Pritam, Tan Cheng Bock will contest in GE; an election-year Budget
Tampines GRC, the hottest constituency on the block
Reading time: 5 min
Hi,
We had an information overload last week, with WP chief Pritam Singh’s verdict on Monday and the Budget – PM Lawrence Wong’s first as head of government – the day after.
On Sunday, opposition parties staked claims on opposite sides of the island - in West Coast and in Tampines.
This week, the government’s $143.1 billion spending plan will be debated in Parliament starting Wednesday.
After that, MPs will debate each ministry's budget, where we will hear more details of their spending plans for the year. The whole process is expected to take weeks, till mid-March. Don’t worry, we’ll watch these for you as well.
We’ve got a slightly longer read today, so let’s get into it:
Four parties go a-knockin’ in Tampines
The news: Roses are red, violets are blue, Tampines voters, we’re coming for you. - PAP, WP, NSP and PPP
Tampines voters are being wooed by four parties that have planted their flags in eastern soil.
A few weeks ago, WP sources told ST that the party would likely run in the PAP-held constituency for the first time.
On Sunday, People’s Power Party chief Goh Meng Seng said he wants to field a team in Tampines too. This was fresh after his party’s split from the People’s Alliance for Reform – an opposition coalition barely two years old.
And the National Solidarity Party, which contested Tampines in the last three GEs, is still in the fray.
The take: Multi-cornered fights are rare in Singapore, as the outcome generally favours the ruling party.
Instead, opposition party leaders typically meet after the release of the EBRC report to divvy up constituencies among them.
But there is now less ground for smaller parties to fight over, given the WP’s expansion in the East and the PSP’s foothold in the West.
Opposition coalitions formed after GE2020 wanted to have a louder voice by banding together. But sceptics would not be surprised that these personality-driven parties, with different takes on policy, are finding it difficult to stay aligned.
You get a voucher, everybody gets a voucher
The news: All of us are getting some cash.
The election-year Budget has served up an SG60 basket of vouchers and rebates that every Singaporean can claim.
What’s different this year is that some people will get help they didn’t use to qualify for. For example, private property folks will get vouchers to buy environmentally-friendly appliances and subsidies for senior-friendly home fittings.
The Budget bag also has several pockets of support aimed at cost-of-living pressures, including more of the government go-to CDC vouchers.
And large families with three or more kids will get at least $16,000, a new scheme that looks more wallet-relieving than an incentive to procreate.
The take: The looming general election will have many people reading this year’s Budget as an effort to sweeten the ground for the PAP. Is it being extravagant?
Things to note: First, the Government made more money than expected last year, fuelling this bumper Budget. This came mostly from taxes, following tax changes made over the past few years.
Second, it’s left some $6.4 billion on the table – the expected surplus for FY2024 – after these moves. This goes into the reserves, along with surpluses from previous Budgets in the past five-year term.
Given the surplus, look out for questions from the opposition in Parliament this week on whether these tax changes, especially the two GST increases, were necessary.
Yes, he will contest
The news: Tan Cheng Bock, 84, will contest this year’s general election, ending speculation that he would step aside due to his age and health.
The Progress Singapore Party founder said during a Jurong GRC walkabout that as long as he stays relevant, “I will be around”.
If successful, Tan will be the second-oldest MP - after Lee Kuan Yew - to ever be elected.
Tan stopped short of declaring his return to West Coast GRC, where his team was the best-performing loser of GE 2020.
The take: As a former six-term PAP MP and election strategist, Tan is careful with his words to keep voters - and opponents - guessing.
What we know is that he has a deep connection to West Coast. The SMC he represented for 26 years - Ayer Rajah - was folded into the GRC in 2020.
Having him rejoin NCMPs Hazel Poa and Leong Mun Wai there could tip the scales in their favour.
But with potential changes to constituency boundaries upcoming, Tan’s coy remarks will keep the party’s options open for its A-team.
Yes, he (also) will contest
The news: Pritam Singh will contest this year’s general election.
After a 13-day trial at the end of last year, Singh was found guilty on Feb 17. He was fined the maximum $7,000 for each of two counts of lying to a parliamentary committee.
An MP loses his seat and is disqualified from standing for election if jailed at least one year, or fined at least $10,000. Each of Singh’s charges did not go over the $10,000 ceiling, putting to bed doubts that he could be barred from running.
Singh has appealed the verdict and sentence.
The take: Singh will lead his party into the electoral battlefield – his second election as secretary-general.
He’s made clear that the trial and its outcome was about him - and not the party’s other leaders – but appeared keenly aware that the WP was in the dock too.
Wearing the party’s colours and its logo on his chest, Singh’s 15 minutes with reporters were a reassurance to voters that the WP would “fight hard” for a “more balanced political system” that was the “need of the hour in Singapore”.
Will it matter to middle-ground voters? With the saga having gone on for over three years since Raeesah Khan’s 2021 lie, and an unsurprising verdict that allows Singh to keep his seat, most observers don’t think so.
Second Reading:
Another opposition politician was also in court last Monday. Lawyer and Peoples Voice leader Lim Tean got jail time and a fine for practising without a cert. He too, can still run in this GE.
Where you vote could be different this time – given changes to districts in 12 constituencies, signalling that the work of the Electoral Boundaries Review Committee is under way. Don’t freak out, the actual EBRC report isn’t out yet.
Are you ready for rallies to return? For the first time in 10 years (Covid-19 paused them in 2020) physical rallies will be back this election. The police are looking for sites and there will be about two per GRC and one for each SMC.