Lee Kuan Yew on...
HIS YEARS OF SPEAKING HOKKIEN
'In 1955, I contested the General Election as a candidate for the Tanjong Pagar constituency. My opponent challenged me to a debate in Mandarin. I naturally refused to debate with him in a language I was completely unable to speak. His intention was to show my ignorance of the language to the majority of the people who were dialect and Mandarin-speaking. There were then few English speakers. I started learning Mandarin but discovered that it was spoken by only a small proportion of those who have gone to Chinese schools, but who often switched back to dialect when they leave their Chinese schools. The most understood language for the majority of Chinese back then was Hokkien. So I started to learn Hokkien. For more than 20 years I spoke Hokkien.'
ON THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN THE CHINESE-EDUCATED AND ENGLISH-EDUCATED
'I had a high regard for the discipline and seriousness of purpose in life Chinese school students displayed compared to English school students. One of my most unforgettable memories was when the Chinese High School was having a sit-in led by my left wing pro-communist activists in October 1956 to protest the arrests of student leaders and closure of Chinese High School and Chung Cheng High School. The Chinese school students camped inside the school. After watching this drama of the sit-in at Chinese High School, I passed by the University of Singapore's student hostels on Dunearn Road, just around the corner from Chinese High. The contrast was stark. I could see the students - the English-educated students - enjoying themselves. They were laughing and blowing whistles, regarding the clash between the Chinese students and the police as a big joke. I thought to myself that if Singapore students all turned out like those in the university hostel, Singapore would fail. I vowed then to change this state of affairs.
This was why I decided to save the good Chinese language schools as Chinese schools switched into English as the main medium of instruction. The Chinese schools taught students to be bilingual, disciplined, and have self-confidence. The best Chinese schools thus became Special Assistance Programme schools. Over time, the English language schools like Raffles Institution, Victoria School and others have also become effective in teaching Chinese to its students. We have unified the system but in the process, also preserved some of the values and virtues of the old Chinese school system.'
From: Mr Lee Kuan Yew launches fund to boost bilingualism (Nov 29, 2011)
Detractors would disagree that LKY 'saved' the Chinese schools but not 'destroyed' them.
We have "preserved SOME of the values and virtues of the old Chinese school system", says LKY. Then may I ask, which values and virtues? The 'virtues' of blind loyalty and respect to authority, of sucking up to power, or of conservatism? Where have gone the spirit of those schools, in fighting, amongst other things, for justice and equality? Only people like veteran opposition leader, Mr Low Thia Khiang can proudly say they have carried forward the "Spirit of Nantah" and by extension, the values and virtues of the defunct Chinese schools.
What 'Chinese school spirit' to talk about in LKY's 'SAP school' (or any other school) today? Maybe only to a small extent, but definitely nowhere near deserving, as a whole, of pride in that spirit.
Of course LKY does not like the Chinese school spirit which does not shy away from necessary conflict with authority. But neither does he like, apparently, the "laid-back" attitude of the English school students, those quoted by him, above. Too unpatriotic and unconcerned, I suppose. But look at how apathetic and unpatriotic we are today and tell me just how successful LKY had been? Or more seriously, if apathy were an intentional product, how true he is, to his words?
What LKY did do, is make everyone, regardless of ethnic background, adopt the 'unique Singaporean spirit' of materialism, kiasu-ism, sinkie-ism, daftness, blind obedience, mentality abnormality -- albeit with variations among different "segregated classes" (again thanks to the regime) like the elite schools, neighbourhood schools, etc. -- especially in the 60.1%.
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