Acres founder joins PAP

Acres founder joins PAP

ANIMAL rights activist Louis Ng, 35, has joined the People's Action Party (PAP) and will be involved in the Kembangan-Chai Chee ward under Manpower Minister Tan Chuan-Jin.

Mr Ng, who founded wildlife rescue group Animal Concerns Research and Education Society (Acres) in 2001, announced his entry into politics in a Facebook post last evening.

He is the latest high-profile personality to join the PAP. The next general election must be called by January 2017.

Mr Tan said he was glad that the activist had "stepped forward to join" the party.

Mr Ng, a grassroots volunteer in the Chong Pang ward in Nee Soon GRC since 2008, joined the party in June and started helping out in the Kembangan-Chai Chee ward in Marine Parade GRC.

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Explaining his decision to join the PAP, he said in an interview: "I've come to see that to effect the biggest changes, it has to come at the policy level."

As an example, he cited the tougher laws under a new animal rights Bill read in Parliament this month. "I have been working with a number of PAP MPs and ministers, and I think the track record is it has worked so far."

For instance, there have been projects in Chong Pang to end the culling of stray cats and allow flat owners to keep felines, said Mr Ng in the post. He is married with a baby daughter.

Among his contributions in Chong Pang was running the annual Chong Pang Animal Protection Forums, which started in 2011 and involved dialogues between residents and the Government on issues such as a nationwide sterilisation programme for cats.

In the Kembangan-Chai Chee ward, Mr Ng said that he will be initiating new projects under Mr Tan that focus on more than just animal rights issues. These include helping families break out of the poverty cycle and bringing back the community spirit.

"We need to re-live kampung spirit in Singapore now, especially as...our society becomes more divided and views more polarised."

audreyt@sph.com.sg


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