Singapore’s parliament voted to remove opposition chief Pritam Singh after a lying conviction, a decision requiring PM confirmation.
SINGAPORE: Parliament voted to remove opposition leader Pritam Singh from his post following his conviction for lying to lawmakers.
House leader Indranee Rajah submitted a motion declaring the Workers’ Party chief unsuitable due to “dishonourable and unbecoming” conduct.
The decision requires confirmation by Prime Minister Lawrence Wong to take effect, as the opposition leader is designated by the head of government.
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A court found Singh guilty of giving false testimony to a parliamentary committee in 2021 about a fellow party member.
That member, Raeesah Khan, had admitted to lying in a parliamentary speech about accompanying a sexual assault victim to make a police report.
Singh’s appeal against the conviction was rejected in December.
In her speech, Indranee said Singh’s misconduct involved multiple lies and showed no “remorse, accountability or acceptance of responsibility”.
Singh responded that a conviction did not negate his right to assert his innocence.
He said he accepted the court’s verdict and took responsibility for not correcting his colleague’s lie quickly enough.
Singh, 49, was Singapore’s first official Leader of the Opposition since independence in 1965.
He was appointed after the 2020 election when his party gained five seats, bringing its total to 10.
In the 2025 election, the ruling People’s Action Party won 87 of 97 seats to extend its six-decade rule.
The Workers’ Party won the remaining seats, and Singh was reappointed as opposition leader. – Reuters
