SINGAPORE: The Singapore opposition politician sacked from the Workers Party for alleged extramarital affairs has publicly accepted losing his seat in Parliament over the matter. Yaw Shin Leong wrote to the speaker of Parliament to say that he would not appeal against his expulsion from the Workers Party, a statement from the speaker's office said late Wednesday. Under the constitution a member loses his parliamentary seat on being expelled from his party. Yaw emailed his decision to Parliament Speaker Michael Palmer ahead of Friday's deadline to make up his mind. Yaw Shin Leong was kicked out of the party last week for his silence over rumors of an affair with a married female party member. The Workers' Party is the first to kick out a member of parliament. The party said on expelling the politician that Yaw “has been accused of several indiscretions in his private life. By continuing not to account to the party and the people … he has broken the faith, trust and expectations of the party and people.” Yaw, a 35-year-old divorced businessman, had been a rising star in the opposition party and was fielded in the opposition stronghold of Hougang ward in general elections last year. Rumors of Yaw's alleged affair surfaced on a website about three weeks ago. He maintained a wall of silence and refused to speak with party leaders on the matter. The date for the by-election was to be decided by Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong. BM ShortURL: http://goo.gl/W2vm3 Tags: Affair, Parliament, Singapore, Yaw Shin Leong Section: Latest News
