SINGAPORE — The following is the full text of Singapore Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong’s (pic) message for the National Day which will be celebrated tomorrow:-
My Fellow Singaporeans,
Then morning came. The 9th of August 1965. Our world changed. At 10 a.m., a radio announcer read the Proclamation. Singapore had left Malaysia and would “forever be a sovereign, democratic and independent nation”. The Republic of Singapore was born.
People were apprehensive. No one knew if we could make it on our own. Our economy was not yet viable, much less vibrant. We had practically no resources, and no independent armed forces. Around noon on that first day, Mr Lee Kuan Yew gave a press conference on TV. He broke down halfway, unable to contain his emotions. It was, he said, “a moment of anguish”.
But that moment of anguish turned into a lifetime of determination to forge a path for this island nation. At the end of the press conference, Mr Lee made a promise to Singaporeans. He said: “We are going to be a multi-racial nation in Singapore. We will set an example. This is not a Malay nation; this is not a Chinese nation; this is not an Indian nation. Everyone will have his place, equal: language, culture, religion.”
From that break, we began building a nation. And what a journey it has been. It started with the first generation of leaders convincing our pioneer generation that Singapore could succeed as a sovereign country. Together, leaders and the people – the lions and the lion-hearted – fought with unwavering determination to secure our foundations. After them, younger generations picked up the baton and took Singapore further.
Year after year, Singapore progressed. Along the way we overcame many problems – the British withdrawal in 1971, the Oil Crisis in 1973, SARS, the Asian Financial Crisis, and then the Global Financial Crisis. We grew our economy and created jobs, built homes, schools, hospitals and parks. We built a nation.
Year after year, we have kept the promises that Mr Lee Kuan Yew made on the 9th of August 1965: that we will be “one united people, regardless of race, language or religion”; that we will always have a bright future ahead of us.
Therefore on our 50th birthday, we have ample reason to celebrate.
