Chiam See Tong (born 12 March 1935) is a Singaporean former politician and lawyer who was serving as secretary-general of the Singapore Democratic Party (SDP), between 1980 to 1993, and later served as secretary-general of the Singapore People's Party (SPP) between 2011 to 2019 and as chairman of the Singapore Democratic Alliance (SDA) from 2001 to 2011. Chiam was the de facto Leader of the Opposition from 1986 to 1993 and again from 1997 to 2006. Throughout his parliamentary career, he had represented Potong Pasir from 1984 to 2011.
Born when Singapore was part of the Straits Settlements, Chiam was educated at the Victoria University of Wellington and initially worked as a teacher. He later studied law at the Inner Temple in London, qualifying as a barrister in 1974. Around the same time, he began his political career as an independent candidate, unsuccessfully contesting at Cairnhill in the 1976 general election and at Potong Pasir in the 1979 by-elections. He established the SDP in 1980 and again unsuccessfully contested the general election at Potong Pasir that same year. He was elected to Parliament on his fourth attempt in the 1984 general election, defeating the People's Action Party (PAP) candidate Mah Bow Tan in Potong Pasir. At the time, he was one of only two opposition Members of Parliament (MPs), alongside J. B. Jeyaretnam of the Workers' Party (WP). Following Jeyaretnam's removal from Parliament in 1986, Chiam became the sole opposition MP and assumed the role of de facto Leader of the Opposition. He continued to lead the opposition through the 1991 general election, in which the SDP won three SMCs, marking the party's best electoral performance to date.
In 1993, Chiam resigned as secretary-general of the SDP following a dispute with assistant secretary-general Chee Soon Juan, during which the party's Central Executive Committee (CEC) sided with Chee, leading to Chiam's loss of leadership in the party he had founded. He later joined the SPP and retained his seat in Parliament at the 1997 general election. In 2001, he formed the SDA by bringing together the SPP, the National Solidarity Party (NSP), the Pertubuhan Kebangsaan Melayu Singapura (PKMS) and the Singapore Justice Party (SJP), serving as its chairman until 2011. Prior to the 2011 general election, Chiam withdrew the SPP from the SDA and led a team to contest in Bishan–Toa Payoh GRC, but was defeated by the PAP team. Chiam decided not to contest in the 2015 general election, citing health reasons stemming from a stroke that he suffered in 2008. His parliamentary tenure of 27 years made him the longest-serving opposition MP in Singapore until he was surpassed by WP's Low Thia Kiang in 2018. He remains Singapore's longest-serving de facto Leader of the Opposition, having held the position for a total of over 15 years.
Early life and career
Born in Singapore during British colonial rule, Chiam was educated at Anglo-Chinese School (ACS), where he was an accomplished swimmer and a member of the school's relay team. He contested in the election for Potong Pasir again as a SDP candidate against Howe. In an election rally, Howe disparaged Chiam on his professional competence. Chiam eventually lost to Howe again with 40.95% of the vote against Howe's 59.05%.
Dhanabalan later issued a public apology to Chiam,
thumb|304x304px|Chiam in 1985 (far right), observing the burning of ballot papers conducted months after the [[1984 Singaporean general election|1984 general election. Standing on the far left is Workers' Party (WP) member Low Thia Khiang.]]
When Chiam was first elected into Parliament in 1984, he was one of only two opposition MPs, the other being J. B. Jeyaretnam, the Workers' Party secretary-general. After Jeyaretnam lost his parliamentary seat in 1986, Chiam remained the sole elected opposition Member of Parliament until after the 1991 general election, which saw three other opposition politicians becoming elected Members of Parliament: Ling How Doong and Cheo Chai Chen of the SDP, and Low Thia Khiang of the Workers' Party. Chee's candidacy had generated considerable public interest as it was the first time that an academic from a state-run university had stood for election against the PAP. Chee subsequently became the assistant secretary-general of the SDP and Chiam's protégé.
In the same year, PAP MP Choo Wee Khiang said in a speech that when he drove to Little India one evening, he found it "pitch dark, not because there was no light, but because there were too many Indians around." Chiam was the only MP who called out Choo for his remarks. In response, Chiam resigned from his position as secretary-general on May 17, 1993. Filing a lawsuit against the SDP, Chiam obtained a court reversal of his expulsion, allowing him to retain his parliamentary seat until the next general election.
