GE2025: Standing for elections is more about conviction than credentials, says WP new face and Harvard grad
The 36-year-old entrepreneur wants to help younger Singaporeans find their footing earlier in life.
In putting himself out there for the General Election in 2025, Workers’ Party member Michael Thng (pictured) is prepared to leave his startup if he were elected and circumstances made it necessary to do so. (Photo: 鶹ý/Lim Li Ting)
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In almost every news article written about Mr Michael Thng’s potential candidacy for the Workers' Party (WP) so far, he has been given the same primary label: Harvard graduate.
The 36-year-old entrepreneur spent two years at the Harvard University’s John F Kennedy School of Government pursuing a master’s degree in public policy after completing his undergraduate studies at New York University's Stern School of Business, all in the United States.
WP's chief Pritam Singh highlighted Mr Thng's academic history, among other accolades in his curriculum vitae, during an event to introduce the opposition party's new faces last Sunday (Apr 20).
Notably, though, Mr Thng chose not to repeat that accomplishment in his own introduction.
The first question I posed to the political newcomer in his maiden sit-down interview with the news media was: What do you think of that label?
“It's kind of funny that all that matters in the coverage is where I happened to go to school for two years of my life,” he said.
“Ultimately, I'm someone who thinks deeply about the problems that we are facing in the country. I'm someone who has innovative ideas about how to solve them.
“I just have to prove that I'm more than that label and have people judge for themselves.”
In that case, what label would he prefer?
He let out what might soon become his trademark smile on this campaign: “The label of a good MP.”
ATTENDED FIRST POLITICAL RALLY AS A STUDENT
Mr Thng’s quip might have been somewhat in jest, but that aspiration to one day serve Singaporeans in parliament has been years in the making.
During the course of our two-hour-long conversation while walking along East Coast Park in between rain bouts and sitting at pavilions, he spoke of how he spent large parts of his childhood cycling with his father, eating fast food and walking by the shore.
He also recalled how almost two decades ago, he was first exposed to WP's events as an Anglo-Chinese School junior college student.
Before he went to a WP rally at Serangoon Stadium in 2006 when he was 17, his perception was that there were "a couple of troublemakers who were giving the People’s Action Party (PAP) some pain", but generally speaking, everyone in the population was "very happy".
Then, "to go to the stadium and see throngs, thousands of people", it showed him that there were reasons why people were responding to the opposition.
That election, WP leader Low Thia Kiang retained his Hougang Single-Member Constituency seat and WP made its first bid for Aljunied Group Representation Constituency (GRC) but lost to PAP.
However, as the best losers that election, party chair Sylvia Lim got a Non-Constituency Member of Parliament spot.
At the next General Election in 2011, Mr Thng took the chance to volunteer for the party after he found out that the father of a friend was a WP candidate for East Coast GRC, though he declined to reveal who the candidate was.
The roles he took on within WP then continued to evolve gradually over time.
Even while he was living in the US – where he studied, worked for management consulting firm Boston Consulting Group and co-founded his tech startup Showdrop in Chicago – Mr Thng's interest in the political scene here was never far from his mind, he said.
He continued helping out with policy and parliamentary work remotely over the years.
Yet, even after almost 15 years of involvement with WP, stepping up as a prospective candidate for Singapore’s largest opposition party this year was not initially on the cards because he had his hands full as co-founder of a startup.
“I went in fully with the expectation to sit down with the secretary-general to say, 'I'm sorry, this may not be the right time',” he said of a meeting with Mr Singh who was convincing him to stand as a candidate.
Mr Singh’s response? “Just help out. Just get your feet wet.”
How things have played out for Mr Thng was not lost on us as we continued the interview with his shoes thoroughly soaked by the rain, surrounded by strangers also seeking shelter from the downpour.
He said that as he got the chance to interact with more residents and meet the volunteers and WP members on walkabouts, his mindset "kind of transformed" and he got more comfortable with the idea.
“Then I started moving pieces in the puzzle board around to make it work.”
I pointed out that his work commitments overseas would surely raise some eyebrows as to how he intends to juggle both gigs if he were to be elected.
He replied: “If the faith is placed with me to be able to represent my constituents, I will take that very, very seriously and ensure that that's my top priority.
“If that means I have to leave my startup, I’m prepared to do so.”
