Yeo Guat Kwang ( zh, s=杨木光, p=Yáng Mùguāng; born 27 January 1961) is a former Singaporean politician. A former member of the governing

People's Action Party The People's Action Party (abbreviation: PAP) is a major conservative centre-right political party in Singapore and is one of the three contemporary political parties represented in Parliament, alongside the opposition Workers' Party (WP) and ...

(PAP), he was the

Member of Parliament A member of parliament (MP) is the representative in parliament of the people who live in their electoral district. In many countries with bicameral parliaments, this term refers only to members of the lower house since upper house members of ...

(MP) representing the Ang Mo Kio–Hougang ward of

Ang Mo Kio GRC The Ang Mo Kio Group Representation Constituency is a five-member Group Representation Constituency (GRC) in the north eastern region of Singapore. The constituency encompasses the majority of Ang Mo Kio (Teck Ghee, Cheng San-Seletar, portio ...

between 2011 and 2015.

Education

Yeo attended

The Chinese High School The Chinese High School () was an independent school in Singapore offering secondary education. The school merged with Hwa Chong Junior College on 1 January 2005 to form the integrated Hwa Chong Institution. Founded on 21 March 1919, The Chine ...

and

Nanyang Junior College Nanyang Junior College (NYJC) () is a junior college in Singapore next to Lorong Chuan MRT station, offering two-year pre-university courses leading up to the GCE Advanced Level examinations. In recent years, Nanyang Junior College has witness ...

, before graduating from the

National University of Singapore The National University of Singapore (NUS) is a national public research university in Singapore. Founded in 1905 as the Straits Settlements and Federated Malay States Government Medical School, NUS is the oldest autonomous university in the c ...

in 1986 with a

Bachelor of Arts Bachelor of arts (BA or AB; from the Latin ', ', or ') is a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate program in the arts, or, in some cases, other disciplines. A Bachelor of Arts degree course is generally completed in three or four years ...

degree in

social sciences Social science is one of the branches of science, devoted to the study of societies and the relationships among individuals within those societies. The term was formerly used to refer to the field of sociology, the original "science of soci ...

. He subsequently went on to complete a

postgraduate diploma A postgraduate diploma (PgD, PgDip, PGDip, PG Dip., PGD, Dipl. PG, PDE) is a postgraduate qualification awarded after a university degree, which supplements the original degree and awards them with a graduate diploma. Countries that award postg ...

education Education is a purposeful activity directed at achieving certain aims, such as transmitting knowledge or fostering skills and character traits. These aims may include the development of understanding, rationality, kindness, and honesty. Va ...

at the

National Institute of Education The National Institute of Education (NIE) is an autonomous institute of Nanyang Technological University (NTU) in Singapore. Ranked 12th in the world and 2nd in Asia by the QS World University Rankings in the subject of Education in 2015, the ...

at the

Nanyang Technological University The Nanyang Technological University (NTU) is a national research university in Singapore. It is the second oldest autonomous university in the country and is considered as one of the most prestigious universities in the world by various inte ...

in 1987. He also completed a joint programme at the

NUS Business School The National University of Singapore (NUS) is a national public research university in Singapore. Founded in 1905 as the Straits Settlements and Federated Malay States Government Medical School, NUS is the oldest autonomous university in the ...

and

Lee Kuan Yew School of Public Policy The Lee Kuan Yew School of Public Policy (LKY School) is an autonomous postgraduate school of the National University of Singapore (NUS), named after the late former Prime Minister of Singapore, Lee Kuan Yew. History The Lee Kuan Yew School of ...

with a Master in Public Administration and Management degree in 2013.

Personal life

Yeo is of Teochew descent, where his ancestral hometown is Chaoan District, Chaozhou.

Career

Education

Yeo started his career in 1987 as a teacher at

, and in 1991, he became a Head of Department at

Anderson Secondary School Anderson Secondary School (ANDSS) is a co-educational government autonomous school in Ang Mo Kio, Singapore offering education for Secondary 1 to Secondary 5. It became an autonomous school in 1994 and was one of the pioneer autonomous schools in ...

. From 1993 to 1996, he was a Specialist Inspector for

Chinese Chinese can refer to: * Something related to China * Chinese people, people of Chinese nationality, citizenship, and/or ethnicity **''Zhonghua minzu'', the supra-ethnic concept of the Chinese nation ** List of ethnic groups in China, people of ...

at the

Ministry of Education An education ministry is a national or subnational government agency politically responsible for education. Various other names are commonly used to identify such agencies, such as Ministry of Education, Department of Education, and Ministry of Pub ...

