The deal

Pritam Singh assumed the Workers' Party Secretary-General post unopposed, in the recently-concluded internal Central Executive Committee election on April 8, 2018.

The scoop

Chen Show Mao could have put up a fight for the role, but didn't.

Why? Chen personally told his core group of veteran supporters within the WP that he wanted no part in challenging Singh.

On March 24, 2018, Chen met veteran WP members at a McDonalds' outlet in Bendemeer at their invitation.

The meeting lasted two hours.

This group had backed Chen in his previous challenge to WP chief Low Thia Khiang for the Secretary-General position in 2016.

In the CEC election, the party's cadres get to vote. This faction of older cadres were prepared to nominate Chen for the Sec-Gen post again.

In total, the core group of Chen supporters consists of about 30 members.

What it means publicly

This smooth leadership transition can be interpreted as WP publicly closing ranks -- a far cry from predictions that challenging factions will end up vying for the top Sec-Gen spot.

A vote for Singh, 41, a trained lawyer, is a vote for continuity. He had been favoured to take over since October 2017, with a ringing endorsement from Low.

And with a new leader, it doesn't mean Low will be gone anytime soon.

He will retain influence in the party behind the scenes -- given Low's perpetual popularity.

He has retained the highest number of votes in the CEC election to be part of the 14-person committee, the highest decision-making body in the WP.

How it can still play out

Chen's backing away from any fight will put to rest, for the moment, any internal party strife that is rumoured to be going on.

The only murmur of dissent from yesterday's CEC election was a leak to The Straits Times, with a secretly-taken photo that revealed the full results of the CEC election.

Chen's silence will also serve as one less distraction for WP.

The top three WP leaders, Low, Singh and WP chairman Sylvia Lim, are facing a lawsuit over alleged improper payments made to third-party vendors amounting to some S$33 million.

The legal action is aimed at recovering the funds, as the lawsuit alleges that WP overpaid for town council management services.

The trial is expected to commence as early as 2019 or even closer to the general election set to happen by 2020, which could distract the party from its preparations.

Out of the three, Singh is much less likely to be as affected by the lawsuit compared to Low and Lim.

With the mandate of the cadres, he has effectively been charged with rebuilding the party in a new post-Low era.

Additionally, with Singh as the anchor, Low and Lim might even consider heading out of Aljunied GRC to be at the helm of the East Coast and Marine Parade GRCs.

Chen could then lie low for the time being until the time is ripe for him to step up -- say, in the event the lawsuit has taken its toll on Low and Lim.

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Party above self

Ultimately, no opposition politics can exist without WP as a vehicle.

Suppressing personal politics for the longevity of the party bodes well.

The petty infighting and differences were said to have been put aside in the April 8 CEC election. Cadres cheered Singh's election at the new WP headquarters at Geylang Road.

The Chen faction might be overwhelmed. Eventually.

And there is another practical issue at play.

The faction that is supporting Chen in WP is dwindling, due to deaths and switches in allegiance.

This group of disgruntled WP party veterans, who joined when the late J.B. Jeyaretnam helmed the party from 1971 to 2001, are unhappy with Low for the way he has treated them over the years.

These old-timers have been passed over by Low. Opportunities, leadership positions and chances to stand in elections are given to younger members.

And this unstable base is finding it hard to shore up support in the face of Low's influence.

In the 2016 CEC meeting, 28 new cadre members were brought into the party. They are rumoured to be Low's supporters.

And the 2018 CEC meeting? ST understands that around 30 new cadres were inducted into WP in the past two years.

Editor’s note: A senior WP member clarified that WP only had 5 new cadres in the last 2 years.

This tide of renewal, of getting young, willing, and able Singaporeans on board the WP, is hard to overcome.

WP leadership, phase one completed

Low told the media that while the current phase of leadership renewal is completed, "renewal is never complete because we have the 40s with us".

Currently, all the CEC members are 40 years old and above.

The average age of the 14-member CEC has increased from 45.21 in 2016 to 48.64 in 2018.

A total of seven of the 11 potential CEC candidates who lost were in their 30s and 40s.

The resistance towards the pace of party renewal can be seen by how the new and young deputy organising secretaries -- Kenneth Foo and Tan Kong Soon -- lost their seats in the CEC.

An untidy WP CEC reshuffle for the next GE

Singh's first test will depend on how he reshuffles his experienced deck of CEC members.

Will he appoint an assistant secretary-general to replace him? Or will he leave the position empty?

A potential candidate to deputise Pritam is Dennis Tan, who has quietly risen up the popularity charts to be the third-most popular CEC member.

The Non-Constituency MP was one of the two CEC members who increased their votes in the 2018 CEC election.

There is little maneuvering room for Singh in other positions.

Popular MPs Faisal Manap and Png Eng Huat are likely to retain their positions as Vice Chairman and Organising Secretary.

NCMP Daniel Goh, who edited a well-written WP60 book and oversaw an increasingly active WP Facebook page and YouTube channel, is likely to retain his Media Chair role.

NCMP Leon Perera may have a bigger role to play beyond the Deputy Chair of the Media team, but Singh has to reconcile Perera's obvious abilities with his decreasing popularity among the party members.

So will Singh offer an olive branch to Chen and appoint him as a key CEC office-holder?

With Chen dropping out voluntarily, Singh can strive to be more inclusive and include Chen, so as to encourage two other CEC members who are seen as Chen's supporters.

Lastly, how would Singh utilise Low? Will Low be a "Senior Secretary-General" (SSG) or a "Secretary-General Mentor" (SGM)?

What is the overall picture in Singapore in 2018?

The PAP controls 93 percent of Parliament, despite winning 69.9 percent of votes in 2015.

PM Lee will retire by 2022.

All photos by Angela Lim and Sulaiman Daud

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