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Tag: Desmond Lim

  • Presiden PKMS, Abu Mohamed, Tanding Bawah Naungan SDA Kali Ini

    Presiden PKMS, Abu Mohamed, Tanding Bawah Naungan SDA Kali Ini

    PARTI Perikatan Demokratik Singapura (SDA) berikrar memperjuang hak rakyat Singapura jika calon-calonnya dipilih ke Parlimen.

    Calon SDA di GRC Pasir Ris-Punggol, Encik Harminder Pal Singh, berkata demikian ketika berucap kepada penyokong di pusat penamaan calon di Sekolah Rendah Fengshan semalam.

    Menurut beliau, sedang Singapura menyambut ulang tahun ke-50 tahun ini, negara tetap berdepan dengan banyak masalah.

    “Secara umumnya, Singapura berdepan dengan banyak masalah dalam bidang penjagaan kesihatan, pekerjaan dan Kertas Putih berkaitan 6.9 juta penduduk.

    “Kami akan memperjuang hak setiap rakyat Singapura, terutama penduduk GRC Pasir Ris-Punggol,” kata Encik Singh.

    Calon Melayu SDA, yang merupakan muka baru di GRC itu, Encik Abu Mohamed, pula berkata calon SDA terdiri daripada golongan rakyat biasa, justeru memahami keprihatinan mereka.

    “Kami faham keluhan yang sudah lama terpendam. Berikan kami mandat bagi menyuarakan semua keluhan anda,” gesa beliau.

    Encik Abu merupakan Presiden Pertubuhan Kebangsaan Melayu Singapura (PKMS).

    Dalam pilihan raya kali ini, PKMS akan ‘bergerak’ di bawah naungan SDA.

    Pasukan SDA di GRC Pasir Ris-Punggol diketuai Encik Desmond Lim.

    Encik Lim, Encik Singh and seorang lagi calon, Encik Arthero Lim, bertanding di GRC sama pada pilihan raya umum 2011.

    Dua lagi muka baru SDA yang bertanding di GRC itu ialah Encik Ong Teik Seng dan Encik Wong Way Weng.

    Ini kali ketiga SDA bertanding di GRC Pasir Ris-Punggol.

     

    Source: http://beritaharian.sg

  • PKMS President, Abu Mohamed, Among Three New Faces To Contest Pasir-Ris Punggol GRC Under The SDA Banner

    PKMS President, Abu Mohamed, Among Three New Faces To Contest Pasir-Ris Punggol GRC Under The SDA Banner

    The Singapore Democratic Alliance (SDA) on Monday (Aug 31) unveiled its slate of potential candidates contesting the six-member Pasir Ris-Punggol Group Representation Constituency, and three of them are new faces.

    Mr Ong Teik Seng, 44, is contesting for the first time.

    The sales director said he wants to highlight matters concerning the well-being of senior citizens and the young. Criticising the rise in age limits for Singaporeans to withdraw their Central Provident Fund (CPF) savings, Mr Ong said that Singapore is a country that has “sailed very far into the deep oceans”.

    “There are many workers on board the ship, especially the pioneer generation. They are working for survival,” he said, adding that he hopes for reforms to the CPF scheme.

    Mr Ong also said he hopes to give children more opportunities to get a higher education, so they can face the future challenges of a foreign talent influx.

    Mr Sunny Wong Way Weng, 53, is another new face.

    The quality assurance manager has been a resident of Pasir Ris for about 21 years. He said he was motivated to join politics as he wants to speak up on issues such as traffic congestion and the pressure Singaporeans face.

    “I am proud to have celebrated SG50 but there is room to speak up and go forward,” he said.

    Mr Abu Mohamed, 64, is the third new candidate.

    Speaking in Malay, the President of the Singapore Malay National Organisation (PKMS) said he wants to help the Malay-Muslim community progress in areas such as education, jobs and housing.

    Mr Abu Mohamed, a co-director in an oil field services company, also hopes to bring up issues advocating women wearing the hijab in frontline work, as well as policies protecting Malays from being barred from job positions that specify Mandarin-speaking candidates.

    Mr Desmond Lim, 47, SDA’s secretary-general, previously contested in Punggol East SMC in 2011 and 2013.

    The engineer in the telecommunications industry lost his election deposit after garnering just 0.57 per cent of the votes in the Punggol East SMC by-election in 2013. However, he said he is unfazed by the episode.

    “How can a country depend on you if you give up just after losing once?” he said.

    “The Parliament lacks a common man’s voice,” added Mr Lim in Mandarin. “The common man needs to have a place in Parliament, and I have decided to continue to champion the rights of the common man.”

    Mr Arthero Lim, 60, is taking part in his fourth election.

    The filmmaker rejoined the SDA slate after contesting under the Reform Party banner in Ang Mo Kio GRC in the previous General Election in 2011. He has also contested as a Singapore Democratic Party candidate.

