Let the courtship of Punggol East begin

Following the announcement of the Writ of Election yesterday, SMU Assistant Professor of Law and NMP Eugene Tan commented that having the by-election sooner rather than later shows Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong’s exemplary leadership. “He is putting the long-term interests of the country ahead of the party’s short-term interests,” he said. Assistant Prof Tan added that the opposition parties’ interest was understandable. “The by-election presents parties with opportunities to profile themselves. It’s free advertisement and no one wants to be excluded. Punggol East is a relatively young constituency and young people tend to be less enamoured of the PAP. They are more open to the opposition’s courtship,” he said.