Charmaine Ong: We Let Traditions Hold Us Back Instead Of Taking Advantage of Them

by Ong Weide
Edited by Ho Yi Jian
Published October 18, 2006

With a long list of posts under her name, it’s not surprising that CHARMAINE ONG took up the JCRC President role this year. It’s like she’s been training for this post since she was a freshman. Today, she wants to bring TH to victory and greater unity. Normally wearing a straight face with drooping eyelids, she may seem too cold to many people. What I didn’t know is that she is actually an easy person to talk to.

Firstly, have you ever thought of running for the JCRC president post when you just arrived in TH in Yr1?
There was an interest to join the JCRC but I didn’t expect to in year one. I found that it represented something important and furthermore I’m ambitious by nature.

Okay, now that you are president. How are you coping so far?
Still coping fine till now. This semester is still alright compared to previous semesters study-wise.

What are the problems you are facing in the JCRC now?
Maybe I have to guide them [new JCRC members] a bit more. A lot of them are new and inexperienced but I’ve quite a bit of faith in them.

17th JCRC Special Projects Director, Rag vice-head, 18th JCRC Honorary General Secretary and now the president. That’s an incredible feat. What drives you to take up these posts?
I’m the kind of person who will attach loyalty to a certain body or organization which I think it’s worth my time and it impresses me. For example, the orientation and rag in my freshmen year was so impressive and I saw how the seniors sacrifice time and effort for the hall and this was a major motivation. Beside, taking all these positions was a personal challenge and I have always liked to push myself to the limits!

Just wondering, how much sleep did you get on average a day?
I managed 5 to 6hrs of sleep. It’s not a healthy way of doing it. By the way, I am nocturnal.

You mentioned in your rally that the hall spirit is fading. What’s your plan to bring back the Temasek Spirit?
There are various ways going about it. One of the approaches is to intensify block day activities because bonding people who live together first is very important and this will lead to greater participation in hall activities as people tend to join anything together with their friends. The second approach is to encourage bonding within comms and sports teams. Basically, doing various things in hall so it’ll be a step towards bonding hall as a whole.

You also emphasized on winning back the Interhall Games (IHG) title. What are your strategies then?
In TH, there are people whoare highly skilled national and IVP players but at the end of the day, the most important thing is to fight as a team. However, we lacked team chemistry because everyone wants to score individually rather than team-wise. I would rather have 10 mediocre players who understand the requirements of the team. Past IHGs victories have testified the fact games can be won through a lot of determination.

So how you are going to inculcate team spirit?
To inculcate team spirit, seniors should go down for trainings because our defeat can be attributed to a certain level of elitism and seniors’ complacency. It may serve well for a few years but after which, defeat is almost certain. Therefore, senior should necessarily interact with freshmen and play a role in inculcating team spirit.

What do you think is lacking in TH now?
We lacked in making breakthroughs and lack in creativity. TH has strong traditions like any other hall and some are worth upholding but we let traditions hold us back instead of taking advantage of them. For exmaple, Rag and also the way in which some committees are being run. We have become too traditional in committees. In Rag, structure and design process and the whole package basically. To remedy [this], we can lay foundation and re-examine ourselves which means more meetings and thrashing-out sessions (laughs). Gathering feedback from residents is a good approach. I can safely say that this year’s JCRC recognizes great potential in the freshmen batch this year and will look towards bringing fresh blood and seek to find a mid-point between our traditional and radical ideas.

What kind of welfare can we expect from the 19th JCRC?
You can look forward to better TV lounges and reading rooms before the end of this year. I’m not a very welfare person to begin with. (Chuckles)

Honestly, how do you feel that all the JCRC members were being elected in an “uncontested” manner? (That is, without any opposing candidates)
No contest raises legitimacy issues of the JCRC people. To those who question it: if you don’t think that they deserve the position, I propose you stand up and run yourself.

Why do you think many people don’t want to run for JCRC?
JCRC entails heavy responsibilities. That’s why it attracts very few candidates. If people apply for JCRC only because of sure stay-back, they will not do the job properly and will also gain bad reputation towards the end of the term. It’s all about sacrifice. The JCRC themselves must be more approachable to residents. We should talent spot early and try to impart certain values in the juniors. Hopefully there’ll be more contests of the good kind next year.

What’s your next project?
Fundraising and intensified canvassing. After 2 yrs of being in the JCRC, sadly to say, money buys almost everything that makes our hall stand out and other halls envious of us. Fundraising has been sort of an ambition for me from last year.

You are undisputedly one of the most experienced Temasekians now. Any advice for the freshmen on how to cope with both hall and studies?
Proper time management and efficiency are important. Do not ever procrastinate or be complacent. These two things will ruin your plans. Stay focused. Also, make friends in hall. Friends are people who will pull you through hard times, share your happy times and be there when you discover the meaning of “desperate”.

Tell us something that not many pple know abt you.
I am a Chao Ah Lian! (pauses for a while) I am actually very nice. I’m not scary! Please talk to me!

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