All photos by Lim Weixiang unless otherwise stated.

Ten years ago, if anyone told you the Workers' Party would one fine day be attracting lawyers, young professionals and even an academic to join their ranks, you would have wondered, "What's a worker's party?" and "Is it like a Zouk thing?".

Now, take a look around you in 2015.

Besides noticing how much things have changed since those days when social media was Friendster and democracy meant one opposition member in parliament, it's hard to overlook the fact that the Workers' Party has gotten big enough it is producing its own gravity and sucking in some potentially bright stars.

And here's one of them: He Ting Ru, 32, a Cambridge-educated lawyer who looks set to contest in this coming general election after being spotted on walkabouts with the party recently.

Back in Singapore since 2011 after an overseas stint studying and working, she witnessed the General Election that year first-hand and like many others felt a tingle down her spine.

But unlike many others, she decided the time is ripe to get involved with the WP by volunteering with them.

 

Mothership.sg caught up with He to talk about whether she knows what's she is getting herself into four years on since GE2011, how she never got to meet Chen Show Mao for the first time after standing around for two hours, and also, the sport kendo, plus, her eight cats.

 

1. First things first, the most important question: Did you know that people on online forums say you look like Rui En?

Ting Ru: No, actually, but I'm very flattered. However I do believe that as with anyone you meet, judge them based on the strength of character, not on their surface or outward appearance.

 

2. So, do you think you look like Rui En?

Ting Ru: I'm not quite sure I really see the similarity myself! Eventually I hope people can see me for who I am and what I stand for, as well as my efforts to effect some kind of positive change.

3. Okay great. For the benefit of our readers who can't listen to you answer these questions: Why do you lapse into a British-sounding accent?

Ting Ru: I spent almost 10 years in England after my junior college years. I studied in Cambridge for my undergraduate degree. I then moved to London for law school and trained as a lawyer with Clifford Chance. I qualified as an English solicitor and worked with the same firm in London and Frankfurt, Germany before coming home.

 

4. So you are those really smart kind who went overseas on a scholarship?

Ting Ru: No... I was from Raffles Junior College, and there was the question about whether to apply for 'S' papers to qualify for scholarships.

My dad was adamant about me not applying for a scholarship, though, because he said he was able to save up enough for me to study wherever I gained acceptance to.

He strongly believes scholarships should be for people whose parents may not be able to afford to pay for their children to go to top universities even though they gained entrance to these places.

 

5. With all that time spent there, can you still speak Mandarin?

Ting Ru: I've spent the last four years doing Meet-the-People Sessions, so I have to be conversant in Mandarin. I'm comfortable with that and I'm pleased to say that the residents understand me.

 

6. Now tell us why does it seem like more young people like yourself, be it professionals or captains of industry, are joining the Workers' Party?

Ting Ru: I can't speak for all young people, but based on the people I've spoken to, they have expressed an interest in what the Workers' Party is doing.

Some of them are very supportive and a lot of them are interested to listen to what our party has to say and it is not just because they are sympathetic.

In 2011, people actually did sit up and notice Chen Show Mao. It was a point of interest for me that someone who was obviously very successful in his professional career would actually feel that he believed enough in what the WP had to offer and what the future of Singapore should be in order to be able to stand up as a candidate and serve as a MP.

But what I would like to see is people from a diverse range of backgrounds who would listen to what we have to say and support us and work with us.

7. Did you have to explain to your friends and family why you decided to join the WP?

Ting Ru: Of course people are curious but I say to them that, ultimately, I believe each one of us has a role to play and I'm just very fortunate to be able to volunteer and work with the WP to do the work I've done in four years.

Some of my professional background has been very helpful, too — I volunteered for a few years in a free legal clinic in a very deprived and dangerous area while I was in London and worked with the residents there, some of whom are refugees. That training made me quite well-equipped.

 

8. Besides real work, what are the other things you do to spend time?

Ting Ru: I enjoy cycling and walking. While I was in university, I discovered team sports and played football as well as rowed in the college women's team.

I also practise kendo, but I'm still very much a beginner, having only done it for roughly a year.

(Why Kendo and not normal fencing?)

What I found interesting is the philosophy of kendo. A lot of it can be carried into everyday life.

 

9. How do you see kendo playing a part in the upcoming election?

Ting Ru: One thing I find very important about kendo is the absolute respect you must have for your opponent, so if you look at the kendo rules, you will see that you are not allowed to cheer when you win a fight.

