Lee Hsien Loong: Reinventing Singapore | A notice relief at the Top Minister’s Two decades in administrative center

We need to do many things to become a global city.But despite our best efforts, we know that things do go wrong from time to time.And if we didn’t quite get it right, I’m sorry but we will try and do better the next time.So the government must intervene more to keep ours a fair and a just society. Do not fear. Do not loseheart. You have my word: I will see this through. I am determined to hand over Singapore intactand in good working order to the next team. Singapore in 2004, when Lee Hsien Loong tookoffice as Singapore’s third Prime Minister. And Singapore two decadeslater, under his leadership. We can't stand still because the worldis changing, our people are changing and so must Singapore and somust the way we govern Singapore.

To succeed, we have to balancebetween continuity and change. I, Lee Hsien Loong, Lee had come into office withthe trade and finance ministries already in his portfolio and20 years of political experience. One of Lee’s first assignmentsafter entering politics in 1984 was steering Singapore out of itsfirst recession, post-independence. And in 2001 – he would chair a newlyformed Economic Review Committee, tasked to remake Singapore’s economy. Lee took over a Singapore which hadtransformed from third-world to first,.

With a thriving economy, world classinfrastructure and well-established industries. Lee had to rally a population that hadmore sophisticated needs and aspirations. It's a big step from being DPM to being PM. It'snot just working out policies or managing the economy. It's really uniting all Singaporeans,making sure everybody knows and feels that we are on the same venture together and building ournation and making each generation of Singaporeans feel proud to be Singaporean, proud to carry thatpink IC and that red passport wherever we go. Lee’s venture included upgrading Singapore into a vibrant global city likeNew York, Paris or London. This has to be a city which is full of life andenergy and excitement, a place where people want.

To live, work and play, where they are stimulatedto be active, to be creative and to enjoy life. He wanted Singapore to be the cosmopolitanhub of Asia, a magnet for capital, talent and ideas, turning the little red dot into Asia’scentre for business, innovation and influence. A well-designed urban environmentwould make Singapore a choice home. But, first, Lee had to remake Singapore’s economy.Singapore had just recovered from the Asian Financial Crisis, with the US andEuropean economies experiencing slowdowns. Southeast Asia grappled with sluggishexternal demand, and Singapore was not spared. China and India were becoming keencompetitors for production and investments. Lee’s strategy was to get ahead of the regionin a new frontier – the knowledge-based economy.

We built up this economy based onefficiency, based on cost-effectiveness. Now, we have to go beyond efficiency. Youmust still be efficient, but you must now develop and exploit knowledge, R&D, competeon the basis of knowledge and innovation and talent and not just on costs. And that waywe can move the economy to the next level. Lee’s government aimed to create more jobs, stimulate investment and raisestandards of living in the long term. To achieve these goals, Leecalled for a shift in mindsets. We have to see opportunities rather thanchallenges in new situations, we have to be less conventional, we must be prepared toventure and you've got to do this as individuals,.

We've got to do this as a government andI think we have to do it as a society. The government took the lead by liberalisingthe economy, allowing private enterprise to seek out prospects and new venturesin Singapore’s next phase of growth. Schools would also “teach less” to give studentsroom to explore and discover their talents And Lee surprised many when he asked Singaporeansto consider a controversial idea – one that he had twice rejected since it first came up in 1985.He championed the development of two integrated resorts (IRs) totalling S$10 billionin foreign investment. Lee saw an opportunity that willplace Singapore on the world stage. We need to do many things to become aglobal city. A casino by itself is not.

Essential to this vision. But an integrated resort is notjust a casino. An integrated resort is one significant idea that we must consider,and that will help us to reinvent Singapore. Well-known for being clean and efficient,Singapore was also seen as unexciting. Visitors were spending less time inthe country and the trade ministry proposed to reinvigorate tourism offeringsThe IRs, complete with hotels, theatres, theme parks, retail, dining, and casinos, wouldtransform Singapore into a vibrant destination. A statement to signalSingapore’s openness to new ideas, underscored by tangible benefits for the economy The IRs will change our downtown skyline andtransform Sentosa into a truly high-quality.

