Identifier
Created
Classification
Origin
06SINGAPORE1740
2006-05-31 06:31:00
UNCLASSIFIED//FOR OFFICIAL USE ONLY
Embassy Singapore
Cable title:
THE GOMEZ SAGA: PAP'S APPROACH TO THE OPPOSITION
how-toVZCZCXRO2384 RR RUEHCHI RUEHDT RUEHHM RUEHNH DE RUEHGP #1740 1510631 ZNR UUUUU ZZH R 310631Z MAY 06 FM AMEMBASSY SINGAPORE TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC 0078 INFO RUCNASE/ASEAN MEMBER COLLECTIVE
UNCLAS SINGAPORE 001740
SIPDIS
SENSITIVE
SIPDIS
E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: PGOV PHUM SN
SUBJECT: THE GOMEZ SAGA: PAP'S APPROACH TO THE OPPOSITION
REF: A. SINGAPORE 1486
B. SINGAPORE 1289
UNCLAS SINGAPORE 001740
SIPDIS
SENSITIVE
SIPDIS
E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: PGOV PHUM SN
SUBJECT: THE GOMEZ SAGA: PAP'S APPROACH TO THE OPPOSITION
REF: A. SINGAPORE 1486
B. SINGAPORE 1289
1. (U) Summary: Opposition politician James Gomez left
Singapore for Sweden on May 15 after the police issued him a
"stern warning." The Elections Department had accused him of
"criminal intimidation" stemming from his mishandling the
paperwork of his election campaign (Ref A),and the ruling
People's Action Party (PAP) turned the issue into one of the
main themes of its campaign for the May 6 election. PAP
leaders have acknowledged that some hardball tactics used in
the Gomez affair may have backfired and cost them votes. End
Summary.
An unsubmitted form ...
--------------
2. (U) Contested group representation constituencies (GRCs)
require at least one candidate to be from an ethnic
minority, and candidates must file an application form with
the Elections Department to obtain certification (Ref B).
James Gomez, from the Worker's Party (WP),went to the
Elections Department to submit this form on April 24 but when
he returned on April 26 to pick up his certification, an
elections official told him they had no record he had
submitted the form. Gomez insisted he had and asked the
Elections Department to check again; he reportedly warned the
Elections Department staffer of possible "consequences" if
they had lost his form. The Elections Department
subsequently issued a press statement declaring that it had
examined security tapes that showed Gomez placing the
application form in his briefcase and leaving the Elections
Department without submitting it.
The PAP Attacks
--------------
3. (U) The ruling People's Action Party (PAP) made this
issue a central theme in its electoral campaign. Prime
Minister Lee Hsien Loong, Deputy Prime Minister Wong Kan
Seng, and Foreign Minister George Yeo (the PAP incumbent
leader in the Aljunied GRC where Gomez was running)
encouraged the WP and Gomez to "come clean." The Elections
Department released the 11-minute security video footage to
journalists and gave them a transcript of a taped phone
conversation between Gomez and an Elections Department
official that took place April 26, when the official informed
Gomez that security tapes indicated he had not submitted his
form. At a WP rally on April 29, Gomez publicly apologized,
but PAP leaders continued to criticize him.
4. (U) After four days of PAP attacks, some editorial
commentators began to urge the PAP to move on and focus on
the larger, substantive issues of the election. Senior
Minister Goh also told reporters the day after Gomez's
apology that it was time to move on, though two days later,
he reversed his position, noting that a conversation with DPM
Wong had convinced him the matter was serious. Minister
Mentor Lee entered the fray by accusing Gomez of being a
"liar," and challenging Gomez to sue him for defamation if
this was not the case. PM Lee declared that the integrity of
government and Singapore's reputation were at stake.
Post-election: Criminal Charges
--------------
6. (U) On May 7, the day after his defeat in the election,
immigration officials stopped Gomez at Changi airport and
seized his passport, preventing him from leaving Singapore to
return to his home in Sweden. Police questioned Gomez for
eight hours, in response to charges filed against him by the
Elections Department for criminal intimidation and giving
false information, which can result in a jail sentence and/or
a fine. Police questioned Gomez two additional times, along
with WP Secretary General Low Thia Khiang and WP Chairman
Sylvia Lim. The public prosecutor thought Gomez was guilty,
but chose to issue a "stern warning" based on Gomez's
cooperation with the police investigation and his lack of a
prior criminal record.
