‘Singaporeans must decide their own politics': PM Wong slams foreign attempts to manipulate voters along religious lines

Malay Mail

27-04-2025

SINGAPORE, April 26 — Prime Minister Lawrence Wong said foreigners telling Singaporeans to vote along religious lines have 'crossed the line', stressing that external players must not be allowed to exploit divisions in the country.
Speaking at a press conference at the National Press Centre yesterday, Wong welcomed the 'clear consensus' from opposition parties in rejecting foreign interference in Singapore's elections.
According to Channel News Asia (CNA), he also urged all political leaders to stand firm against endorsements from overseas.
Wong said he was addressing the media midway through the General Election 2025 campaign in his capacity as Prime Minister, as the issue touches on 'a matter of national interest'.
His comments come after the Singapore government announced yesterday that it had directed Meta to block access to Facebook posts made by two Malaysian politicians and a former Internal Security Act detainee who is now an Australian citizen.
The posts had criticised Singapore's handling of religious issues and called on voters to make their choices based on religious grounds.
'Singaporeans may have different views about issues, but we cannot allow external actors to exploit whatever differences we may have to weaken us or to advance their own interests,' he was quoted as saying.
'Singapore's politics must be for Singaporeans alone to decide.'
Access to the posts has been blocked and Wong warned that authorities will act firmly against any similar activities, noting it is an offence under the Parliamentary Elections Act for foreigners to participate in election activities or publish election advertising.
Beyond foreign interference, Wong also flagged concerns over local attempts to mix religion and politics, citing recent social media posts by Islamic religious teacher Noor Deros calling for Muslims to vote based on religious agendas.
At the press conference, Wong also raised concerns about social media posts, including one by a local activist urging Muslims to support candidates advancing a religious agenda. While he did not name anyone, Islamic teacher Noor Deros recently drew attention with posts listing political demands and claiming meetings with Workers' Party Malay candidates.
Wong said such calls must be rejected, regardless of which religion is involved.
He stressed that bringing religion into politics would fracture the common space, worsen divisions during elections, and opens the door for external forces to exploit tensions.
While engagement on race and religion remains important, he warned against slipping into identity politics, which he called dangerous.
'When one group jostles aggressively to assert its identity, others will organise and start to jostle back, and you can see how these play out in countries everywhere,' Wong told the press.
'The minority groups will fail to get what they want, because the majority group will push back strongly and the minorities will find their space constricted. At the same time, the majority group will also live in the most unhappy society where every issue comes down to race and religion.
'So no one is happy, no one wins. In the end, we will be more divided than before and Singaporeans, all of us, will pay the price.'
Wong urged all political parties to make clear not just their opposition to foreign interference, but also their commitment to two core principles: rejecting identity politics and keeping religion out of politics.
'At the end of the day, whatever differences, we are all Singaporeans first and foremost,' he said.
Opposition leaders also weighed in, with the Workers' Party stressing that it had no control over foreign individuals expressing support for its candidates, and that no promises or agreements were made with Noor Deros — or anyone else — in return.
He said the cross-party statements reflected a 'clear consensus' on the need to stand firm against foreign influence.
CNA reported that Wong also warned that issues beyond elections, including foreign policy stances, could hurt Singapore's national interest.
Referring to Noor Deros' posts, Wong said the religious teacher had taken 'very extreme positions on foreign policy', accusing America and Israel of being 'the masterminds of terrorism'.
He added that Noor, a Singaporean based in Malaysia, had pushed for expanding Islamic principles 'at the expense of shrinking the common space that other faiths and communities in Singapore share'.
'These are positions that will go against our national interest,' said Wong.