Quotes of All Topics . Occasions . Authors
I believe the processes of good governance have gone astray. Specifically there is an erosion of transparency, independence and accountability.
A truly united Singapore means having a Parliament that reflects all views, and not just the PAP view or the group-think of a single political party.
The President must be above politics. He must not be a proxy to any political party. His interest must be national, not with a political agenda in mind.
If those people who come in to join the PSP, hoping to extract something from the party for themselves, I think even if they leave, I will not feel sorry.
For vocational workers, their pay should reflect their skills and difficulty of labour. To be skilled in a craft should be accepted as an alternative path.
Very important, the President must be seen not as a figurehead but as somebody the people can look to for support for some of the issues, national problems and so on.
If I become president, I want to make sure that we shouldn't live in fear. We should all be one people. We should all enjoy differences of opinion without getting upset.
Ask yourself, have you ever heard any of your PAP MPs ask the hard questions? As a Singaporean, you have a right to information that the Government is refusing to answer.
I think the president must be very watchful of what is happening. The president cannot deal with the bread and butter issues of Parliament, but he cannot be a sleeping president.
You don't have to go and criticize your opponents, how bad they are and so on. It is a contest of ideas. I got my ideas, you got your ideas right. We will let Singaporeans decide.
The president actually is there to complement the government in power. If they have done something that is not proper, it is the duty of the president to... discuss and to come to some common ground.
So far we have 4 open elections with no minority Malay President. So 2017 must remain an open election and if no minority Malay President wins in 2017, than a reserved election will be triggered in 2023.
The civil servants will always be there to look after this country. So don't worry... Any political party taking power will have to work with the civil servants who are very well acquainted with running this country.
I began my career as a medical doctor in Ama Keng, a poor village in Lim Chu Kang. The people I cared for were ordinary Singaporeans. They were simple people who despite their hard work, had barely enough for themselves.
I'm prepared to mentor any political group, even PAP chaps can come to me, I'll still mentor them. Because the objective must be very clear: you want to train people who will be good MPs. MPs who will think of Singapore first.
The key message is I'm always trying to hope the Singaporeans will understand, is a question of every government must be... examined based on certain very fundamental principles to have a good government. You must have transparency.
At 18, they're old enough to drive. The girls enter university, and the boys enter into National Service. Since they have a duty to defend our country, these 18-year-olds should also have the right to elect their leaders. They are mature enough.
I believe in giving everybody a chance to join our party. Over time, we realized that some joined expecting what the party can do for them... We want the people, when they come and join the PSP, to do something for the country and not for themselves.
As borders take time to reopen, we will make sure the Government spends our reserves to nurture strong local businesses. To grow local supply chains. And to encourage innovation. This is important because local businesses will be Singapore's growth catalyst in our post-COVID economy.
When I was asked to manage some issues in Europe for the government, I didn't go to Parliament and just make a great speech and impress them. Instead, I will go down and discuss with those people about certain issues that we don't agree, and over a glass of wine we talk about it and they say 'okay, let's forget it.'