The Marine Parade Group Representation Constituency (GRC) has been a People's Action Party (PAP) stronghold since its formation in the 1980s.

It has been led by former Prime Minister and Emeritus Senior Minister Goh Chok Tong, since it was a Single Member Constituency (SMC) formed in 1976.

Since 2011, Goh has been joined by Tan Chuan-jin, and incumbent Members of Parliament (MP) Seah Kian Peng and Fatimah Lateef.

MP Edwin Tong, although elected in 2011, is a relatively new teammate, having joined the Marine Parade GRC team in the recent-most 2015 election.

But as surrounded as he is by stalwarts like Goh and charismatic semi-influencers like Tan (cue Tan's candid tweets), Tong, who is also Senior Minister of State for Law and Health, continues to keep his nose to the grindstone and working to serve his residents.

Shanmugam invited him into politics

You might have caught a whiff of who Tong is from when he was involved in the saga surrounding City Harvest Church founder Kong Hee, as his defence lawyer.

Now, we won't delve into that quagmire (as he's elaborated on the case pretty extensively previously), but you might be surprised to know that Tong, who up till 2018 was a top-notch lawyer for a local law firm, has deep connections with another famous ex-lawyer with a hard-as-nails reputation — K Shanmugam.

As Mothership sat down with Tong for a humble cup of kopi at Soy Eu Tong Coffee Shop (which is located in his Joo Chiat ward at Marine Parade), the 50-year-old shared more about the beginning of his political career.

Studying in St. Joseph's Institution, Tong said that mathematics and science had never been his strong suit growing up, and he enjoyed reading and writing much more.

What kicked off his foray into politics though, was his mentorship under Shanmugam.

Shanmugam was Tong's pupil master when the latter was training to become a barrister, and subsequently his boss and mentor at the same law firm, a journey which Tong described as "fortuitous".

The pair worked closely together for 14 years until Shanmugam left his practice to become Minister for Law in 2008.

In fact, Shanmugam was the one who invited Tong to join politics, something which Tong told us caught him off guard.

"Few months after he left, he called me to office and said, "Are you prepared to serve in an MP capacity, a backbencher capacity?" It took me by surprise because I never harboured that ambition. Up till that point in time I had never volunteered in a branch, never went to an MPS, was never involved in grassroots. It was therefore not within my contemplation."

Vastly different from the crop of new PAP candidates for this year's election, many of whom have several years of community service and volunteering under their belt.

Entering a completely new environment was of course unsettling but the encouragement from Shanmugam, someone who says things as they are, gave Tong the confidence to dip his toes into the unforgiving world of Singapore politics.

Shadowed various ministers

In 2008, Tong took his first steps into politics, shadowing Lee Boon Yang, who was then Minister for Information, Communications and the Arts.

In 2009, he then moved to Jurong GRC, where he shadowed then-Finance Minister Tharman Shanmugaratnam for more than six months.

He was subsequently sent to Sembawang GRC for a year until the eve of the 2011 election.

Tong gathered a lot of experience working with different GRCs, but also acknowledged that his frequent postings were likely done intentionally to test his ability.

In 2011, he was ready to run in Sembawang GRC, but was diverted last minute back to Jalan Besar, which was part of Moulmein-Kallang GRC. He was subsequently elected alongside then-Minister Lui Tuck Yew, then-Minister Yaacob Ibrahim and Denise Phua Lay Peng.

Reconnecting with JC classmate Tan Chuan-Jin

In 2015, Tong's move from Jalan Besar to Joo Chiat was sparked by an "unusual" phone call from Goh, who requested a meeting with him shortly before National Day.

The purpose of this meeting? To ask Tong to "try out" at Joo Chiat, which is within Marine Parade GRC.

Tong admitted that he was taken aback, given how he was "so settled" in Jalan Besar.

However, his move to Marine Parade GRC would mean a reunion with an old friend: Speaker of Parliament Tan Chuan-Jin, who is also a member of the Marine Parade team.

The two men met decades ago, on their first day in Raffles Junior College.

According to Tong, their friendship began because they were both outcasts of sorts: they were among the few in their class that did not previously study in Raffles Institution.

Tong was from St Joseph's Institution, while Tan studied in Anglo-Chinese School (Independent).

"So when I walked into the class, I saw one boy wearing his blue pants, sitting in the corner. And I, everyone assumed I was from RI, because my uniform was the same as them, white on white. So I went to the corner, and this is why I went to talk to him, and we became friends since then," said Tong with a smile.

