4 pointed questions Low Thia Khiang asked about Lui Tuck Yew quitting that are questions S'poreans are asking as well

Low Thia Khiang totally read our minds.

Belmont Lay| August 13, 06:45 PM

Workers' Party (WP) chief Low Thia Khiang spoke to reporters before his weekly Meet-The-People session in his Bedok Reservoir-Punggol ward of Aljunied GRC on Aug. 12, 2015.

There, he said the circumstances surrounding Transport Minister Lui Tuck Yew's decision to step down at the next general election (GE) left many questions unanswered.

Here are 4 questions he asked about Lui's exit from politics that had us going "Mmm that's true...":

 

1. The timeliness of Lui's retirement has more to it than meets the eye

Low's question: "Was it because of the recent incident of the MRT big breakdown, or is it because he feels that he has not been supported by his Cabinet colleagues, who are supposed to work as a team to give him enough confidence to stay on and to solve the issues?"

Why is it important?

Lui's departure could signal his disenchantment with how the Cabinet works; also, possibly, that he chose to quit due to political reasons — just that he's unlikely to disclose those reasons publicly.

There are hints that the stress of public life had gotten to him, though — at least that's what we gleaned from the Lianhe Zaobao interview.

 

2. Lui's resignation shows the PAP has wavered in their overall values

Low's question: "I thought the standard ethos of the PAP is that resignation doesn't solve the problem? You have to stay on to solve the problem as a minister, so I cannot understand why it happened at this time."

Why is it important?

If ministers can step down after two terms in parliament (with Lui's move as precedent), who can guarantee that the next generation of leaders from the PAP will not back down when the going gets tough or tougher?

 

3. Singapore's transport model might be the problem to end all solutions

Low's question: "Was it because, philosophically, how they (the Cabinet) treat transport is not correct and not convincing to the Minister for Transport?"

Why is it important?

Lui's predecessor, Raymond Lim, had also left the Cabinet after spending only one term at the helm. Could these, taken together, really be signals of a need for the government to fundamentally rethink Singapore's transport model?

 

4. Lui's disenchantment with the gerrymandering process

Low's question: Whether Lui's "morale" was affected after his Moulmein ward in Moulmein-Kallang GRC was "chopped off into pieces and redistributed" to other GRCs.

Why is it important?

Because this just shows gerrymandering affects everyone — opposition and incumbent — and Singapore will lose (good?) people if they are not happy with the process.

 

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