Voters must decide if they want more opposition in Parliament and a weaker Government, or a strong mandate for Prime Minister Lawrence Wong and his team to govern Singapore, said Emeritus Senior Minister Goh Chok Tong.
In a Facebook post on April 25, ESM Goh noted that many voters want the PAP to form the government and “understandably, also want to return more opposition candidates to Parliament”.
“This is like wanting to spend more today and save more for a rainy day at the same time. The reality is voters cannot have both,” wrote ESM Goh, 83, who was Singapore’s prime minister between 1990 and 2004.
Drawing on his personal experience, ESM Goh said the prime minister of a small country needs “both quality and quantity of MPs in Parliament to have political strength and stature to lead Singapore, especially at a critical juncture of geopolitical rivalry, tension, and disruptive challenges”.
ESM Goh also likened the election to a boxing competition where there can only be one winner.
“No boxer steps into the ring declaring that he only wants to check his opponent or be his sparring partner forever. He is out to knock out the other fellow, if not now, then in future contests.”
“Similarly, no political party should be satisfied with being a loyal opposition forever,” said ESM Goh.
Citing remarks by PM Wong, he said voters have to hold candidates from the opposition to the same standard as those from PAP.
Voters have the capacity to decide the outcome with their vote: ESM Goh
Voters are not like spectators at the ringside, however, and have the capacity to decide the outcome with their vote, he added.
“How we vote will determine our lives now and beyond this electoral cycle.”
“We must reflect on how we want to secure our future: a stronger opposition and a weakened government or a strong, good government and a politically stable Parliament as in the last one.”
ESM Goh was an MP in Marine Parade for 44 years before retiring from politics in 2020.
He met newly elected MP Goh Pei Ming on April 25. Mr Goh, 43, is part of the PAP team in Marine Parade-Braddell Heights GRC that was elected unopposed on Nomination Day after a walkover.
