Angela, what is your politics? Why do you say and do what you do?
I look at the people who ask me and I ask in return:
Do you want to practise the kind of politics that "ought to be"?
Or the kind of politics that works?
They're not incompatible. But in Singapore, you need to do the latter before even having a chance with the former.
What works is getting yourself into a position where you can actually do something. If you don't get enough votes, you can't get into parliament. That makes everything you say and do purely theoretical. Which is worse?
If you really believe in change, then you need to get yourself into a position where you can actually effect change. That's just reality.
Some people think that "doing what works" means compromising your principles. Nope. It's exactly the opposite. It means believing in what you stand for so much that you're prepared to put in the time and effort needed to win people over.
It's like selling a product to a client. If you really want to sell your product, you won't give your client a generic presentation, no matter how impressive your company's corporate presentation might be. You'd analyse your client carefully: looking at his/her needs, figuring out which techniques would be most persuasive, tailoring your presentation, and being prepared to negotiate and compromise along the way in order to land the big contract.
If you _really_ believe in your product, you'd put in the time with your client, no matter how slow the progress might be. You wouldn't just want to sell one or two items; you'd want to land the long-term contract.
That doesn't mean you're selling a different product - the product is the same. Only the sales pitch is different.
So that's my politics. I'd vote for whoever understands that kind of politics, because it means they understand how to get things done. And I'm Singaporean. I might be an idealist, but I'm also practical to the core. I think any client would appreciate that.
I look at the people who ask me and I ask in return:
Do you want to practise the kind of politics that "ought to be"?
Or the kind of politics that works?
They're not incompatible. But in Singapore, you need to do the latter before even having a chance with the former.
What works is getting yourself into a position where you can actually do something. If you don't get enough votes, you can't get into parliament. That makes everything you say and do purely theoretical. Which is worse?
If you really believe in change, then you need to get yourself into a position where you can actually effect change. That's just reality.
Some people think that "doing what works" means compromising your principles. Nope. It's exactly the opposite. It means believing in what you stand for so much that you're prepared to put in the time and effort needed to win people over.
It's like selling a product to a client. If you really want to sell your product, you won't give your client a generic presentation, no matter how impressive your company's corporate presentation might be. You'd analyse your client carefully: looking at his/her needs, figuring out which techniques would be most persuasive, tailoring your presentation, and being prepared to negotiate and compromise along the way in order to land the big contract.
If you _really_ believe in your product, you'd put in the time with your client, no matter how slow the progress might be. You wouldn't just want to sell one or two items; you'd want to land the long-term contract.
That doesn't mean you're selling a different product - the product is the same. Only the sales pitch is different.
So that's my politics. I'd vote for whoever understands that kind of politics, because it means they understand how to get things done. And I'm Singaporean. I might be an idealist, but I'm also practical to the core. I think any client would appreciate that.
