Singapore's Position Today - Should We Thank The British or The PAP Leadership?

[Kohliantye]

Singapore was an excellent place handed over to the PAP on a gold platter, when the British left this area as an independent country.

There gave us an excellent infrastructure. A fantastic Civil Service. A dedicated lot of teachers and doctors.

The British gave residents free medical attention. Mobile dispensaries visited kampongs to meet the need of the sick - free of charge - What is the position today?

The British gave us excellent schools with highly-intelligent teachers. I am most thankful to them for being a receipients of such an excellent educational system - free of charge. Can you compare it with today's level of education.

They (British) gave us excellent army camps, vehicles, naval ships and even aircraft (although the PAP government paid a $1/- each for it.)

The British left behind a very well managed Harbour Board (now known as PSA), an excellent police force which served the populace well, solid buidlings like the Supreme Court, City Hall, Old Parliament House, the Victoria Memorial Hall, the old NRIC HQ, the old General Post Office (GPO) (now converted to Fullerton Hotel), a well-kept Kranji War Memorial Cemetery, former Raffles Institution, the former NCO Club at Beach Road, famous schools, an excellent Naval base with the well-equipped Bethelem and Sembawang Port and a well-managed Botanical Gardens.
In Minden Road, their legacy can still be seen (the former SAF HQ).

They also left behind wonderful Tudor-style homes in Tanglin, Gymkhana Ave, Mt Pleasant Road, Mount Rosie, Clementi and Seletar and Changi Village.
I do not know how much the PAP paid for such homes but many now have private owners. Maybe the PAP government should let the public know about how private owners came to own it.

They gave us a well-managed BMH (British Military Hospital) until now known as Alexandra Hospital, Outram Road General Hospital (now SGH) and Kandang Kerbau Hospital (now known as KK Women & Children's Hospital).

For fresh water, they gave us a well-managed Macritchie, Pierce (now connected to Mandai Reservoir), Pearls Hill Waterworks, the former Murnane Reservoir (facing the KK Hospital) and many other water collecting areas.

Then there is the Governor's House (now known as Istana) where highly paid Presidents of independent Singapore and senior politicians are having their offices.

The infamous Changi Prison, former Queenstown Prison and the Sembawang DRC are also from them.

So much to write but just cannot remember.

Finally, the kind British Administration also did the same in India and many of it former territories in Malaya, Africa, Canada and the Middle East.

This is a far cry from what the Indons received when the Dutch left the East Indies.

With all this things in place anyone could have taken Singapore to where it is today.

Just because the PAP happened to be there, the credit goes to it's leaders.

Please comment with an open mind.

 

[GoldenDragon]

I am waiting for our resident political analyst to give his expert opinion.

 

[zeddy]

I thank the British for introducing football here in Spore.. Just imagine if cricket is more popular than football... We would be watching the India Cricket Premier league on our TVs instead of the Barclays Premier League..

 

[Ramseth]

Singapore was an excellent place handed over to the PAP on a gold platter, when the British left this area as an independent country.

There gave us an excellent infrastructure. A fantastic Civil Service. A dedicated lot of teachers and doctors.

The opening statement is already factually wrong. The British left by handing Singapore over as a state of Malaysia. The rest are mostly correct. Whilst as part of Straits Settlements or as a Crown Colony, the British accorded Singaporeans the same ratio of social welfare as if in Britain, Canada, Australia or NZ. By ratio, I mean that, more tax revenue generated in the land, more social welfare accorded to the people of the land. Same principle applied to HK until 1997.

As for handing Singapore over to Malaysia as a state, it was a misguided scheme devised by LKY leaving Singaporeans no choice even in a so-called referendum.

 

[chonburifc]

British also left us the Zha Boh charter.:(

 

[HTOLAS]

While the British might have intended to hand Singapore over as a state of Malaysia, what in fact happened was that the PAPzis unilaterally declared independence on 1 Sep 63. As such, the British did hand Singapore over to the PAPzis though they did not recognize the UDI. Singapore joined Malaysia on 16 Sep 63 (coincidentally LKY's birthday).

The opening statement is already factually wrong. The British left by handing Singapore over as a state of Malaysia. The rest are mostly correct. Whilst as part of Straits Settlements or as a Crown Colony, the British accorded Singaporeans the same ratio of social welfare as if in Britain, Canada, Australia or NZ. By ratio, I mean that, more tax revenue generated in the land, more social welfare accorded to the people of the land. Same principle applied to HK until 1997.

As for handing Singapore over to Malaysia as a state, it was a misguided scheme devised by LKY leaving Singaporeans no choice even in a so-called referendum.

 

[Ramseth]

British also left us the Zha Boh charter.:(

Women's Charter was enacted after 1955 when Singapore attained domestic autonomy. In fact, after 1959 when PAP gained power. During British colonial days, even polygamy was legal. Monogamy is a Christian doctrine that British never enforced on locals with Chinese and Muslims practising polygamy commonly.

