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Contrary to the popular misperception which is reinforced by the state media, the Workers’ Party of today was not ‘built’ by Low Thia Kiang, but by the late opposition leader Joshua Benjamin Jeyaretnam, or JBJ, as he is fondly remembered.
The Workers’ Party was founded by Singapore’s first Chief Minister David Marshall in 1957, but it ceased to become a political force to be reckoned with after Marshall left politics in 1963 and remained in the doldrums till JBJ ‘revived’ it in the 1970s.
It earned its reputation as a fearless opposition which dared to speak up for Singaporeans and check on the PAP in parliament after JBJ won the Anson seat in 1981 and again in 1984, thereby denting the PAP’s absolute majority in parliament.
In 1988, the Workers’ Party under the astute leadership of JBJ came closest to anybody else to winning a GRC when the trio of Francis Seow, Lee Siew Choh and Mohammed Khalid Baboo won 49.7 percent of the valid votes in Eunos GRC.
JBJ spent more than twenty years of his political career with the Workers’ Party. Why then did he choose to leave the party he built up so painstakingly and form the Reform Party in 2008? It is never easy to found a new party, especially with the meager resources JBJ had, after just managing to discharge himself from bankruptcy.
The reason is only one: the present Workers’ Party under Low Thia Kiang no longer shares JBJ’s lifelong vision of reforming the archaic political system of Singapore which is designed specifically to retain and perpetuate the PAP’s political hegemony forever.
In his speech on the launch of the Reform Party, JBJ told Singaporeans in no uncertain terms to “go to Low Thia Kiang” if they are “happy with the status quo.”
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What is the “status quo”? The present status quo has nothing to do with the number of PAP or opposition MPs in parliament. It is about the entire political system of Singapore with all its state institutions under the tight-fisted control of the PAP and a rubber-stamped parliament which passes bills and legislation with little or no accountability to anybody else.
We have seen over the last four years how the PAP is able to govern with impunity with scant regards for public sentiments. Many misguided policies are forced down the throats of Singaporeans and its ministers do not have to take any responsibility for disastrous screw-ups such as the rampant floods, astronomical HDB flat prices and YOG fiasco.
What did the two WP MPs do or say? Did you hear them commenting on the sky-rocketing HDB prices, criticizing Dr Vivian for the YOG or taking the Prime Minister to task for his liberal immigration policies? Nothing at all! It is as if their mouths are stuffed with ‘gold’ that they cannot open. This is the type of opposition which the PAP loves so much – compliant, non-confrontational and most importantly SILENT.
JBJ knew that the present WP under Low Thia Kiang and Sylvia Lim will never be able to fulfill his dream of reforming Singapore. That’s why he chose to take the longer and more arduous route of starting a new party from scratch. In fact Low Thia Kiang once proclaimed rather proudly that WP will not be able to challenge the PAP for the next fifty years.
A vote for WP is a vote for the status quo, meaning that nothing will ever change. The PAP will again be given a ‘blank cheque’ to rule with WP MPs putting up a ‘wayang’ in parliament to masquerade Singapore as a ‘democracy’ to the world. So what’s the point of having 10, 20 or even 30 WP MPs in parliament when they dare not confront the PAP and is happy with the status quo?
Before he passed away, JBJ left us a legacy, whose mantle is now taken over by his elder son Kenneth Jeyaretnam, the Secretary-General of the Reform Party.
Many of the Reform Party’s 19 policy proposals in its election manifesto for Singapore are JBJ’s ideas which can be found in his books.
Are you happy with the system in Singapore at the moment? If you are not, then please listen to JBJ and lend your support to parties which dare reform the system like the Reform Party. Otherwise, you can continue to watch the ‘wayang kulit’ put up by the ‘wayang party’ and the PAP in parliament.
Please vote wisely in the next election. Reject any parties which seek to maintain the status quo and cast your sacred vote only to those which aim to reform Singapore.
.
Serene Wong
.
