SDA’s Desmond Lim brands himself as dedicated & determined

SINGAPORE: The Singapore Democratic Alliance’s (SDA) Desmond Lim has described himself as a dedicated local and determined leader.

Mr Lim is no stranger to the Punggol East ward, having contested there during the 2011 General Election.

It was a setback that Mr Lim said would have made others run away from politics.

The SDA’s secretary—general forfeited his S$16,000 election deposit when he garnered around four per cent of votes in the 2011 General Election.

He said his loss in the Punggol East ward only emboldened him to make a comeback. "In life, we have a lot of hurdles. We have a lot of experiences that (have) no smooth rides. But that doesn’t mean that we stop from there. Are we going to tell our children ’oh, you fail your examination, that’s it, finish. It’s the end of the world. Don’t study further.’ No, we’ll encourage them. Never mind, try again."

Mr Lim’s brush with elections began in 2001, when he contested in the then Jalan Besar Group Representation Constituency and was defeated.

He lost again in the 2006 General Election, when he contested in the Pasir Ris—Punggol Group Representation Constituency.

With three elections and 20 years in politics under his belt, Mr Lim thinks he has the necessary qualities to represent Punggol East.

"The Parliament must have a diversified voice. We must have more than one, two parties to counter—check and balance of each other."

Since the 2011 loss, Mr Lim said he has built up a grassroots movement comprising over 10 Punggol residents.

"The residents (themselves) should take up the ownership to advocating for what they really need, such as hawker centre, and because of that, safety — road safety, buses, increase the number of buses service."

Mr Lim plans to set aside a third of his allowance as a Member of Parliament to start a residents’ insurance scheme, if elected.

— CNA/ck