• The Mandarin term “五C” refers to the five English terms starting with the letter “c”, namely cash, credit card, country club, condominium, and car. In some versions, one of the Cs refers to career.
• The “5Cs” originated in the 1990s, reflecting what was seen as Singaporeans’ materialistic pursuits. The 5Cs also came to be dubbed the “Singapore Dream”.
• In 1994, then Prime Minister Goh Chok Tong cited the 5Cs at the Singapore Youth Awards ceremony to encourage youths to work hard and seek growth.
• The 5Cs ended up being used by some to judge others’ socioeconomic status and social class.
• On 14 July 1996, then Minister of Information and the Arts George Yeo proposed a new set of 5Cs at a People’s Action Party’s forum. The new 5Cs were Character, Culture, Community, Courtesy and Commitment. He believed that the old and new 5Cs could complement each other to make Singapore a holistic “yin and yang society”, achieving balance between external material goals and internal spiritual needs.
• In 2010, then Senior Minister Goh Chok Tong said that Singaporeans should look beyond the material 5Cs to pursue a new set of 5Cs, namely career, children, comfort, charity, and consideration.

The old 5Cs can only fulfil our material needs, but we remain empty inside. Even if we possessed all the former 5Cs, it would not bring us spiritual fulfilment or bring about social harmony. (Lianhe Zaobao, 25/8/2010)