Quote – The Straits Times – Friday, 21 Jul 06
Lim Kim San – 1916 – 2006
The man who helped to house a generation - Â…..Even though he was serving a PAP government and was close to the top PAP leaders, he took a strictly non-partisan approach in housing allocation. Flats were allocated on the basis of first come, first served, and on the size of the family.
When parliamentary secretary for home affairs Lee Siew Choh demanded preferential treatment for his Queenstown constituents and was rebuffed by Mr Lim, he snapped: “What are you here for, if not to give priority to party supporters?”
Mr Lim’s retort: “I am here exactly to prevent misuse of position.”
Now back to the PAP strategy since 1992, then-prime minister Goh Chok Tong served notice that wards which supported the PAP would be given priority for the then-highly popular programme to upgrade, or improve Housing Board estates using government funds. In the recent election, he and PAP candidates revived the strategy for Hougang and Potong Pasir promising $180 million of upgrading projects if voters tossed out the opposition there and voted in the PAP. Voters did not bite the carrot offered.
Just compare Mr LimÂ’s stand as then Chairman of the Housing Board (he was just a volunteer, did not get paid a cent) in allocation of the flats, and the way PAP (who are being paid peanuts) is handling the upgrading projects for the Housing Board estates in the opposition wards (misuse of position?). I think you will agree with me that we really lost a great leader of Singapore.
I hope that we all read more about Mr Lim Kim San – PROUD TO SERVE HIS COUNTRY and know more about him.
its a blessing to live till 90 years old