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Minister of Health Successor Shortlisted.
- Thread starter scroobal
- Start date
Personally, I have met him at his Gleneagles Clinic some time in 1999, he was tanned, fit, humble & articulate .....
Shall we reveal Dr Tan Chi Chiu's name?
Eh, this guy is President Scholar leh! Ex-ACS I think.
Used to head International Spore something in its very early days.
It is ok. Feedback and comments received are vital for the government.
The most common complain is still the influx of foreign workers. Even those aunties who work in coffeeshops, normally indifferent to politics, are voicing their discontentment against this influx of foreign workers who are competing against their jobs, suppressing their wages. Many jobless people are also blaming the foreign workers for displacing them. The ANGER from the ground is REAL.
The Malay ground is shifting. Never before have I met YOUNG MALAY PROFESSIONALS willing to approach us to talk about the problems their community faced in the past. But this time round, they took their own initiative to do that, although in a more private way. FT policy and Housing woes are two main issues that are affecting their community adversely. Young Malay couples are finding it difficult to buy any HDB flats and the frustration is turning into anger.
I have never felt so close to the Malay community as they are more forthcoming, willing to listen and support us after we reason it out how Mah BT's HDB policy is going to affect the younger and future generations. They would even willing to offer information about how some of their relatives who need to have a few families living in one single flat. And they are pretty aware about some of their fellow Malays have become homeless campers as well. (Yeah, I know after PAP read this one, they will go into knee jerk action to talk and provide goodies to the Malay community. It will be the leverage effect....)
Although there are a great amount of anger on the ground, generally speaking Singaporeans are still rational in choosing who they will support. Contrary to PAP's worries about "protest votes", I feel that Singaporeans are more matured, rational and choosy when it comes to voting. The fact that we need to do a bit of sales talk and explanation on why Mah BT and HDB policy have to go before they are convinced in supporting us (as in buying our papers as a show of support) is a sign of discretion and rational assessment process. Especially so for our fellow Malay brothers and sisters. It has never been easy to sell our papers to them or getting their endorsement in the past. But this time round, they are willing to give us a chance.
There are of course some skeptics as well as the die hard PAP supporters. The skeptics will ask sharp and analytical questions. It would be a challenge to win them over with a strong foundation of policy and economic knowledge but not impossible at all. Even if they are not totally convinced, but if you show the ability to engage meaningfully on the issues raised, they will still support you in the end. This is a time consuming process. As for the die hard PAP supporters, surprisingly they lack depth in their reasoning. Purely shortsighted views as well as the rhetoric of past success of PAP. Normally I will leave them alone.
I feel that if there is going to be a break through, the main thrust will come from a big swing in the Malay community support. Especially from the young and educated Malay couples and professionals. They are more independent in their assessment of things and views. The middle ground is also shifting subtly. The two key issues are still FT policy and HDB policy.
Interesting enough, even the elderly ones are showing discontent when they are not affected by FT and HDB policies directly. This has to do with rising healthcare cost and some other factors.
Generally speaking, there is a certain percentage of people who will choose to support only certain opposition parties. They will make sure we are from the category of opposition parties before they show their support.
When I go around, I actually feel a bit sad about the whole thing. While the present situation on the ground is naturally an "advantage" for opposition parties, but I think there are too much anger and negativity among the usually silent majority. A nation totally neglected of the people's welfare. A people who are basically pushed to the corners by the ruling party's inconsiderate policies. It is even more important for us, as opposition members, to use our leverage to extract a better deal from PAP government for our people.
A candidate who only thinks about how to win the elections may not win at all in the end. This is because the head and mind are totally misplaced and misunderstood the fundamental basis of power. One could only win if and only if his head and mind are put on how to extract a better deal for the people from this ultra-capitalist ruling party. Many conservative opposition members always like to "keep the cards close to their hearts" so that PAP will not know about what issues they will raise to try to win votes. To me, this can no longer work for the new generation of voters. They want to see how opposition members work for them.... not literally in writing letters and doing charity work for the needy and poor. But in terms of how they could articulate and putting the spurs deeper into the ruling party's hides to make them work harder.
