Workers' Party (WP) chief Low Thia Khiang has likened the People's Action Party (PAP) to the Titanic, the cruise ship that sank and killed many due to a lack of safeguards against failures.
Mr Low picked up on the analogy that Emeritus Senior Minister Goh Chok Tong had used on Sunday at a walkabout in Aljunied GRC.
Mr Goh had likened the choice of a party to picking a cruise ship to travel on. He said while going with the PAP was like taking a cruise ship with a destination, other choices were akin to a ship to nowhere, like a gambling ship. Mr Goh, however, did not name any political party.
Mr Low, in reply to reporters yesterday, said: "I'm afraid the cruise ship is over capacity limit. It used to be a luxury cruise ship. The designer claimed that it's not sinkable. The name is Titanic." He was referring to the passenger vessel that sank on its maiden voyage, in which more than 1,500 people died.
"There are not enough lifeboats, no preparations or provisions for failure," Mr Low added.
The WP has been calling for voters to back the opposition as a credible alternative in the event of a decline of the PAP.
Mr Low was at the Geylang Serai market in Marine Parade GRC. With him were the five WP candidates for the GRC, including corporate lawyer He Ting Ru, 32, who repeated the party's manifesto proposal to increase the labour force participation rate by attracting more women back to work.
At another walkabout in Bedok, WP East Coast GRC candidate Mohamed Fairoz Shariff, 36, brought up plans for a mandatory flexi-work arrangement for workers in companies with more than 20 employees. He said such a scheme would help Singaporeans "enjoy better work-life harmony". "Ultimately, a happy worker would be a more productive worker."
Mr Gerald Giam, 37, also part of the WP's four-member East Coast team, said the opposition party has taken efforts to explain its manifesto, so as to attract more than just protest votes. He said: "We are hoping to be that credible alternative, that we can provide them with a choice, not just (cast) a protest vote. We want to provide them with a choice that they are voting for a party that can speak up for them in Parliament."
ESM Goh responded to Mr Low's analogy in a Facebook post last night. He said: "Titanic sank on its maiden voyage. The PAP cruised over 50 years under three captains. All onboard are safe."
