COVERSTORY
Just Your Everyday
Son, Husband and Father
By Farhan Shah
Ching Wei Hong might
be the Chief Operating
Officer in OCBC Bank
and the Chairman of
Families for Life but
just like you and me,
he can occasionally be
exasperated with his
teenage children. We sit
down with him, coffee
in hand, and discuss
his thoughts about the
struggles of the average
Singaporean family.
We are seated around the glass
dining table and Ching, who has made
himself comfortable at the head of
the table, is telling me about his
idea to collaborate with the Ministry
of Social and Family Development
(MSF) to organise lunchtime talks for
parent employees in OCBC Bank.
“It would be great to have a talk
about, for example, handling
difficult teens!” Ching says jokingly
before giving a knowing, almost
imperceptible glance at his two
teenage children, Marianne and
Christian. “I think there would be a
huge audience on that day!”
In spite of its subtlety, the silent
glance spoke volumes about
Ching’s everyday worries.
He might be the COO for
OCBC Bank, ranked
the second strongest
bank in the world last
year by Bloomberg
Markets, but Ching
Wei Hong is just like
any other parent on the
street, grappling with
I told them I hardly
embodied the concept of
work-life balance! For
many years, I struggled
to get home in time
to have dinner with my
family. Once, my secretary
even sat down with me
and said: ‘Let’s try to plan
one day in the week when
you can get home on time
to have dinner with
your family.’ The plan
never came into fruition.
10
Family & Life • Mar 2014
the pains of dealing with and raising
a teenager (in his case, two) in the
home while handling the everyday
stressors of life.
But if there is a person capable of
understanding the intricacies of the
adolescent mind, Ching would top
the list, such is his dedication to
the family cause in Singapore. “The
family is a very important component
of society. When I was growing up, I
saw all the different family variations
possible – single-parent families,
broken families, etc. Yet, at the end
of the day, there is nothing that can
be compared to blood ties. Whether
we like it or not, we are a son or a
daughter, a father or a mother. This
is my most important role – being a
son and a father.”
This unwavering devotion was
the main reason why Ching was
approached by the MSF in August
2013 to take over the reins of the
former National Family Council,
recently renamed to Families for Life.
It was an opportunity he immediately
took up without any hesitation.
“Separately, I was already thinking
of the different ways that I would be
able to contribute back to society and
when this chance came, I snapped
it up,” says the father of two. Ching
is no stranger to tackling such
responsibilities; he served for two
years on the board of the now defunct
Businesses for Families Council.
However, the father of two candidly
admits that he is quite possibly
one of the worst candidates for the
leadership role.
“It was actually one of the first few
thoughts that crossed my mind when
they approached me. I told them
I hardly embodied the concept of
work-life balance!” admits Ching
good-naturedly. “For many years, I
struggled to get home in time to have
dinner with my family. Once, my
secretary even sat down with