Pritam Singh skips Team Eunos durian trip for the first time in 11 years to attend climate resilience conference

SINGAPORE: When the Workers’ Party Eunos Team went on its annual durian trip this year, there was one notable absence, Pritam Singh, who has been representing Eunos in Parliament for over a decade.

For the first time in 11 years, Mr Singh skipped the trip, but for a good reason, as he attended a conference on climate resilience about the role of legislators in Southeast Asia in Kuala Lumpur.

The WP Secretary-General and Leader of the Opposition shared photos from the conference in posts on Facebook and Instagram on Saturday (July 13), writing that he had been pleased to meet old friends at the Malaysian Parliament, which hosted the conference.

However, he added that it was also a pleasure to meet Pita Limjaroenrat of Thailand’s Move Forward Party. The parliamentarian who studied in New Zealand and the United States has been outspoken about environmental issues.

“Global warming is a major issue because it poses a danger to the stability of the modern world. It is the government’s ultimate enemy rather than just a national security issue,” Mr Limjaroenrat said early in 2023.

“I shared with Pita that he had many supporters in Singapore and wished him well. But more than the parliamentarians, it was some of civil society contributions at the conference that stood out,” wrote Mr Singh.

“For example, the impact of climate change on the poorer and less well-off segments of society like indigenous peoples and vulnerable people – labourers, outdoor workers, fishermen, etc. was constantly highlighted and acutely focused upon.”

Read related: Workers’ Party reiterates concern over climate change and seeks to engage in dialogue with citizens

He added that there had been many perspectives that he had found useful and would bring back to the WP Policy Team as they review proposals on climate change for the manifesto for the upcoming General Election.

While the date for the GE has yet to be announced, it must be held by Nov 23, 2025, and there has been some speculation that it could be called for in as early as four months.

Mr Singh also wrote that the WP has some ideas already but would welcome more and encouraged members of the public to reach out. He ended his post by expressing that the Eunos team had not been far from his thoughts.

“Back to durians, I was in Malaysia, so I did partake too. But I did miss the company of the Eunos residents who were in Yong Peng, Johor more. Next time!” /TISG

Read also: 5 WP MPs attend SG Climate Rally at Hong Lim Park