WHAT CAN BE DONE?
It may be getting tougher for political parties to recruit potential candidates, but analysts said that parties and people interested in joining politics have to adapt to this reality
Assoc Prof Walid Jumblatt Abdullah from Nanyang Technological University (NTU) said that candidates could try to reduce public scrutiny by “cleaning” their social media pages through careful curation of what they post.
“I think in doing so, they probably would lose a little bit of themselves in terms of their authenticity. And I’m not sure whether everyone wants to do such a thing,” he added.
It may be necessary, though, since Singaporeans expect their MPs to be morally exemplary, Dr Mustafa of Solaris Strategies Singapore said.
Dr Mustafa, also an adjunct senior lecturer at NUS College, said that expectations regarding a politician’s morality have risen over the years alongside increasing expectations of an MP’s performance.
“Unless the paradigm changes right now – it may well change – I think it’s inbuilt into political service that morality matters.”
Assoc Prof Walid said that parties should not “cancel” a candidate because they might have said something “awkward or silly” previously.
Should such standards for perfect politicians become a norm, most people would not be eligible to become candidates.
Political office holders might also only post social media content that is “mundane, ridiculous or nonsense stuff online because they are afraid to be cancelled”.
It does not help that all parties will likely be clamouring to attract the cookie-cutter ideal of a politician: A highly educated, successful and charismatic person who is in touch with people on the ground.
With the increased competition, Assoc Prof Tan of SMU said that potential candidates will ultimately be drawn to a party that aligns with their policy ideals.
When asked about candidate diversity, Dr Felix Tan from NTU, a political observer, said that parties might be hesitant to field candidates from under-represented groups such as those with disabilities or from the lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and queer community, unless they are confident that the electorate will support these candidates.
“There’s also a question of whether people from these communities would want to put themselves out there and face the public scrutiny. Remember, you will be questioned to no end,” Dr Tan said of the public scrutiny and judgement.
The professional in his 40s – the one who has turned down the PAP’s invitations to join politics – said that like many others, he believes in giving back to society, which is why he does so in his own capacity such as by sitting on the board of non-profit organisations, among other activities.
To step into politics would involve a sacrifice for himself and his family, which he is unwilling to make.
“This is why I have immense respect for people who make this sacrifice, because the amount of work, patience expected of you day in, day out, is immense.”
By hook or by crook, though, political parties will just have to negotiate and convince potential candidates to put their names on the ballot, the analysts and insiders said.
Mr Charles Chong, former deputy speaker of parliament, is one such man who has been at the receiving end of this cajoling – and caved.
He told CNA TODAY that his career with Singapore Airlines was just taking off when he was approached by the PAP, and it took much persuasion from his boss and from then-prime minister Lee Kuan Yew for him to relent and become an MP in 1988.
“(Mr Lee Kuan Yew) offered to talk to my wife for me. At this point I surrendered,” he recalled.
While he might have been able to rise to a higher position in Singapore Airlines, or perhaps seen more of the world, Mr Chong, 71, said that he tries not to think about the what-ifs.
After all, he was assured that he could quit politics after one or two terms if he did not find politics “suitable”. In the end, he found himself serving the nation for seven terms till 2020.
What drove him, and what still plays in his mind, are words from former prime minister Lee Kuan Yew: “He said if everyone just thought about himself and his family, then Singapore would not be a better place for their children and their grandchildren.”
