Goh Meng Seng, Secretary-general of NSP (Photo:
Yahoo!).
Secretary-general of the
National Solidarity Party, Goh Meng Seng, is going for
broke in the next General Elections.
Literally putting his money where his mouth is, the
40-year-old sold his 4-room HDB flat in Serangoon North
in September to fund his party’s election campaign plans for
the next GE, due to be held by Feb 2012.
In an exclusive interview with Yahoo! Singapore, Mr Goh –
who currently manages a retail business — said the decision to sell
his only home in Singapore is nothing to shout about.
“Most of the time, leaders of the opposition parties will put up
with some funds to support the whole party’s campaign. There
is nothing new to it,” said Goh, who currently lives
with his 81-year-old mother in Ang Mo Kio. Mr Goh, who
currently manages a retail business also has a wife, 39, and
daughter, 7, residing in Hong Kong.
While Mr Goh declined to reveal how much he sold his
flat for, checks on several property websites show that the
average price of a 4-room flat in Serangoon is around $400,000
to $450,000.
Proceeds from the sale, he said, would not be used to fund his
own election campaigns and candidacy but will be directed to the
coffers of the NSP “to sponsor a team” for election as well as
support the party’s overall strategy.
The cost of running for elections is not cheap. For example,
on Nomination Day for the last 2006 General Election
(GE), each candidate had to fork out an election deposit
of $13,500. This doesn’t include campaign costs
incurred by the respective campaigns which could easily
cost thousands of dollars.
Election rules also state that the deposit is to be
forfeited if the candidate fails to obtain at least one-eighth or
12.5 per cent of the votes.
Goh’s involvement in local politics has spanned
over 10 years. In 2006, while still with the Workers’
Party (WP), he was part of the team led by Ms Sylvia Lim which
contested the Aljunied GRC.
While results saw the WP securing 43.91 per cent of
the vote and the PAP claiming 56.09 per cent,
that constituency’s election was marred by the controversy
involving James Gomez, who claimed to have submitted the
minority-race candidate application form required
to stand as a candidate in a GRC.
CCTV footage later showed he had kept the form in his
bag and Gomez was labelled a “liar” by MM Lee Kuan
Yew.
Mr Goh left the party shortly after elections, joined
the NSP and was elected the party’s secretary-general in
February this year.
Touching on the GE, Mr Goh singled out three “hot-button” issues
that would dominate campaigning after Nomination Day: health
care, population and foreign talent policy.
In particular, he also highlighted public housing
which “will no doubt be a key issue because it affects 80 per cent
of the people”.
On the issue of healthcare, Mr Goh is calling for a
more comprehensive health insurance because he feels the
present coverage is insufficient.
“In ensuring effective insurance coverage for its citizens, the
government should provide part of the premiums of health insurance
which should also include non-working adults and children.”
And what if Mr Goh loses in his bid
to contest the Tampines GRC?
After all, National Development Minister Mah Bow
Tan has been the anchor MP in Tampines since 1988. In the
last GE, the 5-man PAP team led by the Minister won a
clear 68.51% majority of votes while the opposition team of
Singapore Democratic Alliance (SDA) secured only 31.49%
of votes.
“If I lose, then it will depend on whether my party needs me to
stay on for the transitional period. There will inevitably be a
transition for leadership change,” said Goh.
Goh also said he would decline to take up the Non-Constituency
Members of Parliament scheme offered to losing opposition
candidates with the highest votes.
In April this year, Parliament amended the scheme to increase
the number of NCMP seats from six to nine. While
NCMPs are allowed to participate in parliamentary debates and
even raise motions in the House, they are unable to vote on
constitutional changes. Based on the constitution, such powers will
remain as privileges of an elected MP.
Mr Goh echoed the views of Hougang’s opposition Member of
Parliament, Low Thia Khiang, who said he will not take up the
NCMP seat if he loses in an election.
“I want the full power as an MP, fair and square. If I don’t
win, I will not take the NCMP seat,” he said.
Signalling his intention that he’s ready to quit politics
altogether if he loses, Goh said the time will come
when he has to tough decisions.
“Personally, I have set my target right from 2001 where I am
willing and prepared to spend 15 years of my life to try to
contribute to the Singapore political cause as much as possible.
After which, I will have to move on,” he said.
Source:
http://sg.yfittopostblog.com/2010/12/03/going-all-out-in-the-name-of-politics/