Singapore Democratic Alliance
thumb|[[Steve Chia (centre) and Chiam (right) at a Singapore Democratic Alliance (SDA) rally during the campaign period for the 2006 general election.]]
Ahead of the 2001 general election, the SPP joined forces with three other opposition parties — National Solidarity Party (NSP), Pertubuhan Kebangsaan Melayu Singapura (PKMS) and Singapore Justice Party (SJP) — to form the Singapore Democratic Alliance, with Chiam as the SDA's chairman. Chiam then contested in the general election under the SDA banner in Potong Pasir SMC and won with 52.43% of the vote against the PAP candidate Sitoh Yih Pin, thus continuing for a fifth term in Parliament as the MP for Potong Pasir SMC. He closed his law firm, Chiam & Co, in the following year to become a full-time Member of Parliament. Chiam's victory was a surprise, especially since the PAP had offered a S$80 million upgrading package for Potong Pasir residents and had brought in former Prime Minister Goh Chok Tong to assist in the PAP campaign in the constituency.
In 2009, Chiam celebrated his 25th year as the Member of Parliament for Potong Pasir SMC. That year, he also announced that he did not plan to contest in Potong Pasir SMC in the next general election, and would instead contest in a group representation constituency (GRC).
In 2010, Chiam tried to bring the Reform Party into the SDA. He reportedly accepted the conditions the Reform Party set out for joining the SDA, but the other members of the SDA council opposed the terms of entry and blocked the move. In 2010 and early 2011, it was reported the some SDA council members felt that Chiam was unable to fulfil his role as the chairman of the party after his stroke in 2008. On 28 February 2011, the SDA council voted to relieve Chiam of his role as chairman, but stressed that they still hoped to field him as a candidate in the next general election. On 2 March 2011, Chiam announced that the SPP was withdrawing from the SDA, and that he would contest under the SPP banner in the next general election.
2011 general election
thumb|Chiam greeting voters during the campaign period for the [[2015 Singaporean general election|2015 general election.]]
Between 1997 and 2011, Low Thia Kiang from the Workers' Party and Chiam from the SPP were the only elected opposition MPs.
During the 2011 general election, Low and Chiam left their respective strongholds in Hougang and Potong Pasir SMCs to challenge the ruling People's Action Party (PAP) in group representation constituencies (GRCs). Low contested in Aljunied GRC, while Chiam contested in Bishan–Toa Payoh GRC. In so doing, Low and Chiam risked a situation where there would be no elected opposition MPs in Parliament if they lost.
Chiam's team, which included Benjamin Pwee, Wilfred Leung, Jimmy Lee and Mohamad Hamim bin Aliyas, ultimately lost in Bishan–Toa Payoh GRC with 43.07% of the vote against the PAP team's 56.93%.
Retirement from politics
On 30 August 2015, Chiam announced that he would not be running for election in the 2015 general election due to his declining health.
On 4 September 2019, the SPP announced that Chiam would be resigning from his position as the party's secretary-general due to his declining health. Chiam stepped down on 16 October 2019 and was succeeded by Steve Chia. Chiam and Loh are co-patrons of the organisation, which is chaired by their daughter, Camilla Chiam.
Personal life
Chiam's given name, "See Tong" (), which translates as "punctual" or "timely," was given upon him by his grandfather, Chiam Seng Poh. Poh was a revolutionary involved in the uprisings during the final years of the Qing dynasty preceding the 1911 Revolution. After one such uprising failed, he fled China with his family and settled in Muar, Malaya. Chiam's maternal grandfather, Lim Liang Quee, belonged to the Straits Chinese elite.
Chiam's father, Chiam Heng Hong, was a businessman who traded in commodities including rubber, pepper and sugar. His mother, Lily Lim, was instrumental in founding the 7th Singapore Company of the Girls' Brigade at the Prinsep Street Presbyterian Church during the 1950s. Together, Chiam Heng Hong and Lily Lim had two sons: Chiam See Tong and Chiam Joon Tong. They married in Singapore in 1975 when Chiam was 40 and Loh was 26, making her 14 years his junior. The couple have one daughter, Camilla.