“I think it is simply inappropriate to have the Speaker having a relationship with one of the MPs. That is all. It is not appropriate; it is not acceptable.” – Lee Hsien Loong
“When such a situation arises, it is my duty as Secretary-General of the party to deal with them and put things right. This means to counsel, to correct, to admonish, and ultimately, if necessary, to remove the MP from the party and Parliament.” – Lee Hsien Loong
Just after 1.00pm on 17 July 2023, minutes after the resignations of the Speaker of Parliament, Tan Chuan-Jin , and the PAP MP for Tampines GRC, Ms Cheng Li Hui were made public, Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong addressed and fielded questions from members of the local accredited press who were assembled at the Istana. It is understood that the Speaker and the MP had a tryst.
Separately, just one hour prior to the release of the statements relating to the twin resignations from the Prime Minister’s Office, the Workers’ Party published a statement in respect of a video that captured MP Leon Perera and WP Youth Wing Chief Nicole Seah having an “inappropriate exchange“.
Wake Up Singapore understands that the video, which captures the two Workers’ Party leaders at Rosso Vino (thanks to our eagle-eyed contributor, E), began making its rounds on the morning of 17 July 2023. However, the video itself was recorded in February 2021.
@sgviralvids The video is from February 2021. Why is the video circulating now? Who recorded it? #leonperera #nicoleseah #workers party #tiktoksg🇸🇬 #sgpolitics #sgparliament #pap #singapore
In this article, we examine some refreshing and troubling aspects of how the respective parties handled issues relating to inappropriate relationships amongst their respective members. In particular, we highlight the following four issues which are worth exploring further:-
- Why was it deemed appropriate for Tan Chuan Jin to continue serving as Speaker of Parliament even after PM Lee was alerted post GE 2020 that he had an inappropriate relationship with a PAP MP?
- Moving forward, and in light of the enlightened and compassionate Counsel, Correct, Admonish, Remove (CCAR) approach, how should political parties deal with MPs who are caught in inappropriate or extramarital affairs?
- How will the Workers’ Party address allegations found in the 8World Article dated 17 July 2023?
- Whether Aljunied MP Leon Perera should resign?
Wake Up Singapore believes that MPs should not resign due to personal indiscretions
At the outset, we wish to state unequivocally that Wake Up Singapore is of the view that an MP should not resign solely for things that do not affect their ability to serve the people. The manner in which politicians conduct their private romantic lives should not have such dire consequences on their professional careers.
Put simply, and we understand that this may be a controversial opinion for some amongst us who are morally conservative, one should be judged based on their competence and ability to serve and not other factors. One’s personal life should be viewed separately from one’s professional and political career.
From the results of the strawpolls found in the newspaper reports enclosed to @sharanvkaur’s Tweets below, it appears that Wake Up Singapore is not alone in harbouring such views.
the thing is – most singaporeans don't care either. straw polls conducted in 2012 re: YSL and Palmer had most residents saying their personal lives should be kept separate from their political performance.
this "norm against adultery" was very much self-invented. https://t.co/hRG921t0Hk pic.twitter.com/2FUCsNu4c2
— 🍍 __ 🙀 (@sharanvkaur) July 17, 2023
This “norm against adultery”, as one Twitter user framed it, appears to be a self-imposed convention of sorts that had been followed and strengthned. in the past when the personal indiscretions of former MPs like Yaw Shin Leong (2012, Hougang), Michael Palmer (2013, Punggol East), and David Ong (2016, Bukit Batok) came to light.
In our view, none of them should have resigned solely on account of their personal indiscretions. However, the PAP and the WP have to reckon with the precedents that they have set for themselves in the last 3 election cycles.
As Khaw Boon Wan, a former PAP Minister said during Yaw Shin Leong’s debacle, it is a “feeble excuse” to say that private and public lives are separate and only the person’s performance as an MP matters.
Bearing that in mind, we first turn to the salient facts of each affair.
Salient Facts and Timelines (Chuan-Jin and Li Hui)
Based on the letters exchanged between the parties and PM Lee, and PM Lee’s press conference on the afternoon of 17 July 2023, the following facts appear to be undisputed:-
- Sometime between July to December 2020 – PM Lee was “alerted” to the relationship between Speaker Chuan-Jin and MP Li Hui. Both parties were counselled.
- Sometime in February 2023 – PM Lee learnt that the relationship between the Speaker and the MP persisted. PM Lee spoke to Tan Chuan-Jin about it, and the Speaker offered his resignation. While PM Lee accepted the Speaker’s resignation, PM Lee told the speaker that he needed to make sure that the residents of Kembagan-Chai Chee and Marine Parade continue to be taken care of.