Of course, revealing the "cards" early would mean PAP will have time to react or even find ways to counter argue against us. So be it. If they reacted as in the ways of Mah BT's HDB to right the wrongs of their policies, we would have fulfilled our role as an effective opposition...i.e. providing the effective checks and balances to the ruling party. If by doing so, will not make us win enough votes to get into parliament, so be it. We have done our part and play our role. In time to come, we will just fade away politically.
Of course, if our supporters are motivated enough to help us spread our message through their virtual as well as real life networks, it may just help us better. If not, then it is our failure of leadership to motivate them to become our more proactive supporters as in campaigners. Although we are working against a PAP controlled environment, especially the main stream media, there are ways to win this war if our supporters are motivated campaigners. (BTW, the Chinese Zaobao has just refused to publish our rebuttal to some unreasonable slant against us, accusing us to be "opportunists")
This is the way I am going to conduct politics from now on. Totally different from the traditional conservative ways. When the time is up, I will just follow my higher calling some day.
Goh Meng Seng
Great Stuff bro - straight and raw.
I believe he is a good man. Great doctor and humanitarian, but such good traits make him an excellent administrator and professional but probably a poor politician. Why I thot so? PAP's Machiavellian and unscrupulous tactics do not always win hearts, and someone who is humanitarian in nature may cringe from the type of politics PAP plays, one that have to do with lying, cheating, and 'fixing' people.
Personally, I have met him at his Gleneagles Clinic some time in 1999, he was tanned, fit, humble & articulate .....
Shall we reveal Dr Tan Chi Chiu's name
I don't know whether to laugh or cry...............
Good assessment and its no surprise that he wants no part in politics. He is not the one.
I won't worry too much about it.......There was this humble guy with a girl's name.....................
maybe he will enter arena to support fellow doctor, Vivien ?
I was at his office when this Yellow Pages sales rep came to canvas for an ad. Dr Tan, despite his precious time, actually see this rep & ask some relevant questions & thank him for his valuable time waiting to see him. That was 1999, a very humble indeed.
I ask Dr Tan why he bothers , he said 'people also making an honest living mah...'
Personally, I would never want to write off the possibility that PAP can be improved from within by strong & capable principled men such as Chi Chiu....
Mr Goh
I know you are bilingual, how are you with the Malay language? Very important point you know.............
I know you are bilingual, how are you with the Malay language? Very important point you know.............
Why bother to change the spots on the leopard? Get him to join the Opp. for the greater good. If not, and we lose him to the PAP, then we'll still be talking abt a one-party state 50 years down the line. Give the opp a break!
Mr Goh,
First of all, from what you've written, it seems to me that you don't even have a proper game plan in winning Tampines.
I am really surprised by your lack of ambition and determination to beat Mah & his team at the upcoming GE. In fact, you've already conceded defeat by saying that PAP would get 65% of the votes in Tampines ! If you DON"T have the burning desire to win, how on earth are you going to "put spurs deeper into the PAP's backsides"???While it's good to take the moral high ground by saying that Sinkies' priorities come first above all, the ultimate aim in a contest is to WIN, please remember that!! Only by WINNING can you serve Sinkies better !!
If your purpose in taking part in the elections is merely to debate with Ministers and enlighten Sinkies on the evils of the PAP policies, then I would urge you to join people like James Gomez and form political/civil societies instead.
Please DON'T waste time & energy in contesting elections. Or are you happy just to be the best loser, to enter parliament as NCMP??
If all the Opposiition candidates have mindsets like yours, PAP's rule over Sinkies is guaranteed for the next 100 years!!
What I want from you is to hear you saying that you fight to WIN , so that you can enter Parliament through the FRONT DOOR as an ELECTED MP, and not merely as a Non-Constituency MP.
a lot of meaningless words..obviously GMS is fighting to win
as for the comparison with James Gomez, ... until GMS prove himself otherwise, do not put him in the same class
there are a lot of problems with the opposition but so far he is doing what WP cannot / not willing / not able to do, walking a line more moderate than SDP
so give him the credit for doing something
whether he wins or lose, this is based on factors beyond him....the point is that he is doing something more than a combined team of the best in WP, SDA can do
sampierre,
Your statements here are pretty intriguing.
