Dr Chia Kee Seng wrote in his Forum letter that "the Workers' Party (WP) is now the only opposition party in Parliament with a record high of 10 elected members" (Parliament must rise above party politics, July 14).

Actually, the record holder was the now-defunct Barisan Sosialis which won 13 of the 46 seats it contested in the 1963 General Election for the 51-seat Legislative Assembly. The People's Action Party (PAP) took 37 seats, with the remaining seat going to the United People's Party.

Significantly, according to The PAP Story - The Pioneering Years by former PAP MP Fong Sip Chee, the vote share figures reflected the actual strength and ground support of both parties at that time.

The Barisan was the PAP's strongest challenger in those tumultuous days. Since then, there has been no opponent showing any potential to form an alternative government. Could the WP be the one? It remains to be seen.

Certainly, the party has done well in GE2020, capturing Sengkang GRC, retaining Aljunied GRC and Hougang SMC, and having its secretary-general, Mr Pritam Singh, appointed Leader of the Opposition. That has raised its political standing.

I agree with Dr Chia that, to be constructive, the WP must go beyond just providing checks and balances to playing advocacy and advisory roles. And I share his hope that the WP and the PAP will not be adversaries in and out of Parliament to show that the House is above party politics.

The bottom line is, what matters most is capable leadership that is able to provide peace, stability, security and more socio-economic growth in the nation.

I am sure Singaporeans want nothing less than that.

Anthony Oei