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GE2020: Singaporeans able to see past 'sound and fury', focus on key concerns – Chan Chun Sing

People's Action Party second assistant secretary-general Chan Chun Sing during a party media conference during the General Election. (PHOTO: PAP)
People's Action Party second assistant secretary-general Chan Chun Sing during a party media conference during the General Election. (PHOTO: PAP)

SINGAPORE — Singaporeans are able to see through the “sound and fury” of the General Election (GE) electioneering activities, and want the next government to be focused on three key concerns amid the COVID-19 pandemic – their lives, their livelihood and their future.

This is the observation of the ground sentiment by the ruling People’s Action Party (PAP) after a week on the campaign trail for the GE, said Trade and Industry Minister Chan Chun Sing during an online media conference on Wednesday (8 July).

“I’m very happy to note that fellow Singaporeans have given us the feedback that they want the government to be focused on helping them overcome the challenges and emerge stronger from this (COVID-19),” said Chan, who is PAP’s second assistant secretary-general.

“And I’m confident that, when voters go to the polls, they will know very clearly what are the options ahead of them, which is the party that will best lead them out of this crisis, which is the party that will best work with them to overcome the challenges together.”

Chan painted an uncertain economic outlook for Singapore in the near future, saying that, based on the latest International Monetary Fund estimates, all the major economies, except China, will be in a recessionary mode this year.

For Singapore, which saw a minus 0.7 per cent gross domestic product growth for Q1 year-on-year, the external demand is expected to remain weak and the recovery to be uneven and gradual.

Various initiatives to help Singaporeans

To reiterate what the PAP has done to help Singaporeans tide through the financial and social uncertainties that are arising from the COVID-19 pandemic, Chan – together with NTUC secretary-general Ng Chee Meng and Minister for Social and Family Development Desmond Lee – outlined the various initiatives the government has implemented to secure jobs, attract investments, and strengthen supply lines.

Ng said the government is trying to position workers in the best possible way so that they can either hold on to a job, or be matched to a new job should they be displaced.

He listed schemes such as the SGUnited Jobs and Skills package, and said that 16,000 jobs were made available to job seekers at the most recent job fair last Friday. So far, 12,000 jobs have been matched successfully, Ng said.

Lee, on the other hand, said it is important to make sure that social safety nets are strengthened, and that Singaporeans get involved by looking out for one another.

He listed the COVID-19 Support Grant and the enhanced ComCare scheme available to help low-income households. More than 35,000 applications for the support grant have been approved, while an average of 4,000 new ComCare applications have been approved each month in the last few months.

Ultimate tests for any candidate, political party

Chan said that, for this GE, there are three “ultimate tests” for any candidate and political party to contend with amid the COVID-19 crisis: Who has the ability to help secure jobs; who has the ability to attract investments and create opportunities for Singaporeans; and who has the ability to organise networks to help workers and families that may come under stress in the coming months.

“These are three very simple and basic questions that we hope Singaporeans will consider when they go to the polls. I hope that every candidate and every political party will present their plans and options to Singaporeans on how to help Singapore and Singaporeans overcome the challenges highlighted today,” he said.

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