The Workers’ Party believes the next step for Singapore lies in balanced reforms grounded in a comprehensive vision. The time has come to move beyond short-term fixes for long-standing problems. The future of Singapore lies in active investment in our fellow Singaporeans here and now. The time has come to empower a dynamic and confident people.
Singapore does not need blind economic growth; we need compassionate and equitable growth. We are tired of the myth of Singaporeans needing to bite the bullet in the hope that wealth generated at the top will trickle down eventually. This myth has resulted in severe inequality and discouraged enterprise in the past decade.
In order to tackle the challenges facing Singapore in the next decades, we need to unlock the dynamism and confidence innate in Singaporeans. Our Manifesto 2015 builds upon our vision offocusing on Singaporeans and calls for economic, social, urban, governance and security policies that can create the conditions where the dynamism and confidence of Singaporeans can be unleashed to achieve our aspirations together.
We believe that empowering Singaporeans entails a system of government where there are adequate checks and balances without political gridlock. The legislature must play this crucial role to check a powerful executive and push it to make well-balanced policies and laws that protect and advance the people’s interests.
Singapore is now a mature and diverse society. We are more than ready for a Parliament with different political voices to engage the executive branch led by the Prime Minister and his cabinet ministers. A diverse Parliament is critical in assisting the executive to make sounder judgments about policy trade-offs.
A Parliament monopolised by one party fails the test of rigorous debate and voting in forging sound policies. This grave imbalance gives free rein to the ruling party to take our country in any direction it deems fit. A Parliament that includes MPs from a rational, responsible and respectable opposition party compels the government to listen to the collective wisdom of the people.
A complex and uncertain future lies ahead. We have depended on a small group of talents in a single party to lead us in earlier times. This formula is no longer adequate. We need to build and revive institutions to empower Singaporeans and unleash our talents to move ahead with confidence. This can only be achieved through a balanced Parliament. Your future is in your hands. Empower your future!
Source: www.wp.sg
