In a Facebook post on Saturday, lawyer and politician Lim Tean wrote a post titled, “The Lesson From Malaysia”, about the determination of Malaysian opposition parties, and how the opposition parties in Singapore should learn from them.
His post came after a talk by Mr Chua Tian Chuang, a former Malaysian parliamentarian, and the Chief of Information of Parti Keadilan Rakyat (PKR) from Pakatan Harapan, at the Singapore Democratic Party’s premises.
The former chief of the National Solidarity Party Lim Tean said that the opposition parties in Malaysia “realised that to form the government they had to put aside their differences and come together in an Alliance and be led by a respected figure in Tun Mahatir”.
Mr Lim also quoted the former British Prime Minister Tony Blair who said that he hated the powerlessness of the opposition parties.
He also urged the opposition parties in Singapore to “aspire to be in government to effect change for the better”. He also added “It is not enough when the Opposition only talks about checks and balances”.
At the event, Mr Chua spoke about the various opposition politicians and parties coming together. He said, “It wasn’t always easy but in the end we came together and managed to present a united front…The parties and politicians were initially reluctant to come together, but it was the people’s demand to see a coalition that helped bring about Pakatan Harapan”.
Ending his post, Mr Lim said, “I believe the above is the real lesson for all the Opposition parties in Singapore!”
Netizens who commented on Mr Lim’s post were rather animated in their comments.
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obbana@theindependent.sg