Personally, how much importance would you place in an understanding of governmental politics in Singapore?
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RE: Mr. Tan
ReplyDeleteI believe that most people in normal times should know a general idea of how the political system works, but need not bore themselves with details unless they are interested in politics. However, at election times voters must exercise responsibility in their vote, and also have a critical mindset against the contesting parties.
A basic understanding of politics is required to judge if a party is good or not and whether the policies are indeed feasible. In the election period, it is inevitable that parties fire salvos at each others’ policies to criticize them, while proposing and defending their supposedly better policies. However, most of the criticisms and the policies should be taken with a pinch of salt, since the main goal is actually to win the election. Lies and over-exaggerations are inevitable, as such is the nature of politics. It is important to recognise this fact, and sieve out true information from the politically-charged speeches. To simply listen and believe in any policy at face value is being too simple-minded. To close all eyes and vote blindly without even attempting to listen or compare capabilities is irresponsible voting, which is far worse than being simple-minded.
It is also important to realise that in the election period that each move is politically charged. Why are the PAP heavyweights PM Lee and SM Goh defending George Yeo on the newspapers so keenly? Surely other ministers have been doing a good job at least comparable to that of George Yeo’s. The key reason is because they have to turn voters in Aljunied GRC in their favour against the WP’s strong team. The WP has been proposing more opposition MPs in parliament, but faced with strong critisism from the PAP. Both parties have their own agenda that they are not publicly disclosing. Also, the recent debate about SDP pursuing the gay agenda in parliament was seen as a smear technique employed by the PAP. It is originally only a minor issue which is otherwise not worth a mention, but because of the nature of politics it is blown out of proportion. The aim is simply to sway votes. This goes for many actions in the election period and thus calls for voters to think critically what the motive behind each move is and vote wisely. Thus an understanding of the situation in politics and the nature of politics is of utmost importance.
Also it is important to know how the decision making process is carried out, since ultimately as people under the government the final decision impacts us. Singapore practices parliamentary democracy and thus we should recognise that even though we do not vote for the policies or decisions ourselves like the Referendum, we vote for the MPs which help us voice our opinion in the parliament. Thus it is to note that every vote counts and it can contribute to make a difference. Of course, each MP has his or her own agenda and capabilities, and this is up to us voters to decide who is more suited for the role. For this, a basic understanding of the political system is required.
Even though we may not enter politics, politics will always be part of our lives if we are to be responsible voters. Thus a rudimentary understanding of politics is essential. Only if we wish to be actively involved by running as an electoral candidate should we know more intricate details about the political system.
My two cents,
Han Wee