ge round 29: the youth factor

The engaging forum between LKY and the 10 young people from the media reflects the importance of the new generation in the politics of Singapore. There were 10 young people, opinionated, aware and informed of the political issues in the country, unlike the school kids that were featured before. Now, this group of people know what they were talking about. And for LKY to take them on in an open forum shows how serious he and the PAP is about the votes of the young. They are going make an impact in this general election, like it or not. And LKY was there to convince these young people and to convert and win them over to the PAP camp. Did he succeed in what he sets out to do? In the first place the 10 people were all of the same mind. That's what I perceived from their questions, body language and expression. They all have similar thoughts of what was wrong with the present systems and where the fault lies. Their questions were direct and unrestrained. Unlevel playing field, no mandate, restriction of expression, unfair upgrading, relevance of GRCs, a bullying govt, arrogance etc. LKY's response was to play hardball. Nobody plays fair in politics. These are the realities. The ruling party will not help the opposition. And when one of them made a general statement, he was mowed down by a clinical and precise argument on facts. It was a clever argument that will destroy and win a judgement in court. The young man could not substantiate his statement with empirical facts about the fear factor. He misquoted. But does winning that argument on technical ground win the ground? It will win a legal case or an argument. period. The listeners were not convinced, from their expression and rumbling. In fact that kind of statements, that people vote out of fear, can never be substantiated even if a proper survey is done. Not many will tell the truth, especially when they perceived the stakes were high. What ended up is the winning of an argument but losing the audience. This is politics. The explanations by LKY on the necessity for GRC did not address the question that GRC can be smaller. Neither was it convincing to say that GRCs were set up to test the ability of the opposition to run the country. The argument that because the opposition was weak or the walkovers, so the people are contented and there was a mandate for the PAP to rule did not cut any ice. It came across as winning by default, and supported the young people's point that it was due to the uneven playing field, apathy and restrictions placed on the opposition. As for the lack of good opposition, LKY said that all the good candidates were with the PAP. It is true that the opposition could not attract good quality candidates. But there are many excellent candidates that are not contesting for many reasons. What was not answered is why are good people not joining the opposition? But the answer was there. Did LKY manage to wind over the young people to his side? There were some reverence shown. But as to winning them over with hardball politics, the answer was obvious.

bash a path and leave a trail

'Do not go where the path may lead, go instead where there is no path and leave a trail.' -Ralph Waldo Emerson- the above is quoted in a NUS business school advertisement. In no time this will be adapted to fit the singapore context and change to: 'do not find your own path, go instead and follow the trail we have laid for you.' -redbean-

give pap a clean sweep

Maybe Singaporeans shall all vote for PAP and give PAP a clean sweep. Then ask for lesser control and more freedom to write blogs and forums without having to register. Would not that be a good bargain?

li ao asking singaporeans to invite him

Li Ao was reported to have asked Singaporeans to invite him here to explain why he called them stupid. Let's see whether there is any stupid Singaporean who will go ahead and invite him just to do that. Then Li Ao will come here, fully paid for his air tickets, food and lodging and all the publicity, only to confirm that Singaporeans are really stupid.

nkf: a little light at the end of the tunnel

At long last some light is coming through the tunnel. A civil lawsuit is in the pipeline for the board of directors of NKF. Just wonder why it takes so long to come to this stage when the neglect to exercise responsibilities is so overwhelming? And to quote the paper, 'the KPMG report had unveiled outrageous excesses of the old Durai administration.' But the public who are expecting justice may be advised to be less enthusiastic of the outcome when you have comments from the legal professions like 'no point' or 'hard for the authorities to pin down criminal wrongdoings based on the KPMG report.' With so much evidence and so much public money being misappropriated, and the case still looks so weak, it is really puzzling. Now, it would be so much easier to sue someone to bankruptcy over a comment that one chooses to interpret whichever way one chooses than this great saga. The law is indeed intriguing for the layman.

ge round 28: a watershed

Kan Seng said this GE is a watershed election as it is again witnessing the passing of the baton to a new pm. Indeed this is a new milestone. But there are many more things that will make this a historical moment. First there is the ballooning of the younger voters coming into the scene and the fading away of the first generation senior citizens. Then there is the internet that changes the way information reaches out to the people. Political views and issues are exchanged and no longer a one way process as in the past. The people talk back. Never have so much money been placed on the table in a GE, eg upgrading and progress package. The total amount probably exceeds $10 billion. For the first time the opposition parties are getting much better quality candidates than in the past. Young professionals are stepping forward to offer themselves as opposition candidates. The ruling party is seeing the changing of the guards and a third generation of leaders taking over the helm. According to Chinese traditional belief the third generation presents a lot of uncertainties. It either marks the beginning to an end or is an end in itself. But given the strength of the PAP, it is likely to see at most a big dent. Lets see how dramatic is this watershed. Would the people give a rousing support to the new PAP team and clean up the opposition? Or will the people's wish for a strong opposition be granted with the opposition taking a couple of GRCs? Either way it will be a watershed indeed.

hu jintao should call off his visit to the usa

The americans are not showing any sign of sincerity to host the visit by Hu Jintao. In fact in every aspect they are trying to tell Hu Jintao that he is second rate and does not deserve the full honour of a head of state. For Hu Jintao to proceed to visit the US is as a good as turning his face to be slapped. He will be an embarrassment to the Chinese people when the host country is showing all the signs to treat him less than what he is. It is better for Hu Jintao to call off the visit and saves the embarrassment not only to him but to his country and people. This visit is now a joke in cyberspace.