This is LKY’s view. In his one dimensional experience with Singapore, he can only see goodness in one party system and badness in everything else. I could up his ante by claiming that dictatorship is even better, without contention, with a dictator or emperor calling his shot, everything can be done at his beck and call. Super fast and super efficient, for good or for bad.
Really, every system is good and every system is bad. It all boils down to the goodness of the leader. A dictator or emperor can be an excellent leader and can bring progress and greatness to the country and people, provided his intention and goals are benevolent.
Historically the goodness of such leaders was often temporary as they soon got intoxicated by power and their own egoistic pride that they could do no wrong or they were gods. There have been many such examples when the leaders could not see glaring mistakes of their own. They will believe only in themselves and their self serving logic.
We have seen that, and have paid for it. All men are fallible and corrupt to a matter of degree. A one party system can be good but can also entrench corruption and misdeeds of the leaders. And in such a system it is very difficult to dislodge them and undo their wrongs. To make matter worst, one party rule or its dictatorial equivalents are often run by strong men that makes removing them even more difficult.
Two party and multi party systems have their strength and weaknesses as well. But given leaders with good intention, from both sides of the coin, it can be a more amiable system, more compassion, less brutal and brash in policy making. In a mature society where the leaders of both sides are made up of honourable men and women, knowledgeable and wiser, all striving for the good of country and people, and not self serving, it can be much better than single party system that often failed to check itself and its own abuses.
Single party or multi party systems are just systems. It is the leaders that make them good or bad. We have seen how a single party system can be good and also can be bad. It is not the panacea or the only panacea for good governance. It is as flawed as the leaders running it.
rex comments as follows,
ReplyDeleteExcellent comments which should be memorised by every singapore citizen. I hope you post it to the Straits Times. Maybe by chance they will publish it, because your post is rather general and very diplomatic.
I think the prime minister should ask the question: even if citizens believe he is a good leader, and his father is a good leader, are the successors the likes of keechius and tincans, able to carry on thier "good" leadership? Singapore will spiral all the way to bottom if led by these kind of successors.
The prime minister should try to understand that two party system is better for continuity, because it is very clear that the successors of LHL and LKY are all highly uncreative and dull people.
rex
I have been reading your blog daily and am glad you continue to post your thoughts on our political situation despite the hopelessness we are in now.
ReplyDeleteHopeless because it is too late for the daft and stupid 60.1% of Singaporeans repent and wish they had voted differently.
For me, I just have to live with the daily barrage of utter crap coming out of our politicians' mouths, most of all from our founding father whom though built Singapore with the help of Singaporeans, now say that these Singaporeans and their descendants are useless and only foreign talent can save us.
I wonder which foreign (talent) politician who mouth such crap can continue to survive in his country's political arena. I will be shocked to see Hu Jintao say that Chinese are lazy and need the angmoh devils to come whip them up.
What a hoohah it will cause in China. But alas, in Singapore, it is business as usual.
The 60.1% are just dumb and daft and deserves this barrage of criticism. As a kid might say, beligood....
The world is changing rapidly. We are seeing a change of wind. This is also happening in our domestic scene.
ReplyDeleteThe startling revelation is that all that is good or thought to be good, all the theories and policies, are turning bad. All that is bad is looking good. The rights are looking wrong, the mighty are looking like rogues.
The weak are standing up. There are great changes taking shape. More changes are to come, for sure.
the problem with the PAP is that it sees any alternative party or person who thinks differently from it, as being AGAINST the country. one could have said the same about it 52 years ago. it was certainly against the system then. fortunately, the people back then had more cow sense. (or did they?)
ReplyDeleteit is so egotistic that it thinks that it is the Only party with possible answers. every day, for some years now, we have been seeing new evidence that it is Wrong.
it is about time that it treats singaporeans with some Respect, and bears in mind that we are ALL trying to make this a place we can be proud of and enjoy. that we are ALL singaporeans.
Hehehe
ReplyDeleteHe still believes the right hand can check the wrongdoings of the left hand. Just like that. Shows what kind of warp logic can sometimes come out of those too drunk with power.
Even the smartest can sometimes be stupid!
The hubris will cause the High and Mighty to fall!
ReplyDeleteHigh octane falutin
ReplyDeleteIn a society where everyone worships money, rogues will be aplenty, corruptions abound and lots of misleadings.
ReplyDeleteIn the last few days, I went to Changi General Hospital(CGH) and Singapore General Hospital(SGH) with a patient warded for tumours suspected to be cancerous.
At CGH, patients in the ward were approached by canvasser for blood test on Hepatitis. At SGH, patients were canvassed for blood test on HIV.
Just imagine marketing of such services(blood test) allowed in hospitals to patients who were/are already greatly sadden and distressed by their illnesses.
Are there readers who have experienced such peculiar phenomenons, please share with us.
A leadership that needs to be reminded of its' failings and be told of its follies simply cannot provide the people the confidence of its' capability and propriety.
Yes, yes....it always starts with noble/patriotic/for the people ideals...and then megalomania creeps in...
ReplyDeleteYes, yes...always not the systems are the sole cause..it is the individuals/group in power that defines the outcome for the citizens in the main.
The democratic-socialist philosophy that the party started with in the 60's have been cast aside for.......
You have hit the nail on the head but...... the input will be cast aside as "noise"
/// I could up his ante by claiming that dictatorship is even better, without contention, with a dictator or emperor calling his shot, everything can be done at his beck and call. Super fast and super efficient, for good or for bad. ///
ReplyDeleteErmmm, I think you stumbled upon the truth. That was how Singapore has been run all these decades since independence - by imperial fiat. One man's vision and wishes immediately translated into policy and bull-dozed through with no debates or cursory "wayang" airing in parliament.
The problem that we face in Singapore today is that the "Establishment" has become far too entrenched in all aspects of life that it is 'to big to fail'.
ReplyDeleteJust like how AIG was perceived to be too big to fail, given its intricate links to all aspects of global finance, similarly, the PAP has grown to a stage where it has become 'too big to be be voted out of office' for fear of what may transpire as a result of it not forming the government.
It is this belief within the PAP that makes them want to maintain the status quo, of a dominant 1-party rule.
Hi LWL, welcome to the blog. You have the same initial as Wei Ling.
ReplyDeleteThe biggest flaw of this govt is that it has got too used to its high handed handling of the people that it has become second nature to them. And they cannot see anything wrong with it.
Thanks goodnes, I think they will not be around after the next GE. The ground swell is getting bigger and helped by their mistakes after mistakes since the last GE. Frankly I am astonished by the shift in the support of the party to alternative parties.
Everything is changing and turning against them.