Overview

• On July 3, the People’s Action Party issued a statement asserting that “politics should stop at the water’s edge,” criticising Pritam Singh’s decision to discuss domestic affairs on the Malaysian podcast Keluar Sekejap
• The PAP highlighted the Workers’ Party’s past engagement with Malaysia-based religious teacher Noor Deros and endorsements from Parti Islam Se-Malaysia as potential foreign interference with racial and religious overtones
• The Workers’ Party responded that Singh’s interview “had no detrimental impact whatsoever on Singapore’s national interests” and that no formal guideline restricts the Opposition Leader’s freedom of speech overseas
• WP leaders noted that senior PAP figures routinely speak to foreign media without facing similar scrutiny, calling into question the ruling party’s selective criticism
• The exchange has intensified debate over unwritten boundaries for cross-border political discourse and the balance between election integrity and free-speech norms