To be honest, I haven't read LKY's menoir. I heard about
Singapore and Taiwan relationship, LKY and Jiang JK in the
following Taiwanese program, presented by Taiwanese political
analysts. Apparently Singapore built the jurong industrial estate,
like the xinzhu industrial estate in Taiwan. In a certain year, in
a regional economic downturn, Singapore had no growth but Taiwan
maintained a 6% growth, that was when Jiang told LKY the secret,
investment in research and development in Technology and in Human
Resources. I guess this is extended to these days, when we are
putting so much emphasis on the elites, the FT, and for the same
reason, countries like Malaysia can dedicate a big piece of land
called Multi Media Corridor, or logistic hub,...but cannot succeed.
The original idea came from Jiang JK.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g0TSNy3Yk50&fmt=18
Seriously, if you believe the trivial self-aggrandizing gossip
programs of Taiwanese broadcast, you can then believe almost
every gossip on earth.
Singapore's economic success was the brain child of Dr Goh Keng
Swee advised by a Dutch national Dr Albert Winsemius - who arrive
into Singapore in 1960 - and not some myth that LKY being
the prime mover by listening to Chiang Ching-kuo.
I stand corrected for the statement on the taiwanese SME. I do
recognise the fact that in Singapore, young people come out from
colleges and universities to look for employment, while Taiwanese
come out hoping to start new businesses. Singaporeans, because we
speak english, there are many opportunities in the MNCs, but there
are few Taiwanese who graduate speaking english (only those who
went overseas), so they either work in the local companies or start
their own.
In the early days of development, the Taiwanese could start
small factories in the remote areas outside Taichung, to
manufacture products for export, or nearby Xinzhu or Yunlin to
support the big manufacturers in those industrial estates. No
expensive rentals, no rules, not even the environmental protection
rules to follow, could employ farmers nearby, if not just buy
some local made machineries (copied). Besides, they have
sizable local markets.
There are reasons why Taiwan develops the way they do. Their
government played a part but not all. The big taiwanese
conglomerates started during the rule of KMT, but we don't hear any
new taiwanese companies developed during the rule of ah
bian, democratically elected, ruled with full democracy,
but did nothing for the economy.
In any political forms, Government will always have a part to
play in developing and providing the space for enterprise and
enterpreneurship - as it must provide the infrastructure
and some sense of security for investment to take
place.
While the Taiwanese Government provide the frame work for
private enterprise to succeed, it also participate in the
competitive environment of free enterprise, which is unlike that of
the Singapore circumstance where Government Linked Companies will
trample the small and medium businesses.
'Ah Bian' had his own political obligations to fulfill after
stepping into the Presidency, as his political agenda was not his
own but that of previous President Lee Teng-hui - whose main
goal was to strive for the independence of Taiwan.
This explains for Ah Bian's wasted two terms of
economic inactivity which resulted in Taiwan's economy floundering
on its own strength from Private Enterprise that allowed Taiwan to
stay afloat even as Singapore was the FIRST Asian country to
declare going into recession.
After experiencing the second and third economic downturns, each
time Singapore had organised Economic Review Committee -
in 1997 and repeated again in 2002; with both reports
encouraging the lower absorption of private money into the CPF
and allowing private capital to release the
entrepreneurial spirit of Singaporeans.
Both reports had reasoned that small and medium enterprise
should be encouraged to grow as it can provide employment
opportunities that are more resilliant towards changes in economic
circumstances.
Singapore government is playing a much bigger role in trade and
economic development in Singapore, for Singapore. From the
start, the then english speaking elites didn't need to start own
business, those from RI went to government service, those from ACS
went to become lawyers and accountants, the Chinese speaking
businessmen ended up dealt with Indonesians and Malaysians...
besides, the market in Singapore was not big enough for SME to do
local business. So is it right or wrong for the government to play
a bigger role? I am not an enterpreneur myself, I hope my sons can
be...but if they wait for the government, they will never be...
I believe that the correct statement made was that RI students
go into government and hold political power, while ACS students go
into commerce to hold economic power.
Some students from both schools became very good lawyers and
accountants, as well as engineers and other professions as
Singapore's economic growth opened up alot more employment
opportunities, at the expense of small and medium business. whose
growth were stifled by the unfair competition from GLCs.
GLCs have been discovered to plagiarised local designers'
patents through reverse engineering and modifying the product
designs to by-pass patents. If not for some other Government
agencies acting as "angel investors" in new enterprises, the fight
with the mamoth GLC would have been lost from the start.
Government involvement should be limited to infrastructure and
strategic industries that are seen to be vital to the interest of
the country, and should not use Public Funds to set up enterprises
that swamp Private Enterprise.
Finally, the direction of the wind here in this forum is against
everything and anything, closely or remotely linked, or no linked
to PAP. Luckily I don't spit, so I don't care whichever is the wind
directiion.
Yaks, if you do not spit, then you will have to swallow your
phlegm.
