GE2020: PAP, PSP, WP and SDP to hold TV debates today
SINGAPORE — Seven candidates from the ruling People’s Action Party (PAP) and three opposition parties contesting in the 2020 General Election (GE) are scheduled to debate “live” on Wednesday (1 July) night on national television.
Four representatives from the PAP, the Progress Singapore Party (PSP), the Workers’ Party (WP), and the Singapore Democratic Party (SDP) will take part in the English debate. The opposition participants for this debate are SDP chief Chee Soon Juan, WP’s new GE candidate Jamus Jerome Lim, and PSP’s Central Executive Committee member Francis Yuen while the PAP’s representative is Minister for Foreign Affairs Vivian Balakrishnan.
Three representatives from the PAP, the SDP, and the PSP will separately debate in Mandarin. The opposition participants are PSP’s Assistant Secretary-General Leong Mun Wai and SDP member Bryan Lim while the PAP’s representative is Education Minister Ong Ye Kung.
The WP told Yahoo News Singapore that it would not be sending a representative for the Mandarin debate.
National broadcaster Mediacorp said earlier in a press release on Wednesday that it will be televising two “live” hour-long political debates titled Singapore Votes 2020: The Political Debate – in English and Mandarin.
The English debate will be participated by a representative invited from four political parties that are fielding the most number of candidates at the GE on 10 July. The PAP, PSP, WP, and SDP are fielding 93, 24, 21, and 11 candidates, respectively.
When asked to confirm the full line-up of participants across both debates, a Mediacorp spokesperson said the company would not be able to share its details in advance and that it was up to the various parties to nominate their representatives.
The debate will have two segments – one where a moderator will ask the candidates a series of questions on topics including unemployment, helping businesses, and social mobility, and the other where they will get to ask each other questions and respond to them.
The English debate will be aired on Channel 5 at 8pm with a simulcast on CNA938 radio. It will also be live-streamed on meWatch and various CNA online platforms as well as broadcast on CNA at 9pm.
The Mandarin debate would be aired on Channel 8 at 9pm with a simulcast on CAPITAL 958 and live-streamed on meWatch and 8world.com.
There have been previous televised forums and debates during the GE and Presidential Election since 2011.
Debates line-up
English
PAP: Vivian Balakrishnan – contesting Holland-Bukit Timah GRC
PSP: Francis Yuen – contesting Chua Chu Kang GRC
WP: Jamus Lim – contesting Sengkang GRC
SDP: Chee Soon Juan – contesting Bukit Batok SMC
Mandarin
PAP: Ong Ye Kung – contesting Sembawang GRC
PSP: Leong Mun Wai – contesting West Coast GRC
SDP: Bryan Lim – contesting Marsiling-Yew Tee GRC
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