Eric Low Siak Meng (; 1948 – 3 January 2023) was a Singaporean politician who was a member of the

People's Action Party The People's Action Party ( abbreviation: PAP) is a major conservative centre-right political party in Singapore and is one of the three contemporary political parties represented in Parliament, alongside the opposition Workers' Party (WP) a ...

(PAP). He was also a general manager. He contested the

Hougang Single Member Constituency The Hougang Single Member Constituency is a single member constituency (SMC) located in the north-eastern area of Singapore. Its current Member of Parliament is Dennis Tan Lip Fong of the Workers' Party (WP). History The constituency was f ...

(Hougang SMC) in both the

2001 Singapore general election General elections were held in Singapore on 3 November 2001. President S.R. Nathan dissolved parliament on 18 October 2001 on the advice of Prime Minister Goh Chok Tong. The ruling People's Action Party (PAP) won 82 of the 84 elected seats i ...

and the 2006 general election, losing both times to

Low Thia Khiang Low Thia Khiang (; born 5 September 1956) is a Singaporean former politician who served as Secretary-General of the Workers' Party (WP) between 2001 and 2018. He was the Member of Parliament (MP) for Hougang SMC between 1991 and 2011 and Alju ...

from Workers' Party.

Political career

Senior Minister

Goh Chok Tong Goh Chok Tong (; born 20 May 1941) is a Singaporean former politician who served as Prime Minister of Singapore between 1990 and 2004, and Secretary-General of the People's Action Party between 1992 and 2004. He was the Member of Parliament (MP ...

was tasked with the "special assignment" of helping Low win Hougang in the 2006 general elections, along with

Sitoh Yih Pin Sitoh Yih Pin ( zh, s=司徒宇斌, p=Sītú Yǔbīn; born 1963) is a Singaporean politician. A member of the governing People's Action Party (PAP), he has been the Member of Parliament (MP) representing Potong Pasir SMC since 2011. An account ...

, the PAP candidate for opposition-held

Potong Pasir Single Member Constituency The Potong Pasir Single Member Constituency is a Single Member Constituency (SMC) in the central region of Singapore. The current Member of Parliament of the constituency is Sitoh Yih Pin of the People's Action Party The People's Action ...

. Low and Sitoh were promised more latitude in the Parliament and freedom from being subjected to the

party whip A whip is an official of a political party whose task is to ensure party discipline in a legislature. This means ensuring that members of the party vote according to the party platform, rather than according to their own individual ideolog ...

if he won Hougang SMC. Despite this boost from the ruling party, Low still failed to secure a win in the general election. In 2011, Low announced that he would not contest

Hougang SMC The Hougang Single Member Constituency is a single member constituency (SMC) located in the north-eastern area of Singapore. Its current Member of Parliament is Dennis Tan Lip Fong of the Workers' Party (WP). History The constituency was fi ...

in the coming general election.

Awards

Low was awarded the

Pingat Bakti Masyarakat The Pingat Bakti Masyarakat (English: Public Service Medal) is a Singaporean national honour. It was instituted in 1973. The medal may be awarded to any person who has rendered commendable public service in Singapore Singapore (), offic ...

(Public Service Medal),

Bintang Bakti Masyarakat The Bintang Bakti Masyarakat (English: Public Service Star) is a Singaporean orders and decorations, Singaporean decoration instituted in 1963, is awarded to any person who has rendered valuable public service to the people of Singapore, or who h ...

(Public Service Star) and

(Public Service Star) - Bar over the years.

Death

Low died from natural causes on 3 January 2023 at the age of 74, he would have been 75 at that year.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Low, Eric Siak Meng 1948 births 2023 deaths People's Action Party politicians Singaporean people of Teochew descent Recipients of the Pingat Bakti Masyarakat Recipients of the Bintang Bakti Masyarakat