Supported by free education and subsidized housing, Singapore's citizens have become among the wealthiest in the world. (Illustration by Daniel Garcia)

Is Singapore's 'perfect' economy coming apart?

Once hailed as a model of progress, poverty and nativist resentment are on the rise

PETER GUEST, Nikkei staff writer

January 22, 2020 15:10 JST

SINGAPORE -- From around 10 p.m. until the early hours of the morning, Aziz drives a private hire car through the streetlit hinterlands of Singapore. On weekdays, he shuttles from the airport to downtown condos and back; on weekends he patrols around Tanjong Pagar where the upscale bars kick out late, picking up drinkers, bar staff and other nocturnal tradespeople. On an average night, he can book upward of 150 Singaporean dollars ($111). His situation, he said, is "jialat."