Pritam Singh Responds To Lawrence Wong: Wp Rejects Identity Politics And Foreign Influence

Workers’ Party (WP) chief Pritam Singh on Saturday evening (Apr 26) reaffirmed the party’s commitment to pan-Singaporean politics and rejected any mixing of race and religion with electoral campaigning, addressing Prime Minister Lawrence Wong’s call for unity made earlier that day.

Speaking at a rally at Temasek Junior College in Tampines, Singh took the final minute of his speech to respond to Wong’s afternoon press conference, which had warned against identity politics during the 2025 General Election campaign.

“My fellow Singaporeans, before I end, I want to share some thoughts on the Prime Minister’s press conference earlier this afternoon,” Singh said.

Noting that Wong had spoken out of concern for Singapore’s future, Singh said he too was speaking as a Singaporean who loved his country.

He emphasised that Singapore was the only home he knew, and pointedly noted that he did not own investment properties overseas.

Reaffirming the Workers’ Party’s principles, Singh stressed that the party could not succeed “if we play the race and religion card,” and declared: “Singapore is our business, nobody else’s.”

“We only need the support of our people, our fellow Singaporeans,” he added.

Lawrence Wong Calls for Rejection of Identity Politics and Religious Involvement

Earlier on Saturday, Prime Minister Lawrence Wong had called a press conference where he warned of the dangers of mixing race and religion into Singapore’s political space.

“My call to all political parties is: let’s do our best not to push the boundaries,” Wong said, explaining that identity politics fractures the shared common space among Singaporeans, worsens communal relations, and exposes the country to external exploitation.

Wong cautioned that when one group aggressively asserts its identity, others will organise and jostle back, deepening social divisions.

“No one wins when this happens,” he warned.

Wong also stressed that while foreigners may express support for political causes, political parties must categorically reject any endorsements based on race or religion.

“This is our country, our elections. Singaporeans alone decide the outcome of our elections,” he said.

Government Moves to Block Facebook Posts Over Alleged Election Interference

Wong’s press conference followed government action against alleged foreign interference in the 2025 General Election.

On April 25, the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) and the Elections Department (ELD) announced that Corrective Directions had been issued to Facebook’s parent company, Meta, to block Singapore users’ access to several posts published by foreigners.

The posts were deemed to constitute “online election advertising” under the Parliamentary Elections Act and involved individuals such as Parti Islam Se-Malaysia’s (PAS) national treasurer Iskandar Abdul Samad, PAS Selangor youth chief Mohamed Sukri Omar, Facebook user “Zai Nal” (Zulfikar Mohamad Shariff), and Singaporean religious teacher Noor Deros.

These posts had promoted specific opposition candidates, including WP’s Muhamad Faisal Abdul Manap, who is contesting Tampines GRC, and criticised the ruling government’s policies.

The Government stressed that foreign involvement in Singapore’s elections is strictly prohibited.

Pritam Singh Clarifies at Morning Doorstop: No Agreement with Noor Deros

Before his rally speech, Singh had already addressed the controversy during a doorstop interview with reporters ahead of a WP walkabout in Kovan.

He clarified that the Workers’ Party had not made any agreement with Noor Deros in exchange for political support.

Singh explained that the initial meeting was intended for dialogue between former Aljunied GRC MP Muhamad Faisal Abdul Manap and senior Malay-Muslim religious leaders, with no indication that Noor would be attending or presenting demands.

“There was no indication that Mr Noor would be attending or presenting demands,” Singh said.

“I’m sorry — we don’t work politics like that in Singapore. We don’t work politics like that in the Workers’ Party,” he added.

He also stressed that engaging with various religious groups is part of normal political and governmental outreach, but that advocacy efforts should not be misconstrued as political deals.

The Workers’ Party subsequently issued a statement reaffirming that it does not control the actions of foreigners who may express support for its candidates, and any imputation of such was “wholly inaccurate.”

Singh further warned that politicising race and religion would create unnecessary divisions in Singapore’s public space, to the detriment of both national unity and minority communities.

He urged voters to assess the WP based on its manifesto, parliamentary performance, and its proposals for Singapore’s future.

Following the controversy, Noor Deros published a Facebook post early Saturday morning, clarifying that his previous comments had been misinterpreted.

Writing in Malay, Noor confirmed that the Workers’ Party had not made any promises to him in exchange for political support.

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