Founding prime minister Lee Kuan Yew would have turned 100 yesterday if he's alive.

To commemorate his birth anniversary, Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong and politicians in Singapore took to social media yesterday (Sep. 16) pay tribute to the late Lee.

PM Lee visits Tanjong Pagar

In a Facebook post today (Sep. 17), PM Lee shared that he spent last evening with residents from Tanjong Pagar and Tiong Bahru, celebrating the centenary of Blair Plain Conservation area and commemorating the 100th birth anniversary of the late Lee.

The late Lee was the Member of Parliament for Tanjong Pagar GRC for an unsurpassed record of 60 years.

PM Lee was hosted by Indranee Rajah, who is the MP for Tanjong Pagar-Tiong Bahru division.

"Walking around the Blair Plain Conservation area brought a wave of nostalgia, as memories of him are cherished and celebrated by the community," he said.

PM Lee also paid his tribute to his father on social media.

Lawrence Wong made a speech at the Joint Initiative to support Lee Kuan Yew Centennial Fund

In his speech on Sep. 15, Deputy Prime Minister Lawrence Wong, who is also the finance minister, thanked business chambers from different segments of society came together and tapped on their extensive network of about 400 organisations to raise S$10 million for the Lee Kuan Yew Centennial Fund in a short period.

The money will be used to support students' education and development, a cause that is close to the late Lee's heart as he believed Singapore's only resource is its people.

Wong added that the best tribute one can pay to Lee is not just by fundraising but to uphold the founding values, principles and ideals.

In light of a more uncertain world ahead, as well as challenges that an aging population and social changes may bring, Singapore should constantly re-examine our assumptions and policies, Wong reminded.

"What should we retain and uphold? What should we change? These are the questions that we are constantly asking ourselves, and we are in fact now deliberating over these questions as part of the Forward Singapore exercise. We are engaging Singaporeans widely and reviewing our policies comprehensively. We want to see what programmes we can put in place, and what we might do differently to refresh our social compact and keep our society cohesive and strong," Wong added.

Towards the end of his speech, Wong also shared his hopes for Singaporeans to stay united and face problems ahead as a nation with courage with a quote by the late Lee:

"He said: '(the past is) not preordained. Nor is the future. There will be unexpected problems ahead, as there were in the past. They have to be met, grappled with and resolved. For only a people who are willing to face up to their problems, and are prepared to work with their leaders to meet unexpected hardships with courage and resolution deserve to thrive and to prosper....(I) hope that Singaporeans will be such a people'."

Heng Swee Keat shares 3 takeaways from working closely with the late Lee

Deputy Prime Minister Heng Swee Keat shared a photo from late Lee's last birthday in 2014.

Accompanying the photo, Heng wrote in a Facebook post that Lee "is often remembered as a respected statesman and a leader with foresight and gumption. Above all, he is a founding father who dedicated his life to building a better Singapore for all Singaporeans, regardless of race, language, or religion."

He served as the late Lee's principal personal secretary for four years, from 1997 to 2000. During that time, Heng said Lee was "instrumental in shaping my values and outlook" and summarised three "timeless advice" — find your passion and pursue it with passion, always take a strategic long-term view and be adaptable and unafraid to innovate —which he elaborated on in his post.

K Shanmugam and Tan See Leng on meritocratic system built by Lee and his team

To commemorate LKY100, K Shanmugam, Minister for Law and Home Affairs, reshared a speech he made at the memorial for Lee in Nee Soon on Mar. 27, 2015.

He said: "We are here today to mourn the loss of Singapore's greatest son. He was a bright light that guided us. That light is no more."

Shanmugam went on to share how Lee's "meritocratic system" had impacted his life and others in Singapore.

"His life is a testament to the fact that one man can change the course of history, help make a nation, improve the lives of millions of people," Shanmugam added.

Similar to Shanmugam, Minister for Trade and Industry Tan See Leng paid tribute to the meritocratic system that Lee and his team put together.

"I am one of the many direct beneficiaries of our meritocratic system that Mr Lee and his team put in place. Because we all got a fighting chance, no matter our background, and lives were uplifted."

 

Desmond Lee, Chan Chun Sing among those who paid tribute via tree planting

Minister for National Development Desmond Lee, Minister for Education Chan Chun Sing and Minister for Foreign Affairs Vivian Balakrishnan are among others who paid tribute to Lee's tree planting legacy.

They were also out with residents to plant trees in their estates across Singapore.

https://www.facebook.com/Vivian.Balakrishnan.Sg/posts/pfbid02BkbH62ZjAohmxoZHw277qsMLq8JjEkh3ixwewjxfpZdhaiHNPgbjGxw3T5KVHMgPlhttps://www.facebook.com/alvinshtan/posts/pfbid0vfP8j5ky4865FxMZ8Pp2ATdzrUEMLiSrWivLLr6KdNNSeKyi4DGWfqciQ7FAMJmrl"It was especially meaningful that we came together to do this on Mr. Lee Kuan Yew's 100th birth anniversary. We are reminded of his unwavering commitment to creating a city in nature. His foresight and determination led to the launch of the first nationwide tree planting campaign in 1963, which laid the foundation for our thriving green spaces today," Foo Mee Har, West Coast GRC MP wrote.

Other MPs' tributes

Acting Minister for Transport and Senior Minister of State for Finance Chee Hong Tat reflected on what he's learnt about leadership from the late Lee in a dialogue session on Sep. 16.

Senior Parliamentary Secretary Baey Yam Keng paid tribute to the late Lee by sharing a photo he took of him at the 2014 National Day Parade (NDP)."At the time, he had not been in good health and was not seen in public for a while. Many were wondering if he would be attending NDP that year," Baey wrote.

He recalled how the audience "roared with cheers and applause" when Lee arrived at the last NDP he attended.

Tan Wu Meng, MP for Jurong GRC, recollected on how Lee "took a chance on [him]" in his LKY100 tribute.

Tan shared how he first met Lee in 2007 while moderating a closed-door dialogue with young Singaporeans.

In early 2008, Tan received a letter from the InterAction Council, a group of former Heads of State and Heads of Government, of which Lee was a member. They were hosting a Young Leadership Forum, with 19 youths from different countries nominated and Lee put his name in.

"The punchline was at the end of the letter — Mr Lee Kuan Yew had nominated me."

"To this day I still can't quite believe that Mr Lee put my name forward. Thank you Mr Lee for this opportunity, and for taking a chance on me," he wrote at the end of his post.

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Top images via Baey Yam Keng and Heng Swee Keat/FB.