SINGAPORE – The legacy of Singapore’s founding prime minister Lee Kuan Yew can be found in every corner of Tanjong Pagar, where he stood for election throughout his political career, said Minister in the Prime Minister’s Office Indranee Rajah on March 22, the eve of his 10th death anniversary.
“In our green spaces that provide respite from urban living; in our modern housing that provide dignity and comfort; and most of all, a home in our community; initiatives that bring people together and bond us and most importantly, in the spirit of our people, resilient, forward-looking and committed to making Tanjong Pagar better with each passing year,” said Ms Indranee, who is also Second Minister for Finance and National Development and an MP for Tanjong Pagar GRC.
“What he did for Tanjong Pagar, he also did at scale for the whole country. He oversaw this extraordinary transformation of Singapore in its journey from third world to first.”
Ms Indranee was speaking during a ceremony at Duxton Plain Park to commemorate the 10-year anniversary of Mr Lee’s death.
Mr Lee died on March 23, 2015 at the age of 91. He was Tanjong Pagar’s first MP, after being elected in 1955 when it was a single member constituency. He remained as MP of the constituency for almost 60 years. Tanjong Pagar is now a five-member group representation constituency (GRC).
Also at the ceremony were three other MPs of the GRC – Education Minister Chan Chun Sing, Minister of State for Trade and Industry as well as Culture, Community and Youth Alvin Tan; and Ms Joan Pereira. Absent from the event was Senior Parliamentary Secretary for Culture, Community and Youth Eric Chua.
Other attendees included Mr Koo Tsai Kee, former MP of the Tiong Bahru division under the Tanjong Pagar GRC from 1991 to 2011, and Ms Rachel Ong, an MP for the West Coast GRC.
Ms Ong attended as a “special guest”, since her division was ceded to Tanjong Pagar GRC after the Electoral Boundaries Review Committee dropped its report on March 11.
Mr Koo and Ms Ong joined the four Tanjong Pagar MPs in placing bouquets of yellow and white chrysanthemums at the foot of the Lee Kuan Yew Memorial Tree.
The tree was planted at Duxton Plain Park a month after Mr Lee’s death, witnessed by then Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong, along with some 500 residents from the constituency.
Among his many accolades, the founding father of the Republic was affectionately known as Singapore’s Chief Gardener.
Tree Planting Day, which began in 1963, became a tradition on the first Sunday of November before the start of the year-end monsoon.
“That is very much like everything else he did – with thought and purpose and always with a view to helping something to grow, to be stronger and better,” Ms Indranee said.
Mr Koo said: “The late (US President) Richard Nixon called Mr Lee a big man on a small stage. Big was not referring to his size, but his stature on the world stage...His legacy is not just the physical infrastructure – the buildings, the roads, the airport, the port – but the institutions he left behind.”
“Ten years have passed since Mr Lee died, yet the institutions that he built – honesty, efficiency, integrity – remain strong and thriving,” he added.
Speaking to residents and members of the public gathered at the Lee Kuan Yew Memorial Tree, Mr Chan said Mr Lee left behind an ethos of meritocracy, multiracialism and incorruptibility.
“Our greatest tribute to Mr Lee is to keep Singapore going. When the job gets done, while we are still around, we are not impressed. When the job still gets done, even when we are no longer around, then we can be impressed,” he said.
A minute of silence was observed during the ceremony as a remembrance of Mr Lee and his contributions to Singapore.
Mr Ho Nai Chuen, a grassroots volunteer serving with Mr Lee since 2003, said to most people, Mr Lee was stern and strict, but “when you got to know him, he was actually very caring and pragmatic”.
“Some would even call him frugal. He was not an advocate for airconditioning and the large halls at the CC only had fans until recently,” Mr Ho said.
The most memorable event etched in his mind was in 2013, when Mr Lee, who was then frail, attended the National Day dinner.
“We had taken the rostrum from the stage down to the hall but he insisted, despite his frailty, that it be returned to the stage as he wanted to address everyone, even those at the tables at the back of the hall,” Mr Ho recalled, wiping a tear from his eye.
A two-day art exhibition was also launched at the Tanjong Pagar Community Club, showcasing paintings and artefacts of Mr Lee, as well as a 67m-long painting named “Singapore on Canvas” by artist Ng Peng Sing.
It depicts Singapore’s transformation from a fishing village to the city it is today.
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