Resort destination. They will make Singapore acentre for tourism, business and conventions, and attract hundreds of thousands moretourists each year. Altogether MTI estimates that the two IRswill create about 35,000 jobs, counting jobs within the IRs, plus spinoffsthroughout the economy. These jobs in the hospitality sector will complementthe jobs we are creating in other sectors, such as manufacturing, financialservices or transportation. Public concerns over the social impact ofcasinos were addressed and debated intensely. And Lee took pains to assure citizens of themeasures taken to address problem gambling. In fact, the Cabinet startedoff mostly against Integrated Resorts.

As we discussed the matter among ourselves, andunderstood better what the IRs actually involved, our views gradually shifted. When we saw theresults of the Request For Concepts, we knew that we had to take the bids veryseriously, and that if we said no, there would be serious consequences.By acting now, we seize a window of opportunity to get ahead of our competitors. If wesay no, the best proposals for the IR, together with the investments and the jobs, willmost likely not disappear but go somewhere else in the region. Then we will be forced to playcatch up, and we will be in a much weaker position. The decision was made for two integrated resorts– one in Marina Bay and another on Sentosa island. Integrated resorts were just one facetof the city’s makeover, under Lee..

Plans were also made to upgradeold housing precincts, construct new towns and rejuvenate the shopping belt.Downtown, besides the IR, Lee’s full vision for Marina Bay included a new business andfinancial centre that would propel Singapore from a regional to a global financial hub.And some very special gardens. Setting aside 101 hectares of prime land forpublic gardens in the city centre was not an easy decision given Singapore’s size.But Lee and his ministers believed that an iconic showcase of nature andinnovative engineering was the way forward. This is just one example of how weare transforming Singapore’s living environment. We may be a densely populatedcity, maybe one of the densest in the world,.

But we are determined that our people should beable to live comfortably, pleasantly, graciously. To be in touch with nature, to be neverfar from green spaces and blue waters. As Singapore’s economy matures, new technologies weredisrupting entire industries. Lee and his team would continue toreview and renew strategies for growth New growth areas were identified in thedigital economy, to make Singapore a tech hub. 80 of the world's top 100 technologyfirms now have a presence in Singapore. Industries were shape-shifted with thelatest trends – helping businesses and SMEs redesign jobs, and improveproductivity to stay competitive..

There were also strategiesto help workers update and upgrade skills to remain employable.Positioning itself for the future, Singapore made a billion-dollar investment intoartificial intelligence over the next five years. Lee explained Singapore’s abilityto attract new enterprises. Our business environment – everythingclicks, you can register your company, S$2 and 20 minutes, it is done.It is a tight, high-functioning system where the whole is more than the sum of its parts. Many business leaders recognise that there isthis special Singapore premium, it is not just a figment of our imagination. Therefore theyput major projects in Singapore even though.

We are not always the lowest cost location oreven the biggest market or their home country. As Lee hoped, Singapore began drawing the crowds.For the first Formula One night race, the Youth Olympic Games, and more recently, Taylor Swift’s concert.Singapore was the only Southeast Asian stop. Singapore’s upgrades of its keyinfrastructure facilities like its airport and seaport, would be awe inspiring.As he steps down, Lee’s vision for Singapore set out in 2004, has paid off handsomely.Singapore’s GDP per capita had grown three times, from about US$28,000 in2004 to US$85,000 in 2023. Planning and building Singapore for the next50 years, Changi Airport Terminal 5 and Tuas.

Mega Port will keep Singapore connectedto the world, thriving as a trading hub. New estates in the redeveloped Paya Lebar area and Greater Southern Waterfront will bemore liveable, greener and sustainable. Our island may be small,but it holds great potential just as past generations planned for and createdthe Singapore that we live in today, we too, must never stop imagining and building the futureSingapore for the next generation and beyond. Lee Hsien Loong would need to steer hisvision for Singapore, amid tumultuous times. As he put in place the buildingblocks of long-term growth, several critical situations would test the nation.

