GE2025: Do not hold Singaporeans hostage to 'politics of fear', says SDP's Ariffin Sha

SINGAPORE: Singaporeans should not be held hostage to “politics of fear”, said Singapore Democratic Party (SDP) candidate Ariffin Sha on Monday (Apr 28), in response to Prime Minister Lawrence Wong’s remarks on how losing ministers would weaken the government during a challenging time.

Speaking at the party’s fifth rally in as many days, Mr Ariffin listed some ministers who previously lost their parliamentary seats and how Singapore continued "running fine".

The 28-year-old legal executive was among eight SDP candidates who spoke at Woodlands Stadium, which is in Marsiling-Yew Tee GRC.

He is part of the SDP team taking on a People's Action Party (PAP) team led by Mr Wong in the constituency. 

Others who spoke at the rally at Woodlands Stadium included party chief Chee Soon Juan, who took aim at ministers’ salaries.

"REJECT POLITICS OF FEAR"

Mr Ariffin told the crowd on Monday to “reject the politics of fear”.

“What Singaporeans don’t realise is that the backbone of Singapore is our rank-and-file civil servants, not our ministers. It is the civil service that keeps Singapore running even when parliament is dissolved,” he added.

Mr Wong had said during a lunchtime rally on Monday that the loss of ministers, if it happens, would be “immediately felt and can’t be replaced”. He also said losing three to four ministers would weaken the Cabinet and Singapore.

Mr Ariffin hit back at those comments, noting that Mr George Yeo lost the contest in Aljunied GRC in 2011 when he was foreign minister.

“We moved on. Singapore moved on. And to be fair to him, he also respected the decision of the voters. Didn't see him parachuted in anywhere, and he didn't go to NTUC (National Trades Union Congress)."

Another former Cabinet minister, Mr Ng Chee Meng, also did not win a seat in GE2020. Mr Ng was part of the PAP team that lost in Sengkang GRC to a Workers' Party (WP) team that year.

“But Sengkang is running fine. Am I right?” Mr Ariffin said.

“Singapore is running fine … We are bigger than our ministers, so please do not hold Singaporeans hostage. Don’t give in to the politics of fear, but vote without fear.”

He said that whenever opposition parties lay out their policies, it is said that they are "raiding the reserves" and people question how their proposals would be funded.

The SDP has a “very detailed manifesto” that lays out policies from education to housing and the economy, along with how the party will fund them, Mr Ariffin noted.

“So don’t ever let anyone tell you that the opposition only gives ideas and don’t tell you how to do it.”

Mr Ariffin also said it is “all about dissipating the politics of fear, thanks to the relentless advocacy of the Workers’ Party”.

WP chief Pritam Singh had recently noted how access to Community Improvement Projects Committee (CIPC) funding, which covers improvements to HDB estates such as the building of recreational facilities, has been “a long-standing battle” fought by opposition politicians.

“These days, still can get CIPC grants, quite okay,” said Mr Ariffin.

“It’s not like those days in Hougang and Potong Pasir, where your constituency may be left behind. These days, it’s quite an even playing field,” he added.

Hougang has been an opposition stronghold since the WP won it in 1991, and Potong Pasir SMC was held by veteran opposition politician Chiam See Tong for 27 years before the PAP won there in 2011.

MINISTERIAL SALARIES

During the rally, Dr Chee hit out at ministers’ salaries, saying they “live in another universe” not recognised by those in “the real world of HDB estates”.

According to a Factually article on ministerial salaries, which was accurate as of February 2025, the salary norm for an entry-level minister, including bonuses, was S$1.1 million (US$840,000) a year.

The prime minister’s total norm salary is set at two times that of an entry-level minister’s – S$2.2 million.

Dr Chee also compared the size of HDB flats with those of Good Class Bungalows, as well as properties at Ridout Road that are rented by Law and Home Affairs Minister K Shanmugam and Foreign Affairs Minister Vivian Balakrishnan.

“Just to put it in perspective, the average size of an HDB flat you and I live in is about 100sqm. Mr Shanmugam’s house at 26 Ridout Road is 23,000sqm,” he said.

Dr Chee told the crowd that wealth inequality is a "serious problem" in Singapore and will worsen if "not enough" opposition Members of Parliament (MPs) are elected this year.

“We work and slog all our lives, play by the rules, pay our taxes, but end up with tiny 99-year HDB flats, while foreign billionaires and ministers live in opulence and get to see their properties increase in price and then get to pass them on to their children.”

HOUSING POLICY

Party chairman Tambyah spoke about the party’s housing policy, where it has reiterated its proposal for a Non-Open Market (NOM) scheme for HDB flats. The central idea behind the NOM scheme is to exclude land cost from HDB flat prices.

According to SDP’s proposal, NOM flats would be built on specially zoned land and can only be sold back to HDB at the purchase price minus lease consumption.

Prof Tambyah noted that Health Minister Ong Ye Kung said only people who breach HDB rules, or default on mortgages, will sell their flats back to HDB at a lower price.

“That may be his opinion, but many Singaporeans, especially those my age, remember the era from the mid-1960s to the mid-1980s when it was possible to buy a flat for way below S$100,000,” he added.

Mr Ong is running in Sembawang GRC, and is in a three-cornered fight with SDP and the National Solidarity Party (NSP). He has called on opposition parties to explain funding gaps in their policy ideas.

MENTAL HEALTH PLAN

The party’s deputy head of policy Dr James Gomez also launched the SDP’s plan on mental health, in what he called a “supplementary document” to the SDP’s existing national healthcare plan.

Dr Chee first spoke on Sunday about Singapore facing a “mental health crisis” that the government had to do more to address.

Dr Gomez told the crowd on Monday: “(Prime Minister) Lawrence Wong’s failure to address the real pressures is weighing heavily on the mental health of our people, and there are five reasons for this.”

He listed these reasons as uncontrolled immigration; job competition amid increased immigration and import of foreign labour; skyrocketing cost of living as wages stagnate; cyberbullying; and caregiving burdens placed on working adults.

One new proposal is introducing formal mental health leave, which Dr Gomez said the party will advocate for to “tackle the growing problem of workplace stress”.

The SDP will also launch sustained nationwide mental health education campaigns to break the stigma on mental health and encourage people to seek help early, he added.

The party further proposed expanding financial support to ease caregivers’ burden, as well as creating and expanding parks and green spaces for Singaporeans to “find peace among the stresses of city life”, said Dr Gomez.

The party has said it would build community-based wellness centres, focused on youths and working adults, as well as accessible hubs for care counselling and crisis support services.

“Let’s be clear - Singapore's mental health crisis is not a product of faith. It’s a result of years of negligence, bad policies and the absence of effective action by the PAP government,” Dr Gomez said.

He added: "SDP offers something different. We are committed to building a Singapore where mental health is a national priority, where mental health services are also accessible at the constituency level, where the pressures of life don't drive us to the edge, where every individual has the support they need to thrive."