Political systems Party list proportional representation
Someone asked for my view on this issue - Should Singapore use a party-list proportional representation instead of the current first-past-the-post voting that use constituency like SMS and GRC to give the opposition many seats if their party got 5% of votes in the elections?

This article explains the "party list proportional system".

I think that it is better to have a mixed system, where a member is elected to represent the constitutuency under the "first past the post system" and additional members are elected on the "party list proportional system".

This article explains the "mixed system".

My preference is for a "one party system" where election of leaders is carried out democratically by the members of the party (which could represent 5% to 10% of the population. This system ensures that the leaders are elected by people who are willing to spend time to understand the system and to know the people that they are voting for. 

Most countries consider that "democracy" requires all citizens to have the right to vote. In practice, a large majority of the population do not pay attention to the political system. They are easily swayed by messages made during the election campaign. The political parties and candidates with the most funds are able to reach out better to the votes. The winners are usually the people with the most election funds.

This is a real weakness of a system where every citizen has a vote. It explains why most democracies are not able to deal with the challenges faced by the ordinary people.

There is another weakness in a system based on competition among political parties. These parties spend more energy fighting each other than to find solutions to improve the living standards of the people. 

A "democratic system" allows for the governing party to be thrown out of office if it does not perform. In most countries, the governing party does not perform and have to be replaced at a future general election. 

Tan Kin Lian
 

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