SINGAPORE - As the general election draws near, substantial changes have been made to Marine Parade GRC – starting with its name.
The boundaries of the renamed Marine Parade-Braddell Heights GRC will shift significantly as well.
It will absorb all of MacPherson SMC, take in polling districts from Mountbatten and Potong Pasir SMCs, and cede the entire Joo Chiat ward and Chai Chee Housing Board estates to neighbouring East Coast GRC.
But one thing is set to stay the same – the five-member group representation constituency will be hotly contested again.
In the 2020 election, the PAP retained Marine Parade with 57.74 per cent of the vote against the Workers’ Party. This was down from 64.07 per cent in 2015.
The PAP team has since had to deal with the departure of former Speaker of Parliament Tan Chuan-Jin, who led its slate in 2020. Mr Tan resigned in 2023 after his extramarital affair with fellow MP Cheng Li Hui came to light.
With the redrawing of boundaries, another key member of the team – Minister for Culture, Community and Youth Edwin Tong – is set to move out.
Mr Tong, who has served as MP for Joo Chiat since 2015, pledged in an interview with The Straits Times to continue supporting residents in the ward after it is moved to East Coast GRC.
This sets the stage for Manpower Minister Tan See Leng to lead the People’s Action Party team into a possible multi-cornered fight with the WP and National Solidarity Party (NSP).
How the battle will shape up
Both opposition parties have announced their intention to contest Marine Parade-Braddell Heights GRC, which will have 131,493 voters.
The WP has continued to walk the ground in the GRC since the last general election.
Who the WP will field in Marine Parade remains unclear, though several candidates who contested in 2020 could make a return – IT professional Nathaniel Koh and lawyer Fadli Fawzi have been making their rounds in the constituency.
Other WP new faces spotted in Marine Parade include senior counsel Harpreet Singh Nehal, who is widely regarded as the opposition party’s “star catch” for this election.
His possible candidacy has received much attention online, given his position as a senior counsel. He was appointed in 2007.
There is a question mark over where Mr Singh will eventually be fielded. Political observers have noted that he could easily be redeployed to another GRC like East Coast.
Another new face is communications executive Jackson Au, who is part of the WP’s media team.
The NSP, meanwhile, staked a claim to the GRC after the Electoral Boundaries Review Committee released its report.
The opposition party has not given any indication of whom it intends to field in the constituency, which it last contested in 2011.
At present, Marine Parade GRC has five wards: Marine Parade, Joo Chiat, Geylang Serai, Braddell Heights and Kembangan-Chai Chee.
The incumbent MPs are Dr Tan See Leng (Marine Parade), Mr Tong (Joo Chiat), Speaker of Parliament Seah Kian Peng (Braddell Heights), and Mayor of South East District Mohd Fahmi Aliman (Geylang Serai).
The MPs have had to cover Mr Tan Chuan-Jin’s ward after his resignation.
Dr Tan said that following Mr Tan’s departure, grassroots engagement has continued in Kembangan-Chai Chee ward without disruption.
“Not a single initiative has been stopped or let go – for example, our dental programme, food rescue activities, HDB Home Improvement Programme,” he told ST in an interview.
“In fact, we have gradually introduced more initiatives to meet the needs of residents there,” Dr Tan added.
An outdoor board displaying Marine Parade ward MP Tan See Leng along Marine Parade Central Road on March 8, 2025.
An outdoor board displaying Marine Parade MP Dr Tan See Leng along Marine Parade Central Road on March 8, 2025.ST PHOTO: MARK CHEONG
The PAP has also sent new face Choo Pei Ling to help plug the gap. Dr Choo, an assistant professor at the Singapore Institute of Technology’s Health and Social Sciences cluster, is second adviser to the grassroots organisations in Kembangan-Chai Chee.
One key question ahead of the polls is what impact Mr Tan’s resignation could have. Another is what bearing the shifting of boundaries will have on the electoral outcome.
Some political observers noted that since 2015, a growing number of voters in Joo Chiat have thrown their weight behind Mr Tong. His ward becoming part of East Coast could thus be seen as a boon for that GRC.
They generally felt that the inclusion of MacPherson – where MP Tin Pei Ling secured 71.74 per cent of the vote in 2020 – could bolster the PAP in Marine Parade-Braddell Heights.
Former PAP MP Inderjit Singh reckons that overall, “the balance will be with PAP in Marine Parade”. He added that the overall result will also depend on whom the WP fields in the GRC.
