The common argument against a two-party system in Singapore is that of
political gridlock. I find this to be implausible, given Singapore's
political structure. There are three main factors which strongly inhibit
the formation of political impasses.
1. Singapore has a unicameral legislature.
2. Singapore adopts a first-past-the-post voting system.
3. Singapore has strict limits on parliamentary speaking time.
1. Singapore has a unicameral legislature.
2. Singapore adopts a first-past-the-post voting system.
3. Singapore has strict limits on parliamentary speaking time.
Therefore, I think it is unlikely for political gridlock to exist in Singapore. To elaborate upon the previous points:
The
United States is often cited as one example of an indecisive (if not
impotent) legislature, which is probably true. Yet, it is invalid to
extrapolate this to Singapore because the underlying political system is
significant. A bicameral legislature, where a law has to be sanctioned
by both chambers, is clearly different from a unicameral legistature. At
the very least, a law faces more obstacles to being passed. It is also
not uncommon for bicameral legislatures to be 'won' by different (and
opposed) parties, which contributes to factionalism.
None of these are applicable to Singapore, where there is only one chamber.
When
discussing the malalise in American politics, another important weapon
to force an stalemate is the fillibuster. A fillibuster prevents the
passage of a vote; in the US, 60% of senate votes are required to force a
vote, which has degenerated into a situation where 60% support is required for a
motion to be passed (otherwise any objecting party can simply prevent
its passage by fillibustering).
Singapore has strict limits on
the amount of speaking time each MP has. Thus, it is nearly impossible
to delay the passage of any law via filibustering.
Beyond simple
factionalism leading to political gridlock, an indecisive legislature
can also arise due to the weakness of political parties. Some european
governments have adopted proportional representation, which allots seats
(approximately) based on the voting share each party has garnered in
the previous election. Unfortunately, this tends to lead to the
formation of legislatures comprising of numerous small, fratictious
parties. If major parties are unable to secure outright majorities, the
only option is a coalition. Coalitions are unstable, and may lead to
shortsighted, incoherent, and piecewise policy.
Singapore has a
first-past-the-post voting system, which tends to amplify the vote share
of the winner. While this does not guarantee outright majorities (as
with UK's last election, which necessitated a coalition), it is
nontheless more stable than a proportional represention.
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