About a week after launching his presidential bid, fourth presidential candidate Tan Kin Lian may be embroiled in some beef with fellow candidate George Goh.
On 15 August 2023, Tan acknowledged in an interview before he visited Jurong West 505 Market and Food Centre that he and George Goh could end up eligible to run for president.
In response to such a possibility, Tan suggested he and Goh, as fellow independent candidates, should join forces instead of competing head-on.
During the interview, he added, “If both of us qualify, I still think it is a good idea that we should discuss who should step down, because it’s not good to have a split vote among those who want to have an independent president.”
Obviously, George Goh was not too happy with the proposal. Instead, he countered Tan’s suggestion with some tough “advice” of his own.
George Goh Disagrees with Tan Kin Lian’s Suggestion of Having One of Them Step Down
In an interview during his visit to supporters in Bukit Panjang Hawker Centre and Market, George Goh denied having any part in Tan’s suggested arrangement.
“Nobody should tell anybody to step down. This should not be the way,” Goh said.
In response to Tan’s fixation on the possibility of a split vote between two independent presidential candidates, Mr Goh told reporters he had no concerns about split votes.
In fact, he felt that voters should disregard any candidate who enters the race talking about splitting votes, as the mere mention of “split votes” indicates that the candidate is not competent in garnering support on his own. Ouch.
Further asserting his dominance, Goh went on to cement himself as “the only one who is truly independent” as the only candidate seeking to qualify through his private sector experience.
Goh Urges Tan to Focus On His Campaign Instead of Complaining About ‘Rushed’ Presidential Election
Goh has also responded to Tan’s concerns about a ‘rushed’ presidential election.
These concerns arose when Mr Tan highlighted that the ten days between Nomination Day and Polling Day (Cooling-off Day excluded) were insufficient for him to convey his message to voters during his campaigns.
Goh’s response?
“Please don’t complain any more, go and prepare all your campaign materials.”
Despite George Goh’s relentless roasting of Tan Kin Lian, Tan is still adamant that one of them should step down if they’re both eligible to run as president. He has also not given up the idea of holding a cordial discussion with the Harvey Norman Ossia founder, offering to “meet Mr Goh and talk for three hours at any place” if he has to.
In a final word of advice directed to Tan Kin Lian, George Goh said, “Make sure don’t lose the deposit, and make sure cross 5% (of the votes).”
For those unaware of Tan’s previous attempt to run for president, Goh’s “advice” may be a cleverly disguised way of rubbing salt in the wound at the former NTUC Income CEO’s unsuccessful campaign.
In 2011, Tan garnered the lowest number of votes among the four candidates (including former president Tony Tan), with only 4.9% of the total vote. The unsuccessful attempt to achieve at least 12.5% of the vote contributed to him losing the S$48,000 deposit he made to run as president.
President or not, George Goh should consider pursuing a diss-track career with how heavily he’s roasting Tan.
You can watch this video to know more about George Goh…
…and this video to know more about Tan Kin Lian: