The Event

"Marshall Of Singapore: The Extraordinary Life & Times of David Saul Marshall (1908-1995)" Exhibition

Date: 12th December 2008 to 12th January 2009
(Extended till 20th February)
Time: 10.00am - 9.00pm
Venue: Promenade Level 10, National Library Building, 100 Victoria Street, Singapore 188064

The "Marshall Of Singapore" Exhibition was jointly organised by the Institute of Southeast Asian Studies and the National Library Board to tie in together with a recent book launch. The book, entitled "Marshall Of Singapore: A Biography" was released on the 12th December 2008, the same date with which the exhibition was opened.

Prominently situated at the Promenade of the National Library building, next to the Lee Kong Chian Reference Library, the exhibition aims to provide its visitors with a glimpse into the life of one of Singapore's most important leaders; the late David Saul Marshall.

Having been regarded as being one of Singapore's best criminal lawyers, David Marshall was also the country's first ever Chief Minister, and as he neared the end of a remarkable career, he was given the accolade of being the country's ambassador to France. The exhibition gives a brief inside into the life of this amazing leader of the Singapore Jewish Community, and his contributions to the Republic through the use of various panels, where his story is capture in writing and with the use of numerous pictures taken during his time.

The panels used had photographs of the different events and people in the life of David Marshall

In my opinion, there is no specific target audience for this exhibition. The exhibition was opened to the public, and with its free admission, I feel that it is a wonderful opportunity for anyone to learn more about this great leader, and what was it about him that made him stand out when Singapore was just a young nation in its making.

As far as I am aware, this exhibition was not reported in the media. However, it was publicised on the website of the National Library and the Institute of Southeast Asian Studies, as well as various other websites. On the internet, it was publicised on the website of the St Andrew's Alumni, as well as on the Museum Roundtable. It was also listed as one of the events in January in the copy of the programme booklet 'golibrary' which can be found at the lobby of the National Library Building.

Most of these websites provide a general overview to the event and what it covers. Moreover, most of the websites contain the same wordings about the exhibition and thus, the angle used is all pretty much the same; which is to provide a brief description and overview of the event.

For exhibitions involving pioneers of Singapore, there is not much that can be done to attract media coverage as these exhibitions are frequently held by the National Library Board (NLB). Alternatively, the NLB can perhaps run a feature story on the event in the print media, such as The Straits Times. The NLB can also heighten awareness of the event by having large banners displayed around the NLB Building that maybe noticed by the general public.

In my opinion, should I be the manager of this event, I would deem for the event to have been a failure. Despite its well organisation, and its brilliant displays of artefacts obtained from the family and friends of David Marshall, I feel that not enough hype has been generated for the event. As a result, not many people knew of the event, and thus, miss out a great opportunity to glimpse into the life and achievements of David Marshall.

Some of the artefacts on display at the exhibition.
These were contributed by David's family and friends.

What I would have done differently is perhaps to send out invitations to schools to include the exhibition as perhaps one of their 'Learning Journeys' in the academic year. In this way, I can assure a constant flow of visitors to the exhibition. This ensures that the effort, time and money that has been put into the organising of the event will not go to waste, and that I can reach out to many more Singaporeans to educate them about one of the greatest figures in our history.

The Manager

Interviewee : Mr Ng Shi Yong

Age: 20

Designation: Business Manager

Company Name: Venture Era Group Pte Ltd

D: Basically what is your role and responsiblities as a manager?

Mr. Shi Yong: To lead a group of people, organize them, to be able to cordinate activities. Being responsible for the people under my care.

D: What is your management style?

Mr. Shi Yong: My management style is more of care towards the well-being of my people. I focus more on how they feel rather than how much they can achieve, this is because, people would generally work in a environment whereby they feel that they are being cared for.

D:What are some difficulties that you face as a manager?

Mr. Shi Yong: Facing as well as handling different types of people, both for training and personal development.

D:How do you overcome these difficulties?

Mr Shi Yong: There is no formula proven to overcome these difficulties, the only way, from my experience, to just to face the difficulties and use what is given to me during my training.

D:In your opinion, what makes a good manager?

Mr Shi Yong: Basically the word manager, means to manage others. However, being able to manage people well is not really the role of a good manager. It is the things that you are able to pass down to the people under your care and gain their respect both as a manager and a friend, not just the respect that you command at the position that you are at.