GE2025: Opposition selling ‘myth’ of same results with fewer PAP MPs in Parliament, says Indranee

Follow our live coverage here.

SINGAPORE – The opposition has been selling the “myth” that even if more of them are voted in and there are fewer PAP MPs, Singapore will still get the same results, said Minister in the Prime Minister’s Office Indranee Rajah. 

That is not true, she said in a speech to open

a lunchtime rally at UOB Plaza

on April 28 – the sixth day of the hustings. 

Addressing a crowd that included many office workers, she said: “Many of you work in companies that are organised by teams... We have all worked on team projects, and we all know if you keep pulling out team members, you won’t be able to produce the same results no matter how hard you try.”

Ms Indranee, who is standing for election in Pasir Ris-Changi GRC, said: “The opposition says you can just substitute with others.

“But you and I know it’s not just a matter of numbers, it’s also a matter of experience and skill sets.”

While new people can be brought on, it takes time for them to get up to speed, she added.

If the opposition truly believes it is just a matter of numbers and that anyone will do, then it should not matter which candidates they field and where, she said.

“But you can see how carefully they have calibrated their teams and the electoral divisions in which they stand or not, as the case may be. They know the value of having the right team in the right place.”

Prime Minister Lawrence Wong has put together a team with “that right mix and that right blend”, Ms Indranee added. 

Turning to the opposition’s call to vote for them as Singapore needs alternative voices in Parliament, she said this is presented as a binary choice – that voting PAP means there will not be opposition voices in the House.

“But that’s not true,” she said, noting that having alternative voices in Parliament is guaranteed.

The PAP amended the Constitution so that there will always be at least 12 opposition MPs, she said. 

“And the opposition has not hesitated to take full advantage of this provision to its benefit.”

She was referring to the Non-Constituency MP scheme, which admits up to 12 best losers from the opposition into Parliament if they do not win constituencies outright. 

“You are the ones who will decide who are constituency MPs and who are Non-Constituency MPs,” Ms Indranee said to voters.

“But it is important for you to know that it is never the case that there will be no alternative voices in Parliament. It is not a binary choice.” 

Singaporeans will go to the polls on May 3.

Ms Indranee said: “In that quiet moment when you are standing in the ballot booth, you will be deciding the future of Singapore.

“That vote that you cast will decide what path our nation takes, what kind of society we will be, and which political party will form the Government, and importantly – whether the team that forms the Government will have the bench strength to do all the things that need to be done for you and for Singapore.”

Her speech was followed by seven from PAP first-time candidates David Hoe, Syed Harun Alhabsyi, Bernadette Giam, Jagathishwaran Rajo, David Neo, Hazlina Abdul Halim and Goh Hanyan.

Mr Neo, a former Chief of Army who is contesting Tampines GRC, appealed to Singapore’s youth, saying: “Our young people are discerning, thoughtful, and you care deeply about Singapore’s future.

“You know the difference between noise and action.”

He added that young voters are not looking for “fairy tales”, but are looking for leadership that secures “real opportunities”. 

“You know that the future of Singapore doesn’t depend on who shouts the loudest, but on who rolls up their sleeves and gets things done,” he said.

Mr Hoe, a charity director who is contesting Jurong East-Bukit Batok GRC, recounted comments that he has received about his suitability for politics.

He said people have told him: “You don’t look like any one of them. You still make grammar errors. You can’t speak effectively bilingual.”

Mr Hoe said his response is that for whatever he lacks, he will compensate with hard work.

“I will run faster, I will listen longer. I’ll write longer. I will ask for help. Why? Because at the end of the day, it is about caring for every single resident,” he said. 

The former teacher added that he is standing for election because he cares about creating more access to opportunities. 

Ms Goh, a former senior civil servant contesting Nee Soon GRC, said she joined politics to create a better Singapore for her three children. 

To do so, Singapore must be a society with hope, she said.

“What is hope? Hope is the belief that our children will live a better life,” she said, adding that to “get hope right”, the Government must create good jobs for all. 

She said: “We drastically transformed our economy from manufacturing mosquito coils and textiles to semiconductors and pharmaceuticals. 

“We will continue to fight for Singapore on the global stage because, if we get hope right, tomorrow will be better than today.”