SINGAPORE: Although Red Dot United (RDU) is in the opposition camp, it is not adversaries with the ruling People’s Action Party (PAP) when it comes to solving the problems of Singaporeans.
“We may disagree on certain policies, but at the end of the day, we are all Singaporeans,” said RDU’s secretary-general Ravi Philemon on Saturday (Apr 5).
“We all care for Singapore, and that is an important thing that we cannot forget.”
He added that the party does not believe in an adversarial approach when it comes to solving the problems people face, and is “very clear minded about that and towards that”.
Mr Philemon was speaking to reporters during a walkabout at Bukit Batok West Avenue 6, which is under the current Jurong East-Bukit Batok GRC but was formerly under Bukit Batok SMC.
In the 2020 General Election, Singapore Democratic Party (SDP) chief Chee Soon Juan contested in Bukit Batok SMC, and lost to the PAP’s Murali Pillai, getting 45.2 per cent of the vote.
Asked whether the support that Dr Chee garnered at the constituency is something his party will leverage on, Mr Philemon said that he is “always very thankful to Dr Chee Soon Juan”.
“He is a guiding light to many in the opposition ecosystem, including to me, and I'm thankful to him that he has worked the ground here in the past 10 years,” he said.
“A sizeable number of people in the former Bukit Batok SMC did vote for him, which means that he has politicised this Bukit Batok SMC.”
He added that RDU is the party that plans to contest this area for the upcoming General Election, and that it will “take from where Dr Chee left off”.
“I think he has passed the baton to us in a certain sense, and we will continue to continue to run the race on the behalf of Singaporeans,” he added.
Dr Chee has said he will be contesting in Sembawang West SMC instead, given the absorption of Bukit Batok SMC into Jurong East-Bukit Batok GRC.
Red Dot United secretary-general Ravi Philemon speaking to the media at Bukit Batok Street 11 on Apr 5, 2025. (Photo: CNA/Ili Nadhirah Mansor)
Mr Philemon said that the theme for the party's Jurong East-Bukit Batok GRC GE2025 campaign will be “raise the standard”.
The slogan was chosen based on some discontent and complaints the party has heard from residents here.
He said, for example, that there are young people and seniors trying to chase good paying jobs that are “elusive to them”.
He also took a jab at Manpower Minister Tan See Leng’s comments last month, where he advised young undergraduates not to think about the stipend or pay during their internship but to instead focus on the exposure, given the current skills-based job market.
Mr Philemon added that he has observed seniors saying they need to “stretch their dollar” for a cup of coffee.
He also said that the area has a rat issue that has cost some business owners in lost merchandise.
“I think we need to raise the standard when it comes to municipal issues. We need to raise the standard when it comes to national policies which affect young people, we need to raise the standard when it comes to how we treat people, especially our senior citizens, and that is what our campaign here will be about,” he said.
He added that the party is “not just complainers”, but have sought to find solutions to some of these issues.
For instance, he said RDU will continue to engage the town councils, grassroots organisations, and the PAP in “trying to find lasting, permanent solutions for the people”.
“I think these solutions have got to be permanent solutions,” he said. “They cannot be temporary fixes for the people, for the people, and that's what our concerns seem to be about.”
Mr Philemon also referenced Prime Minister Lawrence Wong’s speech on Friday, where he warned that Singapore must brace itself for more shocks following sweeping US tariffs imposed by President Donald Trump, and noted his appeal for stability.
“I totally agree with the prime minister. We need stability, but I'm also concerned that his appeal for stability is an appeal for being unified as a people, it's a call to scare-monger the people that, ‘Come support the PAP, come under the fold of the PAP’,” said Mr Philemon.
“It cannot be so.”
He said that in every election, there are “at least 30 to 40 per cent of people” who do vote for the opposition, but that 90 per cent of the voices in parliament are occupied by PAP candidates.
