The timeline was short.
181 politicians.
9 days.
Every minute had to count.
They fanned out across the country meeting voters face to face, holding nightly rallies and screeching into microphones.
They went on social media.
They handed out manifestos to anyone who would read it.
All, in a bid to tell Singaporeans just why they were the best man or woman for the job.
Some could inspire. Others could motivate thousands to action. But what separates them from the rest?
It’s that ability to reach out an invisible hand and touch their audience with their words and their presence.
Here are some of our top picks for best speech of GE2015 and why we thought so –
Lee Hsien Loong is a great story-teller – he’s got all the right elements that make a great story : dialogue, surprise elements, an easy pace of delivery and it’s told with a twinkle in his eye. Stories are an excellent tool for getting your point across and making sure it’s remembered.
Ong Ye Kung, the up and coming Singapore politician makes the list because of his quotable quote. “This General Election, you have the power to write the last chapter of the PAP government or to write the first chapter of the new PAP.”
A good speech hits you right in your heart and that’s what Dr Chee Soon Juan did. He appealed to emotions and if it was anything we remembered about his speech, it was his ability to pull at our emotions with his well-placed story about something as simple as buying ice-cream for his children.
Last and definitely not least, Mr Tharman Shanmugaratnam had the tough job of explaining complicated policies to the masses. But he has the ability to break it down simply in a way that only a seasoned speaker can.
If there’s one thing to learn from great speakers, it is to keep it simple – always.
