Memed in Parliament and sincerest form of flattery: What politicians are talking about

SINGAPORE - The Straits Times looks at what politicians, and the politically related, are up to in this weekly series.

Debates on ministries' budgets over the past two weeks have yielded several key announcements and policy measures - as well as suggestions and antics from MPs that have been the talk of social media town.

First up was Mr Ang Wei Neng (West Coast GRC), who called for university degrees to come with an expiry window of five years. He later apologised for being "more provocative than needed".

He should have checked with former labour chief Lim Boon Heng, who mooted the same idea back in 1996 and "got a very hostile reaction".

"Some of the most hostile came from our universities!" he recounted in a later speech. "I think more people understand me now - that learning should be a lifelong pursuit."

Then there was Ms Poh Li San (Sembawang GRC), who proposed regulating the number of bubble tea shops in the name of health.

Not to be outdone, Ms Hany Soh (Marsiling-Yew Tee GRC) asked the Government to come up with songs in the vein of popular YouTube content like Baby Shark or CoCoMelon to encourage children to become green champions.

The online hordes promptly reacted with a mix of rage and ridicule, with comments along the lines of "leave my boba alone" and "this is not a good time for our backbenchers eh?".

The memes arrived quickly after. Though many were of unknown origin, an instant classic by local content creator Yeolo - referring to the three MPs plus Mr Don Wee (Chua Chu Kang GRC) as "the four horsemen of class part" - was widely embraced.

Class part is slang for the reviled practice of graded class participation.

Mr Wee had, well, donned a blazer and top in Ukrainian colours last Thursday in what he said was a message to "emphasise the importance of the Singapore Armed Forces' realistic training and its safety record".

Even Finance Minister Lawrence Wong was not spared from the unrelenting spotlight on parliamentarians, with an opportunistic screenshot of him seemingly holding up his middle finger making the rounds on social media.

Mr Wong responded to acknowledge the "interest" in how he counts, and urged people to pay attention to the contents of his round-up speech instead.

In a comment on an older post, Ms Poh also addressed her bubble tea brainwave, saying "many people may not realise they have been consuming too much sugar and calories" from a drink that invokes religious devotion in some quarters.

Ms Soh used an International Women's Day 2022 event to share tips on dealing with cyberbullying, including gems - related or otherwise - on practicing self-love and ignoring negative remarks.

Speaking of International Women's Day - marked annually on March 8 - several politicians made sure to pay tribute over the week to the women in their lives.

Those from the ruling People's Action Party hashtagged their posts with #ActionForHer, a nod to a campaign launched in September last year calling on Singaporeans to pledge support and take action for women here.

Noting that Singapore currently has its most number of female lawmakers ever - 26 MPs, three Nominated MPs and one Non-Constituency MPs - Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong applauded the women for adding "more balance and diverse perspectives" in shaping Singapore's policies. The post was accompanied by photos of PM Lee posing as the only thorn among these roses, eliciting a cheeky "Wah, baller!" comment from celebrated - if controversial - marathoner Soh Rui Yong.

Minister for Culture, Community and Youth Edwin Tong, meanwhile, gave what he saw as a pretty solid reason to do well in sports: a strong correlation between the progress of women's football in a country and gender equality in that society.

Another spontaneous comment from a known personality was seen among the responses to Education Minister Chan Chun Sing's ode to his late maternal grandmother teaching him how to cook soya sauce chicken. The post was replete with a mouth-watering picture of the dish, and fittingly drew a "Best" from chef and restaurant chain founder Benny Se Teo.

Elsewhere, Chua Chu Kang GRC MP Zhulkarnain Abdul Rahim shared how he washes the dishes daily to show his son that stereotypes can be broken, while Workers' Party (WP) MP Jamus Lim (Sengkang GRC) just as wisely referred to his daughter, wife, sister and mother as calling many of the shots in his life.

Bukit Batok MP Murali Pillai went one better by organising a competition calling for video demonstrations of "breaking the bias" - the theme of this year's Women's Day - and offering thirty $10 NTUC vouchers as prizes.

Orange & Teal, the cafe opened by Singapore Democratic Party (SDP) chief Chee Soon Juan, will be giving out free welcome drinks for women diners all week.

Like other opposition party chiefs, not being elected to Parliament has not deterred Dr Chee from sharing his views on the Budget and initiatives unveiled during the debates.

The Education Ministry's announcement that more schools would be added to the subject-based banding programme - which lets students take subjects at different levels according to their abilities, and which will eventually replace the current streaming system by 2024 - evoked memories of the SDP calling for streaming to be scrapped back in 1994.

The ruling People's Action Party has "repeatedly played catch-up in policy formulation", claimed Dr Chee.

He was also piqued by a new points-based system to evaluate higher-paid foreign professionals seeking to work in Singapore.

He said: "Surprise, surprise - the idea is another one proposed by the SDP. Ten. Years. Ago."

Pointing to similarities in the framework's criteria with those of the "Talent Track Scheme" in a 2019 SDP policy paper, he added: "Imitation, by any other name, is the sincerest form of flattery."

Dr Chee also said his party had proposed wealth taxes as far back as in 2010. At this year's Budget, Mr Wong announced a slew of tax hikes on income, property and luxury cars for top earners.

The top comment on Dr Chee's foreign talent Facebook post? One contrasting such ideas with those on timestamped degrees and bubble tea regulation.

Progress Singapore Party chief Francis Yuen also called dibs on his party's role in inspiring the points system, saying its call for "a healthy balance between foreign talent and our local core is finally acknowledged".

"We are glad that the ruling party hears PSP and acknowledges that they should 'fix the system and NOT the opposition'," he added.

Since the start of the recent debates, at least eight MPs have been down for the count, with Covid-19 keeping them away from parliamentary proceedings.

More than half of them - Leader of the House Indranee Rajah, Mr Gan Thiam Poh (Ang Mo Kio GRC), Mr Alex Yam (Marsiling-Yew Tee GRC), Minister of State for Culture, Community and Youth and Trade and Industry Alvin Tan and Ms Carrie Tan (Nee Soon GRC) - were spotted back in the House this week.

Ms Tan, who got a warm welcome back to the House by Minister of State for National Development Tan Kiat How at the start of question time on Thursday, had taken to social media to document her home isolation process.

Ms Tan paid tribute to her helper Sammi for preparing her meals and shared how she was doing her best to prevent her helper from getting infected - by ordering cans of disinfectant spray to be used on items handled by Ms Tan.

WP MP He Ting Ru (Sengkang GRC), who described herself as the last of her family to test positive after caring for her three sons 24/7, had a serious message for her followers: "While most of us had mild symptoms... I hope those who treat this illness flippantly realise that it really isn't 'just a cold'."

A "medical emergency came swiftly and unexpectedly" in the middle of the night and one of her children had to be rushed to the emergency department at KK Women's and Children's Hospital.

Amid an Omicron surge with daily cases in the tens of thousands, MPs like Mr Baey Yam Keng (Tampines GRC) appear to be reviewing their physical activities on the ground.

He was diagnosed with stage 1 nose cancer in November last year and completed radiation therapy at the end of January.

Mr Baey said he had resumed house visits in his ward in late February as he was feeling much better - but wanted to seek views from residents on whether they were comfortable with MPs going door to door during this period.

Across his social media accounts on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter, the majority suggested that such visits be put on hold for now - for the sake of Mr Baey's and his volunteers' health.