Pritam Singh defends decision not to contest in Marine Parade GRC following PPP comments
Workers’ Party (WP) chief Pritam Singh defended the decision not to contest in Marine Parade-Braddell Heights GRC.
The People’s Power Party (PPP) blasted WP on social media after learning about their choice on 23 April.
Their founder, Goh Meng Seng, accused WP of abandoning voters in Marine Parade and leaving the constituency open for a walkover by the ruling People’s Action Party (PAP).
Mr Goh claimed that the WP should have let them know in advance so the PPP could contest there.
“This is really irresponsible!” he said.
He further accused the WP of “sacrificing” Marine Parade residents in favour of contesting a four-corner fight in Tampines GRC — a move he heavily criticised.
Pritam Singh responds to PPP chief’s comments
In a doorstop interview on 24 April at Sengkang, Mr Singh addressed the backlash head-on.
When asked whether the WP should have given other parties a heads-up, he firmly stated that parties do not approach each other to ask if they can contest somewhere.
Source: The Workers’ Party on Facebook
“We respect them, we respect their agency,” he said. “They make decisions in their enlightened self-interest, and so do we.”
Replying to the accusation of irresponsibility, he stated, “Mr Goh should focus on the campaign in Tampines.”
Moreover, Mr Singh said multi-cornered fights would be the norm in Singapore.
Mr Singh acknowledged that some Marine Parade residents were upset about the walkover.
Source: The Workers’ Party on Facebook
However, Mr Singh said he explained the reality of the boundary changes and WP’s strategy to them.
“I think they understood where I was coming from,” he added.
Source: The Workers’ Party on Facebook
WP walked the ground in Tampines prior to GE2020
PPP Chairman Derrick Sim expressed disappointment as well. He noted that WP has never contested in Tampines GRC but has in Marine Parade.
As such, Mr Sim questioned why they chose to run only in Tampines. He went so far as to imply WP was a “mole party”.
Mr Singh dismissed the claim, saying WP had been walking the ground in Tampines even before GE2020.
Although they wanted to field a team there, they lacked a “good enough group of people who are prepared to step forward”.
Now, Mr Singh felt WP had assembled a solid slate for GE2025, including WP vice-chairman Faisal Manap, who moved over from Aljunied GRC.
Asked if he feared the vote would be split in the four-way contest, Mr Singh simply replied:
“I’m sure we’ll find out on the third of May.”
PPP’s Derrick Sim questions if WP is a ‘mole party’ over decision not to contest Marine Parade GRC
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Featured image adapted from The Workers’ Party on Facebook and by MS News.
