Andrew Loh with input from the TOC team /
The People’s Action Party’s (PAP) greatest asset has always been its’ iron discipline and portrayal of a united front.
But any objective observer will agree that the 2011 election will be remembered as the year that the image cracked, and Singaporeans began to see a remarkably fractured party running a finicky, nearly panicked campaign.
PAP’s new blood under fire
It was an inauspicious start: the morning of nomination day saw panic in the PAP’s Tampines team as unionist candidate Steve Tan pulled out in the early morning, to be replaced by Baey Yam Keng from Tanjong Pagar GRC.
Grassroots leaders in Mr Baey’s constituency were left in tears, as rumors swirled for the next few days about accusations of sexual harassment that were leveled at Mr Tan during his time in the National Trades Union Congress (NTUC). Two days of momentum lost.
The PAP was on the back foot even before the campaign began, as strong doubt was cast on the quality of the much touted “fourth generation leadership”.
Mr Janil Puthucheary had to fend off derision from Singaporeans who resented that he had never served National Service and Major-General Chan Chun Sing will probably take a few elections to live down the nickname “Major-General of Lanfang” after a widely derided speech structured around an obscure civilization delivered as a patronizingly “plebian” harangue.
But the loudest pre-election outcry was reserved for 27 year-old Tin Pei Ling. Every interview she gave resulted in a new gaffe, reaching a point where Senior Minister Goh Chok Tong had to promise that Marine Parade residents needn’t worry as he would implement a buddy system where more experienced MPs would hold the hands of the younger MPs.
Play it naughty or play it nice?
The question on everyone’s mind prior to the campaign was not whether, but who, would be the lightning rod candidate in GE 2011. In elections past, the PAP has, as the Chinese saying goes, killed a chicken to scare the monkeys. Singaporeans held their breath and wondered who would follow in the footsteps of James Gomez, Dr Chee, Tang Liang Hong and Francis Seow.
This time round the tables were turned on the PAP, and every effort to reverse their fortunes by going on the attack backfired.
When Dr Vivian Balakrishnan trained his sights on Dr Vincent Wijeysingha of the Singapore Democratic Party (SDP) by accusing the party of having a gay agenda, some thought that lightning had struck. It turned out to be a false alarm, as the backlash over Dr Balakrisnan’s attack was strong enough even within the PAP to stop Dr Balakrishnan’s line of attack in its tracks.
Despite Mr Goh Chok Tong’s personal call for a gentlemanly campaign and a promise not to comment on opposition candidates outside his GRC, he hit out in the middle of the campaign at the SDP’s Mr Tan Jee Say, his former Principle Private Secretary, and alleged that he left the civil service as he was “not perm sec material”.
When challenged by Mr Tan, who said he did not expect such comments after “five years of loyal service”, Mr Goh backtracked and said that he was a “loyal, dedicated and able PPS”.
The Aljunied Panic
Throughout the campaign, the PAP was receiving warning signs that all was not well with the ground. Lee Hsien Long and Khaw Boon Wan acknowledged that the ground in this election was not as sweet.
But what was a simmering dissatisfaction boiled over into anger when Mr Lee Kuan Yew warned that the voters of Aljunied would “regret” and “repent” over the next five years if they voted in a Worker’s Party (WP) team.
This was a turning point in the election, when the less hardline members of the PAP realized that unless the anger was contained, it would be looking at a much larger vote swing than it was willing to accept. Mr Lee’s comments were decisively repudiated by his son.
The operation to “save” the Aljunied PAP team had begun in earnest, but it looked like no one was coordinating where that fire was directed.
Mr Goh fired the first bullets: directly into the face of Wong Kan Seng. His defense of George Yeo probably left members of his own party cringing. Unlike Mr Wong, he said, Mr Yeo had not let a dangerous terrorist escape under his watch. With friends like these…
The situation showed no sign of improving, with just two days to the end of the campaign period, the Singapore River to his back, PM took a risky gamble: he apologized for the most egregious mistakes under his watch. Not once, but twice.
