http://www.channelnewsasia.com/news/singapore/opposition-talks-on-poll/2011910.html?cid=twtcna
Singapore
[h=1]Opposition talks on poll areas likely to be complex[/h][h=2]Thirteen out of 29 constituencies may see a multi-cornered fight, based on proclamations made by opposition parties.[/h]
[h=1][/h]
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SINGAPORE: Thirteen out of 29 constituencies delineated for the coming General Election have attracted the attention of more than one challenger to the incumbent, with Tampines GRC being the hottest – it is eyed by three opposition parties.
Horse-trading talks are scheduled for Friday (Jul 31) and negotiations look to be potentially complex for certain seats, because of the relationship between the so-called party-crashers and the opposition party that had worked the ground in that area for the 2011 elections.
For instance, Ms Jeanette Chong-Aruldoss, who joined the Singapore People’s Party (SPP), has staked her claim on Mountbatten SMC, which she contested on a National Solidarity Party (NSP) ticket in 2011. She left NSP in March after a failed challenge to the party presidency.
Potong Pasir SMC is another: The Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) led by Mr Benjamin Pwee wants in on the single seat that was held by veteran opposition figure and Singapore People’s Party (SPP) secretary-general Chiam See Tong until the last election. Mr Pwee quit the SPP in 2012, following a split within its ranks.
Opposition parties contacted said they would leave it till Friday’s talks to decide if they would give up their claims in order to avoid multi-cornered fights. Yet in the same breath, some have already said they would not budge on certain constituencies.
The Reform Party has also expressed unhappiness with the process. In a statement on its Facebook page on Monday, the party said it has “fundamental reservations” about a closed-door meeting of opposition parties to discuss where each would contest.
“Reform Party can hardly demand transparency and accountability of the PAP Government while not practising it ourselves. This kind of meeting is a denial of the fundamental democratic rights of the citizens,” it said.
Still, the party said it would attend the talks but called for the meeting to be postponed to next Monday because two of its key members have been called up for reservist training.
RP also urged parties not to field candidates for the sake of it, adding: “The Opposition has to change its ways. It is not enough to turn up every four or five years for a look-see or a photo opportunity. The residents live there every day, not just when the cameras come out.”
POSSIBLE MULTI-CORNERED FIGHTS
Based on the proclamations that Opposition parties have been quick to make over the weekend, newly formed Singaporeans First and People’s Power Party have expressed interest in Tampines, where the NSP contested in 2011 and has said will do so again for the coming polls.
Five other GRCs could see three-way tussles: Bishan-Toa Payoh, Tanjong Pagar, Pasir Ris-Punggol, and Marine Parade, as well as the newly-created Marsiling-Yew Tee.
As for SMCs, seven out of 13 have multiple suitors. Besides Mountbatten and Potong Pasir, there are also Bukit Batok, Fengshan and Macpherson, as well as Hong Kah North and Pioneer.
Analysts said such a situation may be disadvantageous to some Opposition parties, especially those who do not have a strong brand name.
Said Singapore Management University Associate Professor Eugene Tan: "Voters who may want an opposition victory are likely to appreciate the importance of not splitting their vote and this is where they would gravitate towards who they think is the strongest opposition candidate.
"But where the candidates have nothing much to differentiate between them, then that signalling effect is missing and this is where we are likely to see the real likelihood of votes being split. Multi-cornered fights - on one level it demonstrates a very vibrant political scene but then voters would really be asking, what are the real choices?"
When contacted on Tuesday, NSP acting secretary-general Hazel Poa said the party chose its constituencies based on where it had done better in the 2011 elections, such as Marine Parade and Tampines GRCs.
“These are the areas we are interested in but ... the final place that we go to ... we don’t know ourselves yet until we have the discussion (on Friday),” she said."If we enter negotiations with a spirit of give and take we will work something out. From the point of view of the opposition party, we would like to avoid multi-cornered fights. Conventional wisdom has it that if we have a multi-cornered fight, it's usually that the opposition votes that will be split."
But she added: "I think we have seen in the Punggol East by-election that it may not be true. We saw a four-cornered fight but the Workers' Party came out winning quite convincingly. In principle, that's something any political party needs to be prepared for that eventually a multi-cornered fight is going to come."
SPP’s Lina Chiam said her party “will not back down” as they are committed to the constituencies that they are contesting in. “We have been spending a lot of time there ... I will not back down because we have worked the ground, so we will stay there and we have committed to it,” she said.
