The State Funeral arrangement to ex-Presidents offered by the
Government are also subject to the acceptance by the respective
families to the State Funeral proposed by the Government.
It was unfortunate that ex-President Ong Teng Cheong's passing had
co-incided close to the Lunar New Year, and his funeral had to fall
on that single most auspicious day in the Lunar Calendar.
Even with the most common of families, only the very closest of
relatives will participate in such an event during the most
auspicious date of the Lunar Calendar; while understanding will be
given to those other relatives who do not turn up.
It will be too unseemingly for the Government not to offer a State
Funeral to any ex-Presidents - who have serve with distinctions;
with the exception of perhaps ex-President Devan Nair - who was
forced out of office by "the Government" (actually only by the
strong opinion and high standards demanded by LKY) due to his
rumoured misconduct during a state visit to Sarawak, East
Malaysia.
The fall out between ex-President Ong and the Government of PM GCT
occurred when ex-President Ong decided to test the 2-Key System
that was created and pushed through by then SM LKY.
What is the 2-key system ?
The 2-key system is supposed to prevent a "rouge" Government -
(supposedly only formed by an Opposition Party, who happen to win
an election by a stroke of luck) - from opening the State Treasury
and go on a wild spending spree by spending freely the years of
accumulated National Savings, so as to ensure the popularity of the
Opposition Party with the electorate.
The First Key is supposedly held by the Singapore Parliament, where
majority votes will have to be given before any programs can be
funded from the National Savings or the National Reserves; which
can happen when an Opposition Party gain majority seats in
Parliament - (as feared by then SM LKY)
The Second Key is supposed to be held by the elected President, who
will have to agree and approve Parliament's decision to use the
National Savings; with the President's position confidently always
in the trusted hand of someone who have been carefully vetted by a
select committee (who itself is selected by the Cabinet of the
Day).
Any candidate wishing to be elected as the President of Singapore
will also have to subject himself to a list of criteria, one which
is having held a position of high office either in Government, or
Business Activities of several million dollar turnover.
The Elected President is supposed to act as a Guardian of the
National Reserves (also called here as the National Savings).
Ex-President Ong decided to test the 2-Key system, as well as the
authority of office of the Elected President, and he had exercised
his position to control the Second Key by asking the Government of
PM GCT for a full summary of the extent of the National Reserves
that he is supposed to be a Guardian.
Unfortunately, that will mean the revelation of all the activities
that the Governments of PM GCT and that of ex-PM LKY (who
surprisingly continued as the Chairman of the Government Investment
Corporation, even after stepping down as PM).
These activities and declaration of State Assets will cover a wide
spectrum of assets held directly or "works in the process of
governing" by the existing Government, as well as all Government
Linked Companies - (that include Temasek, GIC, HDB, Singapore
Technologies, Sembawang Corporations, Singapore Telecoms, Singapore
Airlines, etc), Statutory Boards, Joint Ventures locally as well as
overseas, overseas investments directly OR indirectly by the
Government (in Australia, China, Europe, India, Korea, UK, USA,
Latin America).
The surprising reaction from the Auditor General Office was that it
will require more then 5 years of man hours to come up with a full
report, and despite the generosity in time and patience offered by
then ex-President Ong, the Government of PM GCT was taken by
surprise by the insistence of ex-President Ong.
The then SM LKY also took the position of the Government in
expressing his disappointment and incredulity that his concept of a
2-Key system could also work against the Government by an Elected
President who "do not" and "will not" co-operate with the
Government of the Day - especially one formed by the Ruling Party
from whom the ex-President was also a Senior Cabinet member.
Eventually, after about three months of "a storm in a tea cup", the
Government finally produced a "full" set of accounting (although
not a wholly comprehensive one - as it seems that "someone" had
decided that certain information remains "State Secret" that it
seems even the Office of the President is not entitled to
know).
The office of the Elected President was supposed to be created to
thwart the attempts to open and freely spend from the National
Reserve by any successfully elected Opposition Party that form the
next Government.
This office can only result in a hang government that will paralyse
Singapore, and although seemingly supposed to act in the interest
of Singapore, the hang up is in the ability of the next succeeding
Government to work, when its hands are tied by a budget that does
not allow the succeeding Government to use any funds that have been
accumulated by the previous Government.
Funds that allow the Government-of-the-Day to function will be
provided to pay for all the salaries and ongoing projects that the
previous Government has created and implemented.
However, any NEW Projects and Programs from the New Government will
have to be funded by the revenue generated by its own revenue
generating programs during its term of office.
This is tantamount to requiring the new succeeding Government to
operate with an empty account at the beginning of its own term of
office.
The irony of it is that any succeeding Government IS elected into
office by a majority of Singaporeans; and at the same time, the
National Reserves (or National Savings) are accumulated by any
previously sitting Government is also from the sweat and toil of
Singaporeans - who had previously elected it into Office.
Yet SM LKY had the audacity to think that Singaporeans will be
immature and gullible to vote into office any Opposition Party, who
will simply promise to open the National Savings to fund all
"heavenly activities" to win an election.
By the way, since this incident occurred, modifications have been
made to redefine the 2-Key system and the authority of the Elected
President.
One can only wonder now, where did the present Government of PM LHL
get the funds to perform all the "miracle publicity" to popularise
this "new" Government.