Will S’pore benefit from more political competition?

Since the 2011 General Election, Singapore has had a more competitive political arena, with more opposition parliamentarians and vigorous parliamentary debates, ranging from national to municipal issues.

It is uncertain, though, if increased political competition will result in more popular or more populist policies, with the latter harming the masses in the longer term.

The ideal outcome of political competition would be similar to private sector competition that drives innovations, benefiting customers, and punishes incompetent companies.

Two political parties would compete to develop solutions to the challenges facing Singapore, such as our declining birth rate, the need to create good jobs and that of building a cohesive society.

They would then debate between possible solutions and pick the best. The competition between good ideas allows us to develop better choices.

The reality is that political parties do discredit each other’s ideas to compete for votes, more so in democracies without compulsory voting, as parties stand by their ideologies to energise their supporters to vote.

A greater concern is that the government of the day, if lacking integrity or commitment to the nation’s future interests, may use the nation’s finances to implement populist policies to win votes one election at a time.

More policies that defer the cost to future generations may arise, resulting in persistent budget deficits, weakening the economy and society.

Will Singapore benefit or suffer from more political competition? Due to our history of compulsory voting, our political parties have been pragmatic to appeal to swing voters who want to improve their and their children’s lives.

The focus on swing voters increases the likelihood of a convergent approach towards developing popular, and not populist, policies. Furthermore, Singaporeans experienced an extended history of policies that were not populist; we are equipped to discern between populist and popular.

We are responsible for getting our politics right by voting in the right politicians. Voters should frown on politicians who engage in political bullying, posturing and opposing for the sake of opposing.

We should expect our politicians to fight hard for our votes in a just manner with a perspective beyond the next election. More importantly, politicians must build trust to implement the necessary, unpopular long-term policies.

Trust between people, groups and institutions arise when we have shared values, creating expectations of consistent, honest behaviour. The Prime Minister stated this recently: “Good politics is, first and foremost, about integrity.”

Some may think that we cannot avoid the downside of political competition. However, we charted our own economic path in 1965 as a small country without a hinterland. We must also chart our own political path.

This National Day, voters should realise that they, ultimately, are responsible for good politics in Singapore.