But Mrs Chiam said, as far as possible, her party will not wade into multi-way contests. As it stands, the SPP and DPP would cross swords in the Potong Pasir and Hong Kah North SMCs, and Bishan-Toa Payoh GRC.
DPP secretary-general Benjamin Pwee dismissed concerns over three-cornered fights, arguing that these happen only when “credible candidates” are put forward by all contesting parties. He cited the Punggol East by-elections in 2013, which had four parties contesting but ended up with the PAP and WP garnering the vast majority of the votes. The other two parties were RP and Singapore Democratic Alliance (SDA).
“CROWDED” POLITICAL FIELD
On whether the keen opposition interest in Tampines GRC was an indication that it was on shaky ground for the People’s Action Party, Tampines GRC MP Baey Yam Keng said that ultimately, it is for voters to judge how his team has fared. “Voters will also compare the teams that each contesting party has. I think it’s good for residents to have a choice. They have to make their own assessment,” he said.
On whether more multi-cornered fights is an inevitability in the coming elections, National University of Singapore (NUS) sociologist Tan Ern Ser said that given the number of political parties currently – there are nine – the political field “will get more crowded”.
“However, this does not mean that multi-cornered fights are inevitable, if the opposition parties are able to come to some agreement,” said Professor Tan.
NEWER PARTIES SHOULD CONTEST IN FAMILIAR GROUND: ANALYSTS
Some analysts said smaller and newer opposition parties should contest in constituencies where they have been walking the ground as people would be more familiar with their work.
This is why SDA has declared its interest in Pasir-Ris Punggol GRC, having contested there in the past two elections.
Ms Lina Ang, a new potential candidate with SDA, said she has been working the ground for the past two years.
"Residents have been coming to us for legal advice, financial assistance, job matching. As a matter of principle we want to continue to serve in a area where the people are familiar with us. Because we know their problems, we know the upcoming issues," said Ms Ang.
Details on where multi-cornered fights are expected this Friday, after opposition parties meet to sort out their plans.
-TODAY/CNA/cy/dl
Singapore
[h=1]Opposition talks on poll areas likely to be complex[/h][h=2]Thirteen out of 29 constituencies may see a multi-cornered fight, based on proclamations made by opposition parties.[/h]
- By Amanda Lee, TODAY and Vimita Mohandas, News 5
- POSTED: 28 Jul 2015 08:10
- UPDATED: 29 Jul 2015 01:41
[h=1][/h]
<div>Please enable Javascript to watch this video</div>
SINGAPORE: Thirteen out of 29 constituencies delineated for the coming General Election have attracted the attention of more than one challenger to the incumbent, with Tampines GRC being the hottest – it is eyed by three opposition parties.
Horse-trading talks are scheduled for Friday (Jul 31) and negotiations look to be potentially complex for certain seats, because of the relationship between the so-called party-crashers and the opposition party that had worked the ground in that area for the 2011 elections.
For instance, Ms Jeanette Chong-Aruldoss, who joined the Singapore People’s Party (SPP), has staked her claim on Mountbatten SMC, which she contested on a National Solidarity Party (NSP) ticket in 2011. She left NSP in March after a failed challenge to the party presidency.
Potong Pasir SMC is another: The Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) led by Mr Benjamin Pwee wants in on the single seat that was held by veteran opposition figure and Singapore People’s Party (SPP) secretary-general Chiam See Tong until the last election. Mr Pwee quit the SPP in 2012, following a split within its ranks.
Opposition parties contacted said they would leave it till Friday’s talks to decide if they would give up their claims in order to avoid multi-cornered fights. Yet in the same breath, some have already said they would not budge on certain constituencies.
The Reform Party has also expressed unhappiness with the process. In a statement on its Facebook page on Monday, the party said it has “fundamental reservations” about a closed-door meeting of opposition parties to discuss where each would contest.
“Reform Party can hardly demand transparency and accountability of the PAP Government while not practising it ourselves. This kind of meeting is a denial of the fundamental democratic rights of the citizens,” it said.
Still, the party said it would attend the talks but called for the meeting to be postponed to next Monday because two of its key members have been called up for reservist training.
RP also urged parties not to field candidates for the sake of it, adding: “The Opposition has to change its ways. It is not enough to turn up every four or five years for a look-see or a photo opportunity. The residents live there every day, not just when the cameras come out.”
