Unless you’ve been living under a rock, you should have some inkling of the People’s Action Party (PAP) and the Workers’ Party (WP).
But what about RP? Or PSP? Or SDP? If these acronyms mean nothing to you, then you’re in the right place.
In this series — a cheat sheet of sorts — we sieve out the facts you ought to know about Singapore’s political parties.
By the end of this, you should have a better idea of the parties who may be contesting in the upcoming general election and what they’re all about.
Our next party is the newest contender in GE2020 but they’re proving that they aren’t daunted by a tough fight right out of the gate, taking on Senior Minister Tharman Shanmugaratnam in their first election.
Red Dot United
When were they formed?
RDU, which was registered just last month, was founded by former Progress Singapore Party (PSP) members Ravi Philemon and Michelle Lee.
Philemon is the secretary-general, while Lee is the chairman of the 12-member party.
It’s one week left to Polling Day, and the various political parties will continue to deliver their campaign messages across various Mediacorp platforms this evening (July 3).
In today’s broadcasts, the first five constituencies involved are Aljunied GRC, Ang Mo Kio GRC, Bishan-Toa Payoh GRC, Bukit Batok SMC and Bukit Panjang SMC.
GRCs with four members will get 12 minutes on air, while those with five members will have 15 minutes to speak. Candidates contesting in single-member constituencies will get three minutes each.
The political parties and speakers involved are as follows:
Locals will soon be able to opt for staycations in hotels again as Singapore passes the one-month mark into phase two of the post-circuit breaker period.
Hotels are facing the worst occupancy rates in history, with foreign visitor arrivals to Singapore all but dried up due to the Covid-19 pandemic.
The Singapore Tourism Board (STB) announced on Friday (July 3) that hotels may now apply to resume two activities: Providing accommodation to guests for the purpose of leisure, and opening their recreation areas for children.
But all must adhere to various safe management measures to do so, the STB said in its advisory.
The STB said that the safe management measures that each hotel must comply with include reducing capacity and inter-mingling of hotel visitors in the hotel’s lobby and guest facilities, such as disallowing more than five individuals from different households from gathering in any guest room.
The hotel must also screen every individual for symptoms, including a fever or a runny nose, before allowing anyone to enter the hotel or each guest facility.
Workers’ Party (WP) candidate Abdul Shariff Aboo Kassim shared a heartwarming post early this morning (July 3), about his experience interacting with residents while on the campaign trail.
The 54-year old former researcher who is Nicole Seah’s East Coast GRC teammate shared how he’d knocked on a door and was greeted by an elderly resident.
“He looked at me, raised his hand, and went back to his living room,” wrote Abdul Shariff.
“It took a while so I began to wonder if the raised hand was a gesture for me to wait or to go away.”
To his surprise, the elderly man came back with what appeared to be a handwritten Chinese poem in support of WP.
As I spoke to residents during my walkabouts and home visits, there were many moments that will forever remain etched on…
The Progress Singapore Party (PSP) team contesting West Coast GRC was “ordered” by the Elections Department Singapore (ELD) to take down 50 campaign posters, allegedly after a “complaint by West Coast Town Council”.
The The PSP team was just ordered to take down 50 PSP campaign posters by ELD, after a complaint by West Coast Town Council….Posted by PSP West Coast on Thursday, 2 July 2020″>Facebook post published on the PSP West Coast page late last night (July 2) also said: “Hours of hard work went down the drain. It was puzzling because the PAP posters were left untouched.”
SINGAPORE: Singapore’s total retail sales fell a record 52.1 per cent on a year-on-year basis in May, while the country was still under a COVID-19 “circuit breaker”, according to data released by the Department of Statistics (SingStat) on Friday (Jul 3).
The drop was the steepest since records began in 1986, beating April’s previous record.
The lower sales were “due mainly” to the circuit breaker measures that were in place for the month of May, SingStat said.
Excluding motor vehicles, retail sales fell 45.2 per cent, lower than the 32.5 per cent in April.
Compared to the previous month, seasonally adjusted retail sales declined 21.5 per cent in May. Excluding motor vehicles, seasonally adjusted retail sales decreased 20.1 per cent.
Analysts previously said retail sales could begin recovering only after Singapore entered Phase 2 of the reopening, but the slump could eventually cause full-year sales to contract more than three times that in 2019. Phase 2 began on Jun 19 in Singapore.
