It was reported that former Republic of Singapore Air Force (RSAF) Brigadier General Gan Siow Huang was seen walking alongside Defence Minister Ng Eng Hen with other Members of the Parliament (MPs) from the Bishan-Toa Payoh Group Representation Constituency (GRC) at a walkabout in Bishan North Shopping Mall recently (‘Recently-resigned RSAF General Gan Siow Huang likely a PAP candidate in Bishan-Toa Payoh in coming GE‘).
BG (NS) Gan resigned as the Chief of Staff-Air Staff earlier last week and this has fueled speculation that she may be nominated as a candidate of the People’s Action Party (PAP) in the upcoming General Election (GE).
It has been reported that for the past several months, BG (NS) Gan has been seen engaging in grassroots activities in Bishan North.
First female Brigadier-General
Gan was the first female in Singapore promoted to the rank of Brigadier-General in 2015.
This had even garnered the attention of Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong who posted on his Facebook post to express his joy, having to see the first female BG in Singapore.
Gan said it had been a “tough journey” rising through the ranks in the SAF in the last 2 decades.
In a media interview in 2015, when asked if she had ever considered taking a backseat to spend more time with her family and kids, she replied yes. In fact, she said she envied her girlfriends who could take care of their families full-time.
“Yes, many times. I envy my girlfriends who take care of their families full-time and can spend time with their kids,” she said.
“At some point, I probably have to (take a backseat). My parents-in-law are cancer survivors. When they are unable to take care of our kids, my husband or I then have to make a really tough choice. To me now, coming to work every day is a bonus. I want to make the most of every day.”
However, given that she is about to enter politics as a potential PAP candidate in the upcoming GE and join the ranks of the former military men-turned-ministers, it’s likely that she would not be able to find any time in future to “take a backseat” and her cancer surviving parents-in-law would have no choice but to continue taking care of her kids.
SAF Scholar
Gan, like most other SAF generals who entered politics via PAP, is an SAF scholar. She received the SAF Merit Scholarship in 1993 and subsequently earned a Bachelor of Science from the London School of Economics.
She attended the New Zealand Defence College’s command and staff course in 2003 and in 2010, she graduated with a Master of Business Administration from the MIT Sloan Fellows Program. In addition, she was awarded the Public Administration Medal (Military) in 2013.
Throughout her military career, she has held command and staff appointments in the SAF, including Commanding Officer of the RSAF 203 Squadron, Commander of Air Surveillance and Control Group and was Head of the Joint Manpower Department in the Ministry of Defence. Gan succeeded Brigadier-General Neo Hong Keat as Commander of the Air Power Generation Command in 2016. Last year, she was appointed Chief of Staff – Air Staff.
