Based on my understanding and what people have been telling me, quite a number of Singaporeans voted for, and support the opposition parties simply because they don't like the ruling party. They just want to "scare" the ruling party. They want the ruling party to listen up. Even if the opposition parties' members are not good enough or ready to be cabinet ministers, and they are not ready to "replace" the ruling party and run the country, they are ok with it. As long as they can voice their concerns in parliament and keep the ruling party "in check", they will support them.
There are plenty of other reasons given as well: The ruling party's actions irk them; the ruling party "doesn't care about the people"; the ruling party "is using their money without good explanations or not put to good use"; the ruling party uses the "top-down approach and doesn't respect the people"; there is no "transparency, honesty or integrity". They also say, the ruling party's ministers are "money-grubbing people who are in politics for money only", nevermind that they are getting verbal abuses from people on a daily basis, or that they are putting their families at risk of the abuses as well. Some may even have to put their families in the backseat to juggle their work well. Oh and also, nevermind that they are getting judged for everything that they and their families may do privately, as they are always under public scrutiny.
I just don't understand how this would work out. Most of them have/had a normal job to begin with, earning I suppose, a reasonable amount of money (given their level of qualifications), and that is without the public scrutiny and stress... so... I don't see how that's a good trade-off for anyone just for the sake of money.
Oh, and to those people, these kinda sacrifices come with their roles, and that's what they are "supposed to get" when they get paid "by the people" to "serve them" so they should suck it up and take whatever shit people throw to them because "the people pay their salaries". Side note: When someone has this kinda distorted mindset, then don't bother to argue with them anymore. Waste of saliva and energy. Just hope that those people are not your bosses, because if they are, you're technically their slaves and they own you. The fact that you're also a human being would be disregarded because you're now beneath them as you are getting paid by them. :)
Anyway, there are also rumours and conspiracy theories about how the MPs in the ruling party behave. Then of course, there are some real black sheep in the ruling party who have made mistakes and were asked to leave or have left.
Ok, so all these are the people's opinions. Their perceptions. Their freedom to believe whatever they want to. And some are of course, the truths (albeit distorted at times due to subjective interpretation and presentation using biased extracted information).
None of anybody's business, right? Like how my thoughts are none of anyone's business, unless I write or say something malicious and libelous.
However, what baffles me greatly is when the oppositions commit the "same wrongdoings" that the ruling party's MPs have supposedly been doing (according to their conspiracy theories or due to past events/incidents), it's suddenly ok for the oppositions to do so. Those supporters will not question why, but will stand by them, saying things like, "So what? The PAPs have been doing that... The PAPs have been doing this... why not [insert opposition party]?"
Let me understand this. As long as the mistake has been supposedly committed by the ruling party before, it is therefore ok for the oppositions to do so? And why are you supporting the opposition parties again? Oh right, because you don't like what the ruling party has been doing. So now, you're supporting another party who is doing the same thing, but then it's ok because they're not the PAP.
Contradicting and confusing much?
To the mistakes committed by their beloved opposition party, they will say it's a "small issue", and that it's a waste of time to discuss those issues any further. That we should move on and look at how to help "poor people in the country" and to "chase out foreigners".
Which, I suppose those people haven't been reading the news much. Or maybe they are doing selective reading and listening this whole time. So they are unaware or choose to be oblivious to the changes and initiatives that have been made to slowly adjust and rectify those problems that they have been harping on incessantly.
I guess to them, revising legislations, making improvements, and resolving problems must all be instantaneous. The ruling party must be able to solve major national issues in a blink of any eye. No, you cannot take years to solve problems. If you're adjusting things slowly, you're just not doing anything. And I thought only children would unreasonably demand instant gratifications.
The ruling party, is not the perfect party. There are people inside who make mistakes. Who say the wrong things. Who have done the wrong things. But, they have always explained about it, even if their explanations do not please the people, they hardened their balls and explained anyway. They have taken actions to rectify issues, to remove people who have erred. They have apologised when it was necessary to do so. A lot of those ardent opposition supporters just brush those things aside as "wayang", "PR", "acting" and "trying to buy votes". Discrediting all that they have done to change "their ways" because they have listened to what the people have said. No matter what they do, it's never the right thing and it's never good enough.
And, let's look at the number one opposition party. Whenever they are questioned about their supposed wrongdoings. Silence. Deafening silence.
Then, I see nothing constructive presented in Parliament. They were voted in by a lot of people to air their grievances, and at times they did. But they have also agreed to certain things they have previously disagreed about during elections (which had garnered them lots of support, hurhur).
There were plagiarisms, unexplained behaviours and party problems. There were immature jibes made online, insults thrown and just silence most of the time. But those people cut them slack because they are the underdogs. To them, those things are not big issues because they are not national issues. Even if those issues reflect on the integrity and moral standards of the people involved, it's ok. As long as they are not national issues, they simply don't care. Though the same can't be said about their expectations for the ruling party's MPs.
When a PAP MP commits a mistake, when a member of a Ministry or Stat. Board makes a mistake, it's totally unforgivable. The matter must be explained and an apology must be given. No matter what. Suddenly, integrity, honesty, transparency become important "national issues". It becomes the PAP's fault no matter what because the people under them made the mistakes. The people they choose must be screened and perfect, they must know them inside out and no bad eggs must slip through and surface one day.
As for the opposition parties, it's ok if bad eggs surface in their parties, it's just a slight misjudgement on their part. No biggie. Really? Come on, there are bad eggs everywhere in this world. People who can act and are capable of performing. Look around you... you think there's a way to only hire innately good people all the time?
Of course they must take responsibility for people under them when they err, or if signs are there and were ignored. But if they realised the people they trusted have betrayed their trust and took actions to remove them and come clean to the people, then shouldn't that be respected? It's a hundred times better than how a party handled their issue by quietly waiting for it to blow over.
Sigh.
The irony. The double-standard.
Unbelievable.
I really don't know how to end this post. It's just so absurd, I can't wrap my mind around it no matter how I see it.
I cannot understand the logic behind the mindset of those people, but yet, I am also glad I do not understand it. For if I did, I would most probably be as unreasonable and illogical as well.
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