Reunited in Marine Parade

After graduating from school together, they left for the army, and their lives began to diverge.

Tong studied Law in the National University of Singapore, while Tan signed on with the Singapore Armed Forces (SAF) as a scholar.

So what was Tong's reaction when he realised he would cross paths with his friend of almost three decades when he was fielded in Marine Parade GRC?

"I was like, hey, quite good lah, quite good", said Tong, chuckling as he spoke.

He explained that in his time as a rookie MP in Jalan Besar, while he appreciated the help from the two veteran Ministers he worked with (Lui and Yaacob), there was a generation gap of sorts.

On the other hand, Tong said that he and Tan had a deeper connection than most MPs working in a GRC, due to their decades of friendship.

Tong also revealed that the two men shared the same love for photography.

Here are some photos Tong snapped while on a safari trip with his family in Tanzania.

Tong though, was quick to add that Tan's skills were "better la".

Unfortunately, Tong said that despite working in the same GRC, it is "difficult" for the two to find time to relieve their old schoolboy days, given their respective busy schedules.

Goh Chok Tong's defining trait is his caring heart

Moving to Marine Parade GRC also meant working with Goh, whom Tong says possesses a very wry sense of humour (which he often displays on his Facebook page).

He also possesses a laudable work ethic, demonstrated when he accompanied Tong on his very first walk-about in Marine Parade.

"When he says come and do something, he doesn't just say you do it, but he comes along," explained Tong.

He recalled accompanying Goh on a hot Sunday afternoon along Frankel Avenue, where Goh took pains to introduce Tong to the residents that he knew.

However, Tong said that Goh's defining trait is his caring heart.

He said that Goh never stops thinking of ways to improve the lives of his residents, ensuring that he does his best to seek out of the box solutions to ensure that the needs of his residents are met.

Tan See Leng was his client

Adding on to the string of serendipitous encounters that Tong seems to have experienced with other key figures in his political career, he revealed to our surprise that he actually knew Tan See Leng, Goh’s chosen successor prior — not as a politico, but as a client of the Tong's previous law firm.

Incidentally, Tan happens to be a resident of Marine Parade GRC as well.

When he found out Tan would be taking over Goh, Tong was happy "because here is someone who is successful in what he has done, has a proven track record".

Tong also highlighted the significance of leaving behind nearly half-a-lifetime's career in the private sector to join politics and serve the people.

"[He] comes from the private sector and is prepared to leave it behind having built such a successful practice and business, leave it behind and come into politics to serve. I think that's what we need, people who are successful to pay it forward and to give back."

Variety of challenges faced along his political career

During our chat, Tong was candid about his work — as an MP and Senior Minister of State — and the many challenges that come with it.

Starting out as an MP in 2008, Tong's greatest challenge was his language abilities, admitting that he "wasn't very conversant in Mandarin".

Calling language a "very effective ice-breaker", he emphasised the importance of language skills in getting through to residents, who may not be as fluent in English.

He has since improved his Mandarin skills, as seen from his short conversations with members of the public speaking with him during the chat.

Tong's challenges as Senior Minister of State for Law and Health — portfolios which he took on in 2018 — on the other hand, are far bigger.

In particular, certain policy decisions are very complex, given the various impacts it may have on the society, as well as the government's budget.

He brought up the Covid-19 Bill on rental relief that he was involved in earlier in the year, calling it a "difficult bill to do".

"We had to strike the right balance with landlords. Because you cannot assume that every landlord, every property owner is doing well in this time. There are some small landlords, they use the rent as a big part of their income. Some of them are retirees. So to strike that balance was not so easy."

His efforts were noticed though.

In his July 6 lunchtime rally speech Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong lauded Tong, Shanmugam, and others in their team for putting this bill together in nine days.

As a member of the Select Committee on Deliberate Online Falsehoods, Tong also sparred with Workers' Party chief Pritam Singh on several occasions.

He acknowledges that while he may not agree on "many things" with Pritam, these debates have been "healthy" for the government to explain "not just what you're doing, but why we are doing something".

Tong added that it is "not the role of an alternative voice to always provide you a solution," but such criticism must result in something positive being done, in order to be considered constructive.

