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Rebirth

My last one-on-one encounter with Mr Durai was on a balmy Sunday, right smack in the middle of a lazy afternoon. Our department was made to go back on our precious Sunday for a business plan presentation. It was during the height of the charity show and Mr D was busying himself with the lucky draw winners for the first show. Yes ladies and gentleman, we waited in the boardroom on our sunday as he spent a good 45mins downstairs personally congratulating the lady on winning the condo and thanking her for her support.

The presentation was not an easy one, he made my boss cry, he pushed us hard, challenged our set methods of fundraising and emphasied the importance of donor recognition.

Mr Durai was not an easy man to work for. A perfectionist, a zelous dynamic leader.
Stong, sturdy and meticulous.
These were the values on which he ran the NKF.
Fines for tardiness, grammar mistakes, typo errors, spelling errors, lights, irresponsible booking of facilities, it's the Singapore within Singapore.

Despite his endavour to be worldclass, there were things that were overlooked, mistakes that were made.
"When there is a ink stain on a sheet of white paper, the ink stain is the only thing you will focus on" -Mofo
The case here is not a misuse of funds but rather the lack of public education and transparency.

As my colleagues and I await the results of a possible restructuring and impending retrechment, I only hope that the mindset towards charities will change over time. I only hope that our reserves will be protected and not quickly depleted so that the next fundraising activity would be justifiable with tin cans and a "sorry ah auntie...we have no reserves, no money, please help us or our patients will die."

I hope Mr Durai will now find the time to take that long overdue holiday with his family. It's been 36 years, have a good break TT.