SINGAPORE — Senior citizens have been said to have been spending less time at their HDB void deck after the undamaged mosaic-tiled seats were changed to ones that were coated with rough pebbles.
This was shared by Mr Ravi Philemon on his Facebook page last Wednesday, based on what he heard from a resident while doing a door-to-door visit.
Mr Philemon is the Secretary General of Red Dot United (RDU), a political party which contested in the last General Election at Jurong Group Representation Constituency (GRC).
He noted that the resident had highlighted to him how a perfectly good mosaic-covered concrete chess table and seats at her void deck were replaced with that covered with many tiny pebbles.
According to the resident, the older folks who used to gather around the chess table to pass time, can no longer sit there for too long because the pebbled seats are too rough causing it to hurt when they sit there for too long.
The elderly folks also find it very difficult to rest their arms on the table’s rough surface as it can cause abrasions — especially for older people whose skins are usually thinner and more fragile.
“They did not ask any one of us about the table in the void deck. Why replace a perfectly good table? Do they actually not want the older people to not sit there for too long?” the resident told the team from RDU.
“This may seem like a small issue, but it actually gives us a glimpse of the PAP’s DNA.” wrote Mr Philemon in response to the matter.
“And when they try and initiate a conversation or consultation, it is heavily curated and on their own terms. This gives them an upper hand in deciding what the outcomes and the narratives of such conversations should be.”
Referring to the change of tables, Mr Philemon asserts that the People’s Action Party, the ruling party in Singapore is non-consultative at its core and takes a top-down approach on many issues.
“You get a firsthand view of this when you walk the ground and notice the ‘wasteful’ decisions they make – and without consulting the people who will be directly affected by it.”
He then took snipe at the Forward Singapore Exercise which was launched by Deputy Prime Minister in June this year and was meant to strengthen Singapore’s social compact.
Asking, “But how can we have any meaningful National Conversation when statistics are given to us in a piecemeal manner, and when Ministers refuse to answer important questions on proper data in Parliament?”
Mr Philemon might have been referring to the exchange that Minister Indranee Rajah and the Leader of the Opposition, Pritam Singh had last Monday where the Minister said that it was not helpful or meaningful for the Housing Development Board to disclose the breakdown of the development cost for all the HDB flats that it constructs.
“The Government should ensure that citizens can access reliable, quality and independent information so that they can rise to the challenges of our modern society, understand what the trade-offs are, and together forge a social compact,” said Mr Philemon, noting that RDU has pushed for the Freedom of Information Act.
He argues that such an Act will empower citizens with the right to request access to government-held information — information which does not impinge on national security issues.
“Any National Conversation without the Freedom of Information Act is meaningless.”
As for the replacement of the mosaic-covered concrete chess table and seats, Mr Philemon suggested that the residents should be told why it needs to be replaced, what are the available options for the replacement, and what is the cost of each of these options.
“Then we can together decide if the set should indeed be replaced, and if it needs to be replaced, which is the best replacement that balances against cost and the needs (comfort) of the community.”
“Elected leaders especially, must listen deeply to the people who voted for them and ensure that as much as possible, their wishes are incorporated into decisions that are made.”
TOC has written to the Tanjong Pagar Town Council for their response on the change of table and seats and will update the post with their response.
Ready To Contest In Other Wards Other Than Jurong GRC
Tanjong Pagar GRC was previously contested by Progress Singapore Party (PSP) in the last General Election, garnering a vote share of 36.87 per cent against the incumbent PAP team.
As Holland Avenue lies within the Tanjong Pagar GRC, TOC asked RDU if the party intends to contest at the Tanjong Pagar GRC for the coming election.
In response, Mr Philemon shared that PSP has been informed that the party will be doing walkabouts at the GRC.
“RDU values its friendship with PSP and appreciates the efforts and resources PSP poured into the constituency they contested in, in the last election,” said Mr Philemon.
“We are however also mindful of the fact that the Election Department is under the Prime Minister’s Office and it can change the boundaries of any constituency at its whims and fancy.”
Mr Philemon also noted that RDU has grown in numbers in the past two years and it is ready to contest in constituencies other than Jurong GRC if there is a need to do so, and the party would want to be thoroughly prepared for such a scenario.
“We will of course always look for opportunities to forge a strong alliance (or loose partnerships if that works better) with other opposition parties, in preparing for the next General Election.” said Mr Philemon.
