Opposition

Singapore Chronicles

by Zuraidah Ibrahim

In the 2015 General Election, which coincided with the 50th year of Singapore’s Independence, six seats went to the opposition. This formed just about 7 per cent of all elected seats, but still represented a remarkable achievement after the whittled-down opposition presence in Parliament from 1965 to 2011. This primer traces the eventful history of Singapore’s opposition parties from post-World War II days to the present. It tells the story of these parties, which is one filled with personalities, setbacks and ideals. It also examines the opposition movement’s challenges and prospects – in particular, its potential growth trajectories and the shape of Singapore’s political system in the future.

104 pages, Paperback

First published December 1, 2016

Reviews

[JW · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is the sixth book in the Singapore Chronicles series I've read. Generally, I've found the books in the series to be helpful primers on the topic at hand, whether it's about Singapore's language policy, its water policy and infrastructure or the Malay community. Opposition, by Zuraidah Ibrahim and Andrea Ong doesn't disappoint in this respect.

The book starts in the early 1950s, when the PAP was part of the Opposition, before it won the 1959 General Elections and began an unparalleled 70 plus-year tenure (and still counting) as the ruling party. History books often tell the story of the winners and school social studies and history textbooks tell the story of how the PAP government under LKY transformed Singapore from a small island with no natural resources and no natural hinterland, to a bustling metropolis and global hub. The mainstream media reinforces this narrative. What is less discussed is how the PAP entrenched its power over the years and how various Opposition parties -WP (set up by JB Jeyaretnam to represent "the poor and downtrodden") and SDP (established by Chiam See Tong who carefully positioned the party as "pro-Singapore, not anti-PAP") in particular - have responded in different ways to try to chip away at PAP dominance.

Zuraidah and Ong describe in fair detail the various electoral reforms that have helped the PAP entrench its dominance - the creation of GRCs in 1988, which "revolutionised the one-man-one-vote simple plurality system organised around single member wards"; the creation of larger and larger GRCs, culminating in 6 member GRCs in 1996 to better manage municipal concerns and to give top-notch candidates sacrificing high flying careers "some assurance of a good chance of winning at least their first election [under the protection of a heavyweight anchor minister]"; frequent changes in electoral boundaries as constituencies favourable to the opposition were absorbed into GRCs; the establishment of Town Councils in 1988 which transferred estate management issues from HDB to MPs and grassroots leaders; the PAP's use of litigation and the ISA to tackle political opponents; as well as the PAP's influence over grassroots organisations and the media. Not to mention the 1984 introduction of the NCMP scheme and 1990 introduction of the NMP scheme which, in effect, provided for a "substitute opposition".

The book also discusses opposition dynamics - the limits to opposition unity and cooperation particularly when "brand name parties" like WP are starting to pull away and set themselves up in a completely "different league" altogether.

Eye opening and informative.

[L · Rating 5 out of 5]

Very well written summary of opposition politics and elections in Singapore from an objective viewpoint - an update should be made to cover the developments in the past 10 years.