WP fields Lee Li Lian as its candidate for Punggol East by-election on 26 January 2013

By Imelda Saad, Channel NewsAsia, 14 Jan 2013

The Workers' Party (WP) has fielded Lee Li Lian as its candidate for the Punggol East by-election on 26 January.

She was also the party's candidate for the ward in the last General Election in 2011, when she garnered about 41 per cent of votes cast.

The 34-year-old financial institution trainer said she grew up in a three-room HDB flat in Lorong Lew Lian and has been with the party for six years.

At a news conference at the party's headquarters on Monday morning, Ms Lee described the decision to serve Punggol East residents as "natural".

She said she's well-placed to do so - given her experience as a ground activist.

Ms Lee, who's married, said she'll focus on issues such as the challenges faced by young families.

"As someone who is looking at starting a family, I can empathise with the considerations and concerns that young couples and young families are facing.

"Concerns such as raising children in a time when the cost of living is going up and the environment is becoming increasingly competitive especially in schools.

"The challenges that young families and single parents are facing and the welfare of the our elderly folks are some of the national issues I'll be focusing on," she said.

Chairman of the Workers' Party, Ms Sylvia Lim, pointed out that Ms Lee has been helping Aljunied GRC MP Pritam Singh in Eunos division - as his legislative assistant. She also works with the Aljunied-Hougang Town Council to address the concerns of residents.

She described her as sincere, reliable and committed and a team player with a heart for the people. "The party believes Li Lian is the best candidate to represent the WP in this by-election. She has some understanding of the ground from her previous campaign there and will work tirelessly to serve the residents of Punggol East.

"On a personal note, I certainly look forward to the prospect of having more elected women in the house," Ms Lim said.

Asked about why the party has not be working the ground in Punggol East, since the last elections in 2011, secretary-general Low Thia Khiang said the party decided to focus on Aljunied, and pool its resources there, after winning the seat.

Mr Low said the party decided to cease all ground activities in the wards it contested to focus on Aljunied. The plan was to give the party a year to stabilise the management in Aljunied. But he added normal party activities like the sale of its newsletter were carried out as usual in Punggol East.

Three other opposition parties - Singapore Democratic Party (SDP), Singapore Democratic Alliance (SDA)& Reform Party (RP) - have said they will contest the by-election, with the SDP even suggesting that it can field a candidate for Parliament, while the WP would run the town council, if it gets elected.

Mr Low said: "We want to make sure that our candidate when they are elected, they are prepared to work and they can connect with the people and not just go to Parliament and talk. You have to do your work on the ground, you have to run the town council, you have to really go to the ground, solve people's problems, when you are elected."

The by-election has been called to fill the seat vacated by former People's Action Party MP, Mr Michael Palmer, who resigned in December 2012 due to an extramarital affair.

The PAP introduced Dr Koh Poh Koon as its candidate for the single-seat ward on 10 January.

In the 2011 General Election, the Punggol East Single Member Constituency saw a three-way fight.

Mr Palmer won about 55 per cent of the votes; Ms Lee took about 41 per cent; and Mr Desmond Lim of the Singapore Democratic Alliance got around 4 per cent.

Energetic leader who rose up ranks
WP candidate plans to raise issues for young couples and families
By Andrea Ong And Elgin Toh, The Straits Times, 15 Jan 2013

IN AUGUST last year, Ms Lee Li Lian stepped down as president of the Workers' Party youth wing to make way for new blood and spend more time with her family.

A core WP member told The Straits Times that Ms Lee, a sales trainer, had been planning to start a family with her husband Jacky Koh, a telecommunications consultant.

But Ms Lee, 34, will have to put the baby plans on hold to fight the Punggol East by-election and possibly delay them even further if she wins.

It shows her dedication to the party's cause, said fellow party members.

"Excellent organisational abilities, thoughtful, hardworking, passionate about serving the people, and a believer in checks and balances. Lee Li Lian for Punggol East!" said Aljunied GRC MP Pritam Singh on his Facebook page yesterday.

Ms Lee has been a legislative assistant to Mr Singh.

At a press conference yesterday, she came back with fighting words for those who wonder if her wish to start a family would affect her political work.

"I don't see how politics should affect my decision to be pregnant... I don't think that should be a problem because if I may quote, we had a PAP MP in the last election that was pregnant and still running in the election," she said, referring to Senior Parliamentary Secretary Sim Ann.

But she can empathise with the worries that burden young couples and families - a key demographic in Punggol East.

If elected, she plans to speak on their behalf on these issues, including the rising cost of living and the competitive education system.

Asked if she has a campaign slogan to rival PAP candidate Koh Poh Koon's "This is me", Ms Lee said: "Basically, we will need to focus on the needs of Punggol East residents and I think that's very important. That's the role of an MP, you see."

WP leaders have touted her as the most suitable candidate for Punggol East, citing her hard work and prior experience contesting there in the 2011 polls.

Residents such as retired photographer Ho Fook Chuan, 74, like the fact that she returned to contest again. "It's a good thing. At least people already know her."

To party members, she epitomises someone who has worked her way up the ranks. Ms Lee joined the party in 2006 before being fielded in 2011.

Party veterans were said to have favoured her as the candidate to reward her hard work on the ground.

WP chairman Sylvia Lim also cited one of Ms Lee's "great strengths" as being able to connect with people of different ages and backgrounds.

Ms Lee said that she tried to pick up more dialects so she could better interact with residents at MrSingh's meet-the-people sessions, which have "opened up my eyes...to the different types of hardships...and the common problems that Singaporeans are facing".

Youth wing executive committee member Liane Ng, 25, praised her ability to rally people behind her and nurture her young charges. "And she's always ready to go. I don't know where she gets her energy from."

That enthusiasm has made Ms Lee the go-to person for emceeing the WP's community events in Aljunied GRC and Hougang.

Yesterday, she spent the evening at Punggol East, wearing a black work dress and having dinner at a food court with a small group of party members.

Also there were WP secretary-general Low Thia Khiang, Aljunied GRC MP Muhamad Faisal Abdul Manap and Hougang MP Png Eng Huat.

They took a short LRT ride around the ward, a journey which the People's Action Party candidate Koh Poh Koon made earlier in the morning.

Ms Lee spent some time chatting with a shopkeeper at an LRT station who remembered her from 2011.

Said dental nurse Katherine Bay, 40, who bumped into Ms Lee: "She's friendly and approachable. If she is elected, I hope she will be an MP whose first priority is to serve residents."

ABOUT THE CANDIDATE

Name: Ms Lee Li Lian

Age: 34

Occupation: Sales trainer. She is also the Workers' Party's deputy webmaster and legislative assistant to Aljunied GRC MP Pritam Singh

Marital status: Married to a telecommunications consultant; no children

Education: Degree in marketing from Curtin University of Technology, Australia

Languages and dialects spoken: English, Mandarin, Hokkien, Cantonese and Teochew

Electoral history: Contested in Punggol East in the 2011 General Election. Joined WP in 2006.

What she will champion in Punggol East: "At the local level, residents have highlighted the traffic situation and the lack of facilities like childcare centres and coffee shops in the neighbourhood.

"At the national level, I am concerned about topics like our cost of living, cost of education, and marriage and parenthood issues."

Why Lee Li Lian and not NCMPs?
By Kor Kian Beng, The Straits Times, 15 Jan 2013

FOR the past few days, Workers' Party (WP) members had been suggesting that one of its pair of Non-Constituency MPs (NCMPs) Gerald Giam and Yee Jenn Jong might be fielded as its candidate for the Punggol East by-election.

So it came as a bit of a surprise even to insiders yesterday when the WP named the 34-year-old sales trainer, Ms Lee Li Lian, as its candidate.

On paper at least, she is hardly the strongest contender to secure the seat from the ruling People's Action Party.

After all, the party's NCMPs have had greater media exposure and are more familiar with policy issues, having served as NCMPs since the 2011 General Election. They have also sparred with government MPs and ministers in Parliament.

There are limited downsides to picking the NCMPs too. They do not have to quit their parliamentary roles to contest and can keep their seats even if they fail to get elected, because of a quirk in the Constitution.

So this would seem like a "win-win" option. So why didn't the WP take it up?

One view is that the party is actually not playing to win. With the increasing likelihood of a three- or even four-cornered fight, the WP's chances of victory might be diminished.

Rather than letting the NCMPs suffer another defeat after their losses in the general election, Ms Lee could be seen as a less costly sacrifice, if the worst came to pass for the party.

Mr Giam was defeated as part of the WP's five-member team in East Coast GRC, while Mr Yee lost out narrowly in the Joo Chiat single- seat ward.

Fielding either of the duo could trigger criticisms of them being opportunistic in deserting the constituencies that had sent them into Parliament, albeit as NCMPs.

For Mr Giam personally, being picked as the candidate could invite more ill-will internally as it meant he would be leapfrogging over an "incumbent" choice for the second time, as unfair as the charge might be.

After the general election, the WP picked Mr Giam to be one of its two NCMPs even though the party's East Coast GRC team leader Eric Tan wanted the job. NCMPs are top-performing opposition candidates at an election. It led to Mr Tan's resignation from the party.

The WP may also not relish seeing one of its NCMPs contest and turn in a worse performance than, say, a Singapore Democratic Party candidate.

It would dent the WP's standing in the opposition scene since the last general election.

To be fair, Ms Lee has more than a bit going for her too.

At the last general election, she secured a respectable 41 per cent of valid votes in Punggol East in a three-way fight against the PAP's Michael Palmer and the Singapore Democratic Alliance's Desmond Lim Bak Chuan.

Mr Palmer went on to become the Speaker of Parliament before he quit last month over an extramarital affair.

Ms Lee's experience at Punggol East and familiarity with the ward were key factors why she was selected, said WP leaders Low Thia Khiang and Sylvia Lim yesterday.

If she scores a win, it would vindicate the WP's surprise choice and will no doubt deepen WP's support base.

If she does not, any internal post-mortem will have to grapple with the question of whether the party gave Punggol East its best shot.