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When the PAP threatens / scares the citizens

‘You don’t want a govt that is embroiled in paralysis’, says Ong Ye Kung ahead of GE2025​

Health Minister Ong Ye Kung (left) at Studio+65 for the recording of The Usual Place Podcast with ST correspondent and host Natasha Zachariah.


Health Minister Ong Ye Kung (left) at Studio+65 for the recording of The Usual Place Podcast with ST correspondent and host Natasha Zachariah.ST PHOTO: AZMI ATHNI

Tham Yuen-C
Mar 25, 2025

SINGAPORE - Singapore needs a good and effective government to navigate rising global tensions and economic uncertainty, and this is something that Singaporeans are aware of, Health Minister Ong Ye Kung said.

Mr Ong gave this response on March 23 when he was asked about whether a growing desire for more elected opposition in Parliament would destabilise the political balance in Singapore.

He cited the Government’s trust in the people during the pandemic years to keep to the Covid-19 protocols – such as staying at home and testing themselves when unwell – adding that Singaporeans would do what is right for the country.

“We trust that Singaporeans know what to do. So, likewise, in the election, I think it’s the same. Singaporeans know that especially in this geopolitical environment, with so many changes happening, you need a good, effective government,” he added.

“You don’t want a government that is embroiled in paralysis, things cannot go forward. I think Singaporeans are deeply aware of that, and so they will take it, I believe, step by step and do what is right for Singapore.”

He acknowledged that people have wanted a larger opposition presence in Parliament across successive elections, adding that he had felt the brunt of these desires first-hand when he was fielded and lost as part of the PAP team in Aljunied GRC in the 2011 general election.

Recounting his experience during that election, he said that after four or five days into the campaign period, he had told his fellow candidates and activists that he felt like he was “in quick sand”.

“As much as you try to swim and float, you sink, and the harder you struggle, sometimes the faster you sink. There’s almost nothing you can do about it,” he said of his experience then.

He attributed this to the seemingly inexorable march towards greater opposition representation in Parliament.

But he added that elections are about producing an effective system of government.

“Of course in people’s minds now... their thinking is a good outcome – a PAP government, but with opposition as a check and balance. That’s a good system of government. I don’t disagree,” he said.

“As to ‘What is the equilibrium?’, I think we are still finding out as a people… To me, it’s a journey that with each successive election we will find out.”

He noted that there were now 12 opposition MPs in Parliament, up from two before the 2011 general election, but said “it’s not a numbers game”.


The equilibrium is not determined solely by the ratio of ruling party and opposition MPs in Parliament, he added.

Many other factors come into play in deciding where the balance should lie and whether Singapore has become a mature democracy, he said.

Besides looking at the external environment and its impact on Singapore, people will also be looking at the PAP to see how well it has performed in Government and whether it has listened to the people, he added.

“What is the PAP’s attitude? Do they listen to me? Are they arrogant, or are they humble? Do they look like they’re listening more? Taking in my suggestions, acknowledging my problems?” he said.

Voters will also be looking at MPs from both sides of the aisle, such as whether they are people with integrity, whether they want to serve the people or whether they are merely looking out for their own political interests, he added.

“Singaporeans have different aspirations for the country, for politics,” he said.

“When it comes to an election, sometimes it looks as if we are moving further apart. It shouldn’t be. When the dust settles, we still got to be together.”

Asked where he might be fielded in the upcoming election, Mr Ong turned to the party’s current holding line - that it would be up to Prime Minister Lawrence Wong.

But he said having been an MP in Sembawang GRC for 10 years, he would “love to stay in Sembawang until I retire”.

He said the MPs in his team had bonded with residents there, and had worked together with them to develop the constituency, while still retaining its character.

Noting that Sembawang was a swamp before, he said: “Today it’s developed. But we didn’t develop it in a way that make it look like Tampines or Clementi or Ang Mo Kio. It has a certain character,” he said, noting that features such as the hot spring, beach as well as the kampung mosque, Masjid Petempatan Melayu Sembawang, had been preserved.

