Juggling activist work, motherhood took a toll on Chan

Struggling to keep up with the pace of a grassroots activist’s work with two young children in tow, People’s Action Party (PAP) Serangoon branch chairman Chan Hui Yuh (picture) decided to take her name out of the running for the coming General Election, said former PAP chairman Lim Boon Heng yesterday.

Speaking at a press conference to introduce the PAP’s line-up for Aljunied GRC, Mr Lim said: “It is not easy for a young mother with two young children to continue at this pace.”

“She told me that, it’s very hard to explain to a child why mummy has to rush off all the time. It’s very difficult for her when her child says, why is it mummy you no (longer) read to me, tuck me (in)to bed? It’s also not easy for a mother to answer a child, who is sick, why she is not around,” said Mr Lim, who had choked up as he described her predicament.

Although the party wants to wrest Aljunied GRC back from the WP in the upcoming polls, Mr Lim said the PAP “will not put family relations at risk”. “It’s not (winning at) all costs. We value the family because family is the foundation of society,” he said.

Mr Yeo Guat Kwang, who has served four terms in office — one of them in Aljunied GRC — is set to fill her spot on the five-man team.

Mr Lim commended Ms Chan for stepping forward when he needed someone to repair “a fractured activist organisation in Serangoon”. “Although very young with young children, she agreed and she’s been working very hard in the last 17 months,” he said, adding that the party now has a “unified fighting force” in Serangoon.

In an e-mail response to TODAY this week, Mr Lim’s comments on Ms Chan had hinted at possible changes in the anticipated line-up for Aljunied GRC.

He had expressed his worry on whether the pressure of working in the PAP Serangoon branch while caring for her children “will be too great” on her.

Yesterday, he said Ms Chan informed the party of her decision after National Day. The party heeded Ms Chan’s appeal not to stand for election this time, and she will remain the branch chairperson in Serangoon to help with the election campaign, Mr Lim said.