Jamus Lim

Jamus Jerome Lim Chee Wui

林志蔚
Current Role	• MP for Sengkang GRC • President of WP Youth Wing
Personal details
Party	WP

Jamus Jerome Lim Chee Wui (Chinese: 林志蔚; pinyin: Lín Zhìwèi; born 1976) is a Singaporean politician, economist, and academic. A member of the opposition Workers' Party (WP), he has served as the Member of Parliament (MP) for Anchorvale division of Sengkang Group Representation Constituency (GRC) since 2020. Within the WP, he holds key appointments as the Deputy Head of Policy Research and the President of the Youth Wing, as of 2024.

Outside of politics, Lim is an Associate Professor of Economics at ESSEC Business School in Singapore. He specialises in macroeconomic policy, development finance, and international economics, and was formerly an economist at the World Bank and Abu Dhabi Investment Authority.

For the full list of positions, refer to PARL Link.

Early Life and Education

Jamus Lim was educated in Singapore at Catholic High School, Raffles Institution, and Raffles Junior College. During his National Service, he served as a combat medic in the Singapore Armed Forces (SAF).

He graduated with a Bachelor of Business in economics from the University of Southern Queensland in 1998, where he was awarded first-class honours. He subsequently earned a Master of Science in economics from the London School of Economics and Political Science (LSE) in 2000. Lim later pursued further postgraduate studies in the United States, completing a Master of Arts in politics and a PhD in international economics at the University of California, Santa Cruz, graduating in 2006.

In 2018, he obtained a Master of Liberal Arts (ALM) in history from the Harvard Extension School, affiliated with Harvard University.

Career

Economics and Finance

Lim began his professional career in the financial sector at J.P. Morgan, where he worked in the investment banking division. He subsequently joined the World Bank in Washington, D.C., serving from 2007 to 2014 as an economist in the Development Prospects Group. His work at the Bank focused on long-term macroeconomic forecasting, global development trends, and international finance.

Following his tenure at the World Bank, Lim took up research and advisory roles, including at the Institute of Southeast Asian Studies (ISEAS–Yusof Ishak Institute) and the Abu Dhabi Investment Authority (ADIA), where he contributed to global investment strategy and policy insights.

In 2018, he joined the Singapore-based investment firm Thirdrock Group as an economist and strategist.[³] Concurrently, Lim was appointed as an Associate Professor of Economics at ESSEC Business School Asia-Pacific, based in Singapore. His academic specialisations include macroeconomics, financial market volatility, and global trade policy. He has published scholarly articles and commentary on international finance, inequality, and monetary policy.

Entry into Politics and General Elections

2020 General Election

Lim joined the Workers’ Party (WP) in 2019, after years of prior volunteering with the party. He was introduced as a candidate for the 2020 general election, contesting in the newly created Sengkang Group Representation Constituency (GRC) alongside He Ting Ru, Louis Chua, and Raeesah Khan.

He gained widespread public attention following a televised political debate on 1 July 2020, where he represented the WP against senior candidates from other parties, including Vivian Balakrishnan (People’s Action Party), Chee Soon Juan (Singapore Democratic Party), and Francis Yuen (Progress Singapore Party). His confident and articulate performance, combined with his memorable use of the phrase "warms the cockles of my heart", led to a surge in popularity on social media and in mainstream coverage.

On 10 July 2020, the WP team won 52.13% of the vote, defeating the PAP team led by Minister Ng Chee Meng, thereby securing Sengkang GRC. It was the first time the WP had won a second GRC, marking a significant milestone in Singapore’s opposition politics. Lim thanked voters by saying, “It warms the cockles of our hearts to be able to work for the people of Sengkang and for all Singaporeans.”

2025 General Election

In the lead-up to the 2025 general election, Lim continued to serve as the Member of Parliament for Anchorvale and remained active in constituency and national debates. Following the resignation of Raeesah Khan in 2021, the WP team in Sengkang was reduced to three members. Despite this, the team retained strong ground engagement.

During the 2025 campaign, the WP fielded a three-member team in Sengkang GRC—He Ting Ru, Jamus Lim, and Louis Chua. Lim’s platform emphasized cost-of-living concerns and income inequality, aligning with broader public sentiment—such as concerns highlighted by Reuters that the cost of living was voters’ primary concern. He also addressed issues of transparent governance, notably referencing the high-profile CPIB investigation into former minister S. Iswaran, which had become a focal point in opposition discourse.

On 13 September 2025, the WP team successfully retained Sengkang GRC, securing 51.27% of valid votes—a slight dip from their 2020 margin of 52.13%. The People's Action Party (PAP) team was once again led by Ng Chee Meng, in his second electoral face-off against the WP team. Lim was re-elected for a second term, and continued to hold leadership positions in the party as Deputy Head of Policy Research and President of the WP Youth Wing.