On 28 February 2008, Singaporeans woketo the news of an islandwide manhunt. Mas Selamat Kastari – a member of theAl Qaeda-linked terrorist group Jemaah Islamiah – had escaped from detention.He had been held for plotting to hijack a plane and crash it intoSingapore’s international airport. Questions were raised in public andparliament about what went wrong. Despite our best efforts, we know thatthings do go wrong from time to time. Our first priority is to respond to the immediatecrisis, and then to identify the shortcomings and put them right. We must also take steps toensure that the problem does not recur. Singaporeans need to know what went wrong,and what the government will do to fix things.

A setback to Singapore’scounter-terrorism efforts, the incident was a test of socialcohesion and community resilience. The Inter-Racial and Religious ConfidenceCircles that were set up in 2002 to promote racial and religious harmony at thegrassroots level helped calm the communities. Mas Selamat was eventually recapturedin Malaysia, more than a year later. He is one of 4 JI membersstill detained in Singapore. This is despite the efforts ofMuslim scholars who formed the Religious Rehabilitation Groupin 2003, to counsel and counter ideological beliefs of detained JemaahIslamiyah members and their families.

Two decades later – Lee expressed hisgratitude to them, saying 90% of the 140 Singaporeans detained for terrorism-relatedactivities have been reintegrated into society. We needed to tackle the source of the danger,which was the radical misinterpretation of Islam. This was an ideological battle involving heartsand minds. We are grateful to a small group of religious scholars who stepped forward tocounsel and rehabilitate the JI members. The terrorism threat would also evolvewith some one dozen people detained, home-grown, lone-wolf attackers,self-radicalised on the internet. Lee launched the SGSecure movementin 2016 and called on everyone to come together to safeguard Singapore andour way of life against terror threats..

Community Response Roundtables plannedfor emergencies in neighbourhoods Organisations, workplaces and individuals -empowered with the attributes and abilities to step up in a crisis. When we are confronted with something like this,we can respond in two ways. Either with fear, cowed, hankered down, pretend nothing ishappening, pretend that the threats don't exist, and hope that the troubles will passus by. Or we can stand up, look the problems straight in the face, understand the dangerswe face, know what we can do, do what we can, now and continuing into the future, and makesure that if something does happen, we are ready. Responding to new challenges, Lee sawa need to update the law on religious.

Harmony to strengthen defences againstforeign influence and the government’s ability to respond to offensive online content. He would also adjust policies on raceand religion gradually and carefully. In the 2021 National Day Rally, Lee announcedthat Muslim nurses could wear the tudung with their uniform if they wished to do so.Over the years, there was a question of whether Muslim women could wearthe tudung in professional settings. Discussing the issue with Malay-Muslim communityleaders, Lee made clear policies would not change for school uniforms or for the uniformedservices, but were not set in stone for nurses. The government has been watching the situationclosely. We observed that by and large,.

Interactions between the races remaincomfortable. Specifically in hospitals, some of the non-uniformedstaff do wear the tudung, and we saw that their relationship withpatients and colleagues was alright. We are making a careful adjustment to keep ourracial and religious harmony in good order. In the same year as Mas Selamat’s escape, Lee and his Cabinet had to deal witha crisis of a different sort. 11 October 2008 – over 500 angryinvestors turned up at Speakers’ Corner. Many were retirees, seekingredress for lost life savings. They wanted the authorities to investigatefinancial institutions for selling them S$500million.

In financial products,which became worthless when American investment bank Lehman Brothers collapsed.Some 10,000 people were affected. The US banking crisis rippledthrough economies. Laying off millions across the world.Thousands of Singaporeans lost their jobs. Lee and his Cabinet took swift action, pledgingS$2.9 billion to support the economy. This is a very serious problem forus. GDP this year, we have forecast, -2% to -5%. Itcould be worse if the global economy worsens. GDP contracted 10%in the first quarter of 2009, Singapore’s worst recession since independence.Then for the first time – the government drew S$4.9 billion.

