Skip to main content

Advertisement

Advertisement

GE2020: WP’s Nathaniel Koh, a parent-to-be, hopes to champion cause of young families

SINGAPORE — The stand-out moment for Mr Nathaniel Koh in his 12 years with the Workers’ Party (WP) was an interview by then-WP chief Low Thia Khiang, when the former applied to be a member in 2009.

Mr Nathaniel Koh is part of the Workers' Party team contesting Marine Parade GRC.

Mr Nathaniel Koh is part of the Workers' Party team contesting Marine Parade GRC.

Follow TODAY on WhatsApp

 

  • Mr Nathaniel Koh joined WP in 2009 as he believes there's a need for more voices in Parliament
  • He wants to champion the cause of young families, if elected
  • He also hopes Singaporeans will realise “it's okay to vote for WP”

 

SINGAPORE — The stand-out moment for Mr Nathaniel Koh in his 12 years with the Workers’ Party (WP) was an interview by then-WP chief Low Thia Khiang, when the former applied to be a member in 2009.

Mr Low told Mr Koh that he has to focus on his studies, his family and his job. “And then, you can focus on the party and the country,” said Mr Koh.

“The reason he told me that was because if your life is not smooth, how can you have that peace of mind to help the party and to help the country by extension?”

Eleven years later, Mr Koh’s life now revolves around WP. His mother volunteered with the party — manning the registration booth at Mr Muhamad Faisal Manap’s meet-the-people sessions — and his wife Pamela is actively helping out the party in the elections, having been a member since 2012.

Mr Koh is part of WP's five-man team contesting Marine Parade Group Representation Constituency (GRC), a PAP stronghold previously helmed by Emeritus Senior Minister Goh Chok Tong.

The other members of the WP team are Mr Yee Jenn Jong, 55; Mr Ron Tan, 35; Mr Fadli Fawzi, 39; and Mr Azhar Abdul Latip, 34.

TODAY sat down with Mr Koh for 30 minutes on Nomination Day (June 30) at a coffee shop along Chai Chee Avenue, after he was done talking to residents in the area.

The 36-year-old, an IT professional in a multinational corporation, related a conversation he just had with the zi char store lady before the interview: “I passed the calling card and she said, ‘I'm not a Singaporean’. I said it's okay. We are all people.

“Whether or not you are a permanent resident or a foreigner, when you come to our meet-the-people session, we will help you as best as we can.”

It was an attitude he picked up from his time helping then-MP for Aljunied GRC Mr Faisal at weekly meet-the-people sessions and grassroots events from 2011 to 2015.

Mr Faisal also taught him not to give up, if his efforts in helping residents do not bear fruit.

“What he taught me was that no matter how many times you don't succeed, you can always write that one more letter for the resident to the government agency,” Mr Koh said. “As long as there's a chance you can continue to appeal.”

JOINING THE WP

As an undergraduate in Singapore Management University (SMU), Mr Koh, then 29, had racked up an impressive list of leadership roles in his co-curricular activities.

He was the SMU Association’s finance secretary and a leader in Toastmasters Club, an international organisation dedicated to helping people improve their communication and leadership skills, achieving the title of Distinguished Toastmaster for communication and leadership excellence in 2006.

His leadership experience made him realise the benefit of debate in making better decisions, and he believes that having differing views would be good in governing Singapore.

“We need diversity in Parliament, and Parliament is the highest policy-making body in any country. That is why I joined the Workers’ Party as a volunteer in 2008 and stepped forward to become a member in 2009,” Mr Koh said.

He also hopes to champion the cause of young families, not surprising considering his wife is expecting their first child, a boy, in September.

“Being a new parent can sometimes be quite stressful, not just in terms of finances, but also in terms of the social aspects,” said Mr Koh.

“Certain social constraints might push some parents off having children, or even a second or third child.”

He noted that the paternity leave take-up rate in Singapore has stagnated at 65 per cent between 2016 and 2018, which he suggests could be due to some companies’ culture.

Mr Koh also hopes to make the re-entry of homemakers into the workforce easier, if elected.

“When some companies see a gap in your employment, they feel that (you are) not very suitable, and feel that it would be better to hire somebody with more recent experience because they are afraid of having to retrain them,” said Mr Koh.

“We have to shift that mindset to help parents who want to take care of their child at home in their early years to re-enter the workforce smoothly and effectively.”

IF ELECTED...

During his introduction on June 27, Mr Koh said that there is a need for checks and balances in Parliament.

When questioned why, Mr Koh said it was because “competition is inherently good”, noting that the telecom industry and open electricity market has provided Singaporeans with better quality services and lower costs when there was a wide variety of choices.

“If there's one party that is 100 per cent elected in Parliament, you can have groupthink… That’s why checks and balances are important in Parliament.

“It improves the government's policies, (and) life gets better for Singaporeans because there is a strong WP presence contributing to the debate in Parliament.”

Although he is contesting alongside an all-male team, Mr Koh pointed out that WP’s slate of candidates has a “good mix of gender, race, personalities and professions as well”.

“I hope by the end of a five-year term, if I have the privilege to be elected, that Singaporeans can see that it's okay to vote for WP because WP is a rational, responsible and respectable party in parliament,” he said.

Related topics

Workers' Party Nathaniel Koh Singapore General Election SGVotes2020

Read more of the latest in

Advertisement

Advertisement

Stay in the know. Anytime. Anywhere.

Subscribe to get daily news updates, insights and must reads delivered straight to your inbox.

By clicking subscribe, I agree for my personal data to be used to send me TODAY newsletters, promotional offers and for research and analysis.