Punggol East SMC - Is the Workers' Party the Only Choice?

Following the sudden resignation of PAP MP Michael Palmer for having an affair with a PA staff working in Pasir Ris-Punggol GRC, a by-election has to be called for the vacated single seat at Punggol East SMC.

Shortly after the announcement, two parties have been quick to announce their positions. The Workers’ Party (WP) has affirmed their desire to contest the seat, and Singapore People’s Party (SPP) Chairperson Lina Chiam, has opined that “the Workers’ Party should have the priority to contest in the by-election, due to their earlier involvement in the constituency during the 2011 General Election.”

With the controversy surrounding WP’s Yaw Shin Leong’s resignation from his Hougang SMC seat under similar circumstances, it would seem like poetic justice for the WP to claim another election scalp. While the need for a by-election is certain, I would hope that the bout line-up is not prematurely fixed.

In the last General Election in 2011, Desmond Lim Bak Chuan of the Singapore Democratic Alliance (SDA), received a lot of criticism for initiating a three-cornered fight and not graciously stepping out of WP’s Lee Li Lian’s way. Back then I felt that this criticism was harsh, and I fear the same will be repeated for any party ‘full-hardy’ enough to get in WP’s way. While Lina Chiam might think that the WP has some pre-ordained right to contest Punggol East SMC, let us not forget that not one, but three other opposition parties have similarly contested this electoral real estate in the past. 

Back in 1988, Abdul Rasheed of the Singapore Democratic Party (SDP) stood in what was then, Punggol SMC. He attained a respectable 40.1% of the votes.

Subsequently in the 1991 elections, Punggol SMC was absorbed into Cheng San GRC. This GRC was contested by National Solidarity Party (NSP), which garnered 35.9% of the votes .

 In the 2001 elections Cheng San GRC controversially split into Aljunied GRC, Ang Mo Kio GRC and Pasir Ris-Punggol GRC. Pasir Ris-Punggol saw a walkover that year, but was challenged by the SDA in the next elections in 2006. And of course we all remember the 2011 elections, where Punggol East SMC was carved out of Pasir Ris-Punggol GRC.

Therefore, contrary to popular belief and short-termed memories, the WP is not the only natural choice. I do hope that more qualified candidates from other parties give serious consideration to contesting Punggol East SMC. And if such a candidate should emerge, I wonder if the WP supporters are matured enough to recognize this.

PAP Convention: Quote of the Quotes

Keeping this article for posterity sake. Some of the key quotes:

DPM Teo Chee Hean: "We must be open to ideas and open to people. So long as they subscribe to our party ideals, our values "

PM Lee: "This leadership for Singapore can only come from the PAP" ..... "we must produce such a line up by the next General Elections - 2011 or 2012.""

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Some promising PAP candidates identified for next election: PM Lee
01 November 2009 1200 hrs (SST)
http://www.channelnewsasia.com/stories/singaporelocalnews/view/1015089/1/.html

\SINGAPORE : Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong has said the People's Action Party (PAP) has identified some candidates, including potential office-holders, for the next General Election due by February 2012.

They are mainly in their thirties and forties. Mr Lee, who is also the PAP's Secretary-General, was the main speaker at the party's convention on Sunday.

He highlighted why Singapore's next General Election will be crucial, as it must produce leaders who can take over his generation of Cabinet colleagues.

Mr Lee said: "We have made progress, we have got people who will be part of this team, but we do not have a complete team and we must produce such a line up by the next General Elections - 2011 or 2012."

By then, Mr Lee believes Singapore will have a new slate of leaders who can instil confidence among investors and Singaporeans and lead the country for the next 20 years . Mr Lee said:

"We have kept clean, resolutely against corruption, in the Party in the society, in the government, at the grassroots. "If there is a case we will investigate; if a wrong has been done, we will act on it...If you do not keep the party clean, you are finished."

The PAP brought in 24 new Members of Parliament during the last General Election. On the new candidates, Mr Lee said they grew up in the years of prosperity and did not experience turbulence and hardship.

But he believes they are just as committed as the earlier generations of MPs. Mr Lee said: "This leadership for Singapore can only come from the PAP, and if the PAP lets Singapore down, we are all in big trouble, not only PAP but (also) Singapore.

