SPEECH BY MR , SECRETARY-GENERAL OF THE PAP CENTRAL EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE, AT THE PAP ORDINARY CONFERENCE ON SUNDAY, 7 NOVEMBER 2004, AT THE KALLANG THEATRE

The PAP, at 50, is older than many cadres in this room. Some of you were not even born when the Party was launched. I myself was only a young spectator in the early years of the Party’s growth. But I followed its development. I had an uncle who was 4 years older and he was from the Chinese stream. He was politicised. I followed him around to rallies. At this half-century milestone of the PAP, I want to highlight some key events which shaped the Party and then draw lessons for the future.

2 Looking back, I see 5 distinct phases in the PAP’s evolution over the last 50 years. They are:

• Phase 1: 1951-1959: Formation of the Party and its Early Success.

• Phase 2: 1959-1965: The Battle for Merger and Independence.

• Phase 3: 1965-1980: Building a Nation.

• Phase 4: 1981-1991: Containing the Opposition.

• Phase 5: 1991-2004: Forging A New Bond with the People.

Phase 1: Formation of the Party and its Early Success

3 We all know that the PAP was launched on 21 November 1954 at the Victoria Memorial Hall. But I believe not many are aware that the Party was conceived in the basement dining room of Comrade ’s Oxley Road house. There, a group of trade unionists, teachers, lawyers and journalists met in the early part of 1954 to decide whether to form a new left-wing political party.

4 They asked themselves 3 basic questions:

(1) Was it the right time to launch a left-wing political party? A left-wing party might not survive as - except for the Malayan Communist Party - the others had either been liquidated by the British Colonial Government or had liquidated themselves. (2) If they did not, what were the political choices for ? As Comrade S Rajaratnam put it: it was a choice between the Progressive Party and their feeble leaders [and] the clowns of the Labour Party ...” on one side and the underground militant Malayan Communist Party on the other (PAP souvenir publication, Our First Ten Years).

(3) What were the consequences if they did not form the PAP? The new Rendel Constitution for self-government had just been published in February 1954. On most issues, the British Governor would have to accept the advice of the Council of Ministers - the majority of whom were elected. But the British Government would still retain control over the key areas of External Affairs, Defence and Internal Affairs. The founders of the PAP regarded this as a pro-colonial Constitution. They feared that inaction would have allowed the British to consolidate their political position in the and Singapore and strengthen the local right-wing pro-colonial elements.

5 The men who met at Comrade Lee Kuan Yew’s Oxley Road house decided to launch the PAP to achieve an independent, democratic socialist Singapore.

6 I was then studying in Pasir Panjang Primary School. We sang God Save the King. But the King died, and his daughter, Elizabeth II, succeeded him. We then sang God Save the Queen. I remember vividly the visit by the Duchess of Kent and her son in 1952. It was such an honour for Singapore to receive a visit by the royal family. Flundreds of students practised for hours in the hot sun to put up a mass display for her at the Padang. I was one of them.

7 In 1954, the main goal of the PAP was to end colonialism. Everything else was secondary. The men thought that if they got rid of colonialism, Singapore and Malaya would become one. This was evident in the party’s pre-formation press statement (published on Sunday 25 October 1954) which stated categorically, "We welcome only those who are inspired by an uncompromising faith in Malayan freedom ...”. The PAP then expected Singapore to be independent as part of Malaya.

8 So with great enthusiasm and confidence, the PAP was formally inaugurated on 21 November 1954. The convenors included Lee Kuan Yew, Chin Chye, S Rajaratnam, and Samad Ismail. (Samad Ismail was twice detained for a total of almost 4 years by the British Colonial Government and later Malaysian Government as a communist.) Nearly 1,500 people attended the meeting. described the gathering as the “biggest political rally since 1948”.

2 9 When the Legislative Assembly elections came around in 1955, the PAP decided to contest to expose the shortcomings of the pro-colonial Rendel Constitution. It fielded 4 candidates - Lee Kuan Yew, , Goh Chew Chua and Devan Nair.

