Nine new Nominated MPs - all fresh faces

An Olympic swimmer, a conservation scientist and an economics professor are among the nine new Nominated Members of Parliament (NMPs).

Mr Mark Chay, 38; Professor Koh Lian Pin, 44; and Professor Hoon Hian Teck, 61, like the rest, are all first-time NMPs, and will be appointed by President Halimah Yacob for a 21/2 year term. Their names were announced by Parliament yesterday.

The others are: NTUC vice-president Abdul Samad Abdul Wahab, 48; security industry association head Raj Joshua Thomas, 41; Sistic chairman Janet Ang, 61; GuocoLand group managing director Cheng Hsing Yao, 49; dental surgeon and National Youth Council member Shahira Abdullah, 33; and Singapore Medical Association president Tan Yia Swam, 40.

The nine were selected by a Special Select Committee of Parliament, chaired by Speaker Tan Chuan-Jin.

They were selected from a total of 61 names, 46 of whom applied on their own. The remaining 15 names were submitted by the seven functional groups representing business and industry; labour; the professions; tertiary education institutions; social service organisations; the civic and people sector; and the media, arts and sports organisations.

As most of the candidates were qualified and of good calibre, it was a challenge to select just nine from the list, the committee said in its report released yesterday.

In announcing the list, Mr Tan said: "With many high-calibre candidates stepping forward for consideration, it was not an easy task for the Select Committee to nominate the maximum of nine NMPs."

"After careful deliberation, we have determined that the nine nominees have fulfilled all constitutional criteria and are eligible for appointment," he added. "Collectively, they also have creditable accomplishments in their individual fields and a good grasp of issues they are passionate about. I thus look forward to the rich diversity of insights and experiences they can bring to the House when we debate matters concerning Singapore and Singaporeans."

Among the key criteria the committee looked out for in assessing each candidate, as set out in the Constitution on the selection of NMPs, was whether he or she had rendered distinguished public service, brought honour to the Republic and would be able to reflect as wide a range of independent and non-partisan views as possible.

The committee said it had also considered factors such as whether the person was willing to commit the time to take part in parliamentary proceedings, and understood the current issues and challenges facing Singapore.

The NMP scheme was introduced in 1990 to ensure a wide representation of views in Parliament. There can be up to nine NMPs each term, lasting 21/2 years.

Leader of the House Indranee Rajah, who is Minister in the Prime Minister's Office and was on the eight-member committee, hopes the new NMPs will bring fresh perspectives and ideas as Singapore works to navigate the Covid-19 pandemic and emerge stronger.

"We have a good slate of nine NMPs who have distinguished themselves through their contributions to society or in their respective fields, and whose specialised knowledge will add to the depth and breadth of the debates in Parliament," she added.

The others in the committee were ministers Chan Chun Sing, Gan Kim Yong, Maliki Osman and Vivian Balakrishnan; Minister of State Gan Siow Huang; and Workers' Party MP for Aljunied GRC Leon Perera.

Covid-19 was also on the minds of the nominees, with Mr Abdul Samad saying that he will champion the needs of workers affected by the economic downturn.

Prof Hoon, meanwhile, hopes to contribute to finding new ways to generate economic prosperity, while Mr Chay and Prof Koh want to speak about how their respective sectors of sports and the environment also present opportunities amid the crisis.

President Halimah will present the instruments of appointment to the NMPs at the Istana next Thursday, and the NMPs will take their oath at the next sitting of Parliament next month.