GE2025: PAP’s David Hoe wants better access to opportunities for disadvantaged groups
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The PAP's Jurong East-Bukit Batok GRC candidates (from left) Murali Pillai, David Hoe, Lee Hong Chuang, Rahayu Mahzam (third from right) and Grace Fu (right) on a walkabout at Bukit Batok West Hawker Centre on April 29.
ST PHOTO: MICHELLE NG
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SINGAPORE – Ensuring that people from disadvantaged backgrounds have better access to opportunities is what political newcomer David Hoe hopes to champion if elected into Parliament.
This is an issue closest to his heart, said the 37-year-old PAP candidate for Jurong East-Bukit Batok GRC during a lunchtime walkabout at Bukit Batok West Hawker Centre on April 29.
Growing up, Mr Hoe took his blind mother to various coffee shops to sell tissues and wanted to be a “chicken rice store uncle”.
At the time, he thought it was a way “to break out of poverty”, said Mr Hoe in his speech at the PAP lunchtime Fullerton rally on April 28.
But in secondary school, he had the chance to teach his friend mathematics, which sparked his interest in being a teacher.
He realised then that “aspiration is a function of our experiences” – just as some children want to be badminton players because they have access to badminton courts.
Mr Hoe, a former educator who is now director of philanthropy at registered charity The Majurity Trust, noted that much has been said about the definition of success in Singapore.
But young people can do well even through non-traditional pathways, if they are given the opportunity to discover their strengths and areas of interest, he added.
“My take is, we can only define success if we know what our strengths and our areas of interest are. I think more can be done (to help) youth in Singapore discover their interests, and it could be a non-academic pathway,” he said.
“In my opinion, if we want to see greater GDP growth, that’s about people pursuing passion, and not just doing the same thing over and over again.”
Mr Hoe also plans to champion issues that young people in Singapore care about.
“I care for people’s aspirations. If there is something they care for, I’ll be a voice and speak up for it, even though I may not be fully competent about the issue... If they care about the issue, then I have the responsibility to speak up on it,” he said.
Enabling seniors to age well by ensuring the right municipal infrastructure is in place is another issue he will bring up, he added.
Mr Hoe is part of the ruling party’s Jurong East-Bukit Batok GRC team in this election, representing the Clementi ward. He takes over from former Jurong GRC MP Tan Wu Meng, who is not seeking re-election.
The PAP team, headed by Minister for Sustainability and the Environment Grace Fu, includes Ministers of State Murali Pillai and Rahayu Mahzam, as well as former Hougang branch chairman Lee Hong Chuang.
The PAP team is up against the opposition Red Dot United
On the campaign trail, Mr Hoe said he has been striving to meet every resident in the Clementi ward by going door to door.
His social media posts show him, often drenched in sweat, running from unit to unit at various HDB blocks in the ward.
Mr Hoe said: “I don’t deny the fact that, because I’m quite new to the residents, I don’t really know (them) yet. That’s why to me, every minute matters – if I can save a few seconds from walking by running, it gives me a few more seconds to speak to the residents and understand their concerns.”
He added: “I take this role with full responsibility and full seriousness, that’s why every second matters.”
