Singapore opposition

SINGAPORE: Even though it’s been more than two weeks since the outspoken former Nominated Member of Parliament Calvin Cheng appeared on The Daily Ketchup podcast, the episode has continued to rack up views. Commenters have said they find Mr Cheng to be refreshingly direct.

Consider, for instance, his take on the upcoming General Election.

“From now on, every election is the PAP’s to lose… I think it is kind of inevitable that there would be two dominant parties, and I think the reason for the current and previous anomaly was Lee Kuan Yew and the first generation of leaders bringing Singapore from third world to first world. There was still a certain cache to that generation.”

Nevertheless, “it is still an anomaly that will not hold”, he added.

Mr Cheng also said that any time the “credible” opposition fields a “credible” candidate, he believes that voters will give them a chance.

With The Workers’ Party being most likely to emerge as the second party, he added, “If any party wants to challenge them, they should challenge them right now.”

He went on to explain that once a second party takes a dominant position, it’s unlikely for a third party to come up as well.

As to what Singaporeans may look forward to when it comes to speeches, the former NMP said that bread-and-butter issues such as the cost of living will probably be at the centre, similar to elsewhere around the globe.

When asked whether the ruling People’s Action Party is likely to suffer because of high living costs, Mr Cheng said that it may come down to timing since lower inflation is not felt at once.

“So for example, inflation has come down to 0.8 per cent, but people are not going to feel that at the moment. They’re going to remember that prices were going up, that they suffered from inflation. They remember the GST increases. So in my opinion, the longer they wait, the better chance they have, because then you’re going to feel the effects of lower inflation.”

Mr Cheng also took issue with the announcement of the new electoral boundaries, which he felt came too late.

“It’s not fair,” he said, explaining that it gives undue advantages to the ruling party with its deep resources but puts the smaller opposition parties at a disadvantage.

“I think how we do it is not as important as the fundamental principle that it should be done for all political parties to have enough time to walk the ground,” he added.

On a lighter note, the hosts asked Mr Cheng if he believes politicians should be posting on TikTok.

He said that this is the current reality and added that one of the two big responsibilities politicians have is to galvanise society,

“You have to be a good entertainer (with) the ability to rouse people… be a good orator,” as well as a good executive and manager, qualities that founding Prime Minister Lee Kuan Yew had.

“People trusted him,” he said simply, when it came to big issues such as National Service and housing. Prime Minister Lawrence Wong, he and the hosts agreed, has qualities similar to those of the late Mr Lee, as demonstrated by his leadership during the Covid-19 pandemic.

Commenters on the video praised Mr Cheng for his straight-shooting ways.

One called him “extremely insightful” and added, “I could listen to Calvin for hours (regardless of whether I agree or disagree with him).”

“I love Calvin’s no-holds barred candidness and insightfulness,” another agreed.

A user on the platform wrote that they “enjoyed the insights”, while another called it “a very good authentic discussion”.

“This guy speaks so well, and frankly, I like (it). I hope he comes on every year!!” another chimed in. /TISG