Murshida Mohd Kadir,
People’s Association

As public officers, we need to strike a balance between being professional, and being human enough to laugh at ourselves. People who can laugh at themselves are humble and approachable – traits that are equally important to a public officer. Being serious when the time calls for it and having a sense of humour are virtues of a truly well-rounded individual.

Congratulations Murshida! We’re sending you a $100 Sistic voucher so you can use it to catch a side-splitting comedy show! Bring a (serious) friend, maybe?

Allyne Han,
CPF Board

Of course we have a funny bone, simply because we are all human beings to begin with. We joke and spread joy to our family and friends, so why not just extend it to the rest of the Service? I feel we should be our true selves and contribute the best we can in the workplace, whilst still upholding integrity as a public officer.

Suguna Sundaram,
Singapore Prison Service

Using humour to raise public awareness can create a positive view of the Public Service. The high number of shares that the meme generated is good evidence of our success in engaging the public. With similar efforts in the future, not only will we gain strong public support, we will also be able to attract more talent into the Service.

Dominic Ng,
People’s Association

This meme proves that public officers do have a funny bone. It builds on the existing ideas (or stereotypes, if you wish) of how people perceive the Public Service. All public officers understand the meaning of “wayang” and “getting arrowed”; this helps us bond, something which we can joke about during coffee sessions after a hard day’s work. We should celebrate this funny side of the Public Service to show that we also have a touch of humour that makes us all human, and approachable.