Editor’s note: The views expressed in this article are of the writer’s own and not indicative of the stand of TR.
http://www.temasekreview.com/2010/1...a-kiang-if-you-are-happy-with-the-status-quo/
The Workers’ Party was founded by Singapore’s first Chief Minister David Marshall in 1957, but it ceased to become a political force to be reckoned with after Marshall left politics in 1963 and remained in the doldrums till JBJ ‘revived’ it in the 1970s.
It earned its reputation as a fearless opposition which dared to speak up for Singaporeans and check on the PAP in parliament after JBJ won the Anson seat in 1981 and again in 1984, thereby denting the PAP’s absolute majority in parliament.
In 1988, the Workers’ Party under the astute leadership of JBJ came closest to anybody else to winning a GRC when the trio of Francis Seow, Lee Siew Choh and Mohammed Khalid Baboo won 49.7 percent of the valid votes in Eunos GRC.
JBJ spent more than twenty years of his political career with the Workers’ Party. Why then did he choose to leave the party he built up so painstakingly and form the Reform Party in 2008? It is never easy to found a new party, especially with the meager resources JBJ had, after just managing to discharge himself from bankruptcy.
The reason is only one: the present Workers’ Party under Low Thia Kiang no longer shares JBJ’s lifelong vision of reforming the archaic political system of Singapore which is designed specifically to retain and perpetuate the PAP’s political hegemony forever.
In his speech on the launch of the Reform Party, JBJ told Singaporeans in no uncertain terms to “go to Low Thia Kiang” if they are “happy with the status quo.”
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What is the “status quo”? The present status quo has nothing to do with the number of PAP or opposition MPs in parliament. It is about the entire political system of Singapore with all its state institutions under the tight-fisted control of the PAP and a rubber-stamped parliament which passes bills and legislation with little or no accountability to anybody else.
We have seen over the last four years how the PAP is able to govern with impunity with scant regards for public sentiments. Many misguided policies are forced down the throats of Singaporeans and its ministers do not have to take any responsibility for disastrous screw-ups such as the rampant floods, astronomical HDB flat prices and YOG fiasco.
What did the two WP MPs do or say? Did you hear them commenting on the sky-rocketing HDB prices, criticizing Dr Vivian for the YOG or taking the Prime Minister to task for his liberal immigration policies? Nothing at all! It is as if their mouths are stuffed with ‘gold’ that they cannot open. This is the type of opposition which the PAP loves so much – compliant, non-confrontational and most importantly SILENT.
JBJ knew that the present WP under Low Thia Kiang and Sylvia Lim will never be able to fulfill his dream of reforming Singapore. That’s why he chose to take the longer and more arduous route of starting a new party from scratch. In fact Low Thia Kiang once proclaimed rather proudly that WP will not be able to challenge the PAP for the next fifty years.
A vote for WP is a vote for the status quo, meaning that nothing will ever change. The PAP will again be given a ‘blank cheque’ to rule with WP MPs putting up a ‘wayang’ in parliament to masquerade Singapore as a ‘democracy’ to the world. So what’s the point of having 10, 20 or even 30 WP MPs in parliament when they dare not confront the PAP and is happy with the status quo?
Before he passed away, JBJ left us a legacy, whose mantle is now taken over by his elder son Kenneth Jeyaretnam, the Secretary-General of the Reform Party.
Many of the Reform Party’s 19 policy proposals in its election manifesto for Singapore are JBJ’s ideas which can be found in his books.
Are you happy with the system in Singapore at the moment? If you are not, then please listen to JBJ and lend your support to parties which dare reform the system like the Reform Party. Otherwise, you can continue to watch the ‘wayang kulit’ put up by the ‘wayang party’ and the PAP in parliament.
Please vote wisely in the next election. Reject any parties which seek to maintain the status quo and cast your sacred vote only to those which aim to reform Singapore.
.
Serene Wong
.
Editor’s note: The views expressed in this article are of the writer’s own and not indicative of the stand of TR.
http://www.temasekreview.com/2010/1...a-kiang-if-you-are-happy-with-the-status-quo/
