Punjab-origin Pritam Singh is leader of opposition in Singapore
Chandigarh: punjab-origin politician, Workers’ Party chief, Pritam Singh, 43, was elected as the leader of opposition by Singapore Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong, who won 83 out of the 93 seats in the recently concluded Singapore general election.
Singh is a Singaporean with Punjabi ancestry and a practicing Sikh. He is married to Loveleen
Kaur Walia, a Singaporean theatre practitioner, and the couple has two daughters.
In a statement on Facebook, Singh said: “I refer to PM Lee Hsien Loong’s press conference early this morning. I look forward to serving as the leader of the opposition and will carry out my duties to the best of my abilities. I will endeavour to ensure that The Workers’ Party under my leadership will remain loyal to Singapore and all Singaporeans. On behalf of all WP candidates at GE2020, and on a more personal note, thank you to all our families and loved ones, who have marched in step with us, through all the highs and lows over many years.”
Singh has been in active politics since 2011.
“Pritam has spoken on a wide range of issues, including foreign affairs and defence, and job disruption faced by PMET workers. In 2020, he called for giving seniors above 60 greater access to their Medisave to settle inpatient and outpatient bills,” the Workers’ Party website says, adding that he assumed chairmanship of the Aljunied-hougang Town Council and oversaw significant improvements in estate and compliance matters.
Singh joined the Singapore Armed Forces (SAF) in 1994, and served as an officer from 1997 to 2002 having achieved the commissioned rank of Major.
Earlier, Singapore’s Prime Minister assured it is “only right” that Workers’ Party’s Indian-origin secretary-general Pritam Singh be “formally designated” as the leader of the opposition, and that he will be provided with “appropriate staff support and resources to perform his duties”.