The Workers' Party (WP) is ready to work with other opposition parties to play the role of a constructive opposition in Parliament, said party chairman Sylvia Lim yesterday.
Speaking at a press conference held online, she said: "There will be ample opportunity in the coming years for us to work collaboratively as much as possible with any party which should decide to take up the NCMP (Non-Constituency MP) seats... to move the agenda forward and to play our role as constructive opposition."
Her remarks come as the WP's 10 MPs are expected to be joined in Parliament by two NCMPs from the Progress Singapore Party (PSP). WP chief Pritam Singh will also be formally appointed Leader of the Opposition.
The PSP's West Coast team lost with 48.31 per cent of the vote share, making it the best-performing team among the opposition candidates defeated.
This means the party will be offered two NCMP seats under the scheme that guarantees up to 12 seats for the opposition.
WP was the sole opposition presence in the last Parliament with six MPs and three NCMPs. After the 2011 General Election, the WP was joined in Parliament by one NCMP from the Singapore People's Party but there was no official leader of the opposition at the time and there was minimal coordination between both parties in the House.
Mr Singh, also at the same press conference, thanked PSP chief Tan Cheng Bock for his support throughout the campaign.
Dr Tan, in separate remarks to the media, had indicated that the PSP would rally around Mr Singh as Leader of the Opposition, but would stay true to its own views.
"That's good, that's diversity we are looking for in Parliament," Dr Tan said.
That Mr Singh has been appointed the Leader of the Opposition will "change the whole of politics", he added.
The appointment is a topic that Mr Singh declined to discuss, citing the lack of information about what comes with the role.
He added that he will be "looking beyond the PAP (People's Action Party), (and) looking at good outcomes for Singapore and Singaporeans so we all can move forward progressively".
On working with the Government and other opposition parties, Mr Singh said the WP is party-agnostic as long as it is for the good of Singapore.
Noting that the coronavirus pandemic has caused suffering to the people and resulted in job losses, he added: "So I think we should be very focused on what is at stake here, rather than think about the political position that the parties should take or should hedge."
The WP achieved a historic breakthrough in winning Sengkang GRC, its second group representation constituency, in last Friday's polls. It also retained Aljunied GRC and Hougang SMC, improving on its results in 2015 and garnering 50.49 per cent of votes in the constituencies it contested.
But Mr Singh said analysts may have been too optimistic in declaring this as the start of a two-party system in Singapore, as the WP still has a long way to go to winning one-third of the seats in the House.
He also cautioned against complacency. Citing the war movie Tora! Tora! Tora!, Mr Singh said Japanese Admiral Isoroku Yamamoto in the movie warned that the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbour might have awakened a sleeping giant that would hit back with greater resolve.
Mr Singh said "the Workers' Party will not be like the Japanese in World War II".
Noting that the PAP would try its best to take back Sengkang, Aljunied and Hougang, he said: "I think we have to be very careful, we have to be very mindful of what we have and we have to work very, very hard.
"We've lived with the PAP all our lives and we know how powerful they are. So I think if we want to advance Singapore in a way where we can bring everybody together as a united people, it is in our interest to make sure that the Workers' Party serves Singapore well."
Mr Singh said he has always kept in mind a piece of advice from former party chief Low Thia Khiang: "Singaporeans don't want us to fail, so let's not fail them."