Parliamentary Contributions

Since entering Parliament in 2020, Lim has been active in debates on economic fairness, social safety nets, and governance transparency.

Maiden Speech and Policy Focus

In his maiden speech on 3 September 2020, Lim argued that Singapore's policymaking lacked sufficient compassion. He proposed the establishment of a universal minimum wage, the use of a poverty line to benchmark social assistance, and greater attention to “economic dignity.”

Parliamentary Positions and Party Roles

Lim was elected to the Workers’ Party Central Executive Committee (CEC) in December 2020, where he was appointed Deputy Head of Policy Research. In 2024, he was named President of the WP Youth Wing, where he helped shape youth engagement efforts and policy outreach.

July 2023 Parliamentary Incident

Lim was thrust into the national spotlight in July 2023 when a leaked hot mic audio recording revealed Speaker of Parliament Tan Chuan-Jin muttering the words “f**king populist” in response to Lim’s earlier speech calling for the establishment of a national poverty line. The comment, made under Tan's breath but captured on parliamentary recording equipment, was widely circulated on social media and drew public scrutiny over parliamentary decorum.

The incident took place during a sitting where Lim was arguing for greater recognition of poverty in Singapore and more targeted support for low-income families. His speech included critiques of existing inequality and called for more compassionate policymaking.

In response to the leak, Tan Chuan-Jin issued a public apology to Lim on 11 July 2023, describing his remarks as inappropriate and unbefitting of his role as Speaker. Lim accepted the apology in a public Facebook post, stating:

“I appreciate Speaker Tan’s apology. While the language was regrettable, I believe we should always strive for respectful and constructive debate in Parliament.”

Shortly after the incident, Tan Chuan-Jin resigned as Speaker and as a Member of Parliament, citing the matter and other personal conduct issues as reasons for stepping down.

2025 Parliamentary Contributions

In the final year of the 14th Parliament and during the lead-up to GE2025, Jamus Lim remained highly active in parliamentary debates, addressing critical public concerns:

• Cost‑of‑living crisis: On 26 February 2025, during the Budget Debate, Lim urged measures such as progressive wages, better CPF contributions, and a statutory minimum wage, pointing to stagnant real wage growth despite rising inflation.
• Public transport affordability: On 8 April 2025, Lim raised questions about extending concessional fares to students in transition (e.g., post-secondary wait periods). He also initiated Parliamentary Questions on LRT noise barriers and idling details to improve commuter comfort.
• Government accountability & CPIB investigation: In light of the CPIB investigation into former Minister S. Iswaran, Lim inquired on whether the CPIB's reporting line could be expanded beyond the Prime Minister’s Office—and whether greater transparency could be institutionalised.

Calls for an improved DSA system

Jamus appreciated the Ministry of Education (MoE) review of the Direct School Admission (DSA) mechanism as an alternative for students. The DSA is a scheme that helps Primary 6 students to get seats in secondary schools of their choices based on their talents or achievements in non-academic fields, reducing over-reliance on academic grades.

Jamus called for a more transparent scheme given that the system is often misused by certain stakeholders to prioritize privileged families.

Concerns about the country's high living cost

Jamus raised concerns over the eroding sense of belonging among Singaporeans due to the country's expensive cost of living. Such a condition has forced many Singaporeans to seek affordable housing in Malaysia.

Personal life

Lim has diverse interests, having played rugby and drums in his younger years. He is married to Eneida Patricia Alcalde, a Chilean-American writer, and they have a daughter born in 2019.

Casus and Controversies

Raeesah Khan Resignation Fallout (2021–2022)

In November 2021, fellow Sengkang GRC MP Raeesah Khan resigned after admitting to making untruthful statements in Parliament. Although Jamus Lim was not directly implicated, the incident raised broader questions about the Workers’ Party’s internal disciplinary process. During the Committee of Privileges inquiry, attention turned to party leaders Pritam Singh, Sylvia Lim, and Faisal Manap, but Jamus Lim’s name was not prominently mentioned in the hearings or findings.

Nonetheless, critics questioned whether other WP MPs, including Lim, had prior knowledge of Raeesah Khan's fabricated account. The WP later issued a statement confirming that Lim had not been involved in the matter and had not been informed about the falsehood before it came to light in Parliament.

“F***ing Populist” Hot Mic Incident (2023)

In July 2023, Lim became the target of an unparliamentary remark by Speaker of Parliament Tan Chuan-Jin, who was caught on a live microphone muttering “f**ing populist”* after Lim’s speech calling for a national poverty line. The audio leak went viral and led to Tan’s eventual resignation as Speaker and MP.

Lim publicly accepted Tan’s apology, stating that while the language was regrettable, the focus should remain on constructive and respectful debate in Parliament. The incident ultimately reflected more on Tan than on Lim, with many Singaporeans expressing sympathy toward Lim for maintaining composure.

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