Democratic Progressive Party

The Democratic Progressive Party (abbreviation: DPP) is an opposition political party in Singapore. History and political development From a splinter group from the Workers' Party, the party was founded by the former party's Assistant Secretary-General Seow Khee Leng on 16 March 1973, under the name of United Front. On 5 March 1982, the party was renamed to Singapore United Front, to avoid confusion with the name of another party, United People's Front. During the campaigning in the 1984 general election, SUF's chief Seow was sued by Lee Kuan Yew (who was then the Prime Minister of Singapore) alongside the members of People's Action Party for slandering defamatory remarks made at two rally speeches that Lee and his cabinet were guilty of corruption. Seow was ordered to pay Lee and the PAP S$250,000 worth of damages and costs each, and by 3 February 1989, Seow was made bankrupt after being unable to keep up with the payments for the damages owned from two separate but similar libel suits brought by PM Lee and the PAP government. In January 1988, the party merged with Workers' Party to contest the 1988 general election. SUF was temporarily defunct until in 1992, Seow and former WP members revived the party, and renamed it to its current name, Democratic Progressive Party.