Overview

• In his first term-opening address, Prime Minister Lawrence Wong said GE2025 was a close call and cautioned that racial and religious appeals may grow more tempting as contests narrow.
• He announced a deeper public engagement drive that includes citizens’ panels, a new round of youth panels next year, and opportunities for residents to shape local estates and social norms.
• Wong welcomed an opposition presence in Parliament, said the PAP must continually earn the right to govern, and expected the Workers’ Party to scrutinise policies and hold the government accountable.
• Coordinating Minister Ong Ye Kung told Parliament Singapore came dangerously close to mixing race and religion in politics and said voters rejected populism and anti-foreigner rhetoric in GE2025.
• Officials detailed foreign-linked calls to vote on religious lines by two Malaysian politicians, a former ISA detainee now an Australian citizen, and preacher Noor Deros, with Meta instructed to block the posts in Singapore.