Chiam See Tong

Chiam See Tong (Chinese: 詹时中; pinyin: Zhān Shízhōng; Pe̍h-ōe-jī: Chiam Sî-tiong; born 12 March 1935) is a Singaporean retired politician who served as the secretary-general of the opposition Singapore Democratic Party (SDP) from 1980 to 1993 and as the secretary-general of the opposition Singapore People's Party (SPP) from 2011 to 2019. He was also the chairman of the Singapore Democratic Alliance (SDA) between 2001 and 2011, and the de facto Leader of the Opposition from 1986 to 1993 and again from 1997 to 2006. He was a Member of Parliament (MP) for Potong Pasir Single Member Constituency (SMC) from 1984 to 2011.

Formerly a lawyer by profession, Chiam contested the 1976 general election and 1979 by-elections as an independent candidate in Cairnhill SMC and Potong Pasir SMC but lost both. He founded and led the SDP to contest in the 1980 general election, only to be defeated again. Chiam was elected on his fourth attempt during the 1984 general election, winning in Potong Pasir SMC against the People's Action Party candidate Mah Bow Tan. He joined J. B. Jeyaretnam from the Workers' Party as one of only two opposition MPs in Singapore at the time. After Jeyaretnam was removed from his seat in 1986, Chiam became the sixth de facto Leader of the Opposition and the only opposition MP at the time. He continued his leadership of the opposition after the 1991 general election, in which he led the SDP to contest in three SMCs.

In 1993, after a falling-out with the SDP's central executive committee, Chiam resigned as the SDP's secretary-general and consequently lost his leadership of the opposition. Chiam later joined and successfully ran for election as a member of the SPP, regaining his position as the opposition leader after the 1997 general election. In 2001, Chiam convinced three other opposition parties — National Solidarity Party, Pertubuhan Kebangsaan Melayu Singapura and Singapore Justice Party — to join the SPP in forming the SDA, and served as SDA's chairman between 2001 and 2011. He withdrew the SPP from the SDA in the lead-up to the 2011 general election, leading the SPP in a contest in Bishan–Toa Payoh GRC, but eventually lost to the PAP team.

Chiam retired after 39 years in politics at the age of 80 prior to the 2015 general election for health reasons. He was the longest-serving opposition MP until he was surpassed by Low Thia Kiang in 2018. He remains the longest-serving de facto Leader of the Opposition in Singapore.