However, political analyst Tan Ern Ser, adjunct principal research fellow and academic adviser at the Institute of Policy Studies Social Lab, cautioned against relying on past results to predict the outcome of the coming election.
“Singapore is entering a new era. It has a new team now fully at the helm,” he said, citing economic and demographic challenges that could shape voter sentiment.
Key issues include a rapidly ageing population, a total fertility rate below 1, persistent inflation and external economic pressures, he added.
“It’d be difficult to extrapolate from past victories or defeats,” he said.
In a Facebook post on March 14, Mr Harpreet Singh from WP said the party is not daunted by MacPherson being redrawn into Marine Parade-Braddell Heights. “If anything, this only strengthens our resolve,” he added.
The WP did not respond to queries from ST for this article.
As for the prospect of a multi-cornered fight, Singapore Management University law don Eugene Tan felt this “probably will not materialise”.
“It remains to be seen if NSP will eventually proceed with its plans to contest there. It may well be posturing at this stage as the parties jostle to contest in their preferred seats,” he said.
The associate professor added that any opposition party wading into a PAP-WP contest will have to seriously consider the likelihood of losing its deposit.
He said he does not see a three-way contest benefiting the PAP in any significant way in the GRC, as most opposition voters will pool their votes behind the WP, which they regard as having the best chance of unseating the ruling party.
“It is this vote pooling that will reduce the possibility of votes for the opposition splitting more than one way,” Prof Tan said.
The GRC has slightly more public housing – 58.4 per cent – than private homes, based on ST’s analysis using Department of Statistics data dated June 2024.
The Marine Parade and Braddell Heights wards stand out for their eldercare initiatives, as more than 20 per cent of their residents are aged 65 and above, higher than the national average of 17 per cent.
Responding to residents’ concerns
The improved accessibility and eldercare services within the constituency have earned plaudits from some residents, who told ST that they feel well supported there.
Currently, residents in Marine Parade ward benefit from initiatives such as a programme that offers free meals and social activities to seniors, and new infrastructure like sheltered linkways connecting homes to amenities.
GRC-wide initiatives include a free shuttle bus service, with 29,000 registered users, transporting residents to essential amenities such as hawker centres and healthcare facilities.
For long-time Marine Parade resident Kong Kam Nyok, 76, even though Dr Tan See Leng was a first-term MP who took over from Emeritus Senior Minister Goh Chok Tong, the leadership changes have not dampened her faith in her MPs’ ability to care for the GRC’s ageing population.
Having lived in the area since 1975, she has seen it evolve across five decades.
Madam Kong, who lives in Block 57 Marine Terrace, near an MRT station along the Thomson-East Coast Line that opened in 2024, said she appreciates senior-friendly initiatives such as Goodlife Makan at Block 52, where seniors can enjoy free meals and social activities.
“The MPs have taken care of the ward,” she said.
Newer residents, like a mother-and-daughter pair who moved to Marine Parade in 2024, have also been drawn to the ward’s elder-friendly amenities.
Despite taking nearly a year to find a four-room flat at $650,000, they felt that the move was worthwhile.
“We wanted to grow old here because of the many activities and amenities for the elderly,” said the 46-year-old daughter, who declined to be named as she did not want relatives and friends to know her family had moved to Marine Parade.
She added that her mother, 76, likes the many exercise corners for seniors in the estate.
Madam Kwong Mei, 72, a resident of Marine Terrace, pointed to how a newly constructed sheltered linkway made her daily commute much easier.
“The sheltered linkway makes a big difference. Before, my children would worry about me slipping and falling on the wet slippery floor during rainy days,” she said.
“Now, I can walk safely all the way from my flat to Marine Terrace MRT station. From there, I will take the train to Marine Parade Central for my regular check-ups at the polyclinic.”
The covered linkway between Block 50 and 12 Marine Terrace pictured on March 8, 2025.
The covered linkway between Block 50 and 12 Marine Terrace pictured on March 8, 2025.ST PHOTO: MARK CHEONG
While many residents appreciate the improvements in the estate, some have raised concerns about other issues affecting their living environment.
Several residents pointed out that crows have become a growing nuisance in the area.
Ms Teo, who wished to be identified only by her surname, voiced worries about cockroach infestations in the common areas, which she suspected were linked to ongoing construction work.
Beyond estate-level concerns, some residents are also troubled by broader national issues such as housing affordability and the rising cost of living.
