Skip to main content

Advertisement

Advertisement

S’poreans need to emulate LKY’s total dedication to country: Heng

SINGAPORE — Just as former Minister Mentor Lee Kuan Yew overcame the Republic’s early challenges by being a “man of action” with an “unwavering and total dedication” to the country, Singaporeans can, and need to, aspire to these qualities as they confront the issues of a “different world” today, Education Minister Heng Swee Keat said yesterday.

Mr Lee Kuan Yew at the Standard Chartered Singapore Forum 2013 on March 20, 2013. Photo: Ernest Chua

Mr Lee Kuan Yew at the Standard Chartered Singapore Forum 2013 on March 20, 2013. Photo: Ernest Chua

Follow TODAY on WhatsApp

SINGAPORE — Just as former Minister Mentor Lee Kuan Yew overcame the Republic’s early challenges by being a “man of action” with an “unwavering and total dedication” to the country, Singaporeans can, and need to, aspire to these qualities as they confront the issues of a “different world” today, Education Minister Heng Swee Keat said yesterday.

Making a call for action and unity among Singaporeans at a conference to mark Mr Lee’s 90th birthday, Mr Heng cited these qualities as the “deepest impression” Mr Lee left on him in his time as the founding father’s Principal Private Secretary between 1997 and 2000.

Mr Lee was Singapore’s first Prime Minister, before stepping down in 1990. He stayed on as a Cabinet member — first as Senior Minister, and then as Minister Mentor — until 2011.

In a speech, Mr Heng noted how the search for answers to Singapore’s survival and success was Mr Lee’s “lifelong preoccupation”.

He said: “In the same way that he asks himself, we need to always be asking ourselves ... what does this mean for Singapore? So what should we do about it? And act on it.”

He added: “I hope that this conference ... also stirs us to action and to do so with the same unwavering dedication to Singapore and our future.”

The one-day conference, titled “The big ideas of Mr Lee Kuan Yew”, was organised by the Lee Kuan Yew School of Public Policy. It was attended by more than 500 public and civil servants past and present, former and current politicians, academics, and industry leaders.

Apart from Mr Heng, other speakers - including former Senior Minister S Jayakumar and former Chief Justic Chan Sek Keong — talked about Mr Lee’s imprint on topics such as the rule of law, geopolitics, and governance and implementation.

During a question and answer session, Mr Heng responded to a question about what would “destroy” Singapore — which Mr Lee had described as his legacy in one of his books.

Mr Heng said that whether Singaporeans had “that sense of togetherness” was one of the determinants of the Republic’s continued success in spite of the challenges posed by a changing world.

“If we do, and we can agree on what is it that we should be pursuing together, I believe that we can remain successful in navigating the changes,” he said, adding that this consensus required “a certain amount of honesty among ourselves”.

Mr Heng said that quality institutions and leadership are also needed to meet society’s needs for the long term, and Singapore must never fail to “continually adapt and change”.

“If we are able to do that well, (and) there’s a certain Singapore character that’s resilient, united and adaptable, then as a society we can overcome any challenge.”

The conference was kicked off by former President S R Nathan who had worked with Mr Lee for decades in various capacities.

Apart from highlighting the importance some of Mr Lee’s fundamental principles had in nation-building, such as multiracialism, Mr Nathan also shared a personal anecdote to reveal Mr Lee’s “caring nature” — which might be surprising to some, he noted.

In 1967, as a young Foreign Service officer freshly transferred from the labour movement, Mr Nathan was tasked to take notes for a meeting between then-Thai Foreign Minister Thanat Khoman and Mr Lee, who was then the Prime Minister.

Mr Nathan said in his hurry, his necktie was cocked, but Mr Lee adjusted for him and then said “almost with a paternal touch”: “Nathan, you must remember you are no longer in the labour movement”.

“I was moved beyond words,” said Mr Nathan, choking back tears.

“I had grown up without a father or an elder brother. Here was the Prime Minister himself coming down to my level to do what they would have done for me.”

Related topics

LKY

Read more of the latest in

Advertisement

Advertisement

Stay in the know. Anytime. Anywhere.

Subscribe to get daily news updates, insights and must reads delivered straight to your inbox.

By clicking subscribe, I agree for my personal data to be used to send me TODAY newsletters, promotional offers and for research and analysis.