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Roy Ngerng Yi Ling announced that he has filed the papers to apply to be a Nominated Member of Parliament.
He wrote that if he is selected, he looks forward to representing the voices of Singaporeans in Parliament.
Mr Ngerng has been in the headlines recently due to the pending defamation lawsuit against him by PM Lee Hsien Loong but prior to that, he has been active for over 2 years online and at events promoting Singaporeans to question the government more and create more accountability.
We caught up with Roy to find out what he is passionate about and what he would represent if he is chosen to be an NMP.
He explained to TRS that his "main aim is to demand for transparency and accountability on how our CPF funds are being used and invested".
In an interview with TRS, Roy explained that the returns on GIC and Temasek investments of our CPF funds are high, at 6.5% to 16%, however Singaporeans only receive between 2.5% and 4% on their CPF savings. The difference is a lot of money and it would allow many more Singaporeans to retire with dignity if more of the investments returns were shared with Singaporeans.
"As such, I hope that I would be able to go into parliament to advocate for our CPF to be returned and for Singaporeans to be able to live with dignity," he explained.
Talking about some of the other issues he is passionate about, Roy said that he also wants to advocate for a minimum wage to be implemented in Singapore so that lower-income Singaporeans can benefit.
Another area for improvement includes education. He explained that "the government spends about $400 million in scholarships to international student" and that this money could be better spent on Singaporeans.
These issues are the things important to Roy and the issues that he would want to raise in Parliament if he is selected.
Overall, he explained that "Having advocated for the rights of Singaporeans over the past two years, I think it might be timely to transition to a larger platform where I would be able to advocate more effectively on these issues in Parliament.
I hope that if I am able to enter Parliament, I would be able to advocate for these, to protect Singaporeans and to advocate for a fairer and more equal Singapore, one that is less stressful and where our people are able to grow as individuals and fulfil their potential in an environment that is more assuring to our needs."
All his nomination papers were filed by the deadline yesterday and as the deadline has now passed, no more applications will be taken.
All the applicants' names will now be handed over to the Special Select Committee, which is a group of current MPs chaired by the Speaker of Parliament, to look through the applications and select suitable candidates.
Once the Special Select Committee makes its selections, the list will be passed to the President for appointment.
All NMPs serve a term of two and a half years and they can participate in parliamentary debates and vote on most issues.
Other candidates who submitted their documents on Tuesday include Ms Chia Yong Yong, the President of the Society for the Physically disabled.
Ms Chia hopes to advocate for the rights of disabled persons as well as representing the interests of the whole social services sector.
Another candidate is Mr Ku Swee Yong, an International Property Advisor. He believes that his expertise in property can help to bring valuable debate on public housing matters.
Mr Ku is also passionate about financial care for the elderly and how Singapore might set up better retirement homes.
Another candidate who submitted his papers on Tuesday is Mr Philip Koh from the Preschool Teachers Network.
He is interested in seeing more done in parliament to address the needs of the preschool sector. Mr Koh explained that there is not enough focus on preschooling here and he hope to show that there is a large role that preschool educators play in society as they are the very first nurturers of the future leaders of Singapore.
NMPs must be non-partisan and are selected to bring a wide range of viewpoints and interest into parliament.
Despite a significantly huge support from the online community for Roy, many doubt that the committee would be willing to select Roy into parliament.
http://therealsingapore.com/content/heart-truths-blogger-roy-ngerng-files-application-be-nmp
He wrote that if he is selected, he looks forward to representing the voices of Singaporeans in Parliament.
Mr Ngerng has been in the headlines recently due to the pending defamation lawsuit against him by PM Lee Hsien Loong but prior to that, he has been active for over 2 years online and at events promoting Singaporeans to question the government more and create more accountability.
We caught up with Roy to find out what he is passionate about and what he would represent if he is chosen to be an NMP.
He explained to TRS that his "main aim is to demand for transparency and accountability on how our CPF funds are being used and invested".
In an interview with TRS, Roy explained that the returns on GIC and Temasek investments of our CPF funds are high, at 6.5% to 16%, however Singaporeans only receive between 2.5% and 4% on their CPF savings. The difference is a lot of money and it would allow many more Singaporeans to retire with dignity if more of the investments returns were shared with Singaporeans.
"As such, I hope that I would be able to go into parliament to advocate for our CPF to be returned and for Singaporeans to be able to live with dignity," he explained.
Talking about some of the other issues he is passionate about, Roy said that he also wants to advocate for a minimum wage to be implemented in Singapore so that lower-income Singaporeans can benefit.
Another area for improvement includes education. He explained that "the government spends about $400 million in scholarships to international student" and that this money could be better spent on Singaporeans.
These issues are the things important to Roy and the issues that he would want to raise in Parliament if he is selected.
Overall, he explained that "Having advocated for the rights of Singaporeans over the past two years, I think it might be timely to transition to a larger platform where I would be able to advocate more effectively on these issues in Parliament.
I hope that if I am able to enter Parliament, I would be able to advocate for these, to protect Singaporeans and to advocate for a fairer and more equal Singapore, one that is less stressful and where our people are able to grow as individuals and fulfil their potential in an environment that is more assuring to our needs."
All his nomination papers were filed by the deadline yesterday and as the deadline has now passed, no more applications will be taken.
All the applicants' names will now be handed over to the Special Select Committee, which is a group of current MPs chaired by the Speaker of Parliament, to look through the applications and select suitable candidates.
Once the Special Select Committee makes its selections, the list will be passed to the President for appointment.
All NMPs serve a term of two and a half years and they can participate in parliamentary debates and vote on most issues.
Other candidates who submitted their documents on Tuesday include Ms Chia Yong Yong, the President of the Society for the Physically disabled.
Ms Chia hopes to advocate for the rights of disabled persons as well as representing the interests of the whole social services sector.
Another candidate is Mr Ku Swee Yong, an International Property Advisor. He believes that his expertise in property can help to bring valuable debate on public housing matters.
Mr Ku is also passionate about financial care for the elderly and how Singapore might set up better retirement homes.
Another candidate who submitted his papers on Tuesday is Mr Philip Koh from the Preschool Teachers Network.
He is interested in seeing more done in parliament to address the needs of the preschool sector. Mr Koh explained that there is not enough focus on preschooling here and he hope to show that there is a large role that preschool educators play in society as they are the very first nurturers of the future leaders of Singapore.
NMPs must be non-partisan and are selected to bring a wide range of viewpoints and interest into parliament.
Despite a significantly huge support from the online community for Roy, many doubt that the committee would be willing to select Roy into parliament.
http://therealsingapore.com/content/heart-truths-blogger-roy-ngerng-files-application-be-nmp
