Singapore GE2025: PPP calls on Singaporeans to vote other opposition parties into Parliament, not just WP
People's Power Party secretary-general Goh Meng Seng (right) and his fellow Tampines GRC candidate Peter Soh on a walkabout in Tampines Street 81 on April 27, 2025. - Photo: ST
SINGAPORE: The People's Power Party (PPP) hopes that come May 3, more opposition parties will be voted into Parliament.
Speaking to the media on Sunday (April 27) after a walkabout at Block 826A Tampines Street 81, party secretary-general Goh Meng Seng said he hopes both the PSP and Singapore Democratic Party (SDP) are voted in.
Mentioning PSP's Leong Mun Wai and SDP's Dr Chee Soon Juan and Professor Paul Tambyah by name, Goh said he and they may not agree on everything, but that their diversity would result in robust debate in Parliament.
'They are all my good friends,' he said. 'They are people of conviction, although we share different views and policy ideals and values.'
He added that he hopes Tampines residents will vote for the PPP, so there can be more debates than between just the PAP and WP.
The PPP team contesting in Tampines GRC consists of Goh and party chairman Derrick Sim, as well as landscaping executive Vere Nathan, green tech firm founder Peter Soh and entrepreneur Arbaah Haroun.
During the walkabout, Goh was overheard using a crass word to make his case to residents on why they should vote for opposition parties that are not the WP.
Asked about the word, which alludes to rape and violence, he said it was 'local language' and that what he meant was that he wanted more diversity in Parliament, not just the PAP and WP.
Goh had criticised the WP's move to not contest Marine Parade-Braddell Heights GRC on Nomination Day on April 23.
Responding to Goh's comments on April 24, WP secretary-general Pritam Singh said Goh should focus on the campaign in Tampines.
Goh said later at the PPP rally the same day: 'Don't ask me about Pritam Singh again. I'm not interested in him, I'm not gay.' His comment drew laughter from spectators.
The next day, on April 25, Singh told the media: 'Goh Meng Seng is Goh Meng Seng. Nothing's going to change.'
Goh in turn told the media on April 27: 'If Goh Meng Seng is not Goh Meng Seng, I may as well go and hide somewhere. But Pritam Singh will always be Pritam Singh.'
Both he and Sim also commented about Sim's Facebook account being suddenly disabled on April 25.
Sim said he has reported the issue to Meta, which owns Facebook, and has changed his security settings.
Goh chimed in, saying the party intends to report the incident to the police, believing it to be caused by 'black forces' and 'powers that be'.
'This is real interference of a fair contest,' he said. 'This should not be taken lightly. We have to get to the bottom of this.' - The Straits Times/ANN
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
The Star
2 days ago
- The Star
South Korean conservatives looking for rebirth after election loss
SEOUL (Reuters) -South Korea's right is looking to remake itself after a massive defeat in this week's snap presidential election that left it with little power to challenge the ruling Democratic Party. New leader Lee Jae-myung and his party now control parliament and the presidency with Tuesday's polls exposing the smouldering resentment in South Korea over former President Yoon Suk Yeol's botched martial law declaration in December. The attempt at military rule led to Yoon's removal from office and the eventual defeat of the conservative People Power Party, which was unable to overcome divisions within the right and unify around a single candidate. The defeat has left conservative leaders pointing fingers and trading blame as the party searches for a new direction. On Thursday the PPP's floor leader, lawmaker Kweon Seong-dong, stepped down and called for the party to wipe the slate clean and rebuild the conservative movement. "This defeat in the presidential election is not simply a judgment on martial law and the impeachment of the president," he said. "It is a painful reprimand to the divisions of the ruling People Power Party." The party's presidential candidate Kim Moon-soo was unable to convince Lee Jun-seok, the nominee from the minor conservative Reform Party, to drop out, likely splitting at least some of the vote. Former labour minister Kim won 41.15% of the vote and Lee Jun-Seok won 8.34%, to winner Lee Jae-myung's 49.42%. A controversial figure for championing anti-feminist concerns and wielding support among young men, Lee Jun-seok was briefly the leader of the PPP, and had helped Yoon narrowly win the 2022 presidential election. He later clashed with Yoon and was ousted from the PPP. Lee told reporters on Tuesday that the PPP should have focused on reform rather than unifying candidates. "That's the challenge given to pan-conservatives," he said. Kim blamed infighting during the primary process that led to him filing legal challenges against the PPP after then-acting President Han Duck-soo resigned to contest the elections despite the party selecting Kim as its candidate. The two men spent a week clashing over efforts to form a unity ticket. "We picked our candidate in a way that even a small child thinks doesn't make sense... I think we need deep soul-searching and reform," Kim said on Wednesday as he kneeled in apology to party members and the public. 