Veteran opposition politician Goh Meng Seng has blasted Emeritus Senior Minister Goh Chok Tong as the worst Prime Minister in Singapore’s history.
ESM Goh led the nation as its second Prime Minister for 14 years, between 1990 and 2004. His predecessor was founding Prime Minister Lee Kuan Yew and his successor is Lee Kuan Yew’s son, current PM Lee Hsien Loong.
Referring to the buzz ESM Goh’s recently released authorised biography, entitled Tall Order: The Goh Chok Tong, has been getting, the opposition leader who has been in politics for over a decade wrote on Facebook yesterday:
“I always wonder why people like Goh Chok Tong as an PM despite of all the bad and worst policies which came into effect during his charge.”
Pointing out that the Goods and Services Tax, Electronic Road Pricing (ERP) system, Certificate of Entitlement (COE) license, and public housing asset enhancement promises were all implemented during ESM Goh’s tenure as head of government, Goh Meng Seng wrote that this was precisely why he sent an opposition team to ESM Goh’s Marine Parade GRC homeground in 2011 when he was chief of the National Solidarity Party:
“Make no mistake about it. Almost all the bad policies we face now came into effect during his tenure as Prime Minister. This is one of the main reasons which made me send a team to contest in Marine Parade back in 2011. Everyone was saying GCT was so popular, whoever contest in Marine Parade might just lose their deposits! Well, even some of NSP members thought the Marine Parade team would have the worst result. But it seems that it had proven otherwise.
“I made my first speech of GE2011, putting on the fire against GCT. Be it GST, ERP, COE, ASSET ENHANCEMENT scam, drastic increase in HDB prices, HDB UPGRADING FOR VOTE BUYING (Chengsan 1997 GE), CPF manipulation to effect higher and higher minimum sum, opening up the flood gate to Foreign Talent Policy which resulted in high underemployment, million dollar Ministerial pay … All the bad policies you name it, almost all of them came into effect under GCT administration.”
Goh added: “So Singaporeans should ask themselves, why would they like someone who had screwed them so hard with all these bad policies during his Prime Ministership?”
Goh Chok Tong stepped down as Prime Minister and began service as Senior Minister in Lee Hsien Loong’s Cabinet in 2004, before he was given the ESM title when he stepped down from the Cabinet after the 2011 General Election.
His new authorised biography, written by former Straits Times journalist Peh Shing Huei, covers Goh’s life until the point he becomes the nation’s second Prime Minister in 1990. A second part is expected to cover the rest of Goh’s life and career after he succeeded Lee Kuan Yew to become head of Government.
The biography, which is presently available at all major bookshelves, garnered immense hype after excerpts covering Goh’s thoughts on Lee Kuan Yew, his family members and veteran opposition figures were released online:
https://theindependent.sg.sg/esm-goh-reveals-he-approached-ho-ching-to-join-politics-but-lee-hsien-loong-and-singapore-would-be-against-it/
https://theindependent.sg.sg/lee-kuan-yew-suggested-that-lee-wei-ling-should-join-pap-but-lee-hsien-loong-was-against-it-esm-goh-chok-tong/
https://theindependent.sg.sg/i-thought-of-hsien-yang-for-politics-but-he-would-be-outshone-by-his-brother-goh-chok-tong/
https://theindependent.sg.sg/did-goh-chok-tongs-dig-at-lee-kuan-yew-and-lee-hsien-loong-spark-renewed-leadership-succession-talk/
https://theindependent.sg.sg/goh-chok-tong-says-his-pap-cohort-wanted-to-give-anson-cc-to-jb-jeyaretnam-but-lee-kuan-yew-and-old-guard-rejected-idea/
https://theindependent.sg.sg/esm-goh-regards-chiam-see-tong-and-low-thia-khiang-as-friends-but-says-he-would-not-speak-to-chee-soon-juan/
Thought of the Day – Worst PM of Singapore, Goh Chok TongRecently there is some hype of a book Tall Orders, written…
Posted by Goh Meng Seng on Wednesday, 31 October 2018