<TABLE border=0 cellSpacing=0 cellPadding=0 width="100%"><TBODY><TR>They were well-dressed but behaved like louts
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<!-- START OF : div id="storytext"--><!-- more than 4 paragraphs -->ON TUESDAY, I accompanied the wife of a foreign investor and her baby and nine-year-old son to VivoCity to shop. She was full of praise for the service in all the shops she visited. Then we went to Burger King for lunch and managed to find an empty table with six seats. She sat with her children while I queued to buy food.
About five minutes later, six smartly dressed men in long sleeves and ties came to her table with their food, glared at her hostilely and started to sit down. Feeling uncomfortable, she and her child left their seats.
I went over to the six men and asked them why they had done that, seeing that she had a baby and a child with her.
One of the men said rudely: 'We were here first.' It turned out that one of them had reserved six seats by placing a namecard on the table. The namecard was not there when we sat at the table earlier, but the men still thought the table was theirs though they were not physically there.
I asked them why they could not be gracious and let the female tourist with her baby and her child sit down since they were already seated.
I told them Burger King would not allow people to inappropriately reserve six seats with one namecard. It is a fast-food outlet with free seating, and the table was empty when we arrived. The men had no right to pressure the female tourist and her child out of their seats by glaring at them.
One of the men said rudely: 'I don't want to talk to you. Go away.' They ate their food, oblivious to the stares of other diners.
The female tourist was turned off by the men's arrogance, rudeness and uneducated behaviour. She told me they were all dressed like gentlemen but their behaviour was the opposite.
I doubt her husband and his business associates will invest in Singapore if Singaporeans know only how to dress and speak well at work but have no social graces.
This incident reflects poorly on Singaporeans and I hope we do not see Ugly Singaporeans like these in fast-food outlets or anywhere else in Singapore.
While the Government is trying its best to attract investors to Singapore, Ugly Singaporeans will turn them away with their selfishness.
This is a loss to Singapore.
Singaporeans should improve their social graces at work, as well as outside because because you never know who you will run into.
Bendjenni Udiana Jamalludin (Mrs)
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<!-- START OF : div id="storytext"--><!-- more than 4 paragraphs -->ON TUESDAY, I accompanied the wife of a foreign investor and her baby and nine-year-old son to VivoCity to shop. She was full of praise for the service in all the shops she visited. Then we went to Burger King for lunch and managed to find an empty table with six seats. She sat with her children while I queued to buy food.
About five minutes later, six smartly dressed men in long sleeves and ties came to her table with their food, glared at her hostilely and started to sit down. Feeling uncomfortable, she and her child left their seats.
I went over to the six men and asked them why they had done that, seeing that she had a baby and a child with her.
One of the men said rudely: 'We were here first.' It turned out that one of them had reserved six seats by placing a namecard on the table. The namecard was not there when we sat at the table earlier, but the men still thought the table was theirs though they were not physically there.
I asked them why they could not be gracious and let the female tourist with her baby and her child sit down since they were already seated.
I told them Burger King would not allow people to inappropriately reserve six seats with one namecard. It is a fast-food outlet with free seating, and the table was empty when we arrived. The men had no right to pressure the female tourist and her child out of their seats by glaring at them.
One of the men said rudely: 'I don't want to talk to you. Go away.' They ate their food, oblivious to the stares of other diners.
The female tourist was turned off by the men's arrogance, rudeness and uneducated behaviour. She told me they were all dressed like gentlemen but their behaviour was the opposite.
I doubt her husband and his business associates will invest in Singapore if Singaporeans know only how to dress and speak well at work but have no social graces.
This incident reflects poorly on Singaporeans and I hope we do not see Ugly Singaporeans like these in fast-food outlets or anywhere else in Singapore.
While the Government is trying its best to attract investors to Singapore, Ugly Singaporeans will turn them away with their selfishness.
This is a loss to Singapore.
Singaporeans should improve their social graces at work, as well as outside because because you never know who you will run into.
Bendjenni Udiana Jamalludin (Mrs)
