we can never hope to see Singaporeans showing "boldness, experimentation, setting new standards and pushing for new frontiers".

How then do we turn Singapore into a place where there are things for people (citizens and other residents) to do and see, space for people to create and work and a conducive environment for people to have a voice and feel entitled to express it?

The most fundamental requirement is to allow for diversity in the physical environment, in economic activities, in the social settings and in the area of ideas and thoughts. Diversity is the engine of life and spontaneity in a city. According to Jane Jacobs, a writer, activist, and city aficionado, cities need "a most intricate and closed-grained diversity of uses that give each other constant mutual support, both economically and socially."

Furthermore, "cities are natural generators of diversity and prolific incubators of new enterprises and ideas of all kinds. They are the natural homes economic homes of immense numbers and ranges of small enterprises."

Thus, as long as there is no obstacle in its path, city diversity feeds on itself and generates further diversity.

The Prime Minister, Mr. Lee Hsien Loong is right when he says that what ultimately determines a great city is the X-factor. He said: 'You cannot quite explain it, but you know it when you arrive in a city that has it... You want to work and play all day and all night, because there is too much to see and do, and the city never sleeps.'

What then is this X-factor? It lies in the sum of a people's drive and enthusiasm in the milieu of physical, economic, social, cultural and political diversity

In conclusion, Singaporeans have no choice but to try and make Singapore a truly great global city if they we want to survive. The government, therefore, has a responsibility to provide our citizens the conducive environment and the right climate for physical, economic, social, cultural and political diversities to attain it.

Monday, December 13, 2004