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Wednesday, February 22, 2006 

Tribute to S. Rajaratnam

1915-2006

When I was typing the article on Dr Toh Chin Chye (below), I suddenly thought about Rajaratnam. I didn't know of his passing during then but his image just flashed across my mind. I met him once about two years ago ushering at a conference. He was frail old man with the walking stick. I didn't know he was Rajaratnam, but just occured to me as a gentle old man, with a permanent smile on his face and thank us for helping him to his seat. Upon the arrival of the Ministers, he waved his flag enthusiastically. Later, learning about his great achievements he did for Singapore, it was even more admiring to know that he was such a humble and sincere man. As a Foreign Minister, he put Singapore on the world map and made ASEAN to what it is today. As a Culture Minister, the racial harmony and integration attest to his great efforts. As a Singaporean, he touched the lives of ordinary folks and constantly brought consciousness into the government.

On 25 February 1990, Mr Rajaratnam said: "Certainly all of us who went into politics believed in it that we can create a Singapore where race, religion, language does not matter. What matters is that we are one people and if you know there's a song we have. It goes something like, "We are Singapore and these are my friends." - This is why I am here tonight." The pledge we take was compose, not by Rajaratnam's words but by his heart. He truly believed in one Singapore and we should too.

told u rite nvr listen to me rite u c la

Surprised you mentioned that Rajaratnam appeared in a public function two years ago, considering the rumour that he suffered from dementia after the passing of his wife. I believe TODAY newspaper carried a report of that in its inaugural edition some years back.

Some facts..

As Culture Minister, he did close down a few newspapers in his time.

After he retired from the post of Senior Minister, he wrote regularly to the Straits Times forum pages, even defending the banned book The Last Temptation Of Christ.

Both he and Dr Goh Keng Swee were conspiciously absent in PAP's 50th Anniversary celebrations in 2004.

May Mr Rajaratnam rest in peace.

Moreover, this blog tries to tell us more about Singapore history other than what is taught in the textbooks. Our textbooks focus too much on the PAP and Singapore's sucess, and not the people behind who strived to make it happen.

Keep up the good work, Mr T

Hi Martyn

At that time when I saw him, he was too frail to walk on his own. Yes, I heard of his dementia as well but I think he never forgot about his beliefs and the loyalty to both the Party and LKY. Upon the arrival of MM Lee, the sight that struck me the most was how he used his every strength to stand and waved his flag. Every Minister and MP that walked past him shook his hands and look at him with awe. Not for his great deeds, but his very presence, permanent smile and his amiable personality.

Hi Abao

Well, the history of PAP is very much associated with the History of Singapore. I think the two can't be separated. But I think it is always important to remember the process rather than our success and results.

Thanks for reading. Glad you found it useful.

Cheers!
T

arrrrrr nw Thrasymachus ignore me liao lol so be it then!!!!! byeeee hope ur opp nvr win ar lol

so u r saying he's nt right in closing down the papers? I CHALLENGE u to produce the facts tht he's wrong. Dun come here n make the hell of noise ur party will nt win lol!!!

Hi Wolong

Who ever say I was pro-oppositions? Haha...

I don't Martyn ever said Raja was wrong in closing down the papers. Life is not always about challenging people. Give dialogue a chance. Don't slam them down with authoritative way. The thing PAP need most is not by the "I know it all" attitude.

Cheers!
T

lol finally "provoke" u 2 say something wellll i can only say u r still v green cant tel where ppl r coming from lol what provoke u to reply me so fast as compared to previous postings which u IGNORE totally lol young men r hot cant be challenged cant be provoked if nt.......... wellll nt many ppl dare 2 admit they r pro opp but.... of cos PAP "know it all" and remain the best

ceratin ppl may nt be pro opp but they do sound....... lol

phrases like they "know it all" sounds like ......

words like "authoriative" sounds like........

sounds like who u know anot lol

u r v young look below the surface of things ok lol

when martin see wrote "he close down a few newspaper" u know what he mean lol read deeper into his words n u will know......

oh ya he has responded 2 my challenge yet maybe 2 busy helping former university lecturer who has been declared a bankrupt

once again i renew my CHALLENGE here to prove tht we were wrong in closing down the papers. when u cant prove it better shut up!!! or when proven wrong dun say typo error lol

opp supporters r all mini jbj n csj nvr verify the facts when proven wrong.....

or they beg for mercy dun sue la lol but then y in the 1st plc defame? whats ur intention? hoping tht we dun sue? hoping tht the electorate believe?

according to lhl "sporeans r nt daft they know what wks n what will nt wk" likewise they knew which party advance their interests which party sound popular n which party love to boil a pot of soup with 4 poisonous ingredients in it. Wld sporeans drink this soup the ans is clear crystal clear lol

Well, I rather be "green" than to be "grey". This blog, as all would have know by now, welcomes all and everyone.

I do not make moral judgements on people. Well, to say I do not know people and their hidden agenda is a fallacy. So what if they have agenda or punts within words? I look at all men no lesser or no more than myself. I always believed that people should first make moral judgements on themselves and respect others and their views. But in return, each should be responsible for their own views.

This is no playground or areana for those who want to issue challenges. PLaygrounds are child's play and this blog has not room for that. And I do not have a habit at replying at all comments, only those that are sensible and constructive. Just happened to be online at the right time. :P

Wolong,

Grow up lah... This world is not just opposition and incumbent... There are others whose political thinkings are way beyond.

