By Zakir Hussain
THE founding chairman of the People's Association has said the
continuing challenge facing the organisation is not to allow the
less successful to feel marginalised in Singapore.
In an interview for a book marking the PA's 50th anniversary,
Minister Mentor Lee Kuan Yew said a key purpose of the PA has been
to provide social and recreational facilities for the
underprivileged that might be beyond their reach.
In this way, they feel they have a stake in the country's
prosperity, he said, adding that this approach 'has kept society
more or less harmonious and cohesive'.
The interview was done by Straits Times senior writer Chua Mui
Hoong. The book, We Are One - The People's Association Journey
1960-2010, is written by author Jimmy Yap and traces the PA's
history and evolution as Singapore grew. It is published by the
PA.
It has sections on the PA's key institutions: community centres
and clubs (CCs), citizens' consultative committees, residents'
committees and community development councils.
Asked about these, Mr Lee said Singapore would be worse off
without them. He said: 'If we continue to make growth, as I think
we can, the disparity between the highly-educated and the very
lowly-educated may widen. If we do not give them these extra social
outlets, they will feel, Look, you work to make all this growth,
where is my share of it? Whereas today they feel they are not being
left out.'