    “I’m a fighter for social justice. It’s not just criticising the ruling party – a lack of social justice is making Singapore dysfunctional,” he said.

    Mr Harminder Pal Singh, 43, was one of the candidates for Pasir Ris-Punggol GRC in 2011.

    The CEO of coaching company Helping People Succeed said he hopes to see more being done for a hiring policy that benefits Singaporeans. “These are cosmetic changes we see by the Government. When we are elected as MPs, we want to push for these policies in the right fashion. We want more in-depth implementation to benefit more Singaporeans,” he explained, referring to the current policies.

    Another issue he hopes to address in Parliament is the “lack of emphasis being given to the welfare of the people in Singapore”, citing the “inability to retire at 55 and be able to withdraw CPF funds”.

    Mr Singh added that the party was “confident” it was connecting with voters and that it would strive to ensure that the Pasir Ris-Punggol town council would be “one of the best ones” if SDA was elected into Parliament. To ensure it is ready to run the constituency, SDA revealed that it has created a shadow town council for the GRC. Members have also been going for training.

    “Should we win the election, we will go in there running. Our shadow town council is ready to take over the town council (in Pasir Ris-Punggol),” said Mr Singh.

    The party said it will also look into asking for more childcare centres and a regional hospital. When asked where the party would get the money from to push its township plan, Mr Desmond Lim said he hopes the party will get to push this plan in Parliament for approval, if elected.

     

    Source: www.channelnewsasia.com

  • SDA Establishes Alternative Association For Taxi Drivers

    SDA Establishes Alternative Association For Taxi Drivers

    Members of the Singapore Democratic Alliance (SDA) have registered a new Singapore Cabbies Association (SCA), aimed at protecting the rights and welfare of taxi drivers here.

    The SCA will serve as an “alternative” to the National Taxi Association (NTA), said founding adviser and SDA chairman Desmond Lim, by fighting for stronger regulation of third-party applications such as Uber, enhancing training for taxi drivers and public education.

    For example, it wants the authorities to push for Uber drivers to undergo formal training and comply with the same regulations as taxi drivers, and ensure Uber drivers have up-to-date Medisave contributions to renew their vocational licences.

    Added founding president and SCA assistant treasurer William Lim: “The NTA is only one single association. The Land Transport Authority (LTA) and taxi companies are not taking into consideration their suggestions enough.”

    Mr William Lim, a full-time taxi driver, said the SCA also intends to engage veteran taxi drivers and traffic police officers to provider training for new cabbies. The current training that taxi operators provide is very basic, he said.

    The 200-member-strong association also plans to offer legal advice and financial education for cabbies, and educate the public on, for instance, the safe spots to flag cabs.

    The SCA’s annual membership is open to taxi drivers who hold valid taxi driver vocational licences and costs S$60. Mr Desmond Lim submitted the application to the Registry of Societies yesterday.

    When contacted, NTA executive adviser Ang Hin Kee told TODAY many agencies and authorities, including the LTA, Traffic Police and Central Provident Fund Board, work with the NTA because of its existing vast network and membership. “Importantly, there is an ongoing, continual effort on our part to reach out, so it is not a once-off event,” said Mr Ang, who is a Member of Parliament for Ang Mo Kio GRC.

    While Mr Ang did not directly comment on the SCA, he questioned: “What do you bring new to the scene? … I still feel it is may be more effective (if) we can channel our resources through existing networks so that (NTA) can benefit the drivers.”

    Mr Ang added that the NTA is looking to leverage technology and work with companies managing third-party booking apps to facilitate better matching of cabbies and commuters.

     

    Source: www.todayonline.com

  • SDA’s Desmond Lim: Don’t Judge Me By My Language

    SDA’s Desmond Lim: Don’t Judge Me By My Language

    He was ridiculed by netizens for his bad diction after an edited version of an old campaign video of his went viral on Facebook last week.

    But Singapore Democratic Alliance’s Desmond Lim Bak Chuan, 47, said his command of the English language should not be used to judge his abilities to serve the residents.

    Responding to the edited video, which used subtitles to make fun of Mr Lim’s diction, he told The New Paper: “Whoever did that, I don’t know what is his or her intention, but why go personal? You want to fault me, fault me on policy issues.

    “I have been in politics for 23 years. I have spent my life serving people. No matter how bad my command of the language is, I don’t deserve such a treatment.”

    Mr Lim was at the party’s walkabout at Punggol Plaza yesterday, where party members gave out brochures to residents.

    SDA is contesting the six-member Pasir Ris-Punggol GRC in the upcoming general elections.

    The 55-second clip mocking Mr Lim was edited from a 2013 video titled “Why Vote For Desmond Lim?: SDA Punggol East By-Elections Online Rally”.

    WATCH: Desmond Lim talks about ‘that’ video

     

     

    Mr Lim, who is married and has a three-year-old son, said he was not hurt by the clip.

    “I’m not bothered and concerned about what people think about me. I’m bothered about how I can help others,” he said.