10 I remember the excitement in the air. I attended my first political rally with my uncle in to listen to Lim Chin Siong. Lim Chin Siong resonated with the Chinese crowd with his fiery Hokkien speeches. He was only 22 years old. He won Bukit Timah with a convincing margin. Goh Chew Chua won in Punggol- Tampines too. But Lee Kuan Yew polled the highest number of votes among all candidates. He also won Tanjong Pagar by the widest margin among all constituencies. Devan Nair lost in Farrer Park.

11 With the 1955 GE, Singapore entered a new age of mass politics. In the first Legislative Council elections in 1948, the number of registered voters was 23,000. In the second elections in 1951, it was 48,000. In 1955, Singapore citizens were automatically registered as voters. Overnight, the electorate increased by nearly seven-fold to 300,000.

12 The PAP began to organize itself as a mass party. But what kind of mass party? Should it use revolutionary and violent means to seize power? Or should it win power democratically and through non-violent means? This was not an idle intellectual question.

13 There were two opposing forces in the Party: the democratic and socialist elements who believed in the constitutional approach on one side, and the communist elements whom the PAP leaders labelled as “adventurist and extremist on the other. The communists were trying to use the PAP to capture power.

14 In addition, the democratic socialists had to fight the forces of colonialism and the local-right wing elements. The right-wing branded the PAP as pro­ communist.

15 The Party had to make clear that it was not a front for the communists. Otherwise, the leaders risked being detained by the government. So Secretary- General Lee Kuan Yew affirmed in May 1955 that the PAP was formed to fight for “an independent, democratic, non-communist Malaya."

16 However, this did not satisfy the right-wing elements. They continued to brand the PAP as pro-communist. Thus when the Hock Lee Bus strike broke out in riots later in the same month, they tried to pin the blame on the PAP. But the PAP categorically denounced the violence.

3 17 I was only 14 then. My uncle and I walked from our house in Pasir Panjang to the Hock Lee Bus depot in Alexandra Road. It was a 4-kilometre walk. At the bus depot, I could feel the tension in the air. There was a block of uncompleted SIT (Singapore Improvement Trust, the predecessor of HDB) flats. I saw many people standing on the various floors to get a vantage view. At that time, the government had also mishandled a delicate situation over the Chinese Middle Schools. Many of Chinese school students were there to support the bus strikers. My uncle and I left after a while because it was a long walk home. Fortunately. When I woke up the next day, I read in the newspapers that riots had broken out after we left at the depot. A battle had raged between the police and 2000 students, strikers and hooligans in the streets and lasted till 3 am in the morning. Two policemen, one student and an American newsman were killed.

18 The Hock Lee Bus riots alerted the PAP leadership to the dangers of the communist elements within and outside the Party. As S Rajaratnam wrote in Our First 10 Years: “The Hock Lee Affair made the PAP supporters aware of the potential threat to the Party from Communist elements who, by reckless actions, were trying to trap the Party into abandoning its constitutionalist, non-violent stand and condoning adventurist tactics".

19 Despite this awareness, the Party was nearly captured by the communists two years later. In those days, the PAP posted admission passes to the annual Party Conference to members. Many of them gave trade union premises as their addresses. The communists got hold of these passes and packed the Singapore Badminton Hall with pro-communist non-members. They captured 6 out of the 12 CEC seats.

20 Party Chairman, Dr Toh Chin Chye, Secretary-General Lee Kuan Yew and the other 4 non-communist CEC members refused to take office in the CEC. They did not want to give cover to the 6 who were pro-communists.

21 Tan Chong Kin, a clerk and the Branch Chairman of Farrer Park, became the Chairman. T T Rajah, a lawyer, became the Secretary-General of the 4th CEC. Having captured the PAP, the communists were emboldened. They went on to try and capture the Trades Union Congress. This was a big mistake because the TUC was then controlled by the Labour Front Government. So the Government purged the communists and arrested 5 of the 6 pro-communist CEC members in the PAP. 3 of the 5 arrested were banished to China. T T Rajah mysteriously resigned as Secretary-General without informing his colleagues. He cited poor health even though Toh Chin Chye had seen him looking in the pink of health just 2 weeks earlier.

