Signs the GE may be coming soon: Disinfectant and sanitizer distribution along party lines

Singapore—When the logos come out, the GE may not be far behind.

No one knows exactly when the upcoming General Election is going to be held but the country took a step forward last Friday (Mar 13) with the Electoral Boundaries Review Committee (EBRC) releasing its much-anticipated report, which had some major changes, and must be called by April next year.

However, with the current coronavirus, concerns over public safety have been expressed. But Minister for National Development Lawrence Wong has said that tackling the virus crisis may take over a year, and so it’s very likely that the GE will be held even while the country is still fighting Covid-19.

Some activists from the ruling People’s Action Party (PAP) have said that the GE may be called as early as May so that the government can focus their efforts on mitigating the effects of the coronavirus crisis.

So talk of the upcoming GE has definitely been trending, including speculation on what party will field which candidates and where they may contest.

One way that possible candidates have kept themselves relevant in the time of the coronavirus crisis is to feature how they have been helping disinfect their constituencies, or at least, the places where they are showing interest, as AsiaOne points out.

After all, sanitizing can mean a matter of life and death. The stubborn coronavirus can spread thousands of particles with just one touch or droplet, cause an infection that at worst can lead to death, and one sure way to avoid infection is diligent sanitizing.

To date, more than 234,000 people have gotten infected with the coronavirus, and nearly 10,000 people have died.

Which brings us to our public servants (or those who wish to be.) Many of them have shown photos of their areas being assiduously cleaned—whether its elevator lobbies, the lifts themselves, playground areas, and others. MPs from Cheng Li Hui (PAP-Tampines), Grace Fu (PAP-Yuhua) and Pritam Singh (WP-Aljunied) have featured posts showing how their areas have been cleaned.

But some have gone a step further, by displaying personal sanitizers being distributed that actually bear the logos of the different parties, such as PAP member Victor Lye does here. Sharp-eyed netizens were none too keen on what Mr Lye did.

And what Singapore People’s Party’s Steve Chia may be doing here. We can’t tell if the bottles he’s distributing bear his party’s logo but he sure is doing a lot of distributing of hand sanitisers while wearing the SPP shirt. 

We can safely say The National Solidarity Party does it here.

AsiaOne jokingly put Lily Neo, MP from Jalan Besar, on the top of the list of those who are putting people’s health and hygiene first in the time leading up to the GE, since Ms Neo visited the Beo Crescent Market and Chinatown Complex last Sunday (Mar 15). She and her companions personally wiped down tables where people were eating at the market. She also conducted a mini education campaign promoting good public hygiene.

A video of Ms Neo in action was uploaded on the popular All Singapore Stuff Facebook page, with the caption, “When MP clean hawker centre table, u know election lai liao.”

All in the name of public service, right?  -/TISG

Read related: Netizens criticise the “PAP-branded hand sanitiser” used by grassroots leader

Netizens criticise the “PAP-branded hand sanitiser” used by grassroots leader