Maruah is pleased to announce the winners of our essay contest for young Singaporeans on their vision for a Singapore beyond Lee Kuan Yew. The contest was organised to encourage young Singaporeans to evaluate Mr Lee’s legacy and consider how they would retain or modify his legacy for Singapore.
Eight years after Mr Lee’s death, the imprint of Lee Kuan Yew can still be clearly seen in public discourse on many issues. For example, the controversy over the renting of colonial bungalows to Government ministers, the arrest of a Government minister on suspicion of corruption, and even the resignations of People’s Action Party (PAP) and opposition Members of Parliament over extra-marital affairs are legacies of Mr Lee’s determination that politicians in Singapore be whiter-than-white. The Elected Presidency was also a creation of LKY, and just by voting in the recent Presidential Election, all Singaporeans are participating in a system that Mr Lee established.
Almost a decade after his death, Mr Lee’s legacy remains ubiquitious in Singapore but the World does not stay still, and as he himself would have recognised, Singaporeans, especially young Singaporeans have to think of how they would retain or modify LKY’s legacy to meet their needs and aspirations in a rapidly-changing environment. This was the question posed to participants in the contest and the judging panel selected four winners, in no particular order – Lam Yu Han, Luke Lee, Desiree Leong and Wesley Ng.
Lam Yu Han, a 23-year-old full-time National Serviceman who volunteers in the community and has an interest in social issues and politics. Lam is grateful for the economic prosperity and security that Mr Lee’s leadership brought to Singapore, but is also perturbed by the Out-of-Bounds (OB) markers the Government places on media and even on individuals who choose self-censorship as the path of least resistance. In his view, Mr Lee will only be able to rest peacefully in his grave when Singapore has both a government that has the competence and legitmacy to take on the challenges facing the nation, and a society that can discuss ideas freely and intelligently.
Luke Lee, 22, was also in National Service when he entered the essay contest as a means of educating himself to examine issues wholistically and objectively. Growing up, Luke had only been taught the positive aspects of Lee Kuan Yew (LKY), and only later in life became aware of more questionable aspects such as LKY’s use of the Internal Security Act against political opponents, and eugenic policies including the Graduate Mothers’ Scheme. Luke’s wish is that people can express divergent opinions without fear, and wrote the essay to meet his own aspiration and as an encouragement to others.
Desiree Leong has been working with Humanitarian Organisation for Migration Economics (HOME) for seven years where she has seen first-hand that migrant worker issues are often at the coalface of broader issues facing society. Ms Leong feels strongly that this country is her home and where she wants to make a difference. She believes that for Singapore to move forward together as an inclusive society, we will have to come to terms with the past so as to truly make it our past.
Wesley Ng is an undergraduate in Poltical Science & South East Asian Studies at the National University of Singapore (NUS) with an interest in the politics of South East Asia. Mr Ng hopes that Singapore will continue and cherish the parts of LKY’s legacy that reinforce Singaporeans’ belief that their nation can continue to remain united regardless of race, language or religion, and to succeed against the odds. At the same time, he argues that Singapore today calls for a different style of governance – One that recognizes that while the post-LKY leaders need strong public trust to succeed, the leaders also need to trust that the citizenry are aware of what is best for Singapore and of what Singapore needs to succeed.
These four essays are only a small sample of the views that young Singaporeans have on LKY’s legacy and of the Singapore that they hope to see in the future. Maruah hopes all Singaporeans will continue to engage in meaningful discussions of the home that they wish to live in and to build in the future.
MARUAH Singapore 