[email protected] No, it wasnt Chiams idea...By Elgin Toh WHO was the brain behind the by-election strategy in the 1991 polls which saw four opposition candidates being elected into Parliament? Mr Chiam See Tong, the then leader of the Singapore Democratic Party (SDP) who led the election campaign, has often been assumed to be the mastermind. But was he? During court hearings in 1993 over the legality of his expulsion from the party he led, Mr Chiam claimed credit for the strategy, but his erstwhile comrade, SDP chairman Ling How Doong, replied that it was actually Mr Jufrie Mahmood who came up with the idea. Speaking to Insight, Mr Jufrie, who was on the SDP central executive committee (CEC) in 1991, makes it clear that the strategy actually originated from another opposition politician, Mr Maurice Neo. Just before the 1991 General Election (GE), Mr Jufrie and Mr Neo had crossed over to the Workers Party (WP) so they could contest Eunos GRC with WP veterans Lee Siew Choh and Wee Han Kim. As Mr Jufrie recalls, Mr Neo had coined the term and outlined the strategy in an editorial in a November 1988 issue of the SDP magazine Demokrat, several months after the 1988 GE. Having bought the idea, Mr Jufrie then raised it at a pre-election SDP meeting in 1991, where it was accepted as the official SDP strategy. Mr Chiam later became the public face of the by-election strategy, often articulating it at press conferences where he introduced SDP candidates. As a result, he was seen as the strategys architect. Insight tracked down the Demokrat editorial. In it, Mr Neo lamented that the opposition would have performed better in the 1988 polls if it had contested fewer seats and called for the by-election effect to be used in the next GE. Mr Jufries version is corroborated by both Mr Neo and another SDP CEC member from 1991, Mr Kwan Yue Keng. Says Mr Kwan: It certainly wasnt Mr Chiams idea. I remember very clearly being present at the pre-election meeting when Jufrie brought it up. Later, he told me that Maurice had written about it first. Mr Neo, 61, a writer who has since left opposition politics, says the idea occurred to him during debates with WP leader J.B. Jeyaretnam in the late 1980s. He disagreed with Mr Jeyaretnams policy of fielding as many candidates as possible, even less credible ones, just to make up the numbers. I told him not to flood the market with candidates. I envisioned instead a strategy of gradualism - we would field only quality candidates. Step by step, we would prove to voters our technocratic abilities, and slowly convince them to vote more of us in. But in the meantime, we challenge fewer than half the seats, so voters have peace of mind when they give us their votes. Mr Neo would affectionately refer to his strategy as BEE, or the By-Election Effect. In a book he later wrote on his political experiences, Ruthless Honesty For A Change, he named the chapter on the strategy after a famous quote from boxer Muhammad Ali: Float like a butterfly, Sting like a BEE. When contacted by Insight, Mr Chiam declined to comment. How to join Society of Singapore Writers Yahoo Group: 1. Get into groups.yahoo/group/sgwriters/ 2. Click on the blue button ‘Join As Member’. Survival of SgWriters The SgWriters’ Website was down for a few weeks. Now, it is up and running. Do visit it for updates. Frankly, SgWriters cannot continue without more volunteers coming forward to help in various ways. Management of our IT channels is one of the departments that need committed helpers. When the tide rises, all the boats will rise with it. So please, help build this writers’ community to assist us widen your network, and increase the quality of participation -Thomas: 9720 3353 On Sat, July 3, 2010 at 6:55 PM, Helen Cheong wrote: Hi guys, Here are my thoughts to share about last night’s FFWC: 1. Maurice, your face can launch a thousand ships …! 2. Maurice – your speech is captivating & your voice powerful: I love that. with a bit of polish it is near perfect! Cheers, 3. The sharing from the group interesting though the intermittent disturbances from the back (people coming into the room & chairs shuffling in) can be minimised. But on the whole, you are very motivating and keep up the great work! I look fwd to attend your next session when time permits. Wishing you all greater success in building a bigger community of writers who believe in themselves & that creativity & success do come hand in hand plus all this beautiful emotional support from you guys! Cheers, Helen ...90265691 On Sun, Jul 4, 2010 at 8:27 AM, Daphne Wong wrote: Hi Maurice, thank you for a most educational, entertaining and boisterous SSW meeting! I thoroughly enjoyed myself and look forward to the next gathering. Perhaps, when I gather enough nerve, I will forward an excerpt of my work for your critiquing! Regards, Daphne 9137 1983 On Sat, Jul 3, 2010 at 1:16 PM, Chan Agnes wrote: I took away many benefits.Well done, Maurice. You are a great motivational speaker. On Sun, July 4, 2010 at 4:55 PM, Bernie Espero commented on Society of Singapore Writers’s photo album: Hi, Celebrations! I have become a full fledged member of the Society of Singapore Writers (SSW). What tip the point for me was my attendance at the June First Friday Writers Corner (FFWC) gathering. It was an eye opener. I had no hesitation that SSW was for me long term. I urge all aspiring writers to be associated with SSW as it has great empathy for the would-be writer. In fact non-writers will also benefit from it, I think. Thank you Maurice and Catherine for the fruitful meeting. I am honor to have spend a wonderful evening with inspired people and experienced writers like Catherine Lim and Robert Yeo. They gave me deep insights into the writing process.. Regards, Bernie 9177 1980 Photo: [email protected] No, it wasnt Chiams idea...By Elgin Toh Photo: [email protected] No, it