KEY POINTS:
It's 10.30am and Shawn Tan is puffing, nervously, on a working man's "rollie". He's feeling slightly shabby having just moved into a five-bedroom, 1960s, brick-and-tile house in Auckland's Mt Albert that he shares with his Marxist flatmate, Max.
At 5ft 3-ish and paunchy with not enough room in his ears for another ring, Tan appears the antithesis of what you'd expect for a 10th list member of the Act Party.
But this 24-year-old former Greens supporter is full of contradictions, and he looks like he is carrying the weight of the world on his broad shoulders.
Tan is fighting to keep his job as a caseworker at the Engineering, Printing and Manufacturing Union (EPMU) after he was suspended from his job when the union learned of his right-wing MP aspirations.
An only child born in Singapore, Tan came to New Zealand with his parents when he was 12.
He thrived at Auckland's Rangitoto College, where his fundamentalist Christian parents Dennis and Lay Ching encouraged their son to always strive for excellence. As a youngster Tan had ambitions to be an astronaut and was fascinated by astronomy _ it was that ability to transcend other people's experiences, he says.
"Looking back, it was a portent of things to come because I want to transcend the ordinary. I want to rise above by getting involved in politics."
Seven years ago Tan turned his back on Christianity and the values he felt were too restrictive.
"I have a lot of respect for what my parents believe in, but I felt they weren't the values that reflected me. I felt they were imposed on me."
Rejecting his parents' faith caused grief and hurt: "It was like a bit of a slap in the face to them and our relationship deteriorated."
His agnostic beliefs also left a void in his life, a gap that involvement in Amnesty International filled. He says his growing interest in human rights, led inevitably to the unions.
Tan began working at the EPMU in March. His degree in law and politics served him well as he gave advice to union members who had grievance issues with their employers.
Then, unexpectedly for his employers, Tan last month told his EPMU area manager that he wanted to stand for the Act Party in Mt Roskill. The EPMU will not comment on the reasons for Tan's suspension, saying only that it is an ongoing process.
But Tan alleges the response to his Act plan was unequivocal _ he says he was told to resign if he proceeded.
The Union disputes that conversation. EPMU head Andrew Little says: "We know the law on treatment of employees like the back of our hand _ and that includes employment rights and human rights obligations."
Tan says that at that first meeting he agreed to back out of the party to keep his job, but one month later, when Tan was nominated to 10th place on the Act list, he was suspended. The EPMU has alleged he used union time and resources to send out party emails.
Tan says that he was using his computer merely to respond to appointments.
He also claims if he was standing for the Labour party, he would still have his job.
"The role of the EPMU is about fighting the oppression of workers, the ability to organise workers, the ability to speak freely," says Tan. "To see them oppressing me is rather ironic."
He says one of the main reasons his family moved to New Zealand was for its greater civil liberties.
"For me now to work for an organisation that tries to apply civil liberties in a very selective manner sends a pang of sadness to my heart really."
Tan says that he has been subjected to a difficult and painful process. "This has been an inquisition and a witch-hunt."
He says his co-workers have called him a turncoat and a traitor.
People believe, he says, that he has betrayed the working class by standing for the Act Party.
So why didn't he simply resign and follow his political dream? "To me that would be throwing in the towel. I want the EPMU to break down some of their own prejudices."
If it's possible to have someone from Labour or the Greens working for the union, why not Act, he asks.
Little again disputes Tan's version of events. As for his description of a witch-hunt: "I simply say Mr Tan has himself personally gone to the media.
"His advisers who are being paid by the Act Party _ I'm talking about [Tan's advocate] Max Whitehead _ have gone to the media.
"There has been a lot of publicity that has been generated by Mr Tan and his advisers. We have done what we can to respond to media inquiries, and we respect Mr Tan's rights to have a proper investigation.
"It does make it difficult when you have that level of scrutiny when you're trying to get the facts and he goes out declaring his version of the facts."
So how did an idealistic Green party supporter and Amnesty International advocate turn to the right? Tan says he turned 24 and realised he wanted more out of life.
"My entire life has been involved in altruistic politics which involves a lot of personal sacrifice. I felt I needed to start doing something for myself."
Tan has now reconnected with his parents and has also rediscovered his cultural roots.
"I had an epiphany in June or July of this year. In 2001, when I rejected their religious values, I rejected their political values as well and I think that was a mistake actually."
Passionate about Auckland's growing Asian community, he says Chinese values of hard work, the importance of family and upholding law and order are Act values.
He would love his job back at the EPMU, he says, and is waiting for a mediation date to be set.
