11:21 PM
Wednesday, June 16, 2010
Mr Goh Keng Swee.
In this 3rd post, I'll be introducing Mr Goh Keng Swee. :)
» Short intro
- Born in Malacca in the Straits settlement.
- 6 Oct 1918 to 14 May 2010.
- The fifth of six children.
- Moved from Malacca to SG when he was 2 years old.
» Academic
- 1927 to 1936 ; Anglo-Chinese primary & secondary school.
- Second in his class in the Senior Cambridge Examinations.
- 1939 ; graduated from Raffles College. *
* [ with a Class II Diploma in Arts with a special distinction in economics. ]
» Early life
- Joined the colonial Civil Service as a tax collector with the War Tax Department.
- However, according to his superiors, was not very good at his job and was almost fired.
- Shortly after the start of World War II, he joined the Singapore Volunteer Corps, a local militia.
- In the end, returned to his previous work after the fall of SG.
- 1942 ; married Alice Woon.
- 1944 ; Had their 1st child, Goh Kian Chee.
- 1945 ; joined the Department of Social Welfare, and was active in post-war administration.
- Won a scholarship which enable him to school in London School of Economics and Political Science (LSE).
- Upon his return to the Department of Social Welfare, he was appointed assistant secretary of its Research Section.
- 1952 ; together with civil servant Kenneth M. Byrne, he formed the Council of Joint Action to lobby against salary and promotion policies that favoured Caucasians over Asians.
- 1954 ; was able to return to LSE with the help of a University of London scholarship.
- 1956 ; Completed his PHD in Economics.
- Returned to the Department of Social Welfare, where he served as Assistant Director and then Director.
- 1958 ; he was made Director of the Social and Economic Research Division in the Chief Minister's Office.
- 1958 ; resigned to work full time for PAP.
» Contributions to Singapore
- Assumed the stewardship of Singapore's economy.
- Introduced stringent fiscal discipline which included cutting civil service salaries.
- Initiated the setting up of the Economic Development Board, which was established in August 1961 to attract foreign multinational corporations to invest in Singapore.
- Started the development of the Jurong industrial estate on the western end of the island which was then a swamp, offering incentives to local and foreign business to locate there.
- Compulsory National Service was initiated when he was Singapore's first Minister for the Interior and Defence.
- Proposed that the Government of Singapore Investment Corporation (GIC) be established to invest excess reserves and encouraged the establishment of the Institute of Southeast Asian Studies in 1968.
- Was also responsible for projects that sought to improve Singaporeans' cultural and leisure life, such as the Jurong Bird Park, the Singapore Zoo and the Singapore Symphony Orchestra.
- Was also instrumental in introducing rugby in the Singapore Armed Forces and later in schools.
- Impressed by an oceanarium in the Bahamas, contacted the Sentosa Development Corporation and convinced them to have one. Underwater World Singapore opened in 1991.
- Moved on from the Defence Ministry to the Ministry of Education, where his report greatly influenced the development of Singapore's education system.
- Set up the Curriculum Development Institute, and introduced key policies such as religious education and the streaming system in schools.
» Later life
After retirement from politics, Goh continued to be active in public life, serving as :
- 1981 to 1994 ; Deputy Chairman of the Government of Singapore Investment Corporation.
- 1985 – 31 May 1992 ; Economic Adviser to the State Council of the People's Republic of China on coastal development and Adviser on tourism.
- 1988–1994 ; Deputy Chairman of the MAS Chairman of the Singapore Totalisator Board.
- From 1991 ; Director of Gateway Technologies Services Pte. Ltd.
- From 1 January 1993 ; Adviser to the United Overseas Bank group.
- From 1994 ; Chairman of N.M. Rothschild & Sons (Singapore) Ltd.
- From 1995 ; Vice-Chairman of Hong Leong Asia Ltd.
Mr Goh Keng Swee passed away in the early morning of 14 May 2010 at the age of 91.
--END--Ni Xiaoyan ; 12 ; 1E7
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