Petition urges PM to reject Faishal’s resignation, but ex-NMP Calvin Cheng says ‘it’s time to move on’
A day after Associate Professor Faishal Ibrahim stepped down from political office, an online petition emerged calling on Prime Minister Lawrence Wong to reject his resignation.
Faishal quit as Acting Minister-in-charge of Muslim Affairs, Senior Minister of State for Home Affairs and Member of Parliament for Marine Parade-Braddell Heights GRC on July 20 over online interactions with a woman that he acknowledged had “fell short of standards”.
He also resigned from the People’s Action Party.
The petition was started by Ridjal Noor, who described Faishal as “a good leader who has shown commitment, accessibility, and a serious approach to public service”.
Ridjal also said Faishal’s resignation would mean the loss of an experienced leader, as well as the relationships and ongoing work he had built with residents.
“In a time when people want stability, trust, and clear leadership, it would be a real loss to remove someone who has already built that trust and is still able to contribute,” added Ridjal.
The petition, which aims to get 10,000 signatures, has so far received 924.
‘No turning back now’: Cheng
Former Nominated Member of Parliament Calvin Cheng said the petition was unlikely to change the outcome, even though he believed Faishal should not have resigned.
Speaking to Stomp, Cheng said: “The PAP leadership has obviously underestimated the popularity of Faishal and the groundswell of support he has.
“Not only from the people, but even opposition members have nothing but good to say about him.”
However, Cheng said there was no turning back now, as the PAP had already made it clear that it does not govern by opinion polls.
“The PAP had no choice. You cannot go after the opposition for moral failings, and then not be whiter than white yourself,” explained Cheng.
He added that it was best for everyone to move on.
“A successor has been appointed. The community needs to heal. Faishal and his family need to heal. Singapore will be better off if everyone moves on and not drag this issue out.”
Faishal’s successor as Acting Minister-in-charge of Muslim Affairs, Zaqy Mohamad, who is also Senior Minister of State for Sustainability and the Environment, and Defence, met leaders of the Malay/Muslim community on July 21 together with Prime Minister Lawrence Wong and Coordinating Minister for National Security K Shanmugam.
Faishal resigned on July 20 after acknowledging that his online interactions with a woman had “fell short of the standards expected of political office holders and MPs”, as PM Wong put it.
While both parties made allegations of harassment against each other, police found no criminal offence had been committed and no further action would be taken. In a Facebook post, Faishal apologised to his residents and supporters and said he would spend more time with his family.
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