Occasionally, some new residents who moved to Sembawang from other parts of Singapore would lament the lack of amenities such as big shopping centres, said Mr Ong.

He would tell them that Sembawang was more “ulu”, he said using the Malay word for remote.

“Here is the kampung vibe, the sun, the sea, the breeze, the hot spring. So, you really (have) to like the place. But we will not change the character. I’ll try my best not to change the character of the town,” he said.
 
It is the oldest trick in the book to create a "bogeyman" or perceived threat to frighten the voters into not changing the status quo.
 

Election is about Singaporeans recognising much is at stake in this new environment: PM Wong​

CMG20250326-OA-HoKJ PM Wong at a media doorstop with Singapore media at the Melia Hotel in Hanoi, Vietnam on 26 March 2025. 黄总理访问越南河内。媒体总结访问。


PM Lawrence Wong said a strong and united Singapore is needed to survive a challenging global environment.PHOTO: LIANHE ZAOBAO

Alyssa Woo
Mar 26, 2025

HANOI – The upcoming general election is not just about the PAP needing a strong mandate, but Singaporeans recognising that much is at stake for the country in this new environment, Prime Minister Lawrence Wong said on March 26.

“In order to survive, in order to thrive, in order for us to navigate a very challenging global environment, we will need a strong and united Singapore,” he said. “So there is much at stake in the elections.”

“And when the elections come, I will present my case for the PAP, for me and my team, and I hope Singaporeans will give me the chance to serve them and to serve Singapore,” he added.

PM Wong was speaking to Singapore reporters in Hanoi before flying home after a two-day visit to Vietnam, his first to the country since taking over as prime minister in May 2024.

He said his introductory visits to the various Asean countries – he has been to Brunei, Malaysia, Laos, Indonesia and Thailand – have allowed him to strengthen his relationship with his counterparts, affirm Singapore’s partnership with these key neighbours, and identify new areas in which to strengthen cooperation.

“All of us in Asean can see the changes happening in the world,” he said. “There is a profound change in the global order – competition is intensifying, trade barriers are going up,” he added.

“Great power rivalry is increasing and, more and more, it feels like we are entering a world where it’s every country for itself, and stronger countries will use aggression or even coercion to get what they want at the expense of smaller countries,” he said.

“Even within Asean itself, the large countries on their own will feel that this is a very difficult, inhospitable global environment. But if we can combine together... as a collective, we are much stronger, and we can hold our own.”

In the interview with Singapore media, PM Wong was asked about his progress in recruiting new candidates for the PAP team.

He noted that he had, at the ruling party’s conference in November 2024, said he was making a great effort to renew the leadership team and the People’s Action Party, and leadership renewal has remained a key priority for him.

“I’ve been spending a lot of time doing that in the past one, two years. I could have just decided to do less on the renewal front and largely contest with the present team,” he said.

“Things will be okay in one term, in the next five years, but if there is no renewal, I think we will feel the effects of it – not immediately, not even for the next five years, but certainly in the next 10 to 15 years,” he added.

“If that were to happen, it is not just the PAP, but Singapore and Singaporeans that will pay the price.”

PM Wong said he has been working hard to engage and persuade individuals to take the step forward to enter politics, and was glad that some had answered the call, including some public servants.

At the same time, the party has continued to recruit potential candidates from different sectors, including academia, before the final slate is chosen to be fielded, he added.

“Along the way, we expose them, we test them, and it’s a two-way street. Some we may feel are not ready this round, we may consider (them for the) next round. Individuals themselves may decide ‘this is not quite for me’, and they may decide perhaps they don’t want to continue, and that’s why there will inevitably be some who decide not to proceed,” he said.

“You will see faces popping up on the ground. I’m sure the media is closely monitoring who they are,” he added.

Pressed on how successful he had been in getting candidates from the private sector, PM Wong said some are prepared to step forward, but acknowledged the challenge they faced.

