The Workers’ Party should be honest about its intention behind filling the third Non-Constituency Member of Parliament (NCMP) seat, Mr K Shanmugam said on Sunday (Jan 31).

Speaking on the sidelines of a community event on Sunday, Mr Shanmugam said the starting point for democracy must be honesty.

"On the NCMP scheme, we all know what the truth is. The Workers’ Party should just come out and say: ‘Look, we would prefer a direct choice being given to the voters between the PAP and the Workers' Party, or some other opposition. But we don’t like the people being given an additional choice, which is you vote for the PAP and you still get an opposition candidate. Nevertheless, we benefit from it and therefore we want to fill the third seat,'" Mr Shanmugam said.

“They want to fill in this third seat because it benefits them."

Mr Shanmugam said that for Singapore's democracy to succeed, two factors are necessary: Honesty in Parliament and financial integrity – making reference to the Aljunied-Hougang-Punggol East Town Council case where the Auditor-General found lapses in its books.

"Go read what the High Court had to say about the Workers’ Party’s chairman suppressing the truth in Parliament and misleading Parliament. Go see what the Court of Appeal, just a couple of weeks ago, had to say about their Town Council Chairman, putting in half-truths on affidavits and trying to mislead," he said.

- CNA/cy