WP leaders past and present meet in the Leader of the Opposition’s office

Singapore — Prominent members of the Workers’ Party (WP) recently gathered at the office allocated to Mr Pritam Singh as the Leader of the Opposition (LO).

They were happily smiling in the picture Mr Singh posted on Facebook on Thursday (Apr 22).

“It was cool to have all of them in the LO’s office looking back and reflecting on their experiences with the Workers’ Party,” he wrote.

The party has indeed come a long way.

In the 1980s, recalled Mr Singh, former WP chief Low Thia Khiang and Mr Lim Ee Ping, a party member since 1959, “would be out selling the party newsletter, The Hammer. Mrs Low would also join in, with a stack in her hand. But no one would buy a copy. Or if they did, it would be with a peek over their shoulder or with furtive glances.”

Now Mr Singh has his own office in Parliament House and the Workers’ Party has gained support. It has 10 of the 93 elected Members of Parliament.

Reflecting on the changes and the old times, Mr Singh wrote: “Uncle Ee Ping joined the party in 1959 and after the last elections he gifted me a 🔨 (hammer) which is displayed prominently on a bookshelf in the office! Since its founding, the party and those who stood with it have been through many trials and tribulations.”

He ended with a tribute to his predecessor: “But Mr Low’s endeavour to make the WP commit to a brand of rational, responsible and respectable politics was, if not a turning point, a critical waypoint”.

“There is a lot of work ahead yet”, he added. /TISG