| 69221.15 in reply to 69221.13 |
[h=1]Transcript of PM Lee Hsien Loong’s apology[/h]May 5, 2011 
. PM Lee: Five years ago, the opportunities to have IRs in Singapore came up. We seized it, we started going, and got them going before the financial crisis. If we hadn’t done that, and missed the chance, missed the boat, you won’t have Marina Bay like this today. Last year, we got another gust of wind. Growth was strong, markets were good, we were ready. We went for it, we got fourteen and a half percent growth. Had we not done that and taken in a few more foreign workers and accepted the crowding in the trains and in the public places, you would not have had the budget surpluses, we would not have had the Grow And Share Package this year. So we can’t go exactly on a straight line from point A to point B and have everything just perfect every spot. There will be detours, sidetracks, side effects, from our decisions. So, IRs are good, but because of the IR, more Singaporeans are at risk of problem gambling, more families are at risk. High growth is good, but because of growth, we have to take in somewhat more foreign workers, we have to be prepared to accept a little bit more congestion for the time being. These are real problems – we will tackle them, but I hope you will understand that when these problems vex you or disturb you or upset your lives, please bear with us, we are trying our best on your behalf. And if we didn’t quite get it right, I’m sorry, but we will try and do better the next time. [snip] But good as we are, we and the PAP in particular must never become self-satisfied. The PAP – you may wear white, but that does not give you an automatic right to become the government. You put on the whites — but win the respect of voters – every time, every election. And never forget that we are here to serve the voters, to serve Singaporeans, and not to lord it over people. No government is perfect. We can have our best intentions, make our best efforts, but from time to time, mistakes will happen. We will make mistakes. We made a mistake when we let Mas Selamat run away. We made a mistake when Orchard Road got flooded. And there are other mistakes which we have made from time to time, and I’m sure occasionally will happen again – I hope not too often. But when it happens, then we should acknowledge it, we should apologize, take responsibility, put things right, if we have to discipline somebody we will do that, and we must learn from the lessons, and never make the same mistake again. [snip] So we didn’t get it perfect, and I appreciate and I sympathize with Singaporeans when they tell me and they tell the government repeatedly that this is impacting us, affecting us – do something about it. Well, we’re sorry we didn’t get it exactly right, but I hope you’ll understand and bear with us, because we’re trying our best to fix the problems – building twenty-two thousand flats this year, opening one new MRT line or extension line every year for the next seven years, investing in our people, in our future, coming back on course, continuing to make progress. 
" In Mar 2010 I SEIZED the chance to be a $2 shareholder of the company AIM which Ng Pock Too started after he lost GE1991 ! See how smart I am ?" Edited 12/25/2012 7:29 am ET by rodliao (sgbuster) |
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