wasnt Chiams idea...By Elgin Toh WHO was the brain behind the by-election strategy in the 1991 polls which saw four opposition candidates being elected into Parliament? Mr Chiam See Tong, the then leader of the Singapore Democratic Party (SDP) who led the election campaign, has often been assumed to be the mastermind. But was he? During court hearings in 1993 over the legality of his expulsion from the party he led, Mr Chiam claimed credit for the strategy, but his erstwhile comrade, SDP chairman Ling How Doong, replied that it was actually Mr Jufrie Mahmood who came up with the idea. Speaking to Insight, Mr Jufrie, who was on the SDP central executive committee (CEC) in 1991, makes it clear that the strategy actually originated from another opposition politician, Mr Maurice Neo. Just before the 1991 General Election (GE), Mr Jufrie and Mr Neo had crossed over to the Workers Party (WP) so they could contest Eunos GRC with WP veterans Lee Siew Choh and Wee Han Kim. As Mr Jufrie recalls, Mr Neo had coined the term and outlined the strategy in an editorial in a November 1988 issue of the SDP magazine Demokrat, several months after the 1988 GE. Having bought the idea, Mr Jufrie then raised it at a pre-election SDP meeting in 1991, where it was accepted as the official SDP strategy. Mr Chiam later became the public face of the by-election strategy, often articulating it at press conferences where he introduced SDP candidates. As a result, he was seen as the strategys architect. Insight tracked down the Demokrat editorial. In it, Mr Neo lamented that the opposition would have performed better in the 1988 polls if it had contested fewer seats and called for the by-election effect to be used in the next GE. Mr Jufries version is corroborated by both Mr Neo and another SDP CEC member from 1991, Mr Kwan Yue Keng. Says Mr Kwan: It certainly wasnt Mr Chiams idea. I remember very clearly being present at the pre-election meeting when Jufrie brought it up. Later, he told me that Maurice had written about it first. Mr Neo, 61, a writer who has since left opposition politics, says the idea occurred to him during debates with WP leader J.B. Jeyaretnam in the late 1980s. He disagreed with Mr Jeyaretnams policy of fielding as many candidates as possible, even less credible ones, just to make up the numbers. I told him not to flood the market with candidates. I envisioned instead a strategy of gradualism - we would field only quality candidates. Step by step, we would prove to voters our technocratic abilities, and slowly convince them to vote more of us in. But in the meantime, we challenge fewer than half the seats, so voters have peace of mind when they give us their votes. Mr Neo would affectionately refer to his strategy as BEE, or the By-Election Effect. In a book he later wrote on his political experiences, Ruthless Honesty For A Change, he named the chapter on the strategy after a famous quote from boxer Muhammad Ali: Float like a butterfly, Sting like a BEE. When contacted by Insight, Mr Chiam declined to comment. How to join Society of Singapore Writers Yahoo Group: 1. Get into groups.yahoo/group/sgwriters/ 2. Click on the blue button ‘Join As Member’. Survival of SgWriters The SgWriters’ Website was down for a few weeks. Now, it is up and running. Do visit it for updates. Frankly, SgWriters cannot continue without more volunteers coming forward to help in various ways. Management of our IT channels is one of the departments that need committed helpers. When the tide rises, all the boats will rise with it. So please, help build this writers’ community to assist us widen your network, and increase the quality of participation -Thomas: 9720 3353 On Sat, July 3, 2010 at 6:55 PM, Helen Cheong wrote: Hi guys, Here are my thoughts to share about last night’s FFWC: 1. Maurice, your face can launch a thousand ships …! 2. Maurice – your speech is captivating & your voice powerful: I love that. with a bit of polish it is near perfect! Cheers, 3. The sharing from the group interesting though the intermittent disturbances from the back (people coming into the room & chairs shuffling in) can be minimised. But on the whole, you are very motivating and keep up the great work! I look fwd to attend your next session when time permits. Wishing you all greater success in building a bigger community of writers who believe in themselves & that creativity & success do come hand in hand plus all this beautiful emotional support from you guys! Cheers, Helen ...90265691 On Sun, Jul 4, 2010 at 8:27 AM, Daphne Wong wrote: Hi Maurice, thank you for a most educational, entertaining and boisterous SSW meeting! I thoroughly enjoyed myself and look forward to the next gathering. Perhaps, when I gather enough nerve, I will forward an excerpt of my work for your critiquing! Regards, Daphne 9137 1983 On Sat, Jul 3, 2010 at 1:16 PM, Chan Agnes wrote: I took away many benefits.Well done, Maurice. You are a great motivational speaker. On Sun, July 4, 2010 at 4:55 PM, Bernie Espero commented on Society of Singapore Writers’s photo album: Hi, Celebrations! I have become a full fledged member of the Society of Singapore Writers (SSW). What tip the point for me was my attendance at the June First Friday Writers Corner (FFWC) gathering. It was an eye opener. I had no hesitation that SSW was for me long term. I urge all aspiring writers to be associated with SSW as it has great empathy for the would-be writer. In fact non-writers will also benefit from it, I think. Thank you Maurice and Catherine for the fruitful meeting. I am honor to have spend a wonderful evening with inspired people and experienced writers like Catherine Lim and Robert Yeo. They gave me deep insights into the writing process.. Regards, Bernie 9177 1980 Photo: [email protected] No, it wasnt Chiams idea...By Elgin Toh
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