“In an unstable world, these are voices that we cannot ignore,” he said. “Supporting the PAP does not mean that everybody goes under the fold of the PAP. Then that becomes a monopoly … And we all know who suffers in a monopoly.”
RDU’s team leads for Jurong East-Bukit Batok GRC, Mr Ben Puah (left), Ms Liyana Dhamirah and Mr Harish Mohanadas at Bukit Batok Street 11 on Apr 5, 2025. (Photo: CNA/Ili Nadhirah Mansor)
Mr Ravi also introduced three party “team leads” that have been walking the ground at Jurong East-Bukit Batok.
They are: Ms Liyana Dhamirah, a manager of a non-profit organisation, Mr Ben Puah, an artist and community art organiser, and Mr Harish Mohandas, a principal software engineer.
Ms Liyana had contested under RDU in GE2020 in the then Jurong GRC - the only constituency the party contested - where it garnered 25.39 per cent of the vote against the PAP team led by now-President Tharman Shanmugaratnam.
Speaking to reporters, Ms Liyana said she advocates for a society where no one is left behind, while Mr Puah, speaking in Mandarin, said that Singapore, with its relatively high GDP, should be able to better address issues people face.
Mr Harish said that the party looks to earn the trust of Singaporeans, not just through “high-sounding words” but through “consistent effort, honesty, and humility”.
New faces such as 56-year-old international tech start-up director Pang Heng Chuan and 59-year-old former educator Emily Woo were introduced to the media in previous walkabouts.
Asked whether the team leads can be considered confirmed candidates for RDU, Mr Philemon said: “It’s very easy for people to put one and one together and guess what it’s going to be.
“But as a party, it’s too early to reveal who the potential candidates are, we will reveal who they are nearer to the elections.”
Mr Philemon had said last month he believes RDU stands a “fighting chance” in GE2025, and is looking to contest in six constituencies: Jurong East-Bukit Batok GRC, Jurong Central SMC, Nee Soon GRC, Jalan Kayu SMC, Tanjong Pagar GRC and Radin Mas SMC.
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“We may disagree on certain policies, but at the end of the day, we are all Singaporeans,” said RDU’s secretary-general Ravi Philemon on Saturday (Apr 5).
“We all care for Singapore, and that is an important thing that we cannot forget.”
He added that the party does not believe in an adversarial approach when it comes to solving the problems people face, and is “very clear minded about that and towards that”.
Mr Philemon was speaking to reporters during a walkabout at Bukit Batok West Avenue 6, which is under the current Jurong East-Bukit Batok GRC but was formerly under Bukit Batok SMC.
In the 2020 General Election, Singapore Democratic Party (SDP) chief Chee Soon Juan contested in Bukit Batok SMC, and lost to the PAP’s Murali Pillai, getting 45.2 per cent of the vote.
Asked whether the support that Dr Chee garnered at the constituency is something his party will leverage on, Mr Philemon said that he is “always very thankful to Dr Chee Soon Juan”.
“He is a guiding light to many in the opposition ecosystem, including to me, and I'm thankful to him that he has worked the ground here in the past 10 years,” he said.
“A sizeable number of people in the former Bukit Batok SMC did vote for him, which means that he has politicised this Bukit Batok SMC.”
He added that RDU is the party that plans to contest this area for the upcoming General Election, and that it will “take from where Dr Chee left off”.
“I think he has passed the baton to us in a certain sense, and we will continue to continue to run the race on the behalf of Singaporeans,” he added.
Dr Chee has said he will be contesting in Sembawang West SMC instead, given the absorption of Bukit Batok SMC into Jurong East-Bukit Batok GRC.
Red Dot United secretary-general Ravi Philemon speaking to the media at Bukit Batok Street 11 on Apr 5, 2025. (Photo: CNA/Ili Nadhirah Mansor)
CAMPAIGN SLOGAN FOR JURONG EAST-BUKIT BATOK UNVEILED
Mr Philemon said that the theme for the party's Jurong East-Bukit Batok GRC GE2025 campaign will be “raise the standard”.
