A Mandarin and the Making of Public Policy: Reflections

by Tong Dow Ngiam, Ngiam Tong Dow, Simon S.C. Tay (Editor)

Singapore's success story has increasingly been recognised but few have told it from the perspective of an insider. As a senior civil servant and "mandarin" from 1959 to 1999, Ngiam Tong Dow served with the founding generation of political leaders and contributed to the country's economic growth. In this book, he reflects on these experiences, sharing personal anecdotes and perceptive insights of Singapore's early decades. He also boldly questions some of the policies of government and emerging trends in the country to suggest how Singapore must change to survive and thrive in the future.

244 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2006

Reviews

[Gin · Rating 4 out of 5]

Ngiam Tong Dow belongs to that breed of first generation of public servants that served alongside the founding members of Singapore, including the likes of Lee Kuan Yew and more importantly for him, Goh Keng Swee and Hon Sui Sen. The book is thus a collection of speeches that reflected on his time in government, the politicians he worked with, his experience in helping to bring about the development of Singapore to what it is when the book was published (2004).

Since then, a lot has changed in Singapore. But some of his advice - such as ensuring the relevance of Singapore to the wider world, and needing to find niche areas that Singapore can go into and thrive in it.

In an away also, the collection of speeches felt like a time capsule that provided a glimpse of how policymaking was like in the initial years where citizen engagement and consultation was but a foreign notion. This was a point also made by Simon Tay, the editor in his epilogue. But it certainly is useful for anyone to understand how Singapore became what it is today away from the memoirs of more famous figures like LKY and GKS.

I thought that Simon Tay did a commendable job in selecting the speeches to featured as it covered the gamut of issues. There was some repetition in anecdotes, such as the one about GKS and his decision to establish a Bird Park first - I don’t think I will ever forget that story now. Tay’s epilogue also was a strong point of the book, in which he tried to distil the central lessons and themes, and also post questions about the relation between public servants and politicians, especially in a one-party dominant state like Singapore. The epilogue is worth paying much closer attention to, even if it has been 22 years since the book was published.

It is a read well worth anyone’s time, especially people in the Singapore public service.

[Guanhui · Rating 4 out of 5]

Reread the book with a deeper appreciation of the important work of policy planning

[jw · Rating 3 out of 5]

A compilation of some of Ngiam Tong Dow's speeches and public interviews, A Mandarin and the Making of Public Policy provides a glimpse not only of one of Singapore's former top civil servants, but into policymaking during Singapore's early years. The book is divided into three broad sections. The first covers Ngiam's reflections on Singapore's early development and his personal journey through three interviews with Susan Long, Melanie Chew and Sonny Yap. The second section delves into different policy domains - jobs and housing; land and infrastructure; MNCs and markets; ASEAN economic cooperation; education, etc - based on a series of lectures Ngiam gave to visiting Chinese officials at NTU. The third section draws together a range of speeches Ngiam gave to various audiences, from The Economic Society of Singapore and Ministry of Finance staff, to a Pontiac Land-IPS Thought Leaders luncheon and the Japanese Chamber of Commerce.

It's a fascinating read. LKY's writings provide you with an understanding of Singapore's development from the perspective of the leader who was instrumental in driving many of the changes. A Mandarin and the Making of Public Policy lends the perspective of a civil servant who supported the political leadership in its efforts to create a viable nation. Being a compilation of speeches and interviews, the book is a quick and punchy read, all the more so given Ngiam's insights and analyses about what Singapore did right, what Singapore could do better/differently, and his anecdotes about leaders such as Goh Keng Swee, Hon Sui Sen and Lee Kuan Yew. But precisely because it is a compilation, you will find certain anecdotes and examples repeated a few times e.g. the introduction of GST, certain anecdotes about Goh Keng Swee, the battle over the development of the MRT, etc.

[Otto · Rating 5 out of 5]

The success of Singapore is predicated on Strong visionary leadership and purposeful nation building.
This small country harness the smartest talent, engineer and collaborate with the mandarin to craft out policy for the long term viability of the country.
Excellent read for anyone who wish to understand about the dynamics of the Singapore politics in the early years of Singapore.