Desmond Choo

Desmond Choo Pey Ching (simplified Chinese: 朱倍庆; traditional Chinese: 朱倍慶; pinyin: Zhū Bèi Qìng) is a Singaporean politician and Assistant Secretary-General of National Trades Union Congress (NTUC) and the Tampines Town Council's vice-chairmen. [3]

The Honourable Desmond Choo MP
朱倍庆
Member of Parliament for Tampines GRC (Tampines Changkat)
Incumbent
Assumed office 11 September 2015
Preceded by	Irene Ng Phek Hoong
Constituency	Tampines GRC
Mayor of North East District
Incumbent
Assumed office 27 May 2017
Preceded by	Teo Ser Luck
Constituency	Tampines GRC
Personal details
Born	1978 Singapore
Nationality	Singaporean
Political party	People's Action Party
Spouse(s)	Pamela Lee ​ (m. 2011)​ [1]
Children	2[2]
Education	Ai Tong School
Alma mater	University of Chicago

He is also the Director of Policy Division at NTUC that oversees the economic and social policies, strategic communications and international affairs. He advocates for young workers and young families, helps workers cope with restructuring and make the most of new job opportunities highlighted in the Industry Transformation Maps. He is also the Executive Secretary of the Union of Telecoms Employees of Singapore and Advisor to the Young NTUC Committee.

A member of the country's governing People's Action Party (PAP), he is currently a mayor of the North East District of Singapore. He has been a Member of Parliament (MP) representing the Tampines Group Representation Constituency for Tampines Changkat since 2015. He was sworn in as Mayor of North East CDC on May 24 2017.

Choo stood as a candidate for Singapore's governing People's Action Party (PAP) at the 2011 general election in the single-member constituency of Hougang, where he was defeated by Yaw Shin Leong of the Workers' Party by 14,850 votes (64.8%) to 8,065 (35.2%).[4] (The constituency had previously been represented in Parliament by the Workers' Party's leader, Low Thia Khiang, from 1991 to 2011.) After Yaw was expelled from the Workers' Party and lost his seat in Parliament in 2012, the PAP announced that Choo would be the party's candidate in the 2012 Hougang by-election.[5] He was defeated in the by-election by Png Eng Huat of the Workers' Party by 13,460 votes (62.1%) to 8,223 (37.9%).[6]

Career

Choo was awarded a government university scholarship and upon graduation, he served his scholarship bond in the Singapore Police Force, where he served 12 years in senior officer ranks including commanding officer of the Woodlands Neighbourhood Police Centre, head of the Special Investigation Section and deputy commander of the Clementi Police Division. He also served a stint on secondment to the Ministry of Manpower, where he was the deputy director of the Foreign Workforce Policy Department and was also a bodyguard assistant for the swearing-in of Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong and other new cabinet ministers at the Istana on 12 August 2004.

Choo resigned from the Singapore Police Force with the rank of Deputy Superintendent of Police to join the NTUC in 2010. After serving on probation as the deputy director of the NTUC's Youth Development Unit, he later became deputy director of the Industrial Relations Unit. He also concurrently served as the executive secretary of the Union of Security Employees and the Singapore Shell Employees Union.

After a stint in 2013 in the private sector with Kestrel Capital Pte Ltd, an investment firm, Desmond returned to the public sector to rejoin NTUC in April 2014 and is now the assistant secretary-general of National Trades Union Congress (NTUC).

He was then appointed Chairperson of Manpower Government Parliamentary Committee (GPC) in the 14th Parliament of Singapore.

Education

Choo was educated at Ai Tong School, Catholic High School and National Junior College, before being awarded a Singapore Police Force Overseas Merit Scholarship to study Economics at the University of Chicago.[7]

Personal life

Choo married in July 2011.

Choo's uncle, Choo Wee Khiang, was a PAP Member of Parliament from 1988 to 1999,[8] who Choo described as his source of inspiration for his political works.[9]

References

1. "Desmond Choo - Page Info". Official Facebook page. Facebook.
2. "Desmond Choo's Photos". Facebook. Archived from the original on 6 January 2016. Retrieved 6 January 2016.
3. Teo Wang Gek. "Contest will be tough, says PAP's Desmond Choo". The Big Story. The Straits Times. Archived from the original on 20 May 2012. Retrieved 19 May 2012.
4. Parliamentary General Election 2011: Hougang SMC Archived 2012-03-30 at the Wayback Machine, singapore-elections.com, retrieved 20 May 2012
5. PAP chooses Desmond Choo as Hougang by-election candidate Archived 2012-05-21 at the Wayback Machine, sg.news.yahoo.com, 10 May 2012
6. MP Png holds his first Meet-the-People session Archived 2012-06-02 at the Wayback Machine, My Paper, 31 May 2012
7. PAP Press Conference: 11am, 10 May 2012 – Desmond Choo Pey Ching Archived 6 March 2016 at the Wayback Machine, pap.org.sg, retrieved 20 May 2012
8. "GE 2011: PAP's new candidates". AsiaOne. Archived from the original on April 15, 2011. Retrieved June 8, 2012.
9. "Hougang man has a heart for the needy". Archived from the original on 24 March 2011. Retrieved 18 June 2019.

External links

• Desmond Choo on Parliament of Singapore