Workers' Party Singapore (WP) Election Strategy 2015 - Game Tactics and Hot Spots

History 

Founded in 1957 by Singapore's first Chief Minister, David Marshall, Workers' Party Singapore is one of the oldest and most established Political Parties in Singapore. David Marshall was one of most successful criminal lawyer in Singapore, with a reputation that "Marshall never loses". Known for his sharp eloquence and imposing stance, he claimed that he had secured 99 acquittals out of 100 cases he defended for murder during Singapore's period of having trial by jury. When Mr Lee Kuan Yew, abolished the jury system in 1969, he quoted Marshall's illustrious reputation to illustrate the"inadequacy" of the jury system.

David Marshall and Mr Lee Kuan Yew

Party Chairman - Ms Sylvia Lim  (Member of Parliament)

Ms Sylvia Lim Swee Lian (28 March 1965) is currently the Chairperson of the opposition Workers' Party (WP) and an elected Member of Parliament (MP). Ms Lim is a politician, lawyer and academic. Prior to joining politics, she has served in the Singapore Police Force as an inspector reporting to the director of CID and taught as a law lecturer at Temasek Polytechnic.

Ms Lim graduated with a Bachelor of Laws (Honours) from the National University of Singapore (NUS) and a Master of Laws from the University of London (University College London). During her studies, Ms Lim volunteered her time with the Spastic Children's Association, Salvation Army Home for the Aged and University College Hospital. She later did voluntary editorial work for the Criminal Legal Aid Scheme of the Law Society of Singapore.

Party Sec General - Mr Low Thia khiang (Member of Parliament)

Mr Low Thia Khiang (5 September 1956) is the leader of the Workers' Party (WP) and the de facto leader of the opposition in Singapore's Parliament. He has been a Member of Parliament (MP) since 1991, representing the Single Member Constituency (SMC) of Hougang from 1991 to 2011, and the Aljunied Group Representation Constituency (GRC) since 2011.

Mr Low majored in Chinese language and literature in government and public administration. Mr completed his Bachelor of Arts (Honours) in Chinese studies at the National University of Singapore and also holds a diploma in education and has worked as a teacher, before starting his own business.

Prodigy of the Late J.B. Jeyaretnam

Low joined the Workers' Party (WP) in 1982, and was subsequently appointed its Organising Secretary. Under the tutelage of the late J. B. Jeyaretnam, then the Secretary-General of Workers Party,  in his successful campaign to win the parliamentary constituency of Anson.

The Long and Winding Road of Providing Voters With a Credible Choice

1987 Operation Spectrum 

In 1987, some Workers' Party members were among a group of 22 people arrested by Singapore's Internal Security Department, accused of being Marxists. They were detained without trial under Singapore’s Internal Security Act (ISA) for their alleged involvement in "a Marxist conspiracy to subvert the existing social and political system in Singapore, using communist united front tactics, with a view to establishing a Marxist state.The mostly English-educated group was a mix of Catholic lay workers, social workers, overseas-educated graduates, theatre practitioners and professionals.

All detainees except for Cheng, the alleged Mastermind by December 1987. They were released on condition that they kept out of politics. The People's Action Party (PAP) government has continued to maintain its stand that the ex-detainees "were not detained for their political beliefs, but because they had involved themselves in subversive activities which posed a threat to national security.

1997 Mareva Injunction Against Workers' Party Tang Liang Hong

 

In 1997, Workers' Party contested in Cheng San the Group Representation Constituency. The team comprises of party's leader, former Member of Parliament J.B. Jeyaretnam and Mr Tang Liang Hong, a practicing lawyer and Chairman of the Nanyang Academy of Fine Arts. Active in promoting Chinese history and art, Mr Tang also sat on the board of management of The Chinese High School and Hwa Chong Junior College. During the election campaign, Prime Minister Goh Chok Tong accused Tang of being a Chinese chauvinist because of comments Tang had made at other public events in the past. Tang vigorously denied that he was a Chinese chauvinist and accused the PAP of trying to win votes by sowing fear into the electorate.

The Hotel Properties Ltd (HPL) Connection 

Mr Tang also came under fire from the PAP after he raised the issue of the Hotel Properties Ltd case during the election campaign where Stock Exchange of Singapore had previously criticised Hotel Properties Ltd for its "tardiness" in disclosing details of sales of its condominium units to directors and their family members where one of Mr Lee Kuan Yew's brother is a director and Mr Lee Kuan Yew has purchased one of the units.

Mr Tang was sued for defamation by the 4 heavyweights of  PAP including Goh, Lee and Deputy Prime Ministers Lee Hsien Loong and Tony Tan,  who accused him of making statements which falsely questioned their integrity. A total of 13 judgement were entered against Tang for defamation with damages assessed at a total of $8,075,000. Tang's appeal before the Court of Appeal in September 1997 was unsuccessful. His wife's passport was impounded. Eventually Tang found refuge in Australia, where he was reunited with his wife. Tang has not returned to Singapore since 1997 and continues to live in Australia.

2001 Disqualification of Entire Aljunied GRC Team on Nomination Day on Technical Grounds

Whilst Low was re-elected as Hougang MP at the 2001 general election, WP's entire Aljunied GRC team consisting of Dr Tan Bin Seng, Abdul Rahim Abdul Rahman, Huang Seow Kwang, James Gomez and Yaw Shin Leong, was disqualified on Nomination Day on technical ground for filing incomplete papers.

