Last night, the Workers’ Party’s CEC (Central Executive Council) met to decide on which candidates would accept the Non-constituency Member of Parliament (NCMP) positions, following the results of General Election 2015. The press release on our decisions is here.
Before a vote was taken on the nominee from the East Coast GRC team, I asked the CEC to consider nominating Leon Perera and, if Parliament decides to open up the vacated seat left by Lee Li Lian, for Daniel Goh to fill it.
I am happy that the CEC unanimously agreed to this proposal. The East Coast team had earlier discussed this matter amongst ourselves and we agreed that Leon and Daniel would be the most suitable candidates as NCMPs. They have both taken leading roles in policy work within our Party, and I am confident they will be able to make very positive contributions to Parliamentary debates and speak up for not just residents of East Coast GRC, but all Singaporeans.
I am grateful to have had the privilege and opportunity to serve as an NCMP in the 12th Parliament of Singapore. It was a very fulfilling four years. I learned so much from the debates, the policy research that we did, and from my fellow MPs, volunteers, residents and the subject matter experts I consulted.
I am very thankful to all those who helped me fulfil my NCMP role, including the WP volunteers who gave up so much time to help me in policy work and ground outreach. Special thanks go to my wife and parents who stood by me through all the trying times, as well as my two young kids who were always understanding when I told them I couldn’t spend time with them because I was going out to a certain “Party”.
While I will no longer be an NCMP, I intend to continue serving residents on the ground in East Coast GRC and through my Party in the areas of policy research and media. I would like to thank all the residents of East Coast GRC who have supported me and WP in the past two elections which I contested, and I look forward to greater interactions with you over the next five years. For those who did not vote for us, I especially look forward to an opportunity to understand your concerns, hopes and dreams, and to be able to serve you better in the future.
Source: http://geraldgiam.sg
