There is a conspiracy to do us in,
says MM Lee
Minister Mentor rebuts human rights groups' criticism of
Singapore
Sue-ann Chia
MINISTER Mentor Lee Kuan Yew last night dismissed human rights
organisations' criticisms of Singapore's style of governance,
saying that they were trying to 'do us in'.
Is there a conspiracy to do "us"
in - as in - a conspiracy to do Singapore in ?
Or is it an admission that
the "Dirty Fascist Politics" of the Singapore Ruling Political
Party has received World Class Attention ?
Is it not his usual style that
when he has met his match, he will cry "wolf" that will justify his
own means at using all instruments at his disposal when cornered
?
In a robust rebuttal of these groups' assertions that Singapore
is not a liberal democracy, he said that they had never run a
country and did not know what was needed to make Singapore
tick.
'There is a conspiracy to do us in. Why?... They see us as a
threat,' said Mr Lee at an hour-long dialogue during the Economic
Society of Singapore's annual dinner.
Explaining why these groups regarded Singapore as a threat, he
said it was because they saw that the Russians and Chinese have
been coming and studying Singapore's success story and picking up
pointers.
Is it very unusual for MM
LKY to speak that "they see us as a threat" as the
Russians and Chinese have been coming and studying Singapore's
success story and picking up pointers ?
Why should Singapore's success
story become a threat when the success story can only
benefit the Russians and the Chinese ?
Has MM LKY intentionally avoid
mentioning the unthinkable in his vocabulary ?
The leaders of these countries ask 'how does this little country
with so little talent keep its ruling party in place and run a
tight ship, honest, and effective, and make progress?'
This is typical LKY's arrogance in
treating Singaporeans as untalented digits as his statement reveals
- "how this little country with so little talent keeps its ruling
party in place and run a tight ship".
Is he rubbing salt into the wounds
that he has inflicted on us by insulting Singaporeans for
having so little talent to challenge his fascist manipulation
of the laws - that keep Singaporeans disenfranchised of
our Political Rights, de-politicised generations of
Singaporeans, so as to perpetuate his own political clout
as well as that of his PAP ?
'Can they (the Russians and Chinese) do it? I don't know. But
they are picking up points here and there.'
Mr Lee was responding to a question on whether Singapore needed
a Western-style liberal democracy to succeed.
He said groups which advocate the need for liberal democracies
were prescribing universal rules for the whole world.
Is he elevating his own status
with this statement that Russia and China has thrown out Marxism
and Communism, and are now studying "LeeKuanYew-ism"
?
Why will he be vague about the
Universal Rules that he is accusing others for advocating
?
Why does he not claim that it is
simply Basic Human Rights as identified by the International Bar
Association - which had diligently written a brilliant report of
the not so talented ways that the Singapore Politicians attempt to
hide their political sins ?
It had to take an international
law group to unravel and expose the dirty political works of the
Singapore Government formed by the PAP, when it should have
been done by the local Law Society of Singapore - which
unfortunately had cowed under the pressure of MM LKY.
Shame on the untalented legal
minds in the Singapore Law Society.
But he threw down this gauntlet:
'My question is to them, have you ever run Singapore? Do you
know how we got here? What were we? What we are now? And how we can
become better?
Has LKY run a country when he
first step into politics during the Colonial Days in the 1950s
?
If MM LKY had allowed
himself the liberties and politcal space to clamor what he had no
experienced for - during the Colonial Days in the 1950s, why should
he deny the same honor to the new generations, who are faced with
the same autocratic rule after 43 years of independence
?
Is MM LKY suggesting that Human
Rights has no place in governance of a country, and governments do
not need to respect the individual rights of the citizens
?
This is a far cry from his
speeches made in 1955 in the Singapore Legislative
Assembly and in 1964 in the Malaysian Federal Parliament - in
which both clamoured for Freedom of Speech, Freedom of Assembly,
Freedom from oppressive rules of government, and basically calling
for a level playing field ?
'We are not stupid people. They give us all these advice... Who
are they? Have they ever run a country, created jobs for community
and given them a life? We have and we know what it requires.
'Nobody (who) advocates this has any idea what they will do to a
society if you implement these rules.'
Nobody has any idea of the
consequences does not mean that it should not be tried ?
