Here's how some young Singaporeans see the late Lee Kuan Yew

And how they will carry on in his memory.

Ng Yi Shu| April 06, 06:17 PM

Mr Lee Kuan Yew's death has left many in Singapore worrying about a future without him.

The worry is more so for the last generation of Singapore who will know him as a living legend. What will the next 50 years without Lee Kuan Yew be like? How will young people remember him?

Four people from that generation write about him, the Singapore he has created, and the ideal Singapore they will shape in his memory.

 

To me, he was a grandparent who was ‘busy kicking ass’

ong-shi-man

Ong Shi Man, 19

When I was still a child, I used to tell myself that Mr Lee was my grandfather.

This self-hypnosis habit of mine was concocted out of loneliness; my grandparents from both sides didn’t reside in Singapore, and there would be times where I missed them dearly. The six-year-old me would start telling myself that I do have a grandfather in Singapore - if my ah gong and ah ma were in Malaysia and Taiwan, why couldn’t I have anah gong in Singapore? In fact, I wanted no one else to be my Singapore ah gong.

So delusional, I know.

It was comforting to know that someone who was literally the most powerful man in the country was looking out for me; I may not have grandparents to spoil me or tell my parents off, but I had someone to look up to.

In times of weakness, I told myself that my self- proclaimed super-grandparent figure in Singapore was busy kicking ass in the world. And I could be just like him, if I believed in myself.

I cannot pinpoint exactly when, but I grew out of doing this as the years went by - and today, I found out about his passing the way many Singaporeans did - on social media.

Despite the fantasies about Super Ah Kong, I have never had any personal contact with him, neither had I any heartwarming stories to share. The only thing I knew about him was that my family and friends and that many people in this country loved him dearly.

I cannot imagine the grief of his loved ones, and the fear of people who once depended and believed in him.

But if there's one thing we can all learn from this man. it’s that he is fearless. We young people hashtag him as #badass - and #badass he is.

We definitely need more courage in this world, to speak our minds and protect everything we have right now; this proud red dot of a nation.

The more fragile something is, the more we will cherish it. And from that, we will be capable of immense acts of courage and love in this tough time. We just don't know it yet.

 

Rest in peace. We'll take it from here.

clarence-ching

Clarence Ching, 21

Whenever I head to Hong Kong to visit my paternal grandmother, she would never fail to ask me about Mr Lee Kuan Yew, knowing just how much I adored him.

"Why do you adore Lee Kuan Yew so much?" she always asked.

To be honest, I cannot pinpoint the exact reason why I'm such a big admirer of Mr Lee. Perhaps it was the gusto he had; the never-say-die attitude that he preached. Perhaps it was the way he dealt with separation from Malaysia and the communist threat.

Like the badass leader he was, he never fled from his problems; and faced them head on. He brought about fresh perspectives on Singapore and the world; and he taught me to appreciate the simple things in life - having a nice meal at a hawker center, being able to walk home safely and having a smooth bus ride home.

We may mourn today - but we need to continue to embrace his foresight that has brought us to where we are today. We will remember his tenacity, his spirit - and we will continue the fight - to build on the greatest gift he has left us with - a first world country.

 

Singaporeans shouldn't just remember him momentarily

tricia-wong-lky

Tricia Wong, 21

I often wondered if anything will change with the passing of our founding father. Without him, where would we be today? Will Singapore be different without his dedication and direction?

I remember how conversations I had while I was away in Taiwan often started with the mention of Mr Lee. My colleagues at work were often curious about whether I felt oppressed by the many strict laws our government had. Others often laughed at how we couldn't chew gum in our country - and that if we did we would get a “spanking for being naughty” - the exact words from my Dutch friend. Casual conversations with the taxi drivers in Taiwan often ended up with the conclusion that the late Mr Lee groomed Singapore to be a clean, fine city - something that would not have been possible without his “iron fist”. Speaking to these people made me appreciate his way of ruling and the decisions he made even more. They saw the big picture from outside - a successful Singapore. They saw what he had to do in order for us to progress.

Could he have done it differently?

Perhaps, but what we know is that softer methods he chose back then would have caused very different outcomes.

I hope that with the passing of Mr Lee, Singaporeans will not just remember him momentarily - but continue to strive for greater excellence, gaining an even higher standing in the international community and working towards the future he had dreamt of.

Through him, I have grown to love Singapore’s short history of 50 years so much more. Through him, I see miracles. I see what a country can accomplish in 50 years that others could not. I see the power of what a great leader can do and a great leader is one who can make decisions when others cannot.

Men make history and not the other way around. In periods where there is no leadership, society stands still. Progress occurs when courageous, skillful leaders seize the opportunity to change things for the better. —Harry S. Truman

Indeed, Mr Lee made history - and history will prevail through time.

 

Carry on his meritocracy

Tok-Kheng-Leng

Tok Kheng Leng, 23

“Your mum and I were both non-graduates and you turned out very well,” my father would often say when he thought of Lee Kuan Yew’s Graduate Mothers’ Policy.

The way my father saw it, Lee Kuan Yew only thought smart and educated people would have bright children. Obviously, he thought very well of me.

But it is undeniable that I benefited from Mr Lee’s policies on meritocracy. These policies made sure that despite his views on graduate men and women, my family background made no difference in the opportunities that I receive at school. I went to my neighbourhood primary school, did well enough to get into Nan Hua High School, got my engineering diploma from Ngee Ann Polytechnic - and I am currently studying social work in NUS today - something that I am passionate about.

I am also grateful for his foresight to promote bilingualism in our education system. If not for the emphasis on bilingualism, I may not be able to speak Chinese fluently. People I met in Shanghai - where I have been working and studying - are often bewildered at our abilities in Mandarin. A common question they would ask was: “Why are you fluent in Mandarin?” - and I would proudly answer that I have been learning Chinese since young.

All these would not have been possible without Singapore’s education system.

Like my father - we can disagree with Lee Kuan Yew. We can even take his words out of context and think of him as a dictator. But we cannot disagree that he has made a tremendous contribution to our island nation.

Thank you. I want to let you know that i have never hesitated to tell people that I am from Singapore. I am very proud to be a Singaporean.

 

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