#799: WP's Eileen Chong on Leaving MFA for the Opposition & the Hidden Cost of Singapore’s Success

From MFA diplomat to Workers' Party NCMP in five months, Eileen Chong is asking Parliament the questions most leave untouched - about Singapore's loneliness epidemic, arts funding gaps, AI's real costs, and the price of one generation's relentless success.𝗢𝗻𝗲 𝗦𝗵𝗶𝗼𝗸 𝗧𝗵𝗶𝗻𝗴Terence: Full interview: Anthropic CEO responds to Trump order, Pentagon clashHaresh: The Boys – Final Season TrailerEileen: Reasons to be Cheerful𝗪𝗼𝗿𝗸 𝘄𝗶𝘁𝗵 𝘂𝘀!We’re looking for people to join our team! Click on the links below to find out more about the roles. If you’re interested, send your CV & cover letter to [email protected]! Creative ProducerFolklory Growth Hacking Internship𝗦𝘂𝗯𝘀𝗰𝗿𝗶𝗯𝗲 𝘁𝗼 𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝘄𝗲𝗲𝗸𝗹𝘆 𝗻𝗲𝘄𝘀𝗹𝗲𝘁𝘁𝗲𝗿 – "𝗬𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝗟𝗶𝘁𝘁𝗹𝗲 𝗕𝗶𝘁”Get a roundup of our One Shiok Things & first dibs on our latest launches delivered straight to your inbox!Subscribe Here(00:00) Intro(00:00:22) Introducing Eileen Chong, WP NCMP(00:02:09) From Spotlight To Short Runway: Joining WP Before GE2025(00:03:42) Was Politics Always On Her Radar?(00:04:52) Scholar, Diplomat, Then Opposition: The Reasoning(00:07:10) Singapore's Treadmill Culture And The Hidden Wellbeing Cost(00:09:20) What She Observed In The Diplomatic Corps: Beijing And Seoul(00:12:25) Does She Even Have Time To Disconnect Now?(00:13:54) Her Parliament Speech: Time, Presence And Space(00:16:01) Singapore Exceptionalism: Why Self-Defeating Thinking Holds Us Back(00:18:33) TFR At 0.87 And What Korea's Reversal Means For S'pore(00:20:39) How Singapore Is Perceived In Diplomatic Circles(00:23:35) Why She Pushed For IR Education In Schools(00:25:02) What Diplomats Actually Do(00:27:49) S'poreans Spend $1.8B On Tuition: Can The Mindset Change?(00:32:04) The Culinary School Dream She Never Pursued(00:33:44) Speaking Up For Small Arts Practitioners In Parliament(00:35:15) Making The Case For Arts: Beyond Entertainment, Beyond ROI(00:39:10) Hallyu And What Singapore Can Learn From Korean Soft Power(00:41:52) 1 In 10 S'poreans Have No Close Friends: Her Response(00:44:32) Growing Up In Jurong West And West Vs East Singapore(00:47:05) What's It Really Like Being In WP And Inside Parliament?(00:50:39) Is There Really A Chinese Faction In WP? And Pritam Singh's Title(00:53:28) Being An Opposition MP At Official Events: Treated Differently?(00:55:11) AI In Parliament: Cautious Optimism And The Darker Side(00:59:31) How She Has Changed And Defining Success As A Millennial NCMP(01:02:50) What Gives Her Hope About Singapore's Future(01:03:46) One Shiok Things(01:11:06) Post-Interview Reflection𝗖𝗼𝗺𝗺𝗲𝗻𝘁 𝗼𝗻 𝘁𝗵𝗶𝘀 𝗲𝗽𝗶𝘀𝗼𝗱𝗲!Reddit | Telegram𝗙𝗼𝗹𝗹𝗼𝘄 𝘂𝘀 𝗼𝗻 𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝘀𝗼𝗰𝗶𝗮𝗹𝘀TikTok | Instagram | Facebook𝘔𝘪𝘤𝘴 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘏𝘦𝘢𝘥𝘱𝘩𝘰𝘯𝘦𝘴 𝘧𝘳𝘰𝘮 @𝘴𝘩𝘶𝘳𝘦𝘌𝘥𝘪𝘵𝘦𝘥 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘮𝘪𝘹𝘦𝘥 𝘣𝘺 𝘛𝘳𝘪𝘴𝘵𝘦𝘯 𝘠𝘦𝘢𝘬 Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.