The Leader of the Opposition, Mr Pritam Singh, recently gave his most extensive post-election interview. Strikingly, he chose not a local media outlet, but a podcast hosted by Malaysians and recorded in Malaysia to share his views on our domestic political landscape.

It raises serious questions about why the Secretary-General of the Workers’ Party (WP) would choose to speak about Singapore’s politics on foreign soil, to a foreign audience.

This is not merely a matter of platform preference. It touches on a fundamental principle — that Singapore’s domestic affairs should be debated and decided by Singaporeans, within Singapore.

The importance of this principle is not new. As Mr Chiam See Tong once said, the Opposition must be “truthful…good patriotic Singaporeans…and not go around the world denouncing Singapore.”

Concerns have also been raised about the WP’s past interactions with Mr Noor Deros, a self-styled religious teacher in Malaysia known for views that are at odds with Singapore’s commitment to multiracialism and religious harmony. Despite public interest, the WP has not explained what transpired in that meeting, or why Mr Deros subsequently expressed public support for WP candidates during GE2025.

Mr Singh claims not to “score political points based on race or religion,” but the actions of his party indicate otherwise.

During GE2025, WP candidate Mr Harpreet Singh made misleading statements about the PAP’s stance on a minority Prime Minister — allegations that were subsequently disproven with public records of PAP leaders such as Prime Minister Lawrence Wong, Senior Minister Lee Hsien Loong and Minister K Shanmugam speaking on the issue. This pattern of misrepresentation is worrying.

Furthermore, during the election, Malaysian politicians from Parti Islam Se-Malaysia (PAS) endorsed WP candidates on social media. Their messages contained racial and religious overtones, designed to encourage segments of Singaporean voters to vote along racial and religious lines.

Mr Singh remained silent until the Singapore Government called out these acts of blatant foreign interference. Even then, his response left many critical questions unanswered.

Singaporeans are therefore entitled to ask: Does Mr Singh truly stand by the principles he has stated? Or are they only invoked when convenient? Does he believe foreign involvement is acceptable when it benefits his party?

Singapore and Malaysia share close historical ties, but we also respect each other’s sovereignty. In the wake of the painful racial unrest of the 1960s, both sides have observed a careful boundary: we refrain from commenting on each other’s politics, and from using each other’s media to influence public opinion.

This is a longstanding understanding that has served both nations well. Maintaining it requires political leaders of integrity who place national interest above partisan gain.

As a sovereign nation, we must be clear: Politics should stop at the water’s edge. Singapore’s affairs are for Singaporeans to decide, based on what is best for our national interests.

Postscript in response to the WP’s explanation that the Leader of the Opposition’s request to appear on a podcast hosted by Malaysians and recorded in Malaysia is no different from Government leaders engaging foreign media:

Singapore ministers do engage with foreign media. But they discuss a wide range of topics, be it on international and regional affairs or domestic matters.

What is unusual here is that the Leader of the Opposition gave his first in-depth interview on GE2025 to Malaysian podcasters – and the discussion focused almost entirely on Singapore’s internal politics. He has declined invitations from Singaporean podcasters.

The WP also continued to brush aside serious concerns about its engagement with Mr Noor Deros, as well as the public endorsements made by Parti Islam Se-Malaysia (PAS) politicians in support of its candidates.

The questions we asked in both our statement and the article in Petir are not trivial matters. They go to the heart of maintaining a clear boundary against foreign involvement in our domestic affairs.

Many important questions raised remain unanswered.

People’s Action Party