Mr Goh's PAP team won in Marine Parade, but its majority was surprisingly the third-worst amongst all PAP GRC teams
Mr Goh Chok Tong and his PAP team were returned to Parliament by the voters of Marine Parade, but it will not have gone unnoticed that the Senior Minister’s margin of victory was remarkably and surprisingly slender.
The results will have come as a slap in the face for the respected statesman and former Prime Minister, especially since his team came up against relatively weak opposition.
Mr Goh’s PAP team won with 56.65% of the votes against the National Solidarity Party’s Cheo Chai Chen, Ivan Yeo, Spencer Ng, Abdul Salim Harun and Nicole Seah. Though the result may have been influenced by a nationwide swing against the PAP, the margin of victory in Marine Parade was the third-lowest out of 14 GRCs – which is especially shocking, given that the ward is considered one of the PAP’s traditional strongholds.
Marine Parade was last contested in a by-election in 1992, in which Mr Goh’s team romped home with over 75% of the votes against a formidable SDP team containing Dr Chee Soon Juan, veteran Ashleigh Seow, and former PAP MP Low Yong Nguan. The NSP team of 2011 pales in comparison, with only Mr Cheo being a recognised name in politics – he was an SDP MP from 1991 to 1997.
In spite of this, Mr Goh’s team was one of the worst-performing PAP GRC teams, with the ruling party faring worse in only Aljunied (45.29%) and East Coast (54.83%).
The poor results might have been explained by the overnight rise to superstardom of Ms Seah – who, at the age of 24, has already become Singapore’s most popular politician on the internet. Her Facebook page received more than 70,000 “likes” within the nine-day campaign period, outstripping Minister Mentor Lee Kuan Yew.
Ms Seah has drawn comparisons with one of Mr Goh’s Marine Parade team mates, 27-year old Tin Pei Ling, whose widespread unpopularity due to her perceived immaturity and shallowness will have almost certainly pulled down the PAP’s vote.
The inclusion of Ms Tin has led many voters to criticise the unfairness of the GRC system, which allows weaker candidates like herself to be parachuted into Parliament on the coat-tails of seasoned veterans like Mr Goh. Many voters in Marine Parade could have cast their votes against the PAP in protest of this perceived unfairness.
In addition, Mr Goh may also have cost his own team some votes by making an about-turn during the campaign, breaking a promise he made on Nomination Day not to comment on any opposition candidates outside his GRC.
However, he later criticised his former Principal Private Secretary, SDP candidate Tan Jee Say, saying that the latter had left the civil service because he could not make it as a Permanent Secretary. His comments left many observers expressing their disappointment in him, especially since he enjoys a reputation for being gentlemanly and statesmanlike.
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Now he has said that TPL is the reason behind his poor showing and vowed that TPL will become much better after 3 years.
LOL
Considering all the groups, media, machineries at their disposal, this is poor result. Simple majority is deemed a victory but nothing to shout about. Whereas the challengers were less equipped and have less time to prepare, they have done a remarkably. More people are awakened. Not because they have been asleep. But rather they have no hope of getting their voice heard and.
The sight of Woody Goh having to accompany TPL on her walkabouts is a joke. He’s an expensive chaperon. Its like a cartoon scene – the tall guy and a little girl. This expensive combination will be at TPL’s MPS.
He is there to make LKY’s presence less embarrassing.
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Woody Goh is fighting with people whom he called has no substance. But he managed to only return this kind of result. Shameless char tau!