By Courtney Dentch
As a 30-year veteran of city government, Inderjit Singh has helped agencies find solutions to housing, tax, zoning and contract problems for people across the city.
Now, Singh is hoping to focus more closely on southern Queens by putting that experience to work for the people of the 28th City Council District in Jamaica and Richmond Hill, he said.
“I have lived in the city for many years and worked in city government for three decades,” said Singh, 66, of Richmond Hill. “I understand how the governmental process works.”
Singh, a Democrat, is slated to face City Councilman Allan Jennings (D-Jamaica) and Yvonne Reddick, district manager of Community Board 12, in the party primary election Sept. 9.
Despite taking on the incumbent Jennings and Democratic Party favorite Reddick, Singh believes his experience in the city makes him the best person for the job, he said.
“I feel that I am the better qualified of the candidates,” Singh said in an interview with the TimesLedger. “I am going to reach out to everyone in the district and my appeal to them is let the best person win – the person who is in a better position to represent their interests.”
Singh was an economist in the City Planning office for 10 years, working on zoning resolutions to meet industry needs and tax structures to aid city revenues, he said. At the city's Human Resources Administration he worked with the Internal Revenue Service to withhold tax refunds for parents who owed child support, he said. Singh also worked at the city's Housing Authority and the Department of Contract Administration, he said.
Among his priorities, Singh, who describes himself as a Democrat with American values, lists education, senior citizens, immigrants and tolerance issues, he said.
“We need to refocus on those values – hard work, opportunity, tolerance and compassion,” Singh said. “I intend to bring those things in front of the people to remind them that is what makes this country great.”
As a South Asian immigrant running in a district that encompasses large black and South Asian communities, Singh said his ethnicity is a plus, both for his campaign and the district.
“This is a multiethnic, multiracial district and we should set an example for the rest of the city and the rest of the world that democracy functions,” he said. “The government of the people should look like the people it is representing.”
Singh was initially removed from the ballot in the face of a challenge from Jennings, but was restored by a court decision Aug. 5, he said.
“I am quite certain that if the district sets a high bar, I would have no trouble passing that,” he said. “Ask for the best and you will get it. I will listen to what is in the best interest for everyone.”
Reach reporter Courtney Dentch by e-mail at TimesLedger@aol.com, or by phone at 718-229-0300, Ext. 138.