“For someone who is in the private sector, who is very successful, for example, in his 30s or 40s... potentially moving into a senior leadership position in a firm, MNC or large local company, the sacrifice is much greater,” he said.

“It’s not just a recent phenomenon. That has always been the case. It’s always been difficult,” he added.

“It remains that they must have the commitment to serve, the right values, and they are entering politics for the right reason, which is to serve their fellow Singaporeans, to give their all to make Singapore better for their fellow citizens.”
 
Election is about Singaporeans recognising much is at stake in this new environment: PM Wong
PM Lawrence Wong said a strong and united Singapore is needed to survive a challenging global environment. PHOTO: LIANHE ZAOBAO
No S'porean wants another 5 years of slavery and having our money drained out by Pay And Pay. That is how much is at stake.
 

Need to redouble efforts to maintain Singapore’s social cohesion: PM Wong​

Prime Minister Lawrence Wong attending the The Taoist Federation Interfaith Dinner to celebrate SG60 and its 35th anniversary, at Orchid Country Club on Apr 1, 2025.

PM Lawrence Wong arriving at a dinner to celebrate the Taoist Federation’s 35th anniversary and Singapore’s 60th year of independence.ST PHOTO: ARIFFIN JAMAR
Chin Soo Fang
Apr 01, 2025

SINGAPORE – Singapore must work hard to guard against powerful forces that could pull society further apart along racial and religious lines, said Prime Minister Lawrence Wong on April 1.

And the Republic must redouble efforts to maintain social cohesion, he told about 1,000 guests at a dinner to celebrate the Taoist Federation’s 35th anniversary and Singapore’s 60th year of independence.

Among the guests were leaders of Singapore’s major religions, including representatives from Buddhism, Christianity, Hinduism and Islam.

Their presence is a testament to the religious harmony Singapore enjoys, PM Wong said.

This did not happen by chance, but is the result of hard work by successive generations of Singaporeans, he noted. While the Government passed laws and policies to protect and safeguard cohesion, religious leaders put in effort to build mutual trust and understanding, and Singaporeans also helped build a harmonious and united society, he said.

Elaborating in Mandarin, PM Wong said 60 years – or “yi jia zi” – symbolises a complete life cycle in Chinese tradition and is an important milestone, PM Wong said.

There are ups and downs in a person’s life, and the same might be said of Singapore’s progress in the last 60 years, he added.

“Many did not look favourably on Singapore when it became independent in 1965,” PM Wong said. “But we succeeded in overcoming difficulties and creating miracles.”

The country not only survived but also thrived, becoming a prosperous little red dot, he added. Singapore’s founding fathers did not give up, creating a country where “everyone has the opportunity to succeed, regardless of race, language or religion”.

PM Wong noted that “yi jia zi” is not only a happy ending but also a new beginning, adding that Singapore has to be ready for new challenges.

He said the world is at a turning point, with many countries torn apart due to racial, religious or political issues.

Larger countries with abundant resources can continue to operate under such circumstances, but not Singapore, PM Wong added. This is why it must do everything it can to unite and work together to overcome challenges, he said.

“Fortunately, multiculturalism has always been our strength,” he said. “We have different religious beliefs, but we have always respected each other and lived in harmony.”

Religious leaders on stage during the Taoist Federation Interfaith Dinner to celebrate SG60 and its 35th anniversary, at Orchid Country Club on Apr 1, 2025.

Leaders of Singapore’s major religions at a dinner to celebrate the Taoist Federation’s 35th anniversary and Singapore’s 60th year of independence.ST PHOTO: ARIFFIN JAMAR
The Prime Minister elaborated on the role that religious groups such as the Taoist Federation play in protecting racial and religious harmony.

For example, the federation has promoted Taoism and united the Taoist community, and also strengthened collaboration between religious groups, he said.

As a member of the National Steering Committee on Racial And Religious Harmony and the Inter-Religious Organisation, it has always encouraged its members to establish friendly ties with other religious groups, and promoted mutual understanding and respect.

