If there’s one National song that has surprisingly stuck with me after all these years, it has got to be Count on me Singapore. It was probably drilled into my head at a young age, thus holding a significant spot in memory that springs to life whenever National Day approaches.
However, this time around, it wasn’t National Day that reminded me of that song but a very peculiar copyright issue sweeping across the nation…and India.
Say hello to Joey Mendoza, a 58-year-old composer from India.
Lately, he’s been quite busy claiming that Count on me Singapore was, in reality, copied from his song called We Can Achieve.
According to Mothership, he is solidifying his position by claiming that his version was made in 1983. That’s conveniently three years before Hugh Harrison’s National song came out.
However, Mendoza doesn’t have any concrete proof to back up his claims except for his words, which makes the situation incredibly comical. Where did the proof go? Why, it’s magically swept away by the flood waters which hit Mumbai in 2005.
He did say that there are 250 orphans who can testify that he’s telling the truth though. Of course, India being the bastion of honesty that it is (fake diplomas anybody?), we should all take their word for it.
The bottom line is, either Mendoza is honestly telling the truth, or he screwed up his life big time by becoming a composer instead of an incredible storyteller!
And like most people, I’m going with the latter because it takes an exceptional mind to come with the narrative he did. However, I doubt it’s going to save him from Harrison when he decides to sue him for slandering his name.
Unsurprisingly, this saga is becoming something of a parody show to some Netizens as they find the claim hilariously absurd.
Weirdly, as for me, I’m invested in seeing how this ends because the suspense is killing me!
As for the more patriotic Netizens, they don’t find this situation funny at all. People are more pissed at the Ministry of Culture, Community & Youth (MCCY) than Mendoza for not nipping this copyright issue in the bud the moment it surfaced.
And the remaining Netizens are using this as an excuse to vent out their anger at the Government for importing foreign talents from India. I guess this particular consequence shouldn’t surprise anyone anymore. It’s becoming a sort of routine now.
Honestly, after witnessing the various perspectives of Netizens brought upon by this incident, it’s clear that most people are incredibly frustrated with their lives shaped by the Government.
If a pathetic claim such as this could be turned into a political argument among Netizens, I dare not imagine when the day comes when something much worse takes place.