Papier-mache caricature of a Hero

It is not difficult to fathom the reason behind the fanatic glorification of the late Lee Kuan Yew on the first anniversary of his death. To say that it is a colossal effort by PM Lee Hsien Loong and his ilks to shore up the waning reputation of the PAP for future domination of Singapore is not way off. So it became imperative for the jocular PM Lee Hsien Loong to over-hype the so-called achievements of his late father, the papier-mache caricature of a hero, to rally gullible Singaporeans to bolster the erratic reputation of the PAP.

The PAP wallahs are trying to create the image of the questionable Lee Kuan Yew into some kind of a demi-god. But what do the students and younger Singaporeans, even older Singaporeans, know of the heinous character of Lee Kuan Yew?  They simply follow the leader in exhibiting their enthusiasm of idolising the late Lee Kuan Yew without actually knowing the real meaning of it. And this is accentuated by the PAP propagandists, PM Lee and his ministers not exempted, by dwelling on Lee Kuan Yew's so-called virtues and making him out to be the sole leader to transform Singapore to what it is today. They try to impress the public that they owe their living today to Lee Kuan Yew.

To put it cynically, nothing can be more preposterous. Lee Kuan Yew would be floundering like a drowning man if he did not have eminent ministers like Dr. Goh Keng Swee, Mr. Hon Sui Sen, Mr. S.Rajaratnam and last but not the least the eminent Dr. Albert Winseimus, to help him transform Singapore, economically and politically, to what it is today. And where is the sense of integrity and duty to the public for the PAP propagandists to say that it is a one-man show by Lee Kuan Yew to transform Singapore to its present stage? Do PM Lee and his flattering ministers think that this is a fair representation of the contributions of Dr. Goh and his colleagues, especially Dr. Winseimus who almost single-handedly transformed Singapore economically with his inimitable expert advice.

There is an urgent need to put Lee Kuan Yew's achievements in perspective, warts and all, in order not to short-change Singaporeans. There is a reason why renowned historians have so far not given any verdict on Lee Kuan Yew. Dr. Poh Soo Kai, in his book "Living in the time of deception", has given an illuminating account of the complicity of Lee Kuan Yew with Lim Yew Hock in dealing with his political adversaries.. The million dollar question is why Dr. Poh had held back in exposing Lee Kuan Yew to his PAP members at the first opportunity?