Verve @ SMU

FALL / WINTER 2011 ISSUE 14

A 1999 Straits Steamship Prize winner, a 2003 Chevening Scholar and a Juris Doctor candidate at SMU, Member
of Parliament Pritam Singh has an impressive list of accomplishments. However, these may very well pale in
comparison to his achievement in Singapores latest General Elections as a member of the Workers Party (WP).
Apart from claiming enough votes for his team in the Aljunied Group Representation Constituency (GRC) to be voted
into Parliament, many Singaporeans praised the fuent and natural delivery of his speeches in WP rallies leading up to
election day. We ask SMUs very own postgraduate law student 10 questions about everything from school to politics.
1. What motivated you to enter
politics?
The desire to play my part in changing
the status quo for the better.
2.Who is the one person you admire
most and take inspiration from?
Thats a tough one! I have always
admired the courage of ordinary
individuals to step up and speak out
against injustice and tyranny. In the
context of the Cold War, Lech Walesa
and Vaclav Havel readily come to mind.
Closer to home, the one person who
I really admire and take inspiration
from is a relatively unknown man in
todays day and age. He was the second
Prime Minister of India Lal Bahadur
Shastri, a man of impeccable integrity,
amongst other traits. Quite early on, Lal
Bahadur Shastri dropped his surname
of Srivastava, as it indicated his caste
and he was against the archaic caste
system.
He was jailed for a total of 9 nine years
over the course of the Indian struggle
for Independence against British rule.
On one occasion, while he was in
prison, his daughter fell seriously ill. He
was conditionally released for 15 days
during this period, with the stipulation
that he desist from taking part in the
freedom movement. However, his
daughter died before he could return
home, and after performing the funeral
rites, he voluntarily returned to prison
even before the expiration of his 15-day
conditional release.
In 1956, as Minister of Railways he
offered his resignation to his Prime
Minister, Jawaharlal Nehru after a
railway accident that led to the death
of more than 100 people. However,
his resignation was rejected. A few
months later, a second accident took
place and this time, he offered his
resignation again, accepting moral
responsibility for the accident. Nehru
accepted his resignation but informed
parliament that this was only because
Shastris resignation set an example for
leadership and constitutional propriety,
not because Shastri was in anyway
personally responsible. When Shastri
died unexpectedly on an overseas trip
less than two years after he became
Prime Minister in 1964, a part of India
probably died with him such was the
stature of the man.
While I am skeptical about the long term
viability of one-party dominant political
systems, I also have great admiration
for Deng Xiaopeng and the reforms he
set China on after 1979. His pragmatic
and visionary leadership lifted an entire
generation of Chinese out of poverty
and set the stage for what is happening
in China today.
MEET
YOUR MP
3.Describe your typical day.
eotio! But throughly fultlling and
rewarding. I would not swap it for
anything.
4.What do you do in your free
time?
As free time has taken on a
new meaning in my life, I do
spend whatever little time I have
remaining to continually nuture the
relationships I have with people
that are close to me, my family and
friends.
5.How do you manage your
academic life, your role as a
Member of Parliament and your
personal commitments?
Well, this is not very easy to do,
unless you work out a realistic
time management plan and leave
enough time for exercise too. I try
my best to squeeze in a simple
exercise routine whenever I can
even though this is proving to be
more challenging than I expect.

Separately, a good diet is also
critical. I am trying to control my
intake of culinary vices i.e.
mutton mysore (slurp!). Keeping
an eye out for these little things
can really help you achieve a
more balanced perspective in
whatever endeavour you seek
to fultll. l think l also want to try
tai chi or yoga at some point!
All said, a clear mind is central
to managing mutiple roles and
responsibilities. A sense of
realism helps too one should
just focus on the mountain
he or she is seeking to climb,
and worry less about those
competing alongside. You can
only do your best. Just make
sure you are actually doing your
best!
6.What was
the last book
you read?
Beyond the
Blue Gate by
Teo Soh Lung.
7.During
the recent
general
elections,
many people
praised your
eloquence and during public
rallies. Did your time at SMU
help in any way with your
public speaking?
This may sound patronising but
in all honesty, I think it helped
me in more ways than I can
imagine. I am not a natural public
speaker. I actually fear speaking
in public! What SMU gave me was
practice, quite a lot of it, via class
presentations. Unbeknowst to me,
I think each presentation gave me
a little more oontdenoe and after a
while, you just get better and better
(and sometimes you regress, but
thats life, you have to learn from
mistakes too). I am still a work in
progress in this regard. I still get
the occasional butterties in my
stomach, but I am all for lifelong
learning and hope to continue
learning how to become a better
public speaker.
8.What is your personal
philosophy?
You have one stab at life. Live
a full life, an honest life so that
on your deathbed, you can tell
yourself that you did the best you
could, in the circumstances that
were presented to you.
9.Going forward, what are your
plans for the next ve years?
Well, as far as political plans are
concerned, the priority
is singularly focussed on
ensuring that the Workers
Party team runs the Town
Council well and serve our
residents as they expect
us to. Professionally, I see
myself cutting my teeth as a
lawyer and look forward to
establishing a foundation in
the legal profession.
What SMU gave me was
practice, quite a lot of it,
via class presentations.
Unbeknowst to me, I think each
presentation gave me a little
more condence and after a
while, you just get better and
better (and sometimes you
regress, but thats life, you have
to learn from mistakes too). I
am still a work in progress in
this regard.
FALL / WINTER 2011 ISSUE 15