It used to be a top-down government, often quite heavy-handed, it's no longer that way ... Strong leadership is listening, engaging, moving with people.

Lee Kuan Yew

Lee Kuan Yew, GCMG, CH, is a Singaporean politician. He was the first Prime Minister of Singapore, governing for three decades. He is also widely recognised as the founding father of modern Singapore. As the co-founder and first Secretary-General of the People's Action Party, he led the party to eight victories from 1959 to 1990, and oversaw the separation of Singapore from Malaysia in 1965 and its subsequent transformation from a relatively underdeveloped colonial outpost with no natural resources into a "First World" Asian Tiger. He is one of the most influential political figures in Asia. Singapore's second prime minister, Goh Chok Tong, appointed him Senior Minister in 1990. He held the advisory post of Minister Mentor, created by his son Lee Hsien Loong, when the latter became the nation's third prime minister in August 2004. With his successive ministerial positions spanning over 50 years, Lee is also one of history's longest-serving ministers. On 14 May 2011, Lee and Goh announced their retirement from the cabinet after the 2011 general election but Lee remains a Member of Parliament.

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