In GIC’s e-book titled Safeguarding The Future, some pretty abstruse (so cheem) expressions were used to describe Singapore’s relationship with the Brits and certain important people within the corporation in the past.

We conclude that our standard of English was so much more powerful then.

Here are six such expressions and their modern day equivalent.

1. Panegyric

Yesteryear: Singaporeans owe much to Deputy Prime Minister and Finance Minister Goh Keng Swee, for he had his hands in the creation of the SAF, EDB, MAS, Temasek, DBS, Sembawang Corp, Keppel Corp, Singapore Technologies, the SSO, Sentosa and even Jurong Bird Park.

No wonder then that Founding Prime Minister Lee Kuan Yew wrote him a glowing letter of appreciation in 1984:

“No panegyric can do justice to you. A whole generation of Singaporeans take their present standard of living for granted because you had laid the foundations of the economy of modern Singapore. And you catered for more than bare living. Singaporeans who bring their children to the Bird Park, Chinese Garden, Japanese Garden, Jurong Golf Club, or Sentosa, or who listen to the Singapore Symphony Orchestra, owe their pleasures to you.”

FYI, a panegyric is a public speech or published text that praises someone or something. While Lee didn’t use panegyric to describe Goh, he did, after all, write a panegyric to him.

Today: Linkedin endorsement.

Example: “My Linkedin endorsement doesn’t do justice to what you have done for Singaporeans.”

2. Raise one's hackles

Yesteryear: In November 1967, the British was surprised to find out that Singapore - then part of the Sterling Area and obliged to hold its reserves in sterling - had only 50 per cent of its reserves in sterling. They were also shocked at the size of Singapore’s reserves - “richer” than London had assumed.

Goh and Chancellor of the Exchequer Roy Jenkins then exchanged letters that were so abrasive that Founding Prime Minister Lee Kuan Yew said the statesmen “each raised the hackles of the other”.

Today: It’s not often that one uses this idiom these days, especially in everyday colloquial language. Disturb, irritate or plain ol’ ka jiao would have sufficed.

Example: "They ka jiao each other by shooting those nasty emails."

3. Asperity in that word of recrimination

Yesteryear: Speaking of letters, here’s a taste of one of the seemingly polite, yet feisty exchanges, from Goh to Jenkins following the devaluation of the sterling in 1967:

“As a consequence of this, following upon devaluation, Singapore has lost $69 million in the value of its Sterling backing of the new currency and our share of the old currency… However, you may be pleased to know that I nor any of my colleagues have uttered a single word of recrimination to your government.”

Classic Goh Keng Swee. Freddy Orchard, the author of GIC’s e-book, used “asperity” to describe the exchange of words. But when you have pleased and recrimination in the same sentence, we think it should really be passive-aggressiveness.

Today: Passive-aggressive.

Example: “Why are you not pulling your weight? But what do we know? We are just a little red dot.”

4. Soul of a buccaneer

Yesteryear: To safeguard Singapore’s reserves against market turmoil back in 1968, Goh changed our currency composition by reducing the proportion of the US dollars and Sterling Pounds and increasing Deutsche mark, Japanese yen and Swiss franc.

Goh also went for gold, a safe haven, but was blocked by a US-led gold embargo. So what did he do? He clandestinely met the Finance Minister of South Africa and bought 100 tonnes of gold at $40 per ounce.

The manner of the “cloak and dagger” purchase (it involved the tearing of a US dollar note with one half given to Goh and the other the South African representative as a verification of identity) must have interested Goh a great deal as former top civil servant J Y Pillay said that Goh had the “soul of a buccaneer“.

Not to say Goh was acting à la Captain Jack Sparrow, but you just got to admire his gungho and red tape-breaking spirit.

Today: Bo cheng hu (or no government). Usually used when one’s superior is not around and the person is free to do whatever he wants.

Example: He bought it even though he’s not allowed to? Wah, bo cheng hu. But wait… He is the cheng hu!

5. When fertility of financial mind meets manner of gimmickry

Yesteryear: In a telegram from D.G. Holland to Sir Arthur Snelling, phrases like “fertility of the Singaporean financial mind” and “manner of gimmickry” were used freely to describe Singapore’s efforts in diversifying out of the Sterling. As Britain was devaluing the currency, it would have resulted in significant exchange losses for Singapore.

Today: Like what our NS men would say: “Smoke screen formed.”

Example: “I know your methods are very creative. But don’t try to smoke me lah.”

6. Whippersnapper

Yesteryear: Mr HDB, Lim Kim San, famously used “whippersnapper” to describe Yong Pung How, who was named Managing Director of GIC in 1981. Lim, then the Managing Director of the Monetary Authority of Singapore, questioned Yong’s appointment and accused him of only interested in “empire building”.

It was a word so cheem that Yong had to check the dictionary later to find out the meaning of “whippersnapper”.

Later though, Yong impressed Lim with his “lapidary submissions”. Lim would go on to support the idea of Yong taking over from him as Managing Director of MAS and subsequently as High Court Judge and Chief Justice.

Today: Young punk or if you prefer something affectionate, si ginna.

Example: “Why did you appoint that si ginna?”

For more cheem and powderful words and phrases like “benign neglect” and “interregnum”, download the e-book here.

*This post is brought to you in collaboration with GIC.

Top photo from Wikipedia.

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