Party Ideology 

The Party’s guiding Principles are:-

• Merdeka
• Democracy (Parliamentary)
• Socialism

Aims 

• The elimination of man’s exploitation of man.
• The general recognition in practice of the basic equality of all human beings.
• Equalisation of opportunities for the individual for full and free development within the framework of respect for the rights of all.
• Racial equality in practice in all spheres of public activity and equal respect in law for all racial cultures

Workers Party Singapore a.k.a The Mighty Hammerhead 

Mighty Hammerhead is Lord of Thunder and leader of the insurgents, combining the power of both heaven and earth, the Mighty Hammerhead is arguably the mightiest defender of the small red star . Armed with his powerful enchanted hammer, Teng Tui , he found tirelessly for to protect the life of millions of civilians in the small red star against the relentless waves of White Star Trooper. 

Mighty Hammerhead is the most hardworking and committed of the lot.. He works day and night , walking the ground, attending every single funeral wake, every single void deck wedding. Respect for the Hammer

2011 Election Results GRC Breakthrough 

In 2011, they contested 4 GRCs - Aljunied, East Coast, Moumein-Kallang (parts of which now constitute Jalan Besar) and Nee Soon - and 4 SMCs: Hougang, Punggol East, Sengkang West and Joo Chiat, 

A major political breakthrough for Singapore’s opposition was achieved in 2011 when the Party won the first ever GRC in Aljunied GRC, where Low Thia Khiang, Sylvia Lim, Chen Show Mao, Pritam Singh and Muhamad Faisal Abdul Manap contested. Yaw Shin Leong retained the Hougang Single Member Constituency (SMC) seat for the Party. The Party had fielded 23 candidates in 4 GRCs and 4 SMCs and achieved 46.6% of the valid votes. Gerald Giam and Yee Jenn Jong took up the NCMP seats, making it a total of 8 seats for the Party in parliament.

2013 Twin Peaks in By-Election 

While Yaw Shin Leong held the Hougang seat for the party. Yaw was expelled from the party in February 2012, which triggered a by-election in Hougang. The seat was retained by the Workers' Party's candidate, Png Eng Huat. On 12 December 2012, Speaker of Parliament and incumbent PAP MP for Punggol East, Michael Palmer, resigned from his seat.[1] After the Prime Minister issued the writ of election for the Punggol East by-election, the Workers' Party announced on 14 January 2013 that Lee Li Lian had been chosen to represent the party. On 26 January 2013, Lee Li Lian was elected with 54.52% of valid votes and made history as the first woman to win a by-election

In May 2012, the Party contested the vacant seat in a by-election in Hougang SMC. Png Eng Huat won with 62.08% of the valid votes. In January 2013, the Party contested the vacant seat in a by-election in Punggol East SMC. Lee Li Lian won with 54.52% of the valid votes in a 4-cornered contest.

GE 2015 Manifesto and Contesting Wards

The Workers’ Party’s Manifesto 2015 is inspired by the symbols of our beloved national flag: the crescent moon and five stars that we have seen displayed with pride everywhere during our Golden Jubilee celebrations this year. Some of our key proposals are to:

1. Increase workers’ incomes by increasing the cash payout portion of Workfare,
2. Enhance retirement adequacy by allowing CPF members to start receiving monthly CPF payouts earlier,
3. Implement a more holistic and equitable education system by reducing class sizes, moving away from high-stakes examinations, 
4. Improve healthcare affordability and outcomes by enhancing subsidies for preventive and primary care, improving health literacy among the population.
5. Improve public transport quality and affordability by having a government-owned National Transport Corporation own and manage rail and bus assets,
6. Make public housing more affordable and accessible to lower and middle income Singaporeans by pegging HDB BTO flat prices to median monthly household income of applicants, 

Empower Your Future

In order to tackle the challenges facing Singapore in the next decades, we need to unlock the dynamism and confidence innate in Singaporeans. Workers' Party Manifesto 2015 builds upon our vision of focusing on Singaporeans and calls for economic, social, urban, governance and security policies that can create the conditions where the dynamism and confidence of Singaporeans can be unleashed to achieve our aspirations together.

Download WP Manifesto here !

For GE 2015, Workers' Party will be contesting in 5 Group Representation Constituencies and 5 Single Member Constituencies for a total of 28 seats. 

The 5 Single Member Constituencies (SMCs) are

• Hougang
• Punggol East 
• Fengshan
• MacPherson
• Sengkang West

The 5 Group Representation Constituencies (GRCs) are

• 5 Members GRC Aljunied
• 5 Members GRC Marine Parade
• 5 Members GRC Nee Soon 
• 4 Members GRC East Coast 
• 4 Members GRC Jalan Besar 

WP can potentially capture 28 seats for the coming General Election which is less than one third of the total parliamentary seats of 89

Party Chief, Mr Low Thia Khiang on AHPETC 

Hot Potato Question? Can Mr Goh withstand Mighty Hammer's Pincer Assault on Marine Parade GRC

In 2011, MP GRC has one of the slimmest results of just 55% against a relatively unknown NSP team.This time round, WP GRC member is anchor by Non-Constituency MP Yee Jenn Jong, a firm favourite, genuine Son of Joo Chiat boy who lost 2011 GE by just 388 votes and include Cambridge-educated lawyer He Ting Ru who spent 10 years in UK and Germany before returning home. 

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