RETAIL SALES
The estimated total retail sales value in May was about S$1.8 billion – 24.5 per cent of that came from online retail sales.
Online retail sales of computer and telecommunications equipment, furniture and household equipment, and supermarkets and hypermarkets industries made up 94.3 per cent, 93.6 per cent and 9.6 per cent of the total sales of their respective industries, SingStat said.
Overall, all retail industries saw a year-on-year decline, with the exception of supermarkets and hypermarkets, and mini-marts and convenience stores that remained open and saw a higher demand for groceries. These stores recorded increases in sales of 56.1 per cent and 9.1 per cent respectively.
As physical stores were closed for the entire month, sales of watches and jewellery, department stores, and wearing apparel and footwear industries fell between 89.1 per cent and 96.9 per cent in May.
On a month-on-month basis, seasonally adjusted data showed retailers of watches and jewellery, and department stores experienced declines in sales of 73.2 per cent and 65.4 per cent respectively compared to April 2020.
Similarly, sales of optical goods and books, furniture and household equipment and motor vehicles industries fell between 41.6 per cent and 47.3 per cent, compared to same period last month.
(Source: SingStat)
FOOD AND BEVERAGE SERVICES
There was a “slight improvement” for food and beverage services, SingStat said.
Compared to the same period last year, sales of food and beverage services fell 50.1 per cent in May 2020, a slight improvement from the 52.7 per cent decline in April due mainly to the circuit breaker measures, with all food & beverage establishments only allowed to operate on a takeaway or delivery basis.
On a seasonally adjusted basis, sales of food and beverage services increased 4.1 per cent in May over the previous month.
The total sales value of food and beverage services in May was estimated at S$430 million. Of these, online food and beverage sales made up an estimated 44.6 per cent.
(Source: SingStat)
Within this sector, all industries recorded year-on-year declines, SingStat said.
Turnover of restaurants and food caterers declined 68.7 per cent and 45.1 per cent respectively in May 2020 compared to May 2019. Similarly, cafes, food courts and other eating places, and fast food outlets recorded lower sales of 41.4 per cent and 20.5 per cent respectively during this period.
On the other hand, food caterers benefitted from the increased demand for catered meals from foreign worker dormitories. On a seasonally adjusted basis, their turnover went up 36.2 per cent in May, compared to April.
Cafes, food courts and other eating places, and restaurants registered marginal increases in sales of 1.2 per cent and 0.1 per cent respectively.
Despite having enhanced testing and tracing capabilities, the authorities have urged the public not to let their guard down and called on everyone to stay vigilant and take all necessary precautions.
These include going to see a doctor as soon as one presents any symptom, even if it is just a sniffle, said National Development Minister Lawrence Wong, who co-chairs the multi-ministry task force tackling Covid-19.
This is more crucial than ever as the risk of transmission is much higher now than during the circuit breaker period when contact with other people had been minimal, he added at a press conference yesterday. “During the circuit breaker… the risk of spreading to many people was very low (as) you’re just at home,” he said.
But if people were to avoid seeing a doctor even when they feel feverish or have a flu-like symptom, or worse still, go about their daily activities and meet other people, then the risk of spreading Covid-19 increases, he added.
Since the beginning of this month, all patients aged 13 and older who show up at clinics with signs of acute respiratory infection have been required to be tested for the coronavirus.
SINGAPORE: Progress Singapore Party’s (PSP) Tan Cheng Bock has urged the ruling People’s Action Party (PAP) not to “frighten Singaporeans” by saying that the opposition could form a coalition government after the General Election.
Dr Tan, who was speaking to reporters on Friday (Jul 3) after visiting Housing Board flats at Teck Whye Lane, was asked to comment on PAP’s Chan Chun Sing’s remarks on how the three biggest opposition parties could form a coalition government if they win enough seats.
In his reply, Dr Tan said: “Tell them, don’t frighten the Singaporeans. I think you can fool people once but you can’t fool the people all the time.
“They tried this strategy before – telling people that when you wake up tomorrow after Polling Day and you find no PAP governing Singapore. But these things, you need not worry, because first and foremost it is very unlikely to happen and to me it’s a political ploy again,” added Dr Tan.
