SINGAPORE: At his party's first rally, Workers' Party (WP) secretary-general Low Thia Khiang responded on Thursday night to the driving analogy that has been used by the People's Action Party to describe the WP's role in Parliament.
Dismissing the PAP's accusation that the WP is tussling for the steering wheel, Low said that it was the "usual PAP tactic of threatening the people about the consequences of voting for the Opposition".
Said Mr Low: "Bear in mind that just putting on a safety belt and hope that the driver will drive you to your destination is not enough. A co-driver is essential, especially as road gets tougher to navigate. The co-driver is there to slap the driver when he drives off course or when he falls asleep or drives dangerously,"
The premise of Mr Low's speech, which he delivered in English, Mandarin and Teochew, was the need for more Opposition voices in Parliament to represent Singaporeans and to ensure that policies are not "bulldozed through".
He said: "Even though we are economically more advanced, we are not truly a First World country unless Singapore matures as a democracy … Unless we have checks and balances in our political system, we cannot claim to be a First World country."
Mr Low also spoke on the issue of highly-priced HDB flats and refuted National Development Minister Mah Bow Tan's statement that HDB flats are affordable and that a young couple do not need to save for a down payment and that the monthly payments are minimal.
"Even if we were to accept that this is true, he forgot to say that they will need to pay for their flat for 20 to 25 years. This means they can only start saving for their old age in their 40s and 50s, so most people have to work to their graves as they cannot afford to retire," said Mr Low.
Another of the party's candidates in Aljunied GRC, Mr Chen Show Mao, who addressed the crowd in Malay, Mandarin and English with smatterings of Tamil and Hokkien, focused on foreign workers and ministerial salaries.
Said Mr Chen: "I ask you, every year, Singapore lets in thousands of foreign workers. How much is enough? Did they ask you? The Singapore Government pays one minister hundreds of thousands (in salary) a year? How much is enough? Did they ask you?"
He also broached the issue of income disparity. Citing figures, he said that the average monthly household income per household member is S$354 last year for the bottom 10 per cent of employed households, compared to S$340 in 2008.
Said Mr Chen: "Their income has clearly failed to grow at the same pace as our GDP (Gross Domestic Product) ... It's not just for bottom 10 per cent and bottom 20 per cent, you can say the same about our median household - that's the income of half of our households over the last five, 10 years." He said the GDP growth "went to corporate profits and wage income for top earners".
"So, in this environment, is it not fair for the WP ask that prices of new HDB flats be pegged to the incomes of eligible households? Is it not fair for the WP to ask for the Workfare Income Supplement to be benchmarked against increases in cost of living? Is it not fair for the WP to ask for an unemployment insurance scheme for our unemployed workers?" he asked.
The party's chairman, Miss Sylvia Lim, took issue with the "upgrading carrots and threats".
She said: "The PAP Government controls the money that all of us taxpayers contribute to the Government in order to favour their supporters … Does Singapore belong to the PAP? By bullying people in this way is the PAP a First World Government as it claims to be?" - TODAY
Credit to Chancel News aisa for the News:
http://www.channelnewsasia.com/stories/singaporelocalnews/view/1125627/1/.html
It is more fun listening to the whole speech in live and on the very spot where all of us fellow supporters yell and scream together with one goal - Workers' Party supporters. WP WP Go Go Go...
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