From past reserves, for a S$20.5 billion Budget, focused on preserving jobs and shoring up the financial industry.The government also earmarked S$150billion in past reserves toguarantee deposits in commercial banks. Our reserves are an important strength. We haveaccumulated them, they will tide us over this period. We can tap onthem for good programmes which we need to, when we need to, like the Jobs Creditand the Special Risk-Sharing Initiative in the Budget. That is what thereserves are for – for a very rainy day. At the same time, the reserves standing there give confidenceto investors that the economy has resources, it is strong. Under Lee’s leadership, the strategy wasto incentivise businesses to retain workers..

About 120,000 employers receivedcash grants for a year to support an estimated 300,000 jobs on the line.At the same time, Lee’s teams secured new investments and creatednew jobs for Singaporeans. But he had some strong advicefor workers at the time. If you have a job, hang on to it.Do your best to keep the job, For those without jobs, make every effortto get employed. Take the job even if it is not your favourite one, not your ideal one,having work is much, much better than having no work. In a year, Singapore rebounded intodouble-digit growth and full employment, faster than Lee expected.By 2011, the government.

Was able to replenish funds from its reserves.Lee’s policies were paying off, but there was a price to high economic growth over the years.Lee empathised with ground sentiments and responded to them in his2011 election rally speech High growth is good, but becauseof growth we have to take in somewhat more foreign workers. We have to be prepared toaccept a little bit more congestion for the time being. HDB flats, we had a sharp recession just3 years ago, we had a surplus of flats. We didn’t expect that in the middle of 2009, after this sharp downturn, thingswould pick up suddenly, strongly, and the wind would catch us and everybody would want flats. And suddenly the demand would press flat prices up.If we could have predicted this,.

I think we would have wrapped up our building plan earlier, built more flats earlier, and I think we would have saved many Singaporeans some angst.I hope you will understand that when these problems vex you or disturb you or upset yourlives, please bear with us. We are trying our best on your behalf. If we didn’t quite get it right,I’m sorry but we will try and do better the next time. Majulah Singapura The People’s Action Party faced one of itsstrongest challenges since independence. Opposition parties contested 82out of 87 parliamentary seats. The Workers' Party won a grouprepresentation constituency. It was the first time the opposition wona GRC since the scheme started in 1988..

The government made changes,starting with limiting immigration. These are policies where the benefits are therebut they are long term, the downsides are immediate, the side effects are visible and peoplereact to them and we have to respond to this. To retain a Singaporean core in theworkforce through the jobs bank, the Fair Consideration Framework, and SkillsFuture,workers had to increase productivity. In housing, supply was quickly ramped up witha total of 77,000 flats built between 2011 and 2013, a record bout of construction.A slew of property cooling measures were introduced to keep housing affordable.In 2014, public and private residential prices declined for the first time in 13 years.The government also embarked on a billion-dollar.

Plan to upgrade the Mass Rapid Transport (MRT) system,expanding capacity, and increasing frequency. Progressively, new trains and stationswere rolled out as new MRT lines opened. It will take a while to solve these problemsbecause they are big and complicated issues, but we are heading in the right direction and thingswill gradually get better. So, please be patient. Towards the end of Lee’s time in office,two incidents hogged the headlines. A minister was investigated and thencharged in court for corruption. It's particularly when we are tested that we mustshow our mettle, put our principles into action, regardless of any embarrassment orpolitical cost. Deal with the matter without fear or favour and getto the bottom of the matter.

Separately, it was revealed that twoMembers of Parliament were involved in an inappropriate relationship.All three members resigned from parliament. Our commitment to honesty and incorruptibility, this commitmentis absolutely non-negotiable. Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong’s time in office is marked by social policies thatsought to build a resilient nation, with no one left behind.In his first speech as Prime Minister, Lee rallied Singaporeans tocreate an open and inclusive society. We are one nation together, building a futurefor ourselves and our people. As we prosper,.

All communities will progress and no onewill be left behind. We will look after the less educated and the elderly who havehelped build Singapore. And we must also have a place in our hearts and our lives for thedisabled, who are our brothers and sisters too. Lee’s vision of a global city would bedefined by how widely society benefits from the country’s prosperity.Putting words into action, Lee launched the ComCare Fund in 2005 to providesocial assistance to low-income Singaporeans He was now leading a more affluent country. But older and less educatedcitizens were struggling to keep up. Income inequality is starker than before. Themost successful Singaporeans will continue to.

