Businessman Ho Kwon Ping said Monday at the University Cultural Center's Institute of Policy Studies that although Singapore has already reached its 50-year mark as a city state, the next 50 years will be better and in the hands of the youth.

During his lecture called "Politics and Governance," Ho said younger Singaporeans' sense of "self-agency" is what separates them from the previous generations, and what will propel them to make the country better.

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According to Ho, the sense of self-governance among the youth is a unifying factor that gave them the attitude to take action themselves and not wait around for other people.

In addition, he said that despite reaching 50 years, the city state has not yet reached its peak, adding that its best years were yet to come, with the help of the younger generation.

Ho said the youth will achieve a "developed society" in terms of politics, social justice, cultural creativity and all the other ingredients of turning Singapore into an "exceptional country."

"So far from having peaked, the best is yet to be," he said.

During Ho's lecture, he mentioned that he was impressed with the younger generation's attitude of "Do-It-Yourself" or DIY, where whey took matters into their own hands. According to him, it was reminiscent of Singapore's earlier years, where there was "participatory democracy" before the era of "developmental authoritarianism" took over.

On the issue of politics, Ho said the youth are more inclined towards high ideals, such as those that are in support of civil rights.

Ho also compared his generation to the youth, saying that before, political discussions would revolve around the government and the People's Action Party (PAP), whereas today, the younger generation is more interested in asking "what's next," instead of listening to the usual discussions that are purely political in nature.

Lastly, Ho mentioned that the younger generations are now more open to expressing their feeling of discontent about how things are.

TagsGeneration, Demographics, politics