SINGAPORE: Amid allegations of “negative politics” by political parties during the election campaigning, Education Minister Chan Chun Sing on Wednesday (Apr 30) urged all candidates to focus on the issues that matter to voters.
“I think we need to return back to the core issues in this campaign,” he told reporters before a walkabout at Tanjong Pagar Plaza Market and Food Centre.
“What is this election about? And how are all the candidates able to help us overcome these challenges and seize the new opportunities in a more troubled world?”
Mr Chan was responding to questions from reporters after the leaders of the People's Action Party (PAP) and Workers' Party (WP) commented on the issue of negative campaigning in recent days.
Prime Minister Lawrence Wong said on Tuesday that it was “rather disappointing” that the WP had launched “negative attacks” on his deputy Gan Kim Yong and the rest of the PAP's Punggol GRC team. Several WP speakers had singled out Mr Gan for criticism during the party's rally on Monday.
Mr Wong's comment sparked a response from WP chief Pritam Singh hours later. He said during a Tuesday rally that it was the ruling party that had negative politics in its "DNA", citing the PAP's "crippling" of opposition town councils over the years.
Mr Chan acknowledged that in any electoral contest, there will be arguments back and forth.
“But I really hope to see that throughout this debate and discussions, we will generate not just heat, but light, in the sense of the type of solutions that we can present to fellow Singaporeans to help them make a decision as to who can better represent them in parliament, which team can better help Singapore and Singaporeans get through all the challenges,” he said.
Mr Chan added that, in contrast, positive campaigning is about presenting the electorate with actual solutions to consider carefully.
Mr Chan was joined at the walkabout by the rest of his People’s Action Party (PAP) team for Tanjong Pagar GRC, as well as candidates from the Radin Mas and Queenstown single-seat wards.
Speaking to reporters, he also criticised certain parties for claiming credit for certain government policies.
“The argument goes something like this: Team A has done well, and because they have done well, they don’t need so many good players. Team B has not done as well, so we should reward them with more players,” Mr Chan said.
“Now I think fair-minded Singaporeans will know that there's something not very correct with this line of argument.”
Mr Chan added that in his more than 30 years of experience in the public service - both in the military and in politics - he has always been taught that “as leaders, we must be the first to take responsibility and last to claim credit”.
“I find it rather amusing to hear some of this during the debate that displays the exact opposite of this,” he said.
He said that sometimes, when some parties did not do anything, and there is a good outcome from a policy, they claim “I contributed by not objecting”.
If there is a good outcome, and they had indeed said something, albeit different from what was done eventually, they claim that “this outcome is due to my contribution”, said Mr Chan.
“So I find it a bit puzzling,” he said, adding that it has happened during both the COVID-19 pandemic and the current global tariffs situation.
Mr Chan added that there are different rationales and details behind some of the government’s policies, for which the opposition has claimed credit.
For instance, the Progressive Wage Model has been deemed a “minimum wage”, and the Job Seeker Support Scheme a form of “unemployment insurance”.
“I think there's a role for constructive opposition in any healthy democracy, and I think Singaporeans want to see that, but I think we should all be humble and try not to claim more than what is due,” said Mr Chan.
Earlier this month, the WP had claimed that 15 policies it had advocated for in the last term of parliament were later adopted “in some form” by the government.
(From left, clockwise) PAP’s Tanjong Pagar GRC candidates Foo Cexiang, Rachel Ong, Chan Chun Sing, PAP’s Radin Mas SMC candidate Melvin Yong, PAP’s Tanjong Pagar GRC candidates Joan Pereira and Alvin Tan posing for a photo during a walkabout at Tanjong Pagar Plaza Market and Food Centre on Apr 30, 2025. (Photo: CNA/Lan Yu)
When asked by CNA if his comments were targeted specifically at the WP, Mr Chan said that it applies to all political parties here, with the expectation of such high standards applicable to everyone, including the ruling party itself.
“That's the standard that we must aspire to present to fellow Singaporeans. It is a standard that we must keep, it is a standard that we aspire to keep raising, and let's not compete downwards by saying that we have different standards expected of different parties, or different standards expected of different individuals, because it does Singapore no good at all,” said Mr Chan.
