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SINGAPORE \u2013 The Workers\u2019 Party\u2019s decision to only reprimand its chief Pritam Singh<\/span><\/a> signals he has the core leadership\u2019s backing, but the final decision on his post at the helm will be made by the rest of its inner circle. <\/p>\n Two developments to watch are a promised special cadre members\u2019 conference and the party\u2019s internal leadership election \u2013 both expected by June \u2013 where the cadres will indicate if they agree with this outcome, political analysts told The Straits Times. <\/p>\n It is at these meetings that the party\u2019s members will decide whether Mr Singh will continue as secretary-general, a post he has held since 2018.<\/p>\n For now, all signs point towards him staying in the role, reflecting his strengthened control on the WP, they said.<\/p>\n The party\u2019s central executive committee (CEC) issued a formal letter of reprimand to Mr Singh after an internal disciplinary panel<\/span><\/a> that looked into his conviction for perjury found he had contravened the party\u2019s Constitution.<\/p>\n The panel comprised Sengkang GRC MPs He Ting Ru and Jamus Lim, along with former Hougang MP Png Eng Huat.<\/p>\n The CEC met on April 28 and 29 to consider the panel\u2019s report, and said on April 30 that while it accepted the findings, it also \u201cseparately considered\u201d that Mr Singh\u2019s actions were ultimately \u201cjudgment calls\u201d and he did not intend to act against the party\u2019s principles, aims or welfare.<\/p>\n So, it was assessed that a formal letter of reprimand would be adequate, the CEC said.<\/p>\n The CEC also said a notice would be sent out within two weeks for a special cadre members\u2019 conference<\/span><\/a> requested by a group of members in December 2025. About 20 members had said they were looking to move a motion of no confidence against Mr Singh following his conviction. <\/p>\n The WP did not comment on the consequences of receiving a formal reprimand. But the party said Mr Singh is not precluded from putting himself up for election at its internal polls, which requires members to be \u201cof good standing\u201d.<\/p>\n Ms Nydia Ngiow, managing director at strategic advisory firm BowerGroupAsia Singapore, said the reprimand keeps Mr Singh \u201cin the game\u201d. <\/p>\n The party has about 100 cadres \u2013 its inner circle \u2013 who are typically recruited by the CEC. <\/p>\n Noting this, Institute of Policy Studies (IPS) senior research fellow Gillian Koh said given Mr Singh\u2019s years in the CEC, there is likely to be a \u201chigh degree of loyalty\u201d to him. <\/p>\n Dr Mustafa Izzuddin, a senior international affairs analyst at Solaris Strategies Singapore, said Mr Singh is likely to continue leading the party \u201cuntil and unless\u2026 someone (with) the requisite support\u201d steps up to challenge him for the role. <\/p>\n Under the WP\u2019s leadership election rules, the roles of secretary-general and chairman are contested separately from the rest of the leadership team. Mr Singh has not been challenged in his seven-year tenure as party chief. <\/p>\n Looking further ahead, the WP\u2019s decision to keep Mr Singh on as chief suggests the Leader of the Opposition (LO) role is likely to remain vacant for the foreseeable future and for the rest of this parliamentary term, said Ms Ngiow. This is especially after the WP\u2019s public commitment that the leader of the largest opposition party is by definition the leader of the opposition.<\/p>\n The party has declined an invitation from Prime Minister Lawrence Wong<\/span><\/a> to nominate another MP to the role of LO. PM Wong had removed Mr Singh as LO after the High Court in December 2025 upheld his convictions on two counts of lying to a parliamentary committee. It was these convictions that also triggered the WP\u2019s own disciplinary proceedings against him in January.<\/p>\n While Mr Singh remains qualified to stand for the internal election, the question remains if his standing with the public will take a hard knock, said IPS Social Lab adjunct principal research fellow and academic adviser Tan Ern Ser.<\/p>\n Ms Ngiow said public reaction is likely to split along existing political lines, with supporters viewing the reprimand as proportionate and critics seeing it as insufficient, given that Mr Singh\u2019s criminal conviction was upheld on appeal. <\/p>\n Dr Mustafa said some may see Mr Singh as having displayed \u201cremarkable tenaciousness to rise above\u201d it and see him as a stronger leader.<\/p>\n Analysts said some may also draw comparisons between the WP\u2019s punishment of Mr Singh and past disciplinary cases.<\/p>\n Singapore Management University law don Eugene Tan noted how previous members had been more severely punished. He called the party\u2019s decision to merely reprimand Mr Singh \u201ca slap on the wrist\u201d and said it could be seen as practising double standards.<\/p>\n Referring to how the party had made a distinction between Mr Singh\u2019s conduct and his intentions, he said: \u201cArguably, neither Raeesah Khan, Leon Perera, nor Nicole Seah had any intention to act against the party\u2019s welfare. But they had to resign all the same because they were not frank and honest. An exception was carved out for Mr Singh.\u201d<\/p>\n Ms Khan and Mr Perera, former WP MPs, as well as Ms Seah, a former WP youth wing leader and election candidate, had all resigned from the WP after they were found to have been untruthful to its leadership.<\/p>\n In November 2021, the party had convened a disciplinary panel<\/span><\/a> to look into Ms Khan\u2019s conduct after she admitted to lying in Parliament about the details of a sexual assault case. The panel, which comprised Mr Singh, party chairwoman Sylvia Lim and party vice-chairman Faisal Manap, eventually recommended to the CEC that Ms Khan be expelled if she did not resign.<\/p>\n Meanwhile, in July 2023, Mr Singh had said that the party would have recommended the expulsion of Mr Perera<\/span><\/a> if he had not offered to resign, adding that he had fallen short of the standards expected of WP MPs.<\/p>\n Still, the WP\u2019s position as Singapore\u2019s only opposition party in Parliament could mean the public will be more forgiving towards this episode, said IPS\u2019 Dr Koh. <\/p>\n