Singaporeans cheer WP team as Parliament opens, but many ask where Mama Bear Sylvia Lim is AURORATOTO GROUP

SINGAPORE: To mark the opening of the 15th Parliament of Singapore on Friday (Sep 5), Pritam Singh, the secretary-general of the city-state’s largest opposition, the Workers’ Party (WP), posted a photo on social media of the party’s Members of Parliament (MP) and Non-Constituency Members of Parliament, together with most of their spouses.

The photo posted by Mr Singh, Singapore’s first official Leader of the Opposition, was met with cheers online, especially since this is the largest number of seats in Parliament that the WP, or any opposition party in Singapore’s history, has had.

He captioned the post simply with the word “Team,” followed by these emojis: a flexed bicep, a hammer, the flag of Singapore, and a heart. The photo was shared on the WP’s Facebook account as well.

Amid the cheers, however, a number of commenters asked the same question concerning Sylvia Lim, the party chair known as Mama Bear, given that she’s held the position since 2003 and has been mentoring younger party members, especially the women.

“Surprised Lady Sylvia is absent,” a Facebook user observed.

Others looked for Ms Lim’s husband, former national footballer Quah Kim Song, who is much beloved in his own right. Ms Lim and Mr Quah got married earlier this year, although they have been together for more than a decade.

While an explanation for Ms Lim’s absence has not been given, a report in CNA noted that two other MPs had not been present for last Friday’s swearing-in: Senior Parliamentary Secretary Eric Chua and Senior Minister of State Tan Kiat How. The report added that the three MPs will be sworn in at a later date.

Returning MP He Ting Ru posted a photo from the swearing-in as well, writing, “And… we are sworn in! Thank you, Sengkang, for placing your trust in us. We do not take it for granted, and look forward to working with you for the next five years.”

First-time MP Fadli Fawzi posted a photo together with his wife, secondary school teacher Nur Aisyah Binte Abdullah.

“Honoured to have been sworn in as a Member of Parliament for Aljunied GRC. Looking to serve the residents in my constituency and in Parliament to the best of my abilities,” he wrote.

On Mr Singh’s Instagram account, he posted more photos from the occasion on Sunday (Sep 7), including one where he and his wife, theatre practitioner Loveleen Kaur Walia, posed with President Tharman Shanmugaratnam and First Lady Jane Ittogi; Speaker of the Parliament Seah Kian Peng and his wife, Jean Yap; new Aljunied MPs Mr Fawzi and Kenneth Tiong, and new NCMPs Eileen Chong and Andre Low.

In another photo were the spouses of the WP MPs and NCMPs who were present that night.

/TISG

Read also: Sylvia Lim on fellow WP leader Faisal Manap: ‘I will miss him in Parliament.’