It all boils down on what you think is the role of opposition members. What do you mean by "doing something for the voters"... etc.
In fact I think your intriguing statements warrant a thesis on "The role of opposition". I have given an exclusive interview to TOC recently talking much more about my vision of political development in Singapore, rather than battles like the Tampines contest. But it applies both ways.
We should not be overly engrossed in the winning or losing a battle and lost the vision of our own in the bigger picture. There are people who want CHANGE or even revolution but I guess they have little idea on what exactly they want to change. Kick out PAP as the government? Will that necessarily initiate CHANGE or just replacing one tyrannic party with another one?
I have touched on NCMP. I do not view NCMP as "backdoor MP". Only NMPs are "backdoor MP". NCMPs are rightfully voted in and representing those who have voted them, even when it means that they are still "minority". My vision is to force the PAP to amend the Constitutions to change the political system into a proportional representative system. The only way to do this, is to win one or two GRCs. It will be a painful process not only for PAP but Singaporeans as a whole. They will be losing at least TWO ministers in the this process but only such pain will make PAP change.
I think you don't really understand my stand stated previously. Most people would think that to win an elections, you need secret weapons of some sort. Or some BRILLIANT ideas or tactical maneuvers. No. I don't think this is the case. Or even doing social service or community service for the voters.... etc. No this is not the case. You are voting legislators, not social or community workers. Put it this way, the new generations of citizens are well educated enough that they could write all the letters they need. They do not need letter writers anymore. You are voting people who will represent your interests in parliament, questioning the ruling party to get a better deal for you and your future generations.
Thus, the only way of proving your worth, is not some brilliant strategies but rather whether you can articulate yourselves well enough to create impact on the policy making direction. If you are not even in parliament but yet, through your persistent and consistency in debating policy directions or putting forth critical views of the inadequacy of the policies, you could CREATE REAL CHANGE to the policies and thus, extracting a better deal for the people, imagine what more you could do in parliament.
Basically, this will be my message to my voters. I am not going to be just a door knocker on their doors. I have proven myself to be able to put critical analysis of HDB policies which in turn, made Mah BT HDB to do a few somersault U Turns. I have proven myself to be able to put forward critical analysis on the public transport system that Raymond Lim and LTA Chief would get busy and put forward plans for improvement. (Of course, it is yet to be seen how effective they are at this moment). I did all these without even sitting in parliament. There are 84 MPs in parliament but for the past few years, nothing has changed for Housing and Public Transport policies. It only takes a person that know how to make leverage out of a contest in coming GE to put some spurs into PAP's thick hides to make them work harder for the people.
I may sound a bit boastful of some sort, but this is the plain facts. My main theme as an opposition candidate will be: You need somebody to kick in the spurs deeper into PAP's thick hides to make it more efficient and effective. And I am not doing this out of some selfish political gains but guarding the REAL interests of the people, bargaining a better deal for Singaporeans.
The are other aspects of my vision which I will not touch on right now. I shall write about it in my blog.
Goh Meng Seng
Your statements here are pretty intriguing.
It all boils down on what you think is the role of opposition members. What do you mean by "doing something for the voters"... etc.
In fact I think your intriguing statements warrant a thesis on "The role of opposition". I have given an exclusive interview to TOC recently talking much more about my vision of political development in Singapore, rather than battles like the Tampines contest. But it applies both ways.
We should not be overly engrossed in the winning or losing a battle and lost the vision of our own in the bigger picture. There are people who want CHANGE or even revolution but I guess they have little idea on what exactly they want to change. Kick out PAP as the government? Will that necessarily initiate CHANGE or just replacing one tyrannic party with another one?
I have touched on NCMP. I do not view NCMP as "backdoor MP". Only NMPs are "backdoor MP". NCMPs are rightfully voted in and representing those who have voted them, even when it means that they are still "minority". My vision is to force the PAP to amend the Constitutions to change the political system into a proportional representative system. The only way to do this, is to win one or two GRCs. It will be a painful process not only for PAP but Singaporeans as a whole. They will be losing at least TWO ministers in the this process but only such pain will make PAP change.
