Singapore — Workers’ Party (WP) Secretary-General Pritam Singh and Chairman Sylvia Lim have met the new Non-Constituency Members of Parliament (NCMPs) from the Progress Singapore Party (PSP) ahead of the first sitting of the 14th Parliament of Singapore.
The PSP was eligible to nominate two NCMPs because the party’s team that contested West Coast GRC in the recent General Election received the best score of 48.31 per cent of the vote among losing opposition candidates.
The party appointed Ms Hazel Poa and Mr Leong Mun Wai to take up the NCMP seats. Ms Poa and Mr Leong, who were the party’s Vice-Chairman and Assistant Secretary-General respectively, subsequently stepped down from their roles so that they could focus on their parliamentary duties. They are still CEC members.
Hours after the General Election, it was announced that Mr Singh, whose party had won an unprecedented 10 seats, would be entitled to special privileges as Leader of the Opposition.
Mr Singh subsequently promised to give his support not only to members of his own party but also to the NCMPs from the PSP. He said:
“In light of the assignment of staff and resources to support the Opposition’s efforts in Parliament, I will confer with the NCMPs of the Progress Singapore Party and extend my support, as appropriate, to them as well.”
The NCMPs have also promised to collaborate with the Leader of the Opposition. Mr Leong said on Facebook that he will “work closely” with Mr Singh. He added in a separate post that the “dawn of democratic politics” has arrived with the designation of Mr Singh as the Leader of the Opposition.
Ms Poa congratulated Mr Singh on his appointment in a Facebook post of her own. She said:
“Congratulations to Pritam Singh for being appointed the Leader of the Opposition (LO). This political milestone is a first in Singapore’s history, and we appreciate the offer of support extended by our LO to the NCMPs from the Progress Singapore Party.
“I look forward to further our collaboration with our LO and the MPs from The Workers’ Party, for the betterment and progress of Singapore.”
Sharing that he and Ms Poa had lunch with Mr Singh and Ms Lim, Mr Leong wrote on Facebook:
“Hazel and I had lunch today with Pritam and Sylvia; we discussed some parliamentary affairs and how we will work together with @wpsgp moving forward to achieve our common goals.”
https://www.facebook.com/leongmwofficial/photos/a.119717059718999/168144454876259/?type=3&__tn__=%2CO*F
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