Originally posted by Quincey:
Hmm, in this case Salman my friend, I'm afraid I would not be able to agree with you. I think by the fact that the opposition is standing against the Prime Minister on his own turf, is already somewhat of an evolution in itself for Singapore Politics.
Of course, it is not the first time this happended. Remember Goh Chok Tong in Marine Parade, but that was a bi-election. That was in the hay days of the opposition, where they held 5 single seats, if i remember correctly. However, things went awry, they did not deliver and were voted out, justifying the PAP's rhetoric of 'a responsible opposition'. I believe that the WP or for that matter any opposition party should always bear that lesson in mind. If they were to stand in any election, they have to deliever the promises they make, in order the win the trust and respect of the people.
The PAP has done that and that is why they have been in power for the last 40 years.
At the end of day, who are the winners? I think it is the people and the political process, regardless whether the PAP carries the ward or if WP carries 30 per cent of the votes.
This unfortunately has been the repeated propaganda of the party in power that it has today somewhat become the fallacious mainstream view of our political oppositions - that our oppositions are weak and do not earn the trust of the people or whatever other reason they are not worthy to represent the people.
The fact is : the oppositions are being run down by a powerful government of the day who is all out to get run down the opposition at all costs.
Whenever there arise any good and credible candidates like Tang Liang Hong, the party in power would go all out to use underhand as posted in foregoing making totally untrue or unfair allegations against them and then catch them for any offish remarks or innuendos made in the heat of election campaigning and sue them to bankruptcy in subsequent defamation suits.
If we practise this kind of dirty politics and all the gerrymandering of last-minute electoral boundary redrawing and GRC how could there ever arise any good and credible candidate for the good the people in the long run?
People can be brainwashed by a governing power where the press is prevented to reports objective views and facts like subsidy of HDB flats or unemployment figures under the power of press licensing and prohibition of crusading journalism.
If the leaders want to blame the opposition, they should first ask themselves why they are practising the above-stated underhand tactics to run down good men and at the end deprive all of good political talents.
It is not always the people fault or opposition's fault whenever the economy runs into prolonged recessions while the asian tigers are recovering in both economy and property values. It is the press and media which control the mainstream reporting and the press was under the control of politicians to dish out such one-sided distorted view about our political oppositions.
It is our kiasu politicians in power who are not objective and who refuse up to now to allow true and free expressions of views and uninhibited participation in political renewal process which are the root cause of our political apathy.
I beg to disagree that the oppositions failed to earn the trust of the people. They are not in power and should not be made answerable for any lack of performance of the government or economy.
We are now short of political talents to carry on the tasks of upgrading our economy or social and cultural vibrancy, largely because of our kiasu political practice by the party in power. Our leaders' own kiasu mindset is the first thing to change if they wish to maintain any authority to advise people to change anything.