Since the Presidential Forum on Monday (28 Aug), Ng Kok Song and Tharman Shanmugaratnam have clashed on the issue of political affiliations.
However, it seems like they bear no ill will against each other, with the former even describing their relationship as friendly.
Mr Ng told reporters today (30 Aug) that he “deeply respects” Mr Tharman and that their differences are “differences of opinion”.
While Mr Ng was concerned about the system of presidency, Mr Tharman was focused on the individual.
On Wednesday (30 Aug), the 75-year-old fielded questions from the press before his walkabout at Hougang Hainanese Village Centre.
Answering a question on what he thinks of Mr Tharman stating that Mr Ng had misquoted him, he said:
No, I think I’ve already said what I said yesterday, so I don’t want to reopen the subject.
That said, Mr Ng noted that he and Mr Tharman are “good friends”, having even worked together.
He shared that the two were colleagues at the Monetary Authority Singapore (MAS) and the GIC.
“Our differences are differences of opinion,” said Mr Ng. “Such as when we speak about the presidency, I was concerned about the system, not the individual.”
For Mr Ng, he wanted to improve the system by having a non-partisan president.
The ex-GIC investment chief then stated that he has a “deep respect for Tharman”.
According to Mr Ng, international acquaintances who know of both him and Mr Tharman have said the following:
Singapore is so fortunate to have the two best people they can think of standing for the presidency.
Mr Ng’s walkabout happened the morning after a heckling incident at Clementi on Tuesday (29 Aug) night.
While he was taking photos with his supporters, a man on a bicycle caused a commotion — at one point shouting Tan Kin Lian’s name.
Speaking about the incident, Mr Ng assured everyone that he is fine, though he finds it unfortunate that such a thing could still happen in a place like Singapore.
“My main concern is that members of the public might be hurt by this,” he said.
“But I have full confidence in the police, I have full confidence in our Elections Department to ensure that the campaign is conducted in a peaceful way.”
Mr Ng also expressed his apologies to the supporters who could not take a photo with him as the incident caused the session to be cut short.
The presidential candidates have one last day to campaign for votes, and Mr Ng decided to do so in Hougang — a place that he said brings back much childhood nostalgia.
He also looked back on his initial motivations for throwing his hat into the presidential race.
“My concern at that time was that there might be another walkover in this Presidential Election,” said Mr Ng.
“That is not good for the people of Singapore and that is not good for the Presidency.”
By coming forward to run for president, Mr Ng hoped to honour the office of president.
Calling it unfortunate that George Goh had not qualified, he then said that he was glad to have stopped another potential walkover.
“I’m already very happy that I’ve achieved the first goal of my coming forward, which is to enable the people of Singapore the chance to exercise their right to vote.”
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All images by MS News. Photography by Iskandar Rossali.
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