NSP secretary-general Hazel Poa steps down

[mei mei]

Jeannette Chong Aruldoss or Nicole Seah to take over? NS seems too young for the job?


NSP secretary-general Hazel Poa steps down

Sep 20, 2013

By Goh Chin Lian

The secretary-general of opposition National Solidarity Party (NSP), Ms Hazel Poa, is stepping down owing to health problems.

She had made the request to the party's central executive committee (CEC), and this was approved at its regular monthly closed-door meeting yesterday, NSP president Sebastian Teo told The Straits Times. He said Ms Poa, 43, has had health problems for around two months. Initially, he added, the NSP decided to give her some time to rest, but at the end of it, she had not recovered and had made the request to leave her post.

Mr Teo said: "The secretary-general's job is very tough, we really need people with time, energy and stamina to do the day-to-day duties. She felt she could not recover in the near future. We want to thank her for her past efforts."

But she will remain as a council member. Mr Teo added that he had no details about her health issues.

http://www.straitstimes.com/breaking-news/singapore/story/nsp-sec-gen-hazel-poa-steps-down-20130920

 

[tanwahp]

Jeannette Chong Aruldoss or Nicole Seah to take over? NS seems too young for the job?

I believe Jeannette will take over. Move from VP to sec-gen.

 

[ray_of_hope]

I believe Jeannette will take over. Move from VP to sec-gen.

She would be a good and credible choice.

Hope nothing too serious with Hazel Poa.

 

[SgParent]

She would be a good and credible choice.

Hope nothing too serious with Hazel Poa.

agree jeannette is good and credible. i'd also add reliable, sincere

but for sec-gen maybe she is a bit too "quiet"

 

[The_Hypocrite]

Could this be a move for Got More Shit to teturn? He will do it just to fuck the oppo. He is a pappie dog after all.

 

[yellowarse]

Could this be a move for Got More Shit to teturn? He will do it just to fuck the oppo. He is a pappie dog after all.

No. Hazel's not well. Jeannette is a good choice, but she may not be able or willing to put in the time to run the party.

 

[tanwahp]

No. Hazel's not well. Jeannette is a good choice, but she may not be able or willing to put in the time to run the party.

There were about 6 changes in the post in the last 10 years. I suspect the NSP made its secretary general job into a shit job taker. The NSP regards its president to be the chief figurehead not SG.

Steve Chia was one of the many SGs. He stepped down after the maid incident and returned to the CEC but oddly not as SG but as Treasurer.

As Teo said "the secretary-general's job is very tough, we really need people with time, energy and stamina". It cannot be that the other CEC members, especially the organising secretary, does not need time, energy and stamina. If it is the case NSP should divide and share the load.

 

[yellowarse]

There were about 6 changes in the post in the last 10 years. I suspect the NSP made its secretary general job into a shit job taker. The NSP regards its president to be the chief figurehead not SG.

I don't think you meant 'figurehead'. The real powerbrokers in NSP are the old faction, chiefly Sebastian, Chee Kien and Yew Weng. They pull all the strings and make the major decisions.

The S-G is actually the figurehead: does all the leg work and admin stuff, but wields very little real power. That's the reason why we've seen so many rotations for this thankless task.

 

[Liquigas]

I don't think you meant 'figurehead'. The real powerbrokers in NSP are the old faction, chiefly Sebastian, Chee Kien and Yew Weng. They pull all the strings and make the major decisions.The S-G is actually the figurehead: does all the leg work and admin stuff, but wields very little real power. That's the reason why we've seen so many rotations for this thankless task.

Didn't know NSP is run very much like the once dominant LDP of Japan. LDP was run by faction bosses within the party. These old men call the shots but never want to at the forefront to lead the party. They would meet to share back-room drinks and then decide on who should be the next PM of Japan.

 

[yellowarse]

Didn't know NSP is run very much like the once dominant LDP of Japan.

Exactly. The real kingmakers are the old buggers behind the scenes. Don't forget that every party needs money to run, and who do you think is funding the NSP?

The PAP is similar, only that it's just one weak-kneed octogenarian calling all the shots.

