GE2025: PAP manifesto a roadmap to navigate changed world, says PM Wong

SINGAPORE: The People’s Action Party (PAP) secretary-general Lawrence Wong said that the election manifesto that the party is launching on Thursday (Apr 17) is its roadmap to navigate a changed world. 

Speaking to party members and activists, he also unveiled the slogan of the manifesto: Changed world, fresh team, new resolve - securing a brighter future for you.

Mr Wong, who is also prime minister, outlined during his speech a world that is going through profound changes and becoming more uncertain.

Hence, this is why he has called for a general election at this “critical juncture” so Singaporeans can decide on who to lead the nation and chart the path forward together.

The PAP will also present a fresh team to tackle the upcoming challenges, standing ready to serve Singaporeans with a new resolve, he said.

The launch of PAP's manifesto came about a week before Nomination Day on Apr 23, which marks the official start of the election hustings period.

After nine days of campaigning and a Cooling-off Day on May 2, Singaporeans will head to the polls on May 3.

SECURING A BRIGHTER FUTURE

In a statement, the PAP said that the new manifesto builds upon the promises it has delivered over the years and “draws connections to the lived realities of Singaporeans” shared during the Forward Singapore exercise.

The Forward Singapore exercise was launched by Mr Wong in June 2022, two months after he was picked as the leader of the fourth-generation (4G) team of political leaders, which culminated in a report published in October 2023.

On Thursday, Mr Wong noted how the PAP government has already taken “major steps” to advance the agenda laid out in Forward Singapore.

These include enhancing leave arrangements and support for parents, reforming the education system and launching more flats and a new public housing framework to keep them affordable. But more can still be done, he added.

The manifesto launched on Thursday comprised 18 broad-ranging highlights.

For workers, the manifesto promises better jobs, better pay and more opportunities, stronger safeguards for fair employment and higher pay for lower-wage workers.

The highlights also include more support for caregivers, persons with disabilities and those with large families, as well as more affordable public housing for all, including singles.

Other chapters in the manifesto touch on having more citizen participation in policy making, improving train and bus services and providing greater access to sports, arts and culture.

“This manifesto is our promise to all Singaporeans,” said Mr Wong on Thursday.

“It reflects your hopes, your concerns and your aspirations. And it reflects our commitment: to keep Singapore strong, stable and united.”

Also on Thursday, Mr Wong introduced 32 new candidates that the PAP will be fielding in this General Election, and thanked Members of Parliament who will be stepping down, without disclosing who they are.

PAST MANIFESTO

In the 2020 General Election, PAP campaigned with a manifesto titled Our Jobs, Our Lives, Our Future.

Against the backdrop of the COVID-19 pandemic, Senior Minister Lee Hsien Loong, who was then prime minister and the party’s secretary-general, noted that the manifesto’s key focus was how Singapore would work together to overcome the crisis of a generation.

This differed from past manifestos, which had mainly sketched out “ambitious but credible” long-term ideas.

The document comprised 10 chapters, spanning from Staying Safe and Healthy Together, Creating Jobs and Acquiring Skills Together, to Creating a New Future Together.