Joining opposition politics to serve fellow S'poreans

The candidates: Workers' Party, Singapore People's Party

Bernard Chen Jiaxi, 29

Occupation: Project executive at a charitable foundation

Family: Single

Education: Master of Studies in Global and Imperial History from Oxford University, and Bachelor of Arts from the National University of Singapore

Hobbies: Reading and collecting books

Why politics?

I joined the WP in June 2006. It was something I had always wanted to do. For the longest time, I had been interested in history and politics, and to me this was a natural progression of the interest. Public service is something that's commendable, so why not sign up and serve?

Why you?

I see joining opposition politics as very normal, which I think is different from a lot of my peers. To me, public service is the same, no matter what side you are serving on... By stepping out today, I am merely doing my part as a Singaporean to serve, inspire and empower my fellow citizens.

What issues will you focus on?

How do we balance the challenges of an ageing population with the aspirations of young Singaporeans? It seems like these might be competing interests but they are actually not.

Favourite spot in Singapore?

This is going to sound geeky, but I like the Kinokuniya bookstores. Also, the hawker centre at 538 Bedok Street 3 - it's where I build my friendships with residents.

This article was first published on Sept 1, 2015.
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