1918 - 2010 Goh Keng Swee - People's Action Party - PAP

Overheard
40 PETIR MAY / JUNE 10
“You baffle me…
Beyond the probe of the searchlight
Of cold logic, like some ethereal being
Fluttering in the depths of night
A fleeting glance at beauty draws
Fervid attempts to locate substantiality
Which then dissolves in reason’s jaws
And leaves behind blank perplexity.”
– Goh Keng Swee’s poem, ‘A Paradox’, written for the
Raffles College magazine in 1937
“We must not underestimate the ability of Singaporeans to think
for themselves and come to their own judgment. We can persuade
them, but in the end, they make up their own minds.”
– on leading Singaporeans
“The only way to avoid making mistakes
is not to do anything. And that...will be the
ultimate mistake.”
– on being proactive
“It is only when a person can think
creatively that he is capable of
initiative, that he can form his own
judgment on matters and that he can
be trusted with great responsibility.”
– on why creativity is essential
“The ends of policy are immutable. They are first, to achieve
prosperity for the Republic and her citizens, and second,
to ensure the survival of the Republic as an independent
sovereign state.”
– on the purpose of policies
“We learnt that experience is a harsh taskmaster. Deciding on
policy and determining a line of action is different from engaging
in a debate. Cabinet government is not a debating society or
an academic seminar. These are intellectual exercises... In
government, you have to live with the consequences of your
decision. If you make a mistake, the results are painful. In political
life, there is no alibi for failure.”
– on the realities of governing