[h=2]Reply to Straits Times: WP's citizen engagement[/h]
by
The Workers' Party on Saturday, August 4, 2012 at 7:57am ·
We received an enquiry from the Straits Times about what sort of engagement - both online and offline - that WP does that may not have gotten attention, and whether the suggestion that WP does not engage as much (as the PAP) is fair. We were also asked what the main aim of our engagement is. This was for an 'Insight' feature that was published on Saturday 4 Aug 2012.
The following was our full reply to the reporter:
In addition to weekly Meet-the-People sessions that our MPs conduct, the WP also organises:
a. Weekly Open House at our Party HQ every Friday at 8pm, where we welcome any member of the public to drop by and meet our party leaders, to learn more about WP and answer any questions from members of the public.
b. Quarterly YouthQuake forum, which is organised by the WP Youth Wing, and is open to members of the public. We invite external and internal presenters to share their knowledge and views on a current issue. The next YouthQuake is taking place on Saturday 25 August.
c. Regular dialogues with members and volunteers to get feedback on issues and voice out suggestions on how we can better engage Singaporeans. Our party leaders also meet up regularly with individuals and groups who wish to give us feedback.
e. MP walkabouts at market places
f. MP house visits and face-to-face engagement with residents at coffee shops or private events.
g. Hammer (party newspaper) sales
Our party leaders and members also attend seminars organised by other organisations to better understand specific issues, as well as dialogue sessions as guest speakers. Many of our party leaders maintain active blogs and Facebook accounts, which serve as another channel to engage Singaporeans online.
The purpose of our engagement is to understand the lives of the people, receive their feedback on policy issues and to gain a better appreciation of how policy implementation affects the man-on-the-street.
Regards,
Gerald Giam
Chair, WP Media Team