Pritam Singh (Singaporean politician)


Pritam Singh is a Singaporean author, lawyer and politician who has served as the Secretary-General of the Workers' Party and Leader of the Opposition since 8 April 2018 and 11 July 2020 respectively. Singh has been the Member of Parliament representing the Aljunied Group Representation Constituency for Eunos since 7 May 2011.
Singh graduated from the National University of Singapore, where he completed a bachelor of arts degree in history in 2000. In 1999, he had won the Straits Steamship Prize as being the top undergraduate student in history and political science. He was later awarded a Chevening Scholarship for postgraduate studies at King's College London, where he completed a master of arts degree in war studies in 2004. He joined the Workers' Party in 2011, and worked as a party official and research officer before he was elected into Parliament. That same year, Singh completed a juris doctor degree at the Singapore Management University as well as qualifying for the bar. In 2013, Singh joined the Litigation and Dispute Resolution Practice at Donaldson & Burkinshaw, Singapore's oldest law firm.
Elected to Parliament in the 2011 general election, Singh retained his seat in 2015 and 2020. During a party renewal, Singh was elected as Secretary-General and Leader of the Workers' Party on 8 April 2018, succeeding Low Thia Khiang.

Early life and career

Early education

Singh studied at Woodsville Primary School, Belvedere Primary School, Saint Thomas Secondary School, and Jurong Junior College. He was awarded the SAF's Local Study Award scholarship for undergraduate studies at the National University of Singapore, where he completed a bachelor of arts degree in 2000. Singh also earned a Diploma in Islamic Studies from the International Islamic University Malaysia in 2005.

Pre-MP work

In 2007, he founded Opinion Asia, an online commentary syndicate with a focus on Asian issues.

Political career

First years in Parliament

At the 2011 general election, Singh was part of the five-member Worker's Party team which contested the Aljunied Group Representation Constituency. The team included the party's Secretary-General, Low Thia Khiang, Sylvia Lim, Chen Show Mao and Muhamad Faisal bin Abdul Manap. They faced the team from the incumbent People's Action Party, which was led by then Minister for Foreign Affairs George Yeo. The Workers' Party's team defeated the PAP team by 72,289 votes to 59,829, marking the first occasion in Singapore's history in which an opposition party had won an election in a GRC.
Since the election, Singh has represented the Eunos ward within the constituency in Parliament.

After 2015

Within the Workers' Party, Singh was the Assistant Secretary General on the party's Executive Council before he became the Secretary-General.
After the results of the Singapore 2020 general election, Singh, together with Sylvia Lim, Muhamad Faisal Manap and former NCMPs Gerald Giam and Leon Perera were re-elected to represent the Aljunied GRC constituents. Their party had also won Hougang SMC, which has been held since 1991, and the newly created Sengkang GRC.

Leader of the Opposition

Singh was regarded to be the next chief of the Workers’ Party, succeeding Low Thia Khiang. Subsequently, Singh was officially confirmed as Secretary-General of The Workers' Party on 8 April 2018 after Low Thia Khiang stepped down for leadership self-renewal, effectively making him the Leader of the Opposition as the Workers' Party is the sole opposition party in Parliament with elected seats. Following the results of the 2020 general election, where the Workers' Party won 10 seats, Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong decided to formally designate Singh as Leader of the Opposition, and said that he will be "provided with appropriate staff support and resources" to carry out his new parliamentary appointment role.

Military career

Singh enlisted into the Singapore Armed Forces in 1994 and served as a career commissioned officer from 1997 to 2002. At present, he is a reservist commander with the commissioned rank of Major.

Personal life

Singh is a Singaporean with Punjabi ancestry, and is a practicing Sikh. He is married to Loveleen Kaur Walia, a Singaporean theatre practitioner, and the couple have two daughters.

Electoral record