Perhaps it was bad timing, and perhaps there was nothing short of breaking down in tears like Lim Boon Heng that could have made the apology work, but by the last day of campaigning the opposition was already turning Mr Lee’s apology into political capital.
In nine days of campaigning, the opposition argued, they have forced the stiff necked PAP into apologizing for five years of mistakes. Think of how much more the opposition could deliver if they had a significant presence in Parliament.
And indeed, more than wringing an apology out of the Mr Lee, the opposition has managed to squeeze significant concessions from the PAP.
They have extracted an explicit promise not to raise GST in the next term of Parliament, they have forced an upward revision of the income ceiling for Built-to-order flats, and they have forced Lee Hsien Loong to recognize that closing the “affective divide” Catherine Lim warned them about is important.
Recognizing that the PAP’s “rule by Pragmatism” was collapsing around its’ ears, PAP leaders plaintively tugged at the heartstrings of voters.
GE 2011 will forever be remembered as the one where PAP leaders shed tears and apologized. Whether the tears and apologies are enough to get people to cross the box beside the lightning bolt remains to be seen.
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Thank you TOC!
Thank you opposition parties for fighting for Singaporeans at great sacrifice to yourselves. We love you and God bless you all.
I sense internal cracks in PAP, with Goh Chok Tong in one camp and Lee Hsien Loong in the other.
I never liked crowds.. and I avoid them like the plague. But yesterday, I parked my car 1.5km away fm Serangoon Stadium n walked there, n braved the crowds. Y? coz i figured this was probably going to be more significant than the YOG, F1…a historical day.
This was a side of Sg’reans i have NEVER seen before in my 48 years.
People were more accomodating of the pushing & shoving (although tempers did flare a little here & there)… they were UNITED… and the air was electrifying… heartfelt patriotism that even singing ‘Stand up for Sg’ during NDPs could never generate.
Even as I tried to squeeze my way out after 1.5 hours.. more were streaming in, to take my place. There were uncles & aunties, youngsters, middle age couples, from all stratas of society…
I won’t attempt to predict d outcome of the GE, but that in itself was an experience of a lifetime.
For once, many people felt EMPOWERED.
Do the right thing, singapore.
Dear fellow Singaporeans,
Let us use our hands do the talking and translate all our chatter to real change. Each one of us have the ability to make a difference, to give voice to the real issues that PAP must tackle in the next 5 years. They ask for a strong mandate. I say we give them a strong signal! That it is time to treat every Singaporean as partners in building our the nation we love and call home!
The Crux of this election is not about voting for a better government but BETTER GOVERNANCE.
We indeed have a good government compared with surrounding nations, one of which we are grateful and thankful. But this election’s call goes way beyond that, as her citizens matures and began embracing the first world mindset so should our political structure evolve like wise.
If our present government would impose high governance standards on listed companies, charities and even religious organizations, how much more should our impending government reflect these values in their politcal system. More so when our national assests and reserves have reached astronomical levels for a tiny city state. The absence of curruption today does not mean there will not be tomorrow.
As one of the requirements for good governance is to have indepedant directors sitting on the board for checks and balances which is practiced in the corporate world, how much more must it be enforced in the highest governing body of the nation. In short, the opposition is critical for good governance.
Besides good government, we need good governance, this will ensure the longeivity and prosperity of Singapore.
Vote for good governance!
CNN features Nicole Seah :
http://edition.cnn.com/video/data/2.0/video/world/2011/05/05/neisloss.singapore.elex.youth.cnn.html
Notice how the PAP “declines comment” under a non-edited situation …
Be AWARE of new MPs pass their BILLS 2U
a) Energy Sector-Sale of Spore Power etc.Why the new MP from this sector?
b) Finance – New MP is from MAS,Why is he being voted into as MP?
c) Defence Sector–New MP why is our defence spent increasing?