Comment
--------------
7. (SBU) Though the PAP may have won over some
"heartlanders" from the WP by disparaging Gomez and casting
doubt on the integrity of his party, their hectoring clearly
alienated many other members of the public and elite,
including PAP supporters. This and other election missteps
have resulted in some self-assessment within the PAP and an
acknowledgment that the old-style tactics of MM Lee Kuan Yew
may no longer be viable, particularly with younger voters.
HERBOLD
SIPDIS
SENSITIVE
SIPDIS
E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: PGOV PHUM SN
SUBJECT: THE GOMEZ SAGA: PAP'S APPROACH TO THE OPPOSITION
REF: A. SINGAPORE 1486
B. SINGAPORE 1289
1. (U) Summary: Opposition politician James Gomez left
Singapore for Sweden on May 15 after the police issued him a
"stern warning." The Elections Department had accused him of
"criminal intimidation" stemming from his mishandling the
paperwork of his election campaign (Ref A),and the ruling
People's Action Party (PAP) turned the issue into one of the
main themes of its campaign for the May 6 election. PAP
leaders have acknowledged that some hardball tactics used in
the Gomez affair may have backfired and cost them votes. End
Summary.
An unsubmitted form ...
--------------
2. (U) Contested group representation constituencies (GRCs)
require at least one candidate to be from an ethnic
minority, and candidates must file an application form with
the Elections Department to obtain certification (Ref B).
James Gomez, from the Worker's Party (WP),went to the
Elections Department to submit this form on April 24 but when
he returned on April 26 to pick up his certification, an
elections official told him they had no record he had
submitted the form. Gomez insisted he had and asked the
Elections Department to check again; he reportedly warned the
Elections Department staffer of possible "consequences" if
they had lost his form. The Elections Department
subsequently issued a press statement declaring that it had
examined security tapes that showed Gomez placing the
application form in his briefcase and leaving the Elections
Department without submitting it.
The PAP Attacks
--------------
3. (U) The ruling People's Action Party (PAP) made this
issue a central theme in its electoral campaign. Prime
Minister Lee Hsien Loong, Deputy Prime Minister Wong Kan
Seng, and Foreign Minister George Yeo (the PAP incumbent
leader in the Aljunied GRC where Gomez was running)
encouraged the WP and Gomez to "come clean." The Elections
Department released the 11-minute security video footage to
journalists and gave them a transcript of a taped phone
conversation between Gomez and an Elections Department
official that took place April 26, when the official informed
Gomez that security tapes indicated he had not submitted his
form. At a WP rally on April 29, Gomez publicly apologized,
but PAP leaders continued to criticize him.
4. (U) After four days of PAP attacks, some editorial
commentators began to urge the PAP to move on and focus on
the larger, substantive issues of the election. Senior
Minister Goh also told reporters the day after Gomez's
apology that it was time to move on, though two days later,
he reversed his position, noting that a conversation with DPM
Wong had convinced him the matter was serious. Minister
Mentor Lee entered the fray by accusing Gomez of being a
"liar," and challenging Gomez to sue him for defamation if
this was not the case. PM Lee declared that the integrity of
government and Singapore's reputation were at stake.
Post-election: Criminal Charges
--------------
6. (U) On May 7, the day after his defeat in the election,
immigration officials stopped Gomez at Changi airport and
seized his passport, preventing him from leaving Singapore to
return to his home in Sweden. Police questioned Gomez for
eight hours, in response to charges filed against him by the
Elections Department for criminal intimidation and giving
false information, which can result in a jail sentence and/or
a fine. Police questioned Gomez two additional times, along
with WP Secretary General Low Thia Khiang and WP Chairman
Sylvia Lim. The public prosecutor thought Gomez was guilty,
but chose to issue a "stern warning" based on Gomez's
cooperation with the police investigation and his lack of a
prior criminal record.
Comment
--------------
7. (SBU) Though the PAP may have won over some
"heartlanders" from the WP by disparaging Gomez and casting
doubt on the integrity of his party, their hectoring clearly
alienated many other members of the public and elite,
including PAP supporters. This and other election missteps
have resulted in some self-assessment within the PAP and an
acknowledgment that the old-style tactics of MM Lee Kuan Yew
may no longer be viable, particularly with younger voters.
HERBOLD