Former NMPs, former Opposition MP & academic raise concerns over non-partisan reputation of NMPs by resigning to run for GE

A few former NMPs, an Opposition MP, and academics have weighed in publicly online regarding the speculation that two Nominated Members of Parliament (NMPs) have resigned from parliament to seek elected office.

They include former NMPs Nicholas Fang, Calvin Cheng, Braema Mathi, former Workers' Party (WP) Member of Parliament Leon Perera, and Nanyang Technological University (NTU) associate professor Walid J. Abdullah.

Knows both former NMPs, urges them to value reputation of a cherished institution

Walid, an associate professor at NTU’s School of Social Sciences, posted on social media about the news that two NMPs, Joshua Raj Thomas and Syed Harun Alhabsyi, had resigned on Feb. 14.

Posting that same evening, he wrote that their resignations were accompanied by speculation that both will be running in the upcoming general elections, due to be held by November 2025.

His post was mostly, but not entirely, a serious attempt to suggest why neither man should do so, in order to preserve the “reputation of a cherished institution”.

Walid first wrote about his warm and friendly relationship with both NMPs, particularly with Alhabsyi, who he called a kind and humble soul.

Walid said Alhabsyi had the potential to be a better MP than many incumbents, perhaps even to become a minister.

He also noted that Thomas was a friend from university, and both had served in the leadership of the Political Science Society or some version thereof.

Saying he liked both men, he nonetheless felt that neither should run for an elected position.

Handy in a polarised society

Walid spoke about the importance of NMPs as an institution, that it allowed for non-partisan and independent voices to contribute.

Often times their voices held weight because they did not have any electoral agenda.

Because of this, he felt that it was important to protect the credibility of the role of NMP as a non-partisan institution, something that could become “especially handy if society becomes more polarised.”

Walid said that NMPs have a degree of legitimacy about them that elected MPs and Non-Constituency Members of Parliament do not precisely because an NMP is not from any party.

For context, NMPs are unelected parliamentarians, and their role has traditionally been contentious for some opposition parties, including the WP.

One eye on being future MPs

Walid feared that people would, rightly in his opinion, view future NMPs with some suspicion.

They might doubt whether serving NMPs might be doing so with “one eye on being future MPs”.

“I hope everyone involved considers a long-term and big picture here, and values the reputation of a cherished institution.”

But until nomination day, he would try to persuade them, or perhaps dissuade them.

Training ground?

In the comments of Walid's post was a reply by former NMP and incumbent president of human rights NGO MARUAH, Braema Mathi.

Mathi agreed with a comment by Walid saying his analysis applied regardless of which party the former NMPs may join.

However, she could not imagine either joining opposition parties based on their parliamentary speeches.

She also agreed with Walid’s concerns about the NMP role, and said the role might “gain a new purpose” as a training ground to become party-affiliated politicians in due course, using taxpayers' funds for “real life learning”.

Calling the latest events “slippery grounds”, she implicitly disagreed with Walid’s assessment that the NMP role was “cherished”, saying that the NMP scheme, as well as the NCMP scheme “too should go”.

However, she still credited the work done by opposition NCMPs, from both the WP and Progress Singapore Party, saying that they had worked hard to prove themselves, calling the NCMP role “the heaviest backpack to carry in Parl and outside of it”.

Cooling off

One of the NCMPs she credited, Leon Perera, responded to Walid’s post.

Perera was himself subject to GE speculation until he recently revealed that he had taken up a job position in the United States.

Perera was an MP for the WP until July 2023, when he resigned both his seat and from the party after revelations of a past extramarital affair, which had already ended by the time the resignation occurred.

Perera had been speculated to be a possible PSP candidate in the upcoming election.

Giving some background, Perera said that he had served as the sole opposition member on the parliamentary committee of MPs that reviewed applications to serve as NMPs, making recommendations accordingly.

He said that “if the institution of NMPs is justified by establishing non-partisan voices in Parliament”, then more thought should be given on how to bolster the position’s non-partisan standing.

He suggested that a “cooling off period” be implemented, both for former political party members seeking to become NMPs and for NMPs joining a political party.

He noted that he had made similar arguments in 2018 for civil servants transitioning into politics, at the time suggesting a mandatory time gap of three years.

Sad way to say goodbye to the NMP scheme

Former NMP Nicholas Fang, who was in parliament between 2012 and 2014, said that NMP was expected to "contribute independent and non-partisan views in Parliament".

He added that while there "isn't anything in the rules or regulations" that mentioned that NMP has to be non-partisan, he thought it was implicit.

Fang concluded that the news of NMPs possibly joining a political party "pains me" and said that it will be a sad way to say goodbye to the NMP scheme.

He added that while there "isn't anything in the rules or regulations" that mentioned that NMP has to be non-partisan, he thought it was implicit.

Fang concluded that the news of NMPs possibly joining a political party "pains me" and said that it will be a sad way to say goodbye to the NMP scheme.

Misunderstanding of what it means to be non-partisan

Former NMP Calvin Cheng said that the role of an NMP to be "non-partisan, independent" is a job description, and "cannot possibly be the description of a person's values or psychological makeup".

He added that nobody is truly neutral or non partisan.

Cheng said that if an NMP chooses to run for political office later, it does not mean that he did not discharge his duties faithfully as an NMP.

Cheng however said that he is uncomfortable with sitting NMPs quitting their positions to run for office, as they have made a commitment to a job and should finish it.

Related story

Top image via Ministry of Communications and Information/YouTube