Personally, I proposed that the voting age for Singaporeans to be lowered to 18 years of age. In this preliminary analysis, let me propose a few reasons why.
1. Male Singaporeans enlist into the Singapore Armed Forces at the age of 18. If young men at the age of 18 are required to serve, represent and possibly die for their country, why is it that the constitution are so skeptical of their judgements when it comes to matters of the state, in particularly electoral reforms.2. Young Singaporeans can start pursing a life of choice and freedom at the age of 18. For instance, they have the freedom to choose whether to smoke, to drive, to club, to committ a crime and suffer the maximum punishment and exposure for their acts. In this case, why is it that young men upon the age of 18 cannot have the choice to choose who their representatives in parliament will be.3. Politics is all about me and you. By lowering the voting age to 18, it helps to politicise the population and better create a sense of belonging to the country. This is because, with the right to vote, it's as good as empowering young men with the choice and decision to vote for policies and individuals who can best represent their interests. This will further entrench their roots into Singapore. Now that the are entasked with this heavy responsibility, they will now participate more actively in building a better future for themselves.While it may be argue that young people are seen as rash and irresponsible in their voting patterns,
I think that if given the chance, young people are far more intelligent, far more responsible, and far more mature than we give them credit for.While it may be true that Singapore youths lack the "political acumen", it must be noted that with much political education in school and much political participation in schools, it will only be a matter of time that they are trained in electoral discipline. This particular skill in political education wil stay with them forever. Thus, in a sense, it can again be seen as a worthwhile investment in our young.
I will like to point out that by the time I turned 18, I could recognise that I am part of a community and I have to work together as a group of people in a community, whether that community is a school, a marketplace or even a country. By 18, I really can understand my obligations to the community. I'm confident that many more young people like me are mature enough to want to exercise their vote. In this case, what's stopping us from being more actively involved is the constitution which has since 1965, only allowed Singaporeans above the age of 21 to vote.
In essence, an adult is a person who has attained the age of maturity as specified by law.That's when the law recognises that you are entitled, in law, to have control over your own body, your decisions and your actions. This is where the OB markers lies.
Who is an adult? Someone who is 18 or someone who is 21?