PM LEE ANNOUNCES TEAM CANDIDATES FOR ANG MO KIO GRC

The six PAP candidates for Ang Mo Kio GRC will be:

63 year-old Mr Lee Hsien Loong - Mr Lee is the third and current Prime Minister of Singapore and has been in office since August 2004. He is the Party’s Secretary-General, and has been an MP for Teck Ghee since 1984 and a member of the Cabinet since 1987.

"In the PAP team we are renewing our slate and presenting new candidates, and reinforcing our team with potential office holders to strengthen the leadership, to form the next generation of leaders that will take over me and my team," Mr Lee said.

"Today we remind ourselves what this next election is about and what's at stake: It's about our future. Every constituency will be contested. You're voting to choose party and team you can trust to safeguard your future and a team of MPs to take care of town council and look after your town.

"Your vote decides the ministers who will look after Singapore."

51 year-old Mr Gan Thiam Poh, senior vice-president, DBS - A first-term MP, having entered politics in the 2011 General Election in the Pasir Ris-Punggol GRC, Mr Gan's Punggol South was ward hived off to Ang Mo Kio GRC under the new electoral boundaries.

Mr Gan said he had mixed feelings about moving between GRCs.

"I look back to the years since 2011 and I really cherish many milestones with the residents, and the camaraderie and friendships I've forged with the residents and volunteers there. Their enthusiasm has encouraged me to press on," he said.

"When the boundaries were announced, I gave my colleagues at Pasir Ris-Punggol that I will continue to work on the projects we've been working on. I'll try to make this area, Punggol South, a better home for everyone."

Come the elections, Punggol South will be renamed Ang Mo Kio-Punggol, Mr Gan said.

49 year-old Mr Ang Hin Kee, Assistant Secretary-General of National Trades Union Congress - The Assistant Secretary-General of NTUC, Mr Ang is also executive adviser to the National Taxi Association and holds positions in the Singapore Shell Employees’ Union and Education Services Union. He has been an MP for Ang Mo Kio GRC since 2011, and is also a member of the GPCs for Social and Family Development, as well as Transport.

39 year-old Dr Intan Azura Mokhtar, Member of Parliament - Dr Intan is a member of the Government Parliamentary Committees (GPCs) for Defence and Foreign Affairs, as well as Education. She was previously an assistant professor with the National Institute of Education from 2009 to 2014. She has been an MP for Ang Mo Kio GRC since 2011.

"There's a lot that has happened over the last 4 years. I've learnt a lot about the concerns of residents, whether its about cost of living, housing for certain groups - these are the issues I hope I will be given the opportunity to voice out about if I'm given the opportunity in the next term in Parliament," said Dr Intan.

43 year-old Dr Koh Poh Koon, colorectal surgeon - Dr Koh contested the Punggol East seat for the PAP in the 2013 by-election, following the resignation of ex-Speaker of Parliament Michael Palmer. He lost the seat to the Workers’ Party’s Lee Li Lian. He is a colorectal surgeon in private practice, and a visiting surgeon at both SGH and CGH.

Dr Koh has been a grassroots volunteer since 2002 and is now the Vice-Chair of the Citizen’s Consultative Committee in Yio Chu Kang.

"Serving in different areas, meeting different people, gives me different perspectives on the issues faced by different people. I believe that what matters most is not where we serving but serving with our heart, to the best of our ability," he said at the press conference.

“It’s been often said that a measure of a nation’s greatness is how it treats its weakest members. As a Singaporean, I feel it is time to play an active role in charting the future of Singapore – to help the weakest in society, to improve our quality of life and to build a stronger nation," added Dr Koh.

"The Hippocratic Oath demands that doctors serve with the highest standards of honesty and integrity. I believe that the same applies in government service. I want to make our community a better place to live in and I will work to create opportunities for all Singaporeans to realise their fullest potential."

He added: "I want to characterise what we want to do here in three words: Renew. Refresh. Rejuvenate."

44 year-old Mr Darryl David, deputy director at Temasek Polytechnic’s School of Design - The former TV personality, well-known for a stint as host of The Pyramid Game, has been helping in the Sengkang West ward since last June, while also understudying veteran Ang Mo Kio MP Yeo Guat Kwang.

He is a member of the 14th National Youth Council, the SG50 Education and Youth Committee and the Pioneer Generation Taskforce. He presently serves as a council member of the Central Singapore CDC, and actively contributes as a Vice-Chairman on the Ang Mo Kio-Hougang’s Citizen’s Consultative Committee (CCC). He is Vice-Chairman of the Publicity and Communications Committee of the Ang Mo Kio Town Council.

"Ang Mo Kio has a place in my heart and I'm very connected to the area. I've built up a strong relationship with the people of Ang Mo Kio, a friendship with the residents and grassroots leaders, and I hope to continue serving residents in the area," he said at the press conference.

"As an educator for the last 14 years, I believe that because everyone learns and develops differently, it is only with patience and empathy that we can truly realise the potential of an individual. This is the approach that I have taken towards grassroots and community work as well – to empathise with those who need help, to understand their unique challenges and to assist them, the best I can," added Mr David.

"I still have much to learn, but believe that the experiences that I have gained so far will allow my grassroots team and I to continue to contribute to society and to serve the community well, if we are given that opportunity.

“I believe that all of us should do whatever we can, whenever we can and wherever we can, to help those who are less fortunate in society. No act of kindness is too small; no amount of effort too insignificant.”

Mr Lee, Mr Ang, and Dr Intan are the only remaining members of the PAP team which contested Ang Mo Kio GRC at the 2011 GE. Back then, the PAP won 69.33 per cent of the vote against a Reform Party team made up of candidates Arthero Lim Tung Hee, Lim Zirui, Mansor Rahman, Alex Tan Zhixiang, Vigneswari Ramachandran and Osman Sulaiman.

RP could possibly go head-to-head with the PAP team in Ang Mo Kio for the upcoming GE, after newcomer SingFirst announced that it would step aside to avoid a multi-cornered fight.