Issues discussed include the current $2 million deficit, and the potential members NUSS should be aiming at.
About 150 NUSS members gathered at the Della & Seng Gee Guild Hall at Kent Ridge Guild House on 27 April 2023 for this year’s Annual General Meeting (AGM). It was the first physical AGM after three years of online AGMs and many members said that they were glad that the pandemic restrictions have been relaxed to allow such meetings.
After NUSS President Mr Edward S Tay confirmed that there was a quorum as advised by NUSS’ legal counsel, Dato’ Peter Madhavan, the meeting kicked off by confirming the minutes of the AGM held last year.
After the essential procedures such as passing the Annual Report and Financial Statements were completed, the discussion moved to other matters of concern, where members were able to give feedback on issues related to NUSS. A member asked about the feasibility of a covered walkway from the carpark to the Kent Ridge Guild House. Mr Tay responded that the Management Committee (MC) will look into it, if necessary.
Mr Chandra Mohan K Nair, a NUSS Past President, then asked if the Society can take the lead in promoting activities such as social dancing as it is a beneficial sport for members of all ages.
He also suggested the NUSS set the pace for relevant debates by inviting speakers to discuss the forthcoming Presidential Election or inviting members of the Opposition to share their thoughts on Singapore’s future. Another member, Mr Francis Pavri agreed and said, “If Mr Pritam Singh or Mr Leon Perera agree to speak, we would have a full house.”
Mr Tay said that plans are afoot to invite candidates for the Presidential Election once they announce their candidacy. The discussion then moved to financial matters. Mr Mano Sabnani highlighted the $2 million deficit reflected in the Financial Statements and said that if this carries on, the Society’s reserves of $12 million would be depleted in six years. He also noted that Mandalay Guild House lost $1 million although it was a comparatively small operation.
Earlier at the AGM, another member spoke of how popular Suntec City Guild House was with younger members. She hoped it was not because of the very reasonable prices for alcohol, which got a laugh from the audience.
Mr Tay thanked Mr Sabnani for his analysis and said that these were matters the new MC would seriously consider. He informed the audience that the lease for Mandalay Guild House would expire next year with an option to renew for another three years. Suntec City Guild House’s lease would last till 2025 while that of Kent Ridge Guild House is till 2044.
Dr Pavri then took the floor to suggest that NUSS introduce more activities for seniors since they constitute the bulk of the membership. This would encourage these members to patronise the Guild Houses and boost F&B sales. While his suggestion went down well with many members of the audience, especially the senior ones, Mr Sabnani stood up to say that NUSS should target younger graduates. His rationale, “We should look to the future and not just at the past.”
He reasoned that young members pay higher subscriptions and they are not entitled to monthly F&B credits. Mr Sabnani was referring to the policy in which Life Members (those with 25 years’ continuous membership) only have to pay a reduced monthly subscription fee of $45, plus GST and receive monthly F&B credits of $45 in return.
As part of the AGM, the following members were also duly elected to the MC 2023/2025:
- Mr Vincent Rasa Benedict
- Mr Jeffrey Khoo Poh Tiong
- Mr Lee Hay Keong
- Mr Nakoorsha Bin Abdul Kadir
- Ms Catherina Tan Bee Hwa
- Mr Johnny Tan Khoon Hui
Asked by The e-Graduate what led her to start serving as an MC member, Ms Catherina Tan said, “I had earlier served in the Finance Sub-Committee for about a year and was very impressed by the members of the MC and the various Sub-Committees who took care of the interests of the NUSS.
“So I decided to volunteer my financial abilities to the MC in 2015 and have been an MC member ever since,” she said. Ms Tan was the Honorary Treasurer as well as the Deputy Chairperson (Editorial) last year and is looking forward to continue serving in the next two years.
Near the close of the AGM, Mr Sabnani said that members should thank the MC for its hard work. He also said that the Society owes a debt of gratitude to Mr Madhavan who had been the legal counsel for NUSS for several years.
Before closing the proceedings, Mr Tay thanked the audience for their feedback and said that the MC would consider the suggestions very carefully. He also said, “It is delightful that we were able to hold the AGM physically after a break of three years, something we took for granted before the COVID-19 Circuit Breaker restrictions.
“Nothing beats seeing everybody come together — some of our members meet only on this occasion once a year.”
