I may be missing some point when I read the following articles about PM giving his take on the 24 PAP newbies.
I have to read it a couple of times trying to understand what PM Lee is trying to say but finally I conclude it is an amazing speech of saying something without saying anything.
He did not say what make these PAP newbies special.
If PM Lee truly are impressived by these newbies by the following he said then I am slapping for forehead.
See my inserted comments in Blue.
ST 18 Apr IN HIS speech at the 25th anniversary celebrations of Young PAP on Sunday, Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong gave his take on the 24 new People's Action Party candidates.
Here's what he had to say:
Desmond Choo: 'He started out as a police scholar. He's no stranger to tough battles.'
So being a police involved lots of tough battles. With bosses?
Ong Ye Kung: 'He's now the executive secretary of the NTWU (National Transport Workers' Union) and also chairman of NTUC's e2i, and he will work hard for workers.'
Then why are you taking up additional job as an MP?
Janil Puthucheary: 'Janil grew up in Malaysia but married a Singaporean and made Singapore his home. He's a paediatric intensivist, which means he takes care of the sickest babies and children in KK Hospital.'
Huh? Taking care of sickest babies make you a choice of PAP candidates? Can tell how much he is being paid to do this job?
Foo Mee Har: 'She's worked in China and Thailand other than in Singapore so, truly an international experience.'
Er ok. So working in China and Thailand will make you have truly international experience. I went to Thailand and Taiwan for Army training so I also have true international experience.
Desmond Lee Ti-Seng: 'He was doing very well in the legal service, we spotted him, we asked him, he agreed to stand as a candidate because he wanted to improve the system that he had benefitted from.'
????
Steve Tan: '(His) father used to work for the PUB so he lived in a one-room flat in PUB quarters at Woodleigh, which is in the Potong Pasir area. Later on his parents bought an HDB flat, also in Potong Pasir and they still live there. He still lives in Potong Pasir too.'
He stay in HDB. Er.. so? Most Singaporean does. Maybe its is a novelty for the people in PAP but not to the rest of us PM Lee. Get in touch with the people please!
Zainal Sapari: 'He knows about hard work because his father used to hold three jobs. He was a cleaner, a security officer and also a gardener, all at the same time, and he did this to feed the family.'
Another novelty for PAP. Think most don’t know hard work.
Gan Thiam Poh: 'The father was an odd-job labourer. As a young boy, he was going house to house selling home-made popiah. Now he wants to give back to society.'
More hard works.
Tin Pei Ling: 'She may be young but I think she has steel in her and she knows how to connect with people and that makes all the difference on the ground.'
Huh? Steel by keeping her mouth shut and need Ministers to come to her defence. Connect with people? Make difference on the ground? I am lost.
Vikram Nair: 'He speaks Tamil and Malayalam which is quite useful for connecting with older residents.'
This is hardly a choice for choosing new candidates. Most people I know speak 2 languages.
Ang Hin Kee: 'Hin Kee introduced himself as a repeat student because he took the O levels twice but eventually he made it, he went to NUS. So he knows what failure and disappointment means but also how to pick himself up and succeed the second time.'
How man time PAP has failed Singaporean? Hope Mr Ang know how it feel and tell PM Lee that.
Ang Wei Neng: 'Wei Neng knows a lot about transportation because he works in SBS Transit and manages 1,600 public buses but that's not so hard. What is tougher is managing 3,000 staff, including 2,800 bus drivers.'
Does he take public transport everyday? If not its “talking about army on paper”
Edwin Tong: 'Very quiet and modest person but I am confident that as an MP he will care for his residents and look after their interests.'
.....
Low Yen Ling: 'At first she started working in a bank, then she left to join a start-up, the start-up didn't do well. Subsequently she worked for EDB.'
Cannot make it so join EDB then join PAP?
Tan Chuan-Jin: 'He served as army attache in Jakarta for one year, learnt Bahasa Indonesia, got in touch with the Indonesian senior officers and later he commanded the SAF tsunami mission in Meulaboh in Aceh, where this experience proved invaluable. When I visited Meulaboh during the tsunami, he showed me around and he was on top of the situation.'
Good tour guide makes you a MP.
Patrick Tay: 'Patrick believes in volunteering. He's been involved in grassroots work for 25 years although he's only 40 years old and he comes highly recommended by Prof Jayakumar.'
Good connection also makes you a MP.
Intan Azura Mokhtar: 'We interviewed Intan before and after her latest baby. She was a lecturer at Abu Dhabi University so she's quite adaptable and I'm very happy to have her in the Jalan Kayu branch in Ang Mo Kio GRC.'
Thank you for kicking out Wee Siew Kim. Glad to know you are still the same after your baby.
Lawrence Wong: 'Served in various ministries. In Finance, he implemented schemes to help Singaporeans cope with restructuring. In the Ministry of Health, he helped Khaw Boon Wan to improve the Medishield system with the Medishield reforms. Most recently he was CEO of the Energy Markets Authority.'
Failure in all ministries.
David Ong Kim Huat: 'He grew up in a two-room flat in Queenstown but made himself a successful businessman, running his own publishing firm.'
……
Alex Yam: 'Grew up in a well-to-do family but has believed in community service from young.'
Now we all know he is a rich kid! And I am sure more money for him soon.
Heng Swee Keat: 'Grew up in a kampong but made it to Cambridge.'
Geez… the way they choose candidates is getting weirder. Growing up in Kampng can be rich too mah if my father is the landlord.
Ong Teng Koon: 'He introduced himself as a heartlander because he grew up in Ang Mo Kio and still lives there with his extended family nearby, so he's one of my reliable voters.'
Gosh! Now heartlander can also a good candidate. 2 millions of us can be MP already.
Sim Ann: 'Both parents Chinese educated and herself, as you have heard, completely bilingual and represents a new generation of bilingual Singaporeans, like Gan Thiam Poh and Tin Pei Ling.'
Hey bilingual is a key now. We all can are bilingual but how competent in both langueages are us?
Chan Chun Sing: 'Another RI boy with humble beginnings. He preferred to join the Scouts for his CCA but he hesitated because the Scouts had to pay for their uniforms whereas NPCC uniforms were free. But finally he did become a scout and he picked up navigating skills which proved useful when he went to NS.'
I am speechless. RI boy! Stingy to pay uniform made him hesitate for a while and navigating skills help him in NS? So what else he does make him special?
