Devan Nair

Today we mourn the passing of an important pioneer of post-war Singapore, Mr Devan Nair.
His life nothing short of being illustrious, you can get a better synopsis of this man's epic journey in the Straits Time.

It struck me that Devan Nair possess a fervent passion, something conspicuously present in MM Lee and other great personalities of their time. I would attribute this to the drastic hardship they under went and the turbulence that they were subjected to, at an age where many of my contemporaries remain sadly, as apathetic and wayward youths. Perhaps it was the Second World War that ardently fired up the coals of passions in this man. The horrifying sight of a Chinese man being burnt alive by a Japanese soldier roused the awakening of a revolutionary spirit in Devan Nair.

I wouldn't have imagined what could Singapore be today without the efforts of Mr Nair in fostering warm relationships between the workers and the employers. This was best epitomised by the inauguration of NTUC, an amalgam of a motley of preexisting unions. This contribution on its own, was the greatest present that a weak, post-war Singapore could ever hope to receive.

Lamentingly like many prolific personalities, he was dogged by scandals. It is with regret that he had to end his otherwise colourful political career on such a low note. The drama as well as the much controversial barrage of exchanges between Parliament and him (self-exiled in the States) could have been avoided if he had spoken up about his unsuitability in the highest office of the land at the very beginning. Perhaps...