He was lazy, slept in class, loitered outside after school and occasionally got into fights.

He was also not interested in his studies and had to repeat his O levels.

At 18, Mr Roy Chew joined the Institute of Technical Education’s (ITE) Certificate in Business studies (Accounting) while continuing to work part-time.

He finally buckled down and at the age of 40, Mr Chew will be graduating from Nanyang Technological University with a master’s in marketing and Asian consumer insights in July.

Now a deputy director at the People’s Association, Mr Chew grew up in a three-room flat in Ang Mo Kio with his two sisters, grandparents and parents.

When still a student at Bowen Secondary School, Mr Chew had to work part-time and usually reached home after 10pm.

He said: “At that time, I felt disappointed and ashamed because my older sister had already set the bar.”

She had done well enough in her studies to enter a junior college and later the National University of Singapore.

PROUD

Mr Chew signed on with the Singapore Police Force after he left ITE to earn a stable income.

When he turned 27, the police sponsored him to do a diploma in management and police studies at Temasek Polytechnic.

The stint opened his eyes. He saw that what he learnt in school could be applied in daily life.

He said: “The management modules I learnt were relevant to my police work. I gained new perspectives and this made me more hungry for knowledge.

“I wanted to catch up on lost time…”

The process of learning was refreshing for him.

Mr Chew said: “There were too many things I didn’t know. I gained new perspectives and this fuelled my hunger.”

At 30, he obtained his first degree, a bachelor’s with honours in marketing at MDIS.

Mr Chew now has two daughters, aged eight and two, with his 37-year-old housewife.

He said: “(Sometimes, when studying for my master’s) I had 15 consecutive full-day classes. It was very painful, because I had to juggle work and the birth of my second child.

“But I’ve been through hardship before and I knew the only way was to press on.

“My hardship kept me grounded and made me tougher in overcoming challenges. If the challenge is tough, I’ll be tougher to overcome them.”

Mr R Ravindaran, section head of physical education (PE) at ITE College Central, said of Mr Chew: “He was a dedicated, determined and disciplined student who always gave his best.

“He is a highly motivated individual and it’s heartening to know he has done well.”

tanpya@sph.com.sg

This article was first published on February 27, 2017.
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Singapore and Chongqing can take advantage of the Chinese city’s free-trade zone (FTZ) and explore cooperating in new areas, said Minister in the Prime Minister’s Office Chan Chun Sing yesterday.

He was speaking on the sidelines of a ministerial dialogue with the Singaporean community in Beijing after he witnessed the signing ceremony of 10 commercial pacts between Singapore and Chongqing companies as part of the Chongqing Connectivity Initiative (CCI).

The total value of the deals is about US$1.4 billion (S$1.97 billion).

The CCI is Singapore and China’s third joint project.

It aims to help drive growth in China’s less developed western region by improving Chongqing’s transport and services links to the region and beyond.

Mr Chan said Singapore and Chongqing could look to co-operate in new sectors such as medicine, education and infrastructure under the FTZ.

“We could link up the CCI concept with the new FTZ concept, and we are excited by this,” said Mr Chan.

In an interview with China’s Xinhua news agency yesterday, Deputy Prime Minister Teo Chee Hean said much progress has been achieved in the CCI project.

In financial services, more than US$6 billion worth of cross-border deals have been agreed and completed, helping Chongqing-based companies access cost-efficient funding here, he said.

Both sides are in talks to develop a new direct trade route that will connect Chongqing to South-east Asia via the Beibu Gulf in southern Guangxi.

A Singapore-Chongqing Digital Super Highway that promises greater high-speed information technology connectivity between western China and South-east Asia is also in the works, he added.

As part of the commercial signings, two new projects to expand Chongqing’s transport links to South-east Asia and Central Asia were launched.

They are the Chongqing Logistics Development Platform (CLDP) and the Multi-Modal Distribution and Connectivity Centre (DC).

The CLDP, a company set up to do logistics planning, will develop standards and best practices for the transport and logistics industry.

The DC is a logistics hub that caters to transport modes such as river, rail and air, said IE Singapore.

The agency will form a work group with Chongqing’s municipal government to oversee and support the roll-out of these two projects.

“We hope the projects will serve as a model for future co-operation and play a leading role in spearheading other similar projects,” said Mr Tang Zongwei, chairman of the Chongqing Liangjiang New Area Development and Investment Group.

