Well, the problem for Singapore is the dilemma that is facing
S'poreans at this time now. As caramon have mentioned, S'pore's
economy is not doing well at the moment. (Even I do not believe the
8.1% growth as China's one is like around 5~6%). However, the
problem is that if we were to turn our support to the SDA, WP or
SDP, ordinary S'poreans risk letting themselves sink further into
the economic depression facing a lot of people. Well, we all know
that Singapore's economy did well in the last century due to a
government that is strong willed. Without our strong willed govt, I
am afraid we will still be a Third World country.
So, we have to understand politics from the ordinary Singaporean
point of view. What everybody want is something that can feed them
and I am afraid politics is not something that can. If we were to
turn our support to a untried and unproven govt, we risk losing
everything that is already in place. As the chinese saying goes
about taking a bell off a cat requires the help of the mouse who
put it on in the first place. If the PAP govt were in power when
the economy depression set in, it would be wise to let them be in
power as they know best what went wrong with the economy. A good
analogy would be that when a company is going bankrupt, it is not
wise to change the financial controller as the job transition will
inadvertently cause some of the records to be lost etc. Let the PAP
restore the economy, before we start to think about politics.
Secondly, it's the image of the opposition parties that is being
portrayed by the media or otherwise to the public. We all know that
Potong Pasir and Hougang town councils receive very little funding
and the conditions of their housing blocks are considerably poorer
than the PAP-controlled ones. Although they did not raise the
conservacy charges, LTK did mention that they saved for many years
before they can manage to carry out upgrading in the precint.
Singaporeans are practical. If this is what they are going to
expect when they vote for other parties, most of them will just not
vote. You can say that this is a case of discrimination by the PAP,
then it's true and it's just too bad as this is the classic case of
siege by the strong over the weak.
Thirdly, one of the reasons why the opposition is being perceived
as weak is due to the fact that the party memberships are dwindling
whereas the PAP always has a new batch of faces every couple of
years. This is also partly because ppl are turned off by the
prospect of being disadvantaged in their careers (CSJ WAS a
lecturer.). If the future is going to be cast with doubts upon
joining the opposition, S'poreans will not bother to join. Without
new talents, the opposition will not have enough candidates to
field for each GRC and thus ensuring that PAP walks over most of
the time and wins the GE even before ballot boxes are set up.
Fourth, we must know the problem with the demographics of the
electorate first. Ever since the Brits granted S'pore with
self-rule in 1959, there are several parties which were of equal
power and clout. However, why did only the PAP retain its clout?
It's because the parties formed way back at 1959 are either
communist-linked or they split up due to spats and squabbles. The
older generation of the electorate are especially sensitive to
communists and since most of the opposition parties of their
generation are found to be communist-linked, they tend to associate
the opposition parties with the communists and thus be turned away
from voting for them. As for the younger generation, 2
characteristics are dominant, political apathy and strong material
desire. For them, since they are born after the turbulent times,
they tend to desire for material gains instead of something as
ideological as politics. For them, its money above politics. They
do not bother too deeply about politics and thus do not even want
to jeopardise their quest for material well-being by voting for the
opposition.
However, I sort of disagree that if a large group of opposition MPs
are voted into the Parliament, it will degenerate into the Taiwan
situation. Well, if you see cases such as Britain and the US, we
can see that actually 2 parties of equal clout and strength do not
necessarily mean that the legislature body will degenerate into
chaos. (Maybe this is the work of our govt, or is it not?)
All in all, Singapore has a unique political system that will not
work elsewhere in the world. If you feel strongly about politics,
go ahead and join whichever cause that appeals to you, but in the
case that you are really undermined by the government, then there's
always the emigrate option for you. (Remember that some countries
require the "Good Citizen" certification).
Happy pondering and good night!
