SINGAPORE: To many, Dr Goh Keng Swee is regarded as one of Singapore’s founding fathers and a key architect of the nation’s transformation in its early decades.
What is perhaps less well known is the role the former Deputy Prime Minister played after he left politics – he became an economic adviser to China between 1985 and 1990, during its early drive for reform.
On Friday (May 15), a “museum-style memoir” – a 244-page book curated from a private archive – was launched to preserve for posterity Dr Goh’s interactions with China’s leaders during this period.
Titled Dr Goh Keng Swee and China’s Economic Renaissance, the book was put together by Dr Goh’s wife, Dr Phua Swee Liang, based on photographs, gifts, travel itineraries and personal records from Dr Goh’s stint. Two hundred copies of the book were given out to guests including former Cabinet ministers Khaw Boon Wan and George Yeo, and former top civil servant Philip Yeo at the launch at Four Seasons Hotel.