RESULTS SIGNAL “BUSINESS AS USUAL”
Political analysts CNA spoke to following the announcement noted that the results were largely status quo.
“The stability in the CEC suggests that it is business as usual for the Workers’ Party,” said Associate Professor Chong Ja Ian of the Department of Political Science at the National University of Singapore (NUS).
He added that despite what people externally make of the party’s recent troubles, its members appear to be “confident of the course they are charting”.
Mr Singh was charged in March with lying in parliament in relation to a case involving former WP member Raeesah Khan.
Ms Khan had lied in parliament in 2021 over a sexual assault case and accused the police of mishandling the case. Mr Singh, who has pleaded not guilty to the charges, is set to go on trial in October.
Likewise, independent political observer Felix Tan also pointed to internal confidence that those chosen as part of the CEC are the “right people for the party” at this point in time.
The experts also noted that Ms Lee’s return would be good for the party given that she is experienced and a familiar face to the public.
Assoc Prof Chong, however, stopped short of speculating whether Ms Lee will be in the running for the upcoming election. He highlighted that WP “have always played their cards close to their chest”.
On the other hand, Dr Tan said that Ms Lee’s return signifies that she is “ready to jump back into the game” and that the public can “see her running in the General Election”.
At the same time, he added that it is unclear if Ms Lee could be a direct replacement for Ms Khan in a possible Sengkang GRC line-up, given that at least one candidate in the team must belong to a minority racial community.
Current MPs of Sengkang GRC include Mr Louis Chua, Dr Jamus Lim and Ms He Ting Ru.
