Veteran opposition figure Chiam See Tong has set up a foundation to provide disadvantaged children and youths with access to sporting activities.
The Chiam See Tong Sports Foundation, which is set to benefit at least 100 children in its first year, was officially launched on Thursday (Mar 9) at the Chamber of the Old Parliament House.
Its objectives include developing sports programmes for disadvantaged children and youths that will supplement national initiatives, the foundation said in a press release.
The 81-year-old Mr Chiam, who is the secretary-general of the Singapore People’s Party, said: “Our children are our future and we must provide them with as many opportunities as possible, so that they will find many paths towards being successful, patriotic Singaporeans.
“Sports is a unifying tool for nation-building and in building strong community bonds. We must continue to find ways to work together as a community, and to continue having faith in our children, and in believing in them.”
The foundation will be chaired by former national swimmer Ang Peng Siong and co-chaired by Singapore Swimming Association vice-president Jose Raymond. Sprinter U K Shyam, who is the current national 100m record holder, and Mr Chiam’s daughter Camilla Chiam will serve as directors of the board.
Mr Chiam’s wife Lina Chiam, who was a Non-Constituency Member of Parliament from 2011 to 2015, is co-patron.
Said Mr Ang: “This is a positive step for sports in Singapore. The aim of the foundation is to find ways to help children achieve their sporting dreams, and to give them the added help. Sometimes, timely intervention can alter the course of one’s life tremendously and in more ways than one.”
The foundation is currently registered as a society. It will apply to be registered as a charity with Institution of Public Character status.
Opposition veteran Sin Kek Tong died on Monday evening (Feb 27) at the age of 72.
Mr Sin was the founder of the Singapore People’s Party (SPP) back in 1994. The former SPP chairman first introduced Mr Chiam See Tong to SPP when the latter left the Singapore Democratic Party in 1993.
Mr Sin last contested the 2011 Singapore General Elections, where he ran against People’s Action Party candidate Dr Amy Khor for the seat in Hong Kah North Single-Member Constituency and lost.
The funeral procession will take place at 10am on Friday.
She may not want to call it her last hurrah, but there is real sense of finality in the way Singapore People’s Party (SPP) chairman Lina Chiam talks about the Sept 11 polls.
She uses the term “last chance” when speaking about why she is returning to Potong Pasir again and talks about how she and her husband, veteran opposition leader Chiam See Tong, can be satisfied with the effort they have put in for the constituency.
“I’ve done all I can. If I’m not elected, I’m satisfied. If it happens like that, the most important thing is that, Mr and Mrs Chiam believe that a good name is more precious than silver and gold,” she said.
Mr Chiam had been MP for Potong Pasir for 27 years before the 2011 polls, when he left to helm a team in the adjoining Bishan-Toa Payoh GRC. He then chose Mrs Chiam to try carry the mantle in his stronghold.
Both he and Mrs Chiam lost, with Potong Pasir ending up as the tightest race in the election. But the razor-thin 114-vote margin in Potong Pasir was enough to get Mrs Chiam into Parliament as a Non-Constituency MP.
Despite a shaky start – Mrs Chiam’s uncertain performances while speaking in public used to come in for ridicule – she believes the past four years have steeled her for the contest this time around.
Indeed, the 66-year-old has clearly grown into her skin as a politician in the past four years. On walkabouts, she now often walks ahead of her team, knocking on doors and introducing herself instead of letting a volunteer break the ice.
She is also now more comfortable engaging in a little banter with residents, whether it is complimenting a man for his “dandy” hat in a coffeeshop or politely ending a conversation with a supportive but intoxicated man.
Some of the improvement is simply down to practice, she says, and some is because she took in the criticism and tried to improve herself.
“I knew that the feedback was not good at all, I knew it already. And I can feel it myself. I don’t have a lot of confidence in a debate, and I know it,” she says.
Mrs Chiam went as far as to get a degree in communications to help her perform better in Parliament.
In 2012, at age 63, she started spending all her Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays studying part-time for a Bachelor of Arts in Communications and Media Management from the University of South Australia.
Prior to that, her only other professional qualification is a nursing certificate from the Elizabeth Garrett Anderson Hospital in London.
“I want to improve myself and learn the nitty gritty of how to write, how to structure proper sentences in English. It helped a lot. And I also thought media management is very suitable for being a Member of Parliament.”
Perhaps because of the effort she put into trying to be a better parliamentarian, she and Mr Chiam did not have to think twice about whether she should stand again this election.
“He wants it very badly for me,” she said. “He feels that I’m competent: He’s seen my speeches in Parliament and he feels that I know the people here.”
