There’s a reason why we call certain celebrities “influencers”. After all, we can’t deny the influence they hold over the general public thanks to their popularity. As long as there are eyes on them and people following them, they are influencers.
However, it seems some people are confusing that influential power for political power. As such, Singaporean DJ and YouTube personality, Jade Rasif recently took to her socials to school her followers.
Recently, Jade reposted a Story from Instagram account @wakeupsingapore titled: “things (Singaporeans) should advocate for in 2023”. “Spoke about points I’m passionate about with my MP,” she added to the story. “And so can you!” The 29-year-old clearly meant to encourage her followers to actively participate in change in Singapore.
However, some took a different message from that. As one follower happily chirped: “You (should) run for presidency then make it happen.” She attempted to brush off a few as a joke. However, she soon realised they were serious. Shocked by the sheer amount of messages echoing the sentiment, Jade then tackled the issue head on.
“People always tell me to run for office and I thought y’all were joking. But based on *some* dms (direct messages) I need to say: DO NOT ENCOURAGE INFLUENCERS TO BE IN POLITICS,” Jade stated on her Instagram Story. “Do ya’ll KNOW how easy it is to sit here and share a post. I didn’t even put in the work to make that graphic!” she added, referring to a collage of pictures below.
The influencer then pointed out that being an MP was hard work, involving more than just having ideas and sharing posts. “Ya’ll think influencers are going to wake up at 5am to walk around the neighbourhood to hear people complain about things like mosquitoes, while simultaneously bear the enormous responsibility of the lives of a nation,” Jade wrote. “You should know that some can’t even commit to an 11am call time.”
As a final reminder, Jade repeated her earlier sentiment: “DO NOT ENCOURAGE LIFESTYLE INFLUENCERS TO ENTER POLITICS“. It’s clear to see that she has strong feelings about said topic. And well, obviously, she has no plans to run for office anytime soon.
