AWARE Old Guard should adopt the PAP system to entrench themselves in positions of power

AWARE Old Guard should adopt the PAP system to entrench themselves in positions of power

The recent power grab in AWARE by an unknown group of young turks who managed to oust most of the Old Guard through a simple majority vote at its AGM has become a contentious issue in the leading woman advocacy group in Singapore.

150 or so members of AWARE have called for an EGM to take the new committee to task for its failure to disclose their agendas for launching an audacious bid to take over the organization.

The Old Guards only have themselves to blame for being forced rather unceremoniously out of power. Under AWARE’s Constitution, any member can run for the CEC after which the various positions such as the President and Hononary Secretary are decided within the CEC members themselves.

If the Old Guards want to keep familiar faces in the CEC for the sake of continuity and clarity of mission, they should have taken a leaf out of the PAP system and adopt a different Constitution to pre-empt this unsavory episode from occurring in the first place.

Have you ever wondered why the PAP has seen no major leadership changes at its helm after 50 years in power?

Under the Constitution of the PAP, ordinary cadres have limited say in choosing their own leaders.

The PAP’s CEC is essentially an exclusive old boys club on its own. There are no direct elections for the important positions of Secretary-General, Chairman and Treasurer.

The PAP’s Secretary-General is usually the Prime Minister of Singapore as defined by tradition. Lee Kuan Yew was its Secretary-General for nearly four decades before he passed the baton to Goh Chok Tong who in turn relinquished it to Lee Hsien Loong after he stepped down in 2003 as Prime Minister.

While elections are held for the CECs of both the main party and Young PAP, it is the Secretary-General’s prerogative to appoint “losers” who fail to make the mark back into the CEC.

In the last PAP CEC elections, Dr Ng Eng Hen was unable to obtain the necessary number of votes and was ushered into the CEC through the “backdoor”.

Though such a system runs against the grain of democratic principles, it has worked well for the PAP over the years by entrenching a few leaders firmly in positions of power thereby minimizing the potential of any political upheavals from the files and ranks below.

Had AWARE adopted the PAP system earlier, the fiasco would never have materialized. The President of AWARE will be able to appoint members who lost in the elections into the CEC directly and ostracize the new members by sidelining them within the CEC.

The downside of such a system is that it impedes leadership renewal by entrenching a certain clique or faction within the party while effectively prevent its removal via democratic means.

A corrupted, power-hungry and manipulative leader can easily make use of the powers of incumbency to control and the rule the organization forever with little accountability and transparency.

The Old Guard of AWARE should be glad that there are younger generations of leaders who are passionate enough to run for the elections and continue the work they have left behind.

In the spirit of democracy, the new AWARE committee should be given the time and space to prove its worth. After all, they won the election square and fair on their own merits instead of riding on the coat-tails of more established leaders.

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