'TEAR DOWN OUR HOUSE' Others pointed to the PPP's failure to fully separate itself from Yoon's unpopular and unconstitutional martial law. "They failed to draw in moderate voters," said political commentator Park Sangbyoung. "Instead, Yoon Suk Yeol sided with far-right ideas, and Kim Moon-soo, who has a history of working with far-right groups, was their candidate." Park said the "complete downfall" of the conservatives could damage Korean politics. "To be a true opposing force against the Lee administration, they need to be reborn, even resorting to blowing up the party and creating a new one," Park said. South Korea's conservatives have staged unlikely comebacks before. Yoon is the second conservative president in a row to be removed from office, after Park Geun-hye was impeached and jailed in a corruption scandal in 2017. Shin Yul, a political science professor at Myongji University, said "until they clear the mess inside" it will be difficult for the right to stand up to Lee. "Rather than crisis of conservatives, I would call it the falling of People Power Party because of its leadership that runs the party based on self-interests, not fundamental values," he said. In the wake of Yoon's impeachment, then-PPP leader Han Dong-hoon promised that the president would resign and the party would help lead an interim government. When Yoon and his backers rejected that plan and fought his removal, it divided the party and led to Han's resignation. On Wednesday Han, who unsuccessfully ran for the PPP nomination, said the party needs to cooperate with the new liberal administration on economy and security but it must not compromise on challenging any effort by the ruling party to "destroy the judiciary system". The PPP has accused the Democratic Party of trying to pass bills that they say are meant to shield President Lee, who faces a slew of corruption charges, from any further legal troubles. "Please do not give up," Han said. "It is the last chance to end the same old politics and to establish politics that put the people first." Lawmaker Park Jeong-hoon said in a Facebook post that the party must change if it wants to survive. "We must tear down our house and rebuild it. This is not a matter of factions but a matter of the party's survival." (Reporting by Ju-min Park; Editing by Josh Smith and Saad Sayeed)
New Straits Times
3 days ago
- New Straits Times
Lee rode Korean voter discontent to power, now faces policy test
SOUTH Korea's new President Lee Jae-myung rode a wave of voter anger against the December martial law attempt by his ousted predecessor, but his ability to lead will be judged by the strength of his policies. With preliminary results suggesting a comfortable win over Kim Moon-soo, the candidate for the conservative People Power Party, Lee will take office with a resounding mandate and his Democratic Party in control of parliament. Healing the political rifts that led to former president Yoon Suk Yeol's shock martial law and its divisive aftermath will be a tall order. Analysts say both candidates were vague on their policy plans during the campaign, and Lee Jun-han, a political science professor at Incheon National University, said the results are more an indictment of Yoon and his PPP's poor performance than an endorsement of the DP. He said Kim, who opposed Yoon's impeachment, was unprepared and the PPP did not show remorse after the martial law. "(The next president) should properly interpret that the people's choice has been one-sided and show that in the government's operation or politics in the future," he said. "If they don't, public sentiment will fluctuate quickly." While Lee has had his eye on the presidency for years, there have been major developments since he narrowly lost to Yoon in the 2022 election, said Kim Jun-seok, a political science professor at Dongguk University. "Now he has restoration of democracy as one of his tasks," Kim said. "Nonetheless, there are huge challenges faced by South Korea. A grim outlook on the economy that's projected to grow maybe less than one per cent. "And there's a crisis outside, dealing with Trump. He has a lot of work to do." Voters said they were looking for the winner of the snap election to calm the economic and political shocks that have roiled the country since Yoon's Dec 3 martial law decree led to months of economic downturn and sparked nationwide protests. Many complained, however, about a lack of specifics in policy debates. Lee has pledged to draft a second supplementary budget for the year as soon as the election is over, and promised vouchers to help businesses and subsidies for childcare, youth, and the elderly to address growing discontent around tightening purse strings. His camp says they intend to seek more time to negotiate on trade with US President Donald Trump, but it is unclear how any request for an extension of the tariff deadline will be received in Washington. With a rise in anti-China sentiment among South Koreans and Trump's push to isolate Beijing, Lee must also tread carefully with any plans to improve ties with China. Lee has also shown sensitivity to the political winds, moderating some of his stances on China, Japan, and populist economic policies such as universal income ahead of the election. "I hope he will resuscitate the economy and get rid of insurrection forces," said Im Young-taek, 64, a small business owner. "And I do hope he will make people comfortable. "Things may not be easy with Trump, but I hope he will hire capable aides and settle the issues." Lee's Democratic Party will control Parliament, easing the passage of legislation and budgets after years of deadlock between Yoon and the legislature. That may do little to soothe political polarisation, however, with conservatives warning that Lee and the DP will steamroll over any opposition. Incheon University's Lee said: "Since they are the absolute majority, there seems to be few checks and balances to stop them." In May, a DP-led committee passed legislation aimed at changing an election law that Lee has been convicted of violating. They have also promised to pass legislation clarifying what protections presidents have from criminal investigations, a move seen as trying to reduce Lee's exposure to other charges.