How often have we seen the bad
policies of MM LKY's administration in the 1960s through Goh Chok
Tong's administration - that we have seen policies retracted too
late, as the effects of bad policies have already been set in
motion ?
Has it not been also a trial and
error on the part of the PAP with its policy decisions ?
Why should MM LKY be so
negatively defensive in the usual ways when alternative views
are offered by anyone else ?
It has been so infectious that
even local forumers have adopted the same lines.
Mr Lee believes each country will have to decide which political
system suits it best.
'Different people have different cultures and forge different
consensus and seek different solutions to their problems,' he
said.
If MM LKY "believe that
different people, different cultures, and forge different consensus
and seek different solutions to their problems." - why will he
decide to adopt Confuscianism into Singapore, which has four
different ehtnic group ?
Why did he decide to allow pop and
western cultures to enter Singapore and undermine the
Singapore Youths ?
But he was also quick to acknowledge that the People's Action
Party (PAP) will not always have the answers:
'I'm not saying the PAP government will always be supreme, will
always be honest, will always be A-plus.
'The day it is no longer honest, it should be out. And another
party should come in, with equally honest people.'
MM LKY surely has alot to learn,
if he is not aware that the rot has already set in.
Turning to the opposition, Mr Lee said:
'We are not trying to block them. We are trying to force them to
collect a group of people equal in competence...When we fail, they
have a team that can take over.
Does he need to try so hard
to convince a foreign audience that the Ruling Party is not trying
to block the Alternative Political Parties ?
If MM LKY is not trying
to block the activities of the Alternative Political Parties -
it is due to the fact that he is "not trying" but is actually doing
it.
'But unfortunately, they can't do it. Because the people with
ability, drive, ambition and energy don't want to come into
politics. If they wanted to, they will join us (the PAP).'
For Singapore to continue to succeed, it needs to find the next
generation of top notch leaders.
Is MM LKY attempting to con the
foreign audience who do not have any first hand knowledge of the MM
LKY's style of politics ?
Is it not a fact that those
Singaporeans with the ability, drive, ambition and energy will
rather stay out of politics and not join the PAP - until they are
"persuaded" by the million dollar wages that MM LKY depend on as a
crutch to attract his talents, and prevent corruption amongst his
talented recruits ?
If it has to take money to attract
talents, and also to prevent corruption in the Ministerial ranks -
does it not speak volumes about the Singapore character, and the
questionable patriotism of those few persons whom MM LKY
see as the talented ?
Mr Lee said the present generation of leaders could last at
least two terms.
Has his capabilities extend into
the realm of predicting the future, by gazing deep to
looking into a large crystal
ball ?
But if they did not find talented people with the drive and
energy and integrity to match the demands of the job during this
time, 'then I say, the future is in doubt'.
'The system is there, but it cannot run with mediocre men. You
need top men.'
As matters stand, his
conceited vanity prevents him from admitting that his son is
incapable of strong leadership
The PAP has managed to recruit good people and its leaders had,
in turn, won the trust of Singaporeans through their integrity and
honesty - values which the PAP still holds true today.
Won the trust of the people, or
winning elections by manipulating the rules and shifitng the
election boundaries of the constituencies to the advantage of the
Ruling Party - that do not reflect political honesty
?
Winning a general election that
leaves Two-thirds of the electorate sitting at home, winning the
total vote count that reflects the vote from approximately 28% of
the qualfied population.
He said the task of finding new leaders is no longer his:
'I've done my job. I've passed it on to the next generation.
Chok Tong has passed to the next generation.
Why is MM LKY interfering, and
continue to stick his finger in the pie ?
He claimed that even when he is
dead, he will rise up from the grave if anything goes wrong in
Singapore - has he died and returned, or has something gone
wrong that needed his continued tenure in Government ?
'If you have a competent team on board, honest and dedicated, it
will last. If you have bums, then even with best of institutions,
it will fail.'
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Has he not already proven that
when bums are smart enough to dismantle the institutions left
behind by the Colonial Government, it will preserve the bums in
power at the expense of the populace ?
To prevent failure to the new
system and new institutions created by the bums in power, they have
to resort to tighter and tighter controls and as the years go by,
the rules becoming even more unrelentingly tight.