As a young Member of Parliament from Singapore's long-ruling People's Action Party (PAP) holding no official government portfolio, Christopher de Souza has perhaps more reason than his peers to prove his relevance as a legislator.
In response to critics who say that PAP MPs are not vocal enough, the 35-year-old lawyer and MP for Holland-Bukit Timah GRC argued that backbenchers like him put forth their views on issues passionately.
"I've debated things like gambling passionately, I debated the HOTA (Human Organ Transplants Act) passionately, and that's what we are there for," Mr de Souza said.
"We are there to represent the views of the people and request for policy changes, for fine-tuning and for the government to understand the issues on the ground. So, no, I totally disagree that PAP MPs do not have bite."
In an exclusive interview with Yahoo! Singapore, Mr de Souza shared his views on the upcoming General Election (GE) and his plan to help mothers in his constituency.
Electoral contests welcomed
While the next General Election — technically due by 2012 —has yet to be called, Mr de Souza expects it to be a heated contest. He thinks that more Group Representation Constituencies (GRCs) and almost all the Single Member Constituencies (SMCs) might be contested.
He is also likely to face some contest in his own backyard.
In a previous interview, James Gomez of the Singapore Democratic Party (SDP) had told Yahoo! Singapore that he plans to contest in the Holland-Bukit Timah constituency. In the past few weeks, members of the SDP have also been seen doing their walkabouts around the Bukit Timah Food and Market Centre.
"If SDP would like to come, then we invite them and we will invite the contest," said Mr de Souza.
The Holland-Bukit Timah GRC, which was formed in 2006, comprises of a 5-member team led by Minister Lim Swee Say. It won a walkover or victory in an uncontested race during the last election.
Prior to the 2006 election, the constituency was known as Holland-Bukit Panjang but was then renamed after Bukit Panajng was carved out into an SMC.
While elections are important, Mr de Souza stressed that serving the residents should be the first priority. "We serve the people not with elections in mind. We serve the people because we feel we want to and we want to serve."
When asked whether the PAP MPs are election ready, he said, "I think we are election ready, because it's not about scrambling at the last minute doing all the last minute initiatives."
The youth and mothers
He also highlighted that the party's campaign would still focus on bread and butter issues, such as economy, family, education and defence, all of which have always been its priorities.
With the youth being more educated and demanding greater political openness, Mr De Souza also said that the PAP hopes to further achieve engagement on topical or sensitive issues.
Still, he dismissed claims that the youth are under any climate of fear, saying that he has met young adults who are bold enough to discuss sensitive topics.
"I think you should be free to talk about the aspirations for the country, how to fulfill their dreams, what education they want, what they want for their own children," he said.
While they are encouraged to engage freely in political discourse, he noted that the youth should be respectful of 'outbound markers', especially regarding topics on race and religion.
Expressing concern for the mothers in his constituency, Mr de Souza said his aim is to do more for them, especially for those who are unemployed and fall under the low-income group.
One solution he says is to provide a full-day childcare centre which will allow mothers in the area to find employment and, in turn, contribute to the total household income.
One plan is to introduce a full-day PAP Community Foundation-run childcare centre at one of the void decks in Ghim Moh and another centre in Sunset Way estate to be operated by NTUC.
"So the mothers who want to work can send their children there and work. That can complement the salary of the household income, as well also to give mothers a break," said Mr de Souza.
Nothing like the human touch
Although he acknowledged the importance of social networking tools such as Facebook and Twitter in reaching out to others, Mr de Souza also relies strongly on that human touch to get a feel of his residents' sentiments.
"This is something I feel very strongly about, there's nothing like the human touch, about human interaction. Getting a sense how the person actually is," he said.
"I rely on house and market visits, shaking of a hand, looking at a person in the eye and ask can I help you, what do you need? Is everything all right? Those are some answers that you cannot get from Facebook."
Source: http://sg.news.yahoo.com/blogs/sing...te-christopher-souza-20110322-195554-863.html
In response to critics who say that PAP MPs are not vocal enough, the 35-year-old lawyer and MP for Holland-Bukit Timah GRC argued that backbenchers like him put forth their views on issues passionately.
"I've debated things like gambling passionately, I debated the HOTA (Human Organ Transplants Act) passionately, and that's what we are there for," Mr de Souza said.
"We are there to represent the views of the people and request for policy changes, for fine-tuning and for the government to understand the issues on the ground. So, no, I totally disagree that PAP MPs do not have bite."
In an exclusive interview with Yahoo! Singapore, Mr de Souza shared his views on the upcoming General Election (GE) and his plan to help mothers in his constituency.
Electoral contests welcomed
While the next General Election — technically due by 2012 —has yet to be called, Mr de Souza expects it to be a heated contest. He thinks that more Group Representation Constituencies (GRCs) and almost all the Single Member Constituencies (SMCs) might be contested.
He is also likely to face some contest in his own backyard.
In a previous interview, James Gomez of the Singapore Democratic Party (SDP) had told Yahoo! Singapore that he plans to contest in the Holland-Bukit Timah constituency. In the past few weeks, members of the SDP have also been seen doing their walkabouts around the Bukit Timah Food and Market Centre.
"If SDP would like to come, then we invite them and we will invite the contest," said Mr de Souza.
The Holland-Bukit Timah GRC, which was formed in 2006, comprises of a 5-member team led by Minister Lim Swee Say. It won a walkover or victory in an uncontested race during the last election.
Prior to the 2006 election, the constituency was known as Holland-Bukit Panjang but was then renamed after Bukit Panajng was carved out into an SMC.
While elections are important, Mr de Souza stressed that serving the residents should be the first priority. "We serve the people not with elections in mind. We serve the people because we feel we want to and we want to serve."
When asked whether the PAP MPs are election ready, he said, "I think we are election ready, because it's not about scrambling at the last minute doing all the last minute initiatives."
The youth and mothers
He also highlighted that the party's campaign would still focus on bread and butter issues, such as economy, family, education and defence, all of which have always been its priorities.
With the youth being more educated and demanding greater political openness, Mr De Souza also said that the PAP hopes to further achieve engagement on topical or sensitive issues.
Still, he dismissed claims that the youth are under any climate of fear, saying that he has met young adults who are bold enough to discuss sensitive topics.
"I think you should be free to talk about the aspirations for the country, how to fulfill their dreams, what education they want, what they want for their own children," he said.
While they are encouraged to engage freely in political discourse, he noted that the youth should be respectful of 'outbound markers', especially regarding topics on race and religion.
Expressing concern for the mothers in his constituency, Mr de Souza said his aim is to do more for them, especially for those who are unemployed and fall under the low-income group.
One solution he says is to provide a full-day childcare centre which will allow mothers in the area to find employment and, in turn, contribute to the total household income.
One plan is to introduce a full-day PAP Community Foundation-run childcare centre at one of the void decks in Ghim Moh and another centre in Sunset Way estate to be operated by NTUC.
"So the mothers who want to work can send their children there and work. That can complement the salary of the household income, as well also to give mothers a break," said Mr de Souza.
Nothing like the human touch
Although he acknowledged the importance of social networking tools such as Facebook and Twitter in reaching out to others, Mr de Souza also relies strongly on that human touch to get a feel of his residents' sentiments.
"This is something I feel very strongly about, there's nothing like the human touch, about human interaction. Getting a sense how the person actually is," he said.
"I rely on house and market visits, shaking of a hand, looking at a person in the eye and ask can I help you, what do you need? Is everything all right? Those are some answers that you cannot get from Facebook."
Source: http://sg.news.yahoo.com/blogs/sing...te-christopher-souza-20110322-195554-863.html
