Everyone’s talking about Gan Kim Yong; fights quietly brewing in the West
Also, how much do municipal plans matter?
Hi everyone,
The day after tomorrow, we go to the polls. Until then, we won’t be allowed to publish much about the GE. The next time we will Unpack is after the vote.
In tonight’s special issue, we look at how the last few days have shaped up, as you cool off.
The PAP has used the final days of campaigning to re-emphasise its argument that losing more constituencies means losing more ministers, which means a weaker government and a weaker Singapore.
Opposition politicians have attacked this argument.
The PSP said today that having more opposition voices in Parliament would not weaken the Government, and will instead result in more robust debates and better policies.
On Tuesday, the WP emphasised that opposition MPs must be elected, rather than given non-constituency seats as the “best losers”, to make a difference.
“I believe when you have a diversity of views in Parliament, as long as we are moving in the same direction, this red dot will continue to be a bright, shining red dot,” said party chief Pritam Singh, citing how the WP had not opposed the Government during the Covid-19 pandemic.
Tonight, the parties got in their final words before the polls. Here’s what has emerged over the last few days:
Can’t stop, won’t stop (endorsing Task Force Man)
The news: Amid a fierce contest for Punggol, the WP has gone after DPM Gan Kim Yong and his eleventh-hour move from Chua Chu Kang.
Singh said it was “very strange” that the Cabinet minister was not elected into the PAP’s latest central executive committee in 2024, while WP Punggol candidate Alexis Dang called on voters to reject the use of key government figures as political pawns.
The ruling party has struck back.
PM Wong has repeatedly emphasised Gan’s importance to his Cabinet – including christening him Singapore’s ‘Task Force Man’. He also said “it was “regretful and disappointing” that the WP made “negative attacks on someone who is spending so much time tackling national issues”.
But WP Punggol candidate Harpreet Singh disavowed personal attacks, saying: “Our primary objective is to represent Singaporeans in Parliament and ask the questions, however difficult they are, even if they make some leaders uncomfortable.”
The take: Track record and personality have in some ways become the focus of the campaign (side note: WP Jalan Kayu newcomer Andre Low’s leaked messages that he has apologised for), at least in PAP and WP straight contests.
The PAP is riding hard on Gan’s role in managing the Covid-19 pandemic, and is emphasising his importance to dealing with coming economic uncertainty as trade minister. Various senior party leaders have come out to vouch for his character, his Covid-19 handling, his work on trade and the economy, and more.
The WP too is emphasising its track record in keeping the government in check, an argument based on its increasingly long and large presence in Parliament.
In many ways this is not new – every race has some level of emphasis on personal competency and character (think Ivan Lim in 2020).
The question is how much weight these attacks or endorsements will carry with the electorate in an election which many expect will turn on national issues like the cost of living.
More sheltered walkways anyone?
The news: National considerations may dominate the headlines, but voters care about what is going on in their neighbourhoods too.
Addressing this, the PAP has put out plans for almost every constituency.
In its rallies, one speaker typically highlights municipal upgrades that have taken place over the last term (Marsiling-Yew Tee’s Hany Soh even reminded the crowd that they had likely arrived at the stadium on a new bus service). Others promise upgrades to come (Bishan-Toa Payoh’s Chee Hong Tat said there will be a new Bishan hawker centre).
The WP has said that it will share its plans if elected. It is campaigning on its track record of town council experience, now that it has had two GRCs under its belt for the past five years.
But the PSP’s stance is that MPs should focus on debating national policies, rather than being estate managers interested only in local issues.
The take: Municipal issues are unavoidable in Singapore elections because MPs here also manage town councils.
Estate-level management and promises have been a through-line in this election. Some MPs, like National Development Minister Desmond Lee in West Coast-Jurong West, have asked voters to ask the opposition for their plans for their towns.
This is a sticky issue between the ruling party and the opposition.
It is tricky to untangle national-level programmes and constituency plans – in simple terms, what the PAP and civil service would have done anyway and what local MPs have achieved.
Opposition parties like the PSP have pointed out that much of what the PAP says it has done, is simply what the government is supposed to do. But PM Wong said that even though national upgrading programmes are extended across all estates, a good team can make a difference.
Wild, wild west?
The news: The east has been garnering all the attention, but in the west close fights could be quietly brewing.
We’ve been watching a back-and-forth over the last nine days in Chua Chu Kang GRC, as the PAP and PSP candidates volley the Minimum Wage ball over the electoral battlefield.
In Pioneer, PSP newcomer Stephanie Tan has captured some attention after her eloquent performance on the Mediacorp roundtable. She faces the incumbent two-term MP Patrick Tay, who won with 61.98 per cent of the vote at the last election, also against the PSP.
In Bukit Panjang, we are seeing a rematch in one of the most closely-fought SMCs from the last election, as PAP’s Liang Eng Hwa goes head-to-head again with SDP’s Paul Tambyah.
The take: While the fireworks go off in the East, these races are likely to be close enough to bear watching.
The PAP’s Chua Chu Kang GRC slate is led by Manpower Minister Tan See Leng, who was moved to the constituency on Nomination Day. Alongside him are one-term backbencher Zhulkarnain Abdul Rahim and two new faces – Jeffrey Siow and Choo Pei Ling. That’s a tough fight for any incumbent, when three-quarters of the slate are unfamiliar to the area.
They are facing off with what is PSP’s de-facto B-team, including one of its more well-known new faces, former Singapore Manufacturing Federation chief Lawrence Pek.
Over the campaign, the two sides have been locked in a policy-heavy debate over introducing a minimum wage – with PSP for and PAP against (it says its Progressive Wage Model is better).
In Pioneer, Tan’s performance will be interesting to watch. Some have said that the 2020 debate was how Sengkang’s Jamus Lim gained national prominence. The PSP may have pushed her forward a little too late in the campaign, but Tan’s vote share could inform how other parties choose their debate debutants in the future.
The PAP won Bukit Panjang with a narrow 53.73 per cent margin in 2020. Both returnees will be hoping to improve on their last showing, but have had fairly quiet campaigns so far.
SDP’s Tambyah has gone on multiple rallies (the SDP has rallied every. single. day.), though he has focused much of his messages on larger policy, such as universal healthcare, rather than be specific to his fight with PAP’s Liang.
Liang had emphasised on his municipal chops, pointing out improvements to the town that he had advocated for.
On the penultimate day of the hustings, both came out swinging in a last push ahead of Polling Day.
We apologise for no Second Reading and Community sections this week, we’ve been swamped.
Catch you all really soon, and don’t forget to cast your vote!