THE ROLE OF THE OPPOSITION IN PARLIAMENT
Mr Lee said that in parliament, “there are ample alternative voices”.
“The opposition has a dozen MPs (Members of Parliament); there are NMPs (Nominated Members of Parliament) as well. All views are aired and questions are asked without any restraint – answered, debated. People write all sorts of pieces on op-eds online, on CNA Insider, in the newspapers.
“That is the way a vibrant system works.”
“Parliament with more opposition, more active opposition – I think the debates have become more intense. From the point of view of quality of debate, if you are watching it as a television debate, I would have to say the quality has improved because there are more opposition MPs.”
“From the point of view of government – has it improved people’s understanding of issues and enlightened the public? The answer is mixed.”
“Because, once in a while you have a non-contentious issue … And the opposition will chip in ideas and sometimes if you close your ears, close your eyes, it sounds it could have been made by somebody wearing white and white.”
During Mr Lee’s separate interview with Chinese media on Apr 28 on good politics, this is what he had to say about the role of the opposition in parliament:
“It is not just the men in white who can do it. The opposition has its own definition. It wants to have more opposition MPs, and to them, this is the way to achieve better politics; they want to replace the PAP.”
“I think they are doing their best to act as a watchdog, hoping that Singaporeans will think that they will make our government more transparent and our policies better. Even better, they can dilute or weaken less popular policies. I think in this aspect they are doing their best.”
“But as to whether they can really raise the standards of policies, I have my views. I think for those less controversial policies, we can discuss them very calmly and objectively … But when it comes to economic issues, or education or health issues, it is hard to avoid politicking.”
This article was originally published in TODAY.
