Howard Lee & Benjamin Cheah /

“Hi, are you a resident of Potong Pasir?”

“No no no…”

You would be surprised at the number of people who are not Potong Pasir residents, but happen to be in Potong Pasir, when we dropped in for this article on a rainy Sunday morning.

Or perhaps we looked like a couple of sneaky insurance salesmen. But giving away that we were from TOC did get us a few smiles and some answers to two questions that we had: “What changes do residents of Potong Pasir wish to see in their town?” and “What do they hope that their new Member of Parliament can do for them?”

The questions were the result of a nagging suspicion that, for all that the candidates have promised Potong Pasir residents during the recent general elections, they might not really have got to the root of their interests and wishes. And judging from the responses we received from our quick ground poll, in some ways, we may be right.

Fix it where it is worth

If there was one common theme that ran through the responses of all the people who responded to our questions, it was a strong desire for the town council to get the basics right. The key area of contention: installing lifts on every floor of the public housing blocks.

“(We want) lifts on every floor,” said Mr Tai, 19. “If you look around this area, most of the residents are quite old.”

His brother, 17, also agreed, and was disappointed that the Singapore People’s Party, which held the town council seat for the past 27 years, could not accomplish this; a “five-year promise” that was not fulfilled.

It was apparent that the Tai brothers, while not of voting age, have strong views on what needs to be done for the less fortunate in this town, which might be a reflection of a growing desire for physical change among the residents.

But we may be wrong to think that residents want an overhaul of Potong Pasir. “I hope that things will not change that much,” opined Fazli, 30. “This place is peaceful, happy. We don’t want places that attract attention.”

He was referring to plans by the People’s Action Party’s Sitoh Yih Pin to build shopping centres and a waterfront recreational area at the nearby Kallang River. “I just hope (Sitoh) can maintain the area, make it better for the elderly.”

Promises made, promises kept?

If anything, it might seem that the PAP was voted in as a test to see if it can really fulfill what the SPP had promised but, according to some residents, had fallen short.

Ms Chua, 53, replied tersely to our questions: “If Sitoh Yih Pin delivers, then it is okay.”

Others were less optimistic. Albeit being in a position of bias, Mr Ramesh, 48 and an SPP grassroots member, had difficulties trusting Sitoh to do the job right. “All the town council staff were fired,” he said, referring to the recent incident where Sitoh allegedly went back on his word to the Chiams. “I have no confidence in him. Mr Chiam, what he has promised, he (has done his best to) deliver.”

Somewhere among the sentiments, we sensed a certain tiredness among the residents; it has been a long 27 years being this model of holding out against the temptations of upgrading for the vague honour of being the cornerstone of Singapore democracy.

One resident, perhaps in his late forties, who did not want to be named, offered a glimpse into this psyche: “The rest is up to Aljunied – we have done our part.”

Was there a spirit of resilience among the residents to defend the fierce democratic reputation of Potong Pasir? Is it still there? Wilfred Leung, in our earlier interview leading up to the general elections, said that Potong Pasir residents were voters who were beyond their time.

Our sense is that there is still a certain spark, but pragmatism could have taken over many, and the decision to turn their neighbourhood for the better was not an easy one to make.

We can’t blame them for taking a calculated risk. Neither should we see it as a failure of SPP, nor the confident success of PAP in recapturing the seat. The truth is, there is still some misinterpretation of what Potong Pasir residents really want to make it their kind of town, and a forward-looking one at that. By all counts, both parties still have a long way to go.

Read Part 1 HERE.

 

Subscribe
Notify of
0 Comments
Inline Feedbacks
View all comments
You May Also Like

打了七场选战没在怕 陈清木:担忧的是人民的性命健康

尽管新加坡前进党陈清木医生反对此时选举,但他表示过去打过七场选战,自己畏惧的不是面对选举,而是人们在疫情下的性命健康。 在23日的网络记者会,针对记者提问,陈清木表示,环境局撤回有关该党成员违反社交距离的警告,但他也指出,这也突出冠病疫情下的一个重要面向,并重申此时大选是非常不负责任的。 “我们理应先为人民着想,不幸的是政治已经超越了所有的这些考量。” 陈清木指出,自己打了七场选战,从不畏惧面对,但自己以百姓为优先,世卫组织早已警告疫情复发的风险,为此此时选举实属不明智。 他举例,选举期间每个人都要前往投票站,一个密闭的空间内投票,即使目前提出群聚限五人的限制等等,但他很怀疑这些措施能否有效落实。 他也证实,环境局已告知该党,本周日对该党发出的违规社交距离警告已撤销。 六名前进党成员,是在周日(21日)拜访到武吉巴督31街第358组屋时,被指违反社交距离规定,被记下个人资料。一名安全距离大使,以及一名自称环境局官员的人士,记下他们的个资。 不过后来环境局澄清,上述人员实则是该局的社区志愿者,或培训为保洁大使(SG Clean Ambassador)。  

王乙康称会馆会员获2B阶段报名优先权 以铭记创立学校的根源

针对会馆会员在为孩子报名属下小学一年级时,拥有2B阶段报名优先权,经常让公众不解,教育部长王乙康解释,这是为了不让国人忘记,这些政府辅助学校的历史和根源。 王乙康昨日(5日)在新加坡福建会馆教师节晚宴上说,政府辅助学校中的利益相关者、家长与社区都是我国教育体系下的主要合作伙伴,时至今日,他们继续维护学校与社群文化,协助培养下一代健全的价值观,为学生提供全面发展的教育。 王乙康也解释,自我国的自治、独立与增长后,政府向政府辅助学校提供了与政府学校相同条件的服务,包括发放教职员工的薪水,使得学校管理委员会的资金压力大大舒缓,能够更专注在学校的运营上。 谈及政府辅助学校的资源,王乙康说,华族会馆早期为了满足当时社会对教育的需求,就已创立辅助学校,成为政府辅助学校的重要部分。 我国教育制度可分成两大类:政府学校,以及政府辅助学校,其中政府辅助学校,是由社群成立并服务于社群。 它们自主组建教职委员会并为了学校的持续发展而筹集资金。鉴于起源和历史背景,这些学校也承载了创校社群的精神、文化和价值观。比如由福建会馆办的道南、爱同、光华等学校,连同许多其他社群学校,就属于“政府辅助学校”。

公园电灯柱电线外露 热心公民找到掉落盖子盖上

民主党秘书长徐顺全,在本月1日发现武吉巴督230座组屋附近游乐场,有公共电灯柱的电线外露,也找不到盖子盖上,若有附近小孩玩耍时不慎触碰,仍十分危险。 他指出直到昨天(3日)中午,情况以然如此。所幸一名网民Bs Koh 留言表示,在附近地上找到了这灯柱电路的盖子,权且先把它盖上,只不过没有螺丝钉能锁上。 徐顺全感谢这位热心公民,不过也提醒民众为安全起见,应避免接触这些外露的电线。再者我们也不知道这些线路是否有电流流通。 无论如何,民众感谢这位公民,同时也提醒负责武吉巴督单选区的市镇会,应注意公园设备的维修。 徐顺全在上届选举,在武吉巴督单选区上阵,对垒人民行动党穆仁理。后者仅以54.8巴仙得票率,守住该选区。 武吉巴督是由裕廊-金文泰市镇会管辖。