The Progress Singapore Party’s secretary-general, Dr Tan Cheng Bock, speaking to the media during a Chua Chu Kang GRC walkabout at Block 9 Teck Whye Lane on Jul 3, 2020. (Photo: Hanidah Amin)
Mr Chan, who is also Singapore’s Minister for Trade and Industry, made the remarks on Thursday evening during a dialogue organised by Chinese-language newspaper Lianhe Zaobao.
According to a TODAY report on the event, Mr Chan said in Mandarin: “From our point of view, we do not view them as the opposition. We view them as people who might eventually replace the Government after Jul 10.
“The three biggest opposition parties, coming together, can possibly become a replacement for the Government. This has been the case in some other countries, that the skies may change. So I scrutinise their policies very carefully,” he said.
For this election, the three biggest opposition parties challenging the PAP are PSP, the Workers’ Party (WP) and the Singapore Democratic Party (SDP).
The Progress Singapore Party’s secretary-general, Dr Tan Cheng Bock, with candidates of Chua Chu Kang GRC during a walkabout at Block 9 Teck Whye Lane on Jul 3, 2020. (Photo: Hanidah Amin)
PSP has fielded 24 candidates, WP has fielded 21 candidates while SDP has fielded 11 candidates. There are a total of 93 seats being contested.
Speaking to the media on Friday, Dr Tan also highlighted that Singaporeans need not worry as the country is not only run by political parties, but also the civil service.
“The civil servants will always be there to look after this country. So don’t worry … Any political party taking power will have to work with the civil servants who are very well acquainted with running this country,” said Dr Tan.
“And if we pride ourselves that our civil servants are among the best in the world, and you tell me that we cannot run after the PAP (is no longer the government), then something is wrong,” he added.
NEED TO ENSURE COVID-19 IS UNDER CONTROL: TAN CHENG BOCK
Dr Tan also said he believed the PAP government has shifted its focus away from the health and well-being of citizens in tackling the COVID-19 pandemic, and is focusing too much on how to help Singaporeans with employment.
“The overriding factor is not just jobs, jobs, jobs. It’s our lives, your lives. That’s what we have to manage,” he said.
“And if we ever get into Parliament, we want to make sure that COVID-19 is properly controlled, because if it’s not properly controlled your borders will remain shut. People will not come to Singapore,” said Dr Tan.
“So that is the most important area, if they take their eyes off this COVID-19 management and just focus on politics, the price we will have to pay is going to be heavy,” he said.
The Progress Singapore Party’s candidate for Chua Chu Kang GRC, Francis Yuen, during a walkabout at Block 9 Teck Whye Lane on Jul 3, 2020. (Photo: Hanidah Amin)
Dr Tan, who was the MP for Ayer Rajah for 26 years until 2006, said the financial relief from the Government to tide Singaporeans through the pandemic is merely “treating the symptoms” but not the core problem.
The number of new COVID-19 cases reported in Singapore must be considered in totality, and not just focused on the community cases, he said.
“Let’s not try to divert the true picture. If we are in Parliament, we are going to press for it … the kind of symptomatic relief you are going to produce will really bring Singapore back to our normal state,” he added.
After stating that he never did say that Singapore plans to increase the population to 10 million, Deputy Prime Minister Heng Swee Keat has now come out to say that integrity is very important in politics.
DPM Heng was referring to what Singapore Democratic Party’s (SDP) Dr Chee Soon Juan had mentioned during the televised live debate on July 1.
Speaking to the media during a walkabout this morning (July 3), he said: “You erect a boogeyman, and then after that you declare success. I personally feel all along that integrity is very important.
“The reason why so many of our businesses have been doing well overseas is that Singaporeans are known to have integrity. So we must keep honesty and integrity in our system, and we must expect that of all candidates.”
SINGAPORE: Prioritising Singaporeans when it comes to jobs and avoiding a Goods and Services Tax (GST) hike for the next five years – these were some of the policy proposals laid out in Red Dot United’s manifesto.
The party launched its set of policy recommendations, titled A Charter for our Future – Captains of our Own Lives, for the 2020 General Election last Sunday (Jun 28).
In it, the party said it wanted to help Singaporeans be the “captains of their own lives and families” in three main ways: Improving their lives and reducing anxiety; creating more options; and getting ready for the future.
