Tag: GE2015

Meet WP’s Fairoz Shariff

Mohamed Fairoz Bin Shariff is certainly a man of action — and perhaps a bit of risk-taker.

He sure doesn’t look like one, though — he was a librarian, for goodness sakes — and previously with the Singapore Discovery Centre.

Every day, he tells us, he eats the same thing for lunch — nasi padang with assam pedas and sambal goreng. He likes it spicy, but that’s about it; it’s the same.

Photo on the right by Lim Weixiang for Mothership.sg. Image on the left from Disney blogs.

(although he does remind us a little bit of Jaafar, heh… Okay, we’re kidding!)

The 36-year-old had only been with the National Library Board (NLB) for 10 months when he decided he would leave the public service to stand with the Workers’ Party’s (WP) slate of candidates for the 2015 General Election.

And we’ll tell you why he looks like he’s going all-in, too — he’s already got three young mouths to feed (aged seven, five and 10 months), and his mum also stays with him and his wife, a senior staff nurse.

Yet, he says, the decision to stand was a collective one made by him and his wife.

“We are aware that, you know, we might just lose the elections and I might just be out of job for some time, but it’s okay,” he told Mothership.sg over Saturday dinner at Bedok Corner food centre, near where he lives.

In fact, he adds, it’s not at the risk of not being able to provide for his children that he is doing this, but conversely for his kids that he is standing, and it was his wife who pushed him to do so.

“You can say she’s my pillar — she’s the one who holds me down and says, ‘look, you gotta do this’. She’s the one who always reminds me if I’m stressed to keep calm and move on. So yes, this is something that we have discussed for some time, and we are aware of the risks, but at the end of the day, the way we see it, we both know that what I am doing is for our kids.”

He said no to standing for election twice

Photo by Lim Weixiang for Mothership.sg

He’s also got an interesting story to tell about how he was motivated to step up — he was first approached to stand in 2006, having been a party member since 2004, but turned the party down because he was about to get married. At the last election in 2011, he also said no because he didn’t feel ready.

“But what really made me feel that, ok you know what, I do need to step forward, was when in 2011 Pasir Ris-Punggol was contested by SDA and the Malay guy was my friend Shafni, whom my wife and I knew from NUS. We saw him, and I thought, ‘If Shafni is willing to step forward, why not, you know? Why not me?’ So that, in a sense, was when the process of discernment to stand really started.”

Fairoz knew his intention for standing could not come from this, though — that would be wrong and selfish — and so began a process of refining it that ended with his decision this year to say yes.

“My family, you can say, also played a role in my inclinations — my late grandmother has always been pro-opposition, I’m not sure why (laughs), and my whole family was brought up in this climate of ‘we need more opposition, we need more balance in our society’, so of course when I shared my intentions to stand with them, I had very strong support from my family… they’re very proud that I’m willing to step forward.”

He did face some friction from his in-laws, though, who reside in the west (“I think it’s an Easterner-Westerner thing!”) and who cautioned him against “getting involved”.

“They said if I was going to be a politician, join a party and stand for elections, I would risk losing my job and all that, and it took me awhile to convince them — but really it was my wife who helped to win them over. Now they’re very supportive and say they’re okay with it.”

He’s an only child with an “extended” family

Fairoz was about five years old when his birth parents divorced and his father left the family. His mother remarried, he gained two half-brothers, and then divorced and remarried again to his current stepfather, who lives with her and his family.

All that said, though, he says he dislikes the term “broken family” because he completely does not see his as one.

“Even though my mum and my two dads are divorced, all our families are on very good terms. My dad comes over during Hari Raya and my mum goes to visit his side too; there’s nothing wrong in our family, and I really wouldn’t call it broken — I’d instead use the term ‘extended’.”

As a matter of fact, he credits the support from his family as the source of his ability to succeed in school and to stay on the right track.

“I do get asked this question quite a bit — how I am so successful (academically and professionally) despite being from a broken family, and I say the key is family. The word is family. If we have strong support from our family, then there is nothing to stop that child of a whether it is a divorce family or single parent family to really excel. That is the base. That family support is the key to a child’s success.”

