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Tag: SINGAPOREANS FIRST Party

  • Fahmi Rais: Chance To Shape Party ‘Without Baggage’ Led Him To Join SingFirst

    Fahmi Rais: Chance To Shape Party ‘Without Baggage’ Led Him To Join SingFirst

    The opportunity to shape the direction of a new political party was what led Mr Fahmi Rais to join the team that founded Singaporeans First (SingFirst) last year.

    Now, Fahmi Rais, 48, will take a step further and stand in elections for the first time in the coming polls.

    “Because this is a new party, it has no baggage, it doesn’t have the history of who was there first, what was done in the past, so on and so forth. With a party with no baggage, every candidate, every member has an equal opportunity to shape the party the way they want it, and to me that is very critical because we do not want to come into a system and not see our ideas being taken,” the father of four said.

    Mr Fahmi is no political newbie, having been a member of the Young PAP in the early 1990s.

    After leaving the party in 1995, he was involved in various community organisations, an experience that later spurred him to enter the political arena.

    The Government, he felt was disconnected from the needs of the people, and he hopes to change this.

    As the sole Malay candidate introduced by SingFirst yesterday, the father of four said he wants to champion for the Malay-Muslim community and ensure that they can compete on the same level as other communities in Singapore.

    Fahmi Rais, 48

    Communication and media consultant

    FACT FILE:

    • Married with four children ages six to 19

    • A founding member of Singaporeans First; currently sits in the party’s Central Executive Committee

    • Has 26 years of involvement in community work

    • A Young PAP member from 1991 to 1995

    • Holds a Masters in Mass Communication and a degree in Law with Honours

    HE SAID: “It is those years that I spent on the ground that created the turning point. I had no bad experience when I was with the PAP but having listened to the people and realising how disconnect the current Government of the day is with the people on the ground, it’s a natural calling for me to try to create that difference by joining an opposition front.”

    WARD: To be announced

     

    Source: www.todayonline.com

  • SingFirst’s Ang Yong Guan: Stepping Out Of The Grassroots

    SingFirst’s Ang Yong Guan: Stepping Out Of The Grassroots

    By Biddy Low

    Dr Ang Yong Guan is an animated man with a personable demeanour.

    As he gets more impassioned with his words, his hands gesticulate more fervently, earnestly punctuating the points he holds dear.

    We met up with the chairman of SingFirst for a chat, after a recent forum held by the party, which dealt with issues such as the Central Provident Fund (CPF).

    Dr Ang had served as the chairman of the Punggol Community Club Management Committee some years ago, assisting a PAP MP for more than 15 years – until he decided to step into politics around 2003 because he felt, in his words, “something was not quite right.”

    “They were heading in the wrong direction,” he said, referring to the government.

    He now wants to pave the way for others to step forth to serve in politics, and to remove the climate of fear which he says still prevails here.

    Dr Ang served as a psychiatrist with the Singapore Armed Forces for 17 years from 1986 to 2003 and retired from the SAF as a Colonel, holding the appointment as the head of Psychological Medicine Branch (currently known as Psychological Care Centre) at the Military Medicine Institute, HQMC.

    Apart from his impressive credentials in the military, Dr Ang was also the president of the Singapore Psychiatric Association (1997-1998); chairman of the Chapter of Psychiatrists, Academy of Medicine (2001- 2003); founder/chairman of Action Group for Mental Illness (since 2004); member of National Council on Problem Gambling (since 2005); and member of the Clinical Advisory Committee for Chronic Disease Management Programme (since 2009).

    Dr Ang was awarded the Public Service Medal in 1995 for community work, and the Public Administration Medal in 1996 for military services.

    He is currently in private practice at Paragon Medical.

    In the video below, we speak to Dr Ang – who contested in the last elections under the Singapore Democratic Party’s banner – on his views about the CPF and the government’s foreign labour policy, his personal ethos that led him into opposition politics and whether his party’s name carries xenophobic connotations.

     

     

    Source: www.theonlinecitizen.com

  • SingFirst’s Latest Plans Create Crowded Field In 3 GRCs

    SingFirst’s Latest Plans Create Crowded Field In 3 GRCs

    Following the talks among the opposition parties on Monday, the Singaporeans First (SingFirst) party said yesterday it has made substantial changes to its plans, potentially giving rise to more complicated negotiations at the second round of horse-trading talks tomorrow.

    Of the four Group Representation Constituencies (GRCs) it had expressed an interest in, it will relinquish Marine Parade and Pasir Ris-Punggol. But it is now casting its eyes on three new constituencies, SingFirst secretary-general Tan Jee Say told TODAY.

    “We are discussing about Jurong, West Coast and Holland-Bukit Timah … We will probably not end up with all, but we’re now negotiating,” he said.

