GE2025: Goh Meng Seng tells Pritam Singh to 'be humble', accuses Workers' Party of 'abandoning' voters
The People's Power Party chief slammed his WP counterpart for the second time in as many days, over the opposition party's decision to not contest in Marine Parade-Braddell Heights GRC.
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SINGAPORE: The People’s Power Party’s (PPP) chief Goh Meng Seng on Thursday (Apr 24) slammed his Workers' Party counterpart Pritam Singh for the second time in as many days over the opposition party's decision to not contest and thus pave the way for an unexpected walkover in Marine Parade-Braddell Heights GRC.
In a strongly worded speech to open his party's first rally leading up to Singapore's May 3 General Election, Mr Goh asked Mr Singh to "be humble", accused him of betraying voters and questioned if he was fit to be a leader, among several other broadsides fired.
"They have abandoned 130,000 voters in Marine Parade. On what good grounds? To come to Tampines for a four-cornered fight? No one in his right mind, I believe, would agree that this is a good strategic move," said Mr Goh.
He is helming a PPP slate in a rare four-way contest against the WP, the National Solidarity Party (NSP) and an incumbent People's Action Party (PAP) team in Tampines GRC.
"Why would they do that? I only have one reason in mind ... they want to make sure Goh Meng Seng does not go into parliament,” he added.
Mr Goh attributed this to the PPP’s disagreement with Singapore's mandatory vaccination programme. The opposition party had in 2024 made several calls to suspend COVID-19 vaccination, prompting rebuttals from the Ministry of Health.
“They betrayed 130,000 voters ... in Marine Parade just to stop us from getting into parliament to raise this issue," he said.
The five-member PAP team for Marine Parade-Braddell Heights GRC was declared elected on Nomination Day after no other candidates submitted their papers.
The WP, widely expected to contest in the GRC as it had in 2015 and 2020, did not field a team.
Instead of Marine Parade-Braddell Heights, the WP ended up making a play for Tampines – a Group Representation Constituency it has never contested in.
Several other opposition parties have also expressed disappointment with WP for the unexpected twist in events.
Mr Goh on Wednesday told reporters his party would have contested in Marine Parade-Braddell Heights had the WP not been “mum about their deployment”. He called the move “purely irresponsible”.
Mr Singh, when asked to respond to Mr Goh’s comments on Thursday morning, said the PPP secretary-general “should focus on the campaign in Tampines”.
Come Thursday evening, Mr Goh then kicked off his party’s election rally at Temasek Junior College with a near 30-minute tirade of the Workers' Party and Mr Singh, saying this was “not the first time the WP has abandoned voters”.
He claimed that during GE2015, the WP had wanted NSP to step aside in Marine Parade GRC and Macpherson SMC. Mr Goh claimed that NSP gave up Marine Parade, but held on to Macpherson; a three-cornered contest then ensued in the single-member ward, with NSP losing its deposit after garnering only 0.82 per cent of votes.
In GE2020, the WP did not contest Macpherson SMC.
“The voters in Macpherson nearly did not have any chance to vote,” said Mr Goh, saying that was why he decided to run in the single-member constituency in that election.
He eventually lost to the incumbent Tin Pei Ling, who received 71.74 per cent of the votes.
Mr Goh said that regardless of his chances of winning an election, he would still contest because he believed in giving voters a choice.
“You should have your right to tell the ruling party what you think about their performance through your votes, and you should have the right to decide who represents you, your vision, your core values in parliament.”
Continuing his denunciation of the WP and Mr Singh, Mr Goh, who in 2006 ran under the Workers' Party flag in Aljunied GRC, said the party's latest move showed that it did not respect other opposition parties as well as voters in Marine Parade-Braddell Heights GRC.
“Not a single apology; just excuses, lame excuses,” he said. “Now the question is this - if WP under Pritam Singh can do this to Marine Parade, can he do the same to you, to Tampines voters?”
Adding that a "leopard never changes its spots", Mr Goh said: "He has done that to Macpherson. He has done that to Marine Parade. He will do the same to you.”
"Do you want such a leader?" he asked.
“This is what I have to say to Pritam Singh - if one day he becomes the Prime Minister, you will be more PAP than PAP,” said Mr Goh. “This is my response to Mr Pritam Singh: Be humble.”
Later, when he stood to speak again, he said he would be touching on the party’s policies going forward, and added: “Don’t ask me about Pritam Singh again. I’m not interested in him. I’m not gay.” It was not clear if anyone in the crowd had made such a request.
The PPP is fielding 10 candidates across Tampines and Ang Mo Kio GRCs, where it faces multi-cornered fights. Apart from Mr Goh, seven other candidates rose to speak on a range of issues.
They included Ang Mo Kio GRC candidate Martinn Ho, a retired civil servant. The 64-year-old spoke about the need to lower the costs of essential goods and healthcare, as well as to improve job security and support to help younger Singaporeans afford their own homes.
Job security was also a concern highlighted by the party's youngest candidate Heng Zheng Dao, 24, who spoke about how immigration policy and artificial intelligence could affect jobs and livelihoods.
"In the next five years, we are looking at AI, self-driving cars, which might take out the rice bowl of Grab drivers, food delivery drivers in the next five years,” he told the crowd.
“You all can laugh at Samuel for singing. That’s his expression of the pain felt in his heart.”
He was referring to fellow PPP candidate Samuel Lee, who went viral for singing about job security concerns at a party press conference on Tuesday.
Mr Vere Nathan, part of PPP’s Tampines GRC slate, said the opposition party was here to serve and that it has demonstrated that by talking “about issues no one else is willing to”.
“We are willing to put our necks on the line. People said ... maybe we'll lose our deposit but it was because we are fighting for truth,” said the 26-year-old.
At the end of the nearly three-hour long rally, Mr Goh challenged his opponents in Tampines GRC to a debate.
“It is only right for all voters in Tampines to know what we stand for,” he said.
“I will pay for this. I will invite all the leaders of the other three parties - Mr Masagos, Mr Faisal Manap and Mr Reno Fong - to sit ... and we will debate about our policies.”
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