http://news.asiaone.com/News/AsiaOne+News/Singapore/Story/A1Story20110510-277940.html
By Jecolia Tong
SINGAPOREANS hung on to every word he uttered last Saturday. As Returning Officer (RO), he delivered live the election results in a neutral tone and with a deadpan expression - and became an overnight star.
Some pages also mischievously propose Mr Yam for President while others have labeled him a legend and "Returning Officer Extraordinaire".
True to his dutiful image projected on national television, Mr Yam Ah Mee, 53, the chief executive director of People's Association (PA), finally "spoke" to the media about his fame last night.
Well, not exactly. Despite numerous requests for an interview, he gave the press a brief statement via his assistant director at PA.
"As the Returning Officer (RO), my role is to ensure the conduct of the election proceedings in a professional and impartial manner, and uphold the Civil Service core values of integrity, service and excellence."
Flooded with questions about his thoughts on his sudden rise to fame, he responded humbly: "I was carrying out my role as RO to the best of my ability and I am surprised by the overnight attention that I received. " He did not answer my paper's question as to whether the tenor of his voice was a result of a voice-box operation.
His unexpected stardom has also sparked an entrepreneurial fervour. Aside from various YouTube clips and remixes of his delivery, unofficial Yam Ah Mee merchandise is now on sale. Facebook user Xylvie Huang Xinying is selling shirts, mugs and badges priced between $2.90 and $27.90.
Not surprisingly, Mr Yam has been inundated with Facebook friend requests. my paper reported yesterday that a Facebook fan page called "Yam Ah Mee, Returning Officer Extraordinaire" had garnered close to 30,000 "likes". It has since hit 37,900 as of 10pm last night.
"Before this I had some 1,200 friends on my own Facebook page which is a platform for me to connect with my local and foreign friends," he said in the statement.
A check of his Facebook profile at 10pm last night showed that he has already made more than 2,370 friends.
By Jecolia Tong
SINGAPOREANS hung on to every word he uttered last Saturday. As Returning Officer (RO), he delivered live the election results in a neutral tone and with a deadpan expression - and became an overnight star.
Some pages also mischievously propose Mr Yam for President while others have labeled him a legend and "Returning Officer Extraordinaire".
True to his dutiful image projected on national television, Mr Yam Ah Mee, 53, the chief executive director of People's Association (PA), finally "spoke" to the media about his fame last night.
Well, not exactly. Despite numerous requests for an interview, he gave the press a brief statement via his assistant director at PA.
"As the Returning Officer (RO), my role is to ensure the conduct of the election proceedings in a professional and impartial manner, and uphold the Civil Service core values of integrity, service and excellence."
Flooded with questions about his thoughts on his sudden rise to fame, he responded humbly: "I was carrying out my role as RO to the best of my ability and I am surprised by the overnight attention that I received. " He did not answer my paper's question as to whether the tenor of his voice was a result of a voice-box operation.
His unexpected stardom has also sparked an entrepreneurial fervour. Aside from various YouTube clips and remixes of his delivery, unofficial Yam Ah Mee merchandise is now on sale. Facebook user Xylvie Huang Xinying is selling shirts, mugs and badges priced between $2.90 and $27.90.
Not surprisingly, Mr Yam has been inundated with Facebook friend requests. my paper reported yesterday that a Facebook fan page called "Yam Ah Mee, Returning Officer Extraordinaire" had garnered close to 30,000 "likes". It has since hit 37,900 as of 10pm last night.
"Before this I had some 1,200 friends on my own Facebook page which is a platform for me to connect with my local and foreign friends," he said in the statement.
A check of his Facebook profile at 10pm last night showed that he has already made more than 2,370 friends.
