‘President must be voice of the people’

An Elected President has to be the “voice of the people” to some extent and speak on their behalf when things are not right, presidential hopeful Tan Cheng Bock said.

Nevertheless, he reiterated that he does not subscribe to an “open confrontational” style, returning to a message that he had used during his maiden — albeit unsuccessful — bid for the presidency in 2011.

“If Singaporeans elect the President, the President must have some say. The President cannot keep quiet … it is the manner which you go about doing it right. I cannot be another opposition (member) in the House,” he said at a press conference yesterday announcing his intent to contest in the Presidential Election due by August next year.

His preferred style of speaking up is not to “blast it out” to “the whole world”, but to talk to the relevant minister or authority behind closed doors and review the policies affecting Singaporeans’ lives.

Agreeing that the President’s duties should include custodial powers over the spending of reserves and key appointments in the public service, Dr Tan noted that it is the President’s job to be “very watchful”.

He stressed that the President’s role is not to “distort the whole political picture”. “I want to make sure that everything, what I do, will not adversely affect the whole country,” he said.

He encouraged Singaporeans to familiarise themselves with what a President can or cannot do. For instance, the President cannot look into bread-and-butter issues because that is the job of the Members of Parliament, he said.

Differences in opinion between the President and the Government are to be expected, but he emphasised that there are also different ways to deal with these differences. Ultimately, the primary objective is to take care of the people’s interests, Dr Tan said. Amanda Lee