You can run but you can't hide. Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong is everywhere.

He is on the front pages of every major newspapers in Singapore (except The New Paper).

Watching the television today? His interviews will appear on Channel NewsAsia (1pm), Channel 5 (5.30pm), and Channel 8 (8pm)

What just happened? PM Lee did an interview with the local media over two hours on Wednesday and Thursday. The two hour interview was conducted in English first and then in Mandarin.

Before PM Lee spams shares a post about his media interview with his 466k FB fans, here is a summary of his interview in ten quotes. 

1. On social media - he knows bit.ly!

"I think it makes me a lot more conscious in pitching what I want to say, to ask myself: How will I distil this down in a form which somebody can digest on Facebook or Instagram? On Twitter it is very hard. It's 140 characters, I can just put a bit, but please click on this bit.ly to read more.

2. On social media - knowing which posts will be a click-bait. 

"[I]t is also necessary to have serious response and content as well. For example, (on Tuesday) I went to speak to a civil service seminar about the importance of keeping our system corruption free. I posted on Facebook and Instagram.

I do not expect as many hits as when I put an owl up or even a picture up, but I think it is important that I do that, and I think it has some impact."

3. On political change and its impact in Singapore

"We are flat. The tallest mountain in Singapore is Bukit Timah so you make one small change, the sky can change."

That is not a comfortable position to be in, but that is the way our society is and we have to know that."

4. On his biggest achievements as a PM

"I would say putting a lot of emphasis on education. Right from the beginning, my first National Day Rally, I remember one of my themes was on the young. And we were talking about the schools - 'teach less, learn more' - and getting people to get the maximum out of their education.

We have followed through on that in many ways - investing in schools, Edusave, increasing resources for the principals, making sure every school is a good school, developing tertiary education, building up ITEs.

I think it is not a single decision, but it is a continuing, consistent emphasis over a long period of time and successive capable, strong Education Ministers supported by competent and passionate professionals. I think that is very important to our future."

5. On his regrets

"In retrospect, it's easy to say that we should have been building up our infrastructure a lot faster; that we should have got our trains running; that we should have got our HDB flats built more.

"At that time, we thought we were doing the right thing, pacing it, measuring it out, building it when we needed it and not spending resources until we needed to spend them. It turned out that things didn't pan out the way we expected and I think in the future, we have to plan less conservatively, and try to be less precise in our prognostications."

6. SG50 is not a final destination, but a springbroad to an even better future

"The 50th year is a good time for us. It is like reaching the end of a fifty metre swim. I touch (the wall), I take a breath and I swim on," he said.

7. On having more confidence in the next GE

"If we are able to convey the message to the people that as long as you keep trying, there are always opportunities to upgrade and there are no dead-ends - we will face the next elections with more confidence. But it's for Singaporeans to judge, not for us to score ourselves well."

8. On the next GE

"We are now busy planning the SG50 celebrations, so we haven't had time to think about when it (Electoral Boundaries Review Committee) will be set up."

"I think it is around that figure (24 new PAP candidates), but it is not confirmed yet. The election has not arrived, so we have not determined the final line-up we will field".

9. Performance of the opposition 

"I think it is reasonable to have a check, but the question is what type of check and the standard of the check...So it should be quality and not quantity - having the best and not the most..."

"You can do a lot of work if you are a good opposition MP. The PAP was formed in 1954 and took part in the first election in 1955. Only three people were elected to the Legislative Assembly - Lee Kuan Yew, Lim Chin Siong, and Goh Chew Chua. Three of them were sufficient to be a force. So it is about having the best and not the most.

10. On the next Prime Minister

“It's very possible (my successor) is already in the current Cabinet line-up, but it's not an absolute because I want to bring in a group of new candidates with strong leadership potential in the next election. I believe we should be able to find my successor from the previous two elections or the next one.

“Times have changed, and his background would also be different. He would need some time to establish his authority, to let Singaporeans know his character, his working style and his leadership abilities. In other countries, it's quite rare to find a Prime Minister that has had many years of experience before leading a country.

“But he may not be a stranger.”

 Top photo from Lee Hsien Loong Facebook.

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