As the AIM-PAP saga refused to die, the People's Action Party (PAP) has now decided to go for a different tack. Coordinating chairman of the PAP's Town Councils, Teo Ho Pin has claimed that there is a "questionably close relationship" between the WP and FM Solutions and Services (FMSS), its managing agent for Aljunied-Hougang-Punggol East Town Council (AHPETC).
As they say the best defense is a good offense, and the PAP is taking that to heart as they are trying to turn the tables on the Worker's Party (WP). Unfortunately, the WP is not biting. WP chairman Sylvia Lim has thus far refused to answer the questions raised by Mr. Teo, instead daring Mr. Teo to make a report to the Corrupt Practices Investigation Bureau (CPIB) on the matter.
Naturally, Mr. Teo has not said anything on the matter and in part that's one of the reasons why his claims on FMSS has not gained any traction with Singaporeans. However, it is not the main reason. The main reason for the dismissal of the claims by Mr. Teo is that to Singaporeans, this is a case of the pot calling the kettle black.
Now the PAP may claim that the WP was the pot calling the PAP black when they have the same relationship with FMSS that the PAP has with AIM, but guess what; that doesn't matter. The simple reasons are that,
1) the WP said it first and, more importantly
2) when the WP first blew up the scandal, the PAP didn't say anything about the relationship between the WP and FMSS. They defended their deal with AIM as normal and correct. So to Singaporeans, if you are saying your relationship with AIM is perfectly okay, how can you now say the WP and FMSS has a "questionably close relationship"?
The two relationships between PAP-AIM and WP-FMSS are pretty similar and there lies PAP's problem. If the relationship between WP and FMSS is "questionable", then the relationship between PAP and AIM is also questionable! If the relationship between PAP and AIM is normal, then saying the relationship between WP and FMSS is questionable becomes ridiculous.
That is why to Singaporeans, the claims by Mr. Teo does not stick. To us, it is a case of the pot and the kettle.
6 comments:
aim is not the only company that is closely linked to PAP. Others are surbana and emservices.
Of course three may be more ...
Of course there are more. This is politics as per normal. Companies want to be closely linked to the ruling political party of their country. It's normal throughout the world. However when the PAP start saying the opposition can't do what they are doing themselves, then it becomes a problem for them.
I guess most Singaporeans generally know how the PAP operates. While the government can claim that the PA is a not associated with any political party, most Singaporeans cannot tell the difference between the PA and PAP except for the additional P. However this time around, they are caught out because financial details were revealed, something which was never easily disclosed before. Everyone knows that the law firm Lee & Lee had a "close relationship" with the PAP and accept the fact that they won the tender to work with HDB fair and legally. However, if the amount the firm made was ever made known, I am sure many would have been dumbstruck.
If people think of this as the pot and the kettle, PAP has succeeded.
No really. Like I said earlier, this kind of relationship is normal throughout the world. That is why I said where the start the PAP should not have tried to defend the deal between the town council and AIM. By acting defensive then, it now prevents them from launching attacks on the WP.
Ghost, I doubt it's "normal throughout the world". Most normal countries don't have one autocratic dynasty for their entire independent history, with political parties wrapped around them for obfuscation.
We know we're one of the richest countries in the world; we know that few of us not Connected to The Minister and His Cronies ever benefit from any of that wealth, and no matter how much lipstick you put on that particular pig, it's still a pig. The greatest kleptocracy in human history only became such after adopting the Singapore model; that as much as anything else should give us impetus to change.
Post a Comment