pap candidates are sincere in wanting to serve

With the hustings heating up, both sides are trying to tell the voters how good and deserving they are. Everyone is there telling the voters that they are there to serve them, the voters are the boss. Some of the PAP candidates are taking the line that the opposition candidates are like terrorists, appear once in 5 years and disappear after that. That oppposition candidates lack sincerity to want to serve the people, are opportunists. The PAP candidates also present themselves as sincere politicians who have been there in the last 5 years serving the people. That it is in their blood to want to serve the people. Presumably even those who have retired from politics would still be there to serve the people after their terms end and would not disappear like opposition candidates. And PAP candidates will also come out voluntarily to stand for election even if they have not been invited for tea. They are always there with the people's welfare at heart. Tea or no tea, they will come forward unlike opposition candidates who invited themselves into the fray and scurrily run away if not elected. So we have sincere PAP candidates versus not so sincere opposition candidates. Candidates who came out to serve after being invited for tea and candidates voluntarily stepping forward wanting to serve without being invited for tea. Another issue that's quite puzzling to me is that Sitoh was very confident that if elected he will upgrade the lifts in Potong Pasir. According to him the estate is too old and he will apply to HDB for lift upgrading fund. Chiam must be sleeping and did not know that his estate is very old and that he could apply to the HDB for lift upgrading fund. And worst, according to Chok Tong, Chiam has no fund to do upgrading for his estate. I would believe that HDB will allocate upgrading fund to whoever is the MP of the estate and running the town council. I may be wrong.

scoring political points

After the relentless attack on Gomez, he came out and apologised. But that was not to be the end of the episode. In Low Thia Khiang's view it was an honest mistake. In the eyes of the PAP, it is not only a Gomez issue. It is about the credibility of WP, about transparency, about the quality of all WP candidates. This is the same kind of reasoning that people will use in politiking. Once a mistake is made, when there is doubt on one of its members, then the whole organisation will be questioned. It is lucky that Durai is not a PAP member or candidate. Or he and PAP will be grilled like how Gomez and WP are being grilled. Scoring political points!

7 May, a new political landscape

On the wee hours of 7 May 06 half of the Singaporeans were soundly asleep. Another half was griped by a state of shock that swept through the island. The youth of Singapore have spoken. And their disillusioned parents have joined forces with them to deliver a crippling blow to the ruling PAP govt. A totally unexpected result was frozen on the tv screen. PAP lost 3 GRCs, East Coast, Aljunied and Ang Mo Kio. Lee Hsien Loong was voted out by a team of young upstarts, all still wet behind their ears, inexperienced and with school text books still left around their tables. Jayakumar, the deputy Prime Minister, lost his stronghold in East Coast. And together with Aljunied, two of the most promising young ministers, George Yeo and Raymond Lim were also sent packing. And all the single ward seats were won by the opposition candidates! It was a crisis beyond imagination and of a scale that shook the whole nation. What now? The worst nightmare had started. It is a bad dream on a Sunday morning. No it can't happen. The election now in its third day is only a formality, a cake walk to another 5 years of PAP rule. Time for breakfast.

an alternative opposition strategy

What I would consider a better strategy to win one GRC is for WP to borrow Abdul Rahman Mohamad from SDA to join Sylvia Lim's team instead of Gomez. And Mohammed Rahizan Yaacob be replaced by either Chia Ti Lik or Perry Tong. Then field the team in Hong Kah or West Coast. The second WP team can take on one of these two PAP team. In this way, the likelihood of scoring a goal is much better than the current strategy of diluting their strength and competing fairly strong PAP teams. I am still puzzled why they think Aljunied and East Coast are easier to take. The slate of opposition teams indicate very clearly that they were unable to attract good professional candidates from the minority communities. Until they are able to bring in a few good minority candidates, theirs is an uphill task.

scoring on the gomez slip

The PAP is not going to let this blunder get away without scoring political points. And they delivered some heavy blows last night, hitting at the incompetence and the non admittance of an error as an attempt to distort a mistake. This is what WP is going to pay for dearly. Sylvia Lim is perhaps the strongest of all the oppositon candidates. Probably much stronger than Low Thia Khiang and Chaim. But her GRC team is now a three legged horse. Even before the first round is over her team is already limping around. What a shame to lose a fight this way.