NSP Secretary-General Goh Meng Seng on Talking Point, Sun 2 May 10.10pm

[Perspective]

I think many are giving the wrong advice to GMS. The language and sitting, staring positions are one part of it. I can identify 2 issues with him -

1. He is someone who thinks too much and has too much thoughts in his head. In his mind, he has stored 10 rebuttals to every 1 PAP question, all credible at varying levels, but when the question comes, he struggles to decide what is the best among the 10 rebuttals he has, that is why the gaps and pauses. He needs to be more focus and just keep the good arguments, discard what does not strike many chords.

2. This one I mention before. He tries rather hard to win. The fact that the example of caveman swinging his club appealed to him. Your audience is the voters, not PAP or Debra/Gillian. If he sees it as everyone laying their clubs on the floor to let people see who's club is the nicest design, he will not be so pressured.

 

[kingrant]

We know he wont, because otherwise why are we tinkering with it?

Yr approach may be technically correct logicwise, but it seems too academic for the geenral public who probably has a short attention span.

What if he said YES ?

It's better to point out to him that his statement was irrelevant at this point of time when we don't even have diversified views. If you were to comment on the quality of the decades of dull monotonous Parliament sessions, you would be accepting that this statement was immediately relevant. You would have accepted the relevancy, but not the quality.

 

[Ramseth]

I think many are giving the wrong advice to GMS. The language and sitting, staring positions are one part of it. I can identify 2 issues with him -

1. He is someone who thinks too much and has too much thoughts in his head. In his mind, he has stored 10 rebuttals to every 1 PAP question, all credible at varying levels, but when the question comes, he struggles to decide what is the best among the 10 rebuttals he has, that is why the gaps and pauses. He needs to be more focus and just keep the good arguments, discard what does not strike many chords.

2. This one I mention before. He tries rather hard to win. The fact that the example of caveman swinging his club appealed to him. Your audience is the voters, not PAP or Debra/Gillian. If he sees it as everyone laying their clubs on the floor to let people see who's club is the nicest design, he will not be so pressured.

Very good assessment. I agree with both points. The first point is not to have MCQ 10-year series ready answers to choose from. The point is to have a stand and hold that stand regardless of the questions.

The second point is not to beat Debra, Alvin and Gillian in debate. It's to present yourself acceptably and credibly to the viewers. Both parts I've told him even before the recording session and I think that he's quite restrained from his usual temperament, which could have been worse.

Overall, I think it's quite a quantum improvement from Madcow mid-2000s.

 

[elephanto]

Overall, I think it's quite a quantum improvement from Madcow mid-2000s.

This is the most important line. Improvement is all that matters.

Ultimately, that is why PAP is so afraid of public debates.

It is the management of impressions that can have exponential impact on the audience.

The recent UK TV Debate is a case in point.

Nick Clegg, the Liberal Democrat Leader has been an MP only since 2005.

5 yrs MPship, one ground-breaking TV Debate 'performance'/impression and from a relative nobody, he has captured the imagination of the electorate and became a kingmaker-to-be, in contrast to veteran MP & Politician Gordon Brown, the incumbent PM soon to be ex-PM.

 

[Queen Seok Duk]

I believe Alvin Yeo is unlikely to endear himself with the upper echelons because he made no effort to "shame" GMS during the show. In fact, Alvin Yeo made Debra Soon look like a PAP MP.

With that, Alvin Yeo may not be in the next GE.

 

[Ramseth]

The recent UK TV Debate is a case in point.

Nick Clegg, the Liberal Democrat Leader has been an MP only since 2005.

5 yrs MPship, one ground-breaking TV Debate 'performance'/impression and from a relative nobody, he has captured the imagination of the electorate and became a kingmaker-to-be, in contrast to veteran MP & Politician Gordon Brown, the incumbent PM soon to be ex-PM.

It's quite clear that Labour agreed to the TV debate to put Lib Dems in good light to split unwinnable opposition votes away from Tories. Such is politics. Let's see how it works out.

 

[Chau Ve Nist]

BTW ChauVeNist, you have actually given away your own identity here with your little posting.

Don't be a coward, as you have always portrayed yourself to be. Just admit who you are and get on with life as usual.

Goh Meng Seng

You have to be pretty slow to think that I have given away myself with this posting and not way back in my 2nd or 3rd posting in this forum where I deliberately posted an article with my trademark signature.

Duh!

 

[Chau Ve Nist]

Dear ChauVeNist,
Obviously you didn't watch the Talking Point as you pretend to be. I am no puppet. A puppet will not give that kind of jabs at its "masters". I guess that explain why there isn't much publicity for this Talking Point series, no mention of names on their trailer. You go figure out... oh, I have forgotten that you are not in Singapore! Goh Meng Seng

No problem with me if you think the twig you carried is a "club" and your tiny mosquito pricks are "jabs".

Life goes on for everyone.......including yours truly.

 

[Ramseth]

You have to be pretty slow to think that I have given away myself with this posting and not way back in my 2nd or 3rd posting in this forum where I deliberately posted an article with my trademark signature.

Duh!

