[SINGAPORE] Closing the final day of campaigning on Thursday (May 1), Prime Minister Lawrence Wong urged voters to choose their representatives carefully, even if they want alternative voices in Parliament.
In separate rallies, both he and Senior Minister Lee Hsien Loong noted that the opposition presence in the House is here to stay – and asked voters to consider the wider consequences of their choice.
In rallies for two Group Representation Constituencies (GRCs) where the People’s Action Party (PAP) faces the Workers’ Party (WP), PM Wong said he understands the wish for opposition Members of Parliament (MPs).
“To these residents, I will say, you can be assured that there will be alternative voices in Parliament,” he told the crowd at North Vista Secondary School, at a rally for Sengkang GRC – where the WP is the incumbent.
“After all, the Workers’ Party now says it has safe seats, to quote one of its candidates… Sure to win, basically, from their point of view.”
He noted “multiple hotly contested seats” in this general election, saying: “Some of these constituencies, you may have the opposition breaking through, and they will add to the opposition presence in the Parliament.
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“The more important question, which I would put to all Sengkang residents and voters, is this: Who in your heart of hearts do you really want to serve yourself and your families, and to represent you in Parliament?”
Both at that rally, and later at a rally for Punggol GRC at Yusof Ishak Secondary School, PM Wong said that a key consideration is “character”.
He vouched for the PAP team and, in particular, Deputy Prime Minister Gan Kim Yong, who leads the Punggol GRC slate against a WP team of newcomers.
Speaking to Punggol voters, PM Wong noted that four experienced members of the Cabinet have stepped down: former senior minister Tharman Shanmugaratnam, who is now president; Senior Minister Teo Chee Hean; Defence Minister Ng Eng Hen; and Deputy Prime Minister Heng Swee Keat.
While he has “made great effort” to rejuvenate the team, new faces will take time to develop before they can take on leadership positions, he added.
If the PAP loses some ministers in the 2025 General Election – not just one or two, but “possibly three or four” – that means a loss of possibly eight ministers. Even if there are “good substitutes”, the team cannot function at the same level.
Also at the Punggol rally, DPM Gan addressed some “whispering on the ground” that he is already 66 and may have no time for residents, as he is tasked to look after the economy and trade.
He asserted that residents have been his priority since he entered politics in 2001. “I can only be a minister if I’m an MP, so being your MP is my first priority.”
“Yes, I’m ‘Taskforce man’, I have many tasks, but none more important than the task of looking after you,” he added, in a reference to a nickname acquired in this campaign.
Separately, PM Wong countered the argument that it does not matter if the opposition takes over an estate, because upgrading programmes are extended all over Singapore.
Noting that such programmes are just the minimum, he said: “Don’t settle for the minimum.”
He noted that “a good team in charge can make a difference”. Sengkang residents, having been served by the PAP and WP, have “a very good basis to compare”, he added.
A signal to investors
Over at Temasek Junior College, SM Lee told Tampines voters that Singapore needs an “exceptional” government to deal with the problems ahead, and that the results of the general election will send an important signal to investors and other countries.
Multinational corporations are holding back amid global uncertainty and when they do invest, they will “think very carefully” and consider the government’s stability and capability.
Singapore’s exceptional performance is due to its “exceptional brand of politics”, and this must continue, he said.
He noted that opposition parties have asked voters to send more alternative voices into Parliament, and the PAP accepts that opposition MPs are here to stay.
But if Singapore becomes an ordinary democracy, it will also become an ordinary country that delivers “ordinary performance”, he said. The country will no longer maintain the standards it has become used to, whether in the economy, education, housing, healthcare or its global standing.
Building together
PM Wong also addressed the uncertain economic climate, reiterating that the road ahead will not be easy and that global “storms” cannot be avoided.
“But we can choose how we respond to the storm,” he said. “We can give in to anger and cynicism and division, which you sometimes hear in opposition rallies, or we can choose compassion, solidarity and strength.”
He added: “We can choose to pull apart, or we can choose to pull together. What the PAP offers is very clear: We choose to build, we choose to work together, we choose to unite.”
This election, he said, is not just about the seats won. “Your vote is a vote of what we believe in, who we want to be, what kind of Singapore we want.
“Do we want more politics, or do we want real solutions? Do we want a country where everything is turned into a fight, divided by anger, or do we want a country where we can find common ground, lift each other up and move forward as one?”
The PAP is “not a perfect party” and has made mistakes, but has “always been upfront with” citizens. And while the party may not promise to solve everything, it promises to always walk with Singaporeans, he said.
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