22 Toh Chin Chye and Lee Kuan Yew took over the CEC in October. After this experience of nearly being captured by the communists, the PAP amended its Constitution to have two classes of membership - ordinary and cadre members. Only cadre members could elect the CEC members. And members had to prove 4 their worth before being appointed cadres. This way, the Party thwarted later attempts by pro-communist elements to capture the party. And the pro-communist elements complained about a lack of democracy in the Party!

23 Well, now you know why your admission cards were carefully checked before you entered this hall!

Phase 2: The Battle for Merger and Independence

24 This brings us to the next phase of the PAP. As the 1959 General Elections approached, the Party weighed carefully whether to fight the elections to be an opposition or form the government. There were three main reasons why the PAP hesitated to fight to form the government. First, the Constitution did not grant full independence to Singapore. The Party expected great difficulties in trying to govern under such a Constitution. Second, the economic and social challenges were daunting. Unemployment was high. So was the birth rate. Third, there was the emotional cultural and language problem. Singapore was a predominantly Chinese city. How to transform it into a Malayan Singapore? With such difficulties, why not let another party run Singapore while the PAP built up its strength?

25 But which party? The answer was the Singapore People’s Alliance party or SPA recently formed by . The SPA, like Chiam See Tong’s Singapore Democratic Alliance today, was merely a common front formed to fight the PAP. Its component parties continued to exist under their own names. The PAP’s 15th Anniversary Celebration Souvenir described the SPA as ”... not only a monstrosity but a party which would have plunged Singapore in chaos and tragedy." The PAP knew then that foreigners were funding the SPA to fight the PAP. The SPA was also using gangsters to intimidate PAP supporters.

26 The PAP decided it had no choice but to contest the elections with a view to forming the government. Five years under the SPA and it would be too late to put Singapore right. It also knew that the SPA would take steps to crush the PAP.

27 In February 1959, I was waiting for my 'O’ level results. I remember the bombshell dropped by Dr Toh Chin Chye. At an open air meeting in Hong Lim Green where the Speakers’ Corner now is, he revealed that the Labour Front - a component of the SPA - had received a “political gift” through Chew Swee Kee, then Minister for Education. The SPA Government was forced to convene a Commission of Inquiry. At the inquiry, Chew Swee Kee admitted to receiving a total of $700,000 (about $2.2 million today). He never gave the money to his party. He used it to buy a house in and invest in . The bombshell Dr Toh dropped, in today’s language, was a pre-emptive strike. It was the first pre­ election salvo by the PAP. The SPA camp was totally devastated. Chew Swee Kee resigned. 5 28 The PAP then went about explaining its programmes and policies to the people. These policy speeches were published in The Tasks Ahead.

29 By the time the elections came in May 1959, the ground had shifted in favour of the PAP. Everyone knew that it would win. The only question was by what majority. I was then 18, still too young to vote. Before polling day, a classmate and I debated who would be the Prime Minister. He said it would be Toh Chin Chye. He explained that Toh Chin Chye was Chairman of the party and the head of the party would usually be the Prime Minister. I argued that Lee Kuan Yew was making all the stirring speeches and was clearly the leader of the PAP.

30 In Pasir Panjang where I lived, there were 4 candidates: Sukaimi Ibrahim from UMNO, two Independents - HJC Kulasingha, a merchant, and STV Lingam, an insurance unit manager. The PAP candidate was Tan Kim Leng, a barber. The PAP candidate won.

31 The PAP contested all the 51 seats and won the GE decisively. It clinched 43 seats, with 54% of the votes cast by 90% of the electorate. The Malay Mail proclaimed that “The PAP has emerged as the national party of Singapore". Thus, began a new chapter for Singapore.