Therefore, the PAP must never let Singapore down; (we must) make sure when we press the button, things work." He added that the new MPs have done well and have established themselves with voters.

Mr Lee also told his audience of party activists that the new office-holders have made significant contributions as well, and have gained confidence in presenting and defending policies in Parliament and on the ground. Prime Minister Lee also reminded the party convention that

Singapore will be amending the Constitution, which will result in more Non-Constituency MPs, smaller Group Representation Constituencies and more Single Member Constituencies. That means there would be more contests in the next General Election.

So Mr Lee's message to the party activists is: never assume that your division will get a walkover. Party activists asked questions about the selection process of candidates after Mr Lee's speech.

Deputy Prime Minister Teo Chee Hean, who is also Second Assistant Secretary-General of the PAP, said: "If you look at our party, we have got a successful blend between people who have come up from the ground and people who have come in from outside the party, and come in as MPs in the last elections; we have several who have come from the ground.

"Lim Biow Chuan and Sam Tan were branch secretaries, so we have people who have come from the ground and who are able to hold their own in Parliament and represent the people. "But we also need to make sure that we bring in talented people from outside.

We must be open to ideas and open to people. So long as they subscribe to our party ideals, our values and want to do well for Singapore and Singaporeans, we should be prepared to accept them." The PAP leaders stressed that the party's success formula is to ensure that it gets its politics right so that it can attract good people to enter politics. - CNA/so/ms

Copyright © 2008 MediaCorp Pte Ltd

Lock n Load! - PAP Platoon move out!

I read with bemusement Fang Zhi Yuan’s (chief editor of Wayangparty.com) op-ed on why the PAP will win the next election with an increased majority. His piece was in response to rumours of an early election following the news that Election Department has already begun to select and train election officials.

The ‘rumour’ was in fact confirmed yesterday when PM Lee came out to say that Budget Statement 2009 will be brought forward a month to January 2009. In addition, he announced that electricity charges would drop in that same month and might be lower than the levels at Oct this year.

These promises to stimulate the economy, support jobs and reduce the cost of living were however accompanied with a thinly-veiled caveat: “the country is much better off with one dominant party, as long as the PAP provides clean and good government, and the lives of Singaporeans improve.”

The venue of these announcements is also noteworthy. They were not made on the sidelines of community event but as keynotes at the People's Action Party conference. The underlying message to PAP activists, it’s our time to shine!

Back to my bemusement at Zhi Yuan’s piece. While I was initially stumped by his level of pessimism over the hopes of the opposition at the next election, I can see clearly how, as he put it, I had “grossly underestimated the well-oiled election machinery of the PAP”.

For the past 5 years, Singapore has enjoyed economic growth and prosperity following major crises from 1997 to 2003. But ironically, ‘goods times’ only spell ‘bad times’ for the PAP, as financial worries are replaced by aspirations for political plurality, press freedoms, civil rights and so on.

Take the 1997 elections for example. This was held in Jan and thus it was still during a period of prosperity and economic growth. The PAP only managed to garner 65% of the vote.

Then the Asian Financial Crisis hit at the tail end of 97 and was followed by another seminal event, the bombing of the WTC in Sep 11, 2001. The PAP swiftly called for an election in Nov of 2001 and won 75% of the electoral vote.

The poor vote return won by PM Lee (66.6%), which was achieved during a period of economic ascendance following the slowdown brought about by SARS, could perhaps be partly attributed to the testy ‘transitional vote’ which was mirrored in Goh’s poor performance In 1991 (61%) after taking over the reigns from Lee Kuan Yew.

In fact, Goh’s only real mandate was achieved during economically trying times. Hence it would not be surprising for PM Lee to bring forward the next GE as soon as possible to ride on these uncertain times.

The PAP is not stupid. They are well-aware that they are clueless in preparing for greater political participation and dealing with a citizenry that is more vocal and politically aware. They do not know how to deal with the foreign press apart from suing for defamation. They do not know what to do with the growing instances of civil disobedience and greater expression .... but one thing they do know is how to spin economic uncertainty in their favour.

They will dangle carrots galore during the early budget statement. They will announce a stimulus package to (as they will tell us) make sure we can keep our jobs and maintain our standards of livings. They might even give us some cash to ride out the year till their plans that effect.

They will also above all make it clear that without a mandate from the people, they will not be able to follow through with these measures. This is just the beginning.