(That sucks.)

Ting Ru: No, listen, let me finish! You have to acknowledge the fact your opponent has spent the same amount of effort and same amount of training work as you have, and you are not allowed to crow over your victory.

And I think this amount of respect is unfortunately lacking in Singapore politics. I do believe, also, that the country as a whole benefits when the public sphere, the political sphere, is a lot more respectful.

We are not here to create trouble or oppose for the sake of it. There's a lot of common purpose in that respect for the good of Singapore.

10. We heard Chen Show Mao made you wait more than two hours the first time you went to meet him. What happened there?

Ting Ru: I came back to Singapore in 2011 just before the general election. What really struck me at that time was that Singaporeans seemed really very, very interested about politics, they were obviously very patriotic and cared deeply about what would happen to Singapore.

I paid attention to the rallies and listened to what the people had to say. When WP won Aljunied GRC, like a lot of Singaporeans, I was very pleased and very glad that there's been a natural development of our democratic process.

At the same time I realised, they probably needed a lot more resources and help going from one seat to six in parliament, so I thought, hey, why not let's help out with the WP. I didn't think of it as a political statement or a career, I just wanted to use my skills to help residents.

So, I wrote in to the WP right after the election and I suppose, as the party at that time was completely swamped, I didn't get a response. I then decided to make a trip down to the nearest Meet-the-People Session, which happened to be Mr Chen's at Paya Lebar.

It was chaotic at the time and the whole system was just getting set up and there were a lot of non-residents who turned up at the MPS with Show Mao, but I went with the intention of wanting to volunteer. And I decided to stay behind to wait to speak to him.

At that time the person in charge thought I was a fan girl who wanted to meet Show Mao, so he ignored me and told me to wait. And I stood there for about two and a half hours just observing what was going on. And after that, the WP rep realised I was still there and talked to me about case law, and I told him about my legal background — he was convinced, and I even managed to see my first case that night.

Come to think of it, I never actually did talk to Show Mao that evening. It didn't really bother me...

(That's what you say now. Heh heh heh.)

[Laughter all around]

 

11. Why did you look for Chen Show Mao initially then?

Ting Ru: I saw that he had a similar background to me, we were working overseas and we did law. But I guess it was (chiefly) because his MPS was the closest to my house.

 

12. How would you have reacted 10 or 15 years ago, if someone told you then that one day you would join the Workers' Party?

Ting Ru: I wouldn't have believed you. I think I mentioned before I never saw myself to be a person who is involved in politics. It was not something I set out to do even when I started volunteering. But over the years, I've worked with some very dedicated and sincere people who are very good at what they do.

Together we do actually make a difference in the lives of residents and advance Singapore's political and democratic system.

View this post on Instagram

Relaxing with the furkids

A post shared by He Ting Ru (@tingruhe) on Jul 16, 2015 at 10:55pm PDT

13. We hear you have eight cats (this is the actual purpose of our interview with you). How did you come to have so many!

Ting Ru: My family likes cats so we adopted some. Initially, the thinking was that a cat would help keep the rats at bay. But we found out that's not true.

So all those years ago we went to the SPCA and adopted a ginger as a kitten. Since then we've always had a cat, and a total of about 12 or 13 cats have passed through our household.

Of the current eight, one was from SPCA, after my previous cat died, the second one was rescued as a palm-sized stray. There was a pair of cats that found their way into our house and before we could get them sterilised they had three kittens. We wanted to give them away but thought better of it, and never managed to re-home them so they're still with us (embarrassed laugh). And my mum found a white longhair in a drain a few streets away, who remained there for more than two months (he was definitely abandoned), so we also took him in, and he is still here.

(Your house sounds like a halfway house for cats.)

It's not a halfway house! They just tend to not go (laughs). We didn't start out as a multi-cat household, but we ended up becoming one.

 

14. And we ask this question to every person we're interviewing for this GE — if you were a Singapore hawker food dish, which would you be and why?

Hainanese pork chop. Firstly because my dad's Hainanese, and food is very important to Hainanese. It's yummy, but also because I believe the dish was created using both Western and Asian influences, and for someone like me who has lived in both Asian and Western countries it's quite an apt description, hopefully it's the best of many worlds but uniquely local.

(Got chilli?)

It's curry — Hainanese curry! I'll bring you to the one at Tiong Bahru, my grandfather used to go there and it's very authentic.

 

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