32 This chapter, however, was far from peaceful. The PAP was locked in a mortal struggle with the communists. Lim Chin Siong and the communist sympathizers made another attempt to capture the Party. The battle line was over merger with . The PAP leaders wanted merger, the communists were against it. Merger meant independence and they could not fight the PAP Government under the guise of being anti-colonialists. They also wanted the Internal Security Act abolished.

33 The pro-communists stirred up trouble all over Singapore. They used all kinds of tactics to win over PAP Assemblymen. They intimidated the Assemblymen and promised money and power.

34 Things came to a head in July 1961. By then, some PAP Assemblymen had already crossed over to the other side. The PAP called for an emergency meeting of the Legislative Assembly to debate a motion of confidence on the government. The PAP leaders won by 1 vote. Madam Sahorah Ahmat (Assemblywoman for Paya Lebar) had to be brought in from her hospital bed to vote. 13 pro-communist PAP Assemblymen abstained or voted against the government. They were later expelled by the Party. They formed the , with Dr Lee Siew Choh as Chairman and Lim Chin Siong as Secretary- General.

6 35 Chor Yeok Eng, former PAP MP for Bukit Timah, was a target of the communists. I used to play tennis with him until his knees gave him problem. Bukit Timah was a strong-hold of communist supporters and sympathisers. The communists tried to persuade him to defect. They offered him $200,000 (or $630,000 today) and told him if he wanted more, the amount could be discussed. He was not tempted. He had courage and integrity.

36 The communists also worked up the ground. They tried to disrupt the economy. They agitated the workers and called for strikes. In 1961, there were 116 industrial strikes involving almost 44,000 workers and resulting in the loss of 411,000 man-days. In 1963, there were 47 strikes involving 33,000 workers, resulting in the loss of 388,000 man-days.

37 The communists also exploited the Nantah undergraduates. Nantah was a hotbed of leftist activities.

38 In contrast, the University of Singapore or SU, where I studied from 1961-64, was an oasis of fun and study. Looking back, I am amazed how detached we were from the defining events around us. This was the height of the Cold War. The Berlin Wall went up during my first year in university. A year later, the world was almost on the brink of a nuclear war as Kennedy and Khrushchev faced off over the Cuban missile crisis. The situation in Asia was also tense. In 1962, China and India fought a short and bloody war along their borders. In Singapore, the country was locked in battle over whether to merge with Malaysia or not.

39 The students in SU were apolitical. There was a reason for this. The government had ring-fenced the university from the communists. To be admitted into the university, one had to apply for a suitability certificate. Thus potential political trouble-makers were kept out. So instead of fighting political battles, some boys who lived in Raffles Hostel mounted midnight raids on the nearby Eusoff College to steal underclothing. They would then fly them like flags. I must add that I did not take part in these raids. I was a non-hostelite.

40 When the 1963 GE came along, I was excited. I was then in my final year in university and would be voting for the first time. In Pasir Panjang where I still lived, the PAP candidate was Othman Wok. The other candidates were from the Singapore Alliance (Ahmad Rahmat, an UMNO candidate), Barisan Sosialis (Tay Cheng Kang) and United People’s Party (Yong Ah Kau). I attended the PAP rally in Pasir Panjang. There I saw Lee Kuan Yew for the first time. He walked past me as he went towards the stage.lt was clear to me that the PAP offered a better future for Singapore. I voted for Othman Wok, who won by 992 votes.

41 The PAP defeated the communist-backed Barisan Sosialis. But it was a tough fight. Overall, the PAP obtained 46.93% of votes cast and won 37 seats.

7 The Barisan Sosialis took 13 seats and another party (United People’s Party) 1 seat. More importantly, in the merger referendum, the PAP’s proposal received resounding support with 72% of the votes. Singapore then joined Malaysia on 16 September 1963. We stopped singing God Save the Queen and started learning Negaraku.