    Tanjong Pagar GRC, one of its original targets, is off the negotiating table too, said Mr Tan, although he will listen to an idea mooted by the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) to send a joint team there. Tampines is the remaining GRC SingFirst had staked its claim on, alongside the National Solidarity Party (NSP) — the People’s Power Party has since backed out.

    With these changes, SingFirst has, for the moment, cleared a multi-way fight in one constituency, but created a crowded field in three others.

    Its exit sets the stage for the Singapore Democratic Alliance to go head-to-head with the incumbent People’s Action Party in Pasir Ris-Punggol. Marine Parade, however, is still being claimed by the Workers’ Party and the NSP. For the new GRCs SingFirst is aiming for: The NSP has staked its claim on Jurong, the Reform Party (RP) on West Coast, and the Singapore Democratic Party on Holland-Bukit Timah.

    Asked about the likelihood that SingFirst and DPP would field a joint team in Tanjong Pagar GRC, Mr Tan said it was an initiative from DPP that has yet to come up with a proposal.

    “It’s always good to consider somebody’s offer … but we have a complete team (for the GRC) … so we have to see what they have in mind,” he said.

    Meanwhile, RP chairman Andy Zhu said the party will stand its ground in wards it had contested in the 2011 General Election, such as Ang Mo Kio and West Coast GRCs, as well as the Radin Mas single seat. RP is also interested in Jurong GRC, which has absorbed the Clementi ward it had fought in.

    Mr Zhu said the party will not hold bilateral meetings ahead of tomorrow’s meeting of opposition parties, so any resolution of issues or compromises to be struck will only be discussed then.

     

    Source: www.todayonline.com

  • Goh Meng Seng: Possible For Two Opposition Parties To Join Forces

    Goh Meng Seng: Possible For Two Opposition Parties To Join Forces

    Members of various Opposition parties gathered at the home of Singaporeans First (SingFirst) secretary-general Tan Jee Say on Saturday evening (Aug 1) for an informal discussion on how they could “work together” in the upcoming General Election.

    Veteran Opposition politician Goh Meng Seng, chief of the recently formed People’s Power Party (PPP), told reporters after the gathering that having two Opposition parties join forces to contest constituencies is a “possibility”.

    He also alluded to Opposition parties’ interest in constituencies in the West. “Personally, I think the West is a good ground. In the past, it has been very receptive. It has been neglected for about 10 to 20 years,” he said, adding that the western part of Singapore was an Opposition “hotbed” in the 80s and 90s.

    Mr Goh said the meet-up had been planned before the Electoral Boundaries Review Committee report had been released. He described the discussion as “just a sharing of ideas” and said no consensus was reached.

    Prior to Saturday’s gathering, the head of the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) Benjamin Pwee told the TODAY newspaper that six Opposition parties would be represented there – SingFirst, Singapore Democratic Alliance (SDA), Singapore People’s Party, NSP, PPP and DPP. However, SDA clarified on Facebook that it was “not aware of the meeting” and would not be attending. NSP also said in a Facebook post that its party president and secretary-general would not be at the gathering.

    Mr Goh said some of the Opposition party leaders were not present, but that party activists were, while Mr Tan said “more than half” of the Opposition parties were represented.

    DPP adviser Seow Khee Leng who was at the meeting said the parties discussed contesting in Ang Mo Kio, West Coast and Jurong GRCs. He echoed Mr Goh’s comment that Opposition parties could join forces to contest in the coming General Election. When pressed for details, Mr Seow said this would be fleshed out in Monday’s horse-trading meeting.

     

    Source: www.channelnewsasia.com

  • Singaporeans First Party To Contest Tanjong Pagar GRC

    Singaporeans First Party To Contest Tanjong Pagar GRC

    Opposition party Singaporeans First (SingFirst) said on Saturday (Aug 1) it has identified a slate of candidates to contest Tanjong Pagar GRC in the next election, but stopped short of naming them.

    Party chief Tan Jee Say said that they range from 30 to 60 years of age. He added that some of them were with him and his team of volunteers at Tiong Bahru on Saturday for their walkabouts in the five-member constituency.

    “We have a diversified and balanced slate of candidates, of various ages and various backgrounds,” Mr Tan said. He did not name the candidates, citing it as part of his party’s strategy.

    The Tanjong Pagar constituency, currently helmed by the People’s Action Party, has been uncontested since it became a multi-seat GRC in 1991.

    “For nearly 27 years since 1988, the voters of Tanjong Pagar have not had the opportunity to vote for their members of parliament, to represent their interests. So we’re coming in to give them this opportunity to elect their own Members of Parliament,” said Mr Tan.

     

    Source: www.channelnewsasia.com