You sound quite petty in your learning. Political elements which are good are classed basically into two category:
1. Political scholars;
2. Political thinkers.

Focus on petty tricks and thinking are reasons why oppositions remain oppositions.

You should try to be either, Wolong.

No matter, Mr Rajaratnam has walked into history... and left this piece of reality for us. So emm... isn't it more practical for those politically interested to see how to fix things up...?

A bunch of headaches whenever I thought of it. I don't really have what agenda, but it's either to evacuate or the few young elements gather to do something about it. It's a pretty straight and simple 'agenda' for me.

Anyway, all the best to all.

arrrrrr suaning me old la icic lol

ohhhhhhhh so my comments r nt constructive wana kick me out from here ok by all means fine !! young boi lol

playground? when u enter the real world u will c who's playing n who's nt? if PAP has been playing we wld nt hv come this far.

challenges r for ppl who dare 2 hv their comments scrutinsed n seen by all nt those backed away from a fight lky n gct has fired hv u heard WP responding lol

ohhhhhh nw ppl say i petty so be it then!!!!

so when pap dun raise subsidies thts considered 'petty' ? lol

where the $$$ from? rite till nw wp v silent as if it fall from sky lol

sounding popular may capture some votes but......

btw tht martyn see seems v quiet y tiam tiam accept my challenge oh ya i nt allowed 2 do so got 2 ask some1 permision lol

how young 1 going 2 pay respects 2 rajaratnam wonder how many young 1 know him sad 2 say or only know modern things like blogging or going thru thick history books

wonder how many opp supporters turn up nt many though maybe mr chiam

finally highly educated ppl know how 2 go 1 big round 2 suan oldies unlike our era frank direct 2 the point no doubt causing offence

young boi must be damn angri cos oldie so sharp lol

pap has nvr been afraid of frank n direct even to the pt of losing votes remember 1983 great marriage debate by lky nxt yr gE lost 12% name me any other party dare 2 do so nt many though lol

??? Wolong, are you... alright???

Hi wolong:

I do hope that u considered me to had engaged u in a frank and direct manner without causing offence haha...

Cheers and have a nice day!

Hi Wolong

Nah, I wasn't angry nor perturb at your comments. Haha...but if that is your intentions (which I am sure it is not), you will need to try harder.

PAP will not lose the current elections but if they carry a certain level of attitude, it hard to say what the future holds 3-5 elections later. PAP is unlikely to be defeated by others...but will be defeated by itself if they are not careful. The distanting between the ideological needs of the people and the leaders is worrying. But I shall not dwell too much on the political science stuff which evidences are plenty.

If you are truly loyal to the party and love the party, then stop challenging people to senseless online lawsuits and comments. It will only put off youths like me from the Party. It will only do more harm than good. So maybe instead of sticking to your online nick of "wolong" maybe you might want to disclose your real name. Just a thought not a challenge. :P

And I'm sure you regard this as a friendly dialogue as we have did in the past.

Cheers!
T

what a naive thought from a youngster lol sound v much like opp indeed no lawsuits so when ppl whack pap u expect them 2 sit there guai guai be whacked and dun retaliate lol

one of these days when u r some1 n ppl defame u u guai guai sit there n allowed urself to be defamed ok lol

stupid naive thinking jus like songjiang exact opp of caocao

men in pap r neither confrontational nor combative but if others throw shit on our faces dun expect us 2 walk away without a fight what wld our followers think of us? u defame n we dun sue what wld our followers think of us? y r we afraid 2 sue then? scare tht something maybe dug out? no absolutely nt cos pap leaders dared to hv their reputation examined but do opp dare ? lol

arrrrr ji jiang fa wana me 2 reveal my actual self u read 2 much sun zi art of war or u think u realli zhuge liang send a maiden clothes 2 sima yi provoking him 2 war lol

friendly i doubt so ur words dun sound so more n more like ........

Haha...wolong, You sound more agitated than what you thought of me. Well, I don't how you are being thrown "shit in your face" nor defamed. Then would your comments (on me being naive thinking) allowed me to sue you? My law studies said yes. But of course, I am not even going to pose such claims on you.

My suggestion (which you no need to heed), is just cool down and and just talk on political issues on this blog. Nothing personal. Let's stop all the nonsense and I find such mugslinging unnecessary and unconstructive. Yes, young ones rather focus on larger and broader issues. :P

No worries, I wouldn't be like GMS who disallowed non-bloggers comments.

btw, I just came back from the Rajaratnam's Memorial Service at the Parliament House.

Cheers!
T

Hey wolong

Wats up with u? Saw u in singaporealternative challenging people and now challenging again. U sound like some old fogey stuck in the wrong decade. Sue here sue there, u got lawyer for free ah?lol....keke

ooops, I tink u also wanna sue me also right? then next, challenge me to state that in public rite? Why not u state ur real name then i suan u in public lah. then u can sue me proper....hahaha anyway..all who read ur comments also think u yi lao mai lao..haha...

Sorry Mr T for disturbing ur blog...hahah

hi mr T,
did you see the pic of the malaysian minster lighting up mr raja's cigarette in ST? i thought that was really cute:)

anyway, havent had to time to read ur latest posts! but i will!!

Hi Melange

Good to hear from you again. Yes, I saw that picture before. Thanks for having the patience to read those "lengthy bedtime stories" of mine!

Cheers!
T

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