42 Before we could sing Negaraku well, came Separation. The PAP discovered that the leaders in Malaysia did not believe in equality of the races or practised meritocracy. As the Party looked back ruefully in its 15th Anniversary Celebration Souvenir: “We now know that the PAP in its pre-occupation with colonialism and the fight for merger, underestimated the significance of racial, cultural and communal factors in the politics of our country.”

43 In April 1964, the PAP took part in the Federal elections. It fought for a Malaysian Malaysia. This went against UMNO’s pro-bumiputra policies. Trouble began to brew. Communal tensions ran high from then on, culminating in racial riots in Singapore in July and September 1964.

44 By then, I had graduated and started work. My first job was in the Economic Planning Unit of the Prime Minister’s Office in City Hall. When the riots broke out, we were told to go home. But how to get home? The roads were jammed. The buses were packed. I was then living in Queenstown. I started to walk home with an office colleague who also lived in Queenstown. Fortunately, when we were near Penang Lane, a car stopped to give us a lift home. The driver was my colleague’s relative.

45 Ahmad Mattar was less fortunate. He was one year my senior. He was teaching in the Singapore Polytechnic in Shenton Way. On his way to the Polytechnic one morning, his way was blocked by a mob. When they saw him, they shouted “pah”! Ahmad got out of his car and ran. Fortunately, it was early in the morning and the mob did not give chase. But they burned his car. It was a brand new car.

46 The race riots were believed to be externally instigated. But the PAP and people of Singapore, though shaken, were not cowed. The government organised Goodwill Committees in every constituency and every kampong to restore calm. These Goodwill Committees were forerunners of the Citizens’ Consultative Committees which we have today. They helped to build understanding and restore order. However, communal politicking persisted. -elements in Malaysia pressed for the detention of Lee Kuan Yew and key PAP leaders. Tunku Abdul Rahman finally decided to ask Singapore to leave Malaysia so as to put an end to the PAP’s Malaysian Malaysia movement. And so, at 10 am on 9 August 1965, Prime Minister Lee Kuan Yew declared Singapore “forever a sovereign democratic and independent nation” on the front steps of City Hall.

8 I had no inkling before this that Singapore would be separated from Malaysia. I had in fact just returned to Singapore from my honeymoon in Malaysia a few days earlier. It must be the best guarded coup concerning the independence of a country in history.

Phase 3: Building a Nation

47 The initial post-independence years for Singapore and the PAP were very difficult. There were tremendous economic, social and security challenges. Many doubted Singapore’s viability as an independent state, given our lack of natural resources and over-population.

48 Externally, Singapore faced a difficult and uncertain external environment. Almost every Southeast Asian country was at loggerheads with some other Southeast Asian country. Meanwhile, the war in Indochina escalated. After South Vietnam, Cambodia and Laos fell to the communists in 1975, a triumphant Vietnam declared menacingly that it did not consider the non­ communist Southeast Asian countries “genuinely independent”. Later, thousands of Vietnamese refugees took to the seas and risked their lives to escape oppression. They became known as the boat people. Several hundred landed in Singapore.

49 But the difficult years were also the best years for the PAP. The Party and the people went through turbulence and raw violence together. The Party delivered political stability, industrial peace, racial harmony, progress and economic growth. Fighting for survival focused the minds and bonded the people and the PAP.

50 It was a period of cooperative effort between the people and PAP Government. There was great material and social progress. In 1959, only 9% of the population was housed in public flats. By 1980, HDB had constructed almost 350,000 flats providing shelter for 70% of Singaporeans. I was one of the beneficiaries. For me, moving from Pasir Panjang to a 3-room flat in Queenstown meant modern sanitation for the first time in my life! In Pasir Panjang, the sanitation was “traditional”.

51 Given the strong and direct bond between the people and the PAP, it was no surprise that the Party made a clean sweep in 4 General Elections - ’68, ’72, ’76 and ’80.

