S’pore First Female General Has Quit SAF & Tipped to Contest in Bishan-Toa Payoh GRC

This is Singapore’s first female general:

Back in Mar 2020, Ms Gan Siow Huang had reportedly quit her job at the SAF.

During that time, people were wondering if she’ll follow in the footsteps of Minister Chan Chun Sing, a former general, and enter politics too.

After all, she was spotted alongside Defence Minister Ng Eng Hen at a Bishan-Toa Payoh group representation constituency (GRC) walkabout.

Nothing was confirmed and she told reporters that she was serving the public “as a volunteer”.

Well, it’s been more or less confirmed now.

She is Expected to Be Contesting In Bishan-Toa Payoh GRC

According to a Straits Times report on 10 Apr, she will be taking on a role at the Labour Movement as the deputy chief of e2i.

She had joined e2i in Apr 2020 and is expected to join the upcoming General Elections as a candidate for the Bishan-Toa Payoh GRC.

She Wants To Make A Difference

In an interview with ST, she revealed that she was ready to move on after more than 20 years of service in the military.

She wants to take on new challenges and contribute to the community “in a different way”, this time in the “economic area”.

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Why The Labour Movement?

When asked why she chose to join the NTUC (labour movement), she says that their mission of helping Singaporeans get better jobs resonates with her.

“The labour movement is made up of workers across different industries, and by being part of e2i and the labour movement, I would be able to have a good feel of employment and employability issues faced by Singaporeans.”

It’s going to be a particularly tough role to take on at the current moment, given how the job landscape has been upended by the Covid-19 outbreak.

Despite all that, however, she urges for younger Singaporeans to keep an open mind and take full advantage of all the help that is currently being offered out there.

She is also active in grassroots activities in Bishan.

There’s a lot of work to be done, she admits, and she’s glad to be serving the community there.

Take Advantage Of Traineeships

While not all fresh graduates can afford to do so, those who can afford to should take advantage of traineeships or skills training programmes which might bring about more benefits in the long-run in terms of career development.

Yes, the pay might not be great but you have the opportunity to develop industry-demand skills or even get a conversion (don’t bang your hope on this, though).

The worry is that fresh grads might impair themselves career-wise by going for jobs like delivery riders, PHV drivers and more which can earn them more now, but limit their potential.

For young, worried job seekers, here’s a commentary in ST that might prove very useful to you.

Boss: You know I’m reading every single article you wrote, right? Why are you feeding the competition?

See, guys? I’m risking my career here to try and help, so make sure you read that, yeah?

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