Mountbatten SMC PAP candidate Gho Sze Kee says bitcoin is 'gambling', opponent Jeremy Tan replies, 'Ok haha'

Gho Sze Kee, the People's Action Party (PAP) candidate for Mountbatten SMC, shot down the policy proposals of her opponent, independent candidate Jeremy Tan.

At her rally at Home of Athletics on Apr. 30, the 46-year-old maritime lawyer said investing in bitcoin is "gambling", and said: "The PAP does not believe in gambling."

In her speech, she rejected Tan's idea that investing in bitcoin could be a solution to alleviating the costs of living and allowing people to retire more comfortably in Singapore.

A 2-minute segment of her speech showed her saying:

Some of your questions about the policies and proposals about my opponent, about bitcoin, were raised to me.

So, let me be clear about this.

Many of the residents that I have met told me they rejected, so I won't give it too much exposure.

But for the older generations who may not be familiar with bitcoin, or cryptocurrencies, let me just summarise.

My opponent wants the government to bet our money in a wildly volatile product: Bitcoin.

And guess what? Bitcoin is not backed up by any physical assets or any government body and this is unlike the U.S. treasury bonds or gold.

It can go to zero.

There is nothing, nothing to back it up.

My opponent will and can only tell you the upside.

This is what I call "gambling".

And let me say this again, in very clear terms.

The PAP does not believe in gambling.

...

Other proposals are also similar.

Additional 0.5 per cent more interest on CPF money used for investment into bitcoin products to be paid by the government.

Bitcoin baby products. Bitcoin for newly ORD NSmen.

Just ask the government for more money.

It will be irresponsible, perhaps downright naive to think that these problems we face could easily be solved with an AI paragraph.

Opponent responds

Asked by Mothership to respond to her comments, Tan, 34, a retiree, referred to his written reply on the video.

He wrote: "Ok haha"

Background

At the start of his campaign when he announced his candidacy, Tan disclosed that he is a proponent of bitcoin, while disregarding other cryptocurrencies.

The former businessman also revealed that he bought up to 13 bitcoins more than a decade ago for about S$380 per bitcoin.

He currently still holds six bitcoins, worth about S$737,000 at current prices.

He previously told Mothership that his advocacy of bitcoin is evidence-based.

Tan has made his policy website a centrepiece of his campaign and has spoken about how housing prices in Singapore is eating away at future retirement funds.

@jeremytan.sg When we use our CPF for the HDB, we lose our precious retirement savings. What is meant for our beautiful later years becomes a decaying lease. We need to end this policy. We need to compound our savings again - inflation proof! Medical costs are already the second highest spending. Dangerous unless we act now! #ge2025 #voteforjeremytan #sgelections #mountbatten #mountbattensmc #hdbsg #hdb #cpf #beRetirednotTired ​​​​​​​#generalelection #sgpolitics #hdbsg ♬ original sound - Jeremy Tan - Jeremy Tan - jeremytan.sg

His election slogan, "Be retired, not tired", advocates for measures to help Singaporeans retire more comfortably.

Top photo via CNA YouTube & Jeremy Tan TikTok