Passion And Patriotism (PAP)

[The_Republic]

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Passion And Patriotism (PAP)

Wednesday, 16 September 2009, 8:41 pm | 413 views


TOC wishes MM Lee Kuan Yew a happy 86th birthday and thanks him for his nation-building endeavour.

Ravi Philemon

“It is difficult for him not to interfere,” said Mr Goh Chok Tong as he took over from Mr Lee Kuan Yew as the Prime Minister of Singapore in 1990.

Whether one likes him or not, no one can deny that this London-trained barrister who has promised to get up even from his sick bed or while being lowered into his grave, if he feels something is wrong with Singapore, has left an indelible mark in the modern history of Singapore.

A Stroll down Memory Lane


Mr Lee probably was politically awakened while he worked as a clerk and later as a cable editor at a Japanese propaganda agency during World War II. In his late 20s, Mr Lee joined Laycock & Ong and he campaigned for his boss John Laycock, a Singapore Progressive Party leader, in 1951. During this period, he became increasingly involved in a number of left-wing cases.


Whatever his detractors may say, there is no denying that if there is one quality this man had, it is the one called passion – Passion with a capital P.


Mr Lee never charged for the legal services he provided the unions. Former Straits Times news editor Felix Abisheganaden, who was acquainted with Mr Lee in the 1950s and 1960s, noted that he hardly ever charged the unions for his work. “You can never say that he was ever in his life after any kind of financial gain – never, never, never.”


His stint in London, his involvement in the Malayan Forum and the influence of the British Labour Party had taught him that he had to be pro-labour and build his network power base through the trade unions. Right from the start, noted former People’s Action Party (PAP) chairman Toh Chin Chye, “It was the unions that provided the mass base. Lee Kuan Yew was the legal advisor, so he had a mass base.”


It was but the passion of Mr Lee and the team he led (with the likes of Mr Toh Chin Chye, Mr S Rajaretnam, Mr Goh Keng Swee and Mr S Devan Nair), which enabled PAP to sweep the 1959 general elections. It was his passion which persuaded the Malayan premier and leader of the Alliance Party, to include Singapore in the merger. It was his passion which caused him to campaign for a ‘Malaysian Malaysia’; and again, it was Mr Lee passion which was the major reason for the separation of Singapore from Malaysia.


“The ousting of Singapore, despite what history books might say, are anything but cordial,” says Mr M.G.G. Pillai in his article “Did Lee Kuan Yew want Singapore ejected from Malaysia?” Mr Pillai writes that Mr Lee then being in his 40s was brash. This prompted Tunku Abdul Rahman to condition that if Singapore were to remain a part of Malaysia, Mr Lee had got to get out of the picture. That was a condition which was too unacceptable to consider, even for an impassioned Mr Lee.


Maybe it was the ouster of Singapore from Malaysia which kindled Mr Lee to prove that Singapore could not only survive without Malaysia, but could also do better than Malaysia. Perhaps Mr Lee envisioned Singapore to be him and him to be Singapore; and driven by Napoleon Complex Mr Lee strived to keep Singapore ‘up there’, whatever the cause was. It’s highly possible that he had something to prove to those who ‘pooh-poohed’ his ideal of a ‘Malaysian Malaysia’.


The Present


Fast forward to the year 2009 and we find a Mr Lee who is still impassioned about Singapore. Recently he found it necessary to “bring the House back to earth” for their highfalutin idea that the Singapore National Pledge was an ideal. It was an aspiration he said – not an ideal. Never mind that the pledge is neither an ideal nor an aspiration, but a promise; “Nobody can speak with the knowledge that I have”, he said.


But what Mr Lee failed to realise was that the Nominated Member of Parliament, who tabled a motion calling for the House to reaffirm its commitment to the principles enshrined in the Singapore National Pledge, was actually echoing the call Mr Lee Kuan Yew made decades ago; only this time for a ‘Singaporean Singapore’. Did the ouster from Malaysia turn this man into a convert of cold-eyed pragmatism, which prescribes that there are no ideals except the ideal of pragmatism?


From his days as a cable editor of the Japanese propaganda machine, through his years as an agitator for independence from Britain, to the merger and (soon after) ouster from Malaysia; from his time spent talking to the Americans during the Vietnam years to his role as a confidant of China’s leadership, Mr Lee has seen it all. And more importantly, he has raised a generation of pragmatists.


But in a rapidly changing world, pragmatism does not fire the imagination of many, especially the young. Singapore craves for a leader with the “bring back to earth” kind of charisma that Mr Lee possesses; but charisma which is tempered with humanity. Pragmatism sadly can never breed such a leader.


Mr Pillai argues in his article that “Singapore will eventually have to merge with Malaysia, but as an adjunct of Johore”, when Johor stops supplying water to Singapore. Perhaps we need problems of such magnitude to throw up true patriots like our founding fathers – patriots like Mr Lee Kuan Yew.



Happy birthday Mr Lee Kuan Yew.


Read also: Lee Kuan Yew’s Legacy on Leadership Succession



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Lee Kuan Yew’s legacy on leadership succession

Wednesday, 16 September 2009, 1:48 pm | 853 views



TOC wishes MM Lee Kuan Yew a happy 86th birthday and thanks him for his nation-building endeavour.

Netina Tan

A public conference was held recently to discuss the country’s prospects in the event of MM Lee Kuan Yew’s death (ST 21 Apr 2009). Lee Kuan Yew has had two heart operations in 1996 to clear a blocked heart artery.


He was hospitalised again in Sep 2008 for abnormal heart rhythm and has since implanted a cardiac pacemaker (ST 1 Dec 2008). More recently, he was also seen to be slow in his speech in Parliament.


