Desmond Choo

Desmond Choo
MP
朱倍庆
Member of Parliament
for Tampines GRC (Tampines Changkat)
Assumed office
11 September 2015
Preceded by Irene Ng Phek Hoong
Mayor of North East District
Assumed office
27 May 2017
Preceded by Teo Ser Luck
Personal details
Born 1978
Singapore
Nationality Singapore Singapore
Political party People's Action Party
Spouse(s)
Pamela Lee (m. 2011)
[1]
Children Sarah (b. 2015)[2] Stephanie (b.2018)
Education Ai Tong Primary School
Alma mater University of Chicago

Desmond Choo Pey Ching (simplified Chinese: 朱倍庆; traditional Chinese: 朱倍慶; pinyin: Zhū Béi Qìng) is a Singaporean politician and Assistant Secretary-General of National Trades Union Congress (NTUC).[3] He is also director of NTUC's Youth Development Unit, and director of Industry Transformation and Productivity. He advocates for young workers’ issues and 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 at the Union of Telecoms Employees of Singapore and Young NTUC.

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 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 began his career in the Singapore Police Force, where he served for 13 years in various roles 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 period 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.[5]

Choo left the Singapore Police Force to join the NTUC in 2010. After initially serving as the deputy director of the NTUC's Youth Development Unit, he later became deputy director of the Industrial Relations Unit. He also previously 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 rejoined NTUC in April 2014 and is now the assistant secretary-general of National Trades Union Congress (NTUC).

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]

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. 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, sg.news.yahoo.com, 10 May 2012
  6. ↑ MP Png holds his first Meet-the-People session, My Paper, 31 May 2012
  7. ↑ PAP Press Conference: 11am, 10 May 2012 – Desmond Choo Pey Ching, pap.org.sg, retrieved 20 May 2012
  8. ↑ "GE 2011: PAP's new candidates". AsiaOne. Retrieved June 8, 2012.
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