With 3 days of campaigning left, Tan Kin Lian cancels walkabouts; asks volunteers to distribute flyers instead
SINGAPORE: Presidential candidate Tan Kin Lian has cancelled his remaining daily walkabouts with three days of campaigning left before Cooling-off Day on Thursday (Aug 31), and asked volunteers to distribute flyers instead.
The former NTUC Income chief executive, 75, had earlier informed the media that he would visit Boon Lay Place Market and Food Village on Monday and Ayer Rajah Food Centre on Tuesday.
But on Sunday night, journalists in a WhatsApp group with Mr Tan and his media team were informed that there would be no walkabouts and no interviews from Monday to Wednesday.
His media team said it would give updates "if anything new is finalised".
Mr Tan and his team have not responded to CNA's query about the reason for the cancellations.
In a separate chat group for Mr Tan's supporters, volunteers were asked to distribute flyers and "micro posters" around different parts of Singapore from Monday to Wednesday.
The volunteers were asked to distribute the campaign materials to shops, market stalls and customers, and drop the remaining materials into letter boxes.
"Please turn up as usual, as if it is a walkabout," read a text message to volunteers seen by CNA.
At his walkabout at People's Park Food Centre on Sunday, Mr Tan was joined by Progress Singapore Party's chairman Dr Tan Cheng Bock and his proposer Mr Tan Jee Say, a member of the Singapore Democratic Party.
All three men were candidates in the 2011 Presidential Election, when they lost to Dr Tony Tan.
The other two presidential candidates - former GIC chief investment officer Ng Kok Songand former Senior Minister Tharman Shanmugaratnam- have also held campaigning activities on a daily basis since Nomination Day.
The three candidates will answer questions in a live presidential forum broadcast on CNA at 9pm on Monday. They will also deliver campaign messages in a second presidential candidate broadcast on Wednesday evening.
On Friday, more than 2.7 million Singaporeans will head to the polls to vote in the country's first contested Presidential Election since 2011.
TKL strikes me as rather unstable tbh, I am most unsure I want someone who might more than on occasion stir up a ruckus and lock horns with parliamentarians just for the sake of it assuming this land's highest office; in the end we could find ourselves ensnared in a whole lot more back-and-forth chaotic stalemates (some of these perhaps even potentially detrimental to nation-building) than we would ever have wished for *shudders*
Tan, 75, revealed to the media during a doorstop interview at Senja Food Centre in Bukit Panjang on Thursday morning that he was asked by theĀ Infocomm Media Development Authority (IMDA) to remove three paragraphs from his speech.Ā
"They are the most important paragraphs of the campaign. They asked for it to be removed on the grounds that it is outside of the president's prerogative. I do not agree with the decision but I have no choice," said a disgruntled Tan.Ā
The former NTUC Income chief executive officer then read out the omitted paragraphs to the media, which were about his plans to manage the reserves, and some of the goals he wanted to achieve if he were to become the head of state.Ā
"I consider the IMDA does not have the authority to interpret the Constitution in their own way and ask for statements to be removed. I do not have time to argue about that, I removed the statement and I will deal with IMDA separately," Tan told reporters.Ā
He also shared that he was asked to send a copy of his speech to IMDA on Wednesday.
"I had to prepare a script in English and translate it into Chinese, Malay and Tamil. I had to present four printed copies and four soft copies.Ā
"It was very rushed. How do you expect me, with many things to take care of, with the campaign to meet these requirements?" he questioned.Ā
Tan's script had inaccuracies: IMDA, ELD
In response to AsiaOne's queries, IMDA and the Elections Department (ELD) said in a joint press release on Thursday that the presidential candidates were informedĀ of the timings of the presidential candidate broadcast and the rules on Aug 12, and were briefed on Aug 21.Ā
They then added that Tan's original script had "inaccuracies about the president's role", where he suggested that the president can provide guidance on the reserves'Ā investment strategies and influence government policy.Ā
The two agencies said thatĀ Tan's election agent had corrected them "without objection" after being notified of the inaccuracies.
"All Presidential candidates, including Mr Tan, signed a statutory declaration on their nomination paper to confirm that they have read the explanatory material on the presidentās constitutional role, including the specific examples of what the President can and cannot do.
"They also signed a voluntary undertaking on campaigning for the election in a manner that is dignified, decorous and consistent with the Presidentās position.
"We remind all candidates not to mislead the public about the president's role," they said.Ā
Perhaps TKL should share the original script on his social media accounts and let the court of public opinion determine whether he has legitimately gone off course
With 3 days of campaigning left, Tan Kin Lian cancels walkabouts; asks volunteers to distribute flyers instead
SINGAPORE: Presidential candidate Tan Kin Lian has cancelled his remaining daily walkabouts with three days of campaigning left before Cooling-off Day on Thursday (Aug 31), and asked volunteers to distribute flyers instead.
The former NTUC Income chief executive, 75, had earlier informed the media that he would visit Boon Lay Place Market and Food Village on Monday and Ayer Rajah Food Centre on Tuesday.
