WP's fictional First World Parliament
Source: Straits Times
MS SYLVIA Lim's attempt to explain what the Workers' Party is saying exposes the inconsistencies in the WP's position ('What First World Parliament means: Sylvia'; April 15).
Ms Lim, astonishingly, says that WP's vision of a First World Parliament has no reference to any particular developed country! It is obvious why she refuses to name any specific country - there is no successful model that she can point to.
On the other hand, there are numerous examples of multi-party legislatures stuck in gridlock and engaged in political theatre, while governance, the economy and the people suffer.
The WP paints a picture of a Parliament in which it would simply act as a check on the Government, in order to help it govern better. The WP would, so it says, act only in the national interests, leaving aside party interests.
No such opposition party exists anywhere in the world, because any party with such an agenda is effectively resigning itself to never being in power or forming a government.
Indeed this is contrary to what the WP says it eventually wants to do, and to the stances its MPs have taken in Parliament up to now.
If the WP really only wants to speak up in Parliament and question government policies, and act as a check on the Government, then the Non-Constituency MP scheme provides for exactly that. But in truth, the WP wants more MPs in Parliament to form a base for greater electoral success in the future.
They will act as a bloc to bargain with the Government. They will also seek to block constitutional amendments - thereby again preventing effective governance. Ms Lim has said as much publicly.
This is exactly what we see in the United States, Taiwan, Belgium and other similar systems, which the WP claims it does not have in mind.
The result? Policies which would benefit the people cannot get passed. Many thoughtful American observers lament that this is happening in the US right now. In reality, the WP's vision is a 'Fictional World Parliament'.
"They will act as a bloc to bargain with the Government. They will also seek to block constitutional amendments - thereby again preventing effective governance."
MP Indranee Rajah. Like the rest of her comrades, having opposition in the parliament will bring down the productivity of the whole government. Instead of blindly signing off policies efficiently, the government will have to waste time "fixing" opposition, elaborating on empty policies and finding excuses for flaws that were brought up. And the worse scenario she could imagine is how the opposition can have the power to block fishy constitutional amendments.
Read more about Indranee Rajah in "Why MP Indranee Rajah needs a class in elementary logic".
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