Singapore presidential election: opposition politician Tan Cheng Bock endorses Tan Kin Lian
- Tan Cheng Bock, a critic of the ruling PAP, endorsed outsider Tan Kin Lian, says another pro-establishment head of state would be against national interest
- Tan Cheng Bock said it was vital the president be independent of the ruling establishment given the position’s role as gatekeeper of the country’s vast reserves
The move could potentially be a shot in the arm for Tan Kin Lian, the former chief executive of an insurance firm who is seen as an outsider in the election also being contested by former PAP minister Tharman Shanmugratnam and Ng Kok Song, a former senior executive of the powerful state investor GIC.
Observers say Tharman, 66, is the favourite to win the September 1 election.
Tan Cheng Bock, 83, a former stalwart PAP MP who split from the establishment in the 2010s, was the first to contest in a presidential election as an outsider and subsequently formed his own political party.
The ruling establishment “always labels the people who are not with them” as being less capable but it was up to voters to dispel such thinking, Tan Cheng Bock said in a media briefing alongside Tan Kin Lian, 75, on Sunday.
Tan also referred to the PAP’s controversial decision in 2016 to tighten the eligibility criteria for the presidency, a largely ceremonial position with some custodial powers over the use of the republic’s fiscal reserves and appointment of key bureaucrats.