Singapore’s First Unsuccessful President.

 Good evening, ladies and gentlemen. My name is Tang Li and I am here to launch my bid to become President of the Republic of Singapore. I believe that my candidacy for the highest office in the land comes at an important time in our history. I have a purpose and I believe that as President my purpose will help serve Singapore’s interest at this critical juncture.

I am aware that I am going up against the best and the brightest that the nation has to offer. We have two esteemed businessmen and let’s not forget the former Deputy Prime Minister who is recognized in international circles as being a whizz when it comes to economics. So, how can I compare? My opponents have fortunes to speak of, while I struggle to pay my bills. They made policies that affect our lives. I haven’t come close. I’m sure my opponents will point to their vast experience running huge organisations and thus bolster the image that they are better qualified to be the guardian of our reserves.

Believe it or not, I get where they are coming from. How can you trust an unsuccessful man to look after the reserves when he struggles to top his transport card? That’s missing the point. The fact that I have failed in both my personal and professional life is the very reason that you need to vote for me as a president.

When we talk about the Presidency being a symbol, we need to understand that that symbol means. Sure, we want a president who can look dignified when facing the outside world. This is the easy part. The state will see to it that the president will look presentable. I’ve had people tell me I look that much better when I dress up properly.

 

 However, what does the Presidency symbolize to the people of the nation? Is the President like the British monarch, a symbol steeped in fantasy or do we want a president that the average Singaporean can say “Hey, he’s an ordinary dude like me but he made it.”

I like to think that as a national symbol, the President will be someone that can relate to the ordinary Singaporean. Sure, I never ran a S$100 million organization. However, I’ve had to struggle against “foreign competition,” and somehow found a way to make “foreign competition” work for me. I was once homeless, had to stay in a seedy hotel in the seedy part of town.

Sure, everyone notices that my friends include high flying people. However, I also have befriended the likes of construction workers and other blue-collar workers. In culinary terms, I can enjoy wagyu steak but I am also at ease eating with my hands in the company of construction workers who were thrown out of work.

I love my country and my love for the country is not a transaction. My country has not always been good to me and yet, I stay struggling on the continuous efforts to build a life. My country has its faults, yet I love my country warts an all. You need a president who represents the nation as it is and not what an elite living in a bubble would like you to think it is. Vote for a president who understands your struggles.