SINGAPORE: The party that has ruled Singapore since it became a country a half-century ago returned to power for five more years after easily winning Friday’s general election.

With partial results announced, the People’s Action Party had won a majority of 49 seats in the 89-member Parliament and the opposition Workers’ Party had one seat. Results for the remaining 39 seats were still being counted. Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong, who won the Ang Mo Kio constituency, thanked his supporters for giving “us this very good result”.

“We are very grateful, we are very happy, but at the same time, we are very humbled by the result. ... Tomorrow will be better than today. SG100 will be better than SG50,” he said, referring to the 50 years that the PAP has ruled Singapore since independence in 1965. It has won every election since then and this is the 12th time that it will form a government.

The result indicates the opposition failed to make a dent despite highlighting growing income disparity, restrictions on free speech, overcrowding caused by immigration, and the rising cost of living - Singapore is the world’s most expensive city, according to an international survey.

The PAP also benefited from a sympathy wave following the death of Singapore’s founding father, Lee Kuan Yew, in March. Lee, a PAP stalwart, became the country’s first prime minister at independence in 1965 and remained in office until 1990. The current prime minister is his son, who has been in office since 2004. In between, another PAP leader, Goh Chok Tong, was prime minister.

Published in Dawn September 12th, 2015

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