SINGAPORE: Mr Yong Nyuk Lin, a member of Singapore's first Cabinet, has died.
He was 94.
The late Mr Yong was the brother-in-law of former Minister Mentor Lee Kuan Yew's late wife, Madam Kwa Geok Choo.
Born in Negeri Sembilan, Malaysia, Mr Yong served as a minister from 1959 to 1976.
A Raffles College science graduate, his portfolios included Education, Health and Communications.
He
helped to shape modern Singapore by carrying out measures to increase
access to education, establish sustainable population growth, improve
public transport and reduce traffic congestion.
The late Mr Yong was the general manager of Overseas Assurance Company when he resigned to stand for elections in 1959.
He became a Member of Parliament in Geylang West.
That
year as Education Minister, Mr Yong launched a Chinese literacy drive,
using Mandarin as a common language of all Chinese dialect group.
He also started adult education classes to teach Malay.
In
addition, Mr Yong doubled the intake of students in schools, converting
each school into two by providing morning and afternoon sessions.
He
ran a crash programme to train the teachers needed and promoted many of
the seniors to be principals, headmasters and headmistresses.
In 1963, he moved to the Health Ministry.
His
Ministry increased public cleanliness by implementing a hawkers' code
to raise hygiene standards, banning cattle from built-up areas and
reorganising refuse collection.
In 1966, the Population and
Family Planning Board was formed to slash Singapore's unsustainably high
rate of 29 births per thousand.
It offered advice and subsidised contraceptives to all eligible married women.
Mr Yong was transferred to the new Ministry of Communications in 1968.
Among
the projects the department handled during his tenure were the creation
of Singapore Airlines and the Singapore Telecommunications Authority,
the expansion of civil aviation and Singapore's container port
facilities, and early studies of the feasibility of the MRT.
But much of his energies were devoted to traffic and public transport.
In
order to reduce traffic and congestion, he raised the cost of car
registration by 25 per cent, encouraged car-pooling, acted to suppress
the pirate taxi trade, and introduced school buses and bus lanes.
The
biggest anti-congestion measure he implemented, which drew
international attention on its launch in mid-1975, was the Area
Licensing Scheme (ALS) - the forerunner of the Electronic Road Pricing
system (ERP).
Mr Yong received the Order of Nila Utama on
National Day in 1990 for his contributions prior to the merger and
separation of Singapore.
- CNA/cc
You are stating the obvious.
The ka-ki-nan culture started since day one.
It is unknown as there was no free press and internet at that time.
Now, we know Ah Kong have been putting his good mens along him all the time.
Originally posted by Medicated Oil:You are stating the obvious.
The ka-ki-nan culture started since day one.
It is unknown as there was no free press and internet at that time.
Now, we know Ah Kong have been putting his good mens along him all the time.
Originally posted by Bikeforceful:alamak! If he is the wife’s brother-in-law doesn’t that automatically also make him his brother-in -law?
Is he peranakan?
Both Harry Lee Kuan Yew and Kwa Geok Choo are peranakans.