Foo Cexiang on citizen participation and education

SINGAPORE – Education is the first step to widening the space for Singaporeans to be part of policy discussions, said Minister of State for Manpower Foo Cexiang.

The first-term Tanjong Pagar GRC MP, who is now two months into political office, said he believes in citizen participation.

“But to give more space, you need to educate first. Because if you don’t share with people the basis and the context and the information, then of course you cannot expect something constructive to come out of it,” said Foo, 41.

Foo, who is also Minister of State for Energy, Trade and Industry, said his belief in involving more people in decisions stems from his undergraduate days studying urban planning, when he was particularly interested in community planning. 

His experience as a civil servant reinforced that conviction, when he saw that the service could “do more” with public consultation.

Foo has overseen several pilot projects in this vein over the past year and a half in his Tanjong-Pagar-Tiong Bahru ward.

These include a recycling trial in Tiong Bahru and a participatory budgeting project in Spottiswoode Park estate, which allows residents to have more say in how funds are allocated for neighbourhood improvements. Both exercises spanned several weekends and brought together different agencies and people involved for conversations.

“Everyone has been great because the community has come together, and that is the value,” he said. “I thrive on this thing where people come together and get something difficult done.”

He had pushed for more such engagements in Parliament in May as a backbencher. His speech, titled Building A Democracy Of Deeds, championed an approach where an active citizenry works with the Government to solve problems. 

In an interview with The Straits Times on Oct 26, Foo said the Government should place citizen engagement at the heart of its planning approach as it shapes communities and neighbourhoods. 

His experience with frequent engagement is now useful to his work as a political office-holder.

Much of his time now is spent meeting stakeholders, including workers, unions, foreign counterparts as well as local and foreign companies.

Foo, who took on his roles on Sept 1, had imagined that the new roles would be quite similar to his past experience in civil service – “a bit more time in front of the computer, thinking about policies, developing policies”.

He was a director at the Transport Ministry before entering politics in the 2025 General Election. Prior to joining the Government, he was with port operator PSA Singapore as its vice-president for port ecosystem development from April 2025.

Prime Minister Lawrence Wong had in announcing changes to his Cabinet in July said he was bringing Foo and Jalan Besar GRC MP Shawn Loh into the Government as “they have made a good start as MPs”. 

Asked how he reacted to the portfolios he was assigned to, Foo said he had previously told PM Wong that as his children were young, he hoped not to travel too much in the immediate term.

With trade now one of his assigned portfolios, Foo said he recognised that travelling was an important part of the job and has had to explain it to his three daughters, aged four to nine, who hate that he has to go away.

He has made three overseas trips in three months. This includes travelling with Senior Minister Lee Hsien Loong to Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan for over a week in August, right before he rejoined the public sector on Sept 1.

He was away for three days in September to attend the APEC Human Resources Development Ministerial Meeting held in Nanjing, China, and was part of the delegation accompanying President Tharman Shanmugaratnam on a five-day state visit to Sweden in October. 

Foo said his wife has helped to explain his absence to their children by printing out information and trivia about each destination. His daughters were excited in October that Foo would be meeting Swedish royalty.

The other change to his schedule is that he spends a large amount of time making speeches and attending events, which he sees as an extension of his MP role.

He has given more than 12 speeches since taking political office, averaging one speech every two to three days, not including those in his capacity as an MP.

“The large majority of my time now as a political office-holder is spent on communication,” he said, adding that it is important to inform and get feedback on policies.

He has also moved from asking questions in Parliament as a backbencher, to answering them. Since taking office, he has responded to about five questions in the House, including some “to and fro” with opposition MPs.

“I think I was able to communicate what are the underlying principles, objectives and implications… that was something that I had confidence doing.”

He describes himself as an “optimist and a realist”, and responds with a swift “nothing” when asked if any issue keeps him awake at night.

After making a decision, he does his best to make it work. If it does not, he pivots to make the right decision, he said. 

Foo has kept up his grassroots events tempo for now, though he is not sure if that will hold with his travel schedule.

He tries to make an extra effort when attending these events, he notes, as he wants to play a bigger part in mobilising and helping such events succeed.

Foo recently went viral for his performance in the ring at WrestlePagar 2 at Tanjong Pagar Community Club on Oct 10. He performed under the Hunclemania banner to promote the H.U.N.C.L.E programme – which stands for Healthy Uncles who Network, drink Coffee, Learn and Exercise – for men aged 50 and above in his ward.

He delivered moves including an arm drag, rebounded off the ropes and executed Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson’s signature “People’s Elbow” wrestling move.

Foo, who has done his fair share of dancing and singing to engage his residents, attended basic wrestling training sessions prior to his act.

He added: “We need to be a society where anyone with a passion will have a platform to thrive and do well, and it just so happens that in the capacities that I am as a grassroots advisor, as MOS in manpower and trade, I can facilitate so many of these platforms.”