52 From 1972 onwards, the Party began to systematically recruit younger candidates for political self-renewal. , Dhanabalan, , Jayakumar and Wong Kan Seng and I were amongst those recruited into the Party during this period.

9 53 One of the most memorable moments for me as a new MP was listening to PM Lee Kuan Yew at the Opening Session of the 4th Parliament in 1977. I had won Marine Parade with 78.6% of valid votes. In a mesmerising speech that went on for more than three hours, the Prime Minister challenged the PAP MPs to explain why Dr Ang Kok Peng had won with a larger percentage (80.65%) in Buona Vista. Both Marine Parade and Buona Vista were new estates but Buona Vista was poorer, with many 1-room flats, whereas Marine Parade had none. This was psephology, he said - the study of trends in elections and voting. PM Lee declared that the team who could sit down and solve that riddle had one of the qualifications to succeed the old guard. I thought quietly to myself that it was because Marine Parade had a larger percentage of Malays. This is one reason why, throughout my political career, I have invested time to bond with and understand the problems of the Malay community, and to help them do better.

Phase 4: Containing the Opposition

54 The 1981 Anson by-election marked the turning point for Singapore politics and the PAP, from one where the PAP was unchallenged to contentious and even confrontational politics. The Anson defeat was totally unexpected.

55 When President Sheares passed away in May 1981, the PAP decided to nominate Devan Nair to succeed him. Devan had won Anson in the 1980 GE with a thumping majority of 84.1%. He was the Secretary-General of NTUC. As Organising Secretaries, Lim Chee Onn and I ran the Anson by-election. Ong Ah Heng was the Branch Secretary. Chng Jit Koon, who was the MP for Tiong Bahru, helped out.

56 We did not know that the ground had been soured in the run-up to the by-election. The Anson Branch was divided. When Devan became the MP, his union supporters went to help him in Anson and surrounded him. The new PAP candidate, Pang Kim Hin, aggravated matters by bringing in his Bukit Panjang Branch supporters, rather than relying on local supporters. As a result, Ah Heng and the branch activists were pushed into the background. Then we discovered that PSA had planned to knock down 3 blocks of flats at Blair Plain to make way for the expansion of the container berth at Tanjong Pagar. The plan was not yet made known to the tenants. But rumours were flying. Obviously, the tenants were unhappy. The blocks were within walking distance from their work places. Also, since the tenants rented the flats on short term, PSA did not make alternative arrangements to house them. PSA and HDB blamed each other. During the campaign, Chee Onn, Jit Koon, Ah Heng and I knew that the ground had shifted. We met plenty of hostile reception. But none of us expected we would lose Anson. We thought we would still win by between 55% and 60%, which would be a drop of more that 20% from the 1980 GE.

57 During the course of the campaigning, Secretary-General Lee asked me about the situation in Anson. I explained to him the problems. I said, “The ground 10 is shifting against us". He asked whether we would lose. I said “no” but the percentage of victory would be much lower than before. He said, “That’s alright then." We lost Anson by a small margin of 653 votes.

58 Secretary-General was less concerned over the loss of Anson than my lack of political sensitivity. But at that time, I could not imagine that the voter support could swing from 84.1% to 47.1% within a year. It was a valuable lesson in politics. Never assume that your support would not melt away.

59 The myth of invincibility of the PAP had been punctured at Anson. We had to move on from there. Secretary-General Lee called a meeting of PAP MPs to discuss how to handle the new situation. Specifically, he wanted to know whether we should hand over the Anson community centre and the other grass­ roots organizations and facilities to Jeyaretnam. Should we follow Queensberry rules and hand everything over to the opposition except our party branch or should we use them to fight the opposition? Some MPs, especially the new ones, felt that we should act gentlemanly and hand over the government-related grassroots organizations to the opposition. The majority, however, were against handing over what we have built up. So we dug in and fought to recapture Anson.

