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SINGAPORE – In two weeks, members of the Workers’ Party (WP) will vote on the party’s next central executive committee (CEC).
They will elect the general secretary and president of the WP for the next two years, as well as 12 other members of the party’s highest decision-making body.
One of the big questions this year is whether WP President Sylvia Lim, who has held the post since 2003, will give way to new blood as the renewal of leadership in the party continues.
In the last WP internal elections in 2018, then-party chief Low Thia Khiang resigned after 17 years in command as general secretary, and opposition leader Pritam Singh was elected unopposed to the seat.
Party insiders told The Straits Times that the list of people who will stand for election will be released on December 27, when the election takes place.
The Chinese daily Lianhe Zaobao reported for the first time on Sunday (December 13) on the internal elections of the WP.
Possible contenders for the chairman’s job include Hougang MP Dennis Tan and Aljunied GRC MP Gerald Giam, said Leonard Lim, national director of regional government affairs consultancy Vriens & Partners.
Both men are current members of the CEC and were advised by Low, he said. They will appeal to the traditional Mandarin-speaking and dialect base of the WP, but will still relate well to younger, English-speaking fans.
He added that at least one of Sengkang’s new MPs, for example Sengkang City Council Chairman He Ting Ru, is likely to be in the new CEC.
Dr. Eugene Tan, Associate Professor of Law at Singapore University of Management, noted that it would not be a surprise if Mr. Low, as well as Mr. Chen Show Mao and Mr. Png Eng Huat, completely renounce their positions in the CEC. All three were former deputies, but did not participate in the most recent general elections.
“The accent will be on change, renewal and growth,” Dr. Tan said, adding that some, if not all, of the five new MPs are likely to join the CEC.
However, experts differed in their views on the impact that the ongoing court case of the Aljunied-Hougang City Council (AHTC) would have on the party’s new CCA.
Dr. Tan noted that the case did not stand out strongly in the last WP internal election, and it is equally unlikely that it will be a major consideration this year.
Even if Mr. Singh and Ms. Lim, who were found responsible for various infractions, are unsuccessful in their appeal, it would affect their status as MPs rather than members of the CEC, he said.
But Lim felt the court case would be a consideration for the party, even if the outcome is publicly presented as a renewal of leadership.
“The WP is in a decent position to have a new president who is not distracted by legal procedures and who can focus on building on his strong performance in the last GE,” he said.
Additional information from Tham Yuen-C
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