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NMPs making a difference

SINGAPORE – The Nominated Member of Parliament scheme was introduced in 1990 to provide alternative non-partisan views in the House and strengthen Singapore’s political system. Over the 26 years since, NMPs have made an impact on the political scene, going by the volume of speeches delivered in Parliament and the work of several whose contributions have left a lasting imprint.

From left: Professor Walter Woon, Dr Kanwaljit Soin and Mr Siew Kum Hong. They were among the NMPs who made tangible contributions beyond articulating views in Parliament. TODAY file photos

From left: Professor Walter Woon, Dr Kanwaljit Soin and Mr Siew Kum Hong. They were among the NMPs who made tangible contributions beyond articulating views in Parliament. TODAY file photos

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SINGAPORE – The Nominated Member of Parliament scheme was introduced in 1990 to provide alternative non-partisan views in the House and strengthen Singapore’s political system. Over the 26 years since, NMPs have made an impact on the political scene, going by the volume of speeches delivered in Parliament and the work of several whose contributions have left a lasting imprint.

A check of the Hansard records showed that NMPs have collectively risen to speak more than 1,400 times in Parliament since the scheme started. Some of them have punched above their weight, with tangible contributions beyond articulating views in Parliament.

In 1994, Professor Walter Woon introduced a Private Member’s Bill in Parliament that culminated in the passage of the Maintenance of Parents Act the following year.

The first woman NMP, Dr Kanwaljit Soin, also tabled a Family Violence Bill in 1995. While it failed to pass, some of the orthopaedic surgeon’s proposals were incorporated into amendments to the Women’s Charter.

More recently, in 2007, Mr Siew Kum Hong had filed a petition in Parliament on behalf of a group urging the repeal of Section 377A of the Penal Code, which criminalises sex between men. The petition was said to have drawn more than 1,000 signatures.

Nevertheless, the contributions of NMPs occupied a wide spectrum, with some speaking up a great deal more than others.

Lawyer Shriniwas Rai, an NMP between 1997 and 1999, and Dr Soin, who served from 1992 to 1996, were among the most vocal, speaking on 82 and 79 occasions across their terms respectively.

Among the most inactive were former Singapore Manufacturers’ Association president Robert Chua Teck Chew, who was an NMP between 1992 and 1994, and the late chartered accountant Noris Ong Chin Guan, who had served from 1999 to 2001. Both did not speak in Parliament at all during their terms, based on Hansard records. WITH ADDITIONAL REPORTING BY LOUISA TANG AND CLIFFORD LEE

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