Mrs Chiam rejects the idea that her political brand is still too heavily reliant on her famous husband – who received a rousing applause when he spoke at the SPP rally on Friday night – even if she often introduces herself as Mr Chiam’s wife.
They have an only child, Camilla, 39, who works as head of communications at a property development companage.
“I respect my husband. He was MP for 27 years, so I have to somehow or other mention his name, but having said that I am my own person,” she says.
“We are like two-in-one, we understand each other. We always plan our strategies together, even when he won the six elections.”
She says though she stayed largely behind the scenes while he was MP, she was active and often went out to meet people and gave him feedback from residents. And she said he has not tried to interfere with her NCMP work.
She adds: “And being a woman, I think I have a different style. Women can be more ‘kaypoh’ and we pay a lot of attention to detail.”
And now that she is in charge of the day-to-day running of the SPP, she also says she is taking a different approach to how the party conducts its business.
In a departure from previous outings, various SPP candidates are running almost independently and releasing their own manifestos for their battlegrounds.
On her own chances against PAP’s Sitoh Yih Pin in Potong Pasir, she appears cautiously optimistic, hopeful that younger voters might shift in her favour.
“When I lost, a lot of young people came to me and said wait for me Mrs Chiam, I’m only 18, in four years I can vote. Whether they still vote for me or not, we’ll have to see.”
No matter how the party does at the polls, she recognises there are some difficult questions about the party’s future.
At the moment, there is no clear successor. Mrs Chiam stresses she is thinking about renewal but isn’t going to name successors just yet.
“I’m still looking, searching and testing people. I won’t anoint a successor and then their head is all swollen up,” she said, likely a reference to the string of successors her husband chose that eventually ended up falling out with him.
They included Singapore Democratic Party chief Chee Soon Juan, whose falling out with Mr Chiam ended in the latter leaving the party he founded; and Singapore Democratic Alliance chief Desmond Lim. That tiff ended with the SPP being yanked out of the opposition alliance.
Though neither she nor Mr Chiam want to talk about retirement now, she says: “Wait till after the election, when the results have come out. When everything is settled, I may be able to give you the answer.”
Seven years ago, Jeannette Chong-Aruldoss had a conversation with her four pre-teen and teenage children.
She realised they did not feel rooted to Singapore as they had no say in the nation-building and decision-making process.
Troubled but still optimistic and wanting to be part of the solution, she did something not many people would even imagine doing: Go down the road of opposition politics.
It was not an easy step to take, but she has always believed that one has to start the ball rolling in order to see change.
Fast forward to today: The London School of Economics law school alumnus and former Katong convent girl who runs her own law practice, is currently making a second bid for the Mountbatten single-member constituency seat, where she is running on the Singapore People’s Party ticket.
In 2011, she ran against the People Action Party’s Lim Biow Chuan. Lim won 11,965 votes (58.64 percent), while she garnered 8,436 votes (41.35 percent).
But judging by the extent her children getting involved with her current 2015 campaign, perhaps her desire to have them stay put in Singapore and take part in the country’s decision-making process will no longer be wishful thinking but a reality.
Mothership.sg spoke to Jeannette to ask her about why she is back, what voters can expect and why she will put her legal career on hold to serve the people full-time.
1. First question: What is the best political advice you’ve ever received so far?
Jeannette: A veteran politician once told me that running for elections is like a marathon. It takes a lot of preparation, a lot of personal sacrifices have to be made and it’s a long journey. But as with any marathon, slow and steady wins the race.
2. How different is 2011’s Jeannette from 2015’s Jeannette?
Jeannette: In 2011 when I stood for elections, I had conviction in my heart, but perhaps I may not have articulated what I feel inside. Now in 2015, I am better able to explain my convictions and I believe that voters will be able to understand me better as to what values and things I want to do.
Jeannette Chong-Aruldoss Mothership interview: Nicole Seah spe…Good morning! Mothership.sg exclusive: Nicole Seah (佘雪玲) interviews Singapore People’s Party Mountbatten SMC candidate Jeannette Chong-Aruldoss (Jeannette For Mountbatten) about why she is back this #GE2015. Here’s a snippet of their conversation. Stay tuned for the full article.
Posted by Mothership.sg on Friday, September 4, 2015
3. I remember a conversation we had where I asked what motivated you to join opposition politics. You said your children felt a sense of disconnect and you worried they might not have a sense of belonging and that may leave Singapore one day. Does that still remain your motivation?
Jeannette: As a mother of four kids, I have a very vested and deep stake in the future of Singapore. And I wanted to set an example for my children, that if things are not what they prefer, and they would prefer something else, I want to tell them not to walk away or vote with their feet, but stick around and be part of the solution and try to make things better. So that is something I want to explain to my children. That’s what I want them to do, not just to go where the grass is greener.