60 Anson also marked the beginning of a shift in the mood of the population. Singaporeans who had known only peace and progress under the PAP Government began to clamour for an opposition to check and balance the PAP. But the PAP refused to pander to popular sentiments to win votes. It continued to govern as it had always done, introducing tough - even unpopular policies - where necessary. Among the most controversial was the “Great Marriage Debate”. Mr Lee Kuan Yew admitted in his Memoirs that his 1983 National Day Rally Address on the issue had caused a 12% dip in the PAP vote share in 1984. But he was right to highlight the problem. Today, we can openly discuss the singles problem and procreation issues. Unfortunately, we have not yet found the solution to reverse the trend of more singles and fewer babies.

61 By 1985, PM Lee was planning for political succession. He wanted to clear all the difficult issues before he handed over. So he pushed ahead with tough policies that were for the long term good of Singapore, regardless of whether they were popular. The ground, understandably, resisted. The opposition parties took advantage of this and employed the “by-election strategy” against the Party during elections. They contested in less than half the seats. But the truth was they could not find the candidates. So they argued, with some persuasion, that since the PAP had been returned to form the government on Nomination Day, the voters could be free to vote in the opposition without the fear of a freak election result. We lost 2 seats in the 1984 GE, 1 seat in 1988, and 4 seats in 1991. Our shares of valid votes cast in the contested seats went down steadily from 64.83% in 1984 to 63.17% in 1988 to 60.97% in 1991.

11 Phase 5: Forging A New Bond with the People

62 I took over as Prime Minister in November 1990. I asked myself why the PAP should suffer such a slide in support when its leaders are honest, honourable and able men and its policies have made Singaporeans better off. I was determined to reverse the slide. I had to find ways to defuse the desire for more opposition.

63 My conclusion was that Singaporeans, especially younger Singaporeans, wanted a say in the running of their country even though they might not want to join a political party. They wanted to be consulted before policies which affect them were implemented. So I promised and delivered a more consultative and participatory style of government.

64 I also set out to show the compassionate side of the PAP. The free market policies which we pursued would leave the less able behind. We introduced Edusave, MediFund and Medishield to bring about a kinder and gentler Singapore. We enhanced the assets of Singaporeans through the HDB Upgrading Programme and CPF Top-Up Schemes.

65 We also linked the Upgrading Programmes with the level of support for the Party. Unless there was a cost to voting opposition, the people could have their cake and eat it - return the opposition and still enjoy the benefits of a PAP Government.

66 To give Singaporeans a greater sense of participation and hear a greater diversity of voices in Parliament, we introduced the Nominated MP scheme in 1990, for inducting non-politicians. We encouraged greater participation among PAP backbenchers in Parliamentary debates by introducing Government Parliamentary Committees. The style of government, the softer touch to cushion the pain of policies like GST (introduced in 1994) removed some of the angst against the PAP. We produced results. The strong desire for opposition diminished.

67 Electoral support for the Party went up, from 60.97% in 1991 to 64.98% in 1997 to 75.29% in 2001. We have recovered the PAP’s lost ground.

68 The Party is in good shape. Now is a good time for me and those in my generation to hand over leadership of the Party to the next generation of leaders.

12 Lessons for the Party

69 I would like to draw some lessons from our 50 years of history. I believe there are some core principles which have served us well and which will remain critical to our Party’s continued survival and success.

70 First, the PAP must always have a clear sense purpose. It must know what its mission is. The founding fathers of the Party were fired by a vision. They wanted to end colonialism so that Singaporeans could be masters of their own destiny. Later, they fought for independence through merger with Malaysia. But when that experiment failed and Singapore was expelled, they inspired and rallied the people to strike out on our own as an independent nation.

71 The second generation leaders saw it as their mission to keep Singapore going and to involve Singaporeans to build the Best Home for themselves and their children.