For example, it has worked with the Singapore Buddhist Lodge and Jamiyah Singapore to provide bursaries to students from low-income families.

In 2024, a number of Taoist temples also responded to the Racial and Religious Harmony Circle’s fund-raising campaign to help Gaza civilians.

“The Taoist Federation and other religious groups must play a more crucial role in strengthening mutual trust among our people,” PM Wong said.

Mr Tan Thiam Lye, president of the federation which has over 500 members, said it will focus on areas such as training its youth, inter-religious cooperation, international exchanges, and enhancing online and bilingual communication.

Mr Tan is confident that the federation will grow at a rapid pace in the next 20 years.

He said: “I urge all members to seize the opportunity to keep pace with the times and promote the faith, while contributing to Singapore’s racial and religious harmony.”

 

S’pore must be clear-eyed about dangers ahead; the risks are real, stakes are high, says PM Wong​

The world is entering a new phase – one that is more arbitrary, protectionist, and dangerous, PM Lawrence Wong said in a five-minute video.


The world is entering a new phase – one that is more arbitrary, protectionist, and dangerous, PM Lawrence Wong said in a five-minute video.PHOTO: SCREENGRAB FROM LAWRENCE WONG/YOUTUBE

Hariz Baharudin
Apr 04, 2025

SINGAPORE - Singapore must be clear-eyed about the dangers ahead, as global institutions get weaker and international norms erode, said Prime Minister Lawrence Wong on April 4.

Touching on the recent news about the decision by the United States to impose tariffs on many countries including Singapore, PM Wong said that the Republic must brace for more shocks to come.

“We must be clear-eyed about the dangers that are building up in the world. Global institutions are getting weaker; international norms are eroding,” he said in a 5-minute video uploaded to his social media accounts.

“More and more countries will act based on narrow self-interest, and use force or pressure to get their way. This is the harsh reality of our world today.”

On April 2, US President Donald Trump announced a decision to impose a 10 per cent tariff on most goods imported into the US from Singapore and key partners, with higher duties for many other countries.

Describing the announcement as a “seismic change in the global order”, PM Wong stressed how with the move, the era of rules-based globalisation and free trade is over.

The world is entering a new phase – one that is more arbitrary, protectionist, and dangerous, he noted.

“For decades, the US was the bedrock for the free market economies of the world. It championed free trade, and led efforts to build a multilateral trading system, anchored by clear rules and norms, where countries could achieve win-win benefits through trade,” he said.

“This World Trade Organization (WTO) system brought unprecedented stability and prosperity to the world – and to the US itself.”

This system is not perfect, acknowledged PM Wong, adding that Singapore, and many others, have long called for reform to update the rules and to make the system better.

“But what the US is doing now is not reform. It is abandoning the entire system it had created. Its new approach of reciprocal tariffs, country by country, is a complete rejection of the WTO framework,” he pointed out.

The new 10 per cent tariff placed on Singapore, which the US has grouped in the lowest base tier, may have a limited direct impact “for now”, but PM Wong warned that the broader implications are serious — especially if more countries follow the US in turning away from the WTO and choosing to trade “only on their own preferred terms, country by country”.

“If other countries adopt the same approach... it will spell trouble for all nations, especially small ones like Singapore,” he said. “We risk being squeezed out, marginalised and left behind.”

A strong global response to America’s tariffs is expected, said PM Wong. While Singapore has decided to not impose retaliatory tariffs, he warned that other countries may not exercise the same restraint.

This, he said, raises the likelihood of a full-blown global trade war, with the uncertainty of what countries may do next weighing heavily on trade, investment and growth.

“International trade and investments will suffer, and global growth will slow. Singapore will take a bigger hit than others, because of our heavy reliance on trade,” said PM Wong.

On April 3, Deputy Prime Minister Gan Kim Yong said that Singapore is reassessing its 2025 growth forecast and is prepared to provide support for households and businesses if the situation deteriorates.