 

[tanwahp]

Exactly. The real kingmakers are the old buggers behind the scenes. Don't forget that every party needs money to run, and who do you think is funding the NSP?

The PAP is similar, only that it's just one weak-kneed octogenarian calling all the shots.

I guess SPP is very similar then.

How would you see WP and SDP?

For WP I get the sense that they have gathered highly qualified strong minded individuals who don't need to do politics, they will still give LTK deference at small crunches and bents. No major issues and they will still stay together.

SDP is more intriguing. You get the sense that CSJ doesn't hold more power in his party than other leaders, yet no one knows who are the kingmakers. The funders?

 

[The_Hypocrite]

Good point u bought up about the finance of these political parties. One other party that i find funny is SDA and fat desmond. Was told tat he contested in the punggol east BE as he was paid to do it. Those kids he hired whereas other parties had volunteers doing the job. Everyone can see tat he will be fucked over. But cos he got the financial backing so he did it anyway. The funding most likely will be from the Oligarchs to destabilise the opposition. I wonder if SDP is funded by them too.

I guess SPP is very similar then.

How would you see WP and SDP?

For WP I get the sense that they have gathered highly qualified strong minded individuals who don't need to do politics, they will still give LTK deference at small crunches and bents. No major issues and they will still stay together.

SDP is more intriguing. You get the sense that CSJ doesn't hold more power in his party than other leaders, yet no one knows who are the kingmakers. The funders?

 

[steffychun]

NSP is marginal. It should dissolve away

 

[yellowarse]

I guess SPP is very similar then.

With one major exception: the Chiams are still front and centre. No wayang kulit (as yet) as in NSP. History's verdict will be that Chiam, much as he's an icon, screwed up his legacy with his lack of succession planning. The farce involving Ben Pwee & gang will not be the last, I'm sure.

For WP I get the sense that they have gathered highly qualified strong minded individuals who don't need to do politics, they will still give LTK deference at small crunches and bents. No major issues and they will still stay together.

Agree. Plus LTK (with Sylvia) runs a tight ship, so a hierarchical structure exists where seniority matters.

SDP is more intriguing. You get the sense that CSJ doesn't hold more power in his party than other leaders, yet no one knows who are the kingmakers. The funders?

In some ways SDP is similar to WP in that there's a lot of respect and reverence (more than deference) for CSJ. Like WP, there's no shadow play, and the old guard have all at one time or another been in financial straits. Most funding comes from well-wishers and staunch liberal supporters.

The only major difference between SDP and WP is the flat hierarchy at SDP – I think you're absolutely right that CSJ doesn't hold more power than the others. But the more democratic internal structure has its flaws: internal dissent gets played up by the media, members and supporters may diverge publicly in their views, 'heavyweight' candidates may try to pull their weight and leave when things don't go their way ... apart from the core group, they don't seem to have the tightly knit structure that WP has ... hence the problem with retaining talent and party renewal.

 

[tanwahp]

Good point u bought up about the finance of these political parties. One other party that i find funny is SDA and fat desmond. Was told tat he contested in the punggol east BE as he was paid to do it. Those kids he hired whereas other parties had volunteers doing the job. Everyone can see tat he will be fucked over. But cos he got the financial backing so he did it anyway. The funding most likely will be from the Oligarchs to destabilise the opposition. I wonder if SDP is funded by them too.

Desmond Lim definitely has very deep pockets to the extent that people find bizarre. To lose more than $30,000 in shares have bankrupted people but he can afford to lose $30,000 in deposits as an engineer. Not forgetting the election expenses.

Either SDP seems richer or is more willing to spend than WP. You can see it from the way they conduct their events. WP's HQ is known to be at some poor HFJ location that is probably cheap in rent. Then again, some may say WP MPs are stingy since there's no reason why they can't afford a better place.

 

[tanwahp]

With one major exception: the Chiams are still front and centre. No wayang kulit (as yet) as in NSP. History's verdict will be that Chiam, much as he's an icon, screwed up his legacy with his lack of succession planning. The farce involving Ben Pwee & gang will not be the last, I'm sure.

