Abstract
We have already seen how in the post-1959 battle for political supremacy Lee Kuan Yew’s PAP successfully merged state and Party to the detriment of its political opponents. With the collapse of merger, however, fresh political and economic challenges resulted in a new level of mobilisation and sophistication in the exercise of state power by the PAP. This enabled the PAP to facilitate a swift and decisive turnaround in economic strategy, putting Singapore on an EOI path. Remarkable growth in manufacturing soon followed.
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Notes
See Chang Heng Chee, Singapore: The Politics of Survival 1965–1967 (Singapore: Oxford University Press, 1971) pp. 32–6; and Harvey Stockwin’s articles ‘Separate Ways’, FEER, 25 August 1966, pp. 342–3; ‘Death of a Dollar’, FEER, 1 September 1966, pp. 410–12. This sum was made up of $225 million in pay to military personnel, $120 million to civilian lease employees and the remainder on local goods and services. See Singapore Ministry of Culture, The Mirror, 4 (15), 8 April, pp. 4, 6–8.
Also see Lee Soo Ann, ‘Effects of the British Withdrawal’, in Papers on Economic Planning and Development in Singapore (Singapore: Adult Education Board, 1971) pp. 44–51.
Fong Sip Chee, The PAP Story — The Pioneering Years (Singapore: Times Periodicals for Chai Chee Branch, People’s Action Party, 1980) p. 188.
See Harvey Stockwin, ‘Sufficient Incentive’, FEER, 22 December 1966, p. 589.
As quoted in Shee Poon Kim, The People’s Action Party of Singapore, 1954–1970: A Study of Survivalism of a Single-Dominant Party, Ph.D. thesis (Department of Political Science, Indiana University, 1971) p. 180.
Scientism, or mechanical materialism, is a positivist ideology which extends the reductionist methods of natural science to human sciences, converting human subjects into objects. Hilary Rose and Steven Rose observe that: ‘All knowledge except that which is legitimised by this mechanical materialism is denied. The consequence, as the ‘scientists’ are the producers of mechanical materialism, is that science becomes an ideology and scientists the ideologists. How does this work? As the material world controls the limits of an interpretation of the scientist in his own work, the answer lies, as Marx and Engels saw, outside the precise research area, where the scientist, freed from such constraints, talks (typically in the name of science), invoking neutrality, technique and expertise, the scientist supports the ruling strata’. See Hilary Rose and Steven Rose, ‘The Problematical Inheritance: Marx and Engels on the Natural Sciences’, in Hilary Rose and Steven Rose (eds) The Political Economy of Science (London: Macmillan, 1976) pp. 8–9.
See comments by Lee in Alex Josey, Lee Kuan Yew, vol. 1 (Singapore: Times Books International, 1980) p. 316.
As quoted in T. S. George, Lee Kuan Yew’s Singapore (London: André Deutsch, 1975) p. 186.
The CCCs worked closely with such organisations as the Vigilante Corps Training Centre and the National Youth Leadership Training Institute in the attempt to ensure appropriate value inculcation amongst youth. See Seah Chee Meow, Community Centres in Singapore (Singapore University Press, 1973) pp. 37, 48–55.
As quoted in Alex Josey, Lee Kuan Yew. The Struggle for Singapore (Sydney: Angus and Robertson, 1974) p. 249.
Nyaw Mee-kau, Export Expansion and Industrial Growth in Singapore (Hong Kong: Kingsway International Publications, 1979) p. 179.
Goh Keng Swee, ‘The Basic Strategy for Rapid Co-operative Development’, in National Trades Union Congress, Why Labour Must Go Modern (Singapore: Stanford College Press for the National Trades Union Congress) 1970, p. 35.
Department of Statistics, Economic & Social Statistics Singapore 1960–1982 (Singapore: Singapore National Printers, 1983a) Table 3.9, p. 41.
These were usually offered at 9 per cent. See Lee Soo Ann, The Industrialisation of Singapore (Camberwell: Longman, 1973) p. 104.
Linda Seah, ‘Public Enterprise and Economic Development’, in Peter S. J. Chen (ed.) Singapore Development Policies and Trends (Singapore: Oxford University Press, 1983) p. 155. Apart from major credit lines from government, funds were sought from the World Bank and the Asian Development Bank. See Anthony Polsky, ‘Investors’ Island’, FEER, 21 August 1969, p. 478.
Stock Exchange of Singapore Limited, Companies Handbook 81 (Singapore National Printers for Stock Exchange of Singapore, 1981) p. 25.
Goh Keng Swee, The Practice of Economic Growth (Singapore: Federal Publications, 1977) pp. 10–11.
Excluding defence-related industries. See Lee Sheng-Yi, Public Finance and Public Investment in Singapore (Singapore: Kong Brothers for The Institute of Banking and Finance, 1978) pp. 138–9. Lee Sheng-Yi actually states that nine new public manufacturing enterprises were established in 1969 but his data only identify eight.
