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[h=2]Lee Kuan Yew: Singapore was a BARREN island in 1965[/h]Posted by temasektimes on September 22, 2012
Singapore was once the crown jewel of the British empire, after being founded by Sir Stamford Raffles in 1819, but according to Singapore Supreme Leader Lee Kuan Yew, it was a BARREN island when it was booted out of Malaysia in 1965.
The stunning remarks were made by Lee at the Istana last night where he hosted French oil giant TOTAL to dinner. Lee has been on the firm’s International Advisory Committee since 1993.
Though Lee is only a MP now and not a minister, he is allowed to use the Istana to host the dinner. It is not known if he is hosting it in his personal capacity as TOTAL’s adviser or in his official position as MP for Tanjong Pagar GRC.
Speaking to reports present at the dinner, Lee recalled how Singapore overcame the ‘odds’ after becoming independent in 1965.
“We were suddenly confronted with the challenge of making a living for two million people on a BARREN island at the southernmost tip of Asia, which gives us the advantage of servicing all the ships that cross the Atlantic and the Pacific.”
He also lavished generous self-praise on himself for making Singapore safe for foreigners:
“But more than that, we learned how to create conditions which gave confidence to investors, and made living in Singapore safe for foreigners and their families.”
TOTAL’s chairman and chief executive, Christophe de Margerie, paid tribute to Mr Lee as Singapore’s founding father and invited him to stay on the company’s Advisory Committee for as long as he wants.
At 89 years of age, Lee is currently the world’s longest living MP. Despite rumors about his poor health, he still mustered the strength to give his subservient subjects a piece of his mind recently for not making enough babies.
Singapore was once the crown jewel of the British empire, after being founded by Sir Stamford Raffles in 1819, but according to Singapore Supreme Leader Lee Kuan Yew, it was a BARREN island when it was booted out of Malaysia in 1965.
The stunning remarks were made by Lee at the Istana last night where he hosted French oil giant TOTAL to dinner. Lee has been on the firm’s International Advisory Committee since 1993.
Though Lee is only a MP now and not a minister, he is allowed to use the Istana to host the dinner. It is not known if he is hosting it in his personal capacity as TOTAL’s adviser or in his official position as MP for Tanjong Pagar GRC.
Speaking to reports present at the dinner, Lee recalled how Singapore overcame the ‘odds’ after becoming independent in 1965.
“We were suddenly confronted with the challenge of making a living for two million people on a BARREN island at the southernmost tip of Asia, which gives us the advantage of servicing all the ships that cross the Atlantic and the Pacific.”
He also lavished generous self-praise on himself for making Singapore safe for foreigners:
“But more than that, we learned how to create conditions which gave confidence to investors, and made living in Singapore safe for foreigners and their families.”
TOTAL’s chairman and chief executive, Christophe de Margerie, paid tribute to Mr Lee as Singapore’s founding father and invited him to stay on the company’s Advisory Committee for as long as he wants.
At 89 years of age, Lee is currently the world’s longest living MP. Despite rumors about his poor health, he still mustered the strength to give his subservient subjects a piece of his mind recently for not making enough babies.
