Chiam could contest in coming GE

SINGAPORE — Veteran opposition figure Chiam See Tong has not been ruled out from contesting in the coming General Election (GE), with the Singapore People’s Party (SPP) saying yesterday (July 27) that it has not decided whether to field its secretary-general.

Mr Chiam was Member of Parliament (MP) for Potong Pasir for 27 years until 2011, when he moved out of his constituency and led a team to contest Bishan-Toa Payoh GRC in the GE.

His team lost to the PAP incumbents, garnering 43.07 per cent of the votes.

Yesterday, his wife and Non-Constituency MP Lina Chiam, who contested in Potong Pasir in 2011, was coy on whether Mr Chiam might run, given that “everything is fluid”.

“There could be changes here and there, so I would not like to comment at the moment,” said Mrs Chiam, the party’s chairman.

Mr Chiam, 80, has suffered two strokes in recent years, but he is still seen with his party on walkabouts, with a post on the SPP Facebook page showing him at a meet-and-greet at Mountbatten in June.