PM Lee pledges a new PAP for Singapore
The People’s Action Party (PAP) will work differently as Singapore enters a new phase, said Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong on Sunday, when he bared the party’s plans to transform itself following a watershed general election.
Pledging a “new PAP for a new era” in his speech during the ruling party’s convention, the PAP secretary-general pointed out that members must fight to win in every constituency and future elections would be tougher contests.
In the general election in May, the PAP got 60 per cent of the total votes, its lowest share ever, and lost a group representation constituency to an opposition party for the first time.
Lee said that in its effort to reinvent itself, the PAP would be less centralised and more interactive.
He acknowledged that Singapore is evolving, as a new generation with diverse perspectives and a new political environment that is more vocal and demanding come into play.
Good policies, he said, will be essential, but they need to go together with good politics.
“We must also recognise that policies alone are no longer sufficient, because we must fight the politics, carry the ground, convey a message that resonates with our people and inspire Singapore to aim high and strive for further growth,” he said.
As the PAP cannot expect any more clean sweeps or “safe wards”, it must prepare early, he noted.
He said he agreed completely with the conclusion from the party’s review of the General Election that potential candidates must be tapped earlier.
“We want a more diverse slate. We want our people identified earlier, tested out earlier, put in place on the ground earlier,” he said, adding that the party has already started looking for candidates for the next round.
He also said that members must be convinced that the PAP serves Singapore and Singaporeans first and foremost, and that the party’s cause is right.
“There will be a few who will be against us, whatever we say and some of these may have basically different views from the PAP. But others will want to displace us, and really for them the issue is not policies, not whether we are doing right or wrong but who is in charge… and they would like the PAP out and eventually themselves in,” he said.
Noting that there are some “hard-core opposition views on the Internet”, he said members should take such criticism in stride and constructively.
“If it's valid, hear it, take it to heart, use the feedback to improve ourselves,” he said. “If it's not valid, defend our position, explain why it is mistaken, respond firmly.”
Regarding Aljunied GRC, which was won by the opposition Workers’ Party, Lee said the party would not abandon its activists there.
“We will continue to keep in touch with the residents. For the next five years in Aljunied the PAP is in opposition but the PAP does not intend to give the Workers’ Party team in Aljunied a free run,” he said. “The party will back them (activists) up with leadership and support and we will fight on and eventually we will win back Aljunied.”
