Reform Party leader Kenneth Jeyaretnam dies, aged 67

SINGAPORE – Kenneth Jeyaretnam, secretary-general of the Reform Party (RP) and veteran opposition figure, died on July 18. He was 67.

His death was announced by his wife, Amanda Jeyaretnam, in a Facebook post on the afternoon of July 19. She said Jeyaretnam “died peacefully in his sleep surrounded by family”.

She added that funeral details for a small family service are still being finalised, and that a memorial to celebrate his life will be arranged at a later date.

“Thank you for your love and support and to everyone who managed to visit him in the hospital. Please know it meant a lot to him,” she said.

In a July 6, 2024, Facebook post, Jeyaretnam said he was “seriously ill” and had been receiving medical care in London. He said he was afflicted with deep vein thrombosis (deep vein blood clot) and bilateral pulmonary embolism (blood clot in the lung), and had recovered from pneumonia.

He also posted screenshots of an e-mail indicating that he was under medical care and treatment in London, and was unable to fly. At the time, he was being probed by the police and the Protection from Online Falsehoods and Manipulation Act (POFMA) Office in Singapore for possible offences under contempt laws and was required to turn up for investigations.

Jeyaretnam is the elder son of the late opposition MP J.B. Jeyaretnam – popularly known as JBJ – who was the first opposition politician elected into the post-independence Singapore Parliament in 1981, and established RP in 2008.

Jeyaretnam studied at the United World College of South-East Asia, and Charterhouse School in England. In 1983, he graduated from the University of Cambridge with a double first-class honours in economics.

He went on to pursue a career in the financial sector, starting out as a credit analyst at Wardley, the merchant banking subsidiary of HSBC, before moving to Continental Bank, Banque Indosuez, Lehman Brothers and Nomura International.

After his father’s death in September 2008, Jeyaretnam took over the helm of RP in April 2009.

He stood in three general elections, as part of RP’s slate that contested West Coast GRC in 2011 and 2015, and Ang Mo Kio GRC – against then Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong’s team – in 2020. RP was unsuccessful each time.

He also contested in a by-election in 2013, after PAP MP Michael Palmer resigned from the ruling party and gave up his parliamentary seat in Punggol East SMC over an extramarital affair. Jeyaretnam and Singapore Democratic Alliance’s Desmond Lim netted less than 2 per cent of the vote combined, which saw Workers’ Party candidate Lee Li Lian win a four-cornered fight that also included PAP’s Koh Poh Koon.

Jeyaretnam did not contest in the 2025 General Election, explaining in a social media post in April 2025 that he decided against doing so after “the advice of doctors over some recent health issues”, which he did not specify.

However, he also added in the post: “I am not retiring though, far from it, and hope to be able to stand again sooner rather than later.”

In a letter to members and supporters posted on Facebook late on July 19, party chairman Mahaboob Batcha said RP was “deeply saddened” by Jeyaretnam’s passing.

“Throughout his political career, he fiercely championed democracy and consistently put the needs of Singapore above his own political ambitions,” he said.

Jeyaretnam is survived by his wife Amanda, and their son, Jared.