“I never say no” — Tan Cheng Bock broadly hints at contesting again in 2025

SINGAPORE: Progress Singapore Party (PSP) chairman Tan Cheng Bock caused quite a stir on Saturday morning (Jan 27) when the 83-year-old veteran politician dropped a bombshell about his political future.

During a walkabout with party members at West Coast Market Square, he hinted to members of the media that he may be contesting at the next General Election, which needs to be held no later than Nov 23, 2025.

In the presence of a team from PSP that included the slate who contested at West Coast GRC in 2020, Dr Tan was asked to confirm that he would stand as a candidate next year. He said, “I never say no.”

West Coast residents may see Dr Tan again next year, especially after the scandal around former Transport Minister S Iswaran, one of the PAP MPs in the constituency.

Last July, it was revealed that Mr Iswaran was the subject of an investigation by the Corrupt Practices Investigation Bureau. He eventually resigned from his post and the PAP on Jan 18, 2024, after being slapped with 27 charges, including corruption.

On Jan 27, Dr Tan said, “If you believe in active ageing, I shouldn’t retire, right? Because if you all think age is not a problem, I’ll be around.”

When asked if PSP’s chances of winning improved after Mr Iswaran resigned, he said, “Of course, we hope that will help us, but I think it all depends on the electorate, how we perform.”

The longtime physician and political leader kept his expectations modest and realistic as he added, “We don’t want to form the government because we are such a young party. But we must show to Singaporeans we are a capable people.”

However, he showed concern for the ward he represented for over two and a half decades when he said, “We believe that we must come and do something for this particular area that used to be part of my Ayer Rajah.”

At the 2020 GE, Dr Tan spearheaded PSP’s slate at West Coast GRC, which contains Ayer Rajah, a ward that used to be a single-member constituency (SMC) that he had represented in Parliament between 1980 and 2006 when he was still with the ruling People’s Action Party.

While the PSP lost at West Coast very narrowly, winning 48.31 per cent of the vote, it did manage to propel two of its members, Mr Leong Mun Tai and Ms Hazen Poa, into Parliament as NCMPs. This was a considerable victory for a party that had only been launched the year before. /TISG

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