JUNE 28 — Two men sat together at a coffee shop and this caused quite a rumble in Singapore's generally sedate political landscape. 

The men concerned were Tan Cheng Bok — leader of the opposition Progress Singapore Party (PSP) and Lee Hsien Yang, younger brother of incumbent Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong and son of modern Singapore's founding father Lee Kuan Yew.  

It is definitely significant that a son of our founding father is now openly associating with the opposition; Hsien Yang declared both his membership of and support for the PSP but does not appear to have come forward as a candidate in the Singapore 2020 General Election, which will be held on July 10.  

The Lee family has been the bedrock of the ruling People’s Action Party (PAP) as well as modern Singapore's political leadership since independence in 1965. 

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A Lee has been prime minister for 41 of the 55 years of our independence.   

So, for Singaporeans to see that one of the core family members has broken away is like seeing a glitch in the matrix. 

For years, the PAP has been an efficient machine. It has won every general election comfortably. 

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The Opposition has only ever occupied a handful of seats in our parliament and the transition from Lee Senior to Goh Chok Tong and then Lee Junior was smoothly handled.  

That efficiency is the heart of the PAP’s appeal. There's no drama and very little uncertainty.

But this time something seems different. 

Hsien Yang’s breakaway didn’t come from out of the blue. Divisions within the Lee family became public not long after Lee Kuan Yew’s death as the three children had a very public spat about the future of their father's home on Oxley road. 

Now the youngest brother — with his sister apparently in agreement – has openly said that the PAP has “lost its way.” 

It is sad when families fall out but politically this is a boon for Singapore’s opposition.  

Currently Hsien Yang is backing the PSP which commands no seats in parliament - something that it will aggressively seek to change this election.  

The youngest Lee sibling’s endorsement may help achieve this.  Now I have no idea if Hsien Yang is sincere. He has never been a politician and as an army officer and former corporate executive has not really been a public figure. 

I hope he seeks a positive outcome for all Singaporeans and this isn’t just about sibling rivalry or carving out an outsized role for himself. It is promising he hasn’t yet stepped forward as an election candidate. 

However, he made a statement which was shared widely on social media where he said, among other things, that it is possible to love the country while still voting for the Opposition and that the PSP represented a serious alternative.  

Now, the ruling party’s argument has long been that the Opposition doesn’t have the talent or the experience to run Singapore.  

Many Singaporeans too have been wary of parties that have no experience in government. 

And of course, the PSP can’t just become credible because Lee Hsien Yang says it is. 

Singaporeans need to believe the PSP and other parties outside the ruling party can serve their interests and run the nation competently.  

For the people to believe the Opposition is ready to run Singapore, they will probably need more than endorsements from Lee Hsien Yang.  

Soon, campaigning begins. We all await to see what happens next. 

* This is the personal opinion of the columnist.