What’s his plan A and plan B?

Photo by Lim Weixiang for Mothership.sg

With all this in mind, we asked him what his plan A is (if he is elected) and plan B would be (if he isn’t).

“Plan A — if I get elected, I will definitely be a full-time MP. Plan B… I haven’t really thought about it, but there are a few areas I’d be quite interested to pursue. I hope to go back to lecture at UniSIM, because I really love teaching, or even the NLB, if they’ll take me back, but alternatively, my wife and I might go into reviewing children’s books!”

And finally, we asked for his assessment of Singapore’s political opposition now. He thinks it comes in three steps:

1) Allowing everyone to vote — and this, he feels, has been attained, so he’s glad;

2) Build up a base of credible people — who aren’t just good enough to stand for election but who are also backed by solid volunteers. He feels this is in progress, but also assesses this is moving in the right direction.

The last? And this, he admits, is some years away, but it would be

3) To have an opposition party that is able to contest all the seats in parliament and form an alternative government.

“So it’s a very long process. I think our situation has come about because of the way our political environment has been, you know, for the past 50 years. But I’m glad I’m part of that process.

And I hope Singaporeans will continue to support us as we move in the right direction, because I feel that if for whatever reason Singapore doesn’t support us, we’ll just go back to square one and then… I do not know what kind of Singapore we are going to leave for our children.”

Source: http://mothership.sg

September 9, 2015
Thank You And Farewell Dr Maliki

<Farewell Letter to MP Dr Maliki Osman>

Dear Sir,

Thank you for serving us the past 5 years. My friends and me in East Coast can see our future in promises made by WP and everyone seems to agree that PAP will lose.

There is a tide of democracy sweeping through this country and many people feel that the PAP needs to be checked in parliament. I kinda believe in that too because the PAP has allowed the influx of foreigners without proper planning and infrastructure. I feel like a foreigner in my own country now and I think WP deserves a chance to prove themselves.

You have been a friend to the Malay-Muslim and East Coast community. Even though you are also a Minister of State, you have taken much of your time to spend with us in various community and religious events. It is always sad that someone who has worked tirelessly and who has a good heart is cruelly pushed aside. But alas, that’s elections.

Come Sep 11, whatever the result, I hope to still see you in East Coast and my house will be open to you. After the elections, we should mend our differences, no matter which side we have voted for. Take good care and stay strong. If you really have the heart to serve, you will still serve us even if you are not my MP.

#eastcoastwillfall

***

<Warkah Buat AP Dr Maliki Osman>

Salam Dr Maliki,

Terima kasih kerana khidmat anda selama lima tahun yang lepas. Namun, saya serta rakan-rakan di East Coast semua setuju bahawa masa depan kita akan lebih cerah dengan perubahan dasar yang telah dijanjikan WP. Kami juga berpendapat yang PAP akan tewas.

Negara kita ini sedang dilanda arus demokrasi – ramai setuju yang PAP harus dipantau di parlimen. Saya sendiri bersetuju dengan falsafah ini. Satu lagi masalah ialah PAP telah membenarkan pemindahan rakyat asing ke negara ini tanpa perancangan yang rapi dan infrastuktur yang mencukupi. Sekarang, saya rasa seperti pendatang asing di negara sendiri. Justeru, saya percaya yang WP harus diberi peluang untuk membuktikan keupayaan mereka di parlimen.

Anda merupakan rakan kepada masyarat Melayu/Islam dan masyarakat umum di East Coast. Walaupun anda menyandang jawatan Menteri Negara, anda telah banyak meluangkan masa bersama kami di acara-acara keagamaan dan kemasyarakatan. Memang menyedihkan bila seseorang yang telah bertungkus-lumus membanting tulang dan mempunyai jiwa kemasyarakatan diketepikan dengan tidak berhati perut. Namun itu lumrah pilihanraya.

Walau apa pun keputusannya pada tanggal 11 Sep ini, saya harap masih dapat lihat anda terus bergiat di East Coast. Rumah saya sentiasa terbuka kepada anda. Selesainya pilihanraya ni, kita harus perbaiki semua perbezaan kita, tidak kira parti mana yang telah disokong. Jaga diri dan terus kekal kukuh. Kalau anda betul mempunyai jiwa untuk berkhidmat, anda akan terus bergiat walaupun bukan AP lagi.

