News Update PM Lee on nepotism

PM LEE'S INTERVIEW ON US TV
VETERAN television journalist Charlie Rose had an exchange with Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong over the way the Singapore leadership dealt with insinuations of nepotism.
He also asked Mr Lee about the legacy of his father, and the biggest lesson the Minister Mentor has taught him.
Excerpts from the interview:
Your father is enormously respected around the world. You are his son. Your wife is important in Singapore as a business person, correct?
I'm not sure you'll call her a business person. She's an employee, but you can call her what you want.
You seem to be sensitive to the issue of what's called nepotism.

We are very sensitive.
Tell me about this sensitivity.
The whole of our system is founded on a basic concept of meritocracy. You are where you are because you are the best man for the job, and not because of your connections or your parents or your relatives.
And if anybody doubts that I as Prime Minister am here not because I'm the best man for the job but because my father fixed it, or that my wife runs Temasek because I put her there and not because she's the best woman for the job, then my entire credibility and moral authority is destroyed because I'm not fit to be where I am.

And it is a fundamental issue of fitness to govern.
First, you must have the moral right, then you can make the right decisions. It's a basic Confucian precept.
Only when you have the moral right then can you govern and make the country right. In Singapore, people expect that. And if there's any doubt that this is so, and people believe that I'm there because my father fixed it, or the whole system is just make-believe, then the system would come down.
It's not tenable. If it's true, it'd better be proven and it better be kicked out. If it's not true, it'd better also be proven to be not true and the matter put to rest.

So if some journalist writes about nepotism and you think it's not true...
Well, then we sue him, as we did recently.
Why?
Well, we raised the matter with the International Herald Tribune, and they paid damages and apologised and didn't go to court. They could have gone to court.

But you thought what was written in the IHT would somehow attack the moral fibre of your trust with the people you govern.
Yes of course. They compare... They put us in the same list as Kim Jong Il.
Because he inherited his power from his father.

Yes indeed. And in a similar way.
And you say we won't stand for that because it goes to the essence of our moral authority to govern.
Yes, and in this case, in fact, the same journalist and the same newspaper had made the same allegations and apologised and paid damages, and promised never to do it again. And they did it again.

Are you also anxious to send a signal that 'You don't dare write about nepotism in Singapore because the Singaporeans would sue you'?
No. The signal we want to send is that if you want to make an allegation, make sure it is true, and be prepared to prove it.
We were prepared, when we sued them, to go to court, give evidence, enter the witness box and be cross-examined under oath.
And they can bring their lawyers and demolish us and prove that what they said is true. What more can you ask?
What's the legacy of your dad?
He made a state where there was none, a country which would become a nation, which nobody believed could succeed. And he made a system which can run without him and will endure beyond him.
What's the most important lesson he's taught you?
Never say die, however desperate the situation. If you think hard enough, you will find the resource and you will find a way out of it. And don't forget where you came from. It could all be very different.
On Asian region
PM LEE touched on a broad range of issues in the interview, including the challenges facing a rising China, Myanmar and India. He also gave his thoughts on the 'Singapore way' of governance.

On China's rise
'Deng Xiaoping's old dictum, 'To hide your light under a bushel and go quietly into the world', still applies. But (the current Chinese leaders) are trying to figure out how to apply it.

'China is recalibrating its position in order to take hitherto alien considerations into account. They never had to think like this because previously their share in world trade was small and their impact on world affairs was not significant. They could do what they wanted; it was a closed kingdom. But now you can't.

'But however powerful you are, you still need friends, you need allies, you need a peaceful world environment... That requires you to take a long-term perspective and not try to maximise on every single issue, however difficult or easy.

'(The US was) at one time the enormously pre-eminent superpower. But there was a restraint, a goodwill, and a generosity of spirit that even after 60, 70 years in Asia, people still say 'America plays an indispensable role, please stay'.

'If the Chinese can achieve that kind of acceptance, it would be quite something.'

On China's future challenges
'The current generation (of Chinese leaders) experienced the Cultural Revolution. They know what a mess China can be if mismanaged, and how important it is that China gets its act together. They know what challenges China faces internally, and how important it is for the country to grow and improve the lives of its people.

'The next group of leaders will have grown up with 30 years of reform and opening up. They would have lived in a China that's connected, with people who are much better informed, and where interests are expressed. They have to run this whole system not as a central system but with a market economy, and with a coherent political framework on top of that. I think they will have a big challenge.

'I don't think they would ever have a presidential election every fourth year like (the US). But (the Chinese political system) would have to evolve. It is happening slowly, perhaps slower than it ought to, but they are extremely cautious about instability.'

On India
'We would like India to be a big part of the story in the region, because from our point of view in South-east Asia, if we have India as well as China, we would have two wings to fly with. And it makes a big difference.'

On Myanmar
'They have to move forward because many people in Myanmar know that this is not a solution for Myanmar. Many of their people know that their government is doing badly by them and resent it deeply.

'I suspect that the few key people who make the decisions, they have decided that this is an existential thing for them. If they are out, it's not just that the government and country have changed, but where do I go and which jail would I be in? And my children, and my jewels, and my billions?

'So you have to wait. I think there would be a change over time as the generations change. They are holding an election this year. It may or may not be perfect, but it is a step forward.'

On Singapore's success
'We invested in education, we invested in public housing so people would have a home to own and to defend. We built up our armed forces so that we could be secure in an uncertain world.

'We built up our institutions so that we can have a government that people can trust, and is competent and can protect our interests in the international community. And the people supported the Government and worked with the Government.

'This reservoir of trust is one of the most valuable and sustainable competitive advantages.'

On democracy in Singapore
'I think we measure it by the legitimacy of the Government and by the results; how Singapore works and whether Singaporeans are able to have a better life.

'We don't measure ourselves by an American model. We are trying to find a formula that works for Singapore.'

What Singapore can learn from China
'First, that sense of drive and desire that tomorrow must be much better. (Second), that willingness to explore and examine alternatives: What should we change? What should our system be? How can we make our health care work? Or our pensions, or even our anti-pollution system measures?'