The video was cut from a CNA documentary about Singapore’s class divide called ‘Regardless of Class’, and it’s probably the worst response to Singapore’s inequality that I have seen thus far.

The documentary features struggling families, security guards who are abused by condo residents, and many heart-wrenching examples of class prejudice like a banquet waiter who said: “I was not treated properly like a human being”

However, what CNA does not feature are the underlying causes of this class divide. It neglects to mention our government’s role in creating the inequality that has now become our No.1 problem.

For its entire run-time, the documentary does not say a single word about the lack of a basic minimum wage, or our government’s anti-welfare mindset. It does not address the neo-liberal, pro-business policies that have created this wealth gap, or even consider the possibility that our economic problems may be related to our economic policy.

Instead, we are treated to a crusade against snobbery. The class divide is not seen as a socioeconomic issue for CNA/Dr Puthucheary, but a question of people behaving badly by ‘judging’ others as low class and refusing to mix.

Take for example the above-mentioned segment on IP versus Normal students. I would like to know why there is such a huge gap between the IP and Normal students. I would like to know how much resources each group enjoys, and if it has contributed to the divide. I would like to know if our educational policy of streaming was perhaps misguided in the first place.

These questions were never asked. Instead, everything is blamed on social ‘awkwardness’.

Or as Dr Puthucheary explains: “We want to remove ourselves from situations where we feel embarrassed or awkward.”

Instead of questioning how this painful divide came about, the students are seemingly held accountable for their reluctance to interact.

Instead of a close examination of inequality in our society, the show treats our class divide as an ‘attitude problem’. As if this whole class thing would go away if Singaporeans were less ‘prejudiced’, had more opportunities for ‘social mixing’, or would simply be nicer to each other.