Punggol East By-Election coming ? MP steps down
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Just relax:
Wow.. multi-tasking and yet can spare time for extra curriculum erections.... :evil:I think PAP will pick up lessons including making sure their own MPs are on their toes. It must be difficult being a PAP MP as it is part-time since all the PAP MPs hold full-time jobs many of whom are top professionals who must devote substantial energy to their jobs, yet must make time for MPS and weekend grass-roots functions and meetings and also manage family time.
For somebody like Michael Palmer it would have been worse as he was a lawyer, MP, Speaker and husband/father. Something gave way. In his case without prejudging him it appears that family gave way as he was still performing as a lawyer, was well-liked by constituency and did a good job in Parliament as Speaker earning even praise from LTK. -
3Boys:
Me thot ur previous post was another display of ur sardonic humour!3Boys:
In the past, even with a reasonably friendly environment, the PAP struggles to hold on to SMCs in bye elections. My guess is that WP will take PE easily.
Told ya!
If u had reaffirmed dat \"WP will take PE easily\" at 9 pm thereabouts last nite,
me wld hv said u read d ground better than any of us here.
Indeed, d big margin of victory surprised me. -
Feeling proud that we are in WP ward. Proud of their efforts. But we are not blind followers. We would be worried if they gain more seats but are not ready. I am sure at that point, our minds will change. But for now, they still have a long way to go.
I think they won in terms of emotional engagement. They are just like us the commoners iso some parachuted elites. They also come across as real and candid. It is also a clear sign that being a pap candidate is no longer a sure win.
WP has alot to do in PE… They only have up to 2016 to prove themselves so they must show results. If not, there are many waiting to shoot them down.
Concern2,
We thought PEH’s existence last night was funny. Dh commented that he is probably the only one who made it in time. -
limlim:
Must also have spare cash and not-too-bad looks to engage in ECE. Hope other MPs are not like him.
Wow.. multi-tasking and yet can spare time for extra curriculum erections.... :evil:Just relax:
I think PAP will pick up lessons including making sure their own MPs are on their toes. It must be difficult being a PAP MP as it is part-time since all the PAP MPs hold full-time jobs many of whom are top professionals who must devote substantial energy to their jobs, yet must make time for MPS and weekend grass-roots functions and meetings and also manage family time.
For somebody like Michael Palmer it would have been worse as he was a lawyer, MP, Speaker and husband/father. Something gave way. In his case without prejudging him it appears that family gave way as he was still performing as a lawyer, was well-liked by constituency and did a good job in Parliament as Speaker earning even praise from LTK. -
ngl2010:
Maybe PAP would have won if they nominated George Yeo. But he is retired, right?
Why do u think so?
GY was well liked n capable.
In GE 2011, when d tide turned strongly against his team, he pledged to reform d party fr within. We all know he left politics after he lost dat election.
Think he lost some political currency with dat move.
Dr KPK used d same message dat he wants to change d party from within, but it didn't resonate well with d voters coz those who said so before him has not managed to do so. -
Way2GO:
I like George Yeo but I still did not vote for him during last election.ngl2010:
Maybe PAP would have won if they nominated George Yeo. But he is retired, right?
Why do u think so?
GY was well liked n capable.
In GE 2011, when d tide turned strongly against his team, he pledged to reform d party fr within. We all know he left politics after he lost dat election.
Think he lost some political currency with dat move.
Dr KPK used d same message dat he wants to change d party from within, but it didn't resonate well with d voters coz those who said so before him has not managed to do so. -
MMM:
Yes indeed.I think they won in terms of emotional engagement. They are just like us the commoners iso some parachuted elites. They also come across as real and candid. It is also a clear sign that being a pap candidate is no longer a sure win.
Seems like MIWs stuck to their old n previously successful system of parachuting in candidates with strong credentials but who has little time to or cannot connect with d ground;
whereas d MIBs continue to till d ground with their grassroots, to connect with ppl to win d ground.
When d MIWs started from d 1980s (IIRC) onwards to bring in technocrats to help run d govt, their grassroots went into decline.
d spontaneity of WP supporters at rallies n at HG Blk 322 in both BEs is heartfelt n telling when compared to d 'orchestrated' actions of d MIW support. -
Extracted from Yahoo's news:
http://sg.news.yahoo.com/comment--pap-faces-long-road-ahead-183620550.html
When some reporters, including myself, met with the People’s Action’s Party (PAP) candidate for the Punggol East by-election Dr Koh Poh Koon before nomination day, he asked us to join him for breakfast at Rivervale Plaza.
We didn’t eat anything, probably because we’re not used to waking up too early. There was coffee, bread and soft boiled eggs on the table, but something was strangely missing on the menu: indigestible election rhetoric and motherhood statements.
In fact, the colorectal surgeon just didn’t seem like he cared much to impress the media, which is a good thing by the way. At times he even seemed slightly out of place with the constant camera flashes and the intense scrutiny. Not very surprising though, considering he had just only recently joined the party.
