An election gimmick that didn't quite work the first time round.
The same election gimmick used yet again this year.
Gentle readers, I refer not to the "by-election" strategy in this post, but the Whiteshirt "lifting of the whip" strategy.
This year, Mr Peanut Goh has promised to allow Messrs Eric Low and Seetoh Yih Pin, the challengers in the opposition-held Hougang and Potong Pasir ridings, freedom from the party whip in the next Parliament if voters deliver these two long-time oppo wards to the Whiteshirts.
Never mind that some political experts in the Channelnewsasia article see Peanut Goh's move as inconsistent, unprincipled, and damaging Whiteshirt credibility and party discipline - we've been here before. Cue to the previous general election, where Mr Peanut Goh promised to select new MPs to form a Shadow Cabinet to keep policymakers on their toes.
When criticised during the recent General Elections of a lack of checks and balances on the Government, PM Goh Chok Tong had this response - the People's Action Forum. The group, described by the PM as a Shadow Cabinet, is to ensure more debate in parliament. However, unlike other countries where the Shadow Cabinet is formed by the Opposition, Singapore's Shadow Cabinet will be drawn from the ruling party, with 20 PAP MPs and Ministers serving a 2-year run. The Party whip will be lifted so they don't have to toe the party line and can even vote against party decisions.
Whither Peanut Goh's Shadow Cabinet today?
2 comments:
"But sometimes, if we cannot fulfill a promise, like restoring the CPF rate to 40 percent, it is because of compelling circumstances. To keep the promise, we might cause more harm than good. Even the people would not want us to keep the promise. In short, circumstances must have changed so drastically that only a naive person or a knave would argue for the promise to be kept."
-Peanut Goh
So I guess in Peanut Goh's eyes, a naive person or a knave is one who keeps his promises.
he must be quite a knave then for he hasn't fulfilled many of his promises: "more good years", "swiss standard of living", "shadow cabinet", "cpf restoration", etc, etc.
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