PAP introduces first woman candidate for coming GE
By S Ramesh/Hetty Musfirah Abdul Khamid | Posted: 23 March 2011 1638 hrs
SINGAPORE: The ruling People's Action Party (PAP) on Wednesday introduced its first woman candidate for the coming General Election.
45-year-old Ms Foo Mee Har is the global head of premium banking for Standard Chartered Bank.
Also introduced at the session was the son of a former Cabinet Minister. 35-year-old Desmond Lee Ti-Seng, an associate director in the Legal & Regulations Department of Temasek Holdings (Private) Limited, is the son of former Cabinet Minister Mr Lee Yock Suan.
The third PAP candidate introduced on Wednesday was 38-year-old Steve Tan Peng Hoe, currently the executive secretary of Young NTUC, the NTUC's official youth wing.
Ms Foo joined the Stanchart in 1994 and has since held a number of senior roles across businesses and functions.
Ms Foo joined the PAP in 2010 and has taken part in various community events and Meet-the-People Sessions.
She has also been inducted into the PAP executive committee as assistant secretary to the Women's Wing.
For Mr Steve Tan, he has been exposed to helping workers in different ways in his 10 years with the labour movement.
These include managing scholarships and education grants, administering insurance claims for workers and issuing transport vouchers and other assistance schemes.
Steve is currently a grassroots volunteer at Tampines East.
Mr Desmond Lee Ti-Seng started his career as a Justices' Law Clerk of the Supreme Court, providing legal research support.
Before leaving the government service, Desmond worked in the Legal Policy Division of the Ministry of Law as deputy director, where he was involved in the development of legal policies and the review and amendment of various pieces of legislation such as the Criminal Procedure Code.
The latest batch brings to six so far the number of PAP's new faces made known to the electorate.
Speaking at Wednesday's introduction session, Deputy Prime Minister Wong Kan Seng said the renewal process of PAP has been systematic and structured.
This is done by finding people who will be able to serve the wider interest of Singaporeans, said Mr Wong, who is also the PAP's First Assistant Secretary General.
Mr Wong said that he hopes the opposition, like the PAP, will introduce their election candidates early.
He said this will help the electorate know what the candidates can offer.
The PAP has said it will be fielding more than 20 new candidates in the coming General Election.
Mr Wong said the process of renewal is important as new blood can contribute new ideas and energy to the party.
It also connects the party to societal changes and aspirations on the ground.
"That is the difference between us and many countries....we plan, we think ahead, we want to make sure that there is always a team of people available and around (and) with experience who can take Singapore to the next lap," said Mr Wong.
Steve firmly believes in Singapore’s meritocracy philosophy as he has seen it through his own experiences. Steve’s father was a technician, and his mother a nurse. The youngest in the family, he has an elder sister and brother. Despite their modest beginnings, they have benefitted from the many opportunities.
Nah, I will not vote for a person who doesn’t care about his father’s sufferings
March 23rd, 2011 | Author: Contributions
“I’m staying, I’m fully invested,” the Straits Times’ headline screamed. The quote is from PAP newbie Janil Puthucheary.
But wait. Rewind. Lets play that tape again.
Janil Puthucheary (which I shall address as JP from now on) is the elder son of Dominic Puthucheary, 77, founding member of the PAP, and the Barisan Socialis. The elder Puthucheary was jailed under Singapore’s Internal Security Act (ISA) for 10 months in February 1963 under Operation Coldstore. He was one of the suspected leftists at that time.
Dominic Puthucheary was never tried or given his day in court.
When asked what he thought of the incarceration of his father, JP – quite stunningly – said:
“It was something that… happened in the long history that we were told about.”
Told about? It is puzzling why he said this considering that it was HIS FATHER who went through it. He is not an outsider who didn’t have access to information about what happened to his own father.
And then he added:
“It wasn’t something that we lived with or we knew of ourselves.”
HUH? He didn’t know about what happened? Stunning indeed. Is he an ignorant fool?
JP also said, when asked if he was angry about what had happened to his father:
“No, not at all. Certainly my father never expressed any anger or rancour so I could not express any anger for that.”
Hmm.. he can only be angry if the other party is angry. Otherwise, best to wipe the dust off his butt and make like nothing’s wrong.
Quite a sad answer to hear.
JP, gathering from what the ST reported, spent most of his life overseas – in London, Belfast and Sydney, “before settling here in 2001.”
His father presently lives in Malaysia. He was banned from entering Singapore until 1990.
And JP, through all of this, apparently slept through it all.
Can’t be bothered, is the phrase.
The Today newspaper reported:
“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.”
In other words, please throw principles out the window.
Principles such as rule of law, right to counsel, fair hearing in open court. Burden of proof. And so on.
Throw them out for “pragmatic implications” – a euphemistic phrase which could be decoded as “abuse of power is ok”.
And the good ole JP says:
“I’m staying, I’m fully invested.”
How can you be when you do not even care about what happened to your own father?
Worse, how can you care when you feel that what happened to your own father is alright?
To me, this fella will sell his soul to the devil – even his own blood relations – for “pragmatic implications.”
And oh, the fella also said:
“The question is who is going to be prepared to stay and fight and make this country what it will be, what it can be.”
And his punchline:
“I am that person.”
“I’m staying, fighting, I’m fully invested.”
Empty words from someone who hasn’t served a single minute of National Service, unlike those of us Singaporean men who give years to the service.
Nah, this fella won’t get my vote.
I will never vote for a person who doesn’t even care about the sufferings his own father went through.
Steve firmly believes in Singapore’s meritocracy philosophy as he has seen it through his own experiences. Steve’s father was a technician, and his mother a nurse. The youngest in the family, he has an elder sister and brother. Despite their modest beginnings, they have benefitted from the many opportunities.AhSengSg 发表于 23-3-2011 05:31 PM
这个 Steve Tan 高中一考试不及格而留级; 上大学户口才剩＄３００，而要教补习，在 7-11 打工；现在每天上下班 take MRT 。。。他真的是 PAP 要找的"精英"吗？
楼主
发表于 23-3-2011 07:32 PM
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