SINGAPORE — The secretary-general of the Progress Singapore Party (PSP), Dr Tan Cheng Bock, said he is not ready yet to lead an alliance of opposition parties, despite having been invited to do so.

Speaking to reporters on Sunday (Jan 12) after a walkabout at Teban Gardens Market and Food Centre, he said his focus, for now, is on his own political party.

“I have met all these people but I don’t want to commit myself just yet because I’m still building my own team properly first. They are all entitled to do what they want,” said Dr Tan.

Leaders of four of the smaller opposition parties previously confirmed with TODAY that they were forming an alliance to contest the coming General Election (GE) under one banner and working together to decide on the number of candidates to be fielded.

The alliance will comprise the Singaporeans First party (SingFirst), Reform Party, People’s Power Party and Democratic Progressive Party, but the parties’ leaders said that the other outfits are welcome to join later.

Talk of the opposition parties forming a coalition first surfaced in July 2018 at a meeting involving the four as well as the Singapore Democratic Party, National Solidarity Party and People’s Voice.

The plan then was to invite Dr Tan to lead them, but that was before the former presidential candidate announced that he was setting up the PSP.

Speaking to TODAY last Sunday, Mr Tan Jee Say, secretary-general of SingFirst, said that the four parties are still looking forward to Dr Tan “agreeing to lead the alliance”.

While Dr Tan said he is not ready to commit to the alliance at this point, he is not writing it off altogether.

“Very likely we all want to see us come together but the form, the manner, the way in which we are going to come together is all still open,” he said to reporters who followed him as he and his team went on a walkabout at Teban Gardens, which is located in the Ayer Rajah division of West Coast Group Representation Constituency (GRC).

PSP IDENTIFYING PLACES TO CONTEST

Dr Tan served as a Member of Parliament (MP) for 26 years in Ayer Rajah under the ruling People’s Action Party (PAP) before he left politics in 2006.

When asked about the significance of him returning to the area, he said the PSP is identifying places where it could contest in the coming GE.

He declined to reveal the other areas the party is eyeing.

During the walkabout, Dr Tan bumped into West Coast GRC MP Foo Mee Har at the food centre as she was having her breakfast there. They exchanged greetings and wished each other good health.

Dr Tan later told reporters: “Ms Foo Mee Har is quite good. I heard she takes care (of the residents).”

Dr Tan also praised the PAP team for having done a good job in Ayer Rajah after he stepped down as an MP.

“That’s how it should be. It doesn’t matter whether it’s me or whoever but the important thing is to make sure that people who live in this area are given the facilities that they asked for,” he said.

“And I must also congratulate them for doing a lot of good work here in making this constituency even better, nicer.”

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Besides walking around the food centre, Sunday was also the first time PSP made door-to-door house visits in the area, signalling a step-up in its preparations for the GE.

“All these are all very well planned,” Dr Tan said.

“If elections come tomorrow, we know what we will do. If elections come next month, we know what we want to do.”

Dr Tan also said that PSP is getting its new party headquarters ready, but declined to reveal its location or when it will be unveiled.