SINGAPORE - On the 10th anniversary of Mr Lee Kuan Yew’s death, Prime Minister Lawrence Wong called on Singaporeans to honour the legacy of Singapore’s founding father through their actions.
Modern Singapore stands as a testament to Mr Lee’s vision for the nation, having become a clean and green city-state that is “admired and respected around the world”.
““Together with his pioneering team, Mr Lee defied the odds to build a nation anchored in meritocracy, strengthened by economic resilience, and held together by a deep commitment to harmony,” said PM Wong in a Facebook post on March 23.
He added: “The Singapore story is still being written. Together, let’s forge a brighter future worthy of the foundation he laid.”
Mr Lee became Singapore’s prime minister in 1959, serving in that office until he stepped down in 1990. He remained in politics as a senior minister and minister mentor until his retirement in May 2011. He was then appointed as senior advisor to the Government of Singapore Investment Corporation.
Mr Lee died on March 23, 2015, at 91.
“Ten years on. The recent rains remind us of that solemn day in March 2015, when Singapore stood united under heavy skies to bid farewell to our founding Prime Minister, Mr Lee Kuan Yew,” said Prime Minister Wong.
Senior Minister Lee Hsien Loong, who was Mr Lee’s eldest child, also marked his father’s 10th year anniversary with a Facebook post.
“Singaporeans remember him for all he did for the nation. To me and my family, he was our father or grandfather, and meant the world to us. May we live up to his hopes and expectations, and always do him proud,” said SM Lee.
On March 22, a ceremony was held at Duxton Plain Park in Tanjong Pagar GRC to commemorate the 10-year anniversary of his death.
Mr Lee was Tanjong Pagar’s first MP, after being elected in 1955 when it was a single-member constituency. He remained MP of the constituency for almost 60 years.
The ceremony was attended by three out of five Tanjong Pagar MPs: Education Minister Chan Chun Sing, Minister in the Prime Minister’s Office Indranee Rajah, and Ms Joan Pereira.
Mr Koo Tsai Kee, former MP of the Tiong Bahru division under Tanjong Pagar GRC from 1991 to 2011; and Ms Rachel Ong, an MP for West Coast GRC, were also in attendance. Under the latest changes to electoral boundaries, parts of Ms Ong’s Telok Blangah ward in West Coast GRC have been ceded to Tanjong Pagar GRC.
All five placed bouquets of yellow and white chrysanthemums at the foot of the Lee Kuan Yew Memorial Tree to mark Mr Lee’s anniversary.
Tanjong Pagar MPs (from left) Rachel Ong, Indranee Rajah, Chan Chun Sing, Melvin Yong, Joan Pereira and former Tanjong Pagar GRC MP, Koo Tsai Kee observing a minute of silence at a commemoration ceremony held in honour of 10th anniversary of Lee Kuan Yew’s death at Duxton Plain Park, on March 22.ST PHOTO: NG SOR LUAN
The tree was planted at Duxton Plain Park a month after Mr Lee’s death. Its planting was 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 known as Singapore’s Chief Gardener.
Said Ms Indranee on March 22: “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.”
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