If you think the Scottish independence referendum was exciting, that's because you haven't heard of then Prime Minister Lee Kuan Yew's radio talks during Singapore's battle for merger yet.

Some folks credited former British Prime Minister Gordon Brown's barnstorming speech, which went viral, for helping the pro-unionists vote against Scotland's independence. (55.3% - No, 44.7% - Yes).

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But this was nothing, compared to how Mr Lee used a series of 12 radio talks to convince the population to vote for People's Action Party (PAP)'s position in merger.

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Of course it is less about the battle for merger, as all three choices were pro-merger.

But the PAP achieved bragging rights. 71% supported the PAP's position, while 25% cast blank votes as advocated by the anti-merger group.

Check out the Straits Times click bait-ish headline ("Whacked! Barisan-led-don't-put-X-on-your-ballot-paper-group") when PAP won.

Yup, The Straits Times was sexy once, 52 years ago.

The reprint of the book The Battle for Merger, a compilation of the transcripts of Mr Lee's 1962 radio talks, was launched by Deputy Prime Minister Teo Chee Hean at the National Library today.

Why was the Battle for Merger reprinted now? 

DPM Teo's explanation at the launch:

"In 2015, we celebrate Singapore’s 50th anniversary. This is a significant milestone, especially when we consider our precarious and tumultuous beginnings. While we only became an independent nation in 1965, our road to independence began earlier, with our attempt to forge a shared destiny with the then Federation of Malaya. Our hard-fought attempt to gain independence by merging with Malaya was in fact a battle for the future of Singapore. On the surface, it was a battle for merger. But this was only on the surface. Below the surface was another deeper, more momentous, more dangerous battle – that between the communists and noncommunists in Singapore."

At the heart of this battle were two contrasting visions of how society should be ordered and how we should govern ourselves."

Is this reprint a reaction to filmmaker Tan Pin Pin's banned documentary “To Singapore, With Love”?

Tan's documentary was barred from screening because of its one-sided portrayal of the Communist Party of Malaya (CPM) members.

Mothership.sg understands from the officials that the reprint was planned much earlier between October and November last year. It was an idea mooted by DPM Teo, who owned an original copy of the book.

Finally, read how Lee Kuan Yew used radio to make his message viral 

Lee's message in the reprint: "We calculated that harrying the people into merger would not work. What was needed was a compelling message; one delivered in a way that would linger and make an impression. There was no Internet and no social media then - not even television. I chose the most effective medium available at the time to speak directly to the people. Radio could reach virtually every corner of the island through multilingual broadcasts. This was how most people got their news then."

Radio Singapore - the place where Lee made his speeches viral.

Check out the exhibition at the National Library Building on Victoria Street (Oct.9 - Nov.30).  It will then travel to public libraries including Jurong Regional Library and Ang Mo Kio Public Library. 

All photos from the Ministry of Culture Collection, Courtesy of National Archives of Singapore

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