Presidential hopeful Tan Kin Lian promises 'positive, constructive' approach with Govt to 'influence' policy if elected
SINGAPORE — Presidential hopeful Tan Kin Lian does not intend to be "an adversary to the Government", but rather hopes to "collaborate" and engage in meaningful discussions with ministers to "influence" policymaking.

Mr Tan Kin Lian speaking to the media in 2016.
- Presidential hopeful Tan Kin Lian said that he does not intend to be an "adversary" to the Government but would instead work with ministers to "influence" policymaking
- In a blog post on Thursday (Aug 3), Mr Tan outlined three ways he would do this if elected — by engaging with elected officials, exercising veto powers and encouraging public debate
- He added that he would use the office to "find alternative solutions to bring down the cost of living, ensure affordable housing for all, and secure stable jobs with a path to progress"
- The 75-year-old also said that while the President can play a "significant role" in advocating for change, the actual implementation of policies lies with the Government
- Analysts told TODAY that many of Mr Tan's claims on what he could do should he be elected are incongruent with the President's powers under the Constitution
SINGAPORE — Presidential hopeful Tan Kin Lian does not intend to be "an adversary to the Government", but rather hopes to "collaborate" and engage in meaningful discussions with ministers to "influence" policymaking.
He added that, if elected, he plans to use the President's veto powers to "ensure that government policies align with my vision and goals".
Mr Tan, 75, said this in a blog post on Thursday (Aug 3), in seeking to explain how he would leverage the President’s powers if elected.
He added that he would use the office to "find alternative solutions to bring down the cost of living, ensure affordable housing for all, and secure stable jobs with a path to progress".
"I will adopt a positive, constructive, and open-minded approach and will suggest to the ministers to try out the new approaches on a small scale before fully adopting them," he said.
The former chief of NTUC Income came in last of four candidates at the 2011 Presidential Election.
On Monday, he announced that he had submitted his application for a certificate of eligibility for the 2023 Presidential Election.
Mr Tan had said that he submitted the application on July 11 through a proxy and will wait for the decision of the Presidential Elections Committee on the list of approved candidates before deciding whether to submit the nomination paper.
'LEVERAGE' PRESIDENT'S POWER
His post on Thursday listed three ways he would go about "influenc(ing) government policies" — by engaging with elected officials, exercising veto power and encouraging public debate.
Elaborating, Mr Tan said that he planned to “share (his) insights and proposals for alternative approaches” to government policymaking.
“By establishing a positive and constructive relationship, I can influence their decision-making processes,” he said.
In Singapore, the President can veto Government proposals, but must consult the Council of Presidential Advisers when exercising such veto powers in connection with Singapore’s reserves or the appointment of key office holders.
While acknowledging that these veto powers are limited, Mr Tan said he will use them to "ensure that government policies align with my vision and goals".
Mr Tan also said that he would "create a platform for various stakeholders to voice their opinions and propose solutions” on issues they care about.
"A well-informed public can bring good ideas for the Government to consider alternative approaches,” Mr Tan wrote.
"It's essential to recognise that while the President can play a significant role in shaping the discourse and advocating for change, the actual implementation of policies lies with the Government and other relevant institutions," he added.
At the 2011 Presidential Election, Mr Tan competed against former deputy prime minister Tony Tan, Progress Singapore Party founder Tan Cheng Bock and opposition politician Tan Jee Say, securing 4.91 per cent of the more than 2.2 million votes.
He eventually lost his deposit for failing to win more than one-eighth of the total number of votes polled in the election.
TAN'S SUGGESTIONS NOT IN LINE WITH PRESIDENT'S ROLE : ANALYSTS
Speaking to TODAY, political analysts said that many of Mr Tan's claims on what he could do should he be elected are incongruent with the President's powers under the Constitution.
On Mr Tan's claims that he can leverage the President's powers to find solutions to issues such as cost of living, affordable housing and job security, Dr Felix Tan, a political analyst at the Nanyang Technological University (NTU), said that the elected President in fact has no such powers.
"The President doesn’t have that sort of purview over changing of policy for two reasons: Firstly, policies are made at the parliamentary or government level, and not at the presidential level.
"Secondly, as the president he is also constrained by the (Council of Presidential Advisers), so (the exercising of his powers) has to be made in consultation with the advisers," said Dr Tan.
"He can't change policies as that is not the purview of responsibility of the President."
As for whether he can influence ministers in their decision-making processes, Dr Tan added that this is also highly unlikely.
Said Dr Tan: "He can probably... speak to individual ministers, to (try to) change policy, (but) the ministers listen to the Prime Minister and also to the party leadership."
Agreeing, Singapore Management University Associate Professor of Law Eugene Tan said that ministers have no obligation to listen to an elected President and put his suggestions into action, because the President does not have the duty nor the power to influence the elected Government in its decision making processes.
Instead, the President's two main roles are to protect the integrity of the public sector, and also the country's past reserves.
Assoc Prof Tan also disagreed with Mr Tan's claim that he can use his limited veto powers to "ensure that government policies align with my vision and goals".
"The presidency cannot be said to have any particular vision or goals, because he cannot implement policy, he cannot change laws, he cannot introduce laws, so there cannot be any vision," said Assoc Prof Tan.
He added that Mr Tan's apparent lack of understanding of what the role of the presidency entails can suggest one of two things.
"It either conveys an ignorance of the president's role, duty and power, or it is a deliberate misrepresentation of what the president can do," he said.
"For someone who is perhaps thinking of making a second bid for the presidency, I take the view that Mr Tan must do better in terms of stating what he plans to do if he is elected."
Dr Gillian Koh, a senior research fellow at the Institute of Policy Studies, said that Mr Tan's claims can have negative consequences if voters are misled by them.
"The public should also itself be aware of the power of the elected presidency and its limits, otherwise, the candidates could oversell the role, and voters will be making their choice on the wrong basis," she said.
"They will be applying the wrong criteria in making this choice, which is nonetheless very important."
She added that more importantly, presidential candidates should "refrain from overselling their role" in the first place.