- May and July 2023 – Based on a review of Parliamentary records, it appears that both the Speaker and the MP were on leave for the May and July 2023 sessions of Parliament (Parliament did not sit in June)
- On or around July 2023 – PM Lee came across information that “strongly suggested” that the relationship between the Speaker and the MP had continued. It was then decided that they had to resign forthwith.
- 17 July 2023 – The Speaker and the MP formally resign from their positions in Parliament and the Party. PM Lee accepts both resignations
@whatdoyouthinkleh #tanchuanjin #chenglihui #inappropriate #relationships
♬ original sound – WhatDoYouThinkLeh? 🇸🇬 – WhatDoYouThinkLeh? 🇸🇬
For ease of reference, the official transcripts of PM Lee’s statement and the QnAs are available on the PMO website.
Salient Facts and Timelines (Leon Perera and Nicole Seah)
At the time of writing, as set out in its statement to the press of 17 July 2023, the Workers’ Party is in the process of establishing the key facts.
What Wake Up Singapore understands is that the video that went viral hours before the news of the resignations of the Speaker and PAP broke was actually filmed in February 2021.
An article from 8World published at 3.30pm on 17 July 2023 alleges that an unnamed source informed the publication that the leaders of the Workers’ Party had knowledge of the relationship between Leon Perera and Nicole Seah in 2021. A rough translation of the article, which was written in Mandarin, may be found below.
The information contained in the 8World stemmed from an unnamed male source who identified Leon Perera as Nicole’s “mentor”. As the Workers’ Party has yet to address the allegations, the only undisputed fact is that the video was filmed in February 2021.
Having established the relevant facts for the relevant affairs, we turn to the issues that trouble us.
1. Why was Tan Chuan-Jin deemed fit to serve as Speaker of Parliament even after the affair with an MP came to light?
The starting point of this discussion is the unequivocal statement from PM Lee that disapproved of relationships between the Speaker of Parliament and an MP:-
I think it is simply inappropriate to have the Speaker having a relationship with one of the MPs. That is all. It is not appropriate; it is not acceptable.
Before he fielded questions from the press, PM Lee revealed that he had spoken to TCJ about the affair in February 2023 and that TCJ had offered his resignation. To avoid any more POFMA Correction Directions coming our way, we set out below the relevant excerpt of PM Lee’s speech:-
I had spoken to Mr Tan about this relationship most recently in February this year. He admitted that what he did was wrong, and offered his resignation to me. I had accepted his resignation. But I told him: first I needed to make sure the residents of Kembangan-Chai Chee and Marine Parade continue to be taken care of. Meanwhile his relationship with Ms Cheng had to stop.
(emphasis in bold underline ours)
Following his statement, and in response to a question by a journalist from CNA, PM Lee revealed that this affair was first made known to him in 2020.
Again, we set out the question from the journalist and PM Lee’s response in full:-
Channel NewsAsia: I just wanted to ask a few questions around timing, you mentioned that you had this conversation with Mr Tan in February. It’s not clear to me how long this relationship had been going on when you had the conversation with him. Second, the timing when you dealt with the Michael Palmer incident suggests quite a different timeline, far more quick and abrupt. And third on timing, now that you have four vacant seats in Parliament, does that affect the way you think about when you are going to call the next General Elections.
PM Lee: Well, I spoke to Tan Chuan Jin and Cheng Li Hui most recently in February. I was alerted of this after the last General Election in 2020, I do not know when it began, but they were spoken to, counseled. Unfortunately, the matter didn’t close and so it came to the hard conversation we had in February this year. As for comparison with Michael Palmer, I think it depends on the situation of the case, as I said you’ve got to look at the circumstances, spouses and the families’ conditions, at how you can manage this as sensitively as you can and yet do your duty and it depends on the person’s response as well as the specifics, so I don’t think it’s possible to make direct comparisons. As for the General Election, I have no plan to call an immediate General Election. General Election is due by 2025, we are in the second half of the present government’s term, we just opened Parliament recently. We have a full agenda for this term, we’re working at it and that’s what we will focus on. And in the GRCs where there is a member missing, the other members of the GRC will step up and will make sure that the constituents are well looked after, that’s one of the advantages of having a GRC
(emphasis in bold underline ours)
This was again confirmed in PM Lee’s response to a separate question by a journalist from TODAY:-
TODAY: I just wanted to clarify something that you just said. So, you mentioned that you knew about it after the GE in 2020, why was it allowed to go on? Can you share more about the circumstances? And at each point, did Mr Tan come forward himself or did the party have to learn about some of these things?