Do very well. The average Singaporeans willbe able to make improvements in their lives and are much better off than people inmost other countries. But at the lower end, incomes have risen too slowly, fartoo slowly, especially in real terms. We are seeing our society stratifying, whichmeans that children of successful people are doing better, the children of lesssuccessful people are doing less well. So the first approach towards dealing with our social problems is tostrengthen the ability for people to succeed. But the second approach, which must complement thefirst one, is to strengthen our social safety nets.Giving your peer a helping hand,.

Helping the person who cannot quite make it. “Come along, I'll help you take the next step.” Lee would tilt policies towardsgiving more help to those who need it. From 2007, the introduction of Workfaresaw the government topping up salaries of lower-wage citizens in cash andin the Central Provident Fund, to encourage them to keep workingand saving for retirement. On condition you work, you make theeffort, well, I am prepared to match you and I will help to top up your savingsa little bit towards your take-home pay. If you make the effort, we willhelp make your life better. For Lee, education is a means touplift all Singaporeans, to spread the.

Benefits of growth and improve income equality.He invested heavily in education and training for all ages – with programmes like SkillsFuturefor lifelong learning, so Singaporeans could progress through individual efforts.Lee and his team created more pathways for secondary and post-secondary education.To help all Singaporeans with the cost of living, fees for preschools were lowered andmore subsidies were made available Programmes like Kidstart help support low-incomefamilies to give their young children equal opportunity to “the best possible start in life”.There was more support for children with learning disabilities, for the disabled,and those with special needs. So much more attention and resources have beengiven to students with special education needs.

There used to be no employment agency for those who are disabled but can still work. But nowthere is SG Enable, job placement, job support schemes, and all these help give life andgive at least some quality of life, some chance of employment to those with disabilities. Universal medical insurance coverage, for example,is not a given for persons with disabilities. But with MediShield Life, this has become universalcoverage, so that everyone, regardless of disabilities, actually is covered for hiscongenital or pre-existing medical conditions. With the introduction of MediShield Life in 2015, Lee expanded insurancecoverage to everyone, for life..

Over the years, he worked on reducingthe citizens’ share of medical expenses. There were initiatives such as theCommunity Health Assist Scheme or CHAS. Then in 2014, Lee unveiled the PioneerGeneration Package – for those aged 65 and older at the time – to lift the burdenof healthcare costs as citizens aged. The Merdeka and Majulah Generationpackages followed for younger cohorts. They are the ones who worked hard to build today’sSingapore. The generation to independence: 60s, 70s, 80s. They paved the way for us to livea better life than themselves. That was their goal. They achieved it and I think we shouldknow that and we should be grateful to them. Lee also introduced enhanced measuresto help every family own a home..

Families buying their first home aresubsidised up to S$80,000 under the Enhanced CPF Housing Grant.Those who choose to live with, or close to, their parents enjoy a Proximity Housing Grant.New classification of flats gave singles more choices on location.80% of Singapore residents live in public housing, of which 90% own their home. The house, in Singapore, is also a major way for us to level up the less successful and to givethem a valuable asset and a retirement nest egg. We are using the HDB flat as a means togive every Singaporean household a stake. Eligible seniors were given options tomonetise their flats to fund retirement..

There were also new flats with shorterleases specially designed for seniors. There will always be an HDB flatto meet every budget. And we can maintain a good social mixin every town and region. Over the years, social schemes and supporthave been extended beyond the lower income to include middle-income households.The government’s social spending stands at S$56 billion in 2024, takingup 42% of the year’s budget. Altogether, we now spend three times as muchon social programmes every year as we did 15years ago. Over the last five years, real wages of our bottom quintile have consistently grown faster than median wages and that clearlyshows that our approaches are working.

Beyond welfare, Lee recognisedthat social policies would have to evolve alongside changes in society’s views. He tackled a deeply divisive issuebefore handing over leadership. The government repealed Section 377a, alaw which criminalised sex between men. I believe this is the right thing to do,and something that most Singaporeans willnow accept. This will bring the law intoline with current social mores, and I hope provide some relief to gay Singaporeans.What we seek is a political accommodation, one that balances different legitimateviews and aspirations among Singaporeans. In a society where diverse groups have stronglyheld opposing views, everyone has to accept that.

