PHUKET: Lee Kuan Yew probably would have had a ball taking charge of Phuket and solving all its problems.
This was the Phuketwan daydream - to have the founder of Singapore step in to fix the holiday island's corruption, the public transport issues and end the scams and rip-offs.
It's fitting that his death comes with Singapore about to celebrate its 50th anniversary and the imminent arrival of the Asean Economic Community.
Within a couple of years, if the large flaws on Phuket have not been solved in Lee Kuan Yew fashion, the island will languish at the opposite end of the spectrum compared to Singapore and success.
Just imagine how bright Phuket's future would be without corruption, with a proper public transport system, and with a strategy for the future that struck a balance with nature.
Authorities on Phuket dither and fuss about the small things while the big issues never get the attention they deserve. Thailand is different and, beyond Phuket, better-placed to deal with the future.
For all its obvious appeal, Phuket and the Andaman suffer from the lack of imagination and courage that inspired Lee Kuan Yew to stop the rot in Singapore and achieve economic wonders.
It's true that Singaporeans sacrificed some freedoms to achieve prominence on the global stage. But those freedoms now appear to be gradually being returned.
Phuket, on the other hand, delivers more freedoms than most people want, including the freedoms to seize public land, to charge the world's highest taxi fares, to build on top of canals and to divert national park entry fees into private pockets.
We won't even touch on human trafficking, one of humankind's most despicable crimes, and still flourishing north and south of Phuket.
It really is time Phuket's administrators were imbued with the spirit of Lee Kuan Yew. Forget about compromise.
Sort right from wrong with speed and make sure the corrupt money now flowing into private hands is diverted into education and health.
Punish those who defy you. Make Phuket a place we can all be proud to call home.
To explain what we mean, we've returned to a series of articles looking at Lee Kuan Yew's potential legacy for Phuket.
This was the Phuketwan daydream - to have the founder of Singapore step in to fix the holiday island's corruption, the public transport issues and end the scams and rip-offs.
It's fitting that his death comes with Singapore about to celebrate its 50th anniversary and the imminent arrival of the Asean Economic Community.
Within a couple of years, if the large flaws on Phuket have not been solved in Lee Kuan Yew fashion, the island will languish at the opposite end of the spectrum compared to Singapore and success.
Just imagine how bright Phuket's future would be without corruption, with a proper public transport system, and with a strategy for the future that struck a balance with nature.
Authorities on Phuket dither and fuss about the small things while the big issues never get the attention they deserve. Thailand is different and, beyond Phuket, better-placed to deal with the future.
For all its obvious appeal, Phuket and the Andaman suffer from the lack of imagination and courage that inspired Lee Kuan Yew to stop the rot in Singapore and achieve economic wonders.
It's true that Singaporeans sacrificed some freedoms to achieve prominence on the global stage. But those freedoms now appear to be gradually being returned.
Phuket, on the other hand, delivers more freedoms than most people want, including the freedoms to seize public land, to charge the world's highest taxi fares, to build on top of canals and to divert national park entry fees into private pockets.
We won't even touch on human trafficking, one of humankind's most despicable crimes, and still flourishing north and south of Phuket.
It really is time Phuket's administrators were imbued with the spirit of Lee Kuan Yew. Forget about compromise.
Sort right from wrong with speed and make sure the corrupt money now flowing into private hands is diverted into education and health.
Punish those who defy you. Make Phuket a place we can all be proud to call home.
To explain what we mean, we've returned to a series of articles looking at Lee Kuan Yew's potential legacy for Phuket.
The influential Thais are making far too much money from Phuket to allow any change.
Posted by Paul on March 23, 2015 07:40
Editor Comment:
Singapore is the only nation in SE Asia to be free of corruption - and the most prosperous. It's about time Thailand realised the two are connected.