DPM Gan had noted that the US and Singapore have a longstanding economic relationship and an existing Free Trade Agreement, and that the government will engage Washington to clarify the rationale behind the tariffs.

PM Wong recalled how the last time the world experienced something like this was in the 1930s, noting how trade wars then escalated into armed conflict and ultimately the Second World War.

“No one can say how the current situation will unfold in the coming months or years. But we must be clear-eyed about the dangers that are building up in the world,” said PM Wong.

The “harsh reality” of the world today is that global institutions are getting weaker, and international norms are eroding, said PM Wong. He underscored how more and more countries will act based on narrow self-interest, and use force or pressure to get their way.

Amid the uncertainty, Singapore will stay vigilant, build up its capabilities, and strengthen its network of partnerships with like-minded countries. “We are more ready than many other countries, with our reserves, our cohesion, and our resolve. But we must brace ourselves for more shocks to come”, he said.

“The global calm and stability we once knew will not return anytime soon. We cannot expect that the rules which protected small states will still hold.

“I am sharing this with you so that we can all be mentally prepared. So that we will not be caught off guard. Let us not be lulled into complacency. The risks are real. The stakes are high.”
 

GE2025: Singapore voters can’t afford to ignore harsh new global realities​

Bhavan Jaipragas


Bhavan Jaipragas
At its heart, Singapore’s imperatives haven’t changed since 1965, though the paths to securing them must evolve with the times.


At its heart, Singapore’s imperatives haven’t changed since 1965, though the paths to securing them must evolve with the times.PHOTO: LIANHE ZAOBAO
Apr 05, 2025

From now until the general election – which, by most accounts, seems just weeks away – conversations around dinner tables, over hurried lunches in CBD hawker centres, and at kopitiams on weekend mornings will likely revolve around the hot-button issues people can see and feel.

It’s not hard to guess what will be on the menu: Public housing – will HDB flats remain affordable? Cost of living – is the broad middle as well as those less well off getting enough help even as inflation tapers? And immigration – that perennial question of balancing the need to attract a diverse, high-quality foreign workforce while preserving and nurturing a strong Singaporean core.

That focus on tangible, day-to-day concerns is hardly surprising. It’s almost conventional wisdom, whether in our relatively subdued electoral climate or in places with fiercer politics, that local and national issues dominate.

When politicians try to steer the debate towards foreign policy or geopolitics, many voters simply glaze over, preferring bread-and-butter topics they can sink their teeth into and feel viscerally about.

Yet these are no ordinary times, and a broader perspective cannot be shrugged off. One could argue that voters ought to be nudged – perhaps even nagged – into thinking about the global stakes.

On a daily basis, we see signs aplenty that the international order we have known since World War II – certainly the environment Singapore has thrived in since independence – is coming undone.

Look no further than the last 10 weeks of President Donald Trump’s second stint in the White House, which amount to a self-induced vaporisation of American leadership. Add to that the ongoing US-China decoupling, likely to have far-reaching consequences for war and peace in our part of the world.

In the light of this, there’s a strong case that Singaporeans – when weighing up which candidates or political parties to support – should, on top of assessing whether they have adequate answers for immediate bread-and-butter challenges, also judge whether they possess the prescience and cognitive dexterity to navigate a fast-shifting global environment.

A Singaporean backbencher MP need not have the same foreign policy acumen as the prime minister or foreign minister, who is at the front row of high-stakes diplomacy, but he must still grasp what is fundamentally at stake and what it truly means to be an MP in a city state so plugged into the international economic grid.

So what exactly is at stake? At its heart, Singapore’s imperatives haven’t changed since 1965, though the paths to securing them must evolve with the times. The core question remains: How does a tiny red dot stay relevant in a world that has no obligation to care?

For a concise articulation of these imperatives, one might turn to the nation’s founding father, the late Mr Lee Kuan Yew, who alongside his peers, including the Republic’s first foreign minister S. Rajaratnam, shaped Singapore’s foreign policy fundamentals.