We need a LOUDER opposition to STOP them to pass more unknown bills to SPOREAN
I was passing by the CC and can even hear PAP grassroot leaders feeling disgusted and questioning what is happening to PAP. These people will still vote for PAP but their respect for PAP certainly went down significantly.
I can’t access TR forum now; seems like it’s under cyber-attack by PAP agents. This is understandable because TR is hard-core anti-PAP.
But you know what? They have since last night also shut down CNA’s discussion forum! CNA is government-owned you know? Yet the postings I’ve been following were mostly complaints agaisnt the ruling party. No wonder they’ve decided to shut it down because it ain’t serving the PAP agenda.
An email sent to me:
Lee HL today accused a lack of seriousness among the opposition whose candidates lend support to one another in this campaign but has he considered his lack of sincerity for the weighted and politically timed apology which he let out in his statement to the media…
Speaking to the media after a walkabout in Ang Mo Kio on Wednesday, he said: “We considered carefully and I thought this was a suitable message to Singaporeans at this stage of the campaign, to focus minds on the key issues.”
Where is the sincerity if this apology was measured to produce an effect to aid it in gaining political ground.
Consider the words “at this stage of the campaign” – an apology is not guided by any motive to win something but to express regret for an error. Nor should an apology be measured for the purpose of being “a suitable message.” It should be heartfelt, plain and simple.
This shows a party that seems to be making it more because of the potential if offers to further its agenda rather than to offer an uncategorical admission of error and a plea for pardon. He wants to just get it out of the way, maybe he thinks that is all the people want to hear.
The people want a change of heart, not a change-parade of highly-paid wailers. Too much to ask from a party that has grown callous in its ways and indifferent to the people it was called to serve.
Without the MM, the PAP’s campaign seemed to lack purpose and direction. Their leaders were more concerned about saving their own hides rather than fighting for the party. Too many inexperienced candidates were replacing their experienced colleagues. The caliber of new candidates looks less stellar compared to the Opposition candidates.
Do not be surprised if the polls tomorrow show a drastic drop in popular support for the incumbent.
Would the PAP relevant minister in charge investigate the following allegation that I was told as below?
A friend shared with me that her father Mr. Chen, an entrepreneur, was almost bankrupted in one incident sometime in the early 1990s because of Helen Yeo’s dirty job. Helen Yeo, a lawyer, is the wife of ex transport minister, Mr. Yeo Cheow Tong.
Mr. Lim, a partner of Mr Chen, engaged Helen Yeo who helped him make a false police report about the way Mr. Chen and his wife cheated him and the government of tax. The Police then convinced the CAD to raid Mr. Chen’s and his wife’s business premises one day after the police report was made, and took all their business records for an almost 6 months of investigation. Mr. Chen’s business came to a standstill for 6 months without the revenue to pay for the monthly overhead expenses and advertising cost incurred. Mr. Lim was earlier dismissed by the board after having been found to have secretly registered two companies under his brothers’ names and using them to solicit business from the company’s long-term clients. With his brothers’ help he also stole raw materials from the factory to produce product samples to send to the company’s clients and promising the clients that he could sell them at 30% less if they buy from his new companies instead of from the original company. Although Mr. Chen had also lodged a Police report of Mr. Lim’s raw materials theft case, the police, instead of carrying out a discreet investigation on Mr. Lim after evidences were shown to the police, the I/O called Mr. Lim and told him of Mr. Chen’s report and gave Mr. Lim time to produce evidences that he did not steal the raw materials. A week or so later, the I/O told Mr. Chen that Mr. Lim did show him his receipts of the raw materials purchase. Mr. Chen protested and showed further evidences that the receipt from Mr. Lim were dated later than the product samples he sent to the company’s long-term clients, thus the raw materials used to make those samples couldn’t be from his own purchase. A stock inventory made also found a huge amount of raw materials under Mr. Lim’s brother’s charge missing. Despite all these evidences produced to the I/O he insisted on dismissing the case. Was the I/O bribed???
