Aljunied voters will regret choosing WP: MM Lee

MM Lee urges Aljunied voters to think carefully. (AFP file photo) MM Lee urges Aljunied voters to think carefully. (AFP file photo) Minister Mentor Lee Kuan Yew has warned Singaporeans, especially those in Aljunied GRC, they will "pay a price, the hard way" if they vote for the Opposition.

Speaking to reporters during a visit to Tampines on Friday night, MM Lee said, "If Aljunied decides to go that way, well Aljunied has five years to live and repent."

The 87-year-old warned voters they would have to live with the choice they make come Polling Day on Saturday.

"It may well happen that they win, in which case the people of Aljunied live with the results," he was quoted as saying on The Straits Times.

"The only way people learn is when they have to pay a price. From time to time we may lose, and the voters pay the price, " he said.

He further cautioned, "If Singaporeans are that fickle, they will have to pay a price, the hard way."

He highlighted the example of opposition-held ward Hougang where, "If you have the wrong government, your property prices go right down. Ask why in Hougang the property is not as high as their neighbours."

The high-powered 'A' team from the Workers's Party contesting the Aljunied hotspot consists of former Hougang MP Low Thia Khiang, former NCMP Sylvia Lim, the party's "star catch" Chen Show Mao as well as family counsellor Muhamad Faisal Abdul Manap and post-graduate law student Pritam Singh.

They will be up against the incumbent PAP team fronted by Foreign Affairs Minister George Yeo, Minister in the Prime Minister's Office Lim Hwee Hua, Senior Minister of State for Foreign Affairs Zainul Abidin Rasheed, Madam Cynthia Phua and new face Ong Ye Kung, an assistant secretary-general of NTUC .

MM Lee also urged Aljunied voters to look at the track record of the different candidates.

"Do you want a capable team that can look after your interests, or do you want a team with little track record?" he said.

"At the end of the day, if you are in Aljunied, ask yourself: Do you want one MP, one Non-Constituency MP, one celebrity who has been away 30 years, and two unknowns to look after you?"

Or, he asked if voters would prefer two ministers, one potential Parliament Secretary, one potential Speaker of Parliament and one grassroots MP?

Cautioning voters against "trying their luck" when the value of their property and livelihood was on the line, MM Lee said, "Just think. Five years, they're in charge of your property and your lives... If you like to try your luck, well good luck to you. But I guarantee you, you will not do better than the PAP candidates."

MM Lee, whose own Tanjong Pagar GRC went uncontested, went on to question the WP slogan of "Towards A First World Parliament."

"Do you want a first world government or you want a first world opposition?" he asked.

"And is this a first world opposition? Can they compare themselves to the senators in the US congress?... If you want a third world or even a second world opposition to come and create a bit of excitement, well that's your choice," he said.

"But I do not consider them a first world opposition. I do not want to degrade them but you just look at their track record."

Related General Election articles

WP chief slams GRC system

Emotions run high at SPP rally

Rallies on Saturday

Follow Yahoo! News on Twitter and become a fan on Facebook.

This article is published by Yahoo! Southeast Asia Pte. Ltd., 60 Anson Road #13-01 Mapletree Anson, Singapore, 079914.

  • Best and worst sugar substitutes Fri, May 17, 2013

    Sugar has earned a bad reputation for being bad for your heart, your brain and your waistline. Because of this, there have been many attempts to market sugar substitutes. Some are useful, but some More »

  • Why go through a preventive double mastectomy? Fri, May 17, 2013

    Hollywood actress Angelina Jolie announced she has had both her breasts removed in February to reduce her high genetic risk of breast cancer. The surgery, called double mastectomy, brought down her More »

  • Top 8 lucrative routes for taxi drivers Fri, May 17, 2013

    For a taxi driver, a key survival skill is knowing where to find customers. As far as possible, a driver should know the routes at his or her fingertips. Hence, in this 6th instalment of Taxi Talks, More »

Loading...
  • Teo Ho Pin presses WP's Sylvia Lim for answers

    Teo Ho Pin presses WP's Sylvia Lim for answers

    Teo Ho Pin presses WP's Sylvia Lim for answers

    Worker's Party Chairman Sylvia Lim has challenged Dr Teo Ho Pin to make a report to the Corrupt Practices Investigation Bureau (CPIB) if he believes that the WP had mismanaged the Town Council.

  • Video of man hitting worker in office goes viral

    Video of man hitting worker in office goes viral

    Video of man hitting worker in office goes viral

    A clip of a man hitting an office worker – who appears to be an employee under his supervision - has gone viral in Singapore, sparking outrage and calls for the authorities to step in.

  • Penitent Romanian hacker aims to protect world's ATMs

    Penitent Romanian hacker aims to protect world's ATMs

    Penitent Romanian hacker aims to protect world's ATMs

    By Radu Marinas VASLUI, Romania (Reuters) - Valentin Boanta, sitting in his jail cell, proudly explains the device he has invented which, he says, could make the world's ATMs impregnable even to tech-savvy criminals like himself. Boanta, 33, is six months into a five-year sentence for supplying gadgets an organized crime gang used to conceal ATM skimmers, which can copy data from an unsuspecting ATM user's card so a clone can be created. He said he had started to make the devices for the sheer excitement of it and denies ever planning to use them himself, saying he only sold them to others. ...

Featured Blogs

  • Sugar has earned a bad reputation for being bad for your heart, your brain and your waistline. Because of this, there have been many attempts to market sugar substitutes. Some are useful, but some are even worse than the original … Continue reading →

  • Health Xchange

    Hollywood actress Angelina Jolie announced she has had both her breasts removed in February to reduce her high genetic risk of breast cancer. The surgery, called double mastectomy, brought down her risk from 87 per cent to about 5 per … Continue reading →

  • For a taxi driver, a key survival skill is knowing where to find customers. As far as possible, a driver should know the routes at his or her fingertips. Hence, in this 6th instalment of Taxi Talks, I would like … Continue reading →

  • For three decades he smiled and waved at Singaporeans from his spot on billboards, posters and brochures. He was dedicated to his task of making Singapore a kinder, more courteous place for everyone to live in, regardless of whether he … Continue reading →

  • Top five career moves for Singa the Lion
    Top five career moves for Singa the Lion

    There’s nothing quite like death to make a point. Even when it comes to telling Singaporeans how ungracious they are. Call it clever marketing or whatever, terminating (via resignation that is) “Singa the Lion” has certainly worked for its zookeepers … Continue reading →