poa was a member of the reform party before joining the nsp in 2011. from june 2011 to september 2013, she served as the nsp's secretary-general, before stepping down due to health concerns. in june 2015, following the resignation of tan lam siong, the nsp appointed poa as acting secretary-general, however she resigned from the party in august 2015 following a disagreement with the party's central executive committee.