Yesterday saw the passing of another great man, Mr S Rajaratnam, our first Foreign Minister. The papers today are plastered with reports of him and his achievements. I mean, putting Singapore, a tiny, little red dot, on the face of the world and giving us more clout that our geopolitcal stature entitles us to is no small feat.
I am surprised to hear that some of the younger generation have little or no idea at all as to whom this great man was and what he has done for our country. It is only when told that the Singapore Pledge was penned by him that some had any idea as to what he has done. But to link him to just the Pledge does the man great injustice. He did much more than that. For a long time he was the face of Singapore in the eyes of the world.
Tributes and accolades came quick and fast, as the malay saying goes, "Harimau mati tinggalkan belang, manusia mati tinggalkan nama". Loosely translated, dead tigers leave their stripes, dead men leave their names. Not so much in a literal sense. Simply, it means that with the passing of a person, his or her achievements and contributions to the society he lived in is the one that will be remembered - his legacy. It is exactly that that will ensure Mr S Rajaratnam's name live forever in the annals of our nation's short history.
On a happier note, our national football team, beat Iraq 2-0 in yesterday's Asian Cup Qualifiers. Not a small feat too for our tiny nation considering Iraq is the West Asian football champions. Job well done!
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