Everything About WP’s Last Batch of Candidates Which Comprises Mainly Familiar Faces

If you look at this image, you’d go, “Oh, that’s familiar. Have we time-travelled back to 2015?”

Unfortunately, we haven’t, and the reason why it feels like a deja vu is that three of the four candidates have contested in the previous election before, and they were one of the strongest contenders then.

After reading so many news about Ivan Lim, it’s time to take a look at the last slate of candidates introduced by Workers’ Party.

Abdul Shariff Bin Aboo Kassim, 54 (Former Researcher)

Ivan Lim’s “humble beginnings” might sound like the perfect Singapore story, but Abdul Shariff Aboo Kassim’s story is just as impressive.

The 54-year-old had disrupted studies at Secondary Four to do factory work. He then went on to study as a mature student in Ngee Ann Polytechnic. Throughout his tertiary studies, he worked as a NightRider bus driver part-time and also a relief taxi driver to pay his expenses. Back then no Grab or Go-Jek lah.

He now has a Bachelor of Science (Economics) and a Master of Tri-Sector Collaboration from Singapore Management University, and is married with two children.

The former researcher, who quit his last job as the organisation has a “policy of non-partisanship”, has started volunteering at WP’s Aljunied GRC in 2012, helping Workers’ Party chief Pritam Singh at his Meet-the-People (MPS) sessions.

You can find out more about him here.

Gerald Giam Yean Song, 42 (Co-founder and Chief Technology Officer of a tech start-up company)

He is Gerald Giam. That Gerald Giam. Okay next.

…

I’m kidding. While he might not need any introduction, apolitical people like BuffLord95 might think he’s related to some Liverpool FC legend, so bear with me if this seems extremely redundant.

Mr Giam is a very familiar and outspoken WP member, having been active in Workers’ Party grassroots outreach for the past 11 years. Other than looking the same for last 11 years, the 42-year-old has contested in East Coast GRC in 2011 and 2015, and was a Non-Constituency Member of Parliament (NCMP) from 2011 – 2015.

He’s also extremely vocal in social media, voicing his opinions regularly about policies and whatnot.

You can find out more about him here.

He Ting Ru, 37 (Lawyer)

The 37-year-old was the Golden Girl back in 2015, when she contested in Marine Parade GRC.  Armed with a degree from Cambridge and a law degree from London, she’s now a mother of two young children, and that has “given her new insight and perspective on the issues and difficulties that hardworking families face.”

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She’s now the head of legal and communications at a listed multinational company in Singapore, and is running for election again because she wants her children “to be proud of their country that has overcome obstacles by bringing its most vulnerable along with it.”

Parenthood will indeed change a person. Remember Nicole Seah’s reason for contesting as well?

You can find out more about her here.

Leon Perera, 49 (CEO)

Another candidate that we’re familiar with, Mr Perera has contested in 2015 in East Coast GRC and was appointed a Non-Constituency Member of Parliament (NCMP) in the 13th Parliament, serving on the Public Accounts Committee of Parliament.

Which is why you’ve seen him in Parliament in recent years.

The graduate from Oxford University has two children…which we used to remember as “young”, but they’re now 12 and 14. How time passes.

You can find out more about him here.

Bonus: Last Three Candidates

In the Workers’ Party website, they’ve to include the former MPs that are going for re-elections too.

They’re Party Secretary-General Pritam Singh (43), Party Chair Sylvia Lim (55) and Party Vice-Chair Muhamad Faisal Bin Abdul Manap (45).

Gerald Giam and Leon Perera will join the powerhouses to contest in Aljunied GRC.

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