It is taking part in both projects with other Singapore and Chongqing players.

The other eight agreements signed cover areas in transport and logistics, information and communication technology, finance and healthcare.

kohping@sph.com.sg

This article was first published on February 27, 2017.
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Safety course for bicycles and PMDs to be rolled out in July.

Should it be compulsory for students?

Cyclists and personal mobility devices (PMD) users will soon get a free lesson on riding safely.

From July, a 90-minute Safe Riding Programme (SRP) will be made available at selected community centres, schools and migrant worker dormitories.

Since May last year, the Land Transport Authority (LTA) has been working with the Singapore Road Safety Council to conduct pilot sessions with close to 100 people, including migrant workers and other members of the public to refine and update the SRP.

Given the Government’s push towards a car-lite society, should the SRP be made compulsory for students?

Yes, said experts approached by The New Paper.

Mr Steven Lim, president of Safe Cycling Task Force, said: “Singapore is trying to push cycling and PMDs as a first and last mile solution.

“Beyond building infrastructure for this new lifestyle, education should also be enhanced in tandem.

“For example, students in the Netherlands have to go through bicycle training and are required to (take) a test.”

Mr Lim, who is also vice-president for safety and education at the Singapore Cycling Federation, suggested that the SRP could be conducted when upper primary pupils visit the Road Safety Community Park, and when Secondary 3 students go through the Outward Bound Singapore camp.

He added: “Just like how all pupils are required to learn swimming, learning the basics of cycling or a kick-scooter can also save lives.”

Tanjong Pagar GRC MP Melvin Yong, who is a member of the Government Parliamentary Committee for transport, also thinks good riding practices should be taught in schools.

He said: “To build a car-lite society, it is important we start cycling education from a young age.

“It would be useful if learning how to cycle safely can be incorporated into the school curriculum. Our children can also pick up a life skill in the process.”

While Mr Denis Koh, who represents PMD users in LTA’s Active Mobility Advisory Panel, thinks it will be “highly beneficial” to introduce the programme to students, he emphasised that the SRP is meant for anyone on wheels.

Mr Koh, who is also the chairman of e-scooter enthusiast group Big Wheel Scooters Singapore, said: “Most importantly, the programme reflects not only safety but awareness.

“Awareness puts forward social empathy, defensive riding (to anticipate the unexpected) and socially responsible riding etiquette.”

Ride safe with pro tips in July

From July, a 90-minute Safe Riding Programme (SRP) will be made available at selected community centres, schools and migrant worker dormitories.

To encourage interest and participation, the SRP will be fully subsidised for a while.

Besides safe riding practices and rules of conduct, participants will also learn about maintenance and servicing of equipment, and how to conduct pre-ride checks and plan routes.

In addition, riders and cyclists will be taught about the types of paths and the difference between off-road and on-road cycling.

They will also be trained on basic device handling methods and hand signals for cyclists.

Participants will be taught how to manoeuvre their bicycles, personal mobility devices or power-assisted bicycles safely, and react to various situations when riding on public paths.

Mr Steven Lim, president of the Safe Cycling Task Force, who conducted several pilot sessions of the SRP, urged cyclists to consider joining it.

He said: “Many people think they know how to cycle, but they could have picked up the wrong skills. The course will cover basic but essential fundamental skills, and it will be different learning from a professional.”

linheng@sph.com.sg

This article was first published on February 27, 2017.
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Singaporeans can expect a national digital identity, cashless payments in hawker centres and a transport system that is more responsive to changes in demand in the near future.

Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong sketched out this vision of how he sees technology playing a greater role in improving life here at a recent closed-door dialogue.

His office released a transcript yesterday.

And there is a lot more that the Government, businesses and people can do to seize the opportunities that new technology creates, he added.

The need to innovate and build strong digital capabilities is a key strategy of the Committee on the Future Economy (CFE), which released its report this month, and the Budget contained several measures to help on this front.

Ministers will elaborate on these plans when Parliament debates the Budget this week and the next.

Implementation will be key, Mr Lee said.

Technology is a key focus because, while there are manpower and space constraints, “in terms of ideas, productivity, breakthroughs, the constraint is only what the human mind can come up with, what people can organise and deliver”.

Mr Lee’s dialogue last Friday with 150 start-up founders and guests from across the Asia-Pacific region was part of Camp Sequoia, an annual tech summit organised by venture capital firm Sequoia Capital India.

