My Last Walk with Lee Kuan Yew
A 6-Hour Historic 3-Km Journey
Lee Kuan Yew died on 23 March 2015 at 91 years old. A week-long mourning period (23–29 March 2015) was declared. With millions other Singaporeans, I walked a 6-hour long, 3-km journey to pay our last respects at Parliament House. This is my meditation during the journey.
For over 60 years, He was my Prime Minister from 1959 to 1990, and stayed in the government as Minister Mentor (MM) till 2011, and was thereafter appointed Senior Advisor to the Government of Singapore Investment Corporation. Lee Kuan Yew influenced, shaped and molded my life through the social, political, and economic transformation of a Third World Singapore into the “First World” nation par none; characterized by economic prosperity, law and order, national security, housing for all, world-class education and full employment with social justice.
I celebrate his remembrance with one and all during this “Lee Kuan Yew Week”.
MY LAST HISTORIC WALK WITH LEE KUAN YEW
Yesterday, yet another hot Spring day;
The skies waver between gloom and shine;
Midweek in the time of national mourning
Over the passing of our beloved MM Lee,
Founder of Singapore
And Father of all Singaporeans.
I watched from the steps of Funan
The gun carriage with his body,
Draped by the Singapore Flag
As if to warm and comfort him,
As it moves to Parliament House
To the spontaneous applause of
Thousands lining the streets,
As if hoping the cheers would stir him
From the eternal rest;
For none desiring him to go so soon
Before their children and grandchildren
Could know the Man without whom,
There is no modern Singapore
As the World knew us.
I did not know that I would be walking through History
As I join the queue to pay my last respect
To Minister Mentor Lee Kuan Yew
As he lays in state at Parliament House.
My Q position was only 3km from the House
And the journey took almost 6 hours.
The Q snakes along both banks of the Singapore River
From South Bridge Road through Clarke Quay
Along UOB Plaza through Battery Road,
To swing around Standard Chartered Bank Building
And MayBank,
Passing by Bank of China (BoC) whose staff passed out bottled water,
Before crossing Cavanagh Bridge at One Fullerton Building,
Arriving at the Asian Civilisation Museum
Next to Parliament House.
Along Clarke Quay, I looked out at the Singapore River;
Saw flashes of the tongkangs and bumboats
That once dominated the River
So central to our economic survival those early days.
Looking ahead beyond Cavanagh Bridge,
The skyline of Opera House and Marina South loomed,
Flanked by One Fullerton,
Formerly the General Post Office,
The old and new have co-existed
As Singapore developed from 3rd World to 1st
In just 40 years led by MM Lee Kuan Yew.
He promised in 1965: “I will make this a Metropolis in 10 years!”.
He delivered as he always does in whatever he promises.
As the Q moves at a snail's pace,
At times only 15 meters in an hour,
I could only begin to grasp the true meaning of the moment;
Just a stone’s throw away, the Stock Exchange and Banking Sector
Continues their hustling and bustling wheeling and dealings
Amidst other commercial and trading activities,
Seemingly oblivious of the solemn ceremony taking place;
Singapore as a global financial hub continues in vibrancy unabated
With the heartbeats of the Man whose own heart has ceased;
For as he laid in state, MM Lee’s energy and vitality
Continue in the daily life of Singapore.
The Man has not given his life and all to Singaporeans;
MM Lee has in fact interred in the Singaporean soul
The embodiment of his spirit, dreams, and aspirations
Of an exceptional Singapore nation in the global community,
Of a free, prosperous, racially harmonious, sovereign nation
Deserving respect, admiration, and friendship by all.
And after nearly 6 hours, I arrived;
To walk past his body
With a momentary pause of respect
Remembering our first meeting in 1983;
This last walk with him will always be cherished,
Even in death, he has reminded me and all Singaporeans,
Singapore is not easy;
It takes hard work, dedication, vision, perseverance, resilience
And Leadership;
And so he left as he has lived,
Not a monument to his name
Nor his image on any ornaments,
Just the grateful hearts of millions of Singaporeans
Privileged and honoured
To know and have him for many seasons of his life.
“Goodbye, my Leader, Mentor, Brother, and Friend”.
I could still sense his heartbeats continued strong
As he laid resting at last;
His work unfinished, but for us to build upon
By remembering his pillar legacies
Based on social peace with justice,
Regardless of race, language or religion
On this tiny sunny island by the sea.
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