Election Campaign Gets Underway in Singapore

Campaign for the 10th general election is getting underway in Singapore as both the ruling People's Action Party (PAP) and opposition parties are making public their manifestoes and unveiled their new candidates.

The ruling PAP Friday launched its manifesto entitled "A United People, Secure Future and Better Life" and released an open letter from Singapore Prime Minister Goh Chok Tong calling Singaporeans to back his "tested and experienced team" to see them through the present economic crisis and into the future.

For the past three successive days, PAP has been engaged in introducing its new candidates and up to now 13 out of a line-up of 25 new PAP candidates have stood out to make their promises in a move to solicit for support from voters.

The opposition Workers' Party (WP) held the first opposition press conference Saturday since the general election was called in Singapore and announced it will fight on the platform of "Power to the People."

WP's Secretary General Low Thia Khiang said his party's plans are to expand its usual support base - which is the working class - - to include those it calls the "New Poor."

He also unveiled two candidates his party is fielding although he was tight-lipped on his party's election strategies and reluctant to disclose the exact number of his party's candidates or where they will be contesting.

Members of the PAP team as well as the opposition rank have geared up to take on rivals, going down to the grass roots units and into the midst of common people to woo voters to support them.

PAP leaders are making full use of various chances to give publicity to PAP manifesto and programs and have issued calls to vote for PAP.

Local leading English newspaper "The Straits Times" reported that party leaders have already engaged in a war of words.

Citing as an example, the report said Deputy Prime Minister and PAP's First Assistant Secretary General Lee Hsien Loong slammed the opposition for its lack of ideas and the opposition charged the PAP with shifting the electoral boundaries and giving a short election notice to suit its own purpose.

The Elections Department said Saturday that it has issued a total of 214 Nomination Papers over the last two days, with 74 for the Single-Member Constituencies and 140 for Group Representation Constituencies.

Fifty applications were also issued to the Malay Community Committee and 33 for the Indian and other Minority Communities Committee, the department added.

The government has announced that November 3, 2001, is the Polling Day and October 25 is the nomination day.






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