Two "star catches" illuminate as they ruminate

ST's interviews, published today (22 April) with two "star catch" candidates from opposing camps, gave contrasting pictures of why they are stepping up into the political arena. Both men were eloquent.

One interview ("Former senior Govt officer in SDP camp", ST, page A4) was with the Singapore Democratic Party's "star catch" (hey, if you're a political party and you don't have at least one star catch for this election, you're behind the curve). He is Mr Tan Jee Say, 57, now a private investor and once the principal private secretary (PPS) to then Deputy PM Goh Chok Tong in the 1980s.

Mr Tan -- described by ST as "the most senior member of the establishment to join opposition ranks in two decades" and who is slated to contest in Holland-Bukit Timah GRC or Sembawang GRC -- had been involved in key economic policies when in government service.

He now says: "The economic policies that are being pursued now will undo all that we have achieved in the past 30 to 40 years and will lead to social disintegration."

He believes the influx of foreigners has depressed locals' wags and crowded citizens out of jobs ands schools, and that the decision to allow two casinos here has caused families to break up.

"Throughout society, people feel something is just not right," he adds. He says he is grateful to the PAP government for raising the standards of living of many Singaporeans in a generation. But it needs a reality check. He says the Economic Strategies Committee (ESC) report, released last year in the wake of the global financial crisis, was the final straw for him.

"The ESC was just whitewashing the economic issues," he says. The focus should not be on raising productivity but on correcting bad economic policy, namely the propping up of manufacturing which has led to Singapore's reliance on foreign labour, he says.

The other "star catch", Mr Lawrence Wong, 38, is described by ST as a potential office holder ("Civil service to politics: 'I couldn't say no to PM' ", ST, page A6). He had to resign from his job as the chief executive of the Energy Market Authority to enter politics because he had just 14 years of service. To be eligible to retire and hence qualify for a pension, he needed to have at least 15 years -- one more year -- under his belt.

ST asked him why did he not wait till the next general election to answer the PAP's call? He replied: "It (the pension) was a loss but it was not something that factored into my consideration at the time. The main issue was whether I was prepared to take the plunge into politics. Once I decided to do so, I did not see the need to wait or hold back."

ST said, in its story, that Mr Wong had told friends who had asked that he could not say no to PM Lee, to whom he was principal private secretary from 2005 to 2008. ST added that the deep mark Mr Lee left on Mr Wong is evident; his is the name Mr Wong brings up when asked why he decided to enter politics.

"One thing that motivates me to do this is the depth of conviction our leaders have in wanting to make Singapore better," Mr Wong, slated for the Boon Lay ward in West Coast GRC, says.

When he was PPS involved in writing Mr Lee's speeches, he recalled that whenever there was a major speech to be delivered which dwelled on Singapore's transformation from Third World to First, and how it succeeded despite all odds, Mr Lee's emotions were always close to the surface. "You can hear it in his voice, sometimes he gets misty-eyed. This happens sometimes during the live speech, but even during practice runs, it happens."

So, there you have it: two men who were PPS to a senior government leader and who were insiders to key policies, now in opposite camps, articulating their reasons for joining politics. Will both achieve their political goals in this GE2011?

Postscript

Here's a "star catch" song from the baby boomer era. Enjoy!

http://www.kokomo.ca/pop_standards/catch_a_falling_star_lyrics.htm