Tuesday, June 30, 2020

My thoughts on the upcoming GE2020

Elections are coming in Singapore.

Personally, I think only parties that field at least 47 candidates are viable choices, since there are 93 seats for grabs. Anything less is saying, "We are not serious about taking responsibility for the country's future." It is like saying, "Let the other guy run the country, we just want to make noise." This line of thinking got Trump elected. See where that got the United States. I don't think I want Singapore to go down that path.

The political system in Singapore is not about single persons. Unlike the United States, where the President runs the government, the Singapore system is one where the ruling party gets to form and run the government. This means that in general elections, while people vote for individual (or group) candidates, they are actually deciding which political party they want to be the one running the country.

So any political party that does not field enough candidates to have a chance at forming the majority in Parliament is automatically forgoing the chance to run the country. It is admission that this party is not ready or able to run the country. If that is so, what assurance does the public have that this party is able to provide the proper check and balance if elected just simply for the sake of being the opposition to the ruling party in Parliament?

What I want to hear is how a party will run the country if it becomes the one that forms the government. "We will keep them in check" is an excuse for not being capable of doing the same job. We can criticise the government, but if no other party comes in with alternatives on how to run things, we are stuck with no better option. Then, we are just complaining to make ourselves feel better without actually doing anything substantial to make things better. Crudely, it is political masturbation.

To me, voting for an opposition party that does not want to form the next government is political masturbation--you feel good about it, but nothing substantial comes from it.

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