SINGAPORE - Residents’ needs are the priority at Meet-the-People Sessions (MPS), and those attending should recognise and respect that.
Minister for Social and Family Development Masagos Zulkifli said residents attend the sessions to have their most pressing needs addressed.
“(The residents) are very stressed, and we shouldn’t add to any of these stresses that they are already facing,” Mr Masagos, who is Minister-in-charge of Muslim Affairs, said on March 15 in response to questions from the media about disruptions at MPS by activists.
MPS is usually held once a week in individual wards, and offer residents one-to-one meetings with their Members of Parliament.
In recent months, activists have turned up at the sessions to air their grievances.
They include members of the Monday of Palestine Solidarity group, which the PAP said carried out its activities at more than 10 Meet-the-People Sessions.
PAP said the group would typically create a ruckus in the waiting area and disrupt the queue system, while also filming and raising their voices, affecting residents.
Speaking on the sidelines of an event launching SG60 care initiatives for Tampines residents, Mr Masagos, who is a Tampines GRC MP, said that everyone attending MPS should be respectful of the residents.
He did not comment about any such disruptions in Tampines.
Minister for Digital Development and Information Josephine Teo, who is an MP for Jalan Besar GRC, posted on March 14 about two similar incidents that happened at her Kreta Ayer-Kim Seng branch office in November 2024 and January.
She said that in the November 2024 incident, two women attended her MPS to voice their concerns about Singapore’s stance on the Israel-Hamas war.
Although such sessions prioritise residents, spoke to the women for nearly an hour after attending to her duties.
Mrs Teo said a few weeks later, an online article appeared about their exchange, despite interactions during MPS being confidential and MPs typically not publicly disclosing what was discussed.
The issue is in the spotlight after two women confronted Law and Home Affairs Minister K. Shanmugam and caused a commotion at his MPS in Chong Pang on March 12.
The activists had shouted and called Mr Shanmugam, an MP for Nee Soon GRC, a coward.
Deputy Prime Minister Heng Swee Keat said there are various avenues for people to have their voices heard, but building a better society requires more than just voicing views.
DPM Heng, who is an MP for East Coast GRC, added: “It is our belief that to build a better society, it is not just about voicing our views, but about doing something.
“Like if I say I care about old people, I care about keeping the environment clean, the question is what can I do with this?”
Speaking to the media during a walkabout at Simei Plaza on March 15, DPM Heng said that many residents have condemned what the activists did at Mr Shanmugam’s MPS.
“In fact, many in our Malay-Muslim community have also criticised that, because that is not the right way,” he added.
The issue is in the spotlight after two women confronted Law and Home Affairs Minister K. Shanmugam and caused a commotion at his MPS in Chong Pang on March 12.PHOTOS: K. SHANMUGAM/FACEBOOK
DPM Heng said MPs have been holding dialogues, forums, house visits and walkabouts to engage people on various issues.
He said that the Government is always happy to help young people, whether it be in the startup world, with volunteer movements or participation in other programmes.
“So it’s not just about ‘I want it this way’. But come and construct this future together,” he added.
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Thanks for sharing!