"EVERYTHING IS POLITICAL"
When asked what he is passionate about outside of politics, Mr Thng, who turns 37 in December and is the second-youngest of four children, took several pauses.
A few ideas were thrown around, from collecting vintage items to tending to his plants.
It somehow got back to him wanting to change the education system or help singles get a Build-To-Order flat from the public housing authority at a younger age.
Realising that there was no escape from touching on what preoccupied his mind these days, he exclaimed that "everything is political”.
It was evident to me that it was not a throwaway remark: He has long been drawn to the process of policymaking and governance.
Even before parliament sittings were streamed online, Mr Thng would show up in person just to watch the proceedings before they were edited for televsion.
“I've always had that interest to just understand the process and learn more about it.”
That instinct followed him even to the US.
While a student at Harvard Kennedy, he and his peers realised that Harvard Law students could take part in moot court competitions, but policy students had no equivalent.
So they created one: a simulation of the US Senate, replicating the tough negotiations and trade-offs involved in passing legislation.
“It's quite an engaging way for people to think about how policy is crafted,” he said.
“And to be conversant about that will help us improve the process because then, we'll have the skill set to understand when things are not being done correctly and the wherewithal to notice it.”
Mr Thng’s years abroad have also given him a unique lens through which to view Singapore’s political culture.
He witnessed firsthand the ideological gridlock of US politics, which he described as “particularly toxic”, where ideas are judged “not by the virtue of its value, but by your affiliation”.
He was quick to clarify that Singapore is not quite there yet, but he has observed some glimpses of that partisanship creeping in here.
“Sometimes, there is a reticence to accept a good idea from either side, simply because it's not mine,” he said.
“I think it's important that we not allow ourselves to be taken by that political brinkmanship and look at a policy soberly for what it is.
“If it's good, whether it's mine or yours, let's try to put it to parliament and get it passed either way.”
HELPING YOUNG PEOPLE GAIN AN EARLY FOOTING IN LIFE
As I spoke with the lifelong debater, former consultant and former Harvard student, it felt at times tempting to pigeonhole Mr Thng as someone who would spend more time behind the desk than walking through public housing estates to interact with constituents if he were elected to be a member of parliament.
So I probed about the politician he aspires to be: Does he see himself more as a grassroots “ground-pounder” or a backroom policy wonk?
He swiftly rejected the dichotomy presented to him.
“I really believe that to be a good policymaker, you have to understand how people are affected by the policies in real life,” he said.
“If you don't spend time on the ground talking to people, you will be writing policy almost in a vacuum, hoping that what you imagine would happen would actually happen.”
One area he is particularly keen on pursuing, if elected, is helping future generations of youth gain what he calls “an earlier footing in life”.
This includes earlier access to housing, which is in line with WP’s manifesto.
Current guidelines by the housing authority state that singles must at least 35 years old in order to get a new Housing and Development Board flat.
Mr Thng, who is single, said that his goal is to allow singles as young as 28 to apply for Build-To-Order flats and to increase rental options for them in both the public and private property markets.
As for what he sees his strengths to be as a parliamentarian, it is digging into the details of policies to ensure that they are written to encompass the full spectrum of the problem at hand.
“I know it’s not sexy. It’s not what you win elections on, but that’s really what the government is about. It is really what writing effective, good policy is about.”
The torrential rain had subsided by that point of the interview and we found ourselves walking along the coast chatting about more lighthearted matters.
He enjoys disco-pop music, from Australian electropop group Parcels to German synth-pop artiste Roosevelt. He is particularly a fan of Singapore singer-songwriter Gentle Bones. When he can, he binges on true-crime documentaries.
The simultaneous bustle and serenity of East Coast Park fills him with nostalgia, though he now lives with his parents in the western part of Singapore.
The conversation inevitably went back to politics, a subject he did not need much prompting to talk about enthusiastically.
I remarked that it seemed natural for him to be in this position, standing for election in a few days, given his relevant professional experiences and gift of the gab.
Mr Thng responded with a laugh and said without missing a beat: “I have many friends who did debates, startups and consulting but are not in politics, so I don’t know if that’s really an argument for anything."
He added: "In Singapore, politics is not just about having an experience 'set' that makes it natural for you, particularly on this side of the aisle.
“You really have to be guided by some kind of conviction … That’s important to me.
“I don’t want to look back on my life and think about what if I never applied myself in that way, that I wasn’t able to serve Singapore in my full capacity.”
