Mr Tharman Shanmugaratnam, one of Singapore’s three presidential hopefuls, has said that it’s superficial to only look at a candidate’s past affiliations.
He spoke to the press on Saturday (26 Aug) morning during his walkabout at Tiong Bahru Market.
“Let’s focus on the individual because this is a leadership contest and we can’t look in an artificial way at past affiliations,” said Mr Tharman.
The former Deputy Prime Minister (DPM) also took the opportunity to clarify that he hasn’t been endorsed by any political party.
On Thursday (24 Aug), fellow presidential candidate Mr Ng Kok Song told reporters that the elected president should be non-partisan to preserve the “spirit” of the constitution.
“In simple language, non-partisan is no party,” he said.
When asked for his response to Mr Ng’s remarks, Mr Tharman first pointed out that he hasn’t been endorsed by any party.
Source: 8视界新闻新加坡 8world News on Facebook
He then said that it would’ve been a “grave pity” to rule out individuals such as Mr Ong Teng Cheong or Mr Tan Cheng Bock simply because of their past affiliations.
“We can’t rule everyone out,” said Mr Tharman.
Following this, he urged Singaporeans to consider an individual’s character instead.
“Let’s look at the character of a person and what they’re bringing for the future,” he said.
Mr Tharman then said that the Presidential Elections (PE) is too important to be reduced to the simplicities of past affiliations.
When asked about how he feels at this juncture of the campaign, the seasoned politician said that he’s enjoying himself.
“Stamina hasn’t been a problem, because I’ve been doing this for years,” said the 66-year-old.
Mr Tharman also shared that the conversations with the public have kept him going.
Describing Singaporeans as “optimistic” and “positive”, he remarked that these interactions are always heartening.
“They like having a conversation, they like sharing a little bit of what’s happening to their kids,” said Mr Tharman.
“It keeps you going, you never think about whether you’re tired or not.”
Also read: What You See Is What You Get: Tharman Says He’s A Known Entity In S’pore
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Featured image adapted from 8视界新闻新加坡 8world News on Facebook and by MS News. Photography by Dayana Rizal.
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