ESM Goh Chok Tong on Lee Kuan Yew (Excerpt from eulogy)

I first met Mr Lee in 1958 when I went to his office to invite him to speak to my school (Raffles Institution).
He was the Leader of the Opposition.
Later, I nervously chaired the talk to a packed hall.
That was my high point in school.

Mr Lee Kuan Yew was Singapore.
But it surprised me that he had earned that accolade just two years after Singapore’s independence.
On a field trip with my class of international students to Puerto Rico in 1967, a Puerto Rican excitedly shouted “Chino, Chino” when he saw me.
I shouted back, “Singapore!”
He replied, “Lee Kuan Yew!”

- Goh Chok Tong