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He was an idealist at heart: Dhanabalan

SINGAPORE — He held a reputation for being a “complete political pragmatist”, but Mr Lee Kuan Yew was an idealist “in a very deep sense”, said former Cabinet Minister S Dhanabalan.

Former Cabinet Minister S. Dhanabalan  giving an eulogy during the state funeral for the late Mr Lee Kuan Yew at the University Cultural Centre on March 29, 2015. Photo: The Straits Times

Former Cabinet Minister S. Dhanabalan giving an eulogy during the state funeral for the late Mr Lee Kuan Yew at the University Cultural Centre on March 29, 2015. Photo: The Straits Times

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SINGAPORE — He held a reputation for being a “complete political pragmatist”, but Mr Lee Kuan Yew was an idealist “in a very deep sense”, said former Cabinet Minister S Dhanabalan.

Mr Lee, he said, was obsessed with not only what would work in Singapore, but what the feel and timbre of society should be, as illustrated by his approach to the language policy.

In a population comprising 75 per cent Chinese, the easiest way to ensure electoral support would have been to champion Chinese language and Chinese chauvinism. Instead, Mr Lee was convinced that for Singapore to be distinct, the Republic had to be multi-lingual with English as the main language of administration and commerce. At the same time, each racial group had to maintain its cultural identity with their mother tongues as a second language,

“To convert Chinese schools into national type schools and to push for Mandarin against Chinese dialects were the acts of an idealist not the acts of a pragmatist,” said Mr Dhanabalan, who was one of several former Cabinet Minister who delivered eulogies at Mr Lee’s state funeral service yesterday. Mr Dhanabalan, who was elected in 1976, held several portfolios as a minister including Foreign Affairs and National Development before he resigned in 1992.

Mr Lee is also sometimes seen as a hardhearted man, but certain decisions he made did not come easy to him, said Mr Dhanabalan. “On the few occasions he discussed privately with me the decision to act against someone, I know that he agonised over the decision,” he said. “He was convinced that a softhearted approach would undermine the ethos he wanted to embed deeply in public service.”

Mr Dhanabalan, who had resigned over disagreements with Mr Lee on the use of Internal Security Act in the 1987 “Marxist conspiracy” arrests, also said it was a myth that Mr Lee brooked no opposition.

“That was not my experience. He argued tirelessly to get Cabinet to accept his views not because it was the PM’s view but because of the strength of his arguments. I think he felt he had failed were he not able to convince his Cabinet colleagues,” he said.

He pointed out that when Mr Lee spoke as Prime Minister, he repeatedly sent drafts of his speeches to colleagues for their views. “The idea that he expected his team to follow him like a herd of sheep without question completely misrepresents the man and his values,” Mr Dhanabalan said.

Mr Sidek Saniff, a former Senior Minister of State for Education and environment, noted in his eulogy that when Mr Lee asked him to stand as a candidate in the 1976 General Election, his decision to accept his offer caused a stir in the Malay community. “I had expressed differing views from the Government on education just a few years earlier,” he said.

He also spoke of Mr Lee’s frugality, recounting Mr Lee’s concern about whether he was prepared for a trip to China in 1979, given the harsh winter there. When he told Mr Lee he would buy an overcoat, Mr Lee exhorted him not to “waste money” and instead borrow one from former Cabinet Minister Ahmad Mattar. He also told him to borrow boots from Mr Goh Chok Tong. “Mr Lee believed in frugality, both in his personal life as well as nationally. And he walked the talk. This episode is an example, and also showed his fatherly character and sharp eye for detail,” said Mr Sidek, who spoke in Malay.

Mr Ong Pang Boon, who served in Singapore’s first Cabinet as Minister for Home Affairs, said Mr Lee had a “complete passion for Singapore”. “Once he decided that a certain policy was in the interest of his beloved Singapore, he would implement it, even if it meant making himself unpopular,” he said.

Some disagreed with his policies, but Mr Lee should be measured on the basis that everything he did was to “make Singapore better”, said Mr Ong, who spoke in Mandarin..

“He could be forceful towards his political opponents and those who disagreed with him. But throughout his life, he was always wholeheartedly fighting for the best interest of this small and vulnerable nation,” he said.

Mr Lee was also the “lightning rod” that galvanised the pioneer group of People’s Action Party leaders and grassroot supporters. “Mr Lee Kuan Yew was a far-sighted leader who had the courage to realise his vision. Without him, Singapore would not be what it is today,” Mr Ong said.

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