In his 2009 S. Rajaratnam Lecture, one of his last major foreign policy addresses, Mr Lee stated plainly: “Singapore cannot take its relevance for granted. Small countries perform no vital or irreplaceable functions in the international system.” He continued: “Singapore has to continually reconstruct itself and keep its relevance to the world and to create political and economic space. This is the economic imperative for Singapore.”

That speech remains a tutorial on Singapore’s foundational interests. For those who were politically sentient in the 2000s and before, when Mr Lee was still active, his refrain will be familiar. He consistently exhorted Singaporeans to repress insular instincts and develop global and regional savvy – to know that at the core of being Singaporean is to accept that the island’s sovereignty is not preordained and the reality of its permanent vulnerability cannot simply be wished away.

For newer Gen Z voters, that 2009 speech is worth reading, as a core reality check for a small, multiracial, meritocratic city state in a region whose neighbours have different organising principles.
These fundamentals matter more now, when uncertainty is the only certainty. One might note that Singapore has defied countless odds – our GDP per capita at independence hovered around US$500; today it exceeds US$63,000 (S$84,000) – and much of that success has been built on integrating into and thriving within a stable global order. But that order is no longer assured.

The next Parliament will grapple with sweeping geopolitical changes that strain the global trading system – most visibly from a White House that defines American interests narrowly, embraces tariffs as policy instruments, and approaches foreign relations in a transactional manner.

The sweeping new reciprocal tariffs Mr Trump imposed on April 2 – affecting Singapore significantly too – as part of his “Liberation Day” plan won’t just affect trade flows; they’ll eventually constrict investment patterns too. This is not a small thing – the US is not just an important defence partner and arms exporter – that we all know from gazing at our gleaming fighter jets at National Day Parade and Air Force Open House, but also, the biggest source of foreign direct investment in Singapore.

As Senior Minister Lee Hsien Loong cautioned in his March 24 Singapore Maritime Lecture, we seem to be slipping into a situation reminiscent of the interwar years, when the US imposed steep tariffs during the Great Depression, feeding political pressures that contributed to the road towards World War II. In the Pacific theatre, it was the American embargo on petroleum and rubber exports to Japan that set the stage for Pearl Harbour.

The challenge extends beyond American protectionism. Singapore will need particular skill to maintain productive relations with the world’s other superpower, China, where officials and commentators, like everyone else, appear to be debating whether Mr Trump’s return is an opportunity or threat – “the most urgent question in world politics” as The Economist suggested this week.

If the coming US-China trade confrontation proves deeper and more systemic than during Mr Trump’s first term – as early signals suggest – small states like Singapore risk being caught in the crossfire, forced to make increasingly difficult choices with significant costs on either side.

As Washington’s erratic foreign policy continues – and likely beyond it – Singapore will have to assiduously maintain good ties with Beijing, its largest trading partner. Yet this balancing act comes with its own complexities.

With countries like China, as well as India and South-east Asian nations with which Singapore shares ties of kinship through its ethnic groups, there persists a challenge: reminding their respective governments that Singapore is not an extension of their influence, but a sovereign entity with its own distinct identity – a syncretic form, not simply a smaller version of them transplanted elsewhere.

FILE PHOTO: U.S. President Donald Trump attends a bilateral meeting with China's President Xi Jinping during the G20 leaders summit in Osaka, Japan, June 29, 2019. REUTERS/Kevin Lamarque/File Photo


US President Donald Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping at the G-20 summit in Osaka in 2019. If the US-China trade confrontation proves deeper and more systemic than during Mr Trump’s first term in office, small states like Singapore risk being caught in the crossfire.PHOTO: REUTERS
With Singapore’s immediate neighbours Malaysia and Indonesia, ties require especial, careful attention. Areas of difference must be addressed incrementally but steadily – as evidenced by the March 2024 implementation of three agreements with Indonesia on airspace management, defence cooperation and extradition, which resolved longstanding sensitive issues in bilateral relationships dating back decades.

