SINGAPORE: At the rally at Sengkang on Thursday night (Apr 24), Workers’ Party (WP) chief Pritam Singh made a forceful case for his fellow candidates to be sent to Parliament when Singaporeans troop to the polls on May 3.
“When you vote for the opposition, your views are heard” he told the voters of Sengkang GRC, Punggol GRC, and Jalan Kayu SMC.
One standout during the night was new candidate Andre Low, who will be facing off against NTUC secretary-general Ng Chee Meng at Jalan Kayu SMC.
“I stand for Singapore, and standing for Singapore means holding those in power to account, and that is why when Pritam needed someone to step up and contest in Jalan Kayu, I put myself forward.”
At this point, Mr Singh stood and applauded for Mr Low, with the other candidates following suit, as the crowd cheered.
The candidate, who also addressed the Income-Allianz deal that the NTUC endorsed, which was thwarted last year, even trended online.
Speaking to Jalan Kayu voters, he promised: “a dedicated MP (Member of Parliament), I will be a present MP. I will do the same for Jalan Kayu residents; if elected, my team and I will hit the ground running from day one.”
Mr Singh was the final speaker among the candidates. As he made his way to the microphone, the crowd’s chants changed from “Workers’ Party! Workers Party!” to “Pritam Singh! Pritam Singh!” with nary a change to the cadence.
He spoke on a range of topics but zeroed in on answering the question as to whether Singaporeans should still vote for the WP in a time of global uncertainty.
“Certainly, yes,” he said. “The Workers’ Party has been stress-tested when Singapore was in crisis. The Workers’ Party (is) a force for good. We are a loyal opposition; loyal not to the PAP, (but) loyal to Singapore and the people of Singapore.
The reality is this: when you have an opposition in Parliament, your voice and your views are heard by the government. There is real pressure on the PAP to act, particularly if the views advanced by the Workers’ Party are shared by all Singaporeans.
We cannot be passive citizens; we must be active participants in our democracy, and we have to be fighters when we need to be, just like what the people and Hougang have taught us.”
Mr Singh said that the people in Hougang became fighters not by choice but this happened when they had the “iron in their spine to vote for the Workers’ Party.”
Hougang is the longest-held opposition constituency, having been represented in Parliament by the WP since 1991.
“They cast their vote in favour of a more balanced political system when Parliament was practically all white, and then what happened?” he asked, underlining that there had been consequences to doing so, such as the removal of certain facilities, such as the wet market. In spite of this, the people have shown “even more iron” by continuing to vote for the WP.
He reassured rally goers that the WP is invested in Singapore’s success, and called on them to vote for the party that’s “working for Singapore.”
As there had been heavy rain earlier in the day, the WP chief made a request as the rally ended for attendees to take care of themselves and each other.
“The field is very muddy. Look at the person on your left and right. His safety, her safety is your responsibility. If you can take this responsibility upon yourself, all of us in the Workers’ Party would really appreciate this. Leave the rally site without one piece of litter. Let’s get home safely to our families.” /TISG
Read also: Pritam Singh: PAP’s One-dimensional perspective