http://www.todayonline.com/Singapore/EDC120906-0000066/Steering-NKF-through-tough-times-ahead
And it is against this backdrop that incoming chairman Koh Poh Tiong, 65, will assume his post on Oct 29, with the aim of meeting the needs of the 500 new patients with renal failure expected in the next four to five years, continuing to serve its current patients, and attracting donations from the public.
TODAY had first reported the appointment of Mr Koh, formerly the CEO of Fraser & Neave, on Tuesday. Outlining his plans for the charity at a press conference yesterday, Mr Koh said the NKF will be building four to five new dialysis centres to cater to new patients. Each centre will cost about S$2 million to build and S$1.5 million in operational costs annually.
To fund all this, Mr Koh said he is looking into a "sustainable financing model" and will tap on his 42 years of corporate experience to get corporations to "contribute in a more significant way".
At the same time, he is seeking to woo back subscribers who dropped out of its donation programmes.
He was quick to stress that the NKF today is a "very frugal NKF" and assured that "every S$1 you put in there, most of it goes into helping the patient."
He also pledged to improve NKF's corporate governance, transparency and accountability.
Incumbent chairman Gerard Ee said the estimated S$5 million deficit is due to a drop in investment income owing to the sluggish economy, which has also affected the monthly GIRO donations from Singaporeans which average about S$5.
The NKF is also facing difficulty in finding suitable sites for dialysis centres - usually located at the void decks of HDB blocks - as they usually face objections from residents, said Mr Ee.
It is looking at renting spaces under the Civil & Community Institution scheme, where tenants need not pay rent, only a monthly service fee for maintenance and utilities.
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