Young and old bid goodbye to S R Nathan

SINGAPORE — The mood was sombre at Parliament House on Thursday morning (Aug 25) as hundreds of people, old and young, waited outside to pay their last respects to former President S R Nathan, as his body lies in state.

About 10am, President Tony Tan and his wife Mary were the first to pay their respects, bowing three times before the casket. 

“Mr S R Nathan dedicated his life to Singapore,” Mr Tan said outside. “Whenever there was a need, he always stepped up and did what was necessary.” 

In the queue, several senior citizens had been waiting since 6.30am, as students from several primary schools arrived later in uniform.

Madam Tang Ai Ngock, 65, a security officer at Beatty Secondary School, said she had traveled to Istana at 6.30am on Wednesday for a glimpse of the casket but realised the viewing started on Thursday.

She recalls how Mr Nathan had once came down to the school to deliver a talk. “He’s like a father figure, who loves and respect us,” she said in Mandarin.

Mr Nathan, who suffered a stroke on July 31, died on Monday. He was 92. His body arrived at Parliament House in the morning after an emotional send-off from his Ceylon Road home.

Ms Thenmoli Duraisamy, in her 50s, a project assistant, was in the seniors queue on Thursday morning. She said she wanted to come to pay her respects and had woken up at 5.40am to take public transport down to Parliament House.

She recalled a memory in which she ended up at the Nathans’ house. She and a friend decided to spontaneously visit Mrs Nathan, a former teacher.

“We were just walking around in the neighbourhood when we went to the house,” she said. “Then the president came in and we were quiet, we didn’t know what to do. But he asked if (we) had been served drinks yet, just normal questions you would ask your guests. He was so humble, and shook our hands. That was the best handshake of my life. It’s not every day that you get to shake the president’s hand, let alone end up in his home, without the protocols. I will still remember it to this day.”

Also in the crowd were students from several primary schools, including Northland, Tampines, St Hilda's, Temasek and Hougang.

Anabelle Yee, 11, a pupil at Temasek Primary School, said: "(Former President S R Nathan) has contributed a lot to Singapore, so I'm sad that he has passed. I learned perseverance from him. He worked very hard and studied at the same time. And his family was very poor, so he had to support them."

Mr Tan Cheng Kiong, chief commissioner of the Singapore Scout Asssociation, led a group of about 150 scouts to pay tribute to Mr Nathan, remembering his strong support for the group.

"I recalled once at a dinner in year 2000, he went around greeting and shaking hands with all the older folks at the tables, about hundred of them, before even sitting down. It took quite a while, and he did that again when he left... He was very down to earth," he said.

To honour him, the association will be setting up a fund to raise S$100,000 for needy scouts.

Veteran opposition figure Chiam See Tong and his wife arrived around 11.30am to pay their respects.

About 700 people from the National Trades Union Congress (NTUC) were expected to arrive on Thursday. NTUC Secretary-General Chan Chun Sing, who paid his respects in the morning, said: “Mr Nathan has always been a big part of our labour movement ever since he joined the Labour Research Unit in the 1960s. His heart has always been with the common folk.... He has given us a strong foundation.”

Earlier in the day, the hearse was received at Parliament House by Speaker of Parliament Mdm Halimah Yacob. A coffin bearer party, comprising nine officers from the Army, Navy, Air Force and Police Force, transferred the casket onto the bier for the lying in state.

The State Flag was draped over the casket in the presence of Mr Nathan’s family, in a show of the highest State honour accorded to a Singapore leader.

Mr Nathan was Singapore’s sixth and longest-serving President. Vigil guards will be mounted at his lying in state as a special mark of respect.

Members of the public who wish to pay their last respects may do so at the Parliament House from 10am till 10pm on Thursday. Officials and members of the diplomatic corps may pay their last respects on Friday from 9am to 12pm, according to the Prime Minister’s Office.

A State Funeral will be held on Friday at the University Cultural Centre for Mr Nathan.