Voters reminded of what is at stake on Sept 11
PM Lee during a walkabout in Aljunied GRC. He said the PAP’s
campaign has ‘gone well’ since Nomination Day and response from the voters has been ‘very positive’. Photo: Koh Mui Fong
SINGAPORE — Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong today (Sept 5) took stock of the hustings as election campaigning period hit the halfway mark and pressed the point that the coming polls on Sept 11 is about choosing the government and Singapore’s future leadership.
Speaking at the press conference held at the People’s Action Party (PAP) headquarters, he said that the campaign has “gone well” for the party since Nomination Day. Response from the voters has been “very positive”.
“I think we are getting our message across, the message that we are electing a Government and to make the Government work is not an abstract thing that’s somewhere up there, but (a) Government is (about) the people who make it work — people with the right character, people who have demonstrated competence, integrity, people who’d carry out their duties responsibly,” added Mr Lee, who is also the party’s secretary-general.
He said that Singaporeans have also understood that in order to be the Government of the country, candidates must first demonstrate that they have that capability and must run the Town Council well. The municipal issue has been extensively argued because it is “significant and important”, PM Lee added.
The upcoming polls are also about the Government’s plans for the future, whether they can be delivered, and the PAP has proven that it can perform.
Over the last 10 years, the ruling party has worked assiduously to address people’s needs, concerns and aspirations, and build on what was achieved before.
“So this is a result of direct involvement, engagement, discussion, participation, and no need for intermediaries, no need for co-drivers, just the people working directly with the PAP and our team,” said Mr Lee, making a reference to a refrain from the Opposition that voters should bring more opposition members into Parliament to represent the views of the man on the street.
The PAP’s manifesto, which laid out some of the future plans for the country, showed some continuity in how Singapore tries to stay ahead of changes be it in terms of economic or social policies, said PM Lee.
Now it has to communicate these ideas to people and to give them the confidence that “this is real and we will make it happen”.
Some of the policies that the Government has been working on and will press on with include housing, such as the introduction of the Fresh Start Housing Scheme recently. For healthcare, he noted that there are fresh schemes, such as the Pioneer Generation Package, Medishield Life and Silver Support, that have been designed to meet new needs.
On the education front, the Government has created many pathways for children and has also introduced SkillsFuture for all Singaporeans. Other developments includes the relocation of the Paya Lebar Air Base for redevelopment in the next 20 to 30 years, he said. “And this is what the PAP talks about and I think we talk about it with conviction and credibility because we’ve done this before, we can do this again,” he added.
