date, Secretary-General of Reform Party Kenneth Jeyaretnam said
exploratory talks to form a coalition have so far been inconclusive.
Saifulbahri Ismail reports :
Several meetings between the Reform Party and the SDA have already been held.
One option discussed is for the Reform party to join the SDA.
To date, no progress has been made and Mr Jeyaretnam didn't give any indication if further talks are on the cards.
The 50 year-old was also tight lipped when asked if there were any issues that were hindering such a collaboration.
However, the Reform Party chief did stress that the party's relationship with the other opposition groups remained good.
Speaking to the media at the party’s first anniversary dinner this
evening, Mr Jeyaretnam revealed there are now a total of 30 members,
one-third of whom are youths.
The party wants to triple membership in a year's time.
Mr Jeyaretnam explains how the party intends to reach out to the public :
"We've created a distinctive brand identity. We are probably
the most accessible of the major parties. We have open house twice a
week. We've started walkabouts. Most recently we were in Geylang Serai
to greet Muslims on the eve of Hari Raya. We will shortly start selling
our newsletter, so as to be able to take our message to the
heartlanders and those people who are not on the internet."
Seven members of the Central Executive Committee were also introduced to the media.
They include young professionals like 39 year-old Tan Lay Thiam, the Chief Executive Officer of a private education centre.
This evening’s dinner was also to commemorate the anniversary of the passing of late opposition leader J B Jeyaretnam.
For the first time, the Reform Party's manifesto was also released.
--938Live