Pritam Singh responds to motion on his suitability as Leader of the Opposition

Responding to the motion on his suitability to continue as Leader of the Opposition (LO) after being convicted of lying, Mr Pritam Singh said that while he accepted the court’s judgment, he was disappointed with it and did not agree with it. He said his conscience remained clear and the court conviction did not negate his right to assert his innocence. He therefore disagreed that his conduct was dishonourable and unbecoming of an MP. Mr Singh added that no action should be taken against his fellow Workers’ Party (WP) leaders Sylvia Lim and Faisal Manap. On his continuation as LO undermining public confidence in Singapore’s political system, Mr Singh said he never assumed his role to be a given. Whatever parliament decides, he said as long as he is an MP, he will continue his work in Aljunied GRC. Mr Singh had begun his statement in parliament on Wednesday (Jan 14) by saying he had told WP MPs the party whip was lifted and they could vote on the motion as they saw fit.