PM Lee: We spoke to him and to Ms Cheng during that period, from the time when we first learned about it until February this year. We hoped that they would put things right, but unfortunately, they did not.
The General Elections in 2020 were held in July 2020. If we were to assume that PM Lee was alerted to this in late 2020, this would mean that the fact of the relationship between the Speaker and the MP was not made known to the public for at least 2.5 years between December 2020 to July 2023.
PM Lee, in no uncertain terms, stated that it was “simply inappropriate” and “unacceptable” for TCJ, as Speaker of Parliament, to have a relationship with CLH, a member of Parliament.
If so, why was the fact of the relationship not disclosed to the public?
More importantly, why was it assessed to be appropriate for Tan Chuan-Jin allowed to continue serving as Speaker of Parliament?
In our personal view, PM Lee’s decision not to cut the cord immediately but to take a gradual and compassionate approach should be lauded. As we will explain in the next section, this approach appears to be a (much welcomed) shift away from the manner in which the party has dealt with MPs who had extra-marital affairs in the past.
MPs who fall short in their personal lives should be given the opportunity to make amends and right their wrongs. This should be the case especially when their mistakes do not have a material impact on their performance as Parliamentarians.
“When such a situation arises, it is my duty as Secretary-General of the party to deal with them and put things right.
This means to counsel, to correct, to admonish, and ultimately, if necessary, to remove the MP from the party and Parliament.”
However, what troubles us here is not the fact of the relationship, but the power dynamics at play in light of the fact that Tan Chuan-Jin was serving as the Speaker of Parliament. In particular, as PM Lee himself noted, it is “simply inappropriate” for the Speaker of Parliament and a sitting MP to be in a relationship.
In our view, Tan Chuan-Jin should not have continued to serve as Speaker of Parliament since the time PM Lee became aware of the affair after GE 2020.
While PM Lee accepted the Speaker’s resignation in February 2023 pending arrangements for a smooth handover, there was no reason, again, for Tan Chuan-Jin to continue serving as Speaker of Parliament in the meantime. It is also unclear how long these arrangements for a handover were supposed to take as at least 5 months had passed since February 2023.
The Straits Times: Some are wondering, were it not for the hot mic incident, would this have come to light, this soon?
PM Lee Hsien Loong: It would have come to light probably sooner rather than later because it had reached that point. Because in February I had spoken to Mr. Tan and I accepted his resignation, I said sort out the succession arrangements in Marine Parade first. And we have been in the process of doing that, so for a start we have put Mr Edwin Tong and Mr Tan See Leng as the anchor ministers in Marine Parade and the process was in progress. Furthermore, as I said just now, very recently, I got new information that the relationship was continuing, and after our conversation in February, that was completely unacceptable. So he had to go. In fact both had to go, but it so happened that the hot mic incident came up and therefore, it precipitated this moment, but it will happen sooner rather than later, anyway.
Tan continued to serve as Speaker even in April 2023, where he was caught uttering the words “fucking populist” following WP MP Jamus Lim’s speech.
@sgviralvids This is a shorter clip. Turn the volume up and listen carefully. Do you hear someone in Parliament saying “f**King populist”. Replay it. #sgnews #sgtiktok #workersparty #singapore #sgpolitics #tanchuanjin #sgparliament #tiktoksg🇸🇬
From perusing the Parliamentary records, it appears that both the Speaker and the MP were on leave for the May and July 2023 sittings of Parliament.
While we agree with PM Lee’s approach of trying to counsel the parties and giving them a chance before sacking them, we respectfully disagree with the decision to allow Tan to continue serving as Speaker of Parliament. It is also unclear how long the supposed handover arrangements, that presumably started in February 2023 following PM Lee’s acceptance of Tan’s resignation, were supposed to take.
In our view, a Speaker having a relationship with a sitting MP is just grounds for a removal or resignation. This is especially so if the Speaker was given the opportunity to make things right but fails to do so.
2. Going forward, how should the Party deal with MPs who have extra-marital or inappropriate affairs?
During the press conference, PM Lee fielded a question from CNA on the perceived differences in timelines for the Michael Palmer incident in 2013 and the present case.
As for comparison with Michael Palmer, I think it depends on the situation of the case, as I said you’ve got to look at the circumstances, spouses and the families’ conditions, at how you can manage this as sensitively as you can and yet do your duty and it depends on the person’s response as well as the specifics, so I don’t think it’s possible to make direct comparisons.
At this juncture, it may be useful for us to refresh our memories in respect of the timelines relating to the incidents involving Yaw Shin Leong, Michael Palmer, and David Ong. All 3 were former MPs who resigned due to their personal indiscretions coming to light.
