Opinion | Coronavirus: is electioneering to blame for Singapore’s teetering pandemic response?

As cases from dormitory clusters rise, some believe political opportunism has distracted Singapore’s normally well-oiled government from crisis management

Nevertheless, Singaporeans are confident the Covid-19 outbreak is slowly being brought under control thanks to the real heroes: its frontline workers

Reading Time:5 minutes

The current situation has led to questions of whether Singapore’s government is politically vulnerable ahead of an impending election. Photo: EPA-EFE

Published: 9:00am, 5 May 2020Updated: 1:38pm, 5 May 2020

The novel coronavirus disease has shown an ability to repeatedly surprise experts around the world, rubbishing suggestions that any society is really in control of it.

Nowhere is this clearer than in Singapore. In a matter of weeks, headlines have gone from “gold standard” to “independent Singapore’s biggest humanitarian crisis”. Some 200,000 migrant workers are confined to packed dormitories the BBC calls “breeding grounds for the virus”. The tiny city state now has more confirmed cases – over 18,000 – than any other Asian country bar China and India.

There is a growing sense that political opportunism is to blame, in that it distracted Singapore’s leaders from crisis management and gummed up the typically well-oiled administrative machinery.

Migrant workers in dormitories make up the majority of Singapore’s coronavirus infections. Photo: EPA-EFE

This may come as a surprise. The Singapore model has long been admired for certain characteristics, such as political consensus and elite governance, that together have allowed its leaders to prioritise long-term developmental goals over short-term electoral pressures. Moreover, the ruling People’s Action Party (PAP) is in a seemingly dominant position, with its 70 per cent vote share at the last election in 2015 delivering over 90 per cent of parliamentary seats.

However, the current situation has led to questions of whether the PAP’s current leader and Singapore’s prime minister Lee Hsien Loong is politically vulnerable ahead of an impending election.

This is partly because of perceived missteps, but also because of the ongoing leadership transition he is orchestrating, to a new “4G” team that has failed to impress many Singaporeans.

Select Voice

Choose your listening speed

Get through articles 2x faster

1.25x

250 WPM

Slow

Average

Fast

00:0000:00

1.25x