From hard-hitting criticisms to seductive talk?

Less than a year ago, Emeritus Senior Minister Goh Chok Tong said the comments made by then-Workers Party chief Low Thia Khiang on the Oxley Rise issue were "not unexpected", before adding: "This is what is called political sophistry." According to Collins dictionary, sophistry is the practice of using clever arguments that sound convincing but are in fact false.

During the election campaign in 2015, Deputy Prime Minister Teo Chee Hean accused Mr Low of shedding crocodile tears over the stepping down of then-Transport Minister Lui Tuck Yew. He said: "It’s very in character for Mr Low to squeeze the most political mileage out of anything. The reasons that Tuck Yew decided to step down are known to everyone."

In 2014, Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong took WP to task in Parliament over its constant shift in positions. Mr Lee said: "We have to call a spade a spade. If we have changed position and your previous position was wrong, say so. If you hold by your position, have your guts to reaffirm it and take the consequences. But to weasel away, play with words, avoid the issue and then claim to be responsible, that is what we fear can drive Singapore’s politics into the same place where many other countries have gone."

In another case of the ruling party questioning the integrity of the WP, the PAP wrote in one published forum letter: "A responsible opposition party should offer well thought-out, sustainable alternative policies, or at least serious critiques of what the government proposes. The WP has not done that. " It added: "No WP MP has ever introduced a Private Member’s Bill, unlike former NMP Walter Woon and PAP MP Christopher de Souza. Mr Low and his colleagues habitually show one face during elections and another in Parliament."

There are many other examples which I will not list here but the one common point is such that the People's Action Party has openly questioned if the WP is playing the role of an opposition party in a responsible way. Another way to interpret the PAP's comments may be that the WP are political opportunists who are not performing their role as responsible parliamentarians.

Therefore, it is a big surprise that Minister Chan Chun Sing would pay tribute to Mr Low earlier this week, and adding that the Government appreciates Mr Low's "efforts to work together to build a better Singapore".

One cannot help but wonder why the same level of "respect" and "appreciation" was not accorded to Mr Chiam See Tong who left politics after his defeat in 2011? Didn't Mr Chiam contribute just as much, if not more, than Mr Low?

A few days after Mr Chan's "tribute", PM Lee declared: "As an opposition party, the Workers' Party plays a role in our political system, whoever is their party leader." Two months before that, PM also commended Mr Low's speech on foreign relations in Parliament.

Wow!

Has the PAP shifted its stance? If so, why?

Or is it a case of them acknowledging the possibility, however remote it may be, that the WP could well be a key partner in forming a coalition government in the not-too-distant future? In other words, instead of "allowing" WP room to maneuver close to other opposition parties, it may be better to bring them closer to the PAP's side first.

Well, I reckon most of us can only hope that the WP remains grounded based on its principles, and not be seduced by such sweet sexy talk. Definitely not after how the integrity of its leaders had been repeatedly called into question over the last few years.