He said technology is an area Singapore has an advantage in, as a compact city with high-quality infrastructure and tech-savvy people.

Its Smart Nation Programme Office was set up to spearhead the use of technology and key projects that “will make a big difference to the way Singapore is able to operate”.

NOT FAST ENOUGH

Mr Lee added: “I think personally that, for all our pushing, we really are not moving as fast as we ought to.”

He outlined several other projects under way, including a national sensor network that pulls together pictures from cameras monitoring traffic, drains and housing estates into an integrated data source.

As for a national digital ID system, he cited how Estonia has a digital access card for all secure e-services, including national health insurance, bank accounts, making digital signatures and Internet voting.

Asked which policies had the most impact in fostering start-ups here, Mr Lee listed four strategies:

• Creating a pro-business environment where companies can set up shop easily.
• Creating an ecosystem to support start-ups, from having incubators to encouraging venture capitalists and angel investors to invest.
• Being open to foreign talent. “It does not mean that there is no wary observation by Singaporeans: Who is coming in, are they real talent or not, are there too many or not? But we do make ourselves open to talent and that is critical,” he said.
• Producing people with technological know-how by focusing on science, technology, engineering and mathematics subjects.

The CFE has recommended a Global Innovation Network for young people to gain exposure to start-ups abroad and be inspired to start their own things, Mr Lee noted.

“The problem is not lack of resources from the Government,” he said.

“Really what is needed is the talent, the drive. And we just have to get out of the way and enable you to do that.”

Mr Lee noted that Singapore has built up trust between its Government and people because economic growth has benefited most people.

But as the economy slows, the Government has to convince people to work together to attain 2 to 3 per cent growth, which is good by any international standard, he added.

For if society splits, “Singapore would become a very unhappy and much, much less successful place. It is our responsibility as a government to have policies which will not let that happen,” he said.

Highlights from PM Lee’s dialogue

ON THE OUTLOOK FOR SINGAPORE

It is a challenging time for a country like Singapore, trying to find an economic strategy that will work for an economy, for a nation, not just for companies in it, but for the population and for citizens.

We are doing our own think exercise.

We produced a report by the Committee on the Future Economy (CFE), which came out a couple of weeks ago.

We had the Budget this week, which set out some of the strategies to realise the ideas we have.

None of them are rocket science.

The key is whether or not you can make it happen.

And to make it happen faster than others, execute and bring everybody on board and see that this is the right strategy, which will work and benefit everybody.

(Technology) is in fact one of our areas of focus.

In terms of physical growth, numbers, space, we reach constraints.

But in terms of ideas, productivity and breakthroughs, the constraint is only what the human mind can come up with, what people can organise and deliver.

ON WHAT KEEPS HIM AWAKE AT NIGHT

Some of the things that keep you up at night, you cannot do anything about.

We spent a lot of time worrying about the US presidential election.

There are other things that can go bump in the night because we are in uncharted waters.

There is a major change of direction in the US.

Other powers will react, and how does that interaction work out?

If it is a rebalancing, that is manageable.

If it is destabilisation, you do not know what the consequences are.

That is one big global uncertainty.

Within the region, we also watch very carefully the trends and our neighbouring countries.

Whether they are focused on regional co-operation and integration, or whether their focus is on economic nationalism – like the mood in the US and the developed countries…

We also have to watch our own domestic population trends, our demographic trends.

That worries us a great deal, and again, it is something with no easy solution. Our birth rate is too low…

ON WHAT HE DOES ON THE INTERNET

I have on my desktop the news websites open: BBC, New York Times, The Straits Times, Channel News Asia.

They are there all the time.

Because of that, I do not watch the television news anymore…

I have Facebook open and Instagram, because I have accounts.

I track what is happening to my posts, what people are saying, and whether we have to respond to it or not.

It is quite useful, because without those, I would not reach out to significant segments of the population, here and overseas…

I look at a page called Astronomy Picture of the Day.

Every day there is a picture, a nebula, a supernova, the sun, rings of Saturn, something like that.

I sometimes look at blogs by mathematicians to track what they are doing…

I look at photography websites because I take pictures.

You pick up ideas looking at what people do, how they take the pictures. – THE STRAITS TIMES

roysim@sph.com.sg

This article was first published on February 27, 2017.
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