Two members of the Progress Singapore Party have officially taken up unelected seats in Parliament.
The opposition party announced today that vice-chairman Hazel Poa and assistant sec-gen Leong Mun Wai will represent it as Non-Constituency Members of Parliament, or NCMPs, after the seats were offered by the Elections Department for its strong showing at the polls.聽
A team of five candidates led by party leader Tan Cheng Bock lost to the People鈥檚 Action Party in the West Coast group constituency with 48.31% of the vote, just 3% shy of the PAP鈥檚 share. It was the best performance among vanquished parties.聽
When Tan introduced Poa and Leong to the press, the 80-year-old political veteran noted the former鈥檚 mathematics background and experience in the Ministry of Finance, as well as Leong鈥檚 history in the corporate sector, including a short stint at the GIC sovereign wealth fund.聽
Both Poa and Leong said that they looked forward to working with the Workers鈥 Party, the only opposition party to win any seats, snapping up 10 in Parliament.聽
鈥淚鈥檓 humbled by the trust the party has placed in me to take up this NCMP,鈥 Leong said, adding that the party 鈥渘eeds to represent the 48.3% who had voted for us.鈥
Poa said: 鈥淗aving alternative voices in parliament is only half the job done.鈥
As a sort of consolation prize to top-performing opposition parties, non-constituency members are afforded all rights and privileges of elected members.
According to Tan, he will monitor his two members in Parliament and support their performance through a separate team of party members.聽
鈥淚 will have a team to back my two members up. Made up of very young people and very wise people. They will give information, feedback, and also some issues current for them to take up in the house,鈥 Tan told reporters today without elaborating further. He also said the party would begin the process of selecting new leadership.聽
Despite handily winning last week鈥檚 general election, the People鈥檚 Action Party’s performance was widely viewed as poor due to its slimmer margin. It won 61% of total votes, less than the nearly 70% of 2015, and ceded a group constituency and three seats it controlled to the opposition.
Workers鈥 Party chief Pritam Singh was officially declared the leader of Singapore鈥檚 opposition by Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong, the first time such a title was made official since independence.
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