I think no Singapore party leader in history has had more fallouts than him, that's for sure. Kenneth Jeya comes as number 2, but he managed to stay in the same party.

Agree. Plus LTK (with Sylvia) runs a tight ship, so a hierarchical structure exists where seniority matters.

I tend to think even SL defers to him and doesn't have as much weight/power in WP as people see. Even if the whole lot of the 8 are strong minded, there might be some level of gratitude to LTK that they are all in parliament primarily because of him.

In some ways SDP is similar to WP in that there's a lot of respect and reverence (more than deference) for CSJ. Like WP, there's no shadow play, and the old guard have all at one time or another been in financial straits. Most funding comes from well-wishers and staunch liberal supporters.

The only major difference between SDP and WP is the flat hierarchy at SDP – I think you're absolutely right that CSJ doesn't hold more power than the others. But the more democratic internal structure has its flaws: internal dissent gets played up by the media, members and supporters may diverge publicly in their views, 'heavyweight' candidates may try to pull their weight and leave when things don't go their way ... apart from the core group, they don't seem to have the tightly knit structure that WP has ... hence the problem with retaining talent and party renewal.

WP also had its fair share of senior ranking people walking out of its doors, most of whom spat on the party, just that its replacements and recruits were more and there's a surplus. With that, they upped the ante by expelling a sitting MP and a veteran who was the only other candidate in 2001.

 

[ray_of_hope]

Either SDP seems richer or is more willing to spend than WP. You can see it from the way they conduct their events. WP's HQ is known to be at some poor HFJ location that is probably cheap in rent. Then again, some may say WP MPs are stingy since there's no reason why they can't afford a better place.

All this is politics.

The party that is relatively resource-poor has to keep up the pretense that it is resource-rich.

The party that is relatively resource-rich knows that in an Asian society it is wise not to flaunt it.

But the illusion rapidly evaporates when it comes closer to election time. Then the reality emerges.
Or to use a famous line from Warren Buffet: "Only when the tide goes out do you discover who's been swimming naked."

 

[The_Hypocrite]

Ok look on the positive side, WP rent cheap area as it meets their needs and they are financially prudent. But did not LTK announce that they are trying to raise $$ to get their own building? I think its a good idea in the long run but as long as they are completely open about their finances and not do a Con Hee, I believe they will maintain faith with their supporters.

PAP likes to go around and say they only have 1 building and dont invest in other assets. however PAP has the resources of the state to back them up. So its just PAPPIE hypocritical BS.

About fatty Desmond his antics and the Finances issue, people will have eyes to see and with SDA being a clown party, they will never get elected, so they can be used as cannon fodder for fuck up GRCs like Punggol, West Coast, Hong Kan, etc.

SDP can get Holland,...

Just my rants///

Desmond Lim definitely has very deep pockets to the extent that people find bizarre. To lose more than $30,000 in shares have bankrupted people but he can afford to lose $30,000 in deposits as an engineer. Not forgetting the election expenses.

Either SDP seems richer or is more willing to spend than WP. You can see it from the way they conduct their events. WP's HQ is known to be at some poor HFJ location that is probably cheap in rent. Then again, some may say WP MPs are stingy since there's no reason why they can't afford a better place.

 

[3_M]

SDP is more intriguing. You get the sense that CSJ doesn't hold more power in his party than other leaders, yet no one knows who are the kingmakers. The funders?

I have not seen a sec gen anywhere in the world with such staying power judging from the result delivered. And I am not even talking in terms of the number of seats won but percentage scored in the region of sub 35% or even sub 30%. Any leader who leads the party with such dismay performance would have step down immediately. Even GMS knows how to take responsibility and step aside for NSP performance.

I can only conclude that we cannot judge SDP in the same light from the rest. SDP is not a performance driven party and ideological driven one with CSJ as the 'cult' leader.

 

[Qantas]

Exactly. The real kingmakers are the old buggers behind the scenes. Don't forget that every party needs money to run, and who do you think is funding the NSP?

The PAP is similar, only that it's just one weak-kneed octogenarian calling all the shots.

No longer octogenarian. Should be nanogenarian and few years later, centenarian. Hope my spelling is correct. Boss Sam, can you confirm?