Opposition MPs will 'work extra hard' to put forth alternative ideas despite limitations, says Pritam Singh

• Mr Pritam Singh said that the Opposition will offer alternative policies though it faces limitations
• WP MPs will not form shadow Cabinet, but will organise themselves on five topics
• The five topics are: Health, jobs, inequality, infrastructure and sustainability
• Mr Singh urged the formation of more parliamentary committees to scrutinise policies and difficult topics
• He also called on the Government to release more and higher-quality data

SINGAPORE — The Opposition intends to ask questions that the ruling party may not, study the Government’s policies and put forth its own alternatives even if it lacks the state’s data and resources to do so, Leader of the Opposition Pritam Singh said in Parliament on Monday (Aug 31).

In a 30-minute speech, the Workers’ Party (WP) secretary-general also made several suggestions on how parliamentary proceedings could be improved so that the Opposition could better contribute to debates, such as by forming more select committees involving Members of Parliament (MPs) from both sides of the House, to scrutinise government spending or particular hot-button issues. 

Mr Singh noted that his appointment as Leader of the Opposition has already created expectations.

“The Government, the WP and the people of Singapore all believe that politics in Singapore is changing, and in some ways, changing rapidly,” he said.

“My personal expectation is that my WP colleagues and I will have to work extra hard. We will have to ask ourselves tough questions before critiquing government policy, the chief of which is what would we do if we were in charge.”

His speech, which sketched out how the Opposition will organise itself and the limitations it faces, was part of a debate on President Halimah Yacob’s address at the opening of Parliament last week. 

THE ROLE OF OPPOSITION

Mr Singh spoke after Leader of the House Indranee Rajah rose in Parliament to formalise his duties and the privileges of the Leader of the Opposition — a title that is new to Singapore’s Parliament and that was not granted even during the country’s pre-independence, when the ruling People’s Action Party (PAP) was the main opposing party.

With the election of more opposition MPs to Parliament, reflecting a strong desire among Singaporeans for a greater diversity of views in politics, Ms Indranee said that the recognition of the Leader of the Opposition was “timely and appropriate”.

Still, Mr Singh noted in his speech that the Opposition, which now has a post-independence record of 10 elected and two non-elected members in the House, is still far from the one-third presence in Parliament necessary to check the PAP’s supermajority.

And with just 10 elected MPs, it is not feasible for the WP to set up a shadow Cabinet in the same tradition of the oppositions in other parliaments, he added. 

Instead, the WP MPs will organise itself in five topical areas:

1. Health, ageing and retirement adequacy

2. Jobs, businesses and the economy

3. Education, inequality and the cost of living

4. Housing, transport and infrastructure

5. National sustainability

Mr Singh said: “Members of Parliament are vox populi, the voice of the people. To raise in Parliament what the people cannot do directly is the duty of the Government's ruling party and the Opposition. 

“The WP intends to raise matters in Parliament that are important to the people of Singapore, that the Government and PAP backbenchers may not. We intend to scrutinise policies to the best of our abilities.”

DATA AND RESOURCE LIMITATIONS

Mr Singh also noted that his appointment is an opportunity for people to understand the role of the Opposition as a check and balance on the Government and to propose alternative policies, but added that his side of the aisle faces limitations.

He pointed out that each elected MP is given a budget to hire a legislative assistant and a secretarial assistant on a part-time basis, with the Leader of the Opposition granted a budget for another three more legislative assistants.

“By contrast, it is useful to remember that a sitting Government has at its disposal the resources of a Singapore Public Service of 146,000 full-time officers. Of these, 85,000 are members of the civil service. The Leader of the Opposition’s office will not have the breadth and depth of the party in Government in coming up with alternative policies,” he said.

Despite that, the WP will continue to advance “meaningful alternatives for deliberation and debate and will strive to improve on the quality of the alternatives suggested”, he added. 

To do so, Mr Singh called on the Government to release more and higher-quality data to Parliament and to the public, so that the Opposition can better craft alternative policies and make more targeted inquiries to government agencies.

He noted, for example, how in 2018 he had posed a parliamentary question seeking details on the number of long-term Singapore permanent residents (PRs) over certain periods and their reasons for not taking up full citizenship. 

The answer that was given was “far narrower” than what he had asked for, he said, adding that the details that were not provided in the answer would have been important to allow the Opposition to offer alternative approaches to population and immigration policies.

“As far as information is concerned, the Opposition's output will depend very much on whether we can get the input we asked for,” Mr Singh said. “On its part, the Government should consider how it can put out more information without being asked, particularly information and indicators benchmarked against other countries.”

Accepting that certain data, such as those concerning PRs and immigration, could be sensitive and that the information could be misused to “rile” some segments of the population, Mr Singh said that the Government will have to find a new way of dealing with this.

“I strongly believe Parliament is an important safety valve and potential moderator of the extreme conversations found offline and online on immigration and population issues.” 

He added, too, that more information would be useful in nurturing more rational and calmer online discussions about hot-button issues such as the hiring of foreigners, which has become a topic of debate in recent weeks after the Ministry of Manpower (MOM) placed 47 companies on the Fair Consideration Framework watchlist for having hired a disproportionate number of foreigners.

“The problem is that we simply do not know enough. And the vacuum has given space for a more toxic conversation to ferment. 

"One way for us in Parliament and for the public to know, is for MOM to publish the names of recalcitrant employers. We can then understand the operating paradigm of such businesses and how they intend to make the transition to fair hiring practices,” he said.

MORE SELECT COMMITTEES NEEDED

In order to “reframe the public narrative on pressing issues”, Mr Singh suggested the formation of more parliamentary select committees that draw from a mix of MPs and Non-Constituency MPs, a move that he has advocated since 2015.

Select committees are made up of groups of MPs who are appointed to investigate certain issues, scrutinise Bills, call for experts and witnesses in their inquiries, and ultimately report to Parliament on their findings.

Such committees, he said, are part of the normal political fabric of other democracies, such as the Commons Select Committees in the United Kingdom, and the various Senate and House committees in the United States.

With 10 elected opposition MPs in Parliament now, Singapore, too, could have more of such committees, he said.

“By forming select committees that meet regularly on the most sensitive and difficult issues for Singapore, Parliament can play a bigger role in leading the conversation and championing the truth,” Mr Singh said. In 2018, he had served on the Select Committee on Deliberate Online Falsehoods.

This select committee eventually led to the passage of the Protection from Online Falsehoods and Manipulation Act the following year.

While the formation of this committee was a “good start”, Mr Singh said that there is scope for further improvements to such ad hoc select committees, such as having longer lead times and having interim reports for public scrutiny.

“To this end, the President in her address alluded to potentially difficult conversations that the Government would need to have with Singaporeans. Parliament in committee, rather than in session like it is today, is an excellent platform to hear and truly listen to the voices of Singaporeans in an open way.”

After Parliament ended, Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong wrote in a Facebook post that the role of the Leader of the Opposition will "evolve with time".

"Our politics must set the right tone for the rest of society," he said. "We can expect more robust debates and a greater diversity of views in Parliament, but all MPs must put the well-being of Singaporeans front and centre."