Pritam Singh (Singaporean politician)

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The Honourable

Pritam Singh
ਪ੍ਰੀਤਮ ਸਿੰਘ
毕丹星
Pritam Singh Singapore 4 (cropped).jpg
Leader of the Opposition
Assumed office
24 August 2020
PresidentHalimah Yacob
Prime MinisterLee Hsien Loong (PAP)
Preceded byDe jure office established[1]
Member of the Singapore Parliament
for Aljunied GRC
(Eunos)
Assumed office
7 May 2011
Preceded byZainul Abidin Mohamed Rasheed (PAP)
Secretary-General of the Workers' Party
Assumed office
8 April 2018
ChairmanSylvia Lim
Preceded byLow Thia Khiang
Personal details
Born
Pritam Singh

(1976-08-02) 2 August 1976 (age 45)
Singapore
Political partyWorkers' Party
(2011 - present)
Spouse(s)
Loveleen Kaur Walia
​
(m. 2012)​
Children2
Alma materNational University of Singapore (BA),
King's College, London (MA),
Singapore Management University (JD)
OccupationAuthor, lawyer, politician
Military service
Branch/serviceSingapore Army
Years of service1994–2002
RankMajor[2]

Pritam Singh (born 2 August 1976) is a Singaporean author, lawyer and politician who has served as the secretary-general of the Workers' Party of Singapore since 2018. Singh has been the Member of Parliament (MP) representing the Aljunied Group Representation Constituency (GRC) for Eunos since 7 May 2011, and was the unofficial opposition leader from 8 April 2018. After the 2020 general election, his party emerged as the largest opposition party in Parliament, and he was subsequently appointed as Leader of the Opposition by Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong.[1]

Singh graduated from the National University of Singapore, where he completed a bachelor of arts degree in history in 2000. In 1999, he won the Straits Steamship Prize for being the top undergraduate student in history and political science.[3] He was later awarded a Chevening Scholarship for postgraduate studies at King's College London, where he completed a master of arts degree in war studies in 2004.[4][5] He joined the Workers' Party in 2011, and worked as a party official and research officer before he was elected into Parliament. That same year, Singh completed a juris doctor degree at the Singapore Management University as well as qualifying for the bar. In 2013, Singh joined the litigation and dispute resolution practice at Donaldson & Burkinshaw, Singapore's oldest law firm.[6]

Elected to Parliament in the 2011 general election, Singh retained his seat in subsequent elections. Singh was elected as secretary-general of the Workers' Party on 8 April 2018, succeeding Low Thia Khiang.

Early life and career[]

Early education[]

Singh studied at Woodsville Primary School, Belvedere Primary School, Saint Thomas Secondary School, and Jurong Junior College. He was awarded the SAF's Local Study Award scholarship for undergraduate studies at the National University of Singapore, where he completed a Bachelor of Arts degree in 2000.[7] Singh also earned a Diploma in Islamic Studies from the International Islamic University Malaysia (IIUM) in 2005.[8]

Pre-MP work[]

In 2007, he founded Opinion Asia, an online commentary syndicate with a focus on issues related to Asia and Asians.[9]

Political career[]

Singh posing with a family at a hawker centre
Singh with an elderly constituent

First years in Parliament[]

At the 2011 general election, Singh was part of the five-member Worker's Party team which contested the Aljunied Group Representation Constituency (GRC). The team included the party's Secretary-General, Low Thia Khiang, Sylvia Lim (the party's Chairperson), Chen Show Mao and Muhamad Faisal bin Abdul Manap. They faced the team from the incumbent People's Action Party (PAP), which was led by then Minister for Foreign Affairs George Yeo. The Workers' Party's team defeated the PAP team by 72,289 votes (54.7%) to 59,829 (45.2%),[10] marking the first occasion in Singapore's history in which an opposition party had won an election in a GRC.

Since the election, Singh has represented the Eunos ward within the constituency in Parliament.[11] Prior to his ascension to secretary-general of the Workers' Party, Singh was the assistant secretary general on the party's Executive Council.[12]

Leadership of the Workers' Party[]

In 2017, after Low Thia Khiang announced that he was contemplating retirement as well as wanting to rejuvenate the party for "younger blood", Singh was widely regarded to be the next chief of the Workers’ Party prior to the general election that would have been scheduled to be held by 2021.[13] Subsequently, Singh was eventually confirmed as Secretary-General of the Workers' Party on 8 April 2018 after Low stepped down for a leadership self-renewal, effectively making him the leader of the opposition as the Workers' Party is the sole opposition party in Parliament with elected seats.[14]

2020 general election[]

The results of the 2020 general election saw Singh, together with Sylvia Lim, Muhamad Faisal Manap and former NCMPs Gerald Giam and Leon Perera being re-elected to represent the Aljunied GRC constituents, with an increased share of the vote of 59.95%, defeating the PAP team that received 40.05%.[15] Their party had also won Hougang SMC, its stronghold which has been held since 1991,[16] and the newly created Sengkang GRC,[15] the first time an opposition party had won a newly created constituency on its first attempt.[citation needed]

