Apparently, PM Lee Doesn't Play Chess Either

Too many checks "will lead to stalemate", not checkmate.

In tradition of his Mee Siam mai hum gaffe, PM Lee attempted a pun on chess but got his terms mixed up.

Wrote The Straits Times,

But for every "checker" in Parliament, there will be one fewer "doer, thinker and leader" in the government, said Mr Lee, who is the PAP's secretary-general.
"You will have a lot of checkers, you have no workers... There will be gridlock, like in other countries," he said.
- See more at: http://www.straitstimes.com/news/singapore/more-singapore-stories/story/too-many-checks-will-lead-checkmate-20141208#sthash.HR8W48gH.dpuf

But for every "checker" in Parliament, there will be one fewer "doer, thinker and leader" in the government, said Mr Lee, who is the PAP's secretary-general.
"You will have a lot of checkers, you have no workers... There will be gridlock, like in other countries," he said.
- See more at: http://www.straitstimes.com/news/singapore/more-singapore-stories/story/too-many-checks-will-lead-checkmate-20141208#sthash.HR8W48gH.dpuf

 But for every "checker" in Parliament, there will be one fewer "doer, thinker and leader" in the government, said Mr Lee, who is the PAP's secretary-general."You will have a lot of checkers, you have no workers... There will be gridlock, like in other countries," he said.

"Eventually, there will be no PAP to check... That will be the last check, because it will be checkmate for Singapore."

If there is a gridlock in a chess game, the right term to use is "stalemate" - this is when a side, not in check position, cannot make a move because the next move will lead to a check. As such, the chess game is considered a draw, where no sides win or lose.

I have to agree that too many checks and counter checks can lead to a gridlock, or a stalemate, where no sides can either win or loss.

Given the current disproportion of PAP members in parliament, the PAP has been able to checkmate, by the numbers, their oppositions in policy making.
 
I would prefer a government that checkmates  the opposition and the people by giving the right and argument that these two would have to agree that government's policies are the right one to follow.

If the opposition and the people checkmates the government, then the government should have a relook at the policies to make it better for the people to decide.

I guess nobody on the PAP team decided to check on PM Lee's puns which resulted in the statement ending in a checkmate from "real" chess players. This is what happens when you have no checks and counterchecks.