Lee Kuan Yew: Pragmatic, incorrupt, efficient and meritocratic
Thursday, August 30th, 2007 | 9:24 am @ SK
It’s a matter of fact that Singapore Minister Mentor Lee Kuan Yew has been a controversial figure ever since he became the Singapore’s first prime minister.
It’s also a matter of fact that no matter how much you hate this guy for suppressing information freedom and openness in Singapore’s society, still, hats off to him for what he has done towards his country together with his great vision.
In a recent interview by IHT, he spoke about how Singapore needs to constantly evolve and stay ahead of pack by being pragmatic and flexible.
Well, we are pragmatists. If, in order to survive, we have to open up a sector, we open it up. Because the best test - the yardstick is, is this necessary for survival and progress? If it is, let’s do it.
Is this necessary for survival and progress? If it is, let’s do it.
I don’t like casinos, but the world has changed and if we don’t have an integrated resort like the ones in Las Vegas - Las Vegas Sands - we’ll lose.
So, let’s go. Let’s try. Can we do it? I’m not sure, but we’re going to give it a good try. […]
I think we have to go in whatever direction world conditions dictate if we are to survive and to be part of this modern world. If we are not connected to this modern world, we are dead. We’ll go back to the fishing village we once were. […]
We knew that if we were just like our neighbors, we would die. Because we’ve got nothing to offer against what they have to offer. So we had to produce something which is different and better than what they have. It’s incorrupt. It’s efficient. It’s meritocratic. It works. […]
The system works regardless of your race, language or religion because otherwise we’d have divisions. We are pragmatists. We don’t stick to any ideology.
The context? Multi-racials, multi-languages, multi-religions.
The management philosophy? Incorrupt. Efficient. Meritocratic.
The ideology? Pragmatism.
The secret?
"Does it work? Let’s try it and it does work, fine, let’s continue it. If it doesn’t work, toss it out, try another one," he said.
Like it or not, the above combined factors are intriguing enough to attract Chinese ministers meeting twice with Singaporean ministers every year to learn from their experience and fifty mayors of Chinese cities visit every three months for courses in city management.
And we’re talking about China, the country which is expected to be the biggest economy in Gross National Product (GNP) per capita in 2050, learning from a tiny little red dot - Singapore.