POSSIBLE MULTI-CORNERED FIGHTS
Based on the proclamations that Opposition parties have been quick to make over the weekend, newly formed Singaporeans First and People’s Power Party have expressed interest in Tampines, where the NSP contested in 2011 and has said will do so again for the coming polls.
Five other GRCs could see three-way tussles: Bishan-Toa Payoh, Tanjong Pagar, Pasir Ris-Punggol, and Marine Parade, as well as the newly-created Marsiling-Yew Tee.
As for SMCs, seven out of 13 have multiple suitors. Besides Mountbatten and Potong Pasir, there are also Bukit Batok, Fengshan and Macpherson, as well as Hong Kah North and Pioneer.
Analysts said such a situation may be disadvantageous to some Opposition parties, especially those who do not have a strong brand name.
Said Singapore Management University Associate Professor Eugene Tan: "Voters who may want an opposition victory are likely to appreciate the importance of not splitting their vote and this is where they would gravitate towards who they think is the strongest opposition candidate.
"But where the candidates have nothing much to differentiate between them, then that signalling effect is missing and this is where we are likely to see the real likelihood of votes being split. Multi-cornered fights - on one level it demonstrates a very vibrant political scene but then voters would really be asking, what are the real choices?"
When contacted on Tuesday, NSP acting secretary-general Hazel Poa said the party chose its constituencies based on where it had done better in the 2011 elections, such as Marine Parade and Tampines GRCs.
“These are the areas we are interested in but ... the final place that we go to ... we don’t know ourselves yet until we have the discussion (on Friday),” she said."If we enter negotiations with a spirit of give and take we will work something out. From the point of view of the opposition party, we would like to avoid multi-cornered fights. Conventional wisdom has it that if we have a multi-cornered fight, it's usually that the opposition votes that will be split."
But she added: "I think we have seen in the Punggol East by-election that it may not be true. We saw a four-cornered fight but the Workers' Party came out winning quite convincingly. In principle, that's something any political party needs to be prepared for that eventually a multi-cornered fight is going to come."
SPP’s Lina Chiam said her party “will not back down” as they are committed to the constituencies that they are contesting in. “We have been spending a lot of time there ... I will not back down because we have worked the ground, so we will stay there and we have committed to it,” she said.
But Mrs Chiam said, as far as possible, her party will not wade into multi-way contests. As it stands, the SPP and DPP would cross swords in the Potong Pasir and Hong Kah North SMCs, and Bishan-Toa Payoh GRC.
DPP secretary-general Benjamin Pwee dismissed concerns over three-cornered fights, arguing that these happen only when “credible candidates” are put forward by all contesting parties. He cited the Punggol East by-elections in 2013, which had four parties contesting but ended up with the PAP and WP garnering the vast majority of the votes. The other two parties were RP and Singapore Democratic Alliance (SDA).
“CROWDED” POLITICAL FIELD
On whether the keen opposition interest in Tampines GRC was an indication that it was on shaky ground for the People’s Action Party, Tampines GRC MP Baey Yam Keng said that ultimately, it is for voters to judge how his team has fared. “Voters will also compare the teams that each contesting party has. I think it’s good for residents to have a choice. They have to make their own assessment,” he said.
On whether more multi-cornered fights is an inevitability in the coming elections, National University of Singapore (NUS) sociologist Tan Ern Ser said that given the number of political parties currently – there are nine – the political field “will get more crowded”.
“However, this does not mean that multi-cornered fights are inevitable, if the opposition parties are able to come to some agreement,” said Professor Tan.
NEWER PARTIES SHOULD CONTEST IN FAMILIAR GROUND: ANALYSTS
Some analysts said smaller and newer opposition parties should contest in constituencies where they have been walking the ground as people would be more familiar with their work.
This is why SDA has declared its interest in Pasir-Ris Punggol GRC, having contested there in the past two elections.
Ms Lina Ang, a new potential candidate with SDA, said she has been working the ground for the past two years.
"Residents have been coming to us for legal advice, financial assistance, job matching. As a matter of principle we want to continue to serve in a area where the people are familiar with us. Because we know their problems, we know the upcoming issues," said Ms Ang.
Details on where multi-cornered fights are expected this Friday, after opposition parties meet to sort out their plans.
-TODAY/CNA/cy/dl
