I wish Minister Lui Tuck Yew a deservedly happy retirement, and I appreciate the things he’s done during his tenure as Minister of Transport. I have no doubt it is a very, very tough job, made harder by some of the problems and missteps inherited from previous ministers. Think COE miscalculations, and if you’ve forgotten – how CAAS jeopardised Changi Airport’s status as an commercial hub when they fought Air Asia’s landing rights, trying to protect SQ. These are, by far, more serious problems than the occasional train breakdown which we treat like a natural disaster.
But to his credit, Minister Lui has not whinged about bearing the brunt of a nation’s grumblings. He’s instead, taken Khaw Boon Wan’s sage advice, and fallen on his sword. I would have liked to hear him say, “I am elected, selected, and paid to do this job, and by golly, I will stay to fix the freaking train system, and fire anyone who screws up some more. No more excuses”, but he’s entitled to throw in the towel now, and let someone else handle the nation’s high expectations.
Personally, I think he made a better MoT than a Minister for Information Communication & The Arts (MICA) Under his watch at MoT, we’ve had a proper plan for expanding our land transport network, and I’m personally glad for the wider expressways which have alleviated some of the morning traffic snarl. Although I wish the expressway were wider than the ERP gantry that came with it.
So, who do you think is up for the job?
#SGNextTopTransportMinister should be Tan Kin Lian. Because he knows where to get a good deal on insurance.
— Mr Miyagi (@miyagi) August 12, 2015
#SGNextTopTransportMinister The SDA video guy. Because he will give you many choi-gers. pic.twitter.com/t6IlLVPfIg
— mrbrown (@mrbrown) August 12, 2015
#SGNextTopTransportMinister Usain Bolt. Because he has a good track record
— Zachary Ang (@zachary_ang) August 12, 2015
#SGNextTopTransportMinister Low Thia Khiang. Because he got experience as Co-Driver mah.
— mrbrown (@mrbrown) August 12, 2015