Lee Bee Wah, president of STTA public outburst against her head coach Liu Guodong during last year Olympic has raised public unhappiness. I watched it on CNA and was disgusted and totally agreed with the public comments to the presses and in the cyberspace her public flare up was outrageously ill timed and uncalled for. It was only one day after the country had won an Olympic silver medal after 50 years of trying. Ironically, the medal was won by the same coach that LBW castigated in public for some slipped up. They country is in a jubilant mood, celebrating a rare win for Singapore in the sport arena. While the praises and congratulations were still pouring in and out of nowhere, this MP for Ang Mo Kio decided to get the limelight.
To this day, I am still puzzled by the timing of the outburst. Was it politically motivated, capitalising on the moment of glory to do this stunt to capture the attention of all Singaporeans to know her and hear her loud and clear? As an MP, it’s hard to believe that she is not aware of the sensitivity involved and the protocol of public bashing of one’s subordinate. If this was a politically motivated action to showcase her leadership, then her objective would have been partially achieved. Now all Singaporeans know who Lee Bee Wah is. The downside is, she left a big public relation debris for her political masters to clear up. As we won the Olympic silver, it was easy to forgive when she apologised. That I thought was the end of the episode.
The national award of Singapore Coach of the Year started episode 2. When asked why Liu Guodong was not nominated for this award, she shot herself in the foot again. The public as well as some well known sport council members were surprise that a coach that won an Olympic medal was excluded and not nominated. Again Lee Bee Wah made a classic error. She said, a coach must be 'professional, have integrity, be able to gel the team, and be well-respected by all his players'. This implied the coach lack integrity and professionalism. It was appalling that a politician could have uttered such remarks without the ability to substantiate and justify what she commented on.
All coaches have skill in psychological mind games and I think Liu Guodong is no exception. He decided to fly in to Singapore to seek clarification. As the remarks by LBW can potentially hurt his future career, he needs clarification and that was very reasonable to ask for. That I think has put the shutter back in LBW’s court. Following many meeting with STTA’s officials, without the presence of LBW, no acceptable outcome was forthcoming. Even a junior minister appeals for amicable solution. And Liu Guodong said he will be back. And that’s another psychological pressure.
But where is LBW? Why so silent? For someone who was so loud and vocal, the silence has big significance and many implications.
I am inclined to believe that she has become a political liability for her political master. As an MP in the Prime Minister GRC of Ang Mo Kio, she cannot continue to raise controversy at a time of economic recession. An MP must exemplify good common sense, humble and empathise with the common people. The perception on the ground is she is lacking in all these areas. May I borrow a phrase from the AWARE saga, she may be asked to “shut up and sit down”. If no apology and clarification is heard from her personally in the months ahead, then my assumption look reasonable.
If I am wrong, then there will be episode 3.
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