Heroic Action
This blog entry is inspired by (i) the achievements & impact of Dr Goh Keng Swee's Leadership, (ii) the enduring legacy, the very deep & very wide impact of his many achievements, and (iii) his countless, selfless contributions to improve the lives and economic & emotional well-being of Singapore & Singaporeans.
Dr Goh, as many of us know, is one of Singapore's founding fathers. He passed away at the age of 91 yesterday.
When Dr Goh Keng Swee stepped down in 1984 after 25 years as a Cabinet Minister (the last 11 as DPM to PM Lee Kuan Yew), I was 15 years old and a Sec 3 student at Chung Cheng High Main. Fast forward 26 years, at Dr Goh's passing yesterday, I'm 41 and my elder son Josh is 15. Both Josh & I have benefitted tremendously from Dr Goh Keng Swee's contributions.
Dr Goh's leadership, his contributions, what he has helped envisioned, architected, implemented, realized and achieved have contributed to better lives, higher economic & emotional well-being for me, Josh, my family, my friends & all Singaporeans, whether they've had the good fortune of directly working with Dr Goh, or personally knowing him, or not.
Our lives and our country is so much better now in 2010 through the heroic action of Dr Goh and the various people he worked with in the years 1959-1984 when he was in the Cabinet. He may be number 2 man to PM Lee Kuan Yew, and in that sense, can be said to be working tirelessly, selflessly & loyally for Mr Lee; but Dr Goh (in many & all senses of the word), was at the same time working tirelessly, selflessly & loyally for Singapore and everyone in Singapore. This, in my mind, is such a great example of Leadership --- Leadership that is enduring... yet transformational, Leadership that encompasses heroic action, Leadership that brought about change, improvement, progress and the betterment of lives --- not just the lives of Singaporeans in Dr Goh's generation, but that of younger generations --- like for me who was only 15 when Dr Goh stepped down, and for my elder son Josh who's 15 this year when Dr Goh passed on.
