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Jan 14, 2010
COOLING-OFF PERIOD
It's a sound policy
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DR CATHERINE Lim's interpretation yesterday ('Surprised by 'cooling off' idea') of the People's Action Party's (PAP) announcement of a 24-hour cooling-off period before Polling Day is as striking in its perspicuity of human behaviour as it is jaundiced of the PAP's intentions.
Her view goes to the heart of the problem of how governments are unexpectedly voted out of power through a concatenation of a young electorate manipulated by disingenuous oratory, just as countries are bobbing in a sea of uncertainty now and trying to recover from massive economic and natural global disasters.
No one can argue with Singapore's success and the PAP's pivotal role in it. It is moot whether we could have accomplished as much with as little had another political party led the nation since independence.
Yet successful governance has always been associated with an iron will to push for tough policies which frequently disenfranchise certain sections of the population.
Visionary leadership comes with a price and the PAP deserves grudging admiration and support, even as many Singaporeans are not always enamoured of it.
Calm, collected and rational voting is what all sensible citizens should seek. Yet who among us is not ruled partly by emotions, letting the heart overrule the head in the heat of the moment?
It is easier to be swayed momentarily by demagoguery and emotional argument than by rational reasoning.
Nothing remedies this better than a good night's rest and some rational reflection, after which convictions can be firmed and action taken without room for remorse.
This is a sane policy that should be applied not only to voting practice but also in our daily routine.
Dr Lim may ascribe PAP insecurity and anxiety to this new policy, but in the final analysis, the PAP's idea is more conducive to the election of a government that Singaporeans are less likely to regret.
Dr Yik Keng Yong
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COOLING-OFF PERIOD
It's a sound policy
<!-- by line --><!-- end by line -->
<!-- end left side bar --><!-- story content : start -->
DR CATHERINE Lim's interpretation yesterday ('Surprised by 'cooling off' idea') of the People's Action Party's (PAP) announcement of a 24-hour cooling-off period before Polling Day is as striking in its perspicuity of human behaviour as it is jaundiced of the PAP's intentions.
Her view goes to the heart of the problem of how governments are unexpectedly voted out of power through a concatenation of a young electorate manipulated by disingenuous oratory, just as countries are bobbing in a sea of uncertainty now and trying to recover from massive economic and natural global disasters.
No one can argue with Singapore's success and the PAP's pivotal role in it. It is moot whether we could have accomplished as much with as little had another political party led the nation since independence.
Yet successful governance has always been associated with an iron will to push for tough policies which frequently disenfranchise certain sections of the population.
Visionary leadership comes with a price and the PAP deserves grudging admiration and support, even as many Singaporeans are not always enamoured of it.
Calm, collected and rational voting is what all sensible citizens should seek. Yet who among us is not ruled partly by emotions, letting the heart overrule the head in the heat of the moment?
It is easier to be swayed momentarily by demagoguery and emotional argument than by rational reasoning.
Nothing remedies this better than a good night's rest and some rational reflection, after which convictions can be firmed and action taken without room for remorse.
This is a sane policy that should be applied not only to voting practice but also in our daily routine.
Dr Lim may ascribe PAP insecurity and anxiety to this new policy, but in the final analysis, the PAP's idea is more conducive to the election of a government that Singaporeans are less likely to regret.
Dr Yik Keng Yong
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