Mr. Chen’s lawyer also discovered that the CAD had acted on the false police report that was sent to them by Mr. Lim just a day before the CAD’s raid.
Mr. Chen wrote to all 77 PAP MPs (and ministers) to complain and to ask for an investigation as to why Helen Yeo has such power to summon the police and the CAD to act so swiftly as if it’s a terrorist or life and death case.
During the pre-trial conference and the trial, Helen Yeo’s young lawyer dared even called Mr. Chen’s lawyer names, and the presiding judge did not object!
Why was the police force so obedient to Helen Yeo? and the CAD so obedient to the police? It was as if Helen Yeo owns the Police Force and the CAD! Even the judge was bias!
Despite that the CAD was informed with evidences that Mr. Lim was the company director, overseeing and in charge of finance, purchasing, marketing and the business entity operated by Mr. Chen’s wife, with another two of Mr. Lim’s brothers working in the factory, and that as such, Mr Lim’s claims that Mr. Chen and his wife’s hanky panky accounting to cheat him and the government could not hold water, the CAD insisted to press on charges. In the end, Mr. Chen’s wife was persuaded to plead guilty on the lawyer’s advice in order to save the running legal fees as CAD had the right to drag the law suit until they win because of face-saving, convincing Mr Chen and his wife that it was just like a traffic summon. The CAD could not have a case against Mr. Chen.
According to Mr. Chen, he wrote twice to all 77 PAP MPs and ministers but he received no response at all. In later years, Mr. Chen also spoke to one of the Straits Times editors and requested him to have the story of his plight published, but it was declined.
Mr. Chen is prepared to present himself again to help with the investigation if the Police and the CAD is prepared to dig up the dirt. If they are not, would our righteous PAP government press on the Police and the CAD to investigate this matter?
If someone in Helen Yeo’s law firm, or in the Police force or the CAD were doing Mr. Lim and/or Helen Yeo a big favor whether for personal gain or friendship, it is only fair to Mr. Chen and his wife that this person or persons be prosecuted.
Moreover, if someone who was in charge of filtering letters received for the PAP MPs and ministers he/she too must be probed into, as to why this was not brought up to the minister in charge, or the minister in charge also did a favor to Helen Yeo (Yeo Cheow Tong’s wife) to help them cover up?
After knowing what Helen Yeo has done as mentioned in that book, ‘Escape from Paradise’ there must be something not right with our judiciary system.
I think the people is also interested to know how could this happen in Singapore’s first world government.
Those involved must pay the price!
Maybe the MM has been feeding these ministers their lines for the past 20 years. Now that he’s not PM, everyone’s gone nuts.
(Dudes. Even former president Devan Nair wrote against LKY. http://www.singapore-window.org/sw99/90321dn.htm )
LOL! I love the title of this article! Just perfect!
I would like to say a big THANK YOU to all the online blogs and alternative media giving us news on Singapore politics, Singapore life, Singaporeans and the elections.
In particular, of course, is TOC! Perhaps the best among the alternative media channels we have. Kudos for the high-quality, well-written articles! Special kudos for the excellent coverage of the parties, candidates and the rallies in this GE 2011! Well done!
I am sure readers will join me in saying we greatly appreciate all the hard work, toil and effort you have put in, TOC! Keep up the good work!
Long live TOC!
dear andrew loh, thanks for a great article. just wanted to add that many singaporeans are also sick, tired and angry about the gerrymandering that is the redrawing of electoral boundaries before every election, to give PAP maximum electoral advantage, which not only insults our intelligence but also treats singaporeans cavalierly like pawns. this is the election that will see this anger boil over.
