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http://www.tremeritus.com/2015/06/26/nathan-phey-yew-kok-was-the-best/
[h=2]Nathan: Phey Yew Kok was the best[/h]
June 26th, 2015 |
Author: Editorial
Nathan “talent-spotted” Phey Yew Kok and brought him into
NTUC
Former President S R Nathan
Former president S R Nathan, 90, who worked for the Japanese in WWII, is the
person who “talent-spotted” Phey Yew Kok and brought him into NTUC. This was
revealed in a media interview with Mr Nathan yesterday (25 Jun).
Phey, the former chairman of NTUC and PAP MP for Boon Teck constituency, was
charged in December 1979 with 4 counts of criminal breach of trust involving
$82,520 and 2 counts under the Trades Unions Act for investing $18,000 of trade
union money in a private supermarket without the approval of the minister. He
was out on $100,000 bail but later absconded. He did not turn up in court on 7
January 1980 and a warrant of arrest was issued the same day.
Some 36 years later, Phey, now 81 years old, surrendered himself at the
Singapore Embassy in Bangkok on Monday (22 Jun). CPIB officers accompanied him
back to Singapore the next day. He appeared in court on Wednesday (24 Jun),
where the former charges were read to him. More charges are likely to be brought
against him pending further investigations.
In the interview, Mr Nathan said that he was surprised and disappointed by
Phey’s actions. “I just wondered, what prompted him to do it? It surprised me
that somebody like him could have committed such an offence,” said Mr
Nathan.
He said he only knew about Phey’s charges for misusing union funds when he
watched TV news on the night of 10 December 1979.
Back in the early 60s, Mr Nathan was the director of NTUC’s Labour Research
Unit. In 1963, Phey met Mr Nathan over some union disputes.
He recalled, “The first time I met him, he was a representative of the
Malaysia-Singapore Airlines Union. He came with a Eurasian lady who was the head
of it. They had some dispute. He was quiet. She did all the talking.”
Nathan needed a Mandarin-speaking IRO
But something about the soft-spoken Phey caught his attention, Mr Nathan
said. Later, Mr Nathan chose to have Phey seconded to NTUC as an industrial
relations officer (IRO), as Phey spoke Mandarin.
“It was just a gut feeling that when he’s made up his mind, he can do it,”
said Mr Nathan. He also noted Phey’s leadership qualities and people skills in
his time at NTUC. Phey was then part of a new team of Mandarin-speaking IROs
tasked with recruiting members from Jurong’s new factories, to thwart efforts by
pro-communists who were trying to do the same.
He did well, but chose to leave after a year because some people in NTUC
viewed him as a competitor, Mr Nathan said.
Some time later, when the late NTUC co-founder Devan Nair wanted someone to
strengthen NTUC’s presence in Jurong industrial estate, Mr Nathan recommended
Phey. “The NTUC leadership had many persons of Indian origin. And they couldn’t
reach them,” he said, referring to the workers who were mostly Chinese. “I told
Devan that he (Phey) might be the best, because he was in fact, the best.”
Mr Nair agreed and Mr Nathan asked Phey to return to NTUC. Phey agreed and
did very well there. In 1970, Phey was appointed president of NTUC and on 25 May
1979, he became NTUC chairman. He was also chosen by PAP to run for election and
was the MP for Boon Teck constituency between 1972 and 1979.
Mr Nathan credited Phey for helping to build up NTUC. “He and his band of
helpers worked really hard. He got the ground completely on his side,” Mr Nathan
said. Under Phey, membership in Silo and Pieu swelled. Silo, for instance, went
from 5,300 members in 1970 to 60,000 by 1979, the year that Phey was
charged.
Mr Nathan himself left NTUC to join the Foreign Affairs Ministry in 1965.
Phey Yew Kok vs student leader Tan Wah Piow
One of the most memorable incidents linked to Phey Yew Kok was the ‘rioting’
incident which occurred at the premises of Pioneer Industries Employees Union
(PIEU) headquarters in Jurong Industrial Estate.
At the time, Phey held the position of President of NTUC as well as General
Secretary of three other affiliated unions – PIEU, Singapore Industrial Labour
Organisation (SILO) and Singapore Air Transport Workers’ Union.
During the trial, Tan Wan Piow and 2 workers maintained that Phey held a
grudge against the 3 for speaking out against him openly and thereby, angering
him. Later, Phey and his men staged the rioting to frame the 3.
However, the trial judge did not believe the defence story of a “frame-up”
and ruled that the 3 accused and their witnesses had “fabricated evident to
pervert the course of justice in the hope that they would succeed in creating a
reasonable doubt that would entitle them to an acquittal”. The judge also
rejected their defence of alibi: http://eresources.nlb.gov.sg/newspapers/Digitised/Article.aspx?articleid=straitstimes19750223.2.2.
When the accused protested the judge’s decision during mitigation, the judged
told them to appeal if they weren’t satisfied. This was reported in the above
old ST news article:
Ng (accused): “I am not asking Your Honour to lessen my guilt because I have
not committed the offence.”
The judge, however, told Ng that he had to accept the court’s decision. His
right, if he was not satisfied, was to appeal against the decision.
Miss Yap, defended by Mr Francis Khoo Kah Siang, also addressed the court
directly. She said: “I consider myself not guilty and I am not asking for
leniency from the court. Your Honour’s judgment is very unreasonable and
unfair.”
The judge also told her of her right to appeal but she replied: “I have not
committed the offence. There is no need for me to appeal.”
