SINGAPORE: The high calibre of new candidates from the Workers’ Party (WP) going into GE 2025 has been noted by many, with Senior Counsel Harpreet Singh and Institute of Mental Health (IMH) psychologist Ong Lue Ping getting much attention.
On Thursday (Apr 17), the party formally introduced four new candidates, one of whom is a standout: former diplomat Eileen Chong Pei Shan, who served with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MFA) for over six years.
The WP also introduced Ms Chong in a video across its social media channels.
Ms Chong, 33, joined the WP in the latter part of 2024, participating in house visits in Bedok Reservoir and Kovan. At present, she is a volunteer caseworker at Meet-the-People Sessions in Aljunied with Member of Parliament (MP) Gerald Giam.
She works in the social impact sector at the Asia Philanthropy Circle. Her years at the MFA include a stint at the Singapore Embassy in Beijing from 2020 to 2023. While with the ministry, she covered Singapore’s bilateral ties with China, Thailand, the Philippines, and Laos.
Where she will be fielded has yet to be announced, although a number of netizens are speculating that she’ll be made part of the Aljunied team. This is especially true given that the party leaders said on Apr 17 that the slate had not yet been finalised.
Ms Chong has certainly made a good impression on Singaporeans, judging from the comments they’ve made.
“Eileen comes across as confident and with a serving heart. An asset to WP,” one wrote.
“Having seen the full video and read up on her a little bit, I think she’s the most electable new candidate across the board. She has credentials that will match most PAP (People’s Action Party) newcomers, and she’s very well spoken,” another noted.
“Eileen is definitely a strong addition to the Workers’ Party. Her experience in diplomacy, social impact, and community work reflects both depth and heart. It’s rare to see someone who combines global perspective with grassroots empathy so seamlessly,” another commented.
A Reddit user who is a former MFA colleague of Ms Chong’s had this to say: “She was one of the very best diplomats in her batch and a stellar employee and co-worker. A huge capacity for hard work, a spine for what she believes in, and incredibly helpful and approachable; nobody had a single bad word to say about her. No idea where she’ll be fielded, but she’ll be an excellent MP.
“And given all the uncertainty globally re. Trump, it’s good to have an MP with real, extensive, get-your-hands-dirty foreign policy experience.”
Another wrote, “Her credentials resemble the sort of profile who could have gone on to find her place in PAP if her aim was just to get into Parliament for her own career progress. She chose the harder route, and that is commendable—shows her guts at the very least.”
Her debut, along with Siti Alia Binte Abdul Rahim Mattar, Abdul Muhaimin Abdul Malik, and Kenneth Tiong, prompted one Reddit user to comment that WP Chief Pritam Singh “really has a lot of cards up his sleeve… Seems like the Leader of the Opposition is appealing to a much more diverse pool of candidates and is looking like the leader that people want to follow.”
Another wrote, specifically regarding Ms Chong, “You got another star catch, WP. Hope she gets into Parliament.” /TISG
Read also: ‘Really outstanding people’: WP’s first group of new candidates makes a strong impression