The Singapore People’s Party (SPP)’s candidate for Potong Pasir SMC Jose Raymond took to his Facebook on Monday (29 June) to share his fascination with Potong Pasir.
Mr Raymond’s connection with Potong Pasir can be traced back to when he was 13, standing with his father watching Chiam See Tong be elected as the Member of Parliament (MP) for Potong Pasir.
“Someday, I want you to stand for elections,” Mr Raymond, who is also the Party’s chairman, quoted his father who told him after seeing Mr Chiam’s historical win.
At another time during the 1988 General Election, he helped his father to distribute manifestos for Mr Chiam in Potong Pasir.
According to Mr Raymond, their families had lost their HDB home in 1990 as his father faced a financial crisis.
“Without money to pay for a smaller HDB home, my father sought help from Mr Chiam, who wrote a cheque and gave us a chance to have a roof over our heads,” the Party’s chairman said.
He revealed that his father lived in the home for the rest of his life until his father passed away on 14 March 2018.
On 14 March 2020, exactly two years after his father’s death, Mr Raymond was being nominated by the SPP to be the candidate for single member constituency of Potong Pasir following the release of the Electoral Boundaries Review Committee report.
With such deep ties to Potong Pasir, he remarked, “Some things are written in the stars, and it is my duty to keep paying it forward, for the people of Potong Pasir and for anyone who needs a helping hand.”
Not forgetting his father who is also his drive to serve the Potong Pasir community, Mr Raymond posted a photo of his father on his Facebook page on Tuesday (30 June).
“Daddy, this is for you, for all that you gave me,” the photo’s caption read.
Back in 2018, TOC also reported the story of how Mr Raymond had his life changing and joined politics.
It was noted that Mr Raymond made his political debut at 45, joining the Singapore People’s Party (SPP) in 2018, with a mission to make a difference in the lives of Singaporeans, particularly in the Potong Pasir constituency.