Harpreet Singh: Singaporeans, regardless of their political views, greet us with warmth and encouragement

SINGAPORE: In a recent social media post, the Workers’ Party’s Harpreet Singh wrote about the warm welcome and encouragement they receive when the WP team goes about in different areas of Singapore on Sunday mornings to distribute the Hammer, the party’s newspaper.

This happens regardless of the political views of the Singaporeans they meet, Mr Singh, who was fielded as part of the WP’s slate at Punggol in last year’s General Election, added.

“It tells me something important - our politics need not divide us. Singaporeans across the political spectrum are decent people who want what is best for our country,” he wrote.

However, the Senior Counsel added that what strikes him is that Singaporeans have a really deep desire for something more, and he described it as “More political balance. More political fairness. More political openness.”

He also wrote that Singapore would be much stronger as a country “if different Singaporean voices are heard and respected, and the best ideas, wherever or whoever they come from, are allowed to rise.”

Mr Singh also noted how Singaporeans have said to him that they want the WP to do well, and added that they say this not because they follow the party blindly, but because they believe that a stronger opposition would in turn make a stronger Singapore.

“And they are right,” he wrote.

Mr Singh went on to write that truly believing in the words of the National Day Parade song “One People, One Nation, One Singapore” should be reflected in how politics is conducted, including not only fair electoral boundaries and access to state media, but also fair access to the resources of the People’s Association. He reminded readers that this is funded by taxpayers, including those who vote for opposition parties.

At the end of his post, he argued that national unity is not threatened by political openness and fairness, and reiterated that having the confidence to embrace different political voices only makes Singapore better and stronger.

“So we will keep showing up for our Sunday Hammer sales. We do that not just to sell a newspaper but to be present, to listen, and to share the important message with our fellow Singaporeans that what we in the Workers’ Party are building together is worth fighting for, fairly and openly,” he added. /TISG

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