INDRANEE RAJAH - 5 THINGS YOU DIDN'T KNOW ABOUT HER

MPs have "Meet-the-people" sessions, but PIONEER gets a "Meet-the-MP" session with Deputy Speaker of Parliament and MP for Tanjong Pagar GRC Indranee Rajah.

1. She did two years of National Service.

Well, Ms Rajah did serve the nation, sort of, having chaired the Government Parliamentary Committee for Defence and Foreign Affairs (GPC-DFA) from 2006 to 2008. In that appointment, she was involved in raising defence-related issues during the annual Budget debates and going through Bills introduced by the Ministry of Defence.

In her time with the GPC-DFA, she has gotten up close and personal with a Leopard 2A4 Main Battle Tank, the RSS Formidable frigate and witnessed numerous live-firings including those conducted at Exercise Lightning Warrior (South Africa) and Exercise Forging Sabre (United States).

Said Ms Rajah: "I asked to be in the GPC-DFA because of the international perspective it offered. Being on this committee gives you an understanding of how, small as we (Singapore) are, we can still play a role on the international stage. It also helps you to understand the shifts that take place in the geopolitics of the region."

2. She does not believe the gym is the best place to train for the IPPT run.

As the GPC-DFA chairperson, she has had opportunities to visit various camps. One visit was to the Army Fitness Centre at Khatib Camp in 2008, where she opted to participate in the Individual Physical Proficiency Test (IPPT) to get a sense of what NSmen go through every year.

"Training in an air-conditioned gym and running 2.4km in hot and humid weather are two totally different things... When I was training for my IPPT, I realised how difficult it was to have access to outdoor training facilities. So when I served as a member of RECORD V (the fifth committee to Recognise the Contributions of Operationally Ready NSmen to Total Defence), I suggested having IPPT facilities in HDB estates and it was positively received."

3.She loves detective novels.

She enjoys reading the Who-Dun-Its and Police Procedural sub-genres of detective stories such as the V.I. Warshawski detective series and The Bone Collector, which features paraplegic detective Lincoln Rhyme.

Said Ms Rajah who is also a lawyer and Deputy Head of Litigation and Dispute Resolution at Drew and Napier: "I like intelligent detective stories where you have to guess who committed the crime. I enjoy piecing things together, and that's what law is about. The client comes to you with a case, but the other side is saying something different, so you need to deduce exactly what happened."

4. She's into health and fitness.

In 2000, she took up Salsa as a fun way to keep fit, but had to give it up due to work commitments after becoming an MP. Now, whenever her schedule permits, she jogs in East Coast Park and does weights-training at the gym.

Elaborated Ms Rajah: "I have a personal trainer because I'm too lazy to exercise on my own! I figured that if I've paid for it, I'll force myself to go, and he'll get me to do the exercises. I complain all the time, but I do it anyway. "I do weights to stave off osteoporosis as the process of doing load-bearing exercises puts stress on your bones, and forces your bones to absorb calcium."

5. She's big on the little ones.

Through a We Love Learning programme launched in her constituency in 2004 for underprivileged children between the ages of three and 12, Ms Rajah advocates learning outside school by way of educational tours to places such as the Singapore Science Centre, the Police Heritage Centre and the Toy Museum. Once, she sponsored a group of them to watch Chitty Chitty Bang Bang (written by Ian Fleming).

"My criterion is that every children's programme must be a positive learning experience. Chitty Chitty Bang Bang, with its magical flying car, witty dialogue and creative plot was a good way to excite their imagination and stimulate creativity," she said.

One of her goals for the next few years is to persuade parents of low-income families to send their children to pre-school.

"In some low-income families, parents send their children straight to Primary One, without any pre-school preparation and these children end up falling behind those who had the benefit of attending kindergarten. These children are not stupid; it's just that the other children have a higher starting point. The challenge for me is getting the parents to understand that their children need to have pre-school education for a strong foundation and strong basics."