Member of Parliament (MP) Tin Pei Ling’s abrupt role-switch at ride-hailing firm Grab was hotly discussed by TODAY readers last week.
The firm said last Friday (Feb 10) that Ms Tin would move to a corporate development role, a week after news of her appointment as director of public affairs and policy raised questions over a potential conflict of interest.
The People’s Action Party acknowledged that Ms Tin’s initial appointment could pose some challenges, while analysts added that companies should be more careful when hiring office bearers in such roles.
Many readers, however, were quick to jump to Ms Tin’s defence, saying that she is well-liked and it is common for MPs to have jobs in the private sector. Others questioned Grab’s motive for hiring Ms Tin, and her ability to serve residents in future. Here’s a selection of comments:
IN DEFENCE OF MS TIN
“Many MPs, including WP MPs, hold jobs in the private sector and yet no one talked about conflict of interest before? Some are even CEOs. This is really making an issue out of a non-issue.” JOYCE LEE
“It has never been an easy journey for her right from the start, but she has proven herself over the years with her hard work. This time, she chose to be transparent with her new role… For that, I give her my thumbs up.” EILEEN NAI
“The opposition MPs are also holding other jobs, I don’t see why Ms Tin cannot do so. In fact, she has proved herself to be a good MP and we should be happy that she is supported by a good employer.” EDMUND TAN
“Thanks for indirectly admitting that there WAS actually some conflict of interest in that role. Thanks to all those who stood up and questioned to keep things fair.” MANI DAN
“The issue is her job scope in Grab was about public affairs, a.k.a. dealing with the Government. Had she been hired by Grab to work in operations, none of this debate would arise… Her performance in her ward has nothing to do with this. People are not cyber bullying. I think it’s right to ask about conflict of interest.” RACHEL CHUA
STILL ABLE TO SERVE?
“How much time is she planning to serve her residents taking up a private sector job?” CL CHEONG