The slogan was chosen based on some discontent and complaints the party has heard from residents here.
He said, for example, that there are young people and seniors trying to chase good paying jobs that are “elusive to them”.
He also took a jab at Manpower Minister Tan See Leng’s comments last month, where he advised young undergraduates not to think about the stipend or pay during their internship but to instead focus on the exposure, given the current skills-based job market.
Mr Philemon added that he has observed seniors saying they need to “stretch their dollar” for a cup of coffee.
He also said that the area has a rat issue that has cost some business owners in lost merchandise.
“I think we need to raise the standard when it comes to municipal issues. We need to raise the standard when it comes to national policies which affect young people, we need to raise the standard when it comes to how we treat people, especially our senior citizens, and that is what our campaign here will be about,” he said.
He added that the party is “not just complainers”, but have sought to find solutions to some of these issues.
For instance, he said RDU will continue to engage the town councils, grassroots organisations, and the PAP in “trying to find lasting, permanent solutions for the people”.
“I think these solutions have got to be permanent solutions,” he said. “They cannot be temporary fixes for the people, for the people, and that's what our concerns seem to be about.”
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CAUTIONED AGAINST "SCAREMONGERING"
Mr Philemon also referenced Prime Minister Lawrence Wong’s speech on Friday, where he warned that Singapore must brace itself for more shocks following sweeping US tariffs imposed by President Donald Trump, and noted his appeal for stability.
“I totally agree with the prime minister. We need stability, but I'm also concerned that his appeal for stability is an appeal for being unified as a people, it's a call to scare-monger the people that, ‘Come support the PAP, come under the fold of the PAP’,” said Mr Philemon.
“It cannot be so.”
He said that in every election, there are “at least 30 to 40 per cent of people” who do vote for the opposition, but that 90 per cent of the voices in parliament are occupied by PAP candidates.
“In an unstable world, these are voices that we cannot ignore,” he said. “Supporting the PAP does not mean that everybody goes under the fold of the PAP. Then that becomes a monopoly … And we all know who suffers in a monopoly.”
RDU’s team leads for Jurong East-Bukit Batok GRC, Mr Ben Puah (left), Ms Liyana Dhamirah and Mr Harish Mohanadas at Bukit Batok Street 11 on Apr 5, 2025. (Photo: CNA/Ili Nadhirah Mansor)
Mr Ravi also introduced three party “team leads” that have been walking the ground at Jurong East-Bukit Batok.
They are: Ms Liyana Dhamirah, a manager of a non-profit organisation, Mr Ben Puah, an artist and community art organiser, and Mr Harish Mohandas, a principal software engineer.
Ms Liyana had contested under RDU in GE2020 in the then Jurong GRC - the only constituency the party contested - where it garnered 25.39 per cent of the vote against the PAP team led by now-President Tharman Shanmugaratnam.
Speaking to reporters, Ms Liyana said she advocates for a society where no one is left behind, while Mr Puah, speaking in Mandarin, said that Singapore, with its relatively high GDP, should be able to better address issues people face.
Mr Harish said that the party looks to earn the trust of Singaporeans, not just through “high-sounding words” but through “consistent effort, honesty, and humility”.
New faces such as 56-year-old international tech start-up director Pang Heng Chuan and 59-year-old former educator Emily Woo were introduced to the media in previous walkabouts.
Asked whether the team leads can be considered confirmed candidates for RDU, Mr Philemon said: “It’s very easy for people to put one and one together and guess what it’s going to be.
“But as a party, it’s too early to reveal who the potential candidates are, we will reveal who they are nearer to the elections.”
Mr Philemon had said last month he believes RDU stands a “fighting chance” in GE2025, and is looking to contest in six constituencies: Jurong East-Bukit Batok GRC, Jurong Central SMC, Nee Soon GRC, Jalan Kayu SMC, Tanjong Pagar GRC and Radin Mas SMC.
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