GE2020: PAP unveils former IMDA chief, former IHH Healthcare CEO in election line-up

SINGAPORE – The ruling People’s Action Party (PAP) introduced four more new candidates for the General Election (GE) on Thursday (25 June) morning, bringing the total number of fresh faces unveiled so far to 19.

The line-up includes two former public servants: ex-chief executive of the Infocomm Media Development Authority (IMDA) Tan Kiat How, 42, and former Community Chest managing director Ng Ling Ling, 48.

Rounding up the first batch of candidates on Thursday are Dr Tan See Leng, 55, former group CEO and managing director of IHH Healthcare – the second-largest listed hospital group in the world by market capitalisation – and Zhulkarnain Abdul Rahim, 39, a partner at law firm Dentons Rodyk and Davidson.

In a virtual press conference streamed from PAP’s headquarters in New Upper Changi Road, Deputy Prime Minister Heng Swee Keat highlighted that the quartet came from relatively modest backgrounds and have worked their way up in their respective fields with much success.

Singapore has provided an education system and opportunities to enable the candidates to achieve what they set out to do, said Heng, who is the PAP's first assistant secretary-general.

“And creating that condition remains a very critical factor. We must continue if we want Singapore and Singaporeans to continue progress,” he added.

He also said that the party hopes to have a team that is “sufficiently diverse” to reach out to all Singaporeans from different segments of society.

“But the key thing is that we want people of integrity, we want people with a strong sense of service,” Heng added.

A total of 11 candidates were introduced on Thursday across three separate sessions, but it is not known which constituencies they will contest during the upcoming GE.

The PAP has said it will unveil 26 new candidates over three days with their ages ranging from 30 to 56. Ten of them are female candidates, the party added, as part of its efforts to bring in more women to its line-up.

Tan Kiat How: Digital divide, protecting vulnerable from online harm

Tan was appointed IMDA’s chief executive and commissioner of the Personal Data Protection Commission in January 2017. He left his post at the IMDA last Saturday.

One of his most memorable experiences in public service was setting up the Pioneer Generation Office, now known as the Silver Generation Office, from scratch, Tan said. “In two years, we mobilised 3,000 ambassadors to reach out to almost half a million pioneers.”

He was involved in developing the plans for Intelligent Nation 2015, and the implementation of the Next Generation Nationwide Broadband Network. He was also part of the team that refined the national cybersecurity strategy with the Cyber Security Agency when he served at the Ministry of Communications and Information.

Tan hopes to continue his work in bridging the digital divide in the community as well as using it to create more opportunities for workers and companies.

“COVID-19 is a crisis of a generation. But it's also an opportunity of a generation to really transform Singapore,” he said.

“We will never go back to a previous way of doing things...Things from economic policies to inclusion, social inclusion, cohesiveness, I think we should take a review of some policies and see how to adjust them to make sure that Singapore remains relevant, vibrant, united,” Tan added.

Ng Ling Ling: Social services, healthcare in the community

Describing her childhood as humble with parents who did not have many years of formal education, Ng noted that the family stayed in a neighbourhood comprising two- to three-room Housing Board flats.

“I was always very sensitive to the plight of the families I see who are affected by problems such as drugs, gambling, and other social challenges,” the mother of one added.

After graduating with a Bachelor’s in Accountancy from the Nanyang Technological University, Ng worked in the financial industry for six years before pursuing a 16-year career at the National Council of Social Service (NCSS). She also has a Master’s in Public Administration from the Australian National University.

The former managing director of Community Chest, under the NCSS, was named Her World’s Woman of the Year in 2018 for her contributions there.

“In my 16 years in the NCSS, what motivated me most was rallying people who care to step up and contribute to those who need an uplift in a community. I work relentlessly to bring the private, public, and people sectors together for resources that can have sustainable support to build a strong spirit of mutual help and solidarity,” she said.

Ng, who was chief of future primary care and director of community engagement at the Health Ministry's Office for Healthcare Transformation (MOHT) until end-March, said she spent the last two years focusing on healthcare transformation in the community.

As Singapore’s population is aging rapidly, there will be repercussions not only on the elderly but also the young here, she added.

“For the seniors, I hope to advocate for more ways to empower seniors to understand their health and to live healthily for a longer period,” said Ng.

“For young families, who have to look after the elderly parents and young children, I empathise with the stress that they will face, and I hope to find ways to support them in their caregiving (journey).”

Dr Tan See Leng: Ageing population, start-ups

The only child of a bus timekeeper and a homemaker, Dr Tan said he spent “many years growing up” in a Housing Board rental flat in Toa Payoh.

“Even though we were poor, we never really felt the need because there were fairly good subsidies. I must say that I was fortunate enough to have gained a lot in terms of the government bursaries given to make it eventually through university.

“I was able to supplement the family income by also giving part-time tuition,” added the father of three, who has a Bachelor of Medicine and Bachelor of Surgery (MBBS) from the National University of Singapore (NUS).

Dr Tan, who has more than three decades years of experience in the healthcare industry, retired as managing director and chief executive officer of IHH Healthcare at the end of last year, and is currently a corporate advisor to Temasek Holdings and an advisor to DBS Bank.

He said the experience of seeing his parents battle against their chronic health issues throughout his early years had inspired him to become a doctor. Dr Tan’s parents died of cancer in the 2000s.

Their deaths also spurred him to pursue a Master of Medicine (Family Medicine) from the National University of Singapore (NUS), and a Master of Business Administration from the University of Chicago Booth.

Dr Tan added that Emeritus Senior Minister (ESM) Goh Chok Tong has been his mentor for the last two years and that “it has been “a very rewarding and enriching experience”.

But he stressed, “The work that I've done with ESM Goh is separate from the succession (issue).”

A cause of concern for him is Singapore’s rapidly ageing population, Dr Tan also said.

“I hope to be able to contribute in this particular area to build a sustainable infrastructure system, not just to support the elderly generation, but to also build a caregiver support network to support the caregivers who actually take care of this elderly population,” Dr Tan added.

Noting that he came “almost entirely all my life from the private sector”, Dr Tan said his perspective can hopefully help bridge the gap between struggling and aspiring enterprises and access to government fundings or schemes, he added.

For instance, providing a one-stop platform for such information as well as to further simplify the policy setting for small and medium-sized enterprises and startups, said Dr Tan.

Zhulkarnain Abdul Rahim: Social mobility and cohesion

Zhulkarnain – a litigation and dispute resolution partner at Dentons Rodyk and Davidson – said he came from a large family of six siblings with his father as the sole breadwinner.

“Together, (my parents) worked hard to put us through to university. I've always believed in social mobility, social cohesion, and family values. So these are issues that I champion, and are close to my heart,” said Zhulkarnain.

“In this day and age, where the environment is conducive for the divisive, there's a lot more that we can do to work on social cohesion,” the father of three added.

Over the last decade, Zhulkarnain has been conducting free legal clinics and doing pro bono work as an assigned solicitor with the Legal Aid Bureau. Previously, he was the Chairman of the Association of Muslim Professionals.

“I think this is a crucial period, a crucial election for us. And that's why I'm standing, because I feel that we need to do something, be heard, and shape our social compact and social cohesion, not just for the next five years, but beyond.”

Zhulkarnain also expressed his wish to “humanise” Singapore’s policies.

“Post-COVID circuit breaker period, this has shown various digital inequalities amongst our people, (such as) those who cannot afford these devices to do home-based learning. But I feel is that beyond digital connectivity, is the human connectivity that we would have to look in terms of policymaking.”

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