unpopular opinion ABOUNDS

[epicflailer]

first of all, let me preface this by saying that there's a possibility i might be arrested for this post. for, you know, actually having an opinion. the government will probably pin it on isa or something, idk. so SOMEONE OUT THERE, ANYONE, IF YOU LOVE ME, SCREENCAP THE SHIT OUT OF THIS AND WHEN I DIE HAVE IT ENCARVED ON MY HEADSTONE.

you laugh

Comments

[liza1131]

I understand what you mean... but here are my thoughts.

I don't think anyone is disputing the fact that PAP has done a beyond excellent job in building our country into what it is today. I think the main point of contention is that THEY CAN DO WHATEVER THE FUCK THEY WANT AND PASS WHATEVER POLICIES THEY WANT WITHOUT THOSE POLICIES BEING QUESTIONED. And some of those policies have led to some not-so-desirable consequences and it makes you wonder what might've happened if someone else coulda said "HOLD UP PAP DUDES, I DON'T THINK THIS IS A GOOD IDEA AND HERE'S WHY... AND MAYBE WE SHOULD RE-CONSIDER THIS."

To add to that, they have an extremely paternalistic attitude towards the people they are serving, seem to value economics over anything else when making decisions and have no clue/empathy for the difficulties faced by the average Singaporean. So, we have a government who is out-of-touch with its people AND have the power to pass whatever policies they want.

That's my problem with the PAP. (Among other things like their ridiculously high salaries, inability to be accountable for things going wrong and being pompous petty bullies.)

I have no doubt that PAP will continue to hold a majority in Parliament for at least the next 2-3 elections. I am not looking for the opposition parties to provide me with actionable plans because that's not the role I envision them in. (Not at this point of time, at least.) I'm not a fan of the phrase "checks and balances" but that is the role I see the opposition playing. We need people to question the PAP, to break down the pros/cons of policies, to give a different perspective or bring up a different facet of the issue being discussed. I want more Voices in Parliament rather than 87 Voices saying the same damn thing.

Yes, there is hot air being spewed by some of the opposition... not everyone running is of a high calibre (but then the same can be said of the new PAP members riding on the coattails of experienced ministers in the GRC format). But I applaud them for even being in the race cos it's a hostile environment that discourages any competition Arbitrary redrawing of electoral boundaries? Check. Withholding of money/resources to GRCs/SMCs won by the opposition? Check. Etc etc. I disagree that it's their prerogative or that they have the right to do those things. They are a POLITICAL PARTY THAT IS GOVERNING not the GOVERNMENT, and they seem to have forgotten that after all these years.

For me, the aim of this particular election is to get more Voices in Parliament. This will lead to (a) better governance from PAP; (b) PAP having to be more accountable to the people; (c) giving the opposition political experience and a chance to grow so that; (d) the opposition can attract more talent and gain more credibility for GE2016 and future elections.

Once the political scene here matures and we get a stronger opposition with some of them having experience in Parliament, that's when I think having a vision for Singapore, strong policies, solutions to problems will become more important factors in who to vote for. When the opposition grows into a position where they can truly create & impact national policies, then I expect to hear exactly what they will do that will be better than the PAP.

That said, I'm lucky to be in Aljunied where I think we have a really good opposition team. Maybe I would feel differently in another GRC where the opposition isn't as strong/good.

[epicflailer]

i definitely 100% do not dispute anything you've said about pap and how things are going downhill, especially about the withholding of funding from opposition grcs. i don't think that's right either, but what i meant was that EVERYONE KNOWS THEY'RE DOING IT, just like everyone knows their go-to strategy is name-calling, and no one is happy about it because it's underhand and fucking ridiculous, so WHY IS THE OPPOSITION NOT STEPPING UP AND DOING SOMETHING BETTER? that was basically what i was trying to say.

and i can see where you're coming from re: just wanting people in parliament to make noise, but what frustrates me is that so many people aren't seeing that the opposition has brought up many, many ridiculous plans that are not only unactionable, but basically FUCKING RETARDED. and yet no one is saying anything about THOSE policies or what kind of vision that means the opposition has for the future! because so many people are just willing to roll over and be manipulated by the mudslinging going around. and that is applicable to voters from BOTH parties.

that said! you bring up a lot of good points, and i'm glad that i know there is at least one more person on the flist who's making an informed decision, and that this decision is based on criteria that you expect the opposition party to live up to! that's fantastic, i just wish more people were doing it!

i mean, i am absolutely not trying to imply that my standards are the only standards that should be used or are valid when choosing which party to vote for (and i realize ended up sounding a lot more anti-opposition than i meant for it to, the frustration i'm feeling at people in general not thinking things through before they make their choices ended up being redirected towards the opposition party themselves, which was total fail on my part, BUT ANYWAY). i'm just saying HAVE SOME STANDARDS. have a good idea of what you want to happen / what you expect to see happen and HOLD THE PARTY TO IT. whichever party it ends up being.

for me, i just feel that without a clear vision or some kind of long-term plan, promising me that you're going to give me a better future than what i have right now is not going to win me over. i do think we need opposing voices in the government, but i also think that these opposing voices need to bring more to the table. they need to bring solutions or new ideas to tackle these problems because the incumbent party sure as hell isn't going to do that for them. BUT THAT'S GOING INTO THE POLITICS OF THINGS, and i don't know enough (anything!) about that to even go there.

THAT BOTHERS ME THE MOST. i shouldn't be ABLE to discuss the elections as much as i already have when i DO NOT HAVE THE BASIC UNDERSTANDING OF THE POLICIES IMPLIED WITHIN IT. but the sad part is that most singaporeans are in the same boat as i am, and MOST OF THEM WILL VOTE ANYWAY. it's just oasljkdnfhoigds, it's really frustrating. i have heard AMAZING things about the opposition in aljunied and bt-holland, though! so hopefully that's a stepping stone!