He said that if there are double standards in politics here, “we will quickly have a race to the bottom”.
“I think we have seen this happening in other countries as well. We don't want to go that way, and I'm very sure Singaporeans don’t want to do that,” said Mr Chan.
“I have great confidence in the maturity of Singaporeans. I have great confidence that Singaporeans will want to hear the real substance from every and any policy debate, and they want to know the real solutions, and they want to know who can provide those solutions and who can deliver those solutions.”
New face Foo Cexiang, who is part of Mr Chan’s Tanjong Pagar team, told reporters that he has completed visiting the eight blocks in the area around Tanjong Pagar Plaza Market and Food Centre in the past few days.
“I've met many residents. A good number of them have been here since the very beginning, more than 40 years, and it is great to see them. The support for us is very strong, continues to shine through,” Mr Foo said of the ground sentiments in the ward.
PAP’s Tanjong Pagar GRC candidates Foo Cexiang speaking to the media at Tanjong Pagar Plaza Market and Food Centre on Apr 30, 2025. (Photo: CNA/Lan Yu)
Mr Foo shared that there are children who have shifted back there to live in the same block as their parents, now with their own young children.
“So that is the legacy of connecting the different generations that I think I really want to continue over here,” he told reporters.
He added that younger residents have asked him if he would represent their voices in parliament if elected, given that he is close to them in age, at 40 years old.
“I assured them that 100 per cent I will hear them out, I will digest what they say, I will seek to understand it completely, and I will consider it. And if it's in the interest of the greater majority of residents, I will speak up for them,” he said.
“But that's obviously different from saying that I will say everything that they share with me, because sometimes the individual interest is not always the same as the interest of the general public.”
Mr Foo said he will also have a role to play “in terms of explaining the government policies, why we do certain things and why we don't do certain things”, adding that he hopes residents will have the patience and understanding to hear him out in such instances.
You can watch livestreams of all rallies on CNA's GE2025 site, CNA's YouTube channel and on mewatch.
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“I think we need to return back to the core issues in this campaign,” he told reporters before a walkabout at Tanjong Pagar Plaza Market and Food Centre.
“What is this election about? And how are all the candidates able to help us overcome these challenges and seize the new opportunities in a more troubled world?”
Mr Chan was responding to questions from reporters after the leaders of the People's Action Party (PAP) and Workers' Party (WP) commented on the issue of negative campaigning in recent days.
Prime Minister Lawrence Wong said on Tuesday that it was “rather disappointing” that the WP had launched “negative attacks” on his deputy Gan Kim Yong and the rest of the PAP's Punggol GRC team. Several WP speakers had singled out Mr Gan for criticism during the party's rally on Monday.
Mr Wong's comment sparked a response from WP chief Pritam Singh hours later. He said during a Tuesday rally that it was the ruling party that had negative politics in its "DNA", citing the PAP's "crippling" of opposition town councils over the years.
Mr Chan acknowledged that in any electoral contest, there will be arguments back and forth.
“But I really hope to see that throughout this debate and discussions, we will generate not just heat, but light, in the sense of the type of solutions that we can present to fellow Singaporeans to help them make a decision as to who can better represent them in parliament, which team can better help Singapore and Singaporeans get through all the challenges,” he said.
Mr Chan added that, in contrast, positive campaigning is about presenting the electorate with actual solutions to consider carefully.
Related:
LAST TO CLAIM CREDIT
Mr Chan was joined at the walkabout by the rest of his People’s Action Party (PAP) team for Tanjong Pagar GRC, as well as candidates from the Radin Mas and Queenstown single-seat wards.
Speaking to reporters, he also criticised certain parties for claiming credit for certain government policies.
“The argument goes something like this: Team A has done well, and because they have done well, they don’t need so many good players. Team B has not done as well, so we should reward them with more players,” Mr Chan said.
“Now I think fair-minded Singaporeans will know that there's something not very correct with this line of argument.”
