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SINGAPORE: The duties and privileges of the head of the Workers’ Party (WP), Pritam Singh, as leader of the opposition, were formally recognized in Parliament on Monday (August 31).
One of the first orders of the day when the House opened proceedings at noon was a ministerial statement on the matter by House Leader Indranee Rajah.
“With more opposition MPs, reflecting a ‘strong desire among Singaporeans for a greater diversity of views in politics,’ as noted by the prime minister in his swearing-in speech … it is timely and appropriate that the position of the leader of the opposition is more formally recognized, “Ms Indranee said in her speech.
Later, the House passed a motion to double Singh’s speaking time from 20 minutes, which is allocated to deputies, to 40 minutes, usually for incumbents.
Mr. Singh took a seat directly across from Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong in the chamber. This is similar to the practice in other countries that formally recognize the role of the opposition leader, Ms. Indranee noted.
READ: Parliament meets on Monday with ministerial statement on the duties of the opposition leader
After the general elections, Mr. Lee had said that Mr. Singh would be appointed as leader of the opposition in the XIV Parliament and that he would be provided with staff and resource support to carry out his duties.
While there have been de facto opposition leaders in the past, such as former Singapore People’s Party chief Chiam See Tong, having him as an official position is a first for Singapore.
Singh leads nine other opposition WP MPs, including four newcomers from Sengkang GRC. There are also two non-constituent MPs from the Singapore Progress Party.
READ: Pritam Singh will receive additional parliamentary privileges, double assignment as leader of the opposition
In her speech on Monday, Ms Indranee reiterated that Mr Singh will be granted an office in Parliament, staff and resource support, as well as an additional allocation.
The leader of the opposition will generally have the right of first reply among parliamentarians to ask the main question of ministers on policies, bills and motions in Parliament. This will be at the discretion of the speaker and subject to existing speaking conventions, he said.
As leader of the opposition, Mr. Singh’s duties include directing and organizing the opposition’s parliamentary affairs. He can also assume other functions such as attending official State functions and participating in visits and meetings with members of the Government and the public function.
Also, from time to time, she will receive reports from the Government on confidential matters, and the Government will determine the matters to report, Ms Indranee said.
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These duties and privileges are based on the conventions and practices of other Westminster-style parliamentary systems, but reflect adaptations to Singapore’s political and parliamentary context, he added.
“With a greater diversity of views, we can look forward to a stronger debate and, in some cases, sharper exchanges. But we must work to ensure that diversity does not lead to polarity, of country or of people,” said Ms. Indranee.
“Experience elsewhere shows that unity in diversity is not a guaranteed outcome. Our aim should be to harness this diversity of viewpoints in a constructive way, so that we, as Parliament, can better serve the interests of the Singaporeans and Singapore “.
Indranee added that the role of the opposition leader in Singapore will evolve with the country’s politics.
“It should always be the ambition of this House to live up to the expectations of our people and to create a political system that is focused on serving Singapore and Singaporeans to the best of our ability,” he said while congratulating Mr. Singh on being appointed the leader of the opposition.
