Installation address delivered by the Chancellor, His Excellency, Inche Yusof bin Ishak

I am conscious of the high honour given me by my being appointed Chancellor of the University of Singapore, and, on the occasion of my Installation to this office, I have pleasure in expressing my appreciation for this high office.

I have, since my appointment, paid several visits to the University to acquaint myself with the various facets of University work and University work and University life. I was happy to observe the enthusiastic and efficient manner in which the University works, the keenness of all staff and their devotion to duty, and the zest with which our students grapple with their studies. All these promise my tenure of office to be a stimulating and rewarding one.

My predecessor, Mr. Lee Kong Chian, was a man of different parts and accomplishments. I wish to take this opportunity to pay him a tribute for his contribution to higher education in this part of the world. The qualities that placed him in the forefront of industry he used unsparingly in recent years to the betterment of our community. He was generous in his benefactions to the University.

He would have continued to give us the benefit of his drive and ability as Chancellor but for his health. He has found it necessary to lighten his load, and on behalf of the University I wish him good health and many more years of happiness and prosperity.

The University of Singapore is an institution of which we must be prouder and prouder in the years ahead. Every year a past generation of graduates has its turn to prove its worth to our country. In 1962 the number of graduates was 326, in 1963, 419. Last year  it was 460 and this figure rose to 579 this year. But it is in the quality more than the quantity that we stand to be judged. The Vice-Chancellor said at the Convocation this year. "There is clear evidence that this growth in the number of new graduates will continue in future." I hope that as the number of graduates grows so will the number of outstanding members of our Society emerge to take their part in the future of our nation.

Investments in buildings, laboratories, equipment and teaching and personnel will be worth while if they ensure the continuous growth an development to our country.

Any University worth her name must not only produce graduates with a high academic standing, but also provide facilities for postgraduate work and research.  This is what the University of Singapore must do and we may note with gratification that significant contributions to knowledge in many fields have been made by our staff.

The most important feature of the University’s development programme this year is the establishment of the Medical Progress Fund to raise money to build a multi-storey Institute of Medical Specialities and to extend the Medical Library. The project has been extremely successful. A hardworking Committee under the leadership of Mr. Runme Shaw had a good start with a donation of $1,000,000 from Mr. Lee Kong Chian, our retiring Chancellor. The Government of Singapore will match, dollar for dollar, all donations up to $2.375 million. We have already exceeded the target of $4.75 million by a surplus of about $800,000.

Tomorrow we shall witness the laying of the Foundation Stone of the Institute of Medical Specialities by Mr. Lee Kong Chian in the grounds of the General Hospital. It is a significant landmark in medical progress in Singapore.

We have reason to be proud of the growth and development of Singapore in so many fields.  At the present rate of expansion, the output of graduates of the University will be more than doubled by 1970. Is this rate adequate for the needs of Singapore? What type of graduates should we concentrate on producing? In other words, it is essential for us to re-assess the purpose of the University. What is its role today in a young developing nation like Singapore?

Singapore is only 224 square miles. It is limited in natural resources such as tin and rubber which are so common in this region. But it has been blessed by geography in its location and excellent harbour facilities, giving us a commanding position in world trade routes in South-east Asia. We must utilise these natural advantages to the full. What is reassuring is that we have the human resources to do so. The task of our University is to help equip men and women with knowledge and skill and encourage their initiative and drive, so that they can make the best of what we already have and secure the future growth and security of all of us in this turbulent part of the world.

Our University must be constantly alive to the needs of our society if it is to fulfil its role I know that there  are enough men in the University with the imagination, the vigour, and the capacity to make it live up to expectations. And I know that the Government is determined to do its part in financial support and intellectual stimulus to help you make this one of the best centres of higher learning and training in this part of the world. The future is too challenging for  all of us to do other than our best. And if we do our best, the University of Singapore will be as illustrious as the name of this new nation already is in several fields of administration and enterprise. We can and will live up to the high standards already associated with our name as the Lion City of Asia.

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