With the global economic downturn, export-dependent Singapore faces its worst crisis since independence. And as Lee Kuan Yew turns 86 years old, questions are raised on the prospects of the hegemonic PAP’s rule. Will Singapore survive his death?


Leadership Succession


In most Asian democracies, the question of leadership succession is perilous as it raises expectations and changes that could de-stabilise the balance of power. For example, when Taiwan was under the Kuomintang’s rule in the 1980s, speculations or publications on the prospective successors of Chiang Ching-Kuo were banned. Usually, strong leaders strive to hold on to power for as long as possible or show little interest in developing a means of providing a successor. But this is not a case in Singapore.


Over the last five decades, the PAP has engineered two party leadership successions without public infighting or power struggles. In Singapore’s short history, two Prime Ministers have stepped aside for a younger successor. While the fourth Prime Minister successor has not been identified, the precedence of Prime Ministers stepping down is expected to continue.


As Goh Chok Tong once said, he stepped down voluntary “because Mr Lee had set the example” (Goh’s speech at PAP 50th Anniversary Dinner, 2004).

Singapore’s leadership succession is unique as Lee Kuan Yew had made leadership succession a priority and PMs retire voluntary – not an easy feat, considering how often coups and protests are the main mechanisms for leadership change.


A Closer Look at the Mechanism


The PAP is an odd party as it avoids vertical integration of its cadres and does not appear to overtly reward party loyalists. This is perhaps another of Lee’s legacy as he said: “We have resisted the temptation, and the pressure, to fill up the Parliament with party loyalists. We have to field the best that Singapore has” (Petir 30th Anniversary Issue 1984, 22).


Since 1984, the PAP has “talent spotted” widely and adopted the Civil Service recruitment process of tea sessions, interviews and psychological tests to select its candidates.


As discussed, the PAP “talent spots” from within the state structures and integrates them horizontally into the Party. The PAP’s incumbency advantage and access to state institutions such as the Public Service Commission that administers 13 prestigious government scholarships helps to channel highly qualified scholars into its party (see Chen and Neo 2007; Barr 2006).


Another feature of Singapore’s leadership succession system is that retired PMs and senior Cabinet Ministers do not leave the political scene, but remain in office to lend expertise as Senior Ministers (SM) or Minister Mentor (MM).

Currently, the Cabinet has two SMs and one MM. The expansion of the Cabinet is an ingenious innovation as it mitigates possible power struggles that come with leadership transition.


The new cabinet positions encourage intra-party elite cohesion as it compensates the outgoing leader with a prestigious position and high salary; and allows the new leader to tap his predecessors for knowledge and expertise.


While the specific job scopes are unclear, the current MM and SMs are seen to act as consultants and ambassadors by travelling overseas to improve Singapore’s international standing.


Observation and Criticism


Most observers contend that the PAP’s cohesion over last 40 years owed much to Lee Kuan Yew’s forceful personality. Yet, it is more than charisma or ideological commitments that sustain the party. Lee and his successors have institutionalised a process by which the PAP as an organization has incorporated the founder’s values and aims.


As Lee Kuan Yew once said: “My colleagues and I have institutionalised honesty, integrity and meritocracy into the systems we have created. Each generation of leaders has the duty to recruit the people of integrity, ability and commitment as their successors” (cited in Rodan 2009, 192).


Critics argue that the PAP’s “meritocratic” based recruitment and candidate selection process are “ruthless winnowing process” that promotes elitism and “politics of envy” (Barr 2006; Tan 2008).


Much has been written about the elite-selection process may result in the ruling class renewing itself with the people of same mindset, promoting in-breeding of ideas. But, despite complaints of elitism, Singapore voters also rarely vote for candidates who are not well educated or qualified professionally (Mauzy 2002, 64).


Lee’s birthday reminds us of his relentless dedication to institutionalise a structure of governance that will survive beyond him. The institutionalised elitist-based leadership selection process is one such example. With the injection of “right” people and concerted attempt to address the gap between ordinary party members and its elite leadership, the PAP appears poised to survive the passing of its founding leader for some years to come


Bibliography

1. “Singapore After Lee Kuan Yew.” ST 21 Apr 2009.
2. “MML Lee gets pacemaker.” ST 1 Dec 2008.
3. “Retain Our Core Values And Beliefs.” Speech By Secretary-General Goh Chok Tong, at The PAP 50th Anniversary Dinner, Suntec International Convention & Exhibition Centre. 2004.
4. People’s Action Party. People’s Action Party, 1954-1984 : Petir, 30th Anniversary Issue. Singapore: Central Executive Committee, People’s Action Party, 1984.
5. Neo, B. S., and G. Chen. Dynamic Governance: Embedding Culture, Capabilities and Change in Singapore. World Scientific Pub Co Inc, 2007.
6. Barr, M. “Beyond Technocracy: The Culture of Elite Governance in Lee
7. Hsien Loong’s Singapore.” Asian Studies Review 30.1 (2006): 1-18.
8. Rodan, G. “Accountability and Authoritarianism: Human Rights in
9. Malaysia and Singapore.” Journal of Contemporary Asia 39.2 (2009): 180-203.
10. Tan, Kenneth P. “Meritocracy and Elitism in a Global City: Ideological Shifts in Singapore.” International Political Science Review 29.1 (2008): 7.
11. Mauzy, Diane K., and R. S. Milne. Singapore Politics Under the People’s Action Party. London ; New York: Routledge, 2002.

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Lee Kuan Yew’s 86th birthday

Wednesday, 16 September 2009, 9:07 am | 464 views

Minister Mentor Lee Kuan Yew celebrates his 86th birthday today – 16 September.
Below is his interview with Charlie Rose where MM Lee spoke about various issues.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ihv_O...layer_embedded


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http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wGvgb...eature=related



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Festive season joke

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Passion with monetary motivation .