After breakfast and a short session of greeting residents, the 40-year-old happily married father of two girls told the media his philosophy was pretty much \"what you see is what you get\".
Some who didn’t agree totally with his party’s policies, still found him to be an overall nice guy, his \"freshness\" proving to be an advantage perhaps.
But the Workers’ Party’s (WP) candidate Lee Li Lian, a sales trainer, had something about her.
The 34-year-old reminded you of the bubbly and hardworking girl sitting beside you in Junior College or in Polytechnic back in the day, the kind you could always depend on to borrow notes from if you missed a lecture -- you get the gist.
And she certainly was as heartland as heartland can be – something which obviously worked well for her.
But Koh, just like Lee, did not fight this battle alone.
He had some heavyweight support in the ring – with a slew of MPs and cabinet members softening the ground for him, including Deputy Prime Minister Teo Chee Hean.
And Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong, also lent his support, taking almost an hour at Koh’s final rally on Thursday to rebut the Workers’ Party and explain to Singaporeans what the government has been doing for them.
Don’t forget the plethora of new goodies that was unveiled smack in the middle of the campaigning period – from more housing units to enhancements in the Marriage and Parenthood Package and more.
The downward spiral?
Still, Koh lost.
And he lost big, which was a surprise – considering the average rational thought of most pundits had been that it would be a close fight.
So, not only does the PAP now have to endure a double whammy when it comes to defeats in by-elections in recent times – the margin casts a large shadow as to whether it will ultimately be a catalyst for a potential downward spiral for the party.
In other words, the nearly 11 per cent margin reflects the matrix of challenges PM Lee’s team will be facing from now till 2016.
WP chief was hoping for a “Punggol slap” but his party may have just delivered a \"Punggol punch\".
Since the “watershed” general election of 2011, the government has been trying to use a different tone and be more inclusive towards a more evolving electorate in a rapidly changing social and digital landscape.
Discontented views over various issues, from - influx of foreigners to housing to pre-school education – are something that cab drivers to bankers are spouting at Starbucks outlets in the CBD to your traditional kopitiams in suburbia Singapore.
Couple these with the way young citizens are starting to consume news via different modes and comprehend their environment in new ways – the obstacles are aplenty for the ruling party.
Will it be able to connect quickly to a younger generation who’s own individual and national identity is being constantly in the shaping process?
But that’s not to say the government has failed to take steps to rectify the problems. In fact, it has already put in motion several new policies and schemes to improve various issues from housing to helping the needy.
Complex challenges
But it needs do more and do it faster -- before 2016 -- when there could be added demands by voters who may not feel the authorities are consultative enough and are distant. The government also has to put more elbow grease in addressing the social pressures of living in a high-stress city like Singapore.
Pointing to other lands and reiterating that the problems of globalisation are well, a global one, is a very rational statement to make indeed, but it is not something that may appease those in the sandwiched class, especially with the current outlook for the economic climate.
On another level, there seems to be a wanting for the government to be more in tune with the man on the ground.
Quite often, the bureaucratic red tape maze, which of course exists all over the world, is something that can alienate citizens or those who specifically are seeking help.
Besides these problems, the government also has to keep a quick check on the seemingly rising xenophobia online, help SMEs with their problems of finding cheap labour and make sure the country is still relevant for foreign investors. It needs to, in a sense, defy gravity and at the same time succumb to it as well.
Not easy, indeed, and the work has already started but it remains to be seen where it will go and how fast will the ruling party take steps to gain back popularity.
And now, it has to entertain the still far-off but not so far-off reality of the WP perhaps pushing itself into a realm of a two-party system in time to come.
However, whatever the different ideologies of various parties and the political maneuvering by leaders from both camps, the people have spoken and they want improvements -- now.
My sense is that they are no longer are very interested in lists which put Singapore as having the No.1 airport or sea port, they want to have a better certainty that their children will have a far better life and future.
Fittingly, the flash and pizazz of having candidates who are scholars or high fliers may not necessary be viewed as strong points like in the 1980s and 1990s. That’s not to say qualifications don’t matter completely.
But the ability to come across as an average Joe is what it will take to win votes or in this case an average \"Ah Lian\" -- a term affectionately used by WP supporters in reference to Lee.
The dreams and aspirations are there. Now it’s up to the leaders and authorities to make it reality for all Singaporeans.
As Henry David Thoreau wrote in ‘Walden’: \"If you have built castles in the air, your work need not be lost; that is where they should be. Now put the foundations under them.\" -
Are u surprise with the result?
I quite shock leh. 1st I didn’t expect PAP to lose. Secondly, I am shock that WP win so much. -
pinkblue:
I like George Yeo but I still did not vote for him during last election.Way2GO:
[quote=\"ngl2010\"]Maybe PAP would have won if they nominated George Yeo. But he is retired, right?
Why do u think so?
GY was well liked n capable.