In the case of Yaw, allegations of him having an extra-martial affair surfaced on or around 28 January 2012. Yaw resigned as a treasurer of the WP on 7 February 2012, and he was expelled from the party on 15 February 2012. From the time the rumours first began circulating, the WP took about 3 to 4 weeks to expel Yaw. The woman that Yaw was involved with was reportedly single.
and i really am terribly sorry to bring this up but please: look at Lee Hsien Loong's own words in 2012 when he had the opportunity to dangle the by-election as bait pic.twitter.com/nlfQhXN2Fa
— 🍍 __ 🙀 (@sharanvkaur) July 17, 2023
At that time, PM Lee reportedly asked WP why it had taken so long to investigate. This comment was carried in an article by one Jancie Heng from the Straits Times dated 16 February 2012.
About 10 months after Yaw Shin Long’s resignation, PAP MP and then Speaker of Parliament Michael Palmer’s affair came to light. In handling Palmer’s incident, the PAP was described by political observers to have acted swiftly and resolutely as the former Speaker of Parliament offered his resignation within a matter of days since his extramarital affair came to light. The other party to the affair was a Constituency Director in the People’s Association office in Pasir Ris-Punggol GRC. As Palmer stated in his resignation letter dated 12 December 2012, the individual did not work with Palmer directly, Punggol East SMC (Palmer’s constituency at the material time) used to be part of Pasir Ris-Punggol GRC and continues to work with it. The woman that Palmer was reportedly single as well.
David Ong resigned in March 2016 after news of his affair with a grassroots activist from Bukit Batok SMC came to light. The affair reportedly went on for 6 months before the woman’s husband complained. Based on the fact that David was conducting house visits two days before his sudden resignation, it can be inferred that the party and David had acted within 48 hours in respect of his matter.
Now, what can be distilled from the two above incidents involving PAP MPs is how the party appears to always act swiftly and decisively when it involves impropriety amongst its members. There is also some element of an inappropriate relationship and power dynamics between the MP and a subordinate of sorts. In both cases, it was unclear if Palmer and David were given a chance to correct their ways. In the latter case, in light of the woman’s angry husband (who complained), correction may not have been feasible.
In the present case, while Cheng is unmarried, the existence of an inappropriate relationship remains.
That being said, the speed at which smooth transitions were arranged for Palmer (2 days) and David does raise some questions about the time allotted for the handover in Tan’s ward in Marine Parade GRC.
Nevertheless, as discussed earlier, the PAP did not sack the parties immediately but gave them a chance to right their wrongs. While PM Lee’s advice eventually fell on deaf ears, this refreshing approach is a much welcomed change to the previous approaches taken in David’s and Palmer’s case.
“Ms Cheng has also resigned as MP of Tampines GRC and as PAP member. She too had been counselled, including by me also in February this year. But nevertheless she had continued the relationship with Mr Tan…
When such a situation arises, it is my duty as Secretary-General of the party to deal with them and put things right. This means to counsel, to correct, to admonish, and ultimately, if necessary, to remove the MP from the party and Parliament.
We spoke to him and to Ms Cheng during that period, from the time when we first learned about it until February this year. We hoped that they would put things right, but unfortunately, they did not.”
From the above, it is reasonable to conclude that, had the Speaker and the MP ended their relationship after being counselled by PM Lee in 2020, this matter would be resolved. They were given a chance, and they did not make good use of it.
It goes without saying that the situation is slightly different for Tan, who is married and a Speaker of Parliament, and Cheng, who is unmarried and a backbench MP.
Going forward, should any news of personal discretions amongst MPs arise, we hope that this approach of counselling and correction prior to admonishment or removal is followed. As we have always maintained, their private choices which has no discernible impact on their professional and political lives should not be grounds for removal in and of itself.
This renewed approach, which balances the need to uphold high standards with compassion, can be termed the ‘CCAR’ approach – Counsel, Correct, Admonish, Remove.
3. How will the Workers’ Party address allegations from the 8World Article?
While we may not agree with some matters canvassed during PM Lee’s press conference, credit must be given to the the party for fielding questions from the press and revealing information that may be potentially damaging or embarrassing.
The calling of a press conference following a political crisis instead of issuing statements via social media is good for transparency and accountability. It should be natural and expected for political leaders to hold press conferences and field questions routinely. As the former editor of the Straits Times, Bertha Henson, put it:-
You DO realise what is happening to you right? You are being sidelined by the biggest newsmaker in Singapore, the G, which also happens to be supporting your operation with State funds. You’ve never had much of a say in media-G relations, but god knows your predecessors tried. And we were lucky that politicians at the time know the value of a credible media, even as they try to hem us in in other ways. They know that they need to get out there and answer questions. They were quick to hold press conferences (as opposed to the briefing which is a kind of gag order which the media doesn’t seem to know how to negotiate). They were okay about taking questions at the sidelines.