Mr Chan added that in his more than 30 years of experience in the public service - both in the military and in politics - he has always been taught that “as leaders, we must be the first to take responsibility and last to claim credit”.
“I find it rather amusing to hear some of this during the debate that displays the exact opposite of this,” he said.
He said that sometimes, when some parties did not do anything, and there is a good outcome from a policy, they claim “I contributed by not objecting”.
If there is a good outcome, and they had indeed said something, albeit different from what was done eventually, they claim that “this outcome is due to my contribution”, said Mr Chan.
“So I find it a bit puzzling,” he said, adding that it has happened during both the COVID-19 pandemic and the current global tariffs situation.
Mr Chan added that there are different rationales and details behind some of the government’s policies, for which the opposition has claimed credit.
For instance, the Progressive Wage Model has been deemed a “minimum wage”, and the Job Seeker Support Scheme a form of “unemployment insurance”.
“I think there's a role for constructive opposition in any healthy democracy, and I think Singaporeans want to see that, but I think we should all be humble and try not to claim more than what is due,” said Mr Chan.
Earlier this month, the WP had claimed that 15 policies it had advocated for in the last term of parliament were later adopted “in some form” by the government.
(From left, clockwise) PAP’s Tanjong Pagar GRC candidates Foo Cexiang, Rachel Ong, Chan Chun Sing, PAP’s Radin Mas SMC candidate Melvin Yong, PAP’s Tanjong Pagar GRC candidates Joan Pereira and Alvin Tan posing for a photo during a walkabout at Tanjong Pagar Plaza Market and Food Centre on Apr 30, 2025. (Photo: CNA/Lan Yu)
When asked by CNA if his comments were targeted specifically at the WP, Mr Chan said that it applies to all political parties here, with the expectation of such high standards applicable to everyone, including the ruling party itself.
“That's the standard that we must aspire to present to fellow Singaporeans. It is a standard that we must keep, it is a standard that we aspire to keep raising, and let's not compete downwards by saying that we have different standards expected of different parties, or different standards expected of different individuals, because it does Singapore no good at all,” said Mr Chan.
He said that if there are double standards in politics here, “we will quickly have a race to the bottom”.
“I think we have seen this happening in other countries as well. We don't want to go that way, and I'm very sure Singaporeans don’t want to do that,” said Mr Chan.
“I have great confidence in the maturity of Singaporeans. I have great confidence that Singaporeans will want to hear the real substance from every and any policy debate, and they want to know the real solutions, and they want to know who can provide those solutions and who can deliver those solutions.”
SPEAKING UP FOR RESIDENTS
New face Foo Cexiang, who is part of Mr Chan’s Tanjong Pagar team, told reporters that he has completed visiting the eight blocks in the area around Tanjong Pagar Plaza Market and Food Centre in the past few days.
“I've met many residents. A good number of them have been here since the very beginning, more than 40 years, and it is great to see them. The support for us is very strong, continues to shine through,” Mr Foo said of the ground sentiments in the ward.
PAP’s Tanjong Pagar GRC candidates Foo Cexiang speaking to the media at Tanjong Pagar Plaza Market and Food Centre on Apr 30, 2025. (Photo: CNA/Lan Yu)
Mr Foo shared that there are children who have shifted back there to live in the same block as their parents, now with their own young children.
“So that is the legacy of connecting the different generations that I think I really want to continue over here,” he told reporters.
He added that younger residents have asked him if he would represent their voices in parliament if elected, given that he is close to them in age, at 40 years old.
“I assured them that 100 per cent I will hear them out, I will digest what they say, I will seek to understand it completely, and I will consider it. And if it's in the interest of the greater majority of residents, I will speak up for them,” he said.
“But that's obviously different from saying that I will say everything that they share with me, because sometimes the individual interest is not always the same as the interest of the general public.”
Mr Foo said he will also have a role to play “in terms of explaining the government policies, why we do certain things and why we don't do certain things”, adding that he hopes residents will have the patience and understanding to hear him out in such instances.
You can watch livestreams of all rallies on CNA's GE2025 site, CNA's YouTube channel and on mewatch.
Continue reading...