The day has come where I have to bid farewell. It was especially comforting to know that our nation mourns together with many people visiting SGH over the last few days leaving gifts and notes for Mr Lee. While it is heartening to see many Singaporeans unite, it is sad to know that all of us are uniting because of the loss of someone so great and so dedicated to Singapore. I can say that he must have loved Singapore more than anyone of us. Mr Lee himself said, "I have spent my life, so much of it, building up this country. There's nothing more that I need to do. At the end of the day, what have I got? A successful Singapore. What have I given up? My life."
I am not a fan of politics. I only grew more interested in it in 2011 during the Watershed Elections only because my teacher got us to study it for our subject called GP. However, I always admired Mr Lee for his dedication and love for Singapore so much so that he would dedicate his entire life to her. He humorously puts: "Even from my sickbed, even if you are going to lower me into the grave and I feel that something is going wrong, I will get up." I am sure that if he could, he would do it.
Many Singaporeans owe what we have today all to this great and sacrificial man. He brought his core and fundamental beliefs on good governance, multi-racialism, workfare incentives, meritocracy, bilingualism and home ownership to reality through his policies. Now, many Singaporeans are able to own a HDB flat, have a good paying job despite their family background and history and live with each other despite our religion and race in a peaceful environment all because of what Mr Lee created for us.
Many accuse him of his iron fist methods of leading the nation. But I am sure many of us agree that if not for his methods, no one would listen and respect him and our nation. Mr Lee said in his book, Lee Kuan Yew: The Man and His Ideas, "If you are concerned with whether your rating will go up or down, then you are not a leader. You are just a catching wind... If nobody is afraid of me, I am meaningless... I have to be taken seriously. So when I say 'please don't do that', you do it, I have to punish you because I was not joking when I said that." He may be strong-headed and he may be confident but he is not arrogant. "I'm not saying that everything I did was right. But everything I did was for an honorable purpose."
Recently an article of his love story with his wife, Kwa Geok Choo, was circulating around the internet and I was once again inspired and filled with great admiration for him. He is a leader of all fronts -from leading the nation to leading his own home. His love and sacrifices for his wife is an inspiration to many. He is definitely the man whom he say he is: "I stand, fight, live and die by what I say."
It is not everyone who gets to be mentioned by people with great influence and authority. Yet, Former US President George H.W. Bush spoke of Mr Lee, saying: "He is a man of principle. He stands up for what he believes in. I have known him for a long time and I can say that he is a true leader because people listen to him and follow him."
It is not everyone who gets to be mentioned by people with great influence and authority. Yet, Former US President George H.W. Bush spoke of Mr Lee, saying: "He is a man of principle. He stands up for what he believes in. I have known him for a long time and I can say that he is a true leader because people listen to him and follow him."
It is such a great honor to know Mr Lee as our personal prime minister. Today, he is known as the 'Wise Man of the East' to the rest of the world. But deep in many Singaporeans's hearts, he is our founding father, a man of wisdom and a man of great dedication. And I know of no better way than to honor him by doing my best, contributing what I can to Singapore whom Mr Lee has so greatly love and dedicated his life for.
Rest in Peace Mr Lee. May God continue to bless Mr Lee's family. I am sure that Mr Lee's legacy will continue to live on for generations and generations to come. Thankyou for your contributions and your dedications. I am so proud to call myself a Singaporean because of you.
And a quote that I knew of from my friend speaks perfectly of the successes that Mr Lee has brought to Singapore and I will love to share it with you,
“To leave the world a bit better, whether by a healthy child, a garden patch, or a redeemed social condition; to know that even one life has breathed easier because you have lived - that is to have succeeded”
― Ralph Waldo Emerson
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