4. So this is your second time running against the PAP’s Lim Biow Chuan, what do you think are your chances this time?
Jeannette: I would say that, firstly, the majority will decide the outcome and I am ready to be judged on the merits and the capabilities. I am confident I am up to the task. So I leave it to the voters, they have a choice and let them decide. I put myself out, my manifesto, my plans for Mountbatten, so it’s up to them.
5. Has it been challenging going down this path?
Jeannette: Yes, absolutely. I still need to do my job, I still need to meet deadlines, and I’m a working mom. It’s not easy to balance all these things, so that has been one of my challenges, but I still feel that this is something that I want to do, so I just have to get it done.
6. And you still have time to adopt a dog?
Jeannette: Ember was a rescued dog, she is part of a litter of maybe seven or eight which was found near a garbage bin in Tuas. A dog rescuer alerted and was asking if people might want to adopt, and the litter was so cute! I wanted to adopt more but one is enough and she is part of our family now. She is used to us and we are used to her, and she has a great personality.
7. Back to something more serious. Since 2011, many have also said that the PAP is shifting left in its ideology somewhat. Policies have become a bit socialist and populist-leaning, and it’s been easier for people to get financial assistance too compared to in the past. Do you think the ground has sweetened in favour of the PAP government?
Jeannette: Well, I have a slightly different perspective, as I think this demonstrates that they are more responsive to the people’s needs, and this shows that competition is beneficial to citizens. Had not I stood up against the incumbent, would the incumbent have been more hardworking? Would the PAP have been more left-leaning, if not for the results of the 2011 elections?
8. Some might also say that in 2011 there were quite a number of strong candidates from several parties, but this time round it is quite plain to see that there are quite a number of sections in the opposition that might be in turmoil as well. Do you think this affects the opposition’s standing as a whole?
Jeannette: Well, we’re only a few days into a nine-day campaign. [Laughs] I think when you give all the opposition politicians a chance to show themselves, then maybe we can look back and see how it goes.
9. What are some of the changes you have seen in Mountbatten then?
Jeannette: What is most interesting is what has not changed about Mountbatten, which is the fact that Mountbatten is still an SMC and spared from the fate which befell Joo Chiat SMC.
I deplore the GRC scheme, which benefits the incumbent at the expense of the electorate. GRC constituents are short-changed by the diffused relationship between them and their collective MPs. In an SMC, the residents have a better sense of their identity as a community and have a more direct bond with their MP which enables residents to be better served.
10. Recently, there has been more attention paid online to MPs’ attendance in parliament. Can voters expect you to have 100 attendance record like Low Thia Khiang and Gerald Giam?
Jeannette: The ruling party has altered Singapore’s electoral process several times. With each amendment to the Constitution, it gets harder and harder for opposition politicians to enter Parliament. Every seat won by the opposition will be hard-earned, paid by heavy personal sacrifice and a history-making feat achieved against great odds. Voters can be sure that if elected, I will make full use of my seat in Parliament.
11. Do you think it is important to be a full-time MP?
Jeannette: Being an MP is one of the highest calling in public service. If elected, my MP duties will take top priority and my legal career will be put on hold or otherwise take a backseat to my role as MP.
12. So, for the last question, not as loaded as the previous ones, the de facto question this GE: Describe yourself as a hawker dish?
Jeannette: Well, Nicole, sitting in front of you, I can only think of wantan mee because we used to enjoy it together. You used to SMS me and say “Shall we eat wantan mee? Let’s go!”
[Yeah, wantan mee is comfort food.]
I think it reminds me of home. And friendship too.
[Thank you for making time today. Wish you all the best for the rest of the hustings period.]
Calon SPP bagi GRC Bishan-Toa Payoh berkongsi tentang apa yang mahu dilakukannya untuk golongan muda sekiranya dilantik sebagai AP di rapat pilihan raya yang berlangsung di Stadium Toa Payoh.
Encik Abdillah Zamzuri berkata, jika terpilih sebagai AP, beliau merancang menubuhkan sebuah kumpulan seni persembahan di mana para anggotanya merangkumi penduduk Bishan-Toa Payoh
Kumpulan itu katanya akan membuat persembahan dua hingga tiga kali setahun di bahagian berbeza GRC Bishan-Toa Payoh.
Dengan melakukan begini hujah Encik Abdillah, orang muda akan diberi peluang untuk bukan sahaja didedahkan kepada seni, tetapi juga berpeluang membuat persembahan untuk orang yang tinggal bersama mereka.
