Singaporean says Nicole Seah ‘could have gone far, very far, with public support’

SINGAPORE: A Facebook post about former politician Nicole Seah has gone viral, with some commenters even saying she should make a comeback.

The post, written by local content creator Alvin Huang on June 25, traces Ms Seah’s stellar rise in politics from 2011. Mr Huang presented her as one of Singapore’s most naturally gifted opposition politicians, who asked questions that are still relevant today.

Ms Seah, who joined the National Solidarity Party after leaving the Reform Party, was fielded as a candidate by the NSP at Marine Parade for the General Election of 2011, when she was just 24. During this time, local media widely reported that she rapidly overtook other Singapore politicians on Facebook.

It was the first time the constituency, led by then-Senior Minister Goh Chok Tong, was contested since 1992, and Ms Seah’s slate won a surprising 43.35% of the vote.

Mr Goh, who was disappointed by the results, praised Ms Seah, saying, “She communicated very well. She spoke quite persuasively to the younger people as well as some older people.”

However, her sudden fame brought harassment, threats, media scrutiny, career setbacks, and mental health struggles. She left the NSP in 2014, worked in Thailand, then quietly rebuilt herself within the Workers’ Party before contesting the 2020 election in East Coast GRC, where the WP slate, which was up against Deputy Prime Minister Heng Swee Keat, won 46.59% of the votes.

Three years later, after photos of Ms Seah holding hands with former WP MP Leon Perera surfaced online, the two, who were both married to others, bowed out of the political arena.

Mr Huang wrote that Ms Seah’s political awakening had begun when, as a teenager, she was delivering meals to the needy and met an elderly woman. Although the auntie had a home, she could not buy food for herself.

“The 17-year-old who knocked on her door and got angry isn’t in politics anymore. But the question she asked that day, ‘What is going to happen to her the rest of the days?’ is still the right question. And nobody in Singapore politics has ever asked it better,” he added.

What Singaporeans are saying

Several commenters wrote that Ms Seah should give politics another try.

“Nicole, everyone makes mistakes, but if you still have the same heart as when you were 24, come back be a politician and champion what you believe and make that difference in the lives of those people who need another voice to speak for them,” one wrote.

“She should come back. Everybody is human and is allowed indiscretions. No one is perfect,” added another.

One seemed regretful that she is no longer in politics, writing, “If she had not made that mistake, she could have gone far, very far, and with public support. And Singapore may not be the same. Big waste.”

A commenter wrote that Ms Seah “could have been the first female PM of Singapore. /TISG

Read also: Nicole Seah: Not just WP’s but also Singapore’s loss