#eastcoastwillfall

September 9, 2015
Workers’ Party Calls On Aljunied Voters To Continue To Send Signal To PAP

Aljunied residents had rewritten history in the General Election four years ago and this time, they can again help to advance the nation’s democratic progress and send a signal to the ruling party, Workers’ Party (WP) leaders said yesterday.

Making the pitch at the party’s second-last rally, which was held in its home ground of Aljunied Group Representation Constituency (GRC), the WP leaders urged voters to continue the momentum of entrenching the Opposition in Parliament.

Said WP chief Low Thia Khiang: “Aljunied residents made a brave move (in 2011) to vote WP candidates into Parliament.” However, they cannot stop here, as the policies implemented by the People’s Action Party (PAP) Government over the past four years have not yet effectively solved issues such as the rising cost of living and job insecurity, he said.

WP Aljunied GRC candidate Chen Show Mao said residents are voting not only for their own interests, but also for those of other Singaporeans.

He referred to Emeritus Senior Minister Goh Chok Tong’s comments on Sunday during a visit to Aljunied GRC that residents should look after their own interests when they cast their vote. Mr Chen agreed, but added: “Each of us, we have multiple different interests at any one time, and I would like to remind (voters) that we should also look to our long-term interests.”

He said: “Our fundamental interests are often intertwined with those of many other Singaporeans.”

Mr Chen again brought up Mr Goh’s analogy — which has been played on by other WP candidates — that the PAP is a cruise ship moving in a definite direction, while the Opposition is a gambling ship that goes nowhere.

“While we understand that you are the captain during your term of appointment, with the right to form a government to steer the ship, we have an obligation to tell you that we feel you are going in the wrong direction,” said Mr Chen, referring to the PAP. “We also have the responsibility to work with you to ensure safe passage for all passengers.”

Mr Chen said the WP’s alternative proposal for population growth, which calls for the building of a larger Singaporean core and slightly lower economic growth, was proof that different voices are necessary in Parliament.

Mr Low said the PAP does not respect Aljunied’s residents. For instance, temples that wish to hold community events at sites in the constituency require a supporting letter from the People’s Association’s (PA) grassroots organisations.

“A letter written by me as the Member of Parliament (MP) in support of a temple’s event will not work … the MP is not even as qualified as the grassroots leader,” Mr Low said.

WP chairperson Sylvia Lim also recounted how the Housing and Development Board had “secretly” moved 26 amphitheatres and basketball courts from under the town council’s watch and placed them under the PA.

She said residents were “warned by the PA” not to invite WP MPs to these sites during events or risk not getting an approval in future.

For example, Mr Chen could not be invited to a Hungry Ghost Festival dinner. “One of the PA’s objectives is to foster community bonding and strengthen social cohesion … Are they doing that in Aljunied GRC? Are they uniting or dividing?” Ms Lim questioned.

She criticised the PAP Government of not being interested in “full and true debate” in Parliament in its attacks on the WP MPs.

She cited the final sitting of the 12th Parliament last month, where the PAP “launched a curveball attack that had nothing to do with the main question filed”. She was referring to how the Aljunied-Hougang-Punggol East Town Council’s financial lapses were brought up in the House by Deputy Prime Minister Tharman Shanmugaratnam in his response to a supplementary parliamentary question on lapses found in the accounts of the PA and the National Parks Board.

Showing her confidence that the WP will retain Aljunied GRC, Ms Lim said: “My friends, today, there is a lot of haze. But look beyond the haze — the blue sky is already above Aljunied.”

Source: www.todayonline.com

September 9, 2015
The Best Speech So Far

FINALLY, we hear something different from a PAP candidate that is not a defence of policies nor a promotion of self. Not-so-new face Ong Ye Kung delivered a speech that touched on, dare I say it? The middle ground. It hasn’t escaped notice that Singapore has become more divisive over the years. Mr Ong attributed this to anti-social fringe elements, but I wonder if the poison has not seeped into the mainstream with disaffection established, even grounded, in the body politic.

