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PM: Parliament seats not wholly reflective of popular votes
By Reico Wong
My Paper
Tuesday, Jan 29, 2013
THE allocation of seats in Parliament is not meant to be strictly proportionate to the popular votes, said Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong yesterday.
Otherwise, Singapore would not have a strong governing party, nor be able to reach more decisive outcomes, he said.
Engaging about 800 people at the Institute of Policy Studies' Singapore Perspectives 2013 conference on governance issues in a 90-minute dialogue, he explained that in Singapore, "we tend towards a more extreme outcome because we are more homogenous as a country".
Mr Lee said: "In Singapore, every seat is a swing seat... To mitigate that in the short term, we have Nominated Members of Parliament (NMPs) and Non-Constituency Members of Parliament (NCMPs)."
The number of NMPs and NCMPs has also risen over the years so as to have more representative voices, he added.
More diversity in Parliament could be possible in the near future, too.
Mr Lee said: "I accept that as we go forward, there is more desire for a more plural parliament and I think that will happen."
Asked what will be the new political normal going forward, Mr Lee said that it depends on how Singapore's society evolves, and whether it is united or divided.
"The more we are able to keep our society cohesive, and if our interests are aligned, it will be easier for our politics," he said.
"If our society is united, then there will be different views but we hope that in the longer term, it will be along the same spectrum, and will not be polarised."
The underlying economic and social forces, as well as how political leaders play their cards will also have an impact.
Still, Mr Lee noted that the Government's responsibility is to citizens, and it has to work beyond the next few elections.
As a result, it will aim to bring in people who are both committed to Singapore and have the ability to contribute to the country.
But this is a challenge, given that such individuals would need to be able to identify and click with those on the ground, have innovative ideas, and have leadership abilities to "get people to get things done".
"With the social changes, you are looking for people who are not just professionally successful but who represent different streams in our society," said Mr Lee, adding that finding such people who have the right motives is not easy.
The crux lies in ensuring a system which encourages those of high calibre to step forward to join politics.
It would be a very bad outcome if such individuals deem the political arena as "dirty business" and shy away, he said.
In the dialogue with academics and intellectuals yesterday, Mr Lee explained why the Government allowed the country's population size to expand.
Going into the new millennium with an economic slowdown triggered by the 9/11 terror attacks, home prices fell and a large number of foreign workers had to go home in the years after that. But things changed quickly in the mid-2000s with rapid economic growth.
Mr Lee said he then decided to "make up for lost time".
So, the Government allowed the population size to expand. However, the country's infrastructure did not keep up. When the 2008 global financial crisis hit, the Government expected the economy to take a huge dive. But Singapore managed to "avoid the bullet" and the world economy recovered much faster than expected.
He said: "Should we have given ourselves more buffer and said, let's build and be ready? I think in retrospect, clearly yes, we could have done more... We lacked the 20/20 foresight and we will certainly try to do things better."
Pointing to how thousands of Singaporeans were upset with a racist online post by then National Trades Union Congress employee Amy Cheong in October, Mr Lee said that race and religion will always be very sensitive issues. He said it would be very "unwise" for the Government to take a hands-off approach on such matters.
"Even if you have something that is supposed to be a parody or a satire, not everybody will see the satire. People can be hurt."
By Reico Wong
My Paper
Tuesday, Jan 29, 2013
THE allocation of seats in Parliament is not meant to be strictly proportionate to the popular votes, said Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong yesterday.
Otherwise, Singapore would not have a strong governing party, nor be able to reach more decisive outcomes, he said.
Engaging about 800 people at the Institute of Policy Studies' Singapore Perspectives 2013 conference on governance issues in a 90-minute dialogue, he explained that in Singapore, "we tend towards a more extreme outcome because we are more homogenous as a country".
Mr Lee said: "In Singapore, every seat is a swing seat... To mitigate that in the short term, we have Nominated Members of Parliament (NMPs) and Non-Constituency Members of Parliament (NCMPs)."
The number of NMPs and NCMPs has also risen over the years so as to have more representative voices, he added.
More diversity in Parliament could be possible in the near future, too.
Mr Lee said: "I accept that as we go forward, there is more desire for a more plural parliament and I think that will happen."
Asked what will be the new political normal going forward, Mr Lee said that it depends on how Singapore's society evolves, and whether it is united or divided.
"The more we are able to keep our society cohesive, and if our interests are aligned, it will be easier for our politics," he said.
"If our society is united, then there will be different views but we hope that in the longer term, it will be along the same spectrum, and will not be polarised."
The underlying economic and social forces, as well as how political leaders play their cards will also have an impact.
Still, Mr Lee noted that the Government's responsibility is to citizens, and it has to work beyond the next few elections.
As a result, it will aim to bring in people who are both committed to Singapore and have the ability to contribute to the country.
But this is a challenge, given that such individuals would need to be able to identify and click with those on the ground, have innovative ideas, and have leadership abilities to "get people to get things done".
"With the social changes, you are looking for people who are not just professionally successful but who represent different streams in our society," said Mr Lee, adding that finding such people who have the right motives is not easy.
The crux lies in ensuring a system which encourages those of high calibre to step forward to join politics.
It would be a very bad outcome if such individuals deem the political arena as "dirty business" and shy away, he said.
In the dialogue with academics and intellectuals yesterday, Mr Lee explained why the Government allowed the country's population size to expand.
Going into the new millennium with an economic slowdown triggered by the 9/11 terror attacks, home prices fell and a large number of foreign workers had to go home in the years after that. But things changed quickly in the mid-2000s with rapid economic growth.
Mr Lee said he then decided to "make up for lost time".
So, the Government allowed the population size to expand. However, the country's infrastructure did not keep up. When the 2008 global financial crisis hit, the Government expected the economy to take a huge dive. But Singapore managed to "avoid the bullet" and the world economy recovered much faster than expected.
He said: "Should we have given ourselves more buffer and said, let's build and be ready? I think in retrospect, clearly yes, we could have done more... We lacked the 20/20 foresight and we will certainly try to do things better."
Pointing to how thousands of Singaporeans were upset with a racist online post by then National Trades Union Congress employee Amy Cheong in October, Mr Lee said that race and religion will always be very sensitive issues. He said it would be very "unwise" for the Government to take a hands-off approach on such matters.
"Even if you have something that is supposed to be a parody or a satire, not everybody will see the satire. People can be hurt."
