SINGAPORE – SEPTEMBER 11: Prime Minister and People’s Motion Party (PAP) Secretary General, Lee Hsien Loong (L) and Dr Koh Poh Koon (R) rejoice after winning their seat for Ang Mo Kio Group Representation Constituency (GRC) on September 11, 2015 in Singapore.
Suhaimi Abdullah | Getty Images News | Getty Images
SINGAPORE — Political scandals are rare in Singapore. The town-state has long touted its clean government and incorruptible image to bolster its standing as a number one financial hub in Asia to draw foreign investors.
However the Southeast Asian nation is now caught up in a series of high profile incidents that has entangled its political elite.
That is the “most severe crisis” facing Singapore as the newest events “have and will further erode the general public’s trust and confidence” in the federal government, Eugene Tan, an associate professor of law at Singapore Management University, told CNBC.
“The ruling party is now looking vulnerable because it never did in recent memory,” he added. “It now has a mountain to climb. The way it recovers will matter immensely.”
These are severe reputational hits to the PAP government that had long prided itself for governing with honesty, integrity, and probity.
Eugene Tan
associate professor of law, Singapore Management University
In the newest blow, the political crisis deepened after the sudden resignations of two lawmakers, including the Speaker of Parliament, over an affair this week. Each were members of the ruling People’s Motion Party, that has governed Singapore since 1959.
The revelation got here just days after authorities said cabinet minister S. Iswaran and a business leader in Singapore were involved in a high-profile corruption probe by the anti-graft agency.
“These are severe reputational hits to the PAP government that had long prided itself for governing with honesty, integrity, and probity. In turn, Singapore’s fame and standing is impacted too,” said SMU’sTan.
The spate of events “coming in rapid succession does make a dent on the image of the ruling party,” further noted Tan Ern Ser, associate professor of sociology on the National University of Singapore.
This is very true, on condition that “being squeaky clean is one among the important thing pillars of the PAP brand,” he added.
On Monday, Singapore’s Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong said he decided the incumbent speaker of the Singapore’s Parliament Tan Chuan Jin “needed to go.”
The choice got here after he received information that Tan and one other PAP lawmaker Cheng Li Hui had continued of their “inappropriate relationship” even after the prime minister advised them to finish their relationship in February.
In Singapore, politicians are held to a much higher standard because the ruling party’s “whole basis of its political legitimacy” has been built on “clean and incorrupt governance,” SMU’s Tan told CNBC’s “Squawk Box Asia.”
What the federal government does now’s critical, he added.
“It has to transcend damage control to renewing and even purging the system of its inadequacies, blind spots, and frailties,” said Tan. “That is the surest strategy to avoid withering trust and confidence.”
The prime minister’s office didn’t reply to CNBC’s request for comment.
‘Moral high ground’
Last week, Singapore’s transport minister S. Iswaran and distinguished hotel tycoon Ong Beng Seng, were arrested before being released on bail, within the country’s most serious corruption probe in nearly 4 many years.
Each men are currently assisting with the investigation, Singapore’s Corrupt Practices Investigation Bureau revealed.
Singapore’s government officials are among the many world’s highest paid, because the country seeks to discourage corruption and attract the perfect talent. Ministers are paid about 1.1 million Singapore dollars ($822,000) a yr, based on the Public Service Division’s website.
The political “drama” that has unfolded comes as “an actual surprise, a shock perhaps,” to Singaporeans, said Felix Tan, associate lecturer at Nanyang Technological University in Singapore.
High standards of propriety and private conduct, along with staying clean and incorrupt, are the basic reasons Singaporeans trust and respect the PAP.
Lee Hsien Loong
Singapore prime minister
Singaporeans, who usually are not used to political scandals, have taken to memes to specific themselves. Social media discussions and commentaries within the local media have also delved into the implications for the country.
While the newest spate of incidents don’t “portray a failure of the system,” it definitely acts as a “test for the federal government” to re-examine its own high standards, said NTU’s Tan.
When similar scandals occur to the opposition, “the PAP would take the moral high ground and demand that the opposition do the fitting thing,” the lecturer said.
“And yet, what these cases have shown is that the PAP are doing the very same things that they urged others to not do,” he said, adding the federal government must be “more transparent” in its dealings with the people.
Damage control
The corruption scandal got here on the heels of a public scrutiny over two other ministers who rented state-owned bungalows for his or her personal use. Questions were raised on whether or not they were paying lower than market rates for the properties.
In June, a government review found no evidence of corruption or criminal wrongdoing over the matter.
“I believe much is dependent upon how the federal government addresses these fallouts,” said Tan from NUS. “I think the state institutions are still strong, and the guardrails can be reinforced within the strategy of responding to those challenges.”
Singapore Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong (L) shaking hands with a PAP supporter during a May election rally.
SIMIN WANG | AFP | Getty Images
The prime minister sought to quickly control the damage, emphasizing the federal government’s zero-tolerance on corruption to allay public concerns.
“High standards of propriety and private conduct, along with staying clean and incorrupt, are the basic reasons Singaporeans trust and respect the PAP, and provides us their mandate to form the federal government,” Lee said Monday.
But he also acknowledged, “No system could be completely infallible.”
“Sometimes things cluster up, but we be sure that we put them right, and I hope I put them right and we’ll have the ability to set the fitting tone for a very long time to come back,” Lee added.
Heavy political cost?
The political fallout comes at a fragile time for Singapore, which is navigating a difficult leadership transition. The prime minister is in search of at hand over power to the subsequent generation of leaders within the near future.
“The longer the delay, it should raise lots of concerns about whether the subsequent generation leaders are ready,” said SMU’s Tan.
At this week’s briefing, Lee said he has no plans to call a right away election, despite the vacant seats in Parliament. Singapore will hold its presidential election in the subsequent few months and general elections aren’t due until 2025.
“We’re within the second half of the current government’s term, we just opened Parliament recently,” he said. “We’ve a full agenda for this term, we’re working at it and that is what we’ll deal with.”
Tan from NUS said that if elections were held now, “the negative impact on the PAP’s electoral performance can be significant.”
With the federal government facing pressures from “persistently high inflation,” including rising concerns over home affordability, the ruling party needs to shut ranks and “stay heading in the right direction” to be able to achieve “a reputable performance,” he added.
While it’s tough to gauge whether the scandals will hurt the ruling party and permit the opposition to make inroads, “there will probably be a heavy political price to be paid obviously,” noted SMU’s Tan.
“How much is the political cost? We do not know at this stage,” he added.
“On the very minimal, it could cause the element of doubt. So voters could possibly be more prepared to have a look at what other parties must offer.”
Regaining the boldness of individuals will probably be tough for the federal government, he added. “Rebuilding trust is demanding. It’ll also take time but there’s not much time to next general election.”