GE2025: 'We will learn the right lessons and do better,' says NTUC chief Ng Chee Meng on Allianz-Income deal, Singapore News
Jalan Kayu SMC People's Action Party (PAP) candidate Ng Chee Meng has said that he will learn from the feedback from the Allianz-Income saga and do better.
He addressed the matter during the party's rally at Fern Green Primary School on Sunday (April 27) evening.
Ng said that in the course of his work in NTUC Enterprise, problems do occasionally rear their heads at them, such as the Income-Allianz deal.
"The proposed deal was done in good faith and was in compliance with legal and MAS (Monetary Authority of Singapore) regulations," he recalled in his speech. "We thought in the labour movement that it was a reasonable deal."
Ng explained that at the time, Income's market share in Singapore had dropped from 20 per cent to six per cent over 10 years, and there was a "real threat to the sustainability of Income, especially in moments of crisis".
"The proposed deal could strengthen Income and, most importantly, protect the interests of Incomes policy holders," he said, adding that a stronger Income would enable NTUC to pursue social missions in wider spaces besides insurance.
But as details of the proposed plan surfaced, Ng said, the "government saw it differently and stopped it by changing the law".
"NTUC could not have known that the law would be changed," he added.
Stating that he sincerely respected the government's view and accepted them blocking the deal, he also acknowledged the public feedback received.
"I've initiated a review in NTUC Enterprise so that we can learn the right lessons humbly, do better for fellow Singaporeans," he said.
"In NTUC, we will do our best, and sometimes I'm sorry that it is not good enough. But we will learn the right lessons, and we will do better," he affirmed.
Former NTUC Income Insurance chief executive Tan Suee Chieh and Straits Trades executive director David Leong had each called for accountability from Ng for supporting the Income-Allianz deal in separate Facebook posts on Sunday.
Ng, who is also the secretary-general of the National Trades Union Congress (NTUC), was accompanied by the PAP's Ang Mo Kio GRC candidates Senior Minister Lee Hsien Loong, incumbent MPs Darryl David and Nadia Ahmad Samdin, as well as new faces Jasmin Lau and Victor Lye.
Sengkang GRC candidate Dr Lam Pin Min, NTUC vice-president Abdul Samad Abdul Wahab, Kebun Baru SMC candidate Henry Kwek and Yio Chu Kang SMC Yip Hon Weng were also present. Government originally supported deal: SM Lee
SM Lee also spoke at the rally and addressed the aborted deal as a "serious matter".
The labour movement felt it was a reasonable deal, and we supported it, he recalled, adding that the government looked at the deal and had determined that it met all legal requirements and MAS regulations.
"But after the issue was discussed further and we went further into the matter, the government found out more things and decided, no, we have to change our mind," SM Lee said.
"We have to say we oppose this deal. But we have to change legislation, change the law, so that we can block it."
He then highlighted that this showed how the PAP is accountable to Singapore for doing the right thing, whereas the Workers' Party (WP) "had nothing to do with this".
He elaborated: "When we went for the legislation, Workers' Party abstained. So if it had been left to the Workers' Party as government, then the deal would have gone through because they did not oppose it."
At a WP rally in Tampines on Saturday, party chief Pritam Singh said that the "Workers' Party MPs promptly filed questions to call on the government" about the deal.
"Not a single PAP labour MP asked a question about this issue in Parliament," he added.
Earlier in his speech, SM Lee also commended Ng's character for having "the grit" and "the sense of responsibility" to stand by his post during the Covid-19 pandemic despite losing his seat in GE2020.
"He proved himself, reliable, trustworthy, committed," SM Lee said. "Therefore, this election... I recommended to the PM, and the PM agreed and invited Ng Chee Meng to stand again." Allianz-Income deal
German insurer Allianz had offered $2.2 billion in cash for at least 51 per cent of shares for Income Insurance in July last year.
The government intervened in October, calling off the deal as it decided it would not be in the public interest.
Two months later, Allianz pulled out of the deal.
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khooyihang@asiaone.com
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