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MM on Singapore's system <!-- TITLE : end-->
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DURING a dialogue at the fifth anniversary dinner of the Lee
Kuan Yew School of Public Policy on Sept 2, the Minister Mentor was
asked by writer Catherine Lim: "Sir, in the event of a serious
threat of a freak election, would you do the unthinkable, that is,
send in the army?"
This is an edited extract from Mr Lee's reply: "You look at our
record and the moves we've made. Let me put it simply like this.
First, we maintain a system which gives any opposition the
opportunity to displace us peacefully.
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BORDER=0></A> "If you can win an election, so
be it. If at some point we are not able to find a team which can
equal an opposition team, on that day we deserve to be out. If we
become corrupt, inefficient, can't deliver, we're out.
"What if we have a freak election, as we may well have? So we've
set in place a president with blocking powers. Any opposition that
comes in will find that he cannot touch the reserves, otherwise you
can promise the sky and spend the money.
Second, you cannot change the top officials without the
president's consent. Any raiding of the funds must be approved by
the president who has a council of presidential advisers to advise
him yes or no.
"Now, why should we do all these if we expect to overturn an
election? We expect that if we are voted out, to stay out, and hope
that within one term, that new government, incompetent and unable
to deliver, will be out. And there're enough core competencies and
the funds to enable a fresh PAP government to revive the
system.
"One of the first lessons I learnt in politics was from Harold
Laski. He said if you don't have a system that allows fundamental
change by consent, you will have a revolution by violence.
If we block all possibilities, we must expect violence.
In that violence, eventually the army won't shoot because you
are in the wrong.
That's what happens in Africa, the army goes in and holds up the
president and often shoots him.
"If we had not these thoughts at the back of our minds, why do
we do these things? Just to bluff the people? Doesn't make
sense.
An army commander, air force or police has to be approved by a
committee and the president must agree.
Why? Because we will appoint the commanders?
No, because a stupid government will do the wrong things and
when we return, we may find the whole machinery has collapsed, as
often is the case. Simple."
