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| Dr Kieran James (left) with Mr Yee Jenn Jong, Siglap McDonald's, Singapore, 6 Oct 2011 |
My interview with Mr Yee Jenn Jong (Workers’ Party, NCMP and contestant for Joo Chiat SMC, 7 May 2011 election)
By Dr Kieran James (University of Southern Queensland)
Personal Interview at: Singapore, 6 October 2011 (as amended by YJJ on 27 October 2011)
Kieran James: First of all can you tell me how you became politicized and how and why you got interested in opposition politics?
Yee Jenn Jong: When I was standing for election, one of the first things I did was explain my stance. I’ve always been interested [in opposition] after I started work; it was a personal journey understanding more of what can be done. I believe there should not be a monopoly on views. I write to [Straits Times] Forum pages [to express my alternative views].
Two months before the election, February, I approached them [Workers’ Party]. I became a member, early to middle of March. The rest is history. For me, as a newcomer, the challenge was to get myself known among the candidates, 80+ opposition, 24 new PAP [candidates]. I knew that would be a challenge. The press would not be interested in me. I put up a blog and Facebook. I tried to anticipate what voters would want to know about me. What really matters in an election are the constituents. I worked the ground hard; I knocked on every house, [although] not every resident was in.
KJ: Did you choose to contest in your own local area of Joo Chiat?
YJJ: I let it be known Joo Chiat was my preferred place. I [have] lived here all my life, I’m a professional and an entrepreneur, and it [my background] would resonate with middle-class professionals and working-class here. It was a party decision to let me stand here. It [Joo Chiat SMC] was created two elections ago. In 06 Workers’ Party contestant had around 34-35%. [KJ: Singapore-elections.com states that the WP’s Tan Bin Seng scored 35%.]
KJ: How satisfied were you with the result in Joo Chiat SMC?
YJJ: It was a 14% swing. We always wanted to win; no-one wants to be the best loser. We were trying hard to win. [With] six weeks to campaign, being a newcomer, that’s a satisfactory result. It gives you the basis to improve later on. The party was happy. We scored more than what we wanted.
KJ: Will you contest in Joo Chiat SMC at the next election?
YJJ: It depends next time whether there will be a Joo Chiat, [and] it depends on the party. No-one gave Joo Chiat a chance. It’s a middle-class area with private housing. One of the [political] analysts said middle-class voters don’t want to see loss in property values [associated with a PAP loss of the seat]. We very much had a grassroots campaign; we went door to door, rain or shine. I think middle-class voters appreciate a choice. They like a more experienced person [YJJ is 46-years-old], they are more apprehensive with a younger candidate. Analysts try to explain the phenomenon after the event.
KJ: What do you think are the main factors behind the success of the Workers’ Party in the last two elections?
YJJ: If you analyze Singaporeans, people are OK with some sort of alternative. They feel a monopoly is not healthy, but we know what it took for Singapore to get where it is. You must always come across as rational and responsible. If you come across to oppose [then] you will get 25%-30% of the vote; that is the base of opposition voters. How do you win over the next 20%? That’s the middle ground; no-one wants the area to suffer for five years at the hands of someone who can’t run the place.
KJ: What has been the role of Mr Low Thia Khiang’s leadership?
YJJ: Mr Low’s leadership is instrumental. Being a small party, leadership comes across as very important. Opposition must be organized, with proper brand, just as a company must come across as coherent and organized to succeed. Mr Low has been managing that very well. In the twenty years he has been here, Hougang [SMC] people see it has been very well run and maintained and respectable, although we don’t have the resources. It is a very important milestone in Singapore to win the [Aljunied] GRC. It is obvious it was a well-kept secret that Mr Low would come out [of Hougang SMC]. PAP intelligence was not good enough. They read the ground wrongly; they thought it would be too risky to come out.
KJ: Has the Workers’ Party suffered from the three departures, Chia Ti Lik, Goh Meng Seng and James Gomez?
YJJ: There is always a self-renewal process. If people cannot share the ethos it is better they go somewhere they can be themselves. A party cannot be everything for everybody. For Workers’ Party matches my own personal beliefs most strongly.
KJ: Do you mean the style or the policies match you?
YJJ: The style and the policies. We must think, if we are the government, can we implement it [WP policy] and [still] keep Singapore harmonious and prosperous? I want to be in a party that is responsible in the way they put their views across. Workers’ Party identifies with those who fall through the cracks. PAP ignores social responsibility to the working-class; how hard do you try for the underprivileged?
KJ: Are there any plans to raise Joo Chiat-related issues in the new parliament?
YJJ: Normally we don’t talk about a particular constituency in parliament. With eight of us now from Workers’ Party there are a lot more areas we can develop and cover. We will cover the whole range of issues of interest to Singaporeans. There will not be a specific issue which defines Workers’ Party in this parliament; it will be a whole range of things.
KJ: The three people I mentioned who left Workers’ Party claimed a lack of party support for internet activism. Do you feel that the party supports your online activities?
YJJ: Gerald Giam has an English book, email him for a copy. Gerald was the former editor of The Online Citizen. I started my blog this year. I joined the party this year so I can’t comment on why they [those three people] left the party. I don’t feel constricted regarding internet. If I disagree, I will speak internally. There is a self-censorship in a way. I joined the party which shares the views I have, so I don’t often find myself disagreeing with the party. People [in your own party] are like colleagues. You need a certain confidence you can work with them. I approached Workers’ Party saying I would like to join up. The rest is history. They did not specifically court me. Your aim when you form a party is to get into parliament. The long term goal is to get into government. You need to start winning elections; just as in business you need customers. You need to start with some seats and grow them. Each party will do its own analysis about what it is people want.
KJ: Do you think a coalition government is likely in the next fifteen years?
YJJ: We never know what will happen, whether [it will be a] coalition government in the next ten to fifteen years [or not]. Politicians have a life span, I believe monopoly is bad, whether in business or in government. I want to be part of setting Singapore on a path that has a credible alternative. Whether I will [be around to] see Workers’ Party have one-third [seats] or form government, it really depends on Singaporeans, not on us.
KJ: Thank you very much for your time.
YJJ: Thank you.
Kieran James' note: Permission has been given for this interview also to be published at THE ONLINE CITIZEN.
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