SINGAPORE — For the second night running, Workers’ Party (WP) chief Low Thia Khiang took aim at the ruling party over the Aljunied-Hougang-Punggol East Town Council (APHETC) issue, claiming recent statements by People’s Action Party ministers were a means to distort facts.

In his Mandarin speech at the WP’s rally, Mr Low listed Minister of State for National Development Desmond Lee and Deputy Prime Minister Teo Chee Hean as among those who suggested that Hougang Town council was financially troubled before it was merged with a financially viable Aljunied Town Council.

He also took umbrage at Law and Foreign Affairs Minister K Shanmugam, who questioned last month whether voters wanted to help subsidise other town council losses.

“The PAP is using this chance to make personal attacks ... to gain political capital,” said Mr Low. “There’s no factual basis for their attacks.”

While WP chairman Sylvia Lim had said earlier yesterday (Sept 3) that the party intends to speak on “broader issues” at its coming rallies, after devoting a chunk of its first rally on town council issues, Mr Low took to the podium to set out some facts.

Hougang Town Council was not facing any financial problems before the last General Election, but rather, it had a surplus of over S$80,000 then, he said. “The PAP leaders are trying to mislead voters ... What kind of credibility are we still talking about?” charged Mr Low. In turn, he rubbished the PAP’s emphasis on party renewal at every election, saying that the ruling party is still “narrow-minded” when it comes to embracing those with opposing views: “I want to ask Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong, is this quality of the PAP?”

Meanwhile, Ms Lim criticised the PAP Government for trying to infiltrate into every aspect of Singaporeans’ lives, such as by appointing government representatives in sports associations. Having touched on this briefly during the WP’s candidate introductions, she went into greater depth on the issue last night at the rally in Jalan Besar — the home of Singapore’s football administration.

First referring to the heyday of the national football team, Ms Lim then pointed to the “embarrassing” fact that FIFA has now asked the Football Association of Singapore to put its internal elections on hold due to possible government interference.

Stressing that the problem was not the efforts of local sportsman but the structure of sports associations, Ms Lim said “the Sports Minister should be committing harakiri” to cheers from the crowd. It was a jibe at another PAP leader, this time National Development Minister Khaw Boon Wan, who had said during the AHPETC debate in Parliament that those guilty of financial mismanagement in listed companies in Japan would be subjected to the traditional ritual suicide act.

Like Mr Low, who spoke on the need for diversity of views and ideas to keep Singapore competitive in the next 50 years, Ms Lim said Singaporeans’ passions must be tapped to take the country forward instead of being over-dependent on the PAP Government.

Arguing that PAP MPs must still abide by the ministers’ decisions on policy matters, she said: “Letting (the PAP) check themselves is (like) giving them a blank cheque.”

Turning to the WP’s vision of the future, Mr Low said there was a need for a new political environment, one that is reflective of a democratic country based on constructive debate, and not “dirty politics”. In his English speech, he sought voters’ mandate to “stop the PAP from becoming so self-absorbed” and seeing the Opposition and critics as troublemakers. “We must remind the PAP that there’s a distinction between what is national interest and what is the PAP party interest ... WP supporters are just as loyal to Singapore as any PAP supporter,” he said.

In the same breath, he noted that the media landscape here has evolved with the advent of social media, allowing for the flow of more information, and added that there was a need for a system that promotes such progress. “The past is our mirror, the present is our reflection and the future is in our hands to make,” said Mr Low.

CORRECTION: In an earlier version of this article, it was reported that Mr Low listed Senior Minister of State Lee Yi Shan in his Mandarin speech. He had referred to Minister of State for National Development Desmond Lee. We are sorry for the error.