GE2015 demonstrated the adaptability of the ruling People’s Action
Party (PAP) and the resilience of the one-party system in Singapore.
With their ballots, Singaporeans have handed the PAP a strong mandate.
The outcome was unexpected, as the party romped home comfortably in
most contests.
The swing back to the PAP was across the board,
representing widespread endorsement of the party, which has governed
Singapore since 1959.
How do we explain this significant, unexpected result?
First, given regional insecurities and economic uncertainty, a “flight
to safety” mindset galvanised voters — especially a significant middle
ground of undecided ones — who opted for the tried-and-tested PAP as the
best way to deal with the real threats and those over the horizon.
Prior to Polling Day, there was a pervasive sense of foreboding that
the PAP may see further and deep decline in electoral support. While a
freak election result was not deemed to be at play, voters probably felt
that a further loss of political support would be highly challenging
for the PAP with regard to how it would govern in its next five-year
term.
Second, the PAP has been working hard since the previous
election in May 2011. There were enough hot-button issues, such as cost
of living, public transport inadequacies, healthcare affordability,
retirement adequacy and immigration. In pulling out all the stops to
address these issues, which had caused voters to turn away from it in
the 2011 election, the PAP demonstrated that it could rise to the
occasion even with its back against the wall. Once again, the PAP’s
track record of delivering on its promises provided a safe harbour for
voters seeking a trusted and tested brand.
Third, the Workers’
Party (WP)-run Aljunied-Hougang-Punggol East Town Council (AHPETC),
which became the meme of the PAP’s campaigns, caused voters in the
PAP-WP match-ups to consider closely whether the WP measured up in the
task of running a town council.
This titanic struggle was about driving home the grand narratives of what AHPETC ultimately represented.
For the PAP, AHPETC was about the WP’s competence, character and
integrity, as well as the imperative of honest and responsible politics
in Singapore.
The WP portrayed the AHPETC issue as representing
all that is wrong with one-party dominance as well as the supposed
bullying that comes with the concentration of power and the lack of
checks and balances in the system of governance.
It is clear that
the AHPETC issue seriously undermined the WP’s electoral fortunes. In
the final analysis, the PAP’s narrative on the AHPETC issue prevailed
and resonated better with voters.
This was demonstrated in the
WP’s loss of support across the board — even in its Hougang stronghold
and the Aljunied crown jewel — and in the PAP wresting back Punggol
East.
Fourth, this poll appears to have conferred a strategic
advantage on the PAP. In essence, Singaporeans were in a positive mood
after the climax of the Golden Jubilee celebrations, fully savouring the
celebration, pride, unity and reflection. The massive outpouring of
emotion at the death of founding Prime Minister Lee Kuan Yew appears to
have given the PAP an “LKY dividend”, made more poignant given that Mr
Lee Kuan Yew’s birthday anniversary is on Sept 16.
Fifth,
regional and economic insecurities also contributed to the national
swing to the PAP. The haze from Indonesia, which peaked on Cooling-off
Day, was a stark reminder of Singapore’s vulnerabilities. These
potential threats also helped the PAP garner support, given its strong
record in national and internal security, as well as foreign relations.
Sixth, although the PAP did not carry out a campaign of particular
note, the Opposition parties did themselves no favours by seeking to be
even more to the left than the PAP. They assailed voters with grand
schemes of more expenditures on various things such as free healthcare
and unemployment benefits. Ultimately, voters carefully considered how
sustainable and purposeful such plans were and were not taken in by the
political false prophets.
The battle for the hearts and minds of
Singaporeans is now concluded. Now, it is time for Singaporeans to put
aside their political affiliations and work together for a better
future.
- Associate professor of law at SMU, Eugene Tan
Source: Today
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