No group can have things all their way.All groups should exercise restraint, because that is the only way we canmove forward as one nation together. From the very start of his political career,Lee recognised the impact of policies and their potential to improve people’s lives.He gave a glimpse of how he dealt with the matter on the ground, serving four decadesas Member of Parliament for Teck Ghee, in a single seat and later as part of the AngMo Kio Group Representation Constituency. So, I’ve always paid a lot of attention to myMPS cases, my Meet-the-People Session cases. Nine out of 10 are routine, but always keepmy eye open for that last tenth one where the policy has gone wrong, the implementation is notright or maybe the policy is wrong and has to be.

Changed and we have to do something, interveneand put it right. I won’t tell you which ones otherwise they will all come and look for me.But I have red stickers on my table so when such a case comes, I put a redsticker and I see to it personally. He grasps details, data, information andspecifics very well and retains them. Residents are delighted when he remembers them by name.Some of our residents were children born in Teck Ghee maybe 40 years ago. Now, (they) are adults andwhen they meet PM, PM can recollect the time with either he presented them with Edusaveawards when they were young, and now they themselves are carrying their own baby so he's gota fantastic memory and affection for residents. For good policies to be in place, Lee wascertain how the Singapore system needed to work.

Politics goes first, because good politics andgood policies must go together. For the system to provide stable, consistent, good outcomes overthe long term, politics and policy have to fit closely together. And if either one goes wrong,the system may well malfunction. For the economy, we are making goodprogress transforming our industries. We are servicing advanced jet turbines,researching new cures for diseases, and pushing boundaries in fintech services.Our seaport and airport are expanding to meet the growing demands of a dynamic Asia.The two integrated resorts, or IRs, are being enhanced to attract more tourists.Our tech and startup scenes are flourishing. By Lee Hsien Loong’s 15th yearin office as Prime Minister,.

Singapore’s economy was buoyant.But a global crisis was looming. On 23 January 2020, Singapore’s first importedcase of COVID-19 was confirmed. A multi-ministry task force swunginto action to contain the virus. As local transmissions rose, the Disease OutbreakResponse System Condition, or DORSCON, was raised from Yellow to Orange on 7 February 2020.Faced with the unknown, Singaporeans rushed to stock up on food and other supplies.The following day, Lee calmed the nation. There is no reason to panic. We are not locking down the city or confining everybody to stay at home. We have amplesupplies, there is no need to stock.

Up with instant noodles, or tinned food, ortoilet paper, as some people did yesterday. But the realtest is to our social cohesion andpsychological resilience. Fear and anxiety are natural human reactions. We allwant to protect ourselves and our families from what is still a new and unknown disease. Butfear can do more harm than the virus itself. Over the course of the year, Lee would addressthe public directly, seven times, explaining Singapore’s stance as the situation evolved.On each occasion. Lee spoke in several languages. Viewers of these broadcasts dubbedhis little porcelain cup, magical, joking that it seemed to give the PrimeMinister extraordinary multilingual abilities. Prime Minister Lee was, in fact, trilingual.

While the multi-ministry task force hosteddaily media briefings and tallied new cases, Lee’s speeches were indispensable inassuring the nation through the crisis. Despite these immensechallenges, I say to you: Do not fear. Do not lose heart. Singaporewill not falter in its onward march. Lee personally met frontline medicalworkers and those in the task force, giving them moral support.There were times when he had to be stern – to persuade people to complywith the circuit breaker safety measures But please understand: We are telling you to stayat home for your own safety. Older people are more vulnerable to the virus. If we catch COVID-19, itis a serious matter. Our chances of dying are much.

