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Singapore Democratic Party: Difference between revisions
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==== 1984 general elections ==== | ==== 1984 general elections ==== | ||
The Singapore Democratic Party entered the election campaign of that year with the slogan of "Singaporeans for Singapore", raising the need for elected opposition in parliament to bring democracy to Singapore. The party also raised other prominent issues of the time such as the need to reform the education and CPF system, and its opposition to the Elected Presidency. It noticeably fielded only four candidates in that general election: Secretary-General Chiam See Tong, Chairman Ling How Doong (who was elected Chairman after the death of Fok Tai Loy), Vice-Chairman Soon Kia Seng and treasurer Peter Lim Ah Yong. | The Singapore Democratic Party entered the election campaign of that year with the slogan of "Singaporeans for Singapore", raising the need for elected opposition in parliament to bring democracy to Singapore. The party also raised other prominent issues of the time such as the need to reform the education and CPF system, and its opposition to the Elected Presidency. It noticeably fielded only four candidates in that general election: Secretary-General [[Chiam See Tong]], Chairman [[Ling How Doong]] (who was elected Chairman after the death of Fok Tai Loy), Vice-Chairman Soon Kia Seng and treasurer Peter Lim Ah Yong. | ||
Once the hustings got under way, the party came under sustained attack from the People's Action Party (PAP), with Ling and Chiam bearing the brunt of the attacks. The PAP chose to highlight Ling's dismissal from the police force and the record of his election agent, but these were quickly rebutted by the SDP leadership. Chiam saw his secondary school record being brought up by Prime Minister Lee Kuan Yew, who compared Chiam's intelligence with that of PAP's Mah Bow Tan who was standing against the SDP leader. Nevertheless, Chiam won the single seat of Potong Pasir, defeating Mah with 60% of the votes. Chiam was only the second opposition politician ever to be elected to the Republic's Parliament after J.B. Jeyaretnam of the Workers' Party. The SDP garnered 45.2% of total votes cast in the constituencies they had contested in. | Once the hustings got under way, the party came under sustained attack from the People's Action Party (PAP), with Ling and Chiam bearing the brunt of the attacks. The PAP chose to highlight Ling's dismissal from the police force and the record of his election agent, but these were quickly rebutted by the SDP leadership. Chiam saw his secondary school record being brought up by then-Prime Minister [[Lee Kuan Yew]], who compared Chiam's intelligence with that of PAP's [[Mah Bow Tan]] who was standing against the SDP leader. Nevertheless, Chiam won the single seat of Potong Pasir, defeating Mah with 60% of the votes. Chiam was only the second opposition politician ever to be elected to the Republic's Parliament after [[J.B. Jeyaretnam]] of the [[Workers' Party]]. The SDP garnered 45.2% of total votes cast in the constituencies they had contested in. | ||
After Jeyaretnam was expelled from Parliament in 1986, Chiam was Singapore's sole opposition MP. A moderate, Chiam claimed that he was not opposing for the sake of opposition. He also said: "But if they (the government) do the wrong things which are not good for Singapore, then we will oppose fearlessly". | After Jeyaretnam was expelled from Parliament in 1986, Chiam was Singapore's sole opposition MP. A moderate, Chiam claimed that he was not opposing for the sake of opposition. He also said: "But if they (the government) do the wrong things which are not good for Singapore, then we will oppose fearlessly". | ||