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GE2020: Former RSAF engineer only independent candidate, part of 3-corner fight at Pioneer SMC

Of the four men who tried to run in the General Election (GE) as independent candidates, only one was successful. Mr Cheang Peng Wah, a former Republic of Singapore Air Force (RSAF) engineer who declined to reveal his age, will be contesting in a three-cornered fight at Pioneer Single Member Constituency (SMC) against Mr Patrick Tay from the People’s Action Party (PAP) and Mr Lim Cher Hong from the Progress Singapore Party (PSP).

Independent candidate Cheang Peng Wah (pictured) said that his next course of action will be to release his manifesto and to decide on a logo, so that residents can better identify him.

Independent candidate Cheang Peng Wah (pictured) said that his next course of action will be to release his manifesto and to decide on a logo, so that residents can better identify him.

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  • Mr Cheang Peng Wah had wanted to take part in the General Elections in 2011 and 2015 but did not
  • This time, he is finally ready to run as an independent candidate
  • He said that he did not want to join any opposition party because they are “not up to the mark”


SINGAPORE — Of the four men who tried to run in the General Election (GE) as independent candidates, only one was successful.

Mr Cheang Peng Wah, a former Republic of Singapore Air Force (RSAF) engineer who declined to reveal his age, will be contesting in a three-cornered fight at Pioneer Single Member Constituency (SMC) against Mr Patrick Tay from the People’s Action Party (PAP) and Mr Lim Cher Hong from the Progress Singapore Party (PSP). 

On Tuesday (June 30), he arrived at the nomination centre in Jurong Pioneer Junior College at about 11am wearing a black polo tee with a white collar, with at least two of his supporters in similar attire. 

In his speech after his nomination papers were accepted, Mr Cheang thanked his supporters who were “willing and dared to stand up and make a difference for Singapore”, and for residents in the Pioneer ward to look out for him in the coming days before the polls. 

His next course of action will be to release his manifesto and to decide on a logo, so that residents can better identify him. 

Speaking to TODAY, Mr Cheang said that he used to work as a chief logistics engineer in Sembawang Air Base, though he did not say when he worked there. He left the force in 1996 to work in the Ministry of Defence, under what is now known as the Defence Science and Technology Agency. In 2000, he moved on to aviation firm Eurocopter — now known as Airbus Helicopters — where he worked until 2005. 

He then taught mathematics at Singapore Polytechnic for four years and then in 2009, he decided to venture to China with a friend to conduct courses for small- and medium-sized enterprises. He was there “for a while”, but did not elaborate on whether he is still working overseas now. 

While his work may have taken him away from Singapore, running as an independent candidate in a GE has been on his mind since at least 2011. 

During the elections that year, he had collected the candidate forms for Pioneer SMC and had prepared a red polo tee with a white collar. However, he had work in Brunei that prevented him from running for the elections then. 

In 2015, he again planned to contest and prepared a copy of his manifesto, but was persuaded not to do so.

This time, Mr Cheang is confident that he is ready. “I have been preparing for 10 years, more or less,” he said. “I think I can win here, so that’s why I'm here.” 

When asked what he could deliver to the residents at Pioneer, Mr Cheang said that he would focus on issues such as the environment, maintenance of amenities, lower cost of conservancy charges and the “intimacy between new citizens and old citizens”.

As to why he is running in Pioneer SMC, he said that he had stayed in a hostel around the area during his time studying at the Nanyang Technological University.

He also said that the SMC covers a small area, so it will be “well managed” by a “resource-scarce person”. 

On why he did not join a political party, he said that “the opposition is not fierce and strong enough” and they are “rather weak and disunited”. 

“I cannot agree with the opposition,” he said. “They can collect a group of party-hoppers and become a party.

“How can you have a political ideology that keeps changing every other year? I cannot agree with such a group of people.” 

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‘MR SUNFLOWER’ HAD NO SUPPORTERS

Apart from Mr Cheang, three other men who turned up on Nomination Day to file papers were rejected.

Mr Victor Ronnie Lai, 65, known to his friends as “Mr Sunflower”, also wanted to run as an independent candidate at Pioneer SMC.

He arrived at the nomination centre alone in his car at about 10am, dressed in camouflage joggers and a yellow tank top. In his arms, he was cradling a bunch of plastic sunflowers.

He left shortly after realising that he needed supporters with him in order to be nominated. 

Mr Ronnie Lye said that he had wanted to contest in Pioneer SMC but that did not happen. Photo: Yong Jun Yuan/TODAY

Over at Methodist Girls’ School, the nomination centre for those contesting Bukit Panjang SMC, Mr Ooi Boon Ewe — who had been disqualified from elections six times before — made an appearance at about 10am but left after a while.

His name was not among those confirmed by the returning officer. 

He told reporters before he left: “When you vote, you vote in secrecy, that is all I have to say. Remember to take along your IC on Polling Day.”

Mr Ooi Boon Ewe walking into the nomination centre at Methodist Girls’ School on June 30, 2020. Photo: Tessa Oh/TODAY

Over at Kong Hwa School, the nomination centre for Marine Parade Group Representation Constituency (GRC), another familiar face, Mr Shirwin Eu, a private-hire car driver, was spotted. He did not qualify to run for the polls. 

He made headlines in GE2015 when he tried to apply as a candidate but was rejected because he did not have the required signatures from a proposer, seconder and assentors.

He told reporters then that he would be adopting a “free for all” strategy and that he would offer “nothing” to the residents of Marine Parade GRC because they had already benefited from past policies of PAP, he said.

He was immediately turned away from contesting at the polls.

Mr Shirwin Eu (far right) answering questions from reporters on June 30, 2020. Photo: Wee Teck Hian/TODAY

During the GE that year, two independent candidates — Ms Han Hui Hui and Mr Samir Salim Neji — both lost their S$14,500 election deposits after getting less than 12.5 per cent of the vote in their respective wards.

Ms Han contested in Radin Mas SMC and got 10 per cent of the vote, while Mr Samir was in Bukit Batok SMC and received 0.6 per cent of the vote. ADDITIONAL REPORTING BY TESSA OH, NATASHA MEAH AND LORAINE LEE

Related topics

Singapore General Election SGVotes2020 independent candidate Cheang Peng Wah Nomination Day

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