Madam Veerama Palaniyandi Sivalinga, who has lived in a rental flat in Marine Terrace for more than 40 years, said high food prices remain a concern for many.
The 74-year-old, who sells home-baked cookies for a living, acknowledged the Government’s efforts to provide support.
“We need to live within our means. The Government has given a lot of vouchers to help us,” she said.
For some younger families, the future of housing affordability is a pressing worry.
Mr Henry Tan, 41, an IT sales professional with a five-year-old son, questioned whether his child would be able to afford a home in the years to come.
“With some flats hitting $1 million, I wonder if my son will be able to afford a home,” he said.
Meanwhile, over at Joo Chiat Complex, Dr Tan has been actively involved in addressing estate-related concerns.
He recalled how he had to help solve a perennial lift issue faced by residents of Joo Chiat Complex in his first term as an MP.
Built in 1984 in Geylang Serai, Joo Chiat Complex is home to Malay textile and craft shops and has Housing Board flats in Blocks 3 and 4.
Previously, residents faced long waits for lifts, especially during peak shopping seasons like the holy month of Ramadan. Tensions ran high between residents and shoppers competing for lift access.
The issue arose because the same lifts served both residents and shoppers, who used them to access the multi-storey carpark.
To address this, a card access system was rolled out in May 2021, which restricted access to the lifts from the multi-storey carpark to residents with an access card. Non-residents must now take other lifts designated for public use.
Additionally, access doors to the carpark on levels two to four of Blocks 3 and 4 remain locked, allowing only residents with access cards to enter.
Generic of Joo Chiat at Joo Chiat Complex on Mar 13, 2025.
A card access system was rolled out in Joo Chiat Complex to restrict access to its multi-storey car park.ST PHOTO: ARIFFIN JAMAR
A resident, Madam Soh, who runs a retail shop in Joo Chiat Complex and declined to give her full name, said: “Residents would insist they had priority because they lived here, while shoppers were unhappy when residents cut the queue. Shouting matches were common.”
Highlighting the importance of this project, Dr Tan said: “HDB also took further steps to improve convenience to our residents by relocating parking spaces to allow residents to park closer to the lifts and installing directional signs for patrons and tenants.”
He added that HDB will also build a dedicated low-rise lift for the multi-storey carpark to further improve accessibility. Work is estimated to start in June and be completed by the second quarter of 2027.
Other initiatives rolled out in the constituency include WeCare programmes to help residents in need and the Caregiver Support Network that looks after the needs of caregivers in the constituency.
In 2024, a new PCF Sparkletots centre was opened in Joo Chiat ward, and a new integrated community hub located in Upper East Coast Road is set to be completed in 2029.
In Braddell Heights, residents will soon see the opening of the long-awaited Serangoon Polyclinic by the end of 2025. This will be Singapore’s largest polyclinic by floor area. The facility will also house an expanded dialysis centre, which is expected to shorten waits for patients.
Mr Seah, the Braddell Heights MP, said there is a dialysis centre at Block 201 Serangoon Central, but it is rather small, and therefore, there are residents on the waiting list. At present, these residents have to travel farther away to be treated.
“At the new Serangoon Polyclinic, there will be a much bigger dialysis centre, so that will lighten the burden and make it a lot more convenient for residents needing dialysis treatment going forward,” he said.
Mr Seah added: “My area is a compact one, densely populated and with many elderly, way above national demographics. So, for the elderly who need to go to a polyclinic to see a doctor or for treatment, convenience is paramount – from both the time and cost point of view.”
Dr Tan emphasised that his team has invested considerable effort in engaging residents and improving the community, regardless of the recent boundary changes.
He gave the assurance that residents in areas moving out of the GRC would continue to receive support from the incumbent MPs. Similarly, those joining the GRC would benefit from the groundwork already laid.
Voters’ familiarity with candidates plays a key role in shaping electoral outcomes, he noted.
With the battle lines redrawn and key players raising their game on the ground, Marine Parade-Braddell Heights GRC is set to be a fierce battleground where every vote will count.
“I think that it’s good for Marine Parade residents... that you’ve got so many interested parties who want to come and serve them. So the Marine Parade residents have a good range of options,” said Dr Tan.
“In every general election, it will never be an easy fight. It is not a walk in the park, but the key thing is, at the end of the day, the only real beneficiaries have to be the residents and the citizens.”
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