GE2015: Workers’ Party slams PAP’s “arrogant power”
The Worker’s Party candidates for Jalan Besar GRC speaking at Boon Keng Road (Photo: Kenneth Khoo)
By: Kenneth Khoo
The Workers’ Party (WP) has hit out at the pervasive influence of the People’s Action Party (PAP) due to its dominance at a packed rally for the Jalan Besar Group Representation Constituency (GRC) on Thursday (Sep 3).
Leveling the criticisms at the ruling party, chairman Sylvia Lim said “power has made the PAP more and more arrogant”. As such, she called on voters to bring more WP members into Parliament in order to curb the intrusion of the PAP into the many aspects of life in Singapore, ranging from business to sports.
Highlighting the concept of GRCs, Lim said it was put in place by the PAP to dilute the voice of Singaporeans, and entrench its dominance.
“PAP thinks it’s perfectly fine for one party to occupy all the seats (in Parliament). PAP wants Singaporeans to be dependent on them,” she said.
On the issue of accountability, Lim spoke about the lack of checks and balances on the ruling party’s power.
“PAP say they can check themselves. Do you believe them?” Lim asked the crowd gathering on an open field at Boon Keng Road, while promising that WP would “bring the power back to the people”.
WP secretary-general Low Thia Khiang also assailed the PAP, saying that it is time for voters to “stop the PAP from becoming more self-absorbed” and deciding on their future according to its “whims and fancies”.
“The past is our mirror, the present is our reflection, and the future is in our hands to make,” Low said.
On WP’s performance since the general election in 2011, Low expressed satisfaction that it has fulfilled its “promise to be a rational, respectable, and responsible party”.
The party’s candidates for Jalan Besar GRC – Frieda Chan, L. Somasundaram, Redzwan Hafidz Abdul Razak, and Adrian Sim – also spoke at the rally. They addressed various issues such as the education system and employment prospects for Singaporeans.
Citing the example of a friend who has been unemployed for almost a year, Somasundaram said while he was not against the presence of foreign workers in Singapore, he stressed on the need for Singaporeans to be given a helping hand in the job market.
“Foreigners can afford to ask for lower salary, but we cannot. We must protect our workers from unfair competition,” he said.
Sim highlighted what he said were the flaws in the education system, such as the Primary School Leaving Examination, and called for smaller class sizes.
The next WP rally will take place at Yishun Stadium from 7 to 10pm on Friday (Sep 4).
