May 9, 2011

MOULMEIN-KALLANG GRC
Yaacob: Disconnect with youth, national issues caused swing
By Cassandra Chew
THE swing in the PAP's vote share in Moulmein-Kallang GRC can be traced to two f
actors, said Minister for the Environment and Water Resources Yaacob Ibrahim yes
terday.
These are: national issues and not enough engagement with young voters.
Dr Yaacob, who led the People's Action Party (PAP) team to victory against a tea
m from the Workers' Party (WP), said he had expected a better showing than the 5
8.6 per cent they garnered.
The outcome is almost an 11 percentage point drop from 69.3 per cent in 2006, wh
en parts of the constituency was contested under the Jalan Besar GRC.
He said his higher expectations had been based on the 'very positive' feedback h
is team had received during the campaigning,
But given the final result, he concluded that voters made their choice based on
national rather than local issues, he told reporters after a thank- you parade i
n his group representation constituency (GRC).
Analysts similarly have blamed discontent over the cost of living, the influx of
foreigners and the perception that the PAP was losing touch with the people, fo
r the drop in the ruling party's overall tally.
Its share of valid votes in this general election fell by 6.5 percentage points
to 60.1 per cent, from 66.6 per cent in 2006.
Moulmein-Kallang, however, turned in the best result for the PAP among the four
GRCs that were contested by the WP.
The other three are Nee Soon (58.4 per cent), East Coast (54.8 per cent) and Alj
unied (45.3 per cent), which the PAP lost.
Looking back, Dr Yaacob conceded that while his team members have helped the eld
erly poor, they have not been able to effectively connect with its growing popul
ation of younger Singaporeans.
They now plan to look into how they can understand the concerns of young voters,
he said.
He also issued the young an open invitation to discuss their concerns whether in
person at his Meet-the- People Sessions or via e-mail.
Foreseeing keener competition at the polls if the WP establishes itself in Moulm
ein-Kallang, Dr Yaacob said: 'Our strategy will have to change. We cannot do mor
e of the same.'
Meanwhile, he plans to do better in serving residents at the municipal level and
one immediate change is to improve the communication between the town council a
nd residents.
Reflecting on his team's nine-day campaign, Dr Yaacob, who has contested in four
elections, noted how social media has made it more difficult to navigate the po
litical terrain.
Anyone can snap a photo and post it online, and a candidate feels being watched
and judged 24/7, he said.
Dr Yaacob was speaking to The Straits Times after a four-hour parade in his GRC
to thank voters.
With him were the other three members on his team: Minister for Information, Com
munications and the Arts Lui Tuck Yew, Ms Denise Phua and new face Edwin Tong.
They rode on top of a red, open-air bus with their activists and announced their
arrival with loud honks. Residents looking out of windows cheered and waved at
the three-vehicle contingent while pedestrians gave them the thumbs-up sign.
Among the residents waiting for their arrival at Albert Mall was Mr P. Siva, 62,
who turned up in support of Ms Phua.
'Denise is a very good MP. She connects with people better than Nokia,' said the
chairman of the board of trustees of Sri Krishnan Temple.