[20130617] The Sunday Times - Dads Show Singapore Power Sons The Wayhttps://www.spgroup.com.sg/dam/spgroup/wcm/connect/spgrp/d7ee95b2-19e0-482f-aa02-92312f3a9eb4/%5B20130617%5D+The+Sunday+Times+-+Dads+Show+Singapore+Power+Sons+The+Way.pdf?MOD=AJPERES&CVID=dren from a previous marriage. “People would say the marriage wouldn’t work and that it’d be hard for our children to get along,” said Mr Shahrin, who atter-in-charge of Muslim Affairs Yaacob Ibrahim. Addressing an audience of 17 step-families, he said: “Notwithstanding the presence of the bio- They also made sure that their children from their previous marriages, now aged 10 to 14, got to know each other on outings together prior to their wedding in gramme they spent the morning painting together before attending separate workshops for parents and children in the afternoon. the Women’s Charter and about 1,400 re-marriages are registered under the Administration of Muslim Law Act. This accounts for about a quarter of marriages in may not see the rewards of their parenting efforts for years. But patience and perseverance will yield long-term rewards.” maryamm@sph.com.sg Dads show Singapore Power sons the way By MELISSA LIN DURING a major blackout in Singapore some years ago, Mr Muraliraj saw his father, Mr Rajoo Devaraj, throw on a shirt and leave for work even though he was not on duty that day. The Singapore Power employee felt it was his duty to help fix the problem. Inspired by his father’s passion for the job, Mr Muraliraj, 28, joined the same company three years ago. These days the father-and-son team work together to fix power Mr Tan Lih Chau (left), 40, and Mr Tan Lih Hong (right), 37, fete their father, Mr Tan San, 70, who scrimped to save for their education. ST PHOTO: DESMOND LIM trips. Mr Rajoo, an operation officer who has been with Singapore Power for 40 years, will notify his son, an executive engineer, who will then fix it. “He’s more like a friend to me,” said Mr Muraliraj of his 63-year-old father. “He showed me that if you enjoy what you’re doing, you won’t consider it working.” He is among at least four sons at the company who were inspired by their fathers’ careers. Technician Muhammad Hidayatullah, 24, was better known as “Ronan’s son” when he joined the company three months ago, encouraged by his father, Mr Ronan Othman, 52, also a technician. “My father would tell me about how they used to manually dig into the ground to lay the power cables,” said Mr Hidayatullah. “It was an eye-opener when I finally saw the large cables, 300mm in diameter, that he talked about.” Brothers Tan Lih Chau, 40, and Tan Lih Hong, 37, were inspired by their father’s work ethic and thrifty ways. Mr Tan San, 70, a civil engineer with resort operator Banyan Tree, often stayed away for six months to a year at a stretch, working on projects in places such as Phuket and the Maldives. The holiday resorts he built are physical reminders of the sacrifices he made to provide them with an education. “We didn’t come from a well-to-do family. My dad worked very hard,” said Mr Tan Lih Hong, deputy director of Singapore Power’s gas distribution department. His brother is a principal engineer in the cable tunnels team. He recalled that his father would not spend money on drinks when he went out for lunch. Instead, he would make do with plain water, just to save money for their education. Mr Tan added: “He always told us not to worry about our finances, just concentrate on our studies. If not for my dad, we would not be here today.” mellinjm@sph.com.sg More activities for fathers and children