 

[breaknews]

Everyday got body discovered and people committing suicides.

What is there to celebrate about??

No thank you!!! I am better off living in bankrupt angmo countries!!

 

[scroobal]

I distincly remember a forummer claiming that it was a fishing village until old man and PAP built it up. Also recall a YPAP chairman of an zone claiming that old man was like Mandela. I am assuming that he thought spent time in prison for his beliefs.

I am sure we all can credit the PAP for building on the good things left behind by the British and like the British, they also looked after their own and like the British segregated the races on the proven model of divide and conquer. They are also now following the British model of allowing anyone who can contribute to Singapore's economy at the expense of social cohesion. After all the British treated its colonies as money earning centres for its home country.

Somethings never change.

 

[scroobal]

Interestingly suicides were also common during British times when migrants who could noy make it in Singapore. In our time, its not the migrants but those who were born in Singapore that have placed them.

Everyday got body discovered and people committing suicides.

What is there to celebrate about??

No thank you!!! I am better off living in bankrupt angmo countries!!

 

[Ramseth]

I distincly remember a forummer claiming that it was a fishing village until old man and PAP built it up. Also recall a YPAP chairman of an zone claiming that old man was like Mandela. I am assuming that he thought spent time in prison for his beliefs.

You mean to say, from 1819 to 1959, Singaporeans were fishing by riverside and seaside were for a living? From the accounts of LTG Yamashita Tomoyuki, when he invaded Singapore in 1942, he saw Ford Motor Factory, Cathay Cinema etc. Shit! Those Japs are damn good at rewriting history.

You mean to say, LKY was imprisoned on Pulau Belakang Mati for 30 years fighting for democracy before he became PM? Shit! Those opposition are as bad as Japs!

 

[scroobal]

Good one ! I too was stunned when the chap wrote it in support of the PAP? The imagination of the PAP followers. The chap who claimed that old man was like Mandela is a graduate of LSE.

You mean to say, from 1819 to 1959, Singaporeans were fishing by riverside and seaside were for a living? From the accounts of LTG Yamashita Tomoyiki, when he invaded Singapore in 1942, he saw Ford Motor Factory, Cathay Cinema etc. Shit! Those Japs are damn good at rewriting history.

You mean to say, LKY was imprisoned on Pulau Belakang Mati for 30 years fighting for democracy before he became PM? Shit! Those opposition are as bad as Japs!

 

[Ramseth]

Good one ! I too was stunned when the chap wrote it in support of the PAP? The imagination of the PAP followers. The chap who claimed that old man was like Mandela is a graduate of LSE.

Perhaps Locke's classmate...

 

[Char_Azn]

Just because the PAP happened to be there, the credit goes to it's leaders.

Please comment with an open mind.

U give the British too much credit
1)SG didn't become freaking rich until we started going into Manufacturing. British have little to do with that although some manufacturing already exist before they left, it wasn't the type of large scale manufacturing that got us to where we are today. It was a Dutch guy who advised us and LKY, Goh Keng Swee and gang who planned and mobilized the pple into action

2)Back in the 60s, Crime was bad, kidnapping was common and corruption was really bad. British had nothing to do with the cleanup job

3)IT Hub, Transport Hub, Financial Hub, etc nothing to do with the British

4)HDB public housing, nothing to do with the British. Technically that was pre-independence but the general scheme was started after we achieve self-rule

5)Getting kicked out by Matland. Nothing to do with British. Yes, not much of an achievement, more blind luck but I think we can all agree we are many times better off getting kicked out then get stuck with them.

6)Drinking Sai Chui(Newater) nothing to do with British. We are trying to reach self sufficiency in water and if we get there, it's all us

7)Oil refining, nothing to do with the British. We export a lot of oil despite the fact that we don't have a single drop of it beneath our land

The best thing that the British gave us was founding the country. It has little to do with the wealth that the country is enjoying today.

 

[groober2011]

We have our forefathers and those that came after them to thank for. We can thank the British for having the foresight and making Singapore a major port, their system of administration, the adoption of their language for communication and their civil law.

Unlike the French, Spanish and Dutch colonial masters, Singapore and other commonwealth countries fare better under the British.

we definitely have to thank the British for having a good springboard in place from which the country could progress and be what it is today. Singapore will not be where we are today if we had been under the Dutch or Spanish. For that we should be thankful.

 

[steffychun]

Thank the natives for agreeing to give Singapore to the Brits in 1819

 

[Kohliantye]

I thank the British for introducing football here in Spore.. Just imagine if cricket is more popular than football... We would be watching the India Cricket Premier league on our TVs instead of the Barclays Premier League..

Football !!.

What about DEMOCRACY which is "widely-practised here???