Following the results, where his party managed to win 10 seats, Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong decided to formally designate Singh as Leader of the Opposition, and said that he will be "provided with appropriate staff support and resources" to carry out his new parliamentary appointment role.[1][17] Following his appointment, Singh made the decision to donate half of the allowance increase from his new appointment for his party, charitable causes as well as his residents' needs.[18]

Military career[]

Singh enlisted into the Singapore Armed Forces (SAF) in 1994 and served as a career commissioned officer from 1997 to 2002. At present, he is a reservist commander with the commissioned rank of Major.[2]

Personal life[]

Singh is a Singaporean of Punjabi ancestry, and is a practicing Sikh. He is married to Loveleen Kaur Walia, a Singaporean theatre practitioner,[19] and the couple have two daughters.[20]

References[]

  1. ^ Jump up to: a b c "GE2020: Election results a clear mandate for PAP but also reflects desire for more diversity of voices in Parliament, says PM". The Straits Times. 11 July 2020. Archived from the original on 11 July 2020. Retrieved 11 July 2020.
  2. ^ Jump up to: a b "The Workers' Party's new secretary-general: 10 things to know about Pritam Singh". Channel NewsAsia. Archived from the original on 8 April 2018. Retrieved 8 April 2018.
  3. ^ Exclusive Interview with Pritam Singh, Univantage, SMU, October 2011
  4. ^ 2011's Chevening Scholars Archived 18 July 2012 at archive.today, British High Commission Singapore website, retrieved 8 April 2012.
  5. ^ News from our alumni Archived 25 August 2012 at the Wayback Machine, kcl.ac.uk, retrieved 8 April 2012.
  6. ^ "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 2 May 2015. Retrieved 3 February 2013.CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link), Donaldson & Burkinshaw website, retrieved 3 February 2013.
  7. ^ 林佳憓, 文 / (20 April 2017). "这里是否留下你的光辉岁月？". 早报 (in Chinese). Archived from the original on 9 November 2019. Retrieved 11 March 2020.
  8. ^ Pritam Singh Archived 26 June 2011 at the Wayback Machine , wp.sg, retrieved 6 April 2012.
  9. ^ "Pritam Singh" (PDF). law.smu.edu.sg. The Straits Times. Archived (PDF) from the original on 25 September 2019. Retrieved 25 September 2019.
  10. ^ Parliamentary General Election 2011: Aljunied GRC Archived 30 March 2012 at the Wayback Machine , singapore-elections.com, retrieved 6 April 2012.
  11. ^ MP for Aljunied GRC, Eunos Division Archived 6 April 2012 at the Wayback Machine , aljunied.wp.sg, retrieved 6 April 2012.
  12. ^ Executive Council Archived 28 July 2013 at the Wayback Machine , wp.sg, retrieved 6 April 2012.
  13. ^ "Pritam Singh tipped to be next WP chief". The Straits Times. 14 November 2017. Archived from the original on 11 December 2017. Retrieved 10 December 2017.
  14. ^ "Pritam Singh elected new WP chief, succeeding Low Thia Khiang". Channel NewsAsia. Archived from the original on 8 April 2018. Retrieved 29 April 2018.
  15. ^ Jump up to: a b Chew Hui Min (11 June 2020). "GE2020: Workers' Party retains Aljunied GRC with wider margin against PAP". Channel News Asia. Retrieved 4 April 2021.
  16. ^ Yeoh, Grace (11 July 2020). "GE2020: Workers' Party retains Hougang SMC with 61.19% of votes". Channel News Asia. Retrieved 4 April 2021.
  17. ^ "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 12 July 2020. Retrieved 11 July 2020.CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  18. ^ "WP's Pritam Singh clarifies he will donate half his salary increase as Opposition Leader, not half his entire salary". The Straits Times. 1 August 2020.
  19. ^ "WP's Pritam Singh ties the knot in colourful ceremony". Archived from the original on 11 December 2017. Retrieved 10 December 2017.
  20. ^ hermesauto (17 August 2018). "WP chief Pritam Singh now father of 2; baby girl delivered by emergency caesarian". The Straits Times. Archived from the original on 2 January 2019. Retrieved 2 January 2019.

External links[]

Parliament of Singapore
New office Leader of the Opposition
2020–present 		Incumbent
Preceded by
Low Thia Khiang 		Unofficial Leader of the Opposition
2018–2020 		Position abolished
Preceded by
Zainul Abidin Mohamed Rasheed 		Member of Parliament
for Aljunied GRC
(Eunos)
2011–present 		Incumbent
Party political offices
Preceded by
Low Thia Khiang 		Secretary-General of the Workers' Party
2018–present 		Incumbent
Retrieved from ""