SINGAPORE: Two Nominated Members of Parliament (NMPs) made the news last month after they stepped down, with their resignations sparking speculations about their possible participation in the upcoming General Election.
Raj Joshua Thomas and Syed Harun Alhabsyi resigned on Feb 14. This is an unprecedented move for NMPs, and Mr Thomas and Dr Syed Arun were only midway into their terms.
Speculation into their plans to launch into politics only got stronger this week. On Tuesday (Mar 25), Mr Thomas, a lawyer, confirmed in a Mothership podcast that he had joined the ruling People’s Action Party (PAP) and said that he was “prepared” to contest in the upcoming election if called upon to do so, although he pointed out that the final say lies with Prime Minister Lawrence Wong, PAP’s secretary-general.
Meanwhile, Dr Syed Harun, a psychiatrist, was spotted along with the PAP team at Nee Soon GRC on Mar 27 (Thursday). As The Straits Times noted, this was the first time he was seen in public since he tendered his resignation last month.
The public’s response has been mixed since Mr Thomas and Dr Syed Arun stepped down. The NMP scheme was, after all, introduced in 1990 to bring independent voices into Parliament. As such, NMPs are expected to be non-partisan.
Shortly after the resignations, academic Walid Jumblatt Abdullah, who is friends with both men, publicly said he would dissuade them from considering political office. Meanwhile, former Workers’ Party MP Leon Perera suggested the imposition of a “cooling-off period” for resigning NMPs.
The issue, of course, is by no means new. In 1992, then PAP MP Tan Cheng Bock rejected the Nominated Member of Parliament (NMP) scheme. In 2020, a video of Dr Tan rejecting the NMP scheme went viral. He left the PAP in 2011 and founded the Progress Singapore Party in 2019.
He voted against the PAP in spite of the Whip not having been lifted regarding the NMP scheme on the grounds that MPs had to be elected by the people and be accountable to an electorate for their views. For this, he received a warning.
“My own feelings on this fundamental democratic principle of only having elected members of parliament in this House is too strong to be compromised. I cannot support this motion,” Dr Tan said at the time.
On Dr Syed Harun being seen at Nee Soon, one commenter wrote, “Always getting into Parliament by the back door.”
Another asked, “How is the NMP (scheme) still relevant if they are stepping stones to eventual PAP??”
One Facebook user agreed, expressing his view that the scheme has been “hijacked for political maneuvering.” He added the concern that “Instead of serving the public interest with unbiased perspectives, these former NMPs are clearly using their positions as a stepping stone to further their political ambitions.”
In view of the former NMPs resigning midway into their terms, one commenter opined, “In future, there should be a law that every NMP has to serve full term. If ‘potential’ is seen in them, no need to elect as NMP, go as a candidate. I see now NMP is a probation period to shortlist candidate for election.”
Another was more succinct, writing, “NMP but resign halfway and now want to serve again…”/TISG
Read also: Mixed reactions to the possibility of former NMPs contesting in the General Election