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It was an offer he could not refuse
SINGAPORE - As a small and vulnerable state, Singapore should have a "strong majority Government" with a "strong mandate from the people".
That was the view of new People's Action Party candidate Ong Ye Kung - the son of former Barisan Sosialis Member of Parliament Ong Lian Teng - when he was asked yesterday by reporters what he thought of some Singaporeans' desire for more political choice.
Mr Ong, 42, said: "Then we can move decisively in this uncertain world. It is the only advantage we have."
He added: "If many, many years down the line, somehow, PAP is no longer good ... then, by all means, let's have an Opposition that can have the right talent and lead Singapore decisively in the new direction. As of today, in 2011, that party is PAP and I support it fully."
As Mr Lee Hsien Loong's Principal Private Secretary, Mr Ong recounted that he saw "at close range how the Prime Minister made his decisions for the long-term benefit of Singapore" - and that became his guiding principle when he moved on to the Workforce Development Agency, Mr Ong said.
He added that his time working as a free trade negotiator - while he was with the Civil Service - also made him realise how a small country such as Singapore has to fight for "international space".
Earlier this month, Mr Ong was named by Foreign Minister George Yeo in a media interview as a potential candidate who could be part of the PAP's Aljunied GRC team at the coming General Election.
Mr Ong, who has two daughters, said yesterday he could not refuse when invited to stand for election.
Said Mr Ong: "We are living in momentous times, with major forces changing the world we are in. I will try my best to play a part, however small, to shape Singapore's future." Ong Dai Lin
Ong Ye Kung
NTUC assistant secretary-general, 42
FACTFILE:
- In 2005, left his post as Principal Private Secretary to Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong. Appointed chief executive of the Workforce Development Agency, making him one of the youngest civil servants to helm a statutory board at the age of 35
- Left the Civil Service in February to become a full-time employee at NTUC, where he oversees all worker upgrading and job placement projects
- Other concurrent positions held include chairman of the Employment and Employability Institute
POSSIBLE WARD:
Aljunied GRC
=============================================================
He broke a promise to his wife in entering politics
SINGAPORE - When he proposed to his wife, Dr Janil Puthucheary, who was then a medical student, promised her that he would never follow in his father's footsteps and enter politics.
Recounting his pledge, the 39-year-old - the son of People's Action Party founding member Dominic Puthucheary, who later defected to the Barisan Sosialis - said that he had felt that his workload would not allow "space for anything else in the world".
But after he got involved in grassroots work in January 2009, Dr Puthucheary found himself "contemplating a path in conflict with what I have told my wife before", he said.
The Malaysian-born Dr Puthucheary had lived and worked in various countries before coming to Singapore in 2001 and subsequently taking up citizenship.
He said: "The question is not where we come from. It's who will be prepared to stay and fight ... I'm that person. I'm staying and fighting. I'm fully invested."
Dr Puthucheary's father was among those detained under the Internal Security Act (ISA) in 1963 and was exiled from Singapore until 1990.
Dr Puthucheary said that when he broached the subject of entering politics, his father did not allow him to finish explaining.
"He said, 'I'm very proud of you ... It is not about which side you are on, or picking sides ... It's about being prepared to step up and stand forward and be part of the struggle to make it a better world'," Dr Puthucheary recounted.
Asked for his views on the ISA, Dr Puthucheary said the way the law has been used and the potential for its use after the 911 terror attacks is "very different" now. And while he could discuss the philosophic aspects of the law, "the philosophy is not as important as the pragmatic implications for our state", he added.
Dr Janil Puthucheary
Senior consultant in the children's intensive care unit at KK Women's and Children's Hospital, 39
FACTFILE:
- Also the medical director for faculty development and an assistant professor at the Duke-NUS Graduate Medical School
- Born in Malaysia, has lived and worked in Northern Ireland, London and Sydney
- Came to Singapore in 2001 and took up citizenship in 2008
POSSIBLE WARD:
Pasir Ris-Punggol GRC
=============================================================
'I understand how the poor feel'
SINGAPORE - As a child, Mr Desmond Choo lived in a maisonette and made annual trips to Hong Kong to visit his father who was working there.
But those trips stopped after his father's antique business failed and the family was plunged into financial distress.
"From being able to travel to Hong Kong every year to see him, suddenly, we had problems getting pocket money," recounted Mr Choo, 33. He added that his father had to borrow money to put food on the table.
Mr Choo's family later moved to a four-room flat where they have stayed for the last 15 years.
His family's experience helped shape his mentality that "no one should be left behind regardless of their financial situation", said Mr Choo as he explained why he entered politics.
He has also realised that his family's situation was not unique. Said Mr Choo: "Our national polices have served the majority well. However, unfortunately, some do fall through the cracks."
Mr Choo said his father is working as a security officer and would tell him of problems in the industry, such as the difficulties of working a 12-hour shift. Mr Choo, who is also the executive secretary of the Union of Security Employees, pledged yesterday that he will help those in the security industry to "get more out of their work".
He said: "No one must be left behind and, wherever I go, I'm there to serve first and foremost before anything else."
Mr Choo is widely tipped to contest in Opposition stronghold Hougang.
On his chances of succeeding where previous PAP candidate Eric Low had failed in two attempts, Mr Choo would only say that he wanted to implement schemes to help the "many poor residents" there, for "as long as it takes".
Desmond Choo Pey Ching
NTUC youth development unit deputy director, 33
FACTFILE:
- Was in the police force for 13 years, holding appointments such as the deputy commander of Clementi Police Division
- Joined NTUC in May last year. Also the executive secretary of the Union of Security Employees.
- Since February, appointed second adviser to Hougang grassroots organisations
- Initiated in Hougang a healthcare scheme for poor residents
POSSIBLE WARD:
Hougang SMC
SINGAPORE - As a small and vulnerable state, Singapore should have a "strong majority Government" with a "strong mandate from the people".
