Lee Kuan Yew: The Critical Years by Josey Alex

Author:Josey, Alex [Josey, Alex]
Language: eng
Format: azw3
ISBN: 9789814435680
Publisher: Marshall Cavendish International (Asia) Pte Ltd
Published: 2013-03-14T16:00:00+00:00

IX

In Parliament, on 16 March, Lee Kuan Yew replied to criticisms raised by back-benchers on discourtesy, indifferent attitude and bureaucratic approach of the civil servants. The Prime Minister said he did not want to stand as a defender of rude, arrogant, unfeeling and discourteous civil servants. Where they existed, where they could be pin-pointed, action would be taken. There was for senior civil servants a Civil Service Staff Development Institute which, amongst its other duties, tried to involve the civil servants in the wider aims of the Government and the duties of the Administration. The Civil Service, with the help of the Public Service Commission, had tried to define those areas where the public came into contact with the officials, whether it was the Immigration Department, the Registry of Vehicles, the hospitals, clinics, post offices, wherever there was a counter, and attempts would constantly be made to improve the way in which the public at large was being served.

Having said that, Lee picked up the points made by MPs. He was glad there was no charge of dishonourable, corrupt or other practices; “if MPs come here and complain of discourtesy, inadequate toilet or canteen facilities, tatty signboards, all this is in part a reflection of our relatively healthy state of affairs. In fact, there should be a conducted tour for MPs and some of their constituents who complain of the bureaucratic practices of parts of the Third World. When they come back they would be extremely grateful that they have Singapore and the Singapore Civil Service. That having been said and done, I think we have to take this in the context of our total society. Consideration for each other, courtesy or the lack thereof, comes out of a long cultivation of good habits. It is extremely difficult to be polite and courteous to a crude, obstreperous and ill-mannered person. It is a two-way process, whether it is the SBS bus drivers and conductors against passengers, whether it is motorists versus lorry drivers, or motorists versus motorists, or motorcyclists versus motorists; whether it is jostling at the National Stadium or in the schools; it is the general tenor of behaviour, the accepted standards of conduct of a society as a whole. In the past seventeen years, or perhaps I should go back to 1955 when we had the first elected Government and the pressures of elected representatives wanting less high-handed treatment for their illiterate, ill-educated constituents, things have improved. But they can improve only so far as the general level of conduct and courtesy between our citizens can improve. I have known of communities where people are elaborately courteous to each other because of the nature of long years of cultivated breeding, cultivated nurturing of good public behaviour. Words like ‘I am sorry’ or ‘please’ are not something one hears over the telephone. They are ‘What?’ ‘Who are you?’ And if you say, ‘Sorry, it is the wrong number’, they say ‘Oh!’, not ‘I am sorry’. I have picked up

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