Ex-WP MP Leon Perera announces move to New York

SINGAPORE: Leon Perera, a Member of Parliament representing Aljunied GRC under the Workers’ Party until he stepped down in 2023, announced in a LinkedIn post on Tuesday (Jan 28) that he is moving to New York due to work.

Mr Perera wrote that he has taken a new role in his company as the Executive Director at Yamada Consulting Group USA Inc., growing the firm’s stateside business and building connections between the US and Asia. He described this role as “pushing on an open door.”

Nevertheless, he remains Chairman of Yamada Consulting and Spire group in Asia, so he will travel between the US and Singapore. He jokingly wrote that this would dash “the hopes of any Singaporeans out there who would rather be rid of me permanently!”

The former MP added that spending more time in the United States is something he’s looking forward to, adding that he hopes this time will aid in developing “new perspectives and ideas about what is going on in the world, where it is heading, and, most importantly, what is to be done to build a better future.

I also hope for fresh perspectives about my homeland. It is said that to see clearly, you sometimes need some distance.”

Mr Perera, who has been in New York for the past two weeks, also wrote that the winter and cost of living in the city “are not as daunting as they might first appear” and noted its multiculturalism. He also gave his wife a shoutout, thanking her and writing that she would divide her time between New York and Singapore.

Before his stint as Aljunied MP (2020 to 2023), where he was responsible for the Serangoon ward, he was also a Non-Constituency Member of Parliament under the WP from 2015 to 2020. As the WP was the best-performing opposition team during the 2015 General Election, Mr Perera, along with current Hougang SMC MP Dennis Tan and former WP member Daniel Goh, was nominated by the WP as NCMPs.

In July 2023, it was reported that Mr Perera had had an illicit relationship with former WP Youth head Nicole Seah, leading both to resign from the party and Mr Perera to step down from his seat.

Last year, Mr Perera was spotted with members of the Progress Singapore Party, which led to speculation that he might rejoin the political arena. However, the announcement that he will be spending a significant amount of time in the United States has essentially ended this. /TISG

Read also: Will he join PSP? — Leon Perera’s appearance at National Day Dinner fuels rumours of his return to politics