But on Sunday night, journalists in a WhatsApp group with Mr Tan and his media team were informed that there would be no walkabouts and no interviews from Monday to Wednesday.
His media team said it would give updates "if anything new is finalised".
Mr Tan and his team have not responded to CNA's query about the reason for the cancellations.
In a separate chat group for Mr Tan's supporters, volunteers were asked to distribute flyers and "micro posters" around different parts of Singapore from Monday to Wednesday.
The volunteers were asked to distribute the campaign materials to shops, market stalls and customers, and drop the remaining materials into letter boxes.
"Please turn up as usual, as if it is a walkabout," read a text message to volunteers seen by CNA.
After Nomination Day on Aug 22, Mr Tan held daily walkabouts at hawker centres with the exception of Aug 26, when he spoke at an event for National University of Singapore Society members.
At his walkabout at People's Park Food Centre on Sunday, Mr Tan was joined by Progress Singapore Party's chairman Dr Tan Cheng Bock and his proposer Mr Tan Jee Say, a member of the Singapore Democratic Party.
All three men were candidates in the 2011 Presidential Election, when they lost to Dr Tony Tan.
Dr Tan Cheng Bock gave Mr Tan his endorsement for the 2023 Presidential Election, saying that this was in his "personal capacity" and that he was "not here as a politician for this election".
The other two presidential candidates - former GIC chief investment officer Ng Kok Song and former Senior Minister Tharman Shanmugaratnam - have also held campaigning activities on a daily basis since Nomination Day.
The three candidates will answer questions in a live presidential forum broadcast on CNA at 9pm on Monday. They will also deliver campaign messages in a second presidential candidate broadcast on Wednesday evening.
On Friday, more than 2.7 million Singaporeans will head to the polls to vote in the country's first contested Presidential Election since 2011.
https://www.channelnewsasia.com/singapore/tan-kin-lian-cancel-walkabout-presidential-election-campaign-flyers-volunteers-3729316
Tan Kin Lian has declined to participate in SPH Media Trust's Q&A session with young Singaporeans
TKL strikes me as rather unstable tbh, I am most unsure I want someone who might more than on occasion stir up a ruckus and lock horns with parliamentarians just for the sake of it assuming this land's highest office; in the end we could find ourselves ensnared in a whole lot more back-and-forth chaotic stalemates (some of these perhaps even potentially detrimental to nation-building) than we would ever have wished for *shudders*
His horrendous spoken English just gave me Stage 2 cancerš¤§
'I will deal with IMDA separately': Tan Kin Lian unhappy on being asked to remove parts of broadcast message
Apart fromĀ not having enough time to prepare for his campaign, it seems like Tan Kin Lian also faced some issues preparing for his presidential candidateĀ broadcastĀ to be aired tonight (Aug 24).Ā
Tan, 75, revealed to the media during a doorstop interview at Senja Food Centre in Bukit Panjang on Thursday morning that he was asked by theĀ Infocomm Media Development Authority (IMDA) to remove three paragraphs from his speech.Ā
"They are the most important paragraphs of the campaign. They asked for it to be removed on the grounds that it is outside of the president's prerogative. I do not agree with the decision but I have no choice," said a disgruntled Tan.Ā
The former NTUC Income chief executive officer then read out the omitted paragraphs to the media, which were about his plans to manage the reserves, and some of the goals he wanted to achieve if he were to become the head of state.Ā
"I consider the IMDA does not have the authority to interpret the Constitution in their own way and ask for statements to be removed. I do not have time to argue about that, I removed the statement and I will deal with IMDA separately," Tan told reporters.Ā
He also shared that he was asked to send a copy of his speech to IMDA on Wednesday.
"I had to prepare a script in English and translate it into Chinese, Malay and Tamil. I had to present four printed copies and four soft copies.Ā
"It was very rushed. How do you expect me, with many things to take care of, with the campaign to meet these requirements?" he questioned.Ā
Tan's script had inaccuracies: IMDA, ELD
In response to AsiaOne's queries, IMDA and the Elections Department (ELD) said in a joint press release on Thursday that the presidential candidates were informedĀ of the timings of the presidential candidate broadcast and the rules on Aug 12, and were briefed on Aug 21.Ā
They then added that Tan's original script had "inaccuracies about the president's role", where he suggested that the president can provide guidance on the reserves'Ā investment strategies and influence government policy.Ā
The two agencies said thatĀ Tan's election agent had corrected them "without objection" after being notified of the inaccuracies.
"All Presidential candidates, including Mr Tan, signed a statutory declaration on their nomination paper to confirm that they have read the explanatory material on the presidentās constitutional role, including the specific examples of what the President can and cannot do.
"They also signed a voluntary undertaking on campaigning for the election in a manner that is dignified, decorous and consistent with the Presidentās position.
"We remind all candidates not to mislead the public about the president's role," they said.Ā
https://www.asiaone.com/singapore/i-will-deal-imda-separately-tan-kin-lian-unhappy-being-asked-remove-parts-broadcast-presidential-election
Check out the interviewer's exceptionally stoic expression....