Marine Parade: Reaching out to those who fall through the cracks

Tong's jump from his previous ward in Jalan Besar to Joo Chiat in Marine Parade came with its own set of challenges as well.

Marine Parade is an area with more landed properties compared to HDB blocks, and while that might have led to the common perception that those living in private estates are wealthier, this starkly conflicted with what Tong himself saw on the ground.

He pulled up a photo on his phone of a dilapidated house with shanty roofing in a private estate area in his ward, nestled next to a modern terrace house.

These people did not qualify for certain programmes and financial schemes simply due to their type of residence, Tong said impassionately.

One's type of residence is used in instruments like means testing to determine if a person requires social assistance.

This experience which he encountered on his walkabouts struck a chord with Tong, and made him recognise the inadequacies of means testing.

It's become an issue he feels strongly about, and which he did not fail to candidly point out as a flaw in the government's policies.

"I feel very upset for these people [living in such situations]. They are old, they inherited the property for many generations, their parents probably passed it on to them, yet they have no money to build it up.

And our policies don't reach them. And that's a failing."

Since then, Tong has brought up this issue frequently in Parliament, making the case that annual value should replace means-testing as the indicator for eligibility for schemes like SIRS and Budget measures.

He has also reached out to affected residents personally, but recognise that some of them might still "have some pride", and ultimately, just "try to get by".

"They've sort of accepted it over the years."

Having to cover more ground during walkabouts in Marine Parade

This isn't the only difficulty Tong experiences in Marine Parade. The layout of the built environment in the area presents an obstacle in and of itself.

With his ward consisting predominantly of private and landed properties, Tong has to cover much more ground on foot during his walkabouts and outreach efforts.

To make life easier for himself, Tong sometimes cycles as well.

Compared to other densely-populated GRCs where common spaces like wet markets and large hawker centres are a dime a dozen, Joo Chiat is mostly inhabited by small cafes and eateries.

And with establishments so spaced out, Tong has to cover much more ground to even interact with the same number of residents other MPs are able to interact with along one HDB corridor.

"I find it difficult, you're not able to move as quickly," he says honestly.

"Even when you go ring the doorbell, it takes a while, they need to come to the stairs and to the gate. And you can't ring the doorbell and then don't wait and leave."

Undoubtedly, Tong's rate of engagement has decreased with his residents. But he said he makes it a point to emphasise quality over quantity, by ensuring his engagement with residents is deep rather than broad.

A familiar face to his residents

And it appears Tong's engagement with residents has paid off.

Throughout our chat with him at the coffee shop, he was frequently greeted by passers-by. An elderly couple even stopped by to strike up conversation with him.

As we trailed Tong on his walkabout later that day, the lack of walkway shelters in the area — and the inconvenience without them — was made especially conspicuous when the rain started to pour.

The man however, was unperturbed by the weather, and continued to stride briskly across the roads as we struggled to keep up and snap photos.

At another small eatery, he visited each table one by one to interact with patrons, but not before exchanging hearty greetings with the eatery's staff.

He then proceeded to chat with each hawker. Two stallholders noticed our presence, and asked Tong if we were part of his entourage, having never seen us before.

Clearly, Tong and his team are familiar faces in the area.

Surprisingly though, this easygoing and mellow aura Tong exudes apparently wasn't always the case.

When asked what was one thing he would tell his younger self, his advice was to not be so quick-tempered and quick to judge.

"I think I'm too judgmental. If I form a view about something or someone or a situation, it will take a lot to change my view. Sometimes I regret that. Especially in politics, that fleeting moment of engagement or meeting cannot define the relationship. Just as I don't want people to judge me based on a few minutes of interaction, I think I should also not be doing that to other people."

GE2020 will be tough

Circling back to the absence of Goh in the upcoming election, Tong emphasised that ultimately Goh is not quitting politics, and will continue to support the Marine Parade team.

"Politics will always be in his DNA. Because what politics really means is looking out for people and caring for them. And I think that's what fundamentally defines ESM Goh," said Tong.

When asked about the effect of Goh's departure on the team's chances during GE2020, he stated firmly that this would be a tough election.

"The assumption will be that we won't take it for granted. We leave nothing to chance. And we will have to work very hard, because it will be a tough election. And I think we all know that wherever you stand, there's not going to be a free ride. And the team, whether you're new or incumbent, will have a lot of work cut out for it. And we hope to be able to deliver."

Top photo courtesy of Edwin Tong and Jason Fan.