I am replying to AfriendinNeed. So you too have come to know that State Institutions are taking orders from elites like powerful law firms to attack citizens who happen to anger or oppose them or in litigation with them. Singapore is fast becoming a rogue police state with the AG leading the way for the ISD, MUIS,CAD, ICA etc coming to the aid of elite lawyers to help them soften targets for their friends. If this is not corruption, I do not know what is. What we are now reporting is mere tip of the iceberg. I am sure that the Mafia State Institutions have harrassed large sections of the citizenry. This is the reason why we have to break up this Party this election day.
I am replying to AFriendInNeed. Now that we have a small opposition in Parliament in Aljunied GRC, although merely a foothold, I would like to suggest that we ask for people who have become victims of elites teaming up with State Institutions to hound them to tell their stories of how they have been harassed. This kind of symbiosis is common in the failed States of the Middle East where the Elites routinely get the secret police on the trail of their enemies to crush them. In these states the tyranny is open, where people are pulled out of their cars and smacked. Here in Singapore it is more covert.Here a prominent personality close to the Govt, frequently a ‘top’lawyer, calls his friends in the ISD to do the job on his enemy. Nowadays because of the bad press on Muslims, MUIS is also a great player. Together, in one case, MUIS and the ISD weave a web of lies into the personal identity electronic records of of their targets in the ICA. So the hapless citizen is victimized by checks and threats each time he makes an appearance at an Immigration Checkpoint. His complaints to the Authorities typically will not elicit any response or at best negative response. Even the AG will scorn him and refuse the State’s Courts to investigate why he is tormented. The victim is forced into a desperate state of being assailed by unknown forces for undeclared crimes. This will continue until the end of his litigation where he will be soundly trounced by a judge who is also a part of this symbiotic arrangement.
There is an evil symbiotic arrangement between elites and State Institutions which can readily be commandeered to go after the enemies of the elites’ friends. No longer are these premier policing institutions focussed on enemies of the State ( Mas Selamat escaped because the security police are running all over the place in errands for their political masters).
I hope that people will read this posting of mine and yours and add to the narrative, so that we can get a groundswell of evidence of this sort of corruption. You must know that being in control of the electronic identity records is a strategic tool to cow anyone because every aspect of his life can then be monitored and assasinated. This kind of ambush is the sharp edge of States that are consolidating power beyond normal politics. We have got to stop it before it becomes widespread. I have a feeling that it is already widespread but our genteel population do not want to tell of how they have been violated by a string of thuggish State Institutions at the behest of elite lawyers on instructions of clients..
While MM Lee is getting old, the biggest threat to Lee dynasty is not opposition party but SM Goh. PM and SM are already disputing each other publicly with opposite comments and opinion. No wonder PM Lee looks so happy despite losing Aljunied GRC because it is not the end of the world and, more importantly, SM Goh get only 56.65% in Marine Parade – the desired result by sending TPL to ‘help’ SM Goh team.
I would like to personally thank “AFriendInNeed” for his comment regarding Helen Yeo’s false police report.
As some my know, our book, “Escape from Paradise” was banned in Singapore by Helen Yeo. CJ Yong had purchased a copy of the book before Helen Yeo ever saw it, and he was OK with it. The book gives a great and nostalgic picture of Singapore, and was very successful in NLB, and bookstores – before Helen Yeo’s lawyer, Philip Jeyaretnam threatened Kinokuniya.
There was little in the book about Helen Yeo, who was involved in the selling the house of my wife’s father, Lee Teng Jin, at 69 Holland Road.
We did not know it when we wrote the book, but Helen Yeo had the house recorded as being sold, before it was sold. That way, his creditor did not know Lee had the funds. This was done, I assume, to help Lee Teng Jin to escape a creditor, his wife, in a divorce action. The documents supporting this are at http://www.escapefromparadise.com/NewFiles/iras.html.
Again, our thanks to “AFriendInNeed”
John & May Chu
opposition should prep for by-election when lky….