Chan, 1971, p. 23 points out that support for the boycott of Parliament by left-wing trade unions was far less than anticipated by the BS Assembly people. Bellows also points out that there was significant division amongst the BS Assembly people themselves. The BS’s Parliamentary leader, Lim Huan Boon, stated at the time of resignation: ‘By boycotting Parliament, we have broken faith not only with the democratic system but with the people who elected us’. The boycott decision also prompted some resignations from the Party by members of the Assembly. See Thomas J. Bellows, The People’s Action Party of Singapore: The Emergence of a Dominant Party System, Southeast Asia Studies, Yale University, Monograph Series, no. 14, 1973, pp. 96–7.
As Pang Cheng Lian in Singapore’s People’s Action Party: Its History, Organisation and Leadership (Kuala Lumpur: Oxford University Press, 1971) p. 77 wrote: ‘In recent years PAP leaders appear to see themselves more as architects of the new state of Singapore than leaders of a particular Party. The primary objective is to build a strong and economically viable Singapore, and the Party has become merely one of the instruments to achieve this’.
Pang Eng Fong, ‘Foreign Indirect Investment in Singapore: A Preliminary Report’, mimeo, Economic Research Centre, National University of Singapore, February 1981, p. 46.
Chia Siow Yue, ‘Export Performance of the Manufacturing Sector and of Foreign Investment’, in Wong Kum Poh and Maureen Tan (eds) Singapore in the International Economy (Singapore University Press, 1972) p. 45.
Kunio Yoshihara, Foreign Investment and Domestic Response (Singapore: Eastern Universities Press, 1976) Table 2.10, p. 181.
Frederic C. Deyo, Dependent Development and Industrial Order: An Asian Case Study (New York: Praeger, 1981) p. 44.
As quoted in Alex Josey, Lee Kuan Yew, vol. 2 (Singapore: Times Books International, 1980) p. 94.
See Kim Sam-O, ‘S’pore Tops Pay-Cost Stakes’, FEER 11 March 1972, p. 65.
See Anthony Harrison, ‘Skills and Ten Cents’, FEER, 9 July 1970, pp. 82–3; ‘Happy Occasion for Workers’, Straits Times, 6 March 1972.
As quoted in Ilsa Sharp, ‘Singapore’s Wages Compromise’, Straits Times, 3 June 1974, p. 46.
Chan Heng Chee, Politics in an Administrative State: Where Has The Politics Gone? Department of Political Science, University of Singapore, Occasional Paper Series, no. 11, 1975, pp. 18–19.
Lee Boon Hiok, Statutory Boards in Singapore, Department of Political Science, University of Singapore, Occasional Paper Series, no. 20, 1975, p. 30.
Department of Statistics, Report on the Census of Industrial Production 1975 (Singapore: Singapore National Printers, 1975) Table 4, p. 11.
See Chew Soon Beng and Rosalind Chew, ‘Incomes Policy: The Singapore Experience’, mimeo, National University of Singapore, 1983, p. 11.
See Economic Development Board, ‘Bigger Loans Available for Smaller Firms’, Singapore Investment News, March 1978, p. 3.
For explanations for this see Peter Weintraub, ‘Singapore’s Cause for Concern’, FEER, 11 August 1978, pp. 92, 95; and Andy McCue, ‘Singapore’s Aid Plans For Exports Industry Are Called Misguided’, AWSJ, 20 April 1978.
See Ho Kwon Ping, ‘Countering the Communist “Sinister Conspiracy”’, FEER, 14 May 1976, pp. 21–2.
See Dutch Labour Party, ‘Memorandum Recommending Expulsion of the People’s Action Party of Singapore from the Socialist International’, in C. V. Devan Nair (ed.) Socialism That Works … The Singapore Way (Singapore: Feudal Publications, 1976) pp. 263–7.
See Shee Poon Kim, ‘Political Leadership and Succession in Singapore’, in Chen (ed.), 1983, p. 185.
Pang Eng Fong, ‘Foreign Indirect Investment in Singapore: A Preliminary Report’, mimeo, Economic Research Centre, National University of Singapore, February 1981, p. 46.
Conrad Raj, ‘A Multinational that Cares’, Singapore Business, December 1977, p. 33.
Economic Development Board, ‘GM Increases Commitment in Singapore’, Singapore Investment News, November 1978, p. 1.
Economic Development Board, ‘Repco to Establish $16 Million Parts Plant’, Singapore Investment News, November 1977, p. 1.
Economic Development Board, ‘Singapore Exceeds Garrett’s Expectations’, Singapore Investment News, October 1978, pp. 1, 3.
‘Singapore Review of Foreign Investment’, Asia Research Bulletin, May 1977, p. 323; American Embassy, Singapore, Biannual Embassy Survey of American Investment in Singapore, August 1981, Table 2, p. 9.
Japan Trade Centre (JETRO), Japanese Affiliated Firms in Singapore (Singapore: Green Mount Publication) 1983, p. 165.
Andy McCue, ‘Shortage of Workers Pinches Development of Singapore Industry’, AWSJ, 31 October 1978.
Pang Eng Fong, ‘Economic Development and the Labour Market in a Newly Industrializing Country: The Experience of Singapore’, The Developing Economies, XIX (1), 1981, pp. 3–15.
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© 1989 Garry Rodan
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Rodan, G. (1989). Export-Oriented Manufacturing. In: The Political Economy of Singapore’s Industrialization: National State and International Capital. International Political Economy Series. Palgrave Macmillan, London. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-349-19923-5_4
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