S’poreans urged to keep close eye on pulse of global events

SINGAPORE — With the region in a state of flux and the disruptions globalisation and technology could pose, Singaporeans can ill afford to be caught up in the here and now, said Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong yesterday.

Adopting a broader view when it comes to domestic issues should be the way because other countries are facing similar issues Singapore is dealing with and tips can be gleaned from how they tackle these problems, he said.

And even as the country’s focus is trained on the present, the “Singapore way” of keeping an eye on what lies ahead should be kept. But at the same time, Singaporeans need to understand the Republic’s past to remember hard-won lessons and appreciate the value of the nation’s achievements, as well as have confidence in the future, he added.

“So we’ve got to look out even while we look inwards on ourselves. If we fall to naval-gazing, that’s the end of us,” said Mr Lee, during his keynote address at the National University of Singapore Society’s 60th Anniversary Lecture last night.

Pointing to the political leadership changes in Indonesia and India, as well as the rapid development of China as developments that could have an impact on Singapore, Mr Lee said that Singapore needs to keep its finger on the pulse of global events to anticipate or respond properly.

Singaporeans also have to know what is going to happen anywhere in the world because globalisation and technological advances can create and disrupt businesses swiftly, he noted.

While Singapore is preoccupied with current issues such as healthcare financing, ageing population and immigration, Mr Lee said that these are not unique to Singapore.

To make sense of these issues, Singapore has to know how others are tackling the problems and learn from their experiences.

Citing significant past events such as the communal riots and difficult relations with Malaysia during the merger and during Konfrontasi with Indonesia, Mr Lee said these experiences explain how Singapore achieved its progress and why certain things needed to be done.

Knowing the nation’s past would also help Singaporeans understand what Singapore’s success depends on, and so that people would not be “unjustifiably pessimistic about our future prospects”.

Noting that some young people have expressed anxiety about the future and whether their lives would be better than their parents’, Mr Lee said that while this was not a surprising sentiment at a time of rapid change and intense competition, Singapore is already being transformed in ambitious ways.

He cited examples such as how the Government is investing in people through setting up new universities and the work of ASPIRE.

But he pointed out that anxiety is understandable and even constructive up to a point, because paranoia helps keep people on their toes.

“We need to be both paranoid but at the same time, paradoxically confident,” Mr Lee said.

“Then we can make this a special nation for Singaporeans.

“We have to have the confidence to aim high. To dream and to build on what we have. To make Singapore better than any other country to live in and to be an exceptional society.”