Seelan Palay
The following is a letter from Mr Seelan Palay in response to TOC’s report, “Milder but more credible“.
A lead article on The Online Citizen portal a couple of days ago described the Youth Wing of the Workers’ Party as “milder but more credible”. But what this headline means has become a subject of controversy, going by the comments that the article has attracted.
However, my focus is on something else.
The first two paragraphs of the write-up are an unbridled attack on WP’s former secretary-general, the late Mr J B Jeyaretnam who had led the party for three decades until 2001.
The late JBJ, as he was popularly known, was accused of “unrestrained election rally speeches and rambunctious attacks on the PAP government“.
This is exactly the same allegation that the ruling PAP, through its controlled media, was accusing JBJ of doing during his political life. What is most disturbing is the fact that such an allegation has found resonance, of all places in the new leadership of WP.
It was through his resolve and determination that JBJ was able to break 15 years of PAP’s total domination of Parliament by winning the Anson seat in a by-election in 1981. Again, he was elected with an increased majority in the same constituency in 1984 when all electoral wards in Singapore remained Single Member Constituencies.
Soon after, the MP for Anson was found guilty by a high court judge for “having falsified” the party accounts, together with its chairman. Both were fined and jailed, depriving JBJ of his Anson seat and thus frustrating the constituents of their elected MP. But in 1991, when he remained disqualified from contesting, JBJ worked relentlessly to make sure Mr Low Thia Khiang, an unknown WP candidate then, got elected in Hougang. If not for JBJ’s leadership of WP and his election rally speeches, the Hougang single seat would not have been won.
Despite the constant attacks from the PAP, including name calling such as “mangy dog” by Lee Kuan Yew, JBJ’s tenacity paid off in the form of a Privy Council judgment in the late 1980s when the Law Lords ruled that the MP for Anson and his co-defendant (WP chairman) were subjected to “a series of mistrials for offences which they did not commit”. The Privy Council in London was then the highest court of law of the county due to Mr Lee Kuan Yew’s insistence that an outside body provided the “litmus test” of Singapore’s judicial independence.
This damning indictment by the Privy Council sealed the fate of the so-called litmus test Lee Kuan Yew often boasted about. Soon after, appeals to Privy Council were scrapped.
And yet the WP and its Youth Wing now seem “adamant about avoiding the bevy of defamation suits suffered by its former Secretary-General“.
What an irony. Instead of blaming the perpetrators of the crime, the victim remains condemned.
I suppose that is the price one has to pay to earn the accolade “milder and more credible” from an authoritarian regime intolerant of dissent.
With this kind of opposition or alternative party, Singapore will continue to be under the PAP for another half-a-century, giving firm assurance to the obvious desire of Law Minister K Shanmugam for the ruling party to continue with the status quo.
Seelan Palay is an artist and activist. He blogs at http://seelanpalay.blogspot.com
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- Milder but more credible
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- S’pore press freedom ranked 133rd – MP says this shows “our press remains credible” !
- In celebration of JBJ’s birthday
- Farewell, great JBJ
why the surge in number of opposition members?
why so many young men and women?
are they not busy with work and career?
could the recent announcement of provision for more seats entice more to go this career path?
over $10000.00 per month part time work.
not bad even by european or world standard.
i also feel can fit the shoe to ask questions.
But cannot assure i can get answers all of you want.
so vote me if i apply ok?
relevent must reads and movie……..see link below!
http://todayinsingapore.wordpress.com/
http://singabloodypore.rsfblog.org/
Is it truly going to be a multi racial party or will it change it’s mind later?????
http://www.yoursdp.org/index.php/perspective/vantage/3197-sporean-activists-should-engage-more-with-others-blogger
Kimon:
As faras I can think, you have your own one sided opinions too.
Being in the opposition is one thing. Filling into the opposition’s role is another.
As far as I can see, JBJ is a great man. A man with shoes too big for anyone to fill because his guts and determination is just and clear.
But please, as I have mentioned, the tides have changed. Look at wesminister’s democracy like Australia or Britain. They fight the cause using the medium of legislation.
Our oppositions have not been fighting based on facts and evidence? I suggest you really do your research. Infact, I would strongly suggest you take up the opposition cause.
It’s common in Singapore to be dissatisfied with what has been evolving in a rapid manner. Tastes change too fast. How many are still living in the Malaysian cup dream, leaving our current soccer heroes in a limbo even though they have championed regional tourneys. Change is not good enough. People someitmes expect rapid change. If you do not root the support and display patience and loyalty, we can never achieve anything. We will jsut let PAP think that we need their directions to lead our lives.
Look at PKR ..really…they’ve been fighting the cause of change but look at the evolving infigting. The fight and speeches seems so clear yet the ending result has been too subtle. It was more talk and air punching then actual groundwork.
Kimon, step inside the circle of politics, and we can properly evaluate your otherwise side comments.
“this i totally agree, there is no point proceeding with a “forced marriage” i mean opposition unity. :P
we know what happen when marriage hits the rocks right? :D
eh, Rachel, i hope you dun mind the dark humour. haa… :D ”
Sure, I see your point. ;)
I think opposition unity is no easy feat because our opposition parties have different approaches. There are also pros and cons, and compromises to be made with due respect to each parties’ uniqueness. In fact they should celebrate the diversity and work towards a common goal. However before beginning to do so, they must have a mutual sincerity to work with each other.
Otherwise it will truly turn out ugly towards the end… that is if we are to imagine the worst of all outcomes.
Rachel Zeng
post #105 on December 24th, 2009 1.45 am
////I think opposition unity is no easy feat because our opposition parties have different approaches.////
true, & people need to see & appreciate them for what they stand for in their own unique way. people should not behave like 1 old man (from that big party) who does not tolerate individual views that differs from his.
i guess people are shaped largely by their environment, which does not tolerate people who do not toe-the-line. some response that borders on such behaviour is disturbing.
in the end opposition parties ought to see themselves not just as opposition parties with credibility but with vision, heart to serve the people & not be too distracted by petty politics.
i’ll like to take this opportunity to wish everyone a better & brighter (but not cheaper or faster) 2010!
;)
What matters most is not just being ‘mild and credible’ or ‘aggressive and critical’ but whether actions from the politicians served the best interest of all Singaporeans.