[h=2]Nathan: Phey Yew Kok was the best[/h]
June 26th, 2015 |
Author: Editorial
Nathan “talent-spotted” Phey Yew Kok and brought him into
NTUC
Former President S R Nathan
Former president S R Nathan, 90, who worked for the Japanese in WWII, is the
person who “talent-spotted” Phey Yew Kok and brought him into NTUC. This was
revealed in a media interview with Mr Nathan yesterday (25 Jun).
Phey, the former chairman of NTUC and PAP MP for Boon Teck constituency, was
charged in December 1979 with 4 counts of criminal breach of trust involving
$82,520 and 2 counts under the Trades Unions Act for investing $18,000 of trade
union money in a private supermarket without the approval of the minister. He
was out on $100,000 bail but later absconded. He did not turn up in court on 7
January 1980 and a warrant of arrest was issued the same day.
Some 36 years later, Phey, now 81 years old, surrendered himself at the
Singapore Embassy in Bangkok on Monday (22 Jun). CPIB officers accompanied him
back to Singapore the next day. He appeared in court on Wednesday (24 Jun),
where the former charges were read to him. More charges are likely to be brought
against him pending further investigations.
In the interview, Mr Nathan said that he was surprised and disappointed by
Phey’s actions. “I just wondered, what prompted him to do it? It surprised me
that somebody like him could have committed such an offence,” said Mr
Nathan.
He said he only knew about Phey’s charges for misusing union funds when he
watched TV news on the night of 10 December 1979.
Back in the early 60s, Mr Nathan was the director of NTUC’s Labour Research
Unit. In 1963, Phey met Mr Nathan over some union disputes.
He recalled, “The first time I met him, he was a representative of the
Malaysia-Singapore Airlines Union. He came with a Eurasian lady who was the head
of it. They had some dispute. He was quiet. She did all the talking.”
Nathan needed a Mandarin-speaking IRO
But something about the soft-spoken Phey caught his attention, Mr Nathan
said. Later, Mr Nathan chose to have Phey seconded to NTUC as an industrial
relations officer (IRO), as Phey spoke Mandarin.
“It was just a gut feeling that when he’s made up his mind, he can do it,”
said Mr Nathan. He also noted Phey’s leadership qualities and people skills in
his time at NTUC. Phey was then part of a new team of Mandarin-speaking IROs
tasked with recruiting members from Jurong’s new factories, to thwart efforts by
pro-communists who were trying to do the same.
He did well, but chose to leave after a year because some people in NTUC
viewed him as a competitor, Mr Nathan said.
Some time later, when the late NTUC co-founder Devan Nair wanted someone to
strengthen NTUC’s presence in Jurong industrial estate, Mr Nathan recommended
Phey. “The NTUC leadership had many persons of Indian origin. And they couldn’t
reach them,” he said, referring to the workers who were mostly Chinese. “I told
Devan that he (Phey) might be the best, because he was in fact, the best.”
Mr Nair agreed and Mr Nathan asked Phey to return to NTUC. Phey agreed and
did very well there. In 1970, Phey was appointed president of NTUC and on 25 May
1979, he became NTUC chairman. He was also chosen by PAP to run for election and
was the MP for Boon Teck constituency between 1972 and 1979.
Mr Nathan credited Phey for helping to build up NTUC. “He and his band of
helpers worked really hard. He got the ground completely on his side,” Mr Nathan
said. Under Phey, membership in Silo and Pieu swelled. Silo, for instance, went
from 5,300 members in 1970 to 60,000 by 1979, the year that Phey was
charged.
Mr Nathan himself left NTUC to join the Foreign Affairs Ministry in 1965.
Phey Yew Kok vs student leader Tan Wah Piow
One of the most memorable incidents linked to Phey Yew Kok was the ‘rioting’
incident which occurred at the premises of Pioneer Industries Employees Union
(PIEU) headquarters in Jurong Industrial Estate.
At the time, Phey held the position of President of NTUC as well as General
Secretary of three other affiliated unions – PIEU, Singapore Industrial Labour
Organisation (SILO) and Singapore Air Transport Workers’ Union.
During the trial, Tan Wan Piow and 2 workers maintained that Phey held a
grudge against the 3 for speaking out against him openly and thereby, angering
him. Later, Phey and his men staged the rioting to frame the 3.
However, the trial judge did not believe the defence story of a “frame-up”
and ruled that the 3 accused and their witnesses had “fabricated evident to
pervert the course of justice in the hope that they would succeed in creating a
reasonable doubt that would entitle them to an acquittal”. The judge also
rejected their defence of alibi: http://eresources.nlb.gov.sg/newspapers/Digitised/Article.aspx?articleid=straitstimes19750223.2.2.
When the accused protested the judge’s decision during mitigation, the judged
told them to appeal if they weren’t satisfied. This was reported in the above
old ST news article:
Ng (accused): “I am not asking Your Honour to lessen my guilt because I have
not committed the offence.”
The judge, however, told Ng that he had to accept the court’s decision. His
right, if he was not satisfied, was to appeal against the decision.
Miss Yap, defended by Mr Francis Khoo Kah Siang, also addressed the court
directly. She said: “I consider myself not guilty and I am not asking for
leniency from the court. Your Honour’s judgment is very unreasonable and
unfair.”
The judge also told her of her right to appeal but she replied: “I have not
committed the offence. There is no need for me to appeal.”