“I lived through several General Elections. In every election, it’s the same movie playing over and over… The PAP will say, ‘better future, prosperity, progress — support me’. And the Opposition will say, ‘no, you are marginalised, you’re being shortchanged, you should be unhappy’. And so in every election we draw a line in the sand and people are divided,” said Mr Ong.

While in the past, these lines were quickly erased once polls are over, he observed it was different after the 2011 elections. “I do not feel that we came back together again like before,” he said.

The watershed election is really GE2011, not this one we are going through, never mind that the PAP is characterising it as such. Yes, we are standing on the edge so to speak, facing economic transformation forced by global and technological winds and an ageing third-generation leadership. But the change was in the people’s hearts. If the late former Prime Minister Lee Kuan Yew was alive, he would probably blame higher education and exposure to Western liberal values for the acrimony that has persisted over the years. He might have added the Internet, that independent amplifier that moves at a beat that is different from the mainstream media.

What I never saw in elections past, I see now – the pillorying of political leaders, the jokes, both offensive and hearty, the outright denunciations of people and policies, done not by opposition politicians but by ordinary people.

Two decades ago, I recall the late President Ong Teng Cheong picking up a copy of Hello Chok Tong, Goodbye Kuan Yew at a mamak stall while he was contesting as a PAP candidate and snorting that this could only have come from an English-educated person. I was also at the press conference when former Foreign Minister George Yeo described Catherine Lim’s pieces on the the Goh Chok Tong government as “boh tua, boh suay”. What would they say now of the diatribes that have been poured on elected leaders and the lack of respect for the dignity of the office?

Perhaps, this is the new normal. Politicians must expect this as par for the course. It is no longer the Opposition politicians who are skewered by the PAP through the traditional media channels. The spike is now on both ends of the stick.

I feel as though GE2011 has continued through the years, that we – and I mean the people – never stopped being in election assessment mode. According to TODAY, Mr Ong raised as signs of division the cases of graffiti on Housing and Development Board blocks, the 2012 strike by bus drivers, socio-political websites that tell lies for profit, handicapped children harassed by protesters during a concert, vitriol and negativity circulating non-stop.

I would say it goes beyond this. It’s also about how every new policy or policy change is being questioned for the motivations that lie behind it (who would have thought that something as old as the CPF would be such a hot potato?) and scrutinised for equality of treatment (why him, not me?). It has to do with how the PAP itself acknowledged that the GE2011 results was a wake up call to hearken to the people’s views, especially on the deluge of foreigners who are straining Singaporeans’ space in all aspects.

The PAP has a nice phrase about how “the world didn’t start in 2011″ but for the people, it did, at least in terms of their political awakening. They have realised that the vote means the power to make the PAP move in a certain direction. This probably has nothing to do with the work of Opposition politicians, even though some have tried to claim credit, because, face it, the PAP G and the civil service is an intelligent, effective machinery that doesn’t need outside help when it has decided on a course of action. Nevertheless, it means that every change made will have the shadow of GE2011 cast over it – and assessed in that context.

I should add that politics in the partisan sense was also dialled up over the past four years with two by-elections held, the many debates over the Workers’ Party management of Aljunied-Hougang-Punggol East Town Council and the unpopular 2013 White Paper on Population. Every group is jostling for more mainstream space, whether it be singles, single mothers or the LGBT community. And jostling vociferously. To think that in the past, inclusiveness was more about making room for minority ethnic communities to flourish…

But there was a pause button that was pressed when Mr Lee Kuan Yew died. We mourned our loss together. What is surprising in the GE is how there isn’t much talk about reaping the so-called LKY dividend. Of course his name is mentioned by both PAP and the Opposition. And here is the irony. Opposition politicians used to deride him in the past for his high-handed ways, but now they compare him with his son, to argue that the younger Lee was falling short of his father’s standards. Such is politics!

Mr Ong brought the focus of this election back to the voter. He didn’t raise the spectre of a freak election result, a Parliament in grid-lock nor pummel the Opposition for being opportunistic or lacking ideas.

