Article on Today..
7 Oct 2005
Today
PM CONFIDENT OF STRONG POLL SHOWING, THOUGH IT WON'T BE 2001
AGAIN
Derrick A Paulo
He may be coy about the timing of the elections, but Prime Minister
Lee
Hsien Loong suspects that the backdrop in which they are held - and
the
results - could be different from what the last polls threw
up.
The next General Election (GE) is unlikely to be held under the
"truly
exceptional circumstances" that gave the People's Action Party
a
landslide win in 2001, he said yesterday at a Foreign
Correspondents'
Association
luncheon.
"It was after the 911 bombings. There was a general alarm bordering
on
panic, perhaps, around the world. We went (to the polls) at
that
moment, and people gave us a resounding, overwhelming vote:
Seventy-five per cent," he said. "I'm not hoping to have such
a
situation when I call elections."
On how job worries as well as the National Kidney Foundation and
casino
issues could factor into the polls, he said that the psyche of
the
electorate depends on many factors.
Whichever those factors are, though, he is confident that "we will
have
strong support and win a strong mandate". The GE was among a
broad
range of topics, including many domestic issues, which he tackled
in a
50-minute Q&A session.
Coming off his recent trip to Bali, it meant that one of
those
questions was on how to deal with terrorism and Singapore's
readiness
for an attack.
Mr Lee said the Republic was doing "all that we can" to prevent
a
terrorist act. These include scans, precautions at hotels and
shopping
centres, and parking curbs, such as those at Holland Village.
But physical security can only go so far.
"You need to go beyond that, to within the society to make sure
you
know your people and your people are integrated into the society,
(so)
you don't have disaffected groups who feel this is not their
country
and (think), 'Well, what the hell, let's blow it up because I have
no
stake in this'," he said.
Which is why, he said, the authorities came down hard on the
three
bloggers who had posted racist comments online.
Preferring to err on the side of caution was also why Singapore
banned
satellite television years ago, although the Internet could
change
that.
"You can get a lot of stuff on the Internet, but the Internet is
not
quite the same as a satellite channel. Not yet. It may come, in
which
case we will have to review our position. But it has not reached
that
point," said Mr Lee.
The current cable TV situation is a "reasonable solution" to
meeting
the need for choices and a free flow of information while enabling
the
Government to intervene. So far, it has not had to do that, he
noted.
The question of change, especially in the political system, has
become
standard on the "briefing paper of any Western journalist coming
to
Singapore", Mr Lee said wryly after the issue was brought up
again.
While he reiterated the Government's disapproval of the
liberal
"Western model" for Singapore's purposes, Mr Lee listed the sort
of
changes he expects to see.
"I think in 20 years, our society will change. I think the politics
of
it will change. The issues probably will change, although the
fundamentals of living in this small red dot will remain the same,"
he
said.
Will one of those changes include a gay Cabinet minister, or is
the
Government homophobic? "I don't think we are homophobic," he
replied,
asserting his agreement with the views of then-Prime Minister Goh
Chok
Tong that gays are "people like you and me", in Mr Lee's
words.
"But there are some segments of Singaporeans who may even disagree
with
that, and we have to be aware of that," he said.
These are factors the Government must take into account, he said,
when
gay groups want to "flaunt (their) gayness" through parades and
parties
like the Nation.05.
"I'm not sure I want to do that in Singapore because I think it
will be
offensive to a large number of Singaporeans and will be very
divisive,"
he added.
In a brief 10-minute speech before the Q&A, he highlighted the
need to
encourage diversity but not division, especially when it comes
to
nurturing the next generation, one of four main tasks he identified
as
needed in the next 20 years.
The other factors Singapore's success would hinge on are: The
ability
to anticipate and manage trends, maintain competitiveness and
cohesion,
and develop a broad leadership group.