“We cannot see the present clearly, much less the future, when we are constantly worrying about issues like our jobs, our healthcare expenses, and our retirement adequacy,” the party wrote in its manifesto.
“We cannot take on the future when we are overly anxious about failing and how to bounce back if we do.
“Having more options with flexibility in our policies, from CPF to education, is also important as it will mean that Singaporeans will be able to live a happier and more satisfying life,” it added.
RELIEVING STRESS OVER JOBS, HOUSING
Some of the suggestions the party had in reducing anxiety over jobs include offering workers in the gig economy more protection.
This can be done by revising the classification of workers as employees or independent contractors. The Employment Act should also provide them more protection and prevent them from getting abused.
Several positions in selected growth sectors should also be reserved for Singaporeans to ensure “capability transfers” and to grow local expertise.
In the area of housing, one suggestion was to make the Selective En-bloc Redevelopment Programme (SERS) mandatory to ease Singaporeans’ concerns about lease decay and the value of their Housing and Development Board (HDB) flats.
SERS was launched in 1995 and offers owners of older HDB flats compensation and a new flat if their block is chosen for redevelopment.
MANAGING COST OF LIVING
Proposals Red Dot United had to manage the cost of living include offering heavily subsidised medical consultations without means testing. Preventive health measures such as vaccinations and screenings can be carried out at the same time.
This will help to identify ailments such as diabetes and hypertension early, ensuring better health for citizens and lesser cost for acute care in hospitals, it said.
It also called for the impending GST rate increase from 7 per cent to 9 per cent to be halted for the next five years.
Deputy Prime Minister Heng Swee Keat said in his Budget speech in February that while the GST will not be increased in 2021, it will still need to be raised by 2025.
Red Dot United said that people should allowed to withdraw all their Central Provident Fund (CPF) money at retirement age. This will give senior citizens the chance to “live their lives with dignity” and the flexibility to make their own retirement plans, it said.
Red Dot United’s team at Nan Hua High giving a speech after filing nomination papers to contest at Jurong GRC on Jun 30, 2020. (Photo: Gaya Chandramohan)
FLEXIBILITY IN EDUCATION, ADVOCACY WORK
On how Singapore should improve its education system, Red Dot United said the curriculum should be more flexible to allow students to experiment and pursue their interests in areas such as sports and music.
Students in alternate education programmes such as those who are home-schooled or in the Madrasah religious schools should be given an equal quantum of funding pegged against government expenditure per student.
Another suggestion was that Singaporean children should be given the choice to study in international schools, as this will free up spaces at more popular schools for other children.
On civil liberties, Red Dot United called for a review of the Protection from Online Falsehoods and Manipulation Act, the Internal Security Act, the Public Order Act, and for a Freedom of Information Act to be instituted.
HELPING LOCAL BUSINESSES
To better support local businesses, Red Dot United said the Government should prioritise local firms when it comes to procurements.
Singapore’s sovereign wealth funds – Temasek Holdings and GIC – should acquire companies in selected industries and reserve some jobs in these companies for Singaporeans as well.
FIXING THE LOW FERTILITY RATE
According to the Singapore Department of Statistics, the country’s feritility rate has been steadily declining and stood at 1.14 in 2019.
To increase the fertility rate, Red Dot United said the Government should incentivise workplaces to develop family-friendly policies through the likes of tax rebates, reliefs or work permits.
Paid parental leave should go up from the present 18 weeks to 26 weeks, and each parent must take at least eight weeks.
Recognition should also be given to unpaid homemaking work, Red Dot United wrote. CPF contributions should be made to parents who decide to stay home to look after their children.
Aside from installing solar panels and wind turbines in public spaces, Singapore could collaborate with regional countries to bring in clean solar and wind power, Red Dot United said.
It also reiterated the need for community waste management and recycling schemes to reduce waste generated by households and businesses.
Red Dot United, which was formed in May 2020, will be contesting Jurong GRC at this election.
The candidates fielded include its secretary-general Ravi Philemon, 52, chairperson Michelle Lee, 43, Ms Liyana Dhamirah, 33, Mr Nicholas Tang, 28, and Mr Alec Tok, 55. The party was founded by Mr Philemon and Ms Lee.