72 The Third Generation leaders must spell out its mission clearly for the Party and the people.

73 Second, the Party must never lose its integrity. This is the single most important attribute in retaining trust of the people. We must remain honest and incorruptible, like the white-and-white uniform we wear. In analysing the reasons for our separation from Malaysia, Comrade Lee in his Memoirs observed that PAP leaders were not pleasure-seeking, nor did they seek to enrich themselves. He recalled that DPM Tun Razak had offered Dr 5,000 acres of the best quality rubber land, to be planted with seedlings of the best high-yielding strains. Dr Goh declined. It is a source of great pride that 45 years of power have not corrupted us. Those who say power corrupts do not understand the men and women in the PAP.

74 Third, multi-racialism is at the core of the PAP. Our experiences in the 1960s taught us to never take racial harmony and inter-religious understanding for granted.

75 Fourth, the PAP must adapt to the changing environment and be open to new ideas. It must refresh itself every now and then to stay relevant. When I took over as PAP Assistant Secretary-General in 1984, the PAP was run like a guerrilla force. The branches were left largely on their own. The cadres were a mysterious lot. Very few people knew who they were, not even the MPs. My younger colleagues and I reorganised the Party and ran it more like an efficient conventional army. But we did not build up a bureaucracy. We retained the essential feature of branch volunteers and activists. We set up a PAP HQ Executive Committee (or Exco) to oversee the Party's on-going activities. We

13 organised Ministerial constituency visits, introduced party awards and formed committees to look into publicity and minority affairs. We also do charity work under the PAP Community Foundation.

76 Fifth, self-renewal is an essential feature of the Party. It helps us to stay young, vigorous and relate better with the younger voters. Self-renewal applies to all - Ministers, MPs and branch officers. The Old Guards have made way for younger Ministers and MPs. Comrade Lee stepped aside for me, just as I am now making way for a younger leader.

77 In 1986, we established Young PAP to reach out to younger Singaporeans. In 1989, we formed the PAP Women’s Wing to enhance women participation.

78 We are now actively looking for a potential Prime Minister who is in his 30’s or early 40’s. I expect Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong and his cohort of Ministers to lead Singapore for the next 10 to 15 years. When they are ready to step down, there must be a group of younger Ministers ready to take over the leadership of the Party and Government.

79 Sixth, even as we change and adapt, the Party’s core values - a strong sense of fair play, meritocracy, equal opportunities for all, compassion, help for the less able and integrity - must remain constant. These core values are the foundation stones of the Party. They ensure that the Party remains strong. Lose them and the Party will begin to crumble.

The Next Phase

80 We have begun an exciting new chapter. The government leadership has been renewed, with First Assistant Secretary Lee Hsien Loong taking over as Prime Minister. The Party leadership is also being renewed. Tony Tan and Jayakumar have asked to step down as Chairman and Vice-Chairman respectively. That is why their names were not on the ballot papers. They are strong leaders who are absolutely trustworthy. They have given the best years of their adult lives to the Party and our people. I invite you to thank them for their selfless and significant contributions to the Party and Singapore. I will remain in the CEC but I shall step down as Secretary-General after this conference. New leaders will be elected at the coming CEC meeting.

81 The next phase of the PAP’s history will probably be more complex and challenging compared with what I had experienced as Secretary-General.

14 82 Externally, the geopolitical landscape is much more uncertain. Terrorism will remain a serious concern for many years to come. Cross-strait relations pose a serious risk of miscalculation. Fortunately, relations between the US and other major powers like China, Japan and Russia are relatively stable, although there will be occasional strains. China is becoming an economic powerhouse and growing as a significant political player. India is on the move. ASEAN countries have seen changes in leadership. We have to build new ties with new leaders.

83 Internally, we must deal with and respond to the aspirations of a younger and more demanding generation, who are internationally-mobile. At the same time, our population is ageing. The older Singaporeans have contributed. We must take care of them and those who lose their jobs as the economy restructures.

84 Hence, I see exciting times ahead. It is great to be young. Their best years are ahead. But the young must seize the opportunities and create the future they want.

85 I therefore ask you to support Comrade Lee and his team just as you have supported me and my team. I thank you for your support. Work with the new team as the Party enters a new and exciting phase.

Thank you.