A photo of newly nominated member of parliament (NMP) Haresh Singaraju in a shirt sporting the design of the ruling People’s Action Party (PAP) has raised eyebrows and reignited debate over the non-partisan nature of the scheme in Singapore.
The scrutiny over the now-removed photo of the family physician comes after critics questioned the effectiveness of the NMP scheme in February last year in the lead-up to the city state’s general election in May.
Two NMPs at the time made the unprecedented move of vacating their seats prematurely ahead of the polls amid speculation they would run for the PAP. One of them, Syed Harun Alhabsyi, ran and won a seat in the Nee Soon group constituency.
Haresh clarified to This Week in Asia on Monday that he was formerly a PAP member.
“I was previously a party member. I am not a member today,” Haresh said. “The Instagram photo was from past grass-roots activities under PA [People’s Association]. I’ve since archived that post together with other posts to avoid displaying identifiable images of residents and fellow volunteers.”
He added that he looked forward to “serving in parliament in an independent, non-partisan capacity to serve Singaporeans”.
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