SINGAPORE - Ministers and MPs took to social media to pay tribute to the contributions of Singapore's founding Prime Minister Lee Kuan Yew, who died in the wee hours of Monday morning at the age of 91.
Former Prime Minister Goh Chok Tong said his "tears welled up" when he received the news.
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"Mr Lee Kuan Yew has completed his life's journey. But it was a journey devoted to the making of Singapore," he said in a Facebook post.
"He has bequeathed a monumental legacy to Singaporeans - a safe, secure, harmonious and prosperous independent Singapore, our Homeland."
Social and Family Development Minister Chan Chun Sing thanked Mr Lee for "enabling us to pursue our dream to build an independent, successful and cohesive nation regardless of race, language and religion".
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"As we take over the baton to live this Singapore dream of ours, we will always remember your words that we are responsible for the lives of millions of Singaporeans," he said on Facebook.
MP Alex Yam (Chua Chu Kang GRC) said on Facebook that Mr Lee's family, including his son Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong, had been by his bedside early Monday morning.
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"Thank you Mr Lee for everything you've done for Singapore and Singaporeans. Rest in peace Comrade Lee, rest now with your one true love Mrs Lee," Mr Yam added.
Transport Minister Lui Tuck Yew wrote on Facebook that Mr Lee would be "missed and remembered forever".
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"You devoted your life to make Singapore exceptional and our lives better. You taught us all what it means to be Singaporean. I am truly grateful to you," he said.
Minister for Muslim Affairs Yaacob Ibrahim bid farewell to Mr Lee and sent his condolences to the Prime Minister on behalf of the Malay/Muslim community.
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He said one of Mr Lee's enduring legacies was "(planting) the seed for the Malay/Muslim community to continue to improve their quality of life and well- being".
"Good bye Mr Lee. May you rest in peace. Together with the Malay/Muslim community, we give our deepest condolences to PM and his family," said Dr Yaacob, who is also Minister for Communications and Information.
Education Minister Heng Swee Keat expressed his gratitude to Mr Lee for transforming the lives of Singaporeans.
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He wrote on his Facebook: "Mr Lee and his team built a deep rapport with our pioneer generation, and together, they achieved what many thought was impossible.
"Mr Lee has lived a full and meaningful life. Let us come together as one people to express our appreciation, reflect on what we have gone through together as a people, and resolve to build on the legacy that Mr Lee has left us."
Law and Foreign Affairs Minister K. Shanmugam, in a tribute to Mr Lee, said he was a direct beneficiary of Mr Lee's policies, like most Singaporeans. These policies created a society based on meritocracy, equal opportunities, clean and efficient government, good education for all, he wrote in a Facebook post.
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"I had never imagined a Singapore without Mr Lee. But as he lay in hospital, on life support, I began to think of what I had never wanted to accept: that we are likely to lose Mr Lee. Each time I think about him now, I tear. Each time I read a tribute to him, I choke. It is difficult to describe in words, the grief I feel," he wrote.
"No one else has built a country out of almost nothing, and in the face of so much adversity. Singapore without Mr Lee Kuan Yew will never be the same."
