Former MP Who Lost in Sengkang GRC Had Thought About Job-Hunting After Polling Day


Advertisements
 

When the GE poll results of Sengkang GRC were announced, three people lost their jobs immediately.

Ng Chee Meng was previously a Minister in the Prime Minister’s Office, but after the GE, he continued in his role as the Secretary-General of the National Trades Union Congress (NTUC) since one doesn’t need to be an elected MP to be the head of Singapore’s trade union centre.

Dr Lam Pin Min was a Senior Minister of State for both the Ministry of Health and Ministry of Transport, and for all you know, a Sengkang GRC victory could’ve meant a promotion to a Minister for him. However, Jamus Lim and cockles happened, and Dr Lam has now rejoined the company he used to work in as a CEO.

And we hadn’t known the fate of Amrin Amin, the 42-year-old who was previously a Senior Parliamentary Secretary for the Ministry for Home Affairs and Ministry for Health. A Parliamentary Secretary is a high position in the public sector; if a Minister of State is a “Junior Minister”, then a Parliamentary Secretary is an “Assistant Minister”.

Today, we finally know where the last jobless Sengkang warrior is going.

Becoming an IT Guy

Mr Amrin is a lawyer who first contested in the 2015 General Elections in Sembawang GRC. After his victory, he was appointed as the Parliamentary Secretary of the Ministry of Home Affairs, and before GE 2020, he held the position as a Senior Parliamentary Secretary in two ministries.

So you’d have thought that he’d go back to the legal field since he’s a trained lawyer, and was a corporate lawyer and partner in a law firm before joining politics.

But no; he’s become an IT guy instead.

In an article by the Straits Times, it’s revealed that the former MP has been appointed as the strategy director at robotics and automation firm Platform for Bots and Automation (PBA).

A check online shows that the Platform for Bots and Automation (PBA), which was founded in 1987, is “a regional player in robotics solutions.”

Chim? It basically creates solutions to automate workflow, like factory automation and warehouse automation.


Advertisements
 

Mr Amrin will be focusing on the company’s Robotics Automation Centre of Excellence academy, which trains budding robotics professionals, including mid-career workers. He’s also helping the firm to expand its business locally and globally.

Sounds like a job that’ll take 100 hours a week?

Not to someone who has once worked in two ministries and as an MP concurrently.

Mr Amrin is also taking another role: as a non-executive adviser at ADERA Global, a company involved in data-security, artificial intelligence (AI) and automation.

Wait, AI and automation again?

And I thought he only looks like Mark Zuckerberg; turns out he might be the Facebook founder’s clone after all.

Image: Facebook (Amrin Amin) & Fortune

Similarly to what he’d be doing in PBA, he’ll also be expanding the business overseas.

But why?

He admitted in the interview that the day after polling day, he had started to think about job-hunting.

But we all know that for someone like him, he doesn’t need to look for jobs; jobs look for him.


Advertisements
 

That’s if he’s looking at going back to his previous trade: as a lawyer. He said it would be the “easy way”, but the Mark Zuckerberg in him was booted up and so, he got excited with the tech sector as he wanted to try out new things.

He said, “And I was looking ahead, what’s hot right now, and what is going to add value to my life experience. And the answer must be to venture into new areas, to stretch my potential beyond legal and government.”

So, everyone’s asking the same question:

Would He Be Back in Politics?

When Ong Ye Kung lost in GE 2011 as a new candidate in Aljunied GRC, he came back in 2015 and the man who looks like Daniel Dae Kim is now our new Transport Minister.

So, would Mr Amrin be back in politics?

He merely said, “Never say never.”


Advertisements
 
Image: Giphy

However, he also added, “We cannot be living in our past, neither do we want to get too ahead of ourselves.”

Sengkang GRC is now helmed by WP that comprises team leader He Ting Ru, Jamus Lim, Raeesah Khan and Louis Chua. They had won with 52.12% of the votes in July.

In a Facebook post, Mr Amrin said he has no regrets contesting in Sengkang GRC, adding that “it’s a great honour to fight one of the toughest battles for the party and stand up for what I believe in.”

I’ll be joining regional robotics and automation firm PBA as Strategy Director and data-security and AI firm ADERA…

Posted by Amrin Amin on Sunday, 6 September 2020

Yes, the man had a two-month break before resuming work.


Advertisements
 

And lest you’re not aware, he’s still very active in social media, so if you’re interested to know more about automation, AI and Mark Zuckerberg, do give him a follow at his Facebook Page here and Instagram account here.