Two National Solidarity Party (NSP) teams are running against the People's Action Party (PAP) teams in Tampines and Sembawang GRC this general election.

While major opposition parties remain in the centre of public attention, the NSP teams work hard on the same ground to engage with the residents through the past nine days of campaigning.

One person that might have caught your attention from NSP is a familiar face also known as the Thumbs Up Man, Choong Hon Heng.

QNA with Mr Thumbs Up Man

Mothership also followed the NSP team at Blk 201 Tampines Market and Food Centre last Sunday (July 5) and managed to speak to Choong.

While Choong might be remembered as being a passionate candidate due to his 2015 rally speech, he also said that he has been mistaken as an angry man too.  During the interview, Choong came across as probably one of the most animated candidates that you'll ever meet.

Here's the short conversation we had as he continues to hustle with his team at the market:

So do people recognise you after you made that speech and become a meme?

"Yes...They will just look at me then ding! A light bulb! You know like I think I know you. *laughs*

More outgoing ones will enjoy it because it lightens their hearts. In fact ah, they were not afraid of me you know, and I was surprised because some people, they see me and they have this fear factor because I have this portrayal of anger also you see. You know what I mean? But I'm not angry with them what. So that's the dilemma sometimes.

I'm not the one angry, it is actually the residents who are the one angry and then they tell me all their anger and I basically express out for them lor. I act like their voices."

Can you explain to us your handshake analogy again?

"The last finger is a promise, when we are children we always like to say things like "we hold our hands, lock our little pinkies and keep to our promises" correct? Ya, See? So that's how it come about. And then after that, we need to be committed to our promise. That is our marriage. You see just like in a marriage where we wear a wedding ring on our wedding ring finger, it's a promise that we have to commit. And..everything has a tall order. It's a tall order but we have to fulfill, in good times or bad times. We have to accept our family, our spouse. So it's a tall order, but we have to fulfill our promise and our commitment. And it's for you and for us, three fingers also pointing at me. So if do it well, thumbs up! Thumbs up! If you don't do it well, what else? What happens?"

Just as I was about to continue the second half of his famous lines, Choong clarified that it was not meant to boo the incumbent party, but more of the relationship.

"Actually, honestly, is boo to that relationship. It can be any relationship. But don't apply the way I did on the stage lah, which is different, because on the stage is rally, it's to spread the news to the whole community. But when one to one talk, you don't show that kind of anger or frustration when we have one to one communication."

Did you write the script yourself?

"Yah, I wrote the script myself."

Why do you care so much?

"Because majority of the residents are affected."

Why do you care about strangers?

"Actually, they're not really strangers also. We're all one family, we are all Singaporeans *laughs*"

Are there things that you think the government has done well?

"Of course! There are a lot of things that the government has done well over the years since independence day, but along the way, there are things that are becoming not okay. Yah. So the issue is when there are more and more things that are not okay, that start to surface, that's where you have a question mark. Just like most recently in the past five years, there are a lot of things that are being done also not okay."

Do you miss having a physical rally?

"Of course, definitely. But anyway pros and cons lah, in fact, online ah you can reach out to more people. Unfortunately, different crowd. Like the elder folks ah, cannot. They won't go online one. But the younger ones definitely go online."

What do you have to say to your fans?

"All those who like the meme of course I thumbs up to them man. *laughs* They see me they thumbs up, I also thumbs up what. It's like a handshake what. Furthermore, in this Covid season, don't need to handshake, just thumbs up what."

Besides Choong, the NSP team at Tampines includes party President, Reno Fong, and Vice-President, Ridzuan Mohamed.

NSP Tampines team feeling positive about their campaign trail

Ridzuan shared with Mothership on July 7 at Blk 820 Tampines that the fact that the party fielded their top two shows something about NSP but it's not about winning the election for them.

"It’s not about me winning, NSP winning but the residents winning."

He also thanked the residents for their support in the past few days and said that the response from residents has been warm.

"We’ve been doing the walks all this time, we have a lot of encouragement from the residents and they actually want us to be their representative so I feel good, I feel good.

The chances..are in the hands of the voters..I wish residents give us this opportunity to serve them and to build a record for us to prove that we are worthy of the votes."

Top image from Mothership.