Labour Movement

In 1997, he joined the labour movement as an Executive Secretary for the Building Construction and Timber Industries Employees Union (BATU). In 2001, he moved on to become the Executive Secretary for Singapore Industrial and Services Employees Union (SISEU). In 2007, he became the Executive Secretary for the Amalgamated Union of Statutory Board Employees (AUSBE). In January 2014, Yeo was appointed Assistant Secretary-General (ASG) in the NTUC, which has close ties with the

Singapore government The Government of Singapore is defined by the Constitution of Singapore to mean the executive branch of the state, which is made up of the president and the Cabinet. Although the president acts in their personal discretion in the exercise ...

. In December 2016, Yeo was promoted to Assistant Director-General in NTUC. Yeo is also the chairman of the NTUC's Migrant Workers' Centre, which was set up in 2009. He is also the head of the Centre for Domestic Employees, and the director for Workplace Safety and Health. Yeo was president of the Consumers Association of Singapore (CASE), a consumer advocacy group founded by the NTUC, until June 2012. Some have criticized CASE for being toothless.

Politics

Yeo joined a 5th member of

Cheng San GRC Cheng San Group Representation Constituency (Simplified Chinese: 静山集选区;Traditional Chinese: 靜山集選區) was a Group Representation Constituency (GRC) in the North-eastern region in Singapore. The GRC consisted of the eastern part ...

and managed to obtain 54.8% of the votes which he became a Member of Parliament for

of Punggol South ward from 1997 to 2001. In 2001, he joined a 5th member PAP team in

Aljunied GRC The Aljunied Group Representation Constituency is a five-member group representation constituency (GRC) in the north-eastern and eastern region of Singapore. The GRC consists of five divisions: Eunos, Bedok Reservoir-Punggol, Kaki Bukit, Sera ...

which resulted in a walkover in 2001 general election and managed to obtain a 56.09% in the 2006 general election and became a Member of Parliament for

for Aljuined—Hougang ward from 2001 to 2011 and joined a 6th member PAP team for

and obtained 69.33% in the 2011 general election became a Member of Parliament for

for Ang Mo Kio—Hougang ward from 2011 to 2015. During the 2015 general election, he led the PAP team for Aljunied GRC, but have only obtained 49.04% of the votes against the Worker's Party team with 50.96% of the votes. Prior to 2020 general election, he retired from politics. He is currently a board member at the

Agri-Food and Veterinary Authority of Singapore The Agri-Food and Veterinary Authority of Singapore (AVA) was a statutory board under the Ministry of National Development that regulated food safety, safeguarded animal and plant health, and facilitated the agri-food and fisheries trade secto ...

. He was a former Member of the

Parliament of Singapore The Parliament of Singapore is the unicameral legislature of the Republic of Singapore, which governs the country alongside the president of Singapore. Largely based upon the Westminster system, the Parliament is made up of Members of Parliam ...

from 1997 to 2015. He is currently the Assistant Director-General in the

National Trades Union Congress The National Trades Union Congress (NTUC), also known as the Singapore National Trades Union Congress (SNTUC) internationally, is the sole national trade union centre in Singapore. NTUC is at the heart of the Labour Movement which comprises 5 ...

(NTUC). He also used to be a board member at the

Public Utilities Board The Public Utilities Board (PUB) is a statutory board under the Ministry of Sustainability and the Environment of the Government of Singapore responsible for ensuring a sustainable and efficient water supply in Singapore. The PUB regulates an ...

Land Transport Authority The Land Transport Authority (LTA) is a statutory board under the Ministry of Transport of the Government of Singapore. History Incorporation of Land Transport Authority Land Transport Authority (LTA) was established on 1 September 1995, f ...

, and

SPRING Singapore The Standards, Productivity and Innovation Board ( abbreviation: SPRING Singapore) was a statutory board under the Ministry of Trade and Industry of the Singapore Government. It worked as an agency for enterprise development, and helped enterp ...

Private sector

Yeo currently holds directorships in Asiagate Holdings and SIIC Environment Holding. He was previously a director in other private companies, including Neo Group, Asia Water Technology, HLH Group, Japan Foods Holding, Grandwork Interior, Eco3 Tech & Engineering, Advance SCT, NAFA-Asiagate Education Corporation, Eco-World Biotechnology,

Esplanade An esplanade or promenade is a long, open, level area, usually next to a river or large body of water, where people may walk. The historical definition of ''esplanade'' was a large, open, level area outside fortress or city walls to provide cle ...

, China Gaoxian Fibre Fabric Holdings,

Singapore Chinese Orchestra Singapore Chinese Orchestra SCO ( zh, c=新加坡华乐团, p=Xinjiapo Huayuetuan) is Singapore's only professional Chinese orchestra. Inaugurated in 1997, the 85-musician orchestra took on the twin role of preserving traditional arts and cultu ...

, and United Envirotech.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Yeo, Guat Kwang 1961 births Living people Singaporean people of Teochew descent Members of the Parliament of Singapore People's Action Party politicians National University of Singapore alumni Nanyang Junior College alumni Hwa Chong Institution alumni Singaporean trade unionists