Everything About PM Lee’s Lunchtime Rally, Whereby The Word ‘Clickbait’ is Used

It’s 6 July and in case you’ve missed it, PM Lee just had his online Fullerton lunch rally.

Don’t worry if you’ve missed it and you’re wondering if you’ll remember to watch the 35 min 50 secs clip when you get home (to WiFi).

Here’s everything about PM Lee’s Lunchtime Rally, including the word ‘clickbait’.

A Trip Down Memory Lane

Image: YouTube (Straits Times)

This segment (0:30 to 2:35) is a trip down memory lane; it shows you how our the various prime ministers of Singapore has grown and developed Singapore through all these years, and how PAP has served faithfully since 1965.

If you find yourself missing the iconic flare that Mr Lee Kuan Yew has in his speeches back when he was younger, just watch from 0:30 when you have WiFi connection.

GE2020

In his lunchtime rally, PM Lee touched on a few major discussion points.

The first is, of course, about GE2020.

He pointed out that this year’s General Election one of the most important GE Singapore has ever seen.

“The stakes have never been higher,” he proclaimed.

It’s the middle of the crisis, and while we have done well over the past month, he said, there are still more “difficulties” to come.

We are still not aware if there will be a lasting solution in the near future, he pointed out, whether in the form of a vaccine or an effective treatment, and Singapore is facing “a continuing danger to public health and economy”.

We Need To Bring More Investments Into S’pore To Create More Jobs

I know, most of you came in because of the headline, where we said he used the word “clickbait”. This is the part where he used it.

PM Lee related a story of how Singapore got back onto its feet back in 1985.

He and the Economic Development Board (EDB) flew all around the world trying to sell Singapore as a lucrative place to invest in.

And they decided that in order to get people’s attention, they had to do something ‘clickbait’, so they did.

They took out a full-page advertisement in the Wall Street Journal.

This one:

Image: YouTube (Straits Times)

With the headline, Who Would Be Mad Enough To Invest In Singapore In A Recession?

And on that advertisement, they had nine signatures from the biggest companies at that time, including Motorola, Apple and Seagate.

And the rest, as they say, is history.

5 Reasons Why Investors Were Willing To Invest In S’pore Then

Yes, this sounds like a Goody Feed article but no, we’re not the ones to come up with it.

PM Lee himself listed down 5 reasons why investors (then) were willing to invest in Singapore:

  • They knew that Singapore has one of the best workforces in the world
  • They like the tripartite culture here where the government, the unions and the employers work in partnership, instead of against each other
  • Investors had held high regards for Singapore’s public service (the EDB was a one-stop solution for them)
  • Singapore’s first-grade government
  • Singapore is politically stable and enjoyed Singaporeans’ great support

He said that with Covid-19, Singapore needs new investments to grow our economy and people all over the world are watching to see the outcome of the election.

Will we show a Singapore where people stand as one united people, or will we see a fractious Singapore where Singaporeans withhold their support for the government that they have elected in at the beginning?

He cautioned that it’s only with Singapore’s strong governance thus far that we are able to attract more investments and ensure other countries take us seriously.

If not, “Singapore could fade away” like other “city-states”.

Vote Wisely

PM Lee outlined how his government managed to pass a bill, that was put together in 9 days, within a very short amount of time.

He was referring to the new law that lets individuals and companies temporarily waive their contractual obligations:

He also pointed out that the many other hard decisions during Covid-19, such as the Circuit Breaker and many others, could only be made because of a strong government working closely together.

Vote us out, he said, if you think your life has not improved in any way, but make sure you don’t “buy insurance” from companies whose cheques might bounce.

You can watch his full e-rally below:

Lest you’ve forgotten, polling day will be on this Friday (10 July). So what happens if you didn’t vote? Would you be jailed? Would you be barred from buying bubble tea for the next five years? Watch this video and you’ll know the consequences: