[ad_1]
“COLLABORATE” WITH GOVERNMENT
On Jul 30, Mr Tan said he had submitted his application for a certificate of eligibility for the 2023 Presidential Election. He said he did so through a proxy.
He also said he will wait for the decision of the Presidential Election Committee on the final slate of approved candidates before deciding whether to submit his nomination papers.
A former People’s Action Party (PAP) member, Mr Tan said he wants to work with the government to find alternative solutions to bring down the cost of living, ensure affordable housing and secure stable jobs.
“I will adopt a positive, constructive and open-minded approach and will suggest to the ministers to try out the new approaches on a small scale before fully adopting them,” he added.
Analysts CNA spoke to highlighted that the President has custodial powers but does not have executive powers. That means they can veto or block government actions in specified areas, but they have no role to advance their own policy agenda.
The elected President must also consult the Council of Presidential Advisers when exercising their veto powers in connection with Singapore’s reserves or the appointment of key office holders.
If the President and the council disagree, the matter is referred to parliament to decide based on a simple majority, said Associate Professor Chong Ja Ian of the National University of Singapore (NUS).
But Mr Tan said on Thursday that while these veto powers are limited, “they can be used to ensure that government policies align with my vision and goals”.
NTU’s Dr Felix Tan said this would set a “very dangerous precedent”.
“To say that he can use his veto power would then demonstrate that he is going to be rather antagonistic to some, if not most of the government policies,” he added, describing Mr Tan’s take as “frivolous” and a “populist sentiment”.
“And in that sense, I think we are going to face a political crisis in which the President will have, every now and then, legal powers over the government. And that doesn’t make sense because then we have a government that can’t run the country properly and adequately.”
From Mr Tan’s statement, he seems “idealistic and unrealistic”, he added.
“And he has very little knowledge of what the role is capable of doing, and … it’s very scary to see that someone of his calibre might even qualify to run,” the NTU analyst said.
The President’s veto powers are stated in Singapore’s Constitution, so it is clear what they can or cannot do, said Dr Mustafa.
“The bottom line is that the president cannot act like a politician and become a power centre functioning separately from the government.”
Assoc Prof Chong said the Constitution provides for the removal of the President if they intentionally violate it, but this could “appear excessive” depending on what they did.
[ad_2]
Source link