Yet Mr Lee Kuan Yew’s observation in his 2009 speech remains prescient: While time may have smoothed many of the sharper edges in our relations with neighbouring countries and they have accepted Singapore’s sovereignty, they retain a tendency to externalise their internal anxieties and project domestic tensions with their own minorities onto us.

At the multilateral level, Singapore faces another challenge as the US-led international rules-based order appears to be undermined by its very architect. This makes it all the more critical for Singapore to ensure forums like Asean and the Forum of Small States remain relevant. Though small states’ voices are weak individually, collectively these platforms allow Singapore and its peers to amplify their influence – making common cause in a world where great powers seem inclined to set one rule for themselves and another for the rest.

Navigating this complex web of relationships demands leaders across the political spectrum with both domestic policy chops and a worldly instinct for how small states survive in the jungle of today’s geopolitics.

One has to assume the People’s Action Party will emphasise these global stakes heavily in its election campaign, even as it highlights its domestic policies and achievements and defends itself against opposition attacks.

After all, it cannot be denied that six decades of adroit Singapore foreign policy – widely recognised internationally and praised as recently as in March by Belgian King Philippe during President Tharman Shanmugaratnam’s state visit – is, in essence, PAP policy.

Past elections have shown foreign affairs can loom large in the PAP’s messaging. A prime showcase of the party’s broad strategic outlook has long been the “Fullerton Rally”, the lunchtime gathering traditionally held near the old Fullerton Square – and now a five-minute walk away at UOB Plaza in Boat Quay – midway through the campaign. The Prime Minister’s speech there is closely watched not just by crowds of CBD workers – a catchment of “middle Singapore” – but also by international media and, by extension, global investors.

In the 2020 Covid-era polls, SM Lee delivered an online version of this rally, underscoring big-picture stakes even as the country grappled with a once-in-a-generation health crisis. In 2015’s Fullerton Rally, too, he highlighted how life is never easy for a small country, pointing to terrorist threats, the possible effects of internal political tensions in Malaysia, and persistent views in Indonesia that Singapore needed to know its place relative to its larger neighbour.

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For some opposition figures and commentators, the mere suggestion that voters consider such global realities is often waved away as a scare tactic – an attempt to herd the electorate back to the perceived safety of the only ruling party Singapore has ever had. Some even dismiss any discussion of global uncertainty as PAP “psyops” aimed at stoking fear.

But to frame these issues purely as partisan scaremongering is to underestimate the agency and discernment of Singapore’s 2.75 million voters. Indeed, the evidence does not suggest looming external threats automatically translate into a resounding PAP victory. The 2020 polls bear this out: even amid the worst crisis since independence, the opposition notched its biggest electoral gains since the 1960s.

On the other hand, serious, electable opposition parties would be wise to show they, too, grasp that Singapore’s external relationships profoundly shape domestic outcomes.

If they can articulate a nuanced view of international affairs – acknowledging that good ties hinge on more than goodwill or personal relationships, and recognising that a small country must secure as many friends as possible while preserving its autonomy – they will signal to voters they are serious contenders.

In the current situation, this means having considered positions on the challenges ahead: for instance, how Singapore should respond to Mr Trump’s reciprocal tariffs, and how it can build on existing cooperative relationships with China and other regional economies to blunt the impact of what appears to be a nasty global trade war on the horizon.

Doing this will demonstrate true range beyond purely domestic critiques. It also serves as a natural filter, separating serious challengers to the PAP from the chancers and fantasists who’ll inevitably contest – those who fundamentally misunderstand Singapore’s unique position in the world.

Ultimately, voters – both the firmly decided and the still wavering – must weigh this global dimension when judging candidates’ fitness for Parliament. Bread-and-butter issues matter deeply, but they do not exist in splendid isolation. Inward-looking politics is a luxury Singapore, of all places, cannot afford.

Far from scaremongering, this is simply cold reality: A city state that fixates only on its domestic concerns risks being blindsided by the global currents that have, throughout history, made and unmade nations far larger and more powerful than our own.
 
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