Antique postcard picture of Raffles Lighthouse - it was where Singapore's first Finance Minister Goh Keng Swee holed himself up to focus on drafting the first Budget of self-governing Singapore in 1959 - at the time, the Government was almost broke and expected a budget deficit of $14 million that year. In the squeezed and secluded confines of the Raffles Lighthouse, he sweated over agonising choices and drafted his Budget speech that sought to put Singapore's finances on an even keel and keep alive the country's hopes for independence.
That disciplined, prudent and far-sighted Budget set the tone for the PAP Government, which has ever since upheld budget discipline and fiscal prudence. Imagine Dr Goh working alone in a rustic remote lighthouse to produce the landmark Budget. Hard for our younger generation to imagine today - hope that one day, our young can have opportunities to visit the lighthouse and be told this story.
I got this from a Facebook Page, but I can't remember which was it. Sorry for not being able to source it.
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