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The head of the opposition party of Singapore, Joshua B Jeyaretnam died on September 30, 2008. The 82-year veteran happened to be the first person to win a parliament seat from the opposition party since the independence of Singapore. Singapore got its freedom from Malaysia in the year 1965. Since then the People's Action Party has been ruling Singapore.
The much popular opposition leader of Singapore, Jeyaretnam is reported to have died due to cardiac failure at a local hospital of Singapore. Popularly known as JBJ, Jeyaretnam served as member of parliament twice from 1981 to 1986 and from 1997 to 2001. He was also engaged in forming a new party in Singapore called Reform Party in 2001. It is in the same year that the he quitted Workers' Party.
Jeyaretnam had wanted to participate in 2011 parliamentary election of Singapore. Reports said that in 2001, the veteran leader was fined about 367,000 US dollar in a case of defamation by Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong, former Prime Ministers Lee Kuan Yew and Goh Chok Tong along with others. As a result, the opposition leader suffered a massive bankruptcy following that year.