That was the view of new People's Action Party candidate Ong Ye Kung - the son of former Barisan Sosialis Member of Parliament Ong Lian Teng - when he was asked yesterday by reporters what he thought of some Singaporeans' desire for more political choice.
Mr Ong, 42, said: "Then we can move decisively in this uncertain world. It is the only advantage we have."
He added: "If many, many years down the line, somehow, PAP is no longer good ... then, by all means, let's have an Opposition that can have the right talent and lead Singapore decisively in the new direction. As of today, in 2011, that party is PAP and I support it fully."
As Mr Lee Hsien Loong's Principal Private Secretary, Mr Ong recounted that he saw "at close range how the Prime Minister made his decisions for the long-term benefit of Singapore" - and that became his guiding principle when he moved on to the Workforce Development Agency, Mr Ong said.
He added that his time working as a free trade negotiator - while he was with the Civil Service - also made him realise how a small country such as Singapore has to fight for "international space".
Earlier this month, Mr Ong was named by Foreign Minister George Yeo in a media interview as a potential candidate who could be part of the PAP's Aljunied GRC team at the coming General Election.
Mr Ong, who has two daughters, said yesterday he could not refuse when invited to stand for election.
Said Mr Ong: "We are living in momentous times, with major forces changing the world we are in. I will try my best to play a part, however small, to shape Singapore's future." Ong Dai Lin
Ong Ye Kung
NTUC assistant secretary-general, 42
FACTFILE:
- In 2005, left his post as Principal Private Secretary to Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong. Appointed chief executive of the Workforce Development Agency, making him one of the youngest civil servants to helm a statutory board at the age of 35
- Left the Civil Service in February to become a full-time employee at NTUC, where he oversees all worker upgrading and job placement projects
- Other concurrent positions held include chairman of the Employment and Employability Institute
POSSIBLE WARD:
Aljunied GRC
=============================================================
He broke a promise to his wife in entering politics
SINGAPORE - When he proposed to his wife, Dr Janil Puthucheary, who was then a medical student, promised her that he would never follow in his father's footsteps and enter politics.
Recounting his pledge, the 39-year-old - the son of People's Action Party founding member Dominic Puthucheary, who later defected to the Barisan Sosialis - said that he had felt that his workload would not allow "space for anything else in the world".
But after he got involved in grassroots work in January 2009, Dr Puthucheary found himself "contemplating a path in conflict with what I have told my wife before", he said.
The Malaysian-born Dr Puthucheary had lived and worked in various countries before coming to Singapore in 2001 and subsequently taking up citizenship.
He said: "The question is not where we come from. It's who will be prepared to stay and fight ... I'm that person. I'm staying and fighting. I'm fully invested."
Dr Puthucheary's father was among those detained under the Internal Security Act (ISA) in 1963 and was exiled from Singapore until 1990.
Dr Puthucheary said that when he broached the subject of entering politics, his father did not allow him to finish explaining.
"He said, 'I'm very proud of you ... It is not about which side you are on, or picking sides ... It's about being prepared to step up and stand forward and be part of the struggle to make it a better world'," Dr Puthucheary recounted.
Asked for his views on the ISA, Dr Puthucheary said the way the law has been used and the potential for its use after the 911 terror attacks is "very different" now. And while he could discuss the philosophic aspects of the law, "the philosophy is not as important as the pragmatic implications for our state", he added.
Dr Janil Puthucheary
Senior consultant in the children's intensive care unit at KK Women's and Children's Hospital, 39
FACTFILE:
- Also the medical director for faculty development and an assistant professor at the Duke-NUS Graduate Medical School
- Born in Malaysia, has lived and worked in Northern Ireland, London and Sydney
- Came to Singapore in 2001 and took up citizenship in 2008
POSSIBLE WARD:
Pasir Ris-Punggol GRC
=============================================================
'I understand how the poor feel'
SINGAPORE - As a child, Mr Desmond Choo lived in a maisonette and made annual trips to Hong Kong to visit his father who was working there.
But those trips stopped after his father's antique business failed and the family was plunged into financial distress.
"From being able to travel to Hong Kong every year to see him, suddenly, we had problems getting pocket money," recounted Mr Choo, 33. He added that his father had to borrow money to put food on the table.
Mr Choo's family later moved to a four-room flat where they have stayed for the last 15 years.
His family's experience helped shape his mentality that "no one should be left behind regardless of their financial situation", said Mr Choo as he explained why he entered politics.
He has also realised that his family's situation was not unique. Said Mr Choo: "Our national polices have served the majority well. However, unfortunately, some do fall through the cracks."
Mr Choo said his father is working as a security officer and would tell him of problems in the industry, such as the difficulties of working a 12-hour shift. Mr Choo, who is also the executive secretary of the Union of Security Employees, pledged yesterday that he will help those in the security industry to "get more out of their work".
He said: "No one must be left behind and, wherever I go, I'm there to serve first and foremost before anything else."
Mr Choo is widely tipped to contest in Opposition stronghold Hougang.
On his chances of succeeding where previous PAP candidate Eric Low had failed in two attempts, Mr Choo would only say that he wanted to implement schemes to help the "many poor residents" there, for "as long as it takes".
Desmond Choo Pey Ching
NTUC youth development unit deputy director, 33
FACTFILE:
- Was in the police force for 13 years, holding appointments such as the deputy commander of Clementi Police Division
- Joined NTUC in May last year. Also the executive secretary of the Union of Security Employees.
- Since February, appointed second adviser to Hougang grassroots organisations
- Initiated in Hougang a healthcare scheme for poor residents
POSSIBLE WARD:
Hougang SMC
