GE2025: PAP the only party to have walked with S’pore through every crisis in last 60 years, says Tan See Leng (2025)

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SINGAPORE – The PAP is the only party that has walked with Singapore through every single crisis in the last 60 years, and its promise to Singapore remains unchanged – to always serve the people with all its heart, Manpower Minister Tan See Leng said on April 26.

At a rally at Keat Hong Plaza, Dr Tan said the PAP government is always pre-emptively planning for the next crisis, but that opposition parties had accused it of overreacting in the case of US tariffs.

“They are beginning to acknowledge how uncertain things are turning out, but we have already established the Singapore Economic Resilience Task Force... to make sure that every Singaporean will not be compromised,” he said.

The PAP also showed its competence during the Covid-19 pandemic – when Singapore had the lowest fatality rate anywhere in the world – and its ability to make long-term plans and execute them, he said, citing the Marina Barrage, Gardens by the Bay and the future Long Island coastal protection plan, which will take decades to build.

The PAP government is also likely the only one in the world that looks at every stage of a Singaporean’s life cycle to maximise their potential and ensure long-term career health, he added.

This includes recommending subsidised courses to help a mid-career worker get a skills top-up and stay employable, job-seeker support to help someone who becomes involuntarily unemployed to bounce back better, and career conversion programmes so that a worker in his 50s can continue to be productive.

“Every single crisis for the last 60 years, we have walked through and we will continue to walk with you, every single one of you, every step of the way because we are all fellow Singaporeans,” he said. “Our promise to you remains unchanged.”

Led by Dr Tan, 60, the PAP team contesting Chua Chu Kang GRC consists of incumbent MP Zhulkarnain Abdul Rahim, 44, former senior civil servant Jeffrey Siow, 46, and neuroscientist Choo Pei Ling, 38.

In his speech, Mr Siow urged Singaporeans not to listen to opposition parties when they say the PAP is overblowing the tariffs issue and that there is nothing to worry about.

“They are wrong. This is serious. A storm is coming, and that is why your vote in this election matters so much,” said the former second permanent secretary at the Trade and Industry, and Manpower ministries.

He added: “The opposition has no experience, has done nothing of significance for Singapore in a crisis, but our PAP leaders, time and again, have proven themselves.”

Mr Siow said the PAP government has been able to take Singapore safely through crises such as the Covid-19 pandemic because it had the trust and support of Singaporeans. In the same way, it would need a mandate from the people to negotiate effectively with countries like the US and China in this changed world, he added.

Agreeing, Dr Tan said: “If you give me the mandate, I will never worry because when I go out, I negotiate a deal, I know my back is supported by all of you.”

Prime Minister Lawrence Wong, who also spoke at the Keat Hong rally, acknowledged that many Chua Chu Kang residents were sad that Deputy Prime Minister Gan Kim Yong, who was the GRC’s anchor minister, had been redeployed to Punggol.

At the 2020 polls, DPM Gan’s PAP team won Chua Chu Kang GRC with a vote share of 58.64 per cent.

PM Wong said it was a very difficult decision as Senior Minister Teo Chee Hean’s retirement meant he needed “a steady and experienced leader to anchor the entire north-east area”, and Mr Gan was the best person for that role.

But he did not leave Chua Chu Kang without someone capable of carrying on the work there, and the best person to do so is Dr Tan.

He said Dr Tan had worked in Marine Parade for the past five years, and Emeritus Senior Minister Goh Chok Tongcan vouch for him. ESM Goh was also at the rally on April 26.

PM Wong added that Dr Tan will be supported by a strong team, including Mr Zhulkarnain, Dr Choo – who has been a community volunteer for years – and Mr Siow, who he said has the potential to be an office-holder.

He added that his division of Limbang in Marsiling-Yew Tee is right next door.

“So we are one big family, together with Bukit Gombak,” he said. “But to keep improving this whole area, I need your support because town planning improvements all work best when there is good coordination.

“We can only do that effectively if all of us are helmed and anchored by PAP teams,” said PM Wong.

Dr Choo said in her speech that she joined the PAP as she believed in the party’s leadership, which had never been about empty promises.

As a working mother to a one-year-old, Dr Choo said that she understood the stress of juggling work, caregiving and parenting that many families go through. If elected, she will push to expand access to affordable and quality childcare and eldercare services, and to support families.

Mr Zhulkarnain thanked Chua Chu Kang residents for their support, and said the PAP’s Chua Chu Kang team had made many improvements that have benefited the Malay/Muslim community, such as more halal food options, more terawih prayer places in Brickland, and the new mosque to be built in Tengah.

“But there are those who are not satisfied. Don’t let outsiders divide us, don’t let what we have built so far be in vain,” he said in Malay. “When the future of the country and of our children is at stake, we must defend our homeland and our future.”

Ms Low Yen Ling, who is contesting the newly created Bukit Gombak SMC, said the PAP’s Chua Chu Kang and Bukit Gombak candidates are ready to work together to enact the $212 million five-year town plan that had been announced earlier in April.

This includes more playgrounds, green spaces, fitness facilitiesand Singapore’s only professional cycling track for bicycle motocross (BMX).

“We are now an SMC, but... it does not change the fact that Bukit Gombak will still be very much a part of the big Chua Chu Kang family,” she said. “I will continue to work closely with the Chua Chu Kang Town Council to enhance our Bukit Gombak estate.”

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