Reform Party first to formally declare candidates for next GE
The Reform Party unveiled its first batch of candidates for the next general election yesterday - setting up a possible three-cornered fight with the People's Action Party and the Progress Singapore Party in West Coast GRC.
During a livestream on Facebook yesterday, RP secretary-general Kenneth Jeyaretnam introduced six candidates, half of whom were part of the team that contested West Coast GRC in 2015.
They are party chairman Andy Zhu, 37, who is a marketing director at a real estate agency; human resources practitioner Darren Soh, 52; and Madam Noraini Yunus, 52, who works in telemarketing .
The Straits Times understands the party intends to return to the GRC it contested in 2011 and 2015, as well as field candidates in Ang Mo Kio GRC, Radin Mas and Yio Chu Kang.
Mr Zhu, however, said the party remains in talks with other opposition parties.
The RP team led by Mr Jeyaretnam garnered 21.4 per cent of the vote in West Coast GRC in 2015. PAP won the GRC with 78.6 per cent of the vote then, led by Mr Lim Hng Kiang, who was then Minister for Trade and Industry. The team comprised Minister for Communications and Information S. Iswaran, Ms Foo Mee Har and Mr Patrick Tay.
Last Friday, The Straits Times reported that the Progress Singapore Party is close to finalising its candidates who will join Dr Tan Cheng Bock's team in West Coast GRC.
Asked about opposition unity by a viewer of the livestream, Mr Jeyaretnam said the different parties have the same goal of wanting to see better checks and balances.
"In fact, we are pretty unified. We have been cooperating. We hope to avoid three-cornered fights," he said.
The Reform Party is the first party to formally declare candidates.
The three first-time candidates RP introduced yesterday were Mr Gurdev Singh, 55, an assistant property manager; Mr Mahaboob Batcha, 52, deputy treasurer of the party and director of an oil and gas company; and criminal defence lawyer Charles Yeo, 30.
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