Wolf Review(The Extraordinary Life of an Ordinary Man by Tommy Koh)

 

I have been reading more books on geopolitics and world affairs. This latest book was inspired by RSAF’s repatriation mission to Saudi Arabia. We are one of the few countries that are allowed to fly into the airspace of a war zone using a military plane. The behind-the-scenes details to get the mission going must be incredible. It reflects our diplomatic efforts to engage a wider region beyond our shores. 

The memoir by Professor Tommy Koh gives a helicopter view of his life story and how our foreign policy works, a book written to describe an extraordinary life of a diplomat. 

The book begins with the foreword given by his sons, Wei Koh and Aun Koh. There was a glowing tribute to his father for being a gentleman and a skilful diplomat. His sons couldn’t be prouder of his dad’s many accomplishments. 

The book starts with a brief introduction to Professor Tommy Koh as a student and a survivor of World War 2. He is probably one of the last few people who lived through the Japanese occupation in Singapore. Life as a kid was less complicated as he had no idea why the Japanese occupied Singapore. Professor Koh lived through period of thrift. Rice were in short supply during the war, every meal had to be supplemented with sweet potato grown from their backyards. Till today, a bowl of white porridge with sweet potato still reminds him of those warring times. 

After the war, he was first sent to a Chinese school. Unfortunately, the education didn’t provide him with any joy in learning. His path toward a Harvard law education started with St. Joseph, then to Raffles Institution. Prof. Koh was inspired by Chief Minister, David Marshall and Lee Kuan Yew, the leader of the opposition. He aspired to be a lawyer who fought for the poor and the oppressed. He wanted to use the law to fight for justice against injustice. Against the wishes of his parents, he joined as a lawyer instead of pursuing a career in the medical field as a doctor.

Under the tutelage of David Marshall, Prof. Koh was able to learn his rope as a lawyer. He was taught to be hardworking and thorough in his preparation for a case. He also witnessed David Marshall’s skill at cross-examining the witnesses in a persuasive way for argument of his case.

Prof. Koh wore many hats, from being a lecturer at the law school to the youngest ambassador to the UN at age 31. He was a trailblazer of his time. Past appointments during his long illustrious public service career included Chairman of The National Art Council and The National Heritage Board. In my opinion, his career as a lawyer for Singapore is one of the most significant contributions to our country. He was appointed an agent to the state twice to defend our sovereignty due his extensive expertise in the United Nations Conventions on the law of the Sea (UNCLOS). First, in The Land Reclamation Case and second, The Pedra Branca Case. Drawing his experience as former President of UNCLOS, he was able to advise the state on the matter of Maritime Affairs. The timely advice helped Singapore achieve positive judgments at the International Court of Justice. 

Professor Koh was the chief architect in negotiating the Singapore-US FTA. The successful outcome of the agreement gives us a lifeline in world trade, given in recent times more countries are turning inwards, putting up trade barriers. Without those free trade agreements, Singapore would have been in deep trouble.

I find the book extremely entertaining and easy to enjoy. The writer, also the subject person of the book, gave a concise description of his life in the simplest form of English without the usual gnathonic language associated to commercially driven titles. It is a book written straight from the heart by one of Singapore’s most respected diplomats. The book goes on Lone Wolf Investor highly recommended list to anyone who wishes to know the life of a diplomat in his pursuit to defend the interest of Singapore in the international arena, flying the Singapore flag high. God Bless.

Please consider following us on telegram for the latest update on Lone Wolf investor by clicking on the link below. No form filling, no payment required, no collection of data, no data mining, no hard selling, no obligation. 

https://t.me/joinchat/oCgkD3sQFRMzMWM1

Disclaimers 

All investments is highly speculative in nature and involves substantial risk of loss. We encourage our reader to invest very carefully. We also encourage reader to get personal advice from your professional investment advisor and to make independent investigations before acting on information that we publish. Much of our information is derived directly from information published by companies or submitted to governmental agencies on which we believe are reliable but are without our independent verification. Therefore, we cannot assure you that the information is accurate or complete. We do not in any way whatsoever warrant or guarantee the success of any action you take in reliance on our statements. All information provided are for education only. Buyer beware,do you own due diligence.