PM Rally Speech: Men-in-White or Men-in-Grey?

Amongst the usual pro-family, pro-integrated society policy tweaks we are used to hearing, it was quite surprising to hear PM Lee announce the lifting of the ban on political pod/vodcasts during election campaigning periods. More surprising was the easing up of restrictions governing the use of the speakers’ corner; allowing for future public demonstrations the location.

Even more surprising was the promise of a light touch in regulating the use of the space. Significantly, the police would hand over management of the site to N Parks.

Of course, as with many PAP policies, there are ambiguities and grey areas which somehow always seem to hinder dissenting voices whilst protecting others.

For example, videos that are “purely made-up material, partisan stuff, footage distorted to create a slanted impression” remain prohibited. PM is probably referring to those smear campaign commercials which are rampant during US presidential elections. But to expect political videos, originating form parties or non-partisan individuals, not to have some sort of slant, is a bit naïve. We shall have to see how consistent the ‘regulators’ are with categorizing videos that emerge during the period. We wouldnt want a situation whereby only pro-PAP videos pass the 'censors'.

Alas, the move to allow for public protests could be a means to plug the apparent hypocrisy with regards to “government-linked” demonstrations (ala CASE). A lack of use of the facility (due to poor location..etc) would also give the PAP more political fodder to declare a happy citizenry not opting to demonstrate although allowed to. And of course here comes the caveat. This ‘privilege’ only remains “as long as the demonstrators adhere to basic rules of law and order, and stay away from issues of race, language or religion.” – a huge grey area if you ask me.

Why should the PAP have the monopoly to discuss issues of race, language or religion? -- This among all other areas is where an easing in restrictions is required.

Singapore to ease ban on political videos, public demonstrations
By Imelda Saad, Channel NewsAsia

SINGAPORE: Political engagement in Singapore is set to change with the advent of new media.

Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong acknowledged this as much and said the government will have to adapt, get used to it, and turn it to positive effect.

Hence, the government will ease up on the ban on political videos and outdoor public demonstrations, he said at his National Day Rally on Sunday night.

The new-generation Singaporeans, weaned on the likes of Facebook and YouTube, are getting news off websites and discussing issues online.

"By the next GE (General Election), 5 years will have passed. Cyber years are like dog years. One year in cyberspace equals to 7 years in real life," Mr Lee said. "That's the pace at which things change. So 5 years times 7 means 35 years in the real world."

Mr Lee even conceded that his National Day Rally has become a multi-media event.

To show this, he took out a mobile phone and proceeded to film the audience before him in the auditorium. Behind him, on a giant screen, the audience saw themselves featured on the Web page of the Prime Minister's Office - live.

"There you are, simple as that. I've just made our first non-political video," he said to laughter from the audience.

And since anyone can do this anytime, anywhere, Mr Lee said an outright ban on party political films is no longer sensible.

But there will still be safeguards.

"Some things are obviously alright - factual footage, documentaries, recordings of live events. But I think some things should still be off limits... (for instance) if you made a political commercial so that it's purely made-up material, partisan stuff, footage distorted to create a slanted impression," he said.

Unlike the last General Election, podcasts, videocasts and election materials will be allowed. But those who upload such material online will have to maintain accountability and responsibility.

The Advisory Council on the Impact of New Media on Society - led by former Singapore Press Holdings editor-in-chief Cheong Yip Seng - will set out its recommendations on these issues later this month.

The restriction remains for outdoor demonstrations, but Mr Lee said the government needs to find ways to allow Singaporeans to express themselves safely.

He said Singapore will allow outdoor public demonstrations at the Speakers' Corner, a public space for free speeches. This is as long as the demonstrators adhere to basic rules of law and order, and stay away from issues of race, language or religion.

The government will manage the liberalisation with a light touch, said Mr Lee. So there is no need for the Police to be involved. In fact, the NParks will manage the Speakers' Corner, instead.

Mr Lee said: "The overall thrust of all these changes is to liberalise our society, to widen space for expression and participation. We encourage more citizens to engage in debate, to participate in building our shared future.

"We will progressively open up our system even more. If you compare today with 5 years ago, 10 years ago, it's much more open today."

Even then, Singapore cannot progress just by copying others. Mr Lee said the country must find the right path for itself. - CNA/ir