Singapore Democratic Party Exposed 2 - Bad State of the Young Democrats

In this episode, we examine the state of the Young Democrats, youth wing of the Singapore Democratic Party.

Young Democrats (YD) Monthly Meeting For October 2009 on Saturday(31/10/09)‏

From:	Jarrod Luo (duckispro@hotmail.com)
Sent:	Saturday, October 31, 2009 6:47:42 PM
To:
Cc:

Dear all,

Please note that the meeting scheduled as per email subject has been called off, due to poor attendance. The Council shall arrange another day within the next week to meet, in order to close for the month of October and plan for the coming month of November.

The Council would like to take this opportunity to highlight to one and all that the overall participation level of YD members in Party events and activities have been disappointingly poor, for apart from the same few individuals who have been trying their best to make time for the cause, the rest of the members really need to do better in this aspect.

The Council would also like to highlight on another disturbing trend they observed. Despite the numerous communications channels available to connect the members with the Party, it still seems that the latest plans and intentions of the Party are still being kept in the dark from some members. This should not be the case, as all members should already be on the email lists(e.g. this). And even if in the unlikely case that a member is not in the loop, the onus is on the member to put in the extra effort to connect with the Party and request the relevant updates.

Make no mistake, but all members should be clear on one thing: they are not being expected to put in any extra effort for anyone, nor anything. Not for the Party, not for Dr Chee, not even for our beloved country (emphasis added), Singapore. This extra effort has to be given because for better or worse, we are all in this together and ultimately it all boils to the reason why we are in politics and why, out of all parties, we have chosen this Party.

Hence, the Council would like to conclude by urging all YD members to reflect upon the events of the past months, and re-dedicate themselves anew to the Party and the cause it represents.

Best Regards,

Jarrod Luo

Honorary Secretary

Young Democrats

From:	Muhummed Shamin Mohammed Sidek (shamin_maldini@hotmail.com)
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Sent:	Sunday, November 01, 2009 7:25:23 AM

Hi,

I agree that we need to work together as a team. I remembered the poll TOC had on it's website regarding the youth wings that people identify themselves with, Young Democrat had the 2nd highest vote. I guess people voted us because they looked at the parent party. If people knew the realities of the group and how active it was, people might not have voted us overwhelmingly.

We should find the root of the problem and not be pointing fingers at one another. We can look a few questions to discuss and think of a solution to it.

1) Is it a leadership issue?

2) Is it that members just can't be bothered?

3) Members feel alienated from the party as whole?

4) Members are afraid to be publicly identified with the party itself?

I am sure that all of us have our problems that becomes a stumbling block which prevents us from committing. Being youth, we also have other pursuits and problems such as trying to get a job, financial difficulties and other personal issues. Some of us would aspire to be members of parliaments while other would just want to help out.

As of now, I believe all of us joined the party because, firstly, we saw the PAP and the system that they have established as our enemy and secondly, we agreed with the parties goals. So we should all be working together towards the party goals.

I hope that we are able to overcome this commitment issue and move on from here.

Muhammad Shamin
Member
Young Democrats