SINGAPORE: Eagle-eyed Singaporeans have picked up on a comment posted by the Facebook page of a Grassroots Organisation (GRO) under the People’s Association (PA), criticising Non-Constituency Member of Parliament Leong Mun Wai. Although the admin of the GRO’s page quickly deleted the comment, a screenshot of the comment is now circulating online.
The comment was referring to a clarification Mr Leong issued this week about a comment he made during a “Yah Lah But” podcast he participated in.
During the podcast, that aired on 14 May, one of the hosts noted that Mr Leong was one of the first to raise his hand when the Speaker called for questions. Mr Leong then quipped: “And one of the last to be called.”
Revealing that the Speaker of Parliament has taken issue with this comment that was made more than a month ago, Mr Leong wrote on his Facebook page on Tuesday (25 June): “The Speaker has since brought to my attention that my quip may be construed as casting aspersions on his impartiality in calling MPs.”
The Progress Singapore Party (PSP) member clarified that the comment was intended to be “tongue-in-cheek”. He said it was a response “meant to be a light-hearted one made at the start of the interview to lighten the mood in the context of a podcast.”
Mr Leong added: “This was in no way meant to be a comment on Speaker’s impartiality. Speaker has, on various occasions, called me ahead of other members.”
Singaporeans responding to the issue online extended support to Mr Leong, but the PA GRO in Sengkang West appears to have a different view.
In a comment under a Mothership Facebook post covering Mr Leong’s clarification, the official page of the Sengkang West GRO disagreed with a netizen’s take that the comment was indeed a light-hearted one.
Seemingly ascribing malicious intentions to Mr Leong, the GRO’s comment stated: “Sorry, cannot give Mr Leong the benefit of the doubt. He keeps making such remarks and quickly retreats behind saying it is a joke. He clearly meant to cast the Speaker’s impartiality into question.”
There have been growing concerns over the years about whether the management of the PA should be less politicised.
The PA is a statutory board under the Ministry of Culture, Community and Youth (MCCY). Its Chairman is the Prime Minister, and its organisations are commonly run by grassroots leaders, many of whom are members of the PAP.
The PAP has fielded candidates who were active grassroots leaders in PA organisations in past elections and there are allegations that these organisations have encouraged the public to support PAP candidates at rallies and electoral events.
One of the PAP’s fresh faces in the recent General Election was the former Chief Executive Director of the PA, Mr Desmond Tan Kok Ming. He had resigned from his post mere days before the elections were called. Mr Tan coasted to Parliament as part of the team in Pasir Ris-Punggol GRC led by Senior Minister Teo.
PA facilities are also commonly used to host community events organised by PAP politicians but the same benefit is unavailable for opposition MPs, according to Workers’ Party (WP) chief Pritam Singh. Additionally, opposition MPs are not allowed to be advisers to government-run grassroots bodies.
Shortly after the WP won Aljunied GRC in the 2011 General Election, party Chairman Sylvia Lim said the WP was informed that 26 public sites, including fields and hard courts, had been leased by the Housing and Development Board (HDB) to the PA and that the PA had informed them that “booking by WP will not be allowed”.
Long-time WP MP Low Thia Khiang, who has since left electoral politics but is still active in the WP, had also noted that temples were allowed to hold activities in his constituency only if they had supporting letters from the grassroots organisations and not from him, as the elected MP.
The Government, however, has held that the PA and its grassroots organisations are not politicised.
PAP minister Chan Chun Sing said in 2016 that the PA “executes the directions for the Government of the day, as per any statutory board. The PA does not allow any political activity or canvassing on our premises or in our activities. And we certainly do not mobilise anyone for any political party”.
More recently, in March last year, now-Singapore PM Lawrence Wong said that the public service should be “politically sensitive” but “should never become politicised.”
He added, “You must remain impartial and do your work with professional objectivity, while recognising the political context in which we operate.”
TISG/