Diehard Woodlands fan James Lim to contest FAS elections as independent candidate

SINGAPORE – For two years, he fought to save his beloved S.League club from being closed down.

During the process, Woodlands Wellington FC supporter James Lim saw many things he felt needed to be changed in Singapore football.

Now, the 52-year-old has decided that he should do his part to try to bring about these changes. He has thrown his hat in to contest the upcoming Football Association of Singapore (FAS) elections as an independent candidate for one of the six individual council member positions.

There are currently two teams contesting the elections. FAS provisional council interim president Lim Kia Tong is leading a 15-member team and will face a challenge from Hougang United chairman Bill Ng for the new presidency.

James submitted his nomination on Friday (March 24), ahead of Saturday’s 6pm deadline. Independent candidates need to be endorsed by at least one FAS affiliate and Lim’s form was endorsed by Zairi Ahmari, club secretary of National Football League (NFL) outfit GFA Sporting Westlake.

“Because of my attempts to save Woodlands Wellington, I got to see the officials heading FAS in a different light,” Lim told TODAY. 

“We faced so many obstacles and resistance from them. I thought that if these people do not change, (then) we have no future in (Singapore) football.

“I felt that (since) it was so difficult to change them from outside, I had to do it from the inside.

“I hope that by coming in, I can play my part.”

James was referring to an attempt by the S.League to merge Woodlands and fellow S.League side Hougang United after the former was forced to sit out at the end of the 2014 season due to debts.

The former People Association’s (PA) deputy director was part of a group of fans, including ex-Woodlands team manager R Vengadasalam, who opposed the merger, which eventually did not materialise. 

Last September, James joined Venga’s Team Majulah, formed to contest the FAS elections. He helped his team to scrutinise the FAS’ proposed amemndments to its constitution in order to allow for elections to take place. 

However, he left after one month and told TODAY then it was due to “different perspectives” and a busy schedule.

But Lim, a general manager of an education company who has also volunteered as a community football coach for kids aged six to 12 for the last 20 years, always maintained his interest to run as an independent candidate.

If elected, he hopes to achieve two things: bring his grassroots expertise to help develop a broader local talent base and to help keep the winning party in check.

“I see a lot of talented kids who have unfortunately been lost,” explained the father of a teenaged son. 

“The current system doesn’t work… the S.League, the NFL is struggling... I have seen how important the community is and we need to engage them. 

“These two teams are going to make a lot of promises… whoever wins, I am going to make a logbook of all their promises. 

"If I become a council member, I will ask them (winning team) how they are going to fulfil them.”

While James has his reservations about the teams led by Lim and Ng, he said: “I am prepared to work with anybody to better Singapore football. I will always give people the benefit of doubt.”