Presidential candidate Ng Kok Song is satisfied with the progress of his campaign so far, and rated his campaign for the presidency an eight out of 10.

In an interview with Mothership on Aug. 25, Ng shared his thoughts on the key moments throughout his campaign and what he's planning to do in the second half of his campaign leading up to polling day.

How he felt on Nomination Day

When asked if he felt nervous on Nomination Day on Tuesday (Aug. 22), Ng's answer was a resounding "No". "This is one of a kind," he said of the event.

He acknowledged that although his supporters at the venue were fewer in number, he wasn't overwhelmed seeing many in maroon shirts that day.

Fellow candidate Tharman Shanmugaratnam's supporters were mostly decked out in maroon apparel as a show of unity, some of them told Mothership on Nomination Day.

Instead, Ng described his supporters as "bigger in heart".

The former GIC chief investment officer said he wanted to give a short, simple address to the people of Singapore about running for presidency "to protect the three national treasures".

"So from my point of view, it went relatively well," Ng said about his thank you speech.

During his speech, however, Ng was cut off at the two-minute mark as all candidates were only given a certain amount of time to speak.

"That is fair," Ng said, "...towards the end, I was hoping to say a few lines in Mandarin, a few lines in Malay, and a few lines in Tamil. Yeah. Unfortunately, I practised a lot. But that was cut off."

"I don't have the command of Mandarin"

Ng spoke in Mandarin to introduce himself and to seek the public's support on Nomination Day.

However, when asked by a reporter from a Chinese media outlet to explain in Mandarin the reasons why the public should support him, Tan merely responded with a curt "不可以 (no)". Instead, he referred the Chinese reporter to his English speech.

Since then, clips of his answer to the reporter circulated online, with Reddit users, for example, pointing out that Ng "cannot speak Chinese", or accusing him of being rude or arrogant.

"I think an important question was being asked, and I don't have the command of Mandarin to respond properly to the question," Ng elaborated on his short response on Nomination Day.

Mandarin was his second language in school and was not a compulsory subject, so he focused on his English subjects instead, he shared.

However, not being fluent in Mandarin has been one of his "deepest regrets".

Ng has been heard speaking in both English and Teochew throughout his ongoing campaign. He has also spoken about how he grew up speaking the dialect to his parents who couldn't converse in English.

When asked if he was worried about losing the vote of the Chinese-speaking voters, he said:

"I don't think so... I hope that you know, the people, the Chinese section of our population will know, maybe from my sincerity that I'm Chinese at heart."

"I carry with me my values, which my father and mother taught me, my values are very Asian. You might say, very Chinese," he added.

Kissing floor of childhood home

Ng knelt and kissed a spot on the floor at Block 475A Upper Serangoon Crescent, after submitting his nomination papers and qualifying for the 2023 Presidential Election.

According to him, the HDB block is built on the "exact spot" where he was born and where he lived with his 10 siblings, as well as his parents, in the past.

He revealed that his actions were spontaneous:

"... at that moment, I was just filled with emotion that I've just been nominated for the presidency. And I've come home. Yeah, I've come home. And that's why I felt that I have to kiss the ground."

Previously Ng did share about growing up in the Hougang area and his close relationship with his family.

@mothershipsg Presidential hopeful Ng Kok Song shares the 3 most important things in his life. #sgnews #tiktoksg #ngkoksong #pe2023 #presidentialelection ♬ original sound - Mothership

Days towards polling day

As he heads into the second half of the campaign, Ng hopes to reach more Singaporeans on the ground.

He acknowledged that he has had no political campaigning experience, and that it has been an "uphill struggle" thus far.

"But I want to do the best I can, because the more people who can see me personally, I think will see me in, hopefully in [a] better light."

He added that he'd like to take the opportunity to educate Singaporeans about the reserves, why they are so important and why we have an elected president to take care of the reserves.

"So even if I don't win the election, I would like Singaporeans, especially the younger generation, to be more aware, more conscious of the importance of the elected presidency."

Top images via Andrew Koay and Aik Hui.