Don't worry too much about that. I'm not into manhunt for identities. I'm here to discuss issues, regardless of who says what.

I can't be anti-SDP but pro-WP when both are fighting against GST, yes? In their own ways. The lyrics matter more to me than the singer. The singer can sing it in rock style or soul style, it's the lyrics that matters.

I have to remind GMS of this, identity guessing is a private matter. Don't come out and say you know who is who unless you have evidence. Being able to guess moniker identity, even if correctly, has nothing to do your political cause. It doesn't prove you or anyone any smarter. Address the issue. If deeemed not to be worth the while addressing, ignore it.

 

[Queen Seok Duk]

Why must Debra Soon keep paraphrasing every statement that GMS made ? It was irritating in the beginning, and when she kept doing that for the entire show I felt she was outright rude. I didn't see Debra doing the same to Gillian or Alvin.

 

[Goh Meng Seng]

You have to be pretty slow to think that I have given away myself with this posting and not way back in my 2nd or 3rd posting in this forum where I deliberately posted an article with my trademark signature.

Duh!

I have only one phrase for you, Honesty is the best policy. One who could not even be honest to himself is totally a lost soul.

Goh Meng Seng

 

[Perspective]

Very good assessment. I agree with both points. The first point is not to have MCQ 10-year series ready answers to choose from. The point is to have a stand and hold that stand regardless of the questions.

The second point is not to beat Debra, Alvin and Gillian in debate. It's to present yourself acceptably and credibly to the viewers. Both parts I've told him even before the recording session and I think that he's quite restrained from his usual temperament, which could have been worse.

Overall, I think it's quite a quantum improvement from Madcow mid-2000s.

Both my points are shortcomings, but not negatives. Anyone has shortcomings. Goh Meng Seng is definitely ahead of the one in 2001 WP. He's a secretary general now. He risen up to the challenge, on the whole. Three cheers to him.

One cheer is the mention that a disagreeing NCMP cannot vote and a disagreeing PAP MP voted yes. Two "nos" became one "yes" because of the freak system. Alvin was fast and eloquent to respond but a lousy one. How can you agree with a bill that has a few positives and one negative. You should be disagreeing. I thought lawyers always win their cases on one technicality even though evidences for the rest are valid.

 

[SNAblog]

Here are the videos. Watch and judge for yourself how Goh Meng Seng did in the programme.

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[Perspective]

To give Goh Meng Seng my fullest support in Sammyboy, check out my new avatar! As the only politician/party engaging here, he deserves unreserved support.

 

[Queen Seok Duk]

I believe GMS would have performed much better if Debra Soon was replaced by Suzanne Jung. If it was Suzanne Jung, Alvin Yeo should zitong and give his seat to GMS.

 

[jw5]

I think many are giving the wrong advice to GMS. The language and sitting, staring positions are one part of it. I can identify 2 issues with him -

1. He is someone who thinks too much and has too much thoughts in his head. In his mind, he has stored 10 rebuttals to every 1 PAP question, all credible at varying levels, but when the question comes, he struggles to decide what is the best among the 10 rebuttals he has, that is why the gaps and pauses. He needs to be more focus and just keep the good arguments, discard what does not strike many chords.

2. This one I mention before. He tries rather hard to win. The fact that the example of caveman swinging his club appealed to him. Your audience is the voters, not PAP or Debra/Gillian. If he sees it as everyone laying their clubs on the floor to let people see who's club is the nicest design, he will not be so pressured.

I have to say that your comments are very perceptive and spot-on.
Hope that GMS responds to your observations, not only by replying here but also by keeping note for the future.
In any case, I thought he put forward his points quite clearly, although he is clearly not the most articulate in english.

Alvin came across to me as one of the most likeable pap mps I have seen in a long time. Not so much because he was articulate, but instead of being defensive or just spouting the party line, he was quite forthright and open. These type, they really believe that the pap are the best choice for the country and the country really need the pap. They are the most difficult opponents to counter, much more difficult than some others.

As for the other 2, I don't think they matter.

 

[jw5]

I have only one phrase for you, Honesty is the best policy. One who could not even be honest to himself is totally a lost soul.

Goh Meng Seng

Don't get caught up in an entanglement with this guy.
You should be putting your time and effort to much better use.

 

[jw5]

I believe GMS would have performed much better if Debra Soon was replaced by Suzanne Jung. If it was Suzanne Jung, Alvin Yeo should zitong and give his seat to GMS.

If it was Suzanne Jung, I would have watched the rerun as well, maybe even more than once.

 

[Rogue Trader]

Now I am really puzzled by Alvin yeo's concern that more parliamentary discussion = more entertainment = less benefit for the country. So how does hiphop dancing benefit the country?

well done Goh. next time u will be less nervous. ha ha ha.

 

[Queen Seok Duk]

GMS should memorize all the famous utterances by Alvin Yeo's Ministers. Learn them by heart, it can be quite useful and handy. Imagine when Alvin Yeo was expressing concerns about the quality of the debates, wonder how he would have responded if GMS had unleashed that "deaf frog" anecdote at him.