In GE 2011, when d tide turned strongly against his team, he pledged to reform d party fr within. We all know he left politics after he lost dat election.
Think he lost some political currency with dat move.
Dr KPK used d same message dat he wants to change d party from within, but it didn't resonate well with d voters coz those who said so before him has not managed to do so.[/quote]Kudos to u.
Many others in Aljunied felt d same in showing farsightedness when exercising their votes.
Its unfortunate he was d wan sacrificed. -
WHATT?? :scared: PAP using Hippo bus to thank supporters?
Saw them and thot that was funny. Couldn't catch WP while they're doing their rounds now....maybe they'll come by our place later..but going out soon... :sad:
Can hear cars honking : Honk honk honkhonk! Honk honk honkhonk! -
Way2GO:
Me thot ur previous post was another display of ur sardonic humour!3Boys:
[quote=\"3Boys\"]In the past, even with a reasonably friendly environment, the PAP struggles to hold on to SMCs in bye elections. My guess is that WP will take PE easily.
Told ya!
If u had reaffirmed dat \"WP will take PE easily\" at 9 pm thereabouts last nite,
me wld hv said u read d ground better than any of us here.
Indeed, d big margin of victory surprised me.[/quote]I would have thought a prediction made at 12 noon just after booths open would hold more cachet than a prediction made at 9pm after polls closed?
MIW always have problems with bye elections, when was the last time they won an SMC by election? I think not since before JBJ. -
JJ1111:
I expected WP or PAP to win by less than 5%. Thought WP have a slightly better chance to win due to the AIM case. A big surprise to most of us that WP won PAP by 11%!Are u surprise with the result?
I quite shock leh. 1st I didn't expect PAP to lose. Secondly, I am shock that WP win so much. -
JJ1111:
I expected WP or PAP to win by less than 5%. Thought WP have a slightly better chance to win due to the AIM case. A big surprise to most of us that WP won PAP by 11%!Are u surprise with the result?
I quite shock leh. 1st I didn't expect PAP to lose. Secondly, I am shock that WP win so much. -
MMM:
Agree!
WP has alot to do in PE... They only have up to 2016 to prove themselves so they must show results. If not, there are many waiting to shoot them down.MMM:
Haha! :hi5: He must be reliving the same euphoria from last BE. Still recall how nervous he was fumbling with ...was it the mic or pen? LLL more zai - her training background serving her well despite her age.Concern2,
We thought PEH's existence last night was funny. Dh commented that he is probably the only one who made it in time. -
Way2GO:
Yes the PAP suporters always seems orchestrated. Not natural. It is boring and in fact looks fake and drama.MMM:
d spontaneity of WP supporters at rallies n at HG Blk 322 in both BEs is heartfelt n telling when compared to d 'orchestrated' actions of d MIW support.
WP supporters are really sponstaneous and it is their own free will. You may say the party is good at playing with people emotional but isn't that a political tool and strength? The supporters were discussing on WP FB about meeting at blk 322 and guess what so many just turn up. Even those honking cars are like the spirit of WP. -
mummy so kiasu:
My ESP (6th sense) told me one of the parties would get 50% and above, and a 52% was what came to my mind, and my feel was it was the blue team, but my heart was telling me not to get my hopes up, and my brains was telling me (are you sure? 50 and above?
I expected WP or PAP to win by less than 5%. Thought WP have a slightly better chance to win due to the AIM case. A big surprise to most of us that WP won PAP by 11%!JJ1111:
Are u surprise with the result?
I quite shock leh. 1st I didn't expect PAP to lose. Secondly, I am shock that WP win so much.) Well, looks like my internal 3-cornered-fight, my ESP had won!
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3Boys:
When they started sorting out d votes at both counting centres, d number of votes were still close at 9 pm thereabouts.
I would have thought a prediction made at 12 noon just after booths open would hold more cachet than a prediction made at 9pm after polls closed?
MIW always have problems with bye elections, when was the last time they won an SMC by election? I think not since before JBJ.
It was much later at around 10 pm when reports were floated dat WP was pulling away in vote count.
While concur dat BE was a factor, but don't think dat factor alone caused a >13% swing.
Something more fundamental on d ground has changed.
It is telling dat, in d last rally, MIWS put up PM who spoke much longer than d candidate in defence of govt policies n there were three Malay speakers, including Halimah Y, who rallied.
Ministers n white MPs fanned out to distribute flyers to connect with d ground.
But those moves still didn't sway d ground n they got hammered by WP with a resounding victory. -
JJ1111:
I expected WP or PAP to win by less than 5%. Thought WP have a slightly better chance to win due to the AIM case. A big surprise to most of us that WP won PAP by 11%!Are u surprise with the result?
I quite shock leh. 1st I didn't expect PAP to lose. Secondly, I am shock that WP win so much. -
So would last night's result accelerate national policies before 2016? 8 million instead of 7 million? More spouse to have more chilren? COE, Bus, MRT, property, gst? Anyone?