Malaysian Reserve
5 days ago
- Malaysian Reserve
South Korea votes for new president after martial law turmoil
SEOUL — South Koreans began voting Tuesday for a new president, six months to the day after ex-leader Yoon Suk Yeol plunged the country into political chaos with his disastrous declaration of martial law. A handful of elderly voters lined up at a polling station in Seoul's Munrae-dong area at 6:00 am (2100 GMT) to cast their ballots when voting began. 'We were the first to arrive with the hope our candidate gets elected, and because the presidential election is the most important,' Yu Bun-dol, 80, told AFP, adding she was voting for the conservative People Power Party (PPP) — Yoon's former party. Millions have already cast their ballots in the snap election, with more than a third of registered voters doing so last week during two days of early voting, the National Election Commission said. All major polls have put liberal Lee Jae-myung well ahead, with the latest Gallup survey showing 49 percent of respondents viewed him as the best candidate. Campaigning is not allowed on election day, but Lee posted on Facebook that the vote would 'show the strength of the Korean people,' after months of turmoil. Kim Moon-soo, from the conservative PPP, has trailed Lee in the polls, on 35 percent in the Gallup survey. The fallout from martial law declaration, which has left South Korea effectively leaderless for the first months of US President Donald Trump's second term, is the top concern for voters, experts said. 'Polls show the election is largely viewed as a referendum on the previous administration,' Kang Joo-hyun, a political science professor at Sookmyung Women's University, told AFP. 'The martial law and impeachment crisis not only swayed moderates but also fractured the conservative base.' Yoon's impeachment over the martial law bid, which saw armed soldiers deployed to parliament, made him the second straight conservative president to be stripped of office after Park Geun-hye in 2017. Conservative candidate Kim also failed to convince a third party candidate, Lee Jun-seok of the Reform Party, to unify and avoid splitting the right-wing vote. Voter Park dong-shin, 79, said Yoon's martial law declaration 'was the kind of thing done during the old days of dictatorship in our country'. He said he was voting for the candidate who would make sure those responsible were 'properly dealt with'. 'Turning point' Seoul's streets were peaceful as people made the most of good weather and a public holiday, but police issued the highest level of alert and deployed thousands of officers to ensure the poll proceeded smoothly. South Korean presidents serve a single five-year term. Lee's Democratic Party already holds a parliamentary majority and analysts say the fractured conservative base will struggle in opposition unless it can resolve its issues. 'Conservative politics was associated with competent governance, but it's now hard to argue that they remain capable,' said Kang Won-taek, a political science professor at Seoul National University. With a regular presidential election, there is a months-long transition period, and the new leader's term begins at midnight after the predecessor's final day. But in a snap election, the winner becomes president as soon as the National Election Commission ratifies the vote tally. After months of turmoil and a revolving door of lame-duck acting leaders, many South Koreans are eager for the country to move forward. Cab driver Choi Sung-wook, 68, said he was voting for liberal Lee, partly due to his impoverished childhood, which he believed 'will have a big influence on how he will serve the people'. 'I thought Yoon would do well, but he betrayed the people. I hope the next president will create an atmosphere of peace and unity rather than ideological warfare.' Overall voter turnout is expected to be high. 'The focus won't be on whether Lee will win, but on whether he will secure more than 50 percent of the vote,' said Bae Kang-hoon, co-founder of political think tank Valid. 'If he manages to do so, it would give him a significant boost in momentum to govern as president.' — AFP
