Double Directorship At NTUC For Desmond Choo! Vote For Desmond!

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An honorable member of the Coffee Shop Has Just Posted the Following:

Desmond Choo is so capable that he can hold two directorships, be actively involved in both grassroots volunteer work and politics. If more sinkies were like him, they won't have to worry about foreigners stealing their lunches. Seriously, sinkies need to shape up. Or go be security guard or taxi driver.

Quote:
The Straits Times (ST) reported on 20 Mar (‘Desmond Choo returns to NTUC’) that previous PAP candidate for Hougang SMC, Desmond Choo Pey Ching, who is the nephew of disgraced former PAP MP Choo Wee Khiang, is returning to NTUC. He had resigned from NTUC in May 2013 some 2 years ago to join the private sector.

The report also said that Mr Choo is likely to contest in the forthcoming general election, but not in Hougang anymore where he has had no luck defeating first Yaw Shin Leong (May 2011 general election), then Png Eng Huat (May 2012 by-election), of the Workers’ Party.

A year after he lost the Hougang by-election, he left NTUC to join Kestrel Capital, where he was the senior vice-president of investments. Kestrel Capital is owned by billionaire investor Peter “Remisier King” Lim.

The former overseas government scholar was a police officer for 13 years before joining NTUC in 2010, a year before he first contested Hougang in 2011.

ST reported that Mr Choo will be getting a promotion too, after he returns to NTUC. He will hold 2 senior posts from 20 April 2015 – one as the new director of youth development and the other, deputy director of industrial relations, a position he held before he quit NTUC in 2013.

NTUC’s human resource director, Jacqueline Chin, told reporters that Mr Choo will be involved in union work, such as implementing NTUC’s progressive wage model.

Mr Choo told ST that he looked forward to using his private-sector experience (less than 2 years) in strengthening the tripartite partnership among unions, employers and the government.

“Workers’ welfare and employability and corporate success go hand in hand,” he said bombastically. “Advocacy without understanding business structures and concerns will ultimately lead to roadblocks and misunderstandings.”

Of course, on the other hand, having too much concern for employers may also lessen the effectiveness of worker advocacy.

Mr Choo also said that he wants to work on integrating NTUC’s progressive wage model with SkillsFuture, a new government initiative to develop a system of lifelong learning for workers using subsidies, study awards and training programmes.

ST reported that Mr Choo was likely to contest Tampines GRC in the next general election and “very likely” to take over from Mah Bow Tan, the National Development Minister before he was replaced by Khaw Boon Wan after the 2011 general election.

Mr Choo is now second adviser to grassroots organisations in Tampines East, the ward which Mr Mah oversees.

Abandoning Hougang residents?

Mr Choo must be thinking that he stands a higher chance of winning election by contesting in Tampines GRC.

As recently as August 2014, Mr Choo was seen participating in Hougang grassroots activities. At the time, there was speculation that he might be leaving Hougang. He told the media then, “I know there are a lot of speculations in the ground, but my focus is still on the Hougang residents. There is a need to build a good framework to take care of residents. This remains unchanged.”

4 months later in December 2014, he seemed to do an about-turn and switched his focus to Tampines and its residents. He even promised to improve the Tampines neighborhood “for many years to come”:



A Facebook user asked, “So now Desmond Choo is going to tell Tampines residents that he will be ‘Always here for you’ after abandoning the Hougang residents? Will he also pull the same ‘Teochew porridge’ trick in Tampines?”

The reader was referring to the “tactic” used by Mr Choo during the Hougang by-election in 2012. As part of his campaign, he gave out free Teochew porridge, free hearing aids and a $100,000 toilet upgrade courtesy of the Rotary Club. The Hougang residents were, however, unmoved and he lost to WP’s Png Eng Huat.

In the forthcoming general election, Mr Choo will perhaps be giving out free $2.50 nasi padang meals to Tampines residents instead? The sort of meal that his fellow PAP colleague for Tampines, Baey Yam Keng, likes to eat?

What do you think?

http://www.tremeritus.com/2015/03/30...h-in-tampines/




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