Govt should explain why it disagrees with opposition’s proposals, rather than demonise them: Leon Perera

SINGAPORE - Opposition MPs on Tuesday repudiated the Government’s charge that their proposals have been populist, and that they have glossed over the trade-offs involved.

Mr Leon Perera (Aljunied GRC) said the Workers’ Party (WP) has been championing alternative policies in its manifesto and in Parliament that differed substantially from those of the People’s Action Party (PAP), including redundancy insurance, which the PAP Government is now considering. “DPM and the PAP know this,” he said, referring to Deputy Prime Minister Lawrence Wong. “Let us be honest in our political debates – honest, not going for false, flashy sound bites that smear our opponents.”

Mr Perera was responding to Mr Wong, who on Monday

called for the opposition to offer a serious alternative agenda

and be upfront about the trade-offs, instead of “populist ideas to chip away, bit by bit, at trust in government”. Mr Wong also said the WP had offered revenue alternatives, but that its sums did not add up.

Instead of being so quick to label the opposition as insincere, the Government should focus on explaining why it disagrees with the proposals, said Mr Perera.

He called for MPs to treat one another’s views – including those of other parties – fairly, and to accept when they differ instead of labelling the other side as disingenuous.

Such labels can affect the tone of discourse in Singapore if alternative ideas become demonised or labelled uncharitably, said Mr Perera during the debate on

the President’s Address.

“Rather than chip away at trust in the opposition with such labels, the Government should focus on explaining why it disagrees with the opposition,” he added.

On trust in the Government, Mr Perera said that trust in the independent institutions of the state is a very good thing, where it is warranted.

But the public should not blindly trust the political leadership regardless of whether relevant information has been disclosed and how the Government acts. Furthermore, trust in the Government does not mean distrust in the opposition when they disagree, he added.

“We should not strive for a political landscape where the public innately trusts the Government but innately distrusts the opposition or vice versa... We should strive rather for a politically educated populace that accords trust based on facts and evidence from independent institutions that function as intended,” he said.

Mr Perera said opposition MPs had in previous debates explained how there were alternatives to a goods and services tax hike, and that this would slow the rate of growth of reserves. They had also proposed alternatives to a housing ecosystem based on the promise of asset appreciation, and said that these alternatives would lead to some weakening in the resale market.

“Were those trade-offs denied, hidden, glossed over? No. The trade-offs were explained,” said Mr Perera.

He stressed that the schemes on public housing, poverty and redundancy insurance the WP has put forth will slow the rate of growth of reserves but will not draw down reserves. “I believe slowing down the growth of reserves is wholly justified at this stage of our nation’s history, given the needs we have with an ageing population in a turbulent world and given the much larger size of reserves now versus GDP (gross domestic product),” he said.

Mr Perera also cited WP proposals to delink the People’s Association from the ruling party,

create an ombudsman with investigative capacity,

and for the Government to publish every public opinion poll and data collection effort conducted with state funds, while redacting information that has clear and strong commercial or national security sensitivities.

On Tuesday, Non-Constituency MP Leong Mun Wai, who is chief of the Progress Singapore Party (PSP), also rebuked the Government for its characterisation of the opposition.

He alleged that during

the debate on foreign talent policy in September 2021,

the Government had tried to paint the PSP as a xenophobic, nativist and even racist political party, instead of providing direct answers to questions.

“It is dangerous for the Government to misconstrue our concerns as being motivated by nativism, xenophobia and racism,” said Mr Leong, who added that he was reflecting the concerns of Singaporean workers.

He said the PSP will continue to put up alternative policies that are in the interest of all Singaporeans, such as on public housing.

“We hope that these policies will not simply be brushed off as raiding the reserves or crushing the housing market just because they do not fit into the Government’s framework for the reserves or finances, or challenge the Government’s sacred cow policies like home ownership.

“I hope that the Government can refrain from such posturing so that we can have a more productive debate in this House... A fair arena for one and all.”