I think you don't really understand my stand stated previously. Most people would think that to win an elections, you need secret weapons of some sort. Or some BRILLIANT ideas or tactical maneuvers. No. I don't think this is the case. Or even doing social service or community service for the voters.... etc. No this is not the case. You are voting legislators, not social or community workers. Put it this way, the new generations of citizens are well educated enough that they could write all the letters they need. They do not need letter writers anymore. You are voting people who will represent your interests in parliament, questioning the ruling party to get a better deal for you and your future generations.
Thus, the only way of proving your worth, is not some brilliant strategies but rather whether you can articulate yourselves well enough to create impact on the policy making direction. If you are not even in parliament but yet, through your persistent and consistency in debating policy directions or putting forth critical views of the inadequacy of the policies, you could CREATE REAL CHANGE to the policies and thus, extracting a better deal for the people, imagine what more you could do in parliament.
Basically, this will be my message to my voters. I am not going to be just a door knocker on their doors. I have proven myself to be able to put critical analysis of HDB policies which in turn, made Mah BT HDB to do a few somersault U Turns. I have proven myself to be able to put forward critical analysis on the public transport system that Raymond Lim and LTA Chief would get busy and put forward plans for improvement. (Of course, it is yet to be seen how effective they are at this moment). I did all these without even sitting in parliament. There are 84 MPs in parliament but for the past few years, nothing has changed for Housing and Public Transport policies. It only takes a person that know how to make leverage out of a contest in coming GE to put some spurs into PAP's thick hides to make them work harder for the people.
I may sound a bit boastful of some sort, but this is the plain facts. My main theme as an opposition candidate will be: You need somebody to kick in the spurs deeper into PAP's thick hides to make it more efficient and effective. And I am not doing this out of some selfish political gains but guarding the REAL interests of the people, bargaining a better deal for Singaporeans.
The are other aspects of my vision which I will not touch on right now. I shall write about it in my blog.
Goh Meng Seng
interesting. his profile fits nicely. recently got married, chaired an NGO.
GMS,
The gist of my message to you is this :
YOU MUST HAVE THE FIRE IN THE BELLY TO PLAN, FIGHT AND OVERCOME YOUR FORMIDABLE PAP OPPONENTS AT TAMPINES GRC IN THE NEXT GE, THEREBY GETTING INTO PARLIAMENT AS AN ELECTED MP. Only then can you effectively put spurs into the PAP backsides !!
By your above remarks on NCMPs, it seems to me that you would be quite happy to get 35% of the votes in Tampines GRC and be one of the best opposition losers, thereby getting into Parliament thru the backdoor??
I 'm very sure you know very well why the NCMP scheme was introduced by the PAP? And I am telling you NOT to fall into their trap!
The PAP MPs will show you NO respect for entering Parliament by the grace of the PAP government. It is noteworthy that your colleague, Steve Chia, has failed to be elected in Choa Chu Kang a second time despite serving one term as NCMP who asked many questions in Parliament.
That brings me to the second point : voting legislators, NOT social workers or town council workers. I wholeheartedly AGREE with you on this point. UNFORTUNATELY, there are still many elderly and poorly educated voters out there who need their MPs to be VISIBLY PRESENT to help them . And as an elected MP, you are EXPECTED to run a town council. IF YOU CAN"T PUT IN THE PHYSICAL WORK ON THE GROUND, THEN I THINK YOU HAVE NO CHANCE IN WINNING EVEN A SINGLE SEAT, LET ALONE TAMPINES GRC.
I WISH ALL SAMSTERS A HAPPY SPRING FESTIVAL.
Happy Lunar New Year to you, sampierre.
Thank you for the trouble to write. It takes many things to win a battle. I just happen to have a cotton stomach, if you know what I mean. Cheers!
Goh Meng Seng
Thank you for the trouble to write. It takes many things to win a battle. I just happen to have a cotton stomach, if you know what I mean. Cheers!
Goh Meng Seng
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