Higher, and if we get infected and spread thevirus to our friends around our age, or bring the virus back home to our families, then, weput them in grave danger. So please stay home. Singapore’s economy took a hard hit in 2020.Total GDP contracted by a record 5.4%. The government set aside over S$100 billionacross four budgets to support workers, businesses, households andindividuals through the pandemic. A total of S$42.9 billionwas drawn from past reserves over three years to manage the pandemic.When the circuit breaker ended and infection rates stabilised, Lee feltthe need to secure a fresh mandate. We have no assurance that the pandemic willbe over before this government’s term must.

End next April. And that is why I havedecided to hold the General Election now. You have my word: Together with my oldercolleagues like Teo Chee Hean and Tharman Shanmugaratnam, as well as the younger4G ministers, I will see this through. I am determined to hand over Singapore intactand in good working order to the next team. In the hard fought 2020 elections, the PAPwon 83 out of 93 seats, but lost a second GRC, Sengkang, to the Workers’ Party.The new parliament would have 10 elected opposition Members ofParliament and two non-constituency MPs. Lee formally designated Pritam Singh from theWorkers’ Party as Leader of the Opposition. The election has shown a strongdesire amongst Singaporeans for.

Greater diversity of views in politics.Voters want the PAP to form the government, but they also want more robust debate ofpolicies and plans. This trend is here to stay. In Singapore, the PAP government hasbeen able to do the right thing for Singaporeans – sometimes difficult and hardthings – and still get re-elected. Sometimes we pay the price in the vote, but overall, wehave continued to win elections. Therefore, the government has been able to think long term,well beyond the next general election. We have no incentive to kick the can down the road, becausedown the road, we will very likely meet the can ourselves again. Therefore, we make plans over50, 60 years – or in the case of climate change, 100 years. As a result, the country progresses,Singapore benefits, and the PAP continues.

To win elections – so far. It is a virtuous,self-reinforcing cycle. This model has worked well for Singapore. Once broken, it will bevery difficult to put back together again. Lee had originally planned to stepdown after the general elections, but would now delay succession. When vaccines were available, Lee tookthe lead and a nationwide vaccination programme went into full swing.A new strategy would take Singapore from pandemic to endemic, with bordersreopening and economic activities resuming. Lee also explained how Singapore’sreserves were a tremendous advantage – a precious resource that made allthe difference in times of crisis.

It gave us confidence, and gave othersconfidence in us. We had the financial muscle to do everything we needed to do, without gettingheavily into debt, unlike so many other countries. It’s a tremendous luxury. Without the reserves,would we have dared to pre-order vaccines, even before they were tested and proven,and produced? Would we have been able to pay up to 75% of salaries in the crisis, in theJobs Support Scheme, to protect workers and to prevent companies from closing? So we spent S$40billion in the end. Is S$40 billion enough? We can never say for sure how muchis enough, because we do not know what kind of crises we will face in thefuture, or how our investments will fare. Twice during his leadership, Lee’sgovernment had tapped into past reserves.

Opposition MPs have questioned the size of the reserves and suggested usingit to fund social policies. But Lee emphasises taking along view on the reserves. I have spent 40 years of my life stewarding,safeguarding, improving this system, continuing the work of those who had come before me. NowI am preparing to hand over to my successor in good order, a Singapore which is more prosperousand more secure. I ask everyone to help them maintain the prudent policies that have servedus well to keep Singapore on the right track, so that we can all continue to benefit fromthe nation’s success for many years to come. In 2022, Lawrence Wong was named by his peersas leader of the 4G or fourth-generation team..

As Prime Minister-designate,Wong will lead a new Cabinet, to continue long-term strategies initiated by Lee. Lee had stayed true to his vision, setout two decades earlier, of transforming Singapore into a city full of life and energy, aplace where people want to live, work and play. Somebody asked me at a dialogue, “If Godappeared before you and offered you three wishes for Singapore, what would you ask for?”What I would like to have is that we be blessed with a “divine discontent”, alwaysnot quite satisfied with what we have, always driven to do better. At the same time,we have the wisdom to count our blessings so that we know how precious Singapore is andwe know how to enjoy it and to protect it.

As I prepare to hand over Singapore in goodorder to my successor, I feel a sense of satisfaction and completeness.I have done my duty, and I am very happy that I chose this pathof public service all those many years ago.

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