Wah: There’re pirated “Singapore’s” with pirated Merlions in China

Last Updated on 2016-05-19 , 1:43 pm

Now this is definitely news for me. I mean, China’s been well known when it comes to the art of recreation. And by recreation, we mean re-creation. We have seen how well they remake popular brands and sell the items for less than half the price.

Well, get this: they have taken imitations to a whole new level now. There’s “Singapore” locations that’s been pirated in China, and it comes with its own Merlions as well!

Singapore Gardens, Zhumadian City
This place is still under construction. The Singapore Gardens is complete with Merlion statues, right at its entrance. The residential properties here carry East-meets-West architectural features. Just like our island, the Singapore Gardens is spotted with loads of greenery.

There’s no links whatsoever between the Singapore Gardens and our good old country.

The Chinese Government’s Not Pleased
The government of China is not happy with the fact that there’s lots of foreign names on upcoming properties. The Civil Affairs Minister of China, Li Liguo mentioned that names like Holland Town in the city of Shanghai and Vienna Woods in Zhengzhou doesn’t really suit China.

According to him, the foreign names are dampening the sovereignty and national dignity.

Purchasing the Singapore Brand
Developers in China took to building properties and estates that mirror Singapore, which they have advertised as a garden city. Thanks to this marketing initiative, a lot of Chinese purchased lots and units in the Singapore Gardens and other similar Singaporean-themed developments.

What’s Going to Happen?
Title deeds have already been issued out with the word Singapore stamped on it. Developers have raised their dissatisfaction, and are even calling the move by the government an unrealistic one.

It would be horribly absurd to get the home owners to have amendments made to the title deeds. In fact, most of them would probably not even agree to a change of name.

The people prefer foreign names in their estates, instead of adopting traditional names.

There are quite a handful of roads with the words Manhattan and Venice on them. According to Mr Li, such names erode the sense of home in China, and are also an inconvenience for tourists.

Weibo has been taking the issue up like a whirlwind, with its netizens saying that the name picking should be left to the developers, and no one else.

In the meanwhile, I’d like to catch a plane and take a look at the “Singapore” that’s in China. I mean, it’s not always that you’d get to see five Merlions at the entrance of a property!