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23-03-2015, 06:50 PM
An honorable member of the Coffee Shop Has Just Posted the Following:
Kindly grant me a moment to reproduce a past entry from my diary as a personal tribute to former Singapore Prime Minister Mr Lee Kuan Yew:
23 January 2012 (1st day of the lunar new year)
Monday evening 10.15pm. The executive lounge on the 31st floor of the Conrad Centennial Hotel. That's where I was, having a cuppa and a silent moment by myself. Save for three waiting staff ( a Korean, a Singaporean Shatec Intern and an Indonesian Chinese) and an old Englishman sipping wine a couple of tables away, the area was pretty much empty for the night. Anyways I shall call this Brit Mr J.
I must have been quite lost in my thoughts for a long instant, because when I allowed reality to register itself once again, Miss Korea (as Mr J jokingly calls her) and the Indonesian chap were already standing respectfully by Mr J's side while he narrated his personal experiences and adventures. His voice echoed so ever clearly across the room and I could not resist but "eavesdrop" on his chatter.
Mr J is really something. He works for BP, and is currently involved with a $6 billion project right here in the lion city. He is also a proud grandfather to two grand-daughters. His wife visits Singapore occasionally but is never willing to settle down here permanently. Not surprisingly he travels widely for work, and cites South Korea as one of the best countries to live on this planet. The economy is highly advanced, the people are humble and polite; however the clincher was that crime rate is low. Yes, Koreans are such an honest bunch that he has witnessed the front doors of houses being left wide open during all times of the day. Something nobody would dare to do here in Singapore despite the the efficiency of our men in blue. He happily added he would be flying to Incheon for a week very soon. On Singapore Airlines.
He moved on to discussing about Singapore, and this is where I learnt about the fact his father was in charge of Changi Air Base back in 1957. Mr J was a 4 year old child living in a big colonial house with 7 servants in Serangoon at that time. Outstanding stuff.
Next came politics. He talked largely about Lee Kuan Yew, praising him for being a man who was exceptionally bright and took no nonsense from anyone. He felt while LKY wasn't truly democratic during his time in office, he had made many correct choices which ultimately transformed Singapore into what it is today.
And then he said this which I would never forget:
" If only the UK had a man like LKY to fix things in the past, we won't be in such a mess now."
It was exactly 10.51pm, 9 minutes before the lounge closed for the day.
Peace.
https://www.facebook.com/whitegroupmathematics
Click here to view the whole thread at www.sammyboy.com (http://sammyboy.com/showthread.php?203291-quot-If-only-the-UK-had-a-man-like-LKY-to-fix-things-in-the-past-quot&goto=newpost).
Kindly grant me a moment to reproduce a past entry from my diary as a personal tribute to former Singapore Prime Minister Mr Lee Kuan Yew:
23 January 2012 (1st day of the lunar new year)
Monday evening 10.15pm. The executive lounge on the 31st floor of the Conrad Centennial Hotel. That's where I was, having a cuppa and a silent moment by myself. Save for three waiting staff ( a Korean, a Singaporean Shatec Intern and an Indonesian Chinese) and an old Englishman sipping wine a couple of tables away, the area was pretty much empty for the night. Anyways I shall call this Brit Mr J.
I must have been quite lost in my thoughts for a long instant, because when I allowed reality to register itself once again, Miss Korea (as Mr J jokingly calls her) and the Indonesian chap were already standing respectfully by Mr J's side while he narrated his personal experiences and adventures. His voice echoed so ever clearly across the room and I could not resist but "eavesdrop" on his chatter.
Mr J is really something. He works for BP, and is currently involved with a $6 billion project right here in the lion city. He is also a proud grandfather to two grand-daughters. His wife visits Singapore occasionally but is never willing to settle down here permanently. Not surprisingly he travels widely for work, and cites South Korea as one of the best countries to live on this planet. The economy is highly advanced, the people are humble and polite; however the clincher was that crime rate is low. Yes, Koreans are such an honest bunch that he has witnessed the front doors of houses being left wide open during all times of the day. Something nobody would dare to do here in Singapore despite the the efficiency of our men in blue. He happily added he would be flying to Incheon for a week very soon. On Singapore Airlines.
He moved on to discussing about Singapore, and this is where I learnt about the fact his father was in charge of Changi Air Base back in 1957. Mr J was a 4 year old child living in a big colonial house with 7 servants in Serangoon at that time. Outstanding stuff.
Next came politics. He talked largely about Lee Kuan Yew, praising him for being a man who was exceptionally bright and took no nonsense from anyone. He felt while LKY wasn't truly democratic during his time in office, he had made many correct choices which ultimately transformed Singapore into what it is today.
And then he said this which I would never forget:
" If only the UK had a man like LKY to fix things in the past, we won't be in such a mess now."
It was exactly 10.51pm, 9 minutes before the lounge closed for the day.
Peace.
https://www.facebook.com/whitegroupmathematics
Click here to view the whole thread at www.sammyboy.com (http://sammyboy.com/showthread.php?203291-quot-If-only-the-UK-had-a-man-like-LKY-to-fix-things-in-the-past-quot&goto=newpost).