Now they ignore you entirely, in the hope that no answers mean no story. They tell you to look at their FB which you do so dutifully because you’re afraid to miss any pearls of wisdom. They go on TikTok and have their own mock interviews on YouTube done by their ministry minions. They hold “doorstop’’ interviews so as to look casual but we all know it’s only because they have something to say – not because you have something to ask.
When the SPH circulation scandal broke earlier this year, many critcised SPH for failing to hold a press conference to address the concerns and questions from fellow journalists and the public at large. The same gripes were again aired when the public had to wait more than a month for a Parliamentary sitting on Ridout Road for the matter to be addressed.
Similarly, it would be in the Workers’ Party’s best interests to hold an honest and transparent press conference relating to the video between Leon Perera and Nicole Seah. In fact, if appropriate, Leon and Nicole should also field questions alongside the WP leadership.
This would be similar to the press conference held by Michael Palmer, as he was flanked by DPM Teo Chee Hean, in December 2012.
In light of the allegations in the 8World article, it can be expected that members of the press and the public at large will want to know, amongst other things:-
- When and how the WP leadership came to know of the matters relating to Leon and Nicole?
- What explanation, if any, do Leon and Nicole have for the video?
- If there was a relationship between Leon and Nicole – how long did it last and whether they have since ended things?
If it transpires that some amongst the WP leadership were aware of the video or the incidents between Leon and Nicole, questions may also be asked in respect of WP’s statement dated 17 July 2023 as the said statement may give a reasonable reader the impression that WP (or the drafters of the statement) had no prior knowledge of this.
In light of the many questions surrounding the origins of the video of the duo in Rosso Vino and the timing of its release, if some light could be shed on who may have recorded the video that would be good to allay doubts and fears. At this juncture, we would like to credit our contributor, E, for identifying the restaurant.
1. same chair
2. same wall color
3. one of the only few restaurants that use red napkins
4. same pull out canopy
5. same LIGHTS
6. in the video, they’re drinking from bordeaux glasses. only formal osteria/trattoria italian restaurants have glasses like that
7. a lot of trees in this area, like in the video
8. glass paneling
We digress.
A press conference, such as the one WP held following the Raeesah Khan incident in GE2020, would also help in bridging trust and confidence.
In February 2012, WP MP Sylvia Lim reportedly fielded more than 40 questions from the press in relation to Yaw Shin Leong.
While it is unclear what the Workers’ Party’s internal approach is to such matters, the following remarks from the leaders of the WP during the Yaw Shin Leong incident may offer some insight:-
“Whatever is wrong, we put it right. That’s all.” – MP Low Thia Khiang
“The Party believes strongly in transparency and accountability, and expects no less from our party members, especially our Members of Parliament. By continuing not to account to the party and the people, especially the residents of Hougang, he has broken the faith, trust, and expectations of the party and the people” – MP Sylvia Lim
(emphasis in bold underline ours)
While Yaw did allege that he was told to keep silent by the Party some 9 years after the fact, what appears consistent from the Workers’ Party’s communications at the material time is that one key reason leading to Yaw’s expulsion from the Party was the fact that he was not accountable internally and externally.
In addition to being accountable, it may serve WP well to also adopt the CCAR approach (if it has not already done so) in addressing the issue.
4. Should Leon Perera resign as a WP MP?
Whether Leon Perera should resign is, of course, a fact-sensitive question.
Wake Up Singapore maintains its position that one’s private and personal indiscretions, without more, should not be grounds for removal from office unless it affects one’s political or professional judgment.
If the facts in the 8World Article are accurate, it would mean that the WP leadership knew about the matter in 2021, and the relationship between Nicole and Leon lasted for a few months. If both of them were counselled and told to stop, and they did so, removal may be arguably excessive pursuant to the CCAR approach.
Whatever the eventual outcome may be for Leon and Nicole, we hope that they are given an opportunity to account for their actions. At an appropriate juncture, they should also hold themselves accountable externally after they have done so internally.
In our view, if they were counselled and they corrected their actions, admonishment and public accountability would suffice. After all, even according to the unnamed source in the 8 World Article, the events started and ended in 2021.
When it comes to such matters, in our humble view, the options of counselling, correction, admonishment should be exhuasted before one turns to removal or resignation.
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