We don't have to develop ASEAN, not in our mandate back then. But think about it now. We have actually been developing ASEAN at the expense of our own people for 10 years now. How much wealth have we transferred every month out of singapore into ASEAN countries? This is in the form of funds repatriated back to Thailand, Phillippines, Indonesia, Malaysia, Burma, etc. by their citizens working here. This must amount to billions of dollars every month, money that was taken out of singapore citizen's hands and not earned by singaporeans because the PAP allowed these foreigners to come into our country and take these jobs. What do you think these billions of dollars every year to these ASEAN countries go? Sit in a bank account somewhere? Or do they go to pay some Pinoy's nurse's uni education for her kids back in manila? Or maybe it goes back to a Thai farmer somewhere to buy new equipment for his farm, or maybe back to Ipoh for some malaysian to start a small business?
What about all those educations scholarships we give out to ASEAN school kids? Do they not take their degrees and go back to their home countries to use their training there? Whether you like it or not, we have been doing a lot of development for ASEAN countries by simple virtue that they get money from us by stealing our jobs. every morning the ambassadors to all these ASEAN should report to the Istana to kiss Gay Loong's arse and thank him. No ASEAN leaders will openly give Straits Times an interview and thank the PAP for giving their unemployed a job earning a hard currency like the SIngdollar or the thousands of scholarships their citizens get. They can't believe they got so lucky with PAP stupidity.