    “That’s the past. We cannot be run down by our past. If we are held on by our past, we cannot progress.”

    He added that there are those who like to judge people despite not having met them personally.

    “People can say anything. You can’t control them. There will be people who like me, there are those who don’t.”

    Mr Lim said he has had problems speaking since a very young age.

    He did not attend pre-school and started speaking only at age seven, when he could not even spell his own name or read from A to Z.

    LATE DEVELOPER

    “People thought it was a late development where you can talk when you grow older,” said Mr Lim, who is a principal engineer with a telco.

    He said that his speaking disability was never diagnosed as his parents had been too poor to take him 
to a doctor.

    He overcame his challenges and went on to obtain a Masters in Engineering Management, despite taking five years instead of the usual three years for part-time study.

    To help him understand the lecturers, he would draw pictures and write his notes in Chinese.

    In response to the viral video, 
a supporter has edited a 2011 YouTube video titled “Unlimited Belief” to explain why Mr Lim does not speak eloquently.

    A friend of Mr Lim even likened him to a 2004 American Idol contestant, Mr William Hung, who became famous despite being mocked for his off-key audition performance of Ricky Martin’s hit song “She Bangs” in the reality talent search programme.

    In response, Mr Lim said: “I always believe I am who I am. You want to say I am Singapore’s William Hung, I’m okay.”

    You want to say I am Singapore’s William Hung, I’m okay.

    – Singapore Democratic Alliance’s Desmond Lim Bak Chuan on being compared to the American Idol contestant who was mocked for his off-key singing

     

    Source: www.tnp.sg

  • Singapore Democratic Alliance Focusing On Town Council Management And Addressing Residents’ Concerns

    Singapore Democratic Alliance Focusing On Town Council Management And Addressing Residents’ Concerns

    With the management of town councils potentially a talking point in the coming elections, Singapore Democratic Alliance (SDA) chairman Desmond Lim today (Aug 1) sought to highlight his party’s focus on running estates and addressing residents’ concerns during a walkabout in Pasir Ris-Punggol Group Representation Constituency.

    Speaking to the media, Mr Lim said that for the past year or so, SDA has a team of “shadow town councillors” which visits residents in the constituency every weekend and discusses ways to improve their estate.

    The team comprises six individuals who are non-party members, including operations manager Tan Jui Koon, 44, and Mr Lim Kim Soon, 61, formerly the executive secretary of the Hokkein Huay Kuan.

    Town council management must be separated from politics and having non-party members as shadow town councillors would ensure that, Mr Desmond Lim said.

    He also reiterated his 14 years of experience serving as a consultant at Potong Pasir Town Council, when he was the right hand man of the ward’s former Member of Parliament Chiam See Tong.

    In recent months, his team has helped Pasir Ris One residents raise their problems to the Pasir Ris-Punggol town council. The Design, Build and Sell Scheme project had made headlines for building defects and other issues, such as corridors that are too narrow. The developer has agreed to change the swinging doors to sliding doors, and the SDA chief said this was one of the suggestions that his team had made to the town council.

    Last month, his team had also asked the town council to remove sheets of plywood that had piled up on the rooftop of a block of Housing and Development Board flats along Pasir Ris Drive 1. He said: “We have to demonstrate to residents in Pasir Ris-Punggol our confidence and capability to run a town council and take care of their living environment…to assure them that their quality of life will not be discounted if they give us their support.”

    He added that the presence of a “second town council” also presses the incumbent town council to “work harder for the residents”.

    The Workers’ Party (WP) had come under criticism from the ruling People’s Action Party over the management of the finances of the Aljunied-Hougang-Punggol East Town Council (AHPETC).

    Asked if SDA’s focus may be seen as capitalising on the AHPETC saga, he disagreed: “It is a matter of fact that any political party must give recognition to the Town Council Act, and anyone elected as a Member of Parliament will have to take good care of the people’s living environment, in addition to giving them a voice in Parliament.”

    During the walkabout, the SDA entourage — which consisted about 30 members and supporters — gave out handheld Singapore flags, and flyers to residents which carried the party’s slogan, “A heart for the people”.

    Mr Desmond Lim also introduced two potential election candidates to the media — SDA assistant secretary-general Aloysius Chan, 29, and party member Ernest Pak, 34.

    Mr Chan and Mr Pak joined SDA in June and October last year respectively, and have been involved in SDA’s charity arm. Mr Pak said he hopes to speak up for the sandwiched class. “The authorities are not really getting any feedback from this group of people,” he said.

    Despite having tasted defeat in the all the elections he had taken part in — the 2001, 2006 and 2011 GEs, and the 2013 Punggol East By-election where he forfeited his election deposit — Mr Lim said he is undeterred. It is his responsibility as part of the community to stand for the elections, he said. “To show care and concern to Singaporeans, to build a national identity is what pushes me to stay on,” he added.

     

    Source: www.todayonline.com