SINGAPORE — Cracks are starting to show in the ranks of the National Solidarity Party (NSP), following Wednesday’s news that its secretary-general had quit after less than five months in the position.

The resignation of lawyer Tan Lam Siong — who was the party’s third secretary-general in less than two years — comes on the heels of a spate of departures involving members who had joined the party for only a short period.

Following the latest development, former members approached by the media have spoken out about the friction within the party — which was formed in 1987 — between new faces and the longer-serving members. For a party that put up the biggest slate of candidates (24) in the 2011 General Election (GE), after the People’s Action Party, there are now question marks over its preparations for the coming GE, which is due by 2017, political analysts said.

In its press statement, NSP said Mr Tan resigned to “focus more on his passion for social and community work, and charitable pursuits while remaining as a congress member”.

In a blog post put up afterwards, Mr Tan thanked NSP’s members and supporters for their support, and singled out NSP president Sebastian Teo — who has held the position since 2006 — for his “trust and encouragement”. Without elaborating, Mr Tan added: “If there is a single reason I choose to finally step down after putting in so much time, energy and resources in such a relatively short time, I can only say it is due to incompatibility issues.” He declined to say more when contacted by TODAY.

Mr Teo said Mr Tan could have been alluding to a difference in priorities. “He’s more passionate and focused on charity activities and social work, whereas as a political party, we have fewer resources and less manpower to handle that. We would want to conserve our energy and resources to the ground,” he said.

While Mr Tan — who remains a party congress member — stepped down on good terms, former members suggested that the latest leadership change was symptomatic of a chasm within the party, which has had seven different secretary-generals in the past decade or so.

In January, Mr Tan’s predecessor, Mrs Jeannette Chong-Aruldoss, was voted out of the party’s central executive committee (CEC). Mrs Chong-Aruldoss had challenged Mr Teo for presidency, while blogger Ravi Philemon contested against Mr Tan for the secretary-general position.

After their losses, Mrs Chong-Aruldoss and Mr Philemon then quit the party and joined the Singapore People’s Party, bringing along former council member Bryan Long.

Others who have left NSP in recent years include former chief Goh Meng Seng and Ms Nicole Seah, who shot to prominence in the 2011 GE.

Mr Philemon described Mr Tan as “a do-gooder whose heart is in the right place, but I was not sure if he came knowing the internal state of affairs in the party”.

The former said the party’s longer-serving members tended to band together on issues. “If you look at the party stalwarts, they’re all in their 60s and so on, so they have camaraderie among themselves,” he said.

Business owner Osman Sulaiman, who left together with Mrs Chong-Aruldoss, said: “Some of the people have been there for very long and they’re still sticking to their old methods. It’s difficult to have a mindset change.” He cited the example of a “clash” within the party after the permit for its newspaper was not renewed by the authorities because some of its CEC members declined to disclose their income information as part of the application. The permit was eventually given, after the party fulfilled the requirements.

Mr Osman said the younger members had not been too keen on having a newspaper and preferred to tap social media to reach out to the public.

In response, Mr Teo told TODAY: “Which established party does away with their newsletter?” He also dismissed suggestions of a rift within NSP’s ranks. As the party’s president, Mr Teo holds a casting vote, which grants him decision-making powers if other CEC members are split down the middle on issues.

Another former member, Mr Gilbert Goh, who left after the 2011 GE, pointed out that Mr Teo held “more power than the secretary-general”. “(It’s) difficult to manoeuvre around (Mr Teo) and the Old Guard,” he said.

Political observer Alan Chong, from the S Rajaratnam School of International Studies, noted that a casting vote results in power being centralised in a political party. “If a president can have a casting vote, it definitely institutionalises a power imbalance in the party,” he said. “It doesn’t enhance democracy within the party, but if you have a charismatic leader, your party can still go places.”

Singapore Management University law don Eugene Tan noted that with the next GE around the corner, all is not well within NSP. “The issues that they are embroiled in would affect their ability to recruit candidates to contest under their banner,” he said.