Putting himself in the shoes of a voter, he would like a G which makes the cost of living affordable, a G actively helping the disadvantaged, low-income, and the needy elderly to ensure they live with dignity and independence. He wants a G that helps every Singaporean child get a good start in life with good early childhood and school education. He hopes for a strong defence force, a vibrant economy, a flourishing and strong Singapore identity and a “genuine diversity of opinions” in deciding national policies, among other things.

“Unlike the past, where our paths had been open and the collective interest obvious, today, policies are made always with trade-offs and sacrifices… and that makes policies sometimes divisive.”

Therein lies the rub. It has become a truism that diversity of opinion is good for the body politic. But when does the debate stop and how willing are we as a people to get behind something that has to be decided at some time? I think the PAP has to reconcile itself with an opposition presence, maybe even a larger presence, in Parliament. But once the hustings are over, we have got to get down to living together as Singaporeans. We have to find an “obvious” collective interest.

Source: http://themiddleground.sg

September 9, 2015
This Is The Change A Former Politically Apathetic Millenial Wants To See

The mood changed after August 9.

SG50 had culminated in a spectacular show of fireworks and nostalgia, but now the nation’s joyous jubilee celebration would make way for equally fervent political discourse.

No one knew when Parliament would dissolve, but we all knew it would be a watershed year for local politics. After all, this is the first election since the passing of former Prime Minister Lee Kuan Yew and the air was pregnant with anticipation.

It wasn’t long before the barrage of online posts about Singapore’s changing political landscape came fast and furious. From regaling personal stories about meeting their personable and humble MPs, to articulately listing the pros and cons of having a multi-party government, it seemed everyone was now a political pundit and had something to say about something or someone.

For someone who has never been well-versed in, nor cared much for, politicking, covering the GE forMothership.sg helped me make sense of the online discourse I was seeing. There were two major camps: the conscientiously-researched commentaries, and the ones loosely strung together, just to jump onto the bandwagon and garner Facebook likes and shares. Still, I took them all in – besides, the more poorly structured debates there were, the more the genuinely intelligent ones stood out.

Then, there were the vocal minority who, upon seeing netizens engage in political discourse, call it hypocrisy because such debate only happens during the GE. This reaction was apparently similar to the online sentiments when Lee Kuan Yew passed. Back then, my Facebook feed had been divided between those praising his deeds and those calling the former hypocrites when they hadn’t extolled him previously.

And therein lies the main gripe I have with our political discourse, and ultimately, our system – it doesn’t allow for nuanced views.

If we’re pro-PAP, we’re Yes Men who can’t think for ourselves; if we’re pro-Opposition, we’re unappreciative ingrates. Likewise, call ourselves politically apathetic and we’re irresponsible; have strong views and we’re getting caught in the hype.

This clear dichotomy between differing views leaves no room for contradictions and grey areas, both essential parts of simply being human, to co-exist – therefore unnecessarily limiting discussion to extreme opinions. The truth is Singapore is a stable and comfortable society, but that incredible safety should not be an excuse to breed complacency and entitlement, whether with regards to opinions or material goods.

No matter the news we wake up to on the morning of September 12, what I most want to see is significant progress towards cultivating creativity, open-mindedness and a sense of ruggedness in our youth. Provide room and reason for them to grapple with the various degrees of breadth and depth in the nation’s pertinent issues. Challenge our youth to question their own beliefs and ways of life, and in the process, develop more robust and individualistic points of view.

And perhaps this starts with understanding the beauty of democracy. Knowing the power to change things can lie in a single vote, this heady responsibility can force even the most politically apathetic to keep themselves abreast with the latest happenings, and to remain discerning and well-informed. With an inevitable overload of information, it also means that we learn not to engage with every opinion that we see, but nonetheless appreciate the diversity for keeping our minds sharp and aware.

There’s nothing hypocritical about deciding to educate oneself on the political scene, nor to want open and candid discussions about your future in this country. We are a highly educated workforce; let’s speak and behave as such – so that it no longer has to mean that if we’re pro-something, we’re automatically anti-something else.

Because frankly speaking, it’s no longer cool to just care. It’s how we care that makes all the difference.

Source: http://mothership.sg

September 9, 2015