Sylvia Lim, the chief of the Worker's Party, raises the standard complaint about the unfair bloating of GRCs from 4 to 6 wards.
That's not the point. No one in Singapore cares if the electoral system is unfair to opposition parties.
Instead, look at the Parliamentary Elections Act, which says a GRC is:
(i) a constituency where at least one of the candidates in every group shall be a person belonging to the Malay community; or
(ii) a constituency where at least one of the candidates in every group shall be a person belonging to the Indian or other minority communities.
In 1991, when the GRC system was implemented, all GRCs had 4 wards. By 1996, the Act was changed to allow the Whiteshirts to create 6-ward GRCs.
Look, the Prime Minister began life as a mathematician. He'll tell you that increasing the size of GRCs will dilute minority representation in Parliament, since 6-member teams need to field at least one minority candidate, the same minimum requirement of a 4-member team.
If the GRC system was to ensure minorities have a voice in Parliament, the move to expand the size of GRCs is inconsistent with the stated aim, to say the least. Are the Whiteshirts committed to racial harmony or not?
1 comment:
The whiteshirts are committed to keeping the Lee clan in power, the rest of us are just here to make up the numbers.
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