PAP’s Desmond Choo on Hougang by-election: I’ll be ready to answer any call
Former People’s Action Party (PAP) Hougang candidate Desmond Choo says he is “ready to answer any call” to contest if a by-election is called in Hougang single member constituency (SMC).
The Hougang SMC seat is vacant after the Workers’ Party expelled Yaw Shin Leong from the party with immediate effect on Wednesday, paving the way for a by-election to be held under the Constitution.
"Whether I will be fielded as a candidate is for the party leadership to decide,” the 34-year-old told Yahoo! Singapore on Thursday.
“For us, our core work has not changed and will not alter. We have been serving the community and this has been our commitment all along -- to serve and take care of Hougang residents,” said Choo, who is the deputy director of NTUC's youth development unit and the executive secretary of the Union of Security Employees.
“Our various social assistance and bonding initiatives have been welcomed by the community. We will continue to deliver even more meaningful initiatives in Hougang.”
Choo was one of the seven candidates from the labour movement out of PAP’s slate of 24 new faces introduced at the May elections last year.
He garnered 35.2 per cent of votes - the lowest electoral percentage result for the PAP since the 1988 General Election - losing to Yaw